When SHOULDN’T You Use a Sample Business Plan?

If you thought that a sample business plan can help you in EVERY instance where business plan writing is required, you might be surprised to learn that it isn’t.  There are certain situations where using a sample plan won’t give you the best results.  Here are a few of those.

If the Investor You Are Approaching, Has Specific Requirements

Often, investors will have a specific format or list of requirements that you need to fulfil when submitting a plan. If you veer off that list of requirements when you submit your plan, you run the risk of irritating the investor, and that’s the last thing you want to do.

If you’re considering submitting a plan to any specific investor or VC company, you want to make sure that you follow their requirements to the letter.  Which means that even if you think your awesome idea requires fifty pages to fully be explained, if they want ten, you’re going to need to whittle it down!

If Your Business Is Completely New and Unique

If your business idea is so new, and so cutting edge, that it’s never been done before, then you probably won’t find a sample business plan that matches it.  You may, however, find one that’s similar, or you could use a combination of a few sample business plans for complimentary industries to mix and match the sections you need for your own plan.

Always remember that a sample business plan is a guideline – and that you can use more than one to get all the sections you need for a particular business type.  You don’t have to follow them religiously, and you don’t need to use only one.

If You Don’t Have An Idea Yet

A sample business plan can do many things – but it cannot give you good ideas! Don’t start looking for sample business plans, books on business planning, business plan templates or anything else until you have a solid idea.  For one thing, you won’t be able to find the right sample, and for another, it’s impossible to do the amount of research necessary to craft a decent plan if you have no idea what you’ll be doing!

If you’re still looking for ideas, you’d do better to look on business forums on the internet, or even take a drive around your neighbourhood, to see what’s missing.

If You Don’t Feel Comfortable Creating Your Own Plan

If you’re sure you can’t create your own business plan, either because you can’t write, or you just don’t think you have the skill, then a sample business plan alone probably isn’t the solution.

Consider business planning software, hiring a freelancer, or a business planning template instead. All of those options will give you a little more help, and help to ensure that the final product is what you want.

Plenty of Business Plan Help and Tools

The good news is that there are plenty of business planning tools, tips and professionals out there, and no matter what your idea or your budget, you should be able to find something that will help you create the plan that will kick-start your business.

Treat it as a process, start small and work at it steadily, and by the time you are finished, you should have a business plan that will open doors for you!

Is Your Business Plan Ready?

Writing a business plan is a process. It starts with an idea, which is followed by research, which is then turned into a draft, and refined, and so on. The whole process of writing a business plan can take months from start to finish, but the question most would be entrepreneurs have is: when do you know it is ready?

 

That is a tricky question. How do you know that you’ve written the best possible plan for your business idea, and that it will do what it’s meant to do – whether that’s help you to grow your business, or to secure funding.

 

Don’t Look At It for a While

 

When you finish your business plan, the urge will be to send it out immediately. Don’t. In fact, take a few days, and don’t look at it at all. The reason for this is simple: if you give yourself distance, and some space, between you and the plan, when you return to it you’ll have ‘fresh eyes’ and be much more likely to pick up any mistakes or omissions.

 

Have a Colleague or Friend Read It

 

Most of us have at least one colleague or friend who knows about business, and who we trust. Once you’re sure that your plan is about ready to go out there into the world and act as the ambassador for your idea, you should have them read it. Letting someone who knows nothing about business read your plan won’t help, but having someone with experience and hands on knowledge take a look can help you to identify problems you may need to address.

 

Ask Your Accountant to Read It

 

Another great way to test how ready your business plan is to go out into the world is to have your accountant read it. Not many people know the business of business better than they do, and they’ll be able to advise you about any legal or financial issues in your plan that might need to be addressed.

 

Find a Business Incubator

 

Most areas have at least one ‘business incubator.’ These are usually programs that are run by the government in your area, or by banks or financial services organisations. These incubators are designed to help entrepreneurs to take the leap from idea to enterprise, and very often, they employ business plan experts to assess business plans and advise entrepreneurs.

 

If In Doubt, Get an NDA

 

Reading all of this, you may be worried that sending your business plan out into the world could lead to your idea being stolen by someone with fewer scruples than you thought they had. That’s a very real worry, but you can get around it.

