Are you ready for investors?
You might be ready now if you have a great product or service, have settled on a business model, and have a detailed written plan and financial spreadsheet analysis for presentation. If you think you may not be ready — very good reason to call me, let’s get started… 541-613-6313.
The basic categories you need to address in preparing a business plan to illustrate your vision and venture strategy are • Company Description • Product (Service) Description & Customer Value Proposition • Business Model • Market Analysis • Sales and Marketing • Founder and Management Team • Financial Plan and Projections • Exit Strategy • Executive Summary.
Having said that, there is a lot more to consider in thinking things through and preparing your formal plan. I am not sure about the Devil, but investors want to put their trust in the details.
How are you protecting your venture’s IP (intellectual property) — do you have patents, trade secrets, market domination? Does your startup have a defining culture? Is your startup team complete — can you execute your business plan with your existing crew? How much capital should you ask for, and how much do you really need? How much equity will you give up for your current round of funding? Are you already in the market testing and refining your product? How flexible are you? How dedicated and passionate about succeeding are you?
I tout the "breadth of my experience" as a great asset for supporting and serving startups. All the experience your team and I can muster needs be focused on your venture's business plan. It needs to answer investor questions directly and completely to allow them to stay focused on your vision. If you have a great idea, plan, and team, I can author a winning business plan for you. If you are not there yet, I can help you get to where you are ready to accept funding.
Want to do some more work on the plan yourself first? You can search out a lot of guidance and on the internet, or at your library. Ask and I can point you to sample plans, and business plan resources.
“For start-up ventures, the process of preparing a business plan serves as a road map to the future by making entrepreneurs and business owners think through their strategies, evaluate their basic business concepts, recognize their business’s limitations, and avoid a variety of mistakes.
Virtually every business needs a business plan. It can be used as the basis for loan applications from banks and other lenders. Lack of proper planning is one of the most often cited reasons for business failures.”
“Those who plan do better than those who do not plan even though they rarely stick to their plan.”
“People often complain about lack of time when the lack of direction is the real problem.”
“To map out a course of action and follow it to an end requires some of the same courage that a soldier needs.”
“Everyone has a plan - until they get punched in the face.”
Business Model
Your venture's business model is essentially the strategy you will use to sell your product/service profitably. The model will carefully define your unique customer value proposition, your target customer, the resources and processes needed to deliver your product to the customer, and just how your business model is financially viable.
The four classic business models boil down to being a Retailer, a Wholesaler, a Manufacturer or a Franchise. More specifically there are many, many variations and creative angles on the subject, and you want to describe your approach very clearly, particularly if it is innovative.
Here are three business model examples: Subscription Model - where recurring revenue is pre-sold into the future (e.g. streaming music services, Spotify); Freemium Model - sign up with personal information and receive something from the business free of charge. The business then typically markets services based on personal details and hopes to build an ongoing relationship and perhaps an up-sell (e.g. LinkedIn); Direct Sales Model - where your company bypasses wholesalers and retailers to be in direct contact with your customers (e.g. Amazon.)
A venture need not be defined by a single model just as eBay, for example, sells some products by auction and others directly for a set price. Your choice and definition of a business model will shape and inform your business plan and be critical in successfully describing your company vision and convincing investors to invest.
TWO MINUTE SURREAL "Model" VIDEO YOU MIGHT ENJOY "vlinevfx" posted YouTube of Masters Project done at Teesside University, Middlesbrough, England
“A good plan today is better than a perfect plan tomorrow.”
“Although an idea is what often gets investors interested, a business plan is definitely needed to get financial support from them. The simple act of writing down your idea and outlining how the business will operate can be helpful to ensure that you communicate your vision and that everyone is on the same page. It also helps you benchmark and check your progress as the company grows.”
“Setting a goal is not the main thing. It is deciding how you will go about achieving it and staying with that plan.”
“Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe.”
“By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.”
“Our goals can only be reached through a vehicle of a plan, in which we must fervently believe, and upon which we must vigorously act. There is no other route to success.”
