New Venture Consultants
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New Venture Consultants
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Frequently Asked Questions...What is a Business Plan? In broad terms, a business plan is a planning document that prepares the principals of a business (owners, directors, officers, key employees, etc.) for the challenges and alternatives that they are likely to confront. The business plan identifies the products and services being offered, the underlying economics and competitive forces in that particular industry sector. It also looks at the production, distribution and marketing requirements of the business, and who are the important people necessary for the success of that company. Ordinarily, a business plan is developed in the very early stages in the life of a business so that these principals can properly plan for what is to come. The business plan is the roadmap by which a business navigates the world of commerce. Can a Business Plan be used for raising finance? Yes. Often a business plan also serves as an external document. Typically it would be used for the purpose of raising capital or some other financial benefit. These include a cash loan, line of credit, equipment lease, equity placement, etc. Business plans intended for external consumption should be "reader friendly" and comprehensive. It is important that the important operational and technical aspects of the business are explained clearly, without resorting to technical jargon. What Constitutes a Business Plan? A good business plan will be organized into several, logical sections so that the reader can readily find specific topics. Typically, a business plan’s first section is its Executive Summary, a 1 or 2 page overview of the entire business plan. Then, the business plan should have appropriate sections covering all aspects of that particular venture, including such sections as The Industry, The Product or Service, Production Plan, The Company, Marketing Plan, and then a section for Financial information. Finally, appended at the end of the plan would be all sorts of interesting or significant materials or documents. Can an outside business planning professional do the job more quickly? It is not unusual for entrepreneurs and/or business managers to spend many, many months developing a business plan. They invariably say that they hope to complete the document in just a few days or weeks, but for most, they often have other important day-to-day responsibilities that "get in the way". An outside professional often has a number of advantages. At New Venture Consultants, writing business plans is what we do, so other work responsibilities won't get in the way. And since we have written so many business plans, we are very familiar with business planning conventions and time saving "tricks". Our vast experience with business plans also means we are likely to have a much broader business background knowledge that enables us to better structure the business plan and to develop important themes more quickly. How long does it take to write a good business plan? How much does it cost for an outside professional to write the business plan? Depending on the type of plan required (this varies according to the industry, the complexity of the venture, the amount of funding being sought, the relationship of the venture to other organizations, and so forth), business plans developed by external professionals vary widely in terms of price. Generally, a less complicated business plan will start at $2,500. Is it cost-effective to use an outside professional? Yes. Developing a proper business plan will typically require hundreds of hours of researching, drafting, reviewing, editing, meeting, discussing, and printing. Even if a company has the necessary in-house expertise, very often there is insufficient time available for the key people to dedicate to the business planning task. If it is important to develop a proper business plan sooner rather than later, then using the services of an external professional will be more cost-effective than relying on internal staff. We have experienced many clients who have attempted to write the business plan themselves, only to turn it over to New Venture Consultants because it was utilizing to much time and too many resources. |
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New Venture Consultants Inc. is affiliated with The Strategy Link Corp. Last Updated 15/07/03 |