 

Speak to an attorney about drawing up an NDA or Non Disclosure Agreement. This is a document that you can have people who read your plan sign, which legally binds them not to share your idea with anyone else. If you also have a patented product, or another form of intellectual property, you should have no worries.

 

Don’t Try To Do It Alone

 

The important thing to remember is that most of us feel a little lost when we’re writing our first (or second or third) business plan, and you don’t have to do it alone. Speak to the people mentioned in this article, or to a mentor or even your bank manager. There are people and companies out there who CAN help to make your business plan perfect, but you have to ask first!

The Biggest Mistakes New Business Owners Make

When you start your new business, you’re probably feeling all kinds of things.  A sense of achievement that your new business has gone from idea to reality.  A sense of excitement about the potential your new business has. Most people even feel fear, because starting a new business is very much a leap into the unknown!

However, knowing what the most common mistakes are that new business owners make can make all the difference.  After all, the first two to five years are the most important in any new business’s development!

Over Confidence

There’s every possibility that your new business is based on a groundbreaking idea.  Every business has the potential to become the next big thing.  But don’t bank on it. It’s better to underestimate your chances, than to become over confident and complacent.

Burning Out

It’s true that to make your new business a success, you’re going to have to devote a lot of time to it. However, while putting in a few extra hours a week can be a good thing for your long-term success, working too hard, and burning yourself out isn’t.

Make sure that you schedule at least some genuine down time during the week. Your new business is important, but it’s not everything, and if you don’t have some time to rest and regroup, you won’t be giving it the full energy it deserves!

Growing Too Fast

Growth is good for a new business, right? In most cases, that’s true. However, when you grow to fast, and overtake your capacity and experience, you set yourself up for big trouble. Even if it’s tempting to take on that huge new contract, you need to remember that you might be growing faster than you are capable of keeping up with.

It’s better to turn down a huge deal, and keep growing steadily, if a little slower, than it is to take something that you can’t cope with on, and lose everything in the process.

Not Having Fun

There are probably many reasons that you started your new business, but one of them is probably because you want to have a little more fun than you had on the corporate hamster wheel!

Try not to forget that starting and running a new business is supposed to be fun, and it’s up to you to remember that you’re doing something you love!

Spending Profits

There are no new business owners out there who dream of driving their ten-year-old car, entertaining at home to save money, or forgoing a holiday so they can recapitalise, but that’s exactly what you should be doing when you own a new business.

Yes, you should enjoy the fruits of your labours, but at least for the first few years, you should get used to living frugally, and putting the majority of your profits back into your company. It may take a little longer for you to get the flashy car, and enjoy the perks of being an entrepreneur, but it is far more likely to result in long-term success.

There’s Nothing Common About Common Sense!

Turning a new business into a successful business is a careful balancing act. It takes a lot of common sense, in addition to hard work and business acumen, but the good news is that if you avoid the most common pitfalls, you’re far more likely to be among the new business owners who have the plush offices and the fancy cars – in a few years time.

Even if you’re not cautious by nature, you need to treat every business decision as important, exercise restraint, and make sure that you stay focused and energised. Too many new business owners don’t, and that’s a big part of why so few entrepreneurs succeed the first time around! 

My advice for young aspiring entrepreneurs? Go for it.

"If your idea is so great, why haven't you committed to it? Why should anyone invest and risk my money, if you're not even fully committed?" anon investor.


With millions of people every day thinking of new ideas, lying awake at night with the thoughts of what could be and how life could be different, the real difference between those who dream and those who do is the action element. Whether your action is successful the first time round is in many ways beside the point. The key to any success ever achieved is that an idea was set into action and that a high level of commitment supported that action.

Where does this leave you?

If you are a young entrepreneur you have likely wondered how to get your idea off the ground. How and where do you start? Will your concept even be marketable? Will you fail? How much risk is involved and what can you do to reduce that risk?

These are some of the questions I faced when my co-founder, Jennifer Hymann, and I were launching Rent the Runway two years ago.

Sure, entrepreneurship is intimidating, but the reward is not just in building a successful company; it is in the lessons and growth you acquire every day just by doing, trying — and yes — failing. Here are some strategies to transform a simple idea into a viable, revenue-generating business.

1.Test the Marketplace

When you have an idea you are passionate about, get out there and test it with your consumer. Be open to feedback and honest with yourself when you need to tweak your concept or go back to the mat entirely. Writing a business plan is a waste of time, in my opinion. Focus efforts on casting a wide net and speaking to as many people as possible about your business concept. In my case, my co-founder Jenn Hymann, and I talked to women about renting dresses and watched our consumer interact with our product through a series of tests. We purchased dresses at retail and set up a pop-up shop at a Harvard undergrad dorm to test our idea. Taking risks (and yes, even failing) is part of entrepreneurship, but each test you do mitigates some of the risk.

2.Show by Example

By testing the marketplace effectively you will obtain data you can present to future investors. You have to take into consideration that these investors may not personally relate to your concept and that you must find ways to engage them. One way is through videos, customer testimonials and data from marketplace trials. Using these mediums, we were able to convince investors to partner with Rent the Runway, even when we were pitching our concept to a room full of men.

3.Build a Team

Find people to work with who compliment your strengths and weaknesses. Part of being a successful businesswoman is recognizing what you do well and where you need support. Having a partner whose skills complimented my own was the first key step for me. Beyond that, we realized we needed to build out a team that brought expertise in technology and fashion, since neither of us had a background in either. As important as it is to build your business with people who specialize in areas crucial to your business success, equally important in the early stages is hiring well-rounded employees. In the beginning phases of a startup your team will need to wear many hats and tackle unanticipated challenges, so a “roll up your sleeves attitude” is essential.

4.Realize that “No” means “Not Right Now”

A big part of being an entrepreneur is becoming comfortable with hearing the word “no” and having the creativity to adapt your idea to overcome any issues. I’ve learned that “No” usually doesn’t mean “no,” it just means “not right now.” In starting Rent the Runway we heard a lot of “no’s” and that just encouraged us to stay motivated to rethink, tweak and keep testing our concept. There are lots of ups and downs in entrepreneurship as not everyone will love your idea, but each negative response is an opportunity to learn and adapt. A great partner and a supportive team can also be helpful in getting through what are sure to be some challenging times.

Why Free Business Plan Templates Aren’t Always a Good Idea

When you’re looking for business plan templates, you’ll probably come across umpteen sites that offer free business plan templates, and if you are like most people, you’ll probably be sorely tempted to try them. After all, free is most people’s favorite price range!

However, while even free business plan templates can be useful when writing a business plan, they may not be the solution to all your business-planning problems.

Here are just a few of the reasons why you should think twice before you choose a free business plan template.

Accuracy

When you pay for business plan templates, or software, you’re dealing with a company, who employs professionals to ensure that their business plan templates and software is free of any possible errors. They spend time and money on research and development, to make sure that they business plan templates and tools they offer are as accurate as they can possibly be.

When you use paid for business plan templates, you can also query the accuracy of the template you are using, which means if you pick up a discrepancy, it can be repaired.

Content

Free business plan templates do not always contain all of the information you need to include in yours. Since leaving important information out of your business plan could be the thing that sinks your hopes of finding funding, that means that when you use a free business plan template, you still have to check, manually, that you have included everything necessary in your plan.

That is not necessarily a bad thing – if you have the time to go through the business plan you have created using a template, but it is something you might want to bear in mind.

Relevancy

There are many things to consider when it comes to the relevancy that you get from a business plan template – whether it is a free one or a paid for one.

First, there is the question of whether it is geographically relevant. Most parts of a business plan are the same around the world, however, there may be specific legal and other requirements that are geographically relevant to you, and not in the template you’re using (or vice versa.) Again, regardless of which template you use, you will need to ensure this.

You will also need to ensure that the business plan template you use allows you to convert the financial sections of the plan into your local currency, or the currency you plan to use in your business plan. The numbers may not change, but it will look unprofessional if you do not even have the right currency symbol on your plan!

Finally, there is the type of business you are writing a business plan for. There are plenty of generic free business plan templates out there, but in most cases, having a business plan template based on a business idea that most closely matches your own is a much better idea, and easier to use!

If you can find a business plan that is as close as possible to the business you are planning to start, you will be able to modify and alter it quickly and easily.

What is Best for You?

If you need to write a business plan, and don’t know where to start, and if you don’t have the budget to spend on business plan software or templates, then free business plan templates can be a great thing.

However, you must bear in mind the old saying ‘you get what you pay for.’ A free business plan template is a great tool, but it still requires a large amount of input from you, if it is going to give you the results you want. If you can afford to buy a high quality, tailored business plan template, then you will have a solution that will save you time and frustration – but either way, it’s up to you, and your needs and circumstances.

Do You Need Business Plan Software?

When you are faced with the task of writing a business plan, you are going to get a lot of advice. Some people will give you links to websites (which may or may not have helpful information), some will suggest hiring a professional, and others will tell you that business plan software is the way to go.

If you are wondering whether you need business plan software, then this article should help you to decide.

Have You Written a Business Plan Before?

Plenty of people who have written business plans before still use business plan software – it is a great tool, and it speeds things up. However, you also need to remember that while they choose to use business plan software because it is convenient, writing business plans is a lot like riding a bicycle. If you practice enough, you get the hang of it, and then you never forget the tricks!

However, if it’s your first time writing a business plan, then business plan software becomes more than just a tool. That is because the first time you write a business plan is scary, confusing, time consuming and frustrating! Either you can use that as a learning experience (if you have the time), or you can use business plan software, and take a little of the ‘learning’ out of the equation!

Do You Have Time to Do It Yourself?

Writing a business plan yourself, from scratch, is always possible. However, it takes time. You would be surprised at how often would be entrepreneurs mention their idea in passing, and are asked for a plan. That is great – when you have one – but if you have not finished (or started) your plan yet, putting one together in a rush is daunting, to say the least.

If you do not have the time to spend the weeks or months involved in creating a business plan from scratch, and polishing it to the best it can be, then it may be an idea to use business plan software, and take some of the time consuming, frustrating bits out of the equation.

Are You a Procrastinator?

Often, we spend our time in an endless loop, gathering information, brainstorming ideas, and planning our business plan. So much so, in fact, that we never actually get to writing the business plan itself!

Because business plan software makes the business planning software a logical, chronological process, it makes it infinitely harder to put off writing your plan, because you’re too busy preparing to write your plan!

Does Writing Your Plan, or Your Financials, Scare You?

Many people (most people who write a business plan in fact) are worried about writing their plan, doing their financials, or both.

Business planning software takes the guesswork out of writing a business plan, which takes the fear out of the process. If you use business plan software, you really only have to put the information asked for in, and you will get a professional, correct business plan out at the end. It is like having an accountant and a business expert on call, all the time.

Business Plan Software Can Help Most Entrepreneurs

The truth is, when it comes to the question of who business plan software can help, the answer is most entrepreneurs. If you are in any way unsure of what should go into your plan, or how, or if you need a little help, it is a cheaper, effective answer to the problem.

Do some research, find a good business plan software that suits your needs and your budget, and you are guaranteed to have an easier time writing your business plan.

Calculating Start Up Costs for Your Business Plan

If you’re in the process of writing a business plan, then you've probably already learned that a big part of your financials will rest on calculating your start up costs.

In this article, we look at what you will need to consider when calculating start up costs, so that you can make sure your business plan is as accurate as possible.

Business Registration

When you write a business plan, you will need to include information about the legal structure of your business, as well as information about other mandatory and optional registrations. Make sure that you include those costs in your estimate of start up costs, and remember that in some cases, you may need a lawyer or accountant’s assistance.

Research and Development

If you’re creating a new product, or refining one that you’ve already invented, then you will need to include the cost of R & D in the start up costs section of your business plan. This could even include the cost of market research.

Stock or Materials

If you’re creating a business plan for a company that will sell items that are already manufactured, or a company that will manufacture goods, then you will need to start off with stock or materials. Make sure that you include the cost of the materials or stock you will need to get started in the start up costs section of your business plan.

Premises and Equipment

Whether you’re renting premises, or starting your business from home, there will be some costs involved in setting up the physical infrastructure of your business. Include things like office furniture, equipment and tools, the cost of installing telephone and internet lines, and all the other equipment you will need. Also include any costs involved in securing, remodelling, or decorating your premises in this section of your business plan. Remember to include the costs involved in securing and leasing your premises here too, and that it may be several months before you actually open your doors for business, so plan accordingly.

Marketing, Advertising and Promotion

One of the most important parts of your business plan is the marketing plan, and when you’re starting out, a significant portion of your spending will be on advertising and marketing. Make sure that you include the cost of that advertising and marketing in the start up costs of your business plan. Include things like business cards and flyers, newspaper advertising, setting up a website, and anything else that relates to marketing your business here.

Staffing

Whether you run newspaper ads or use a recruitment agency, there are usually costs involved in hiring people to work in your company. If they’re going to be starting before your company opens for business, their first few month’s salary will also be a part of your start up expenses. Include all of those costs in the start up costs section of your business plan.

Cash, the Cost of Financing, and Your Business Plan

Other costs that you will need to include in your business plan’s start up costs include cash to have in your business account or cash register when you open for business, the interest or costs involved in financing your business, and the cost involved in preparing your plan itself.

A good idea, when you are calculating start up costs to include in your business plan, is to carry a notebook and pen with you wherever you go. Whenever you think of something else that you will need in order to open for business, write it down. That way, you should be sure to cover all of the costs you will encounter. Also remember that you should always include a little bit extra in the start up costs section of your business plan, because there will almost always be something you forget! 

Low Cost Marketing Ideas for Business Start Ups

If there’s one thing every new business owner knows, it’s that marketing and advertising are two of the most important expenses, and that without them; your business is unlikely to thrive.

The trouble is, for most entrepreneurs working to get a business start up off the ground, the amount of money you have in your budget is limited, and trying to cover all the costs is a juggling act worthy of a circus professional!

Because we know how hard it can be, to make sure your business gets enough exposure, and still to stay within your budget, we’ve put together a list of low or no cost marketing ideas for your new business:

1. Put your advertising on your car.  No matter what business you’re in, you’re still going to have to drive around sometime.  So while you’re building your new business, brand your car, and advertise your services everywhere you go!
2. Write an article for a local newspaper, trade publication, or magazine.  Print ads cost money, but most publications are always on the lookout for great editorials, and you can usually include information about your business at the end of your article.
3. Write a press release.  Even easier than writing for a print publication, you can write a press release about anything newsworthy that your business does, and submit it to online sites, free!
4. Get a website.  You can register a domain for less than the cost of a take out meal, and with free website services like Weebly and Yola, hosting and site design doesn’t have to cost you anything.
5. Have t-shirts printed with your company information on them, and wear them wherever you go.  Get your family and friends to wear them too, or donate them to a local sports team.  Walking billboards make great ads!
6. Get involved in a charity organisation or event.  Even if you only volunteer your time, newspapers often run stories about charities, and they’re a good way to publicise your company, and do some good.
7. If you’re marketing to a specific type of business, do some research, and find out who the people who make decisions at those businesses are, and then send them a branded gift and an information pack.
8. Start a blog, or create a social networking page or group.  Whether you choose a social network like Face book, or a business-networking group like Linked In, you can target your message much more this way.
9. Join local business networking groups.  Many of these are free to join, and put you in contact with other business owners, who might have valuable leads to trade with you.
10. Get involved in forums that relate to your business.  No matter what you do, and how you do it, there are forums on the internet that will put you in touch with potential business partners, clients, and mentors.  Getting involved, and including your company information is a great way to boost your profile, and get people interested.

 The truth is, there are plenty of great, low cost ways that you can market and publicise your new business without breaking the bank.  Whatever you choose to do, as long as you’re doing it consistently and well, and as long as you do something, every day, to market or advertise your business start up, you will get there, sooner or later.

Don’t think of marketing or advertising a new business on a tiny budget as difficult or unpleasant – think of it as an investment in your company’s future, and a way to exercise your creativity!