What's the Best Way to Write a Business Plan?

ohyeahohare asks: "I've got an idea that I want to start up in Australia. The business store front will be a .NET web application, however any business requires money to start up and I'm looking for some Venture Capitalists to help fund mine. As the saying goes, 'Businesses that fail to plan, plan to fail.' I need some advice on how to write up a killer business plan, everyone involved knows exactly where the business is heading. Does Slashdot have suggestions or recommendations from personal experience to offer?"

Re:well, it's obvious

[3770]

You need to enthuse your investors.

I wrote a business plan and people didn't care much for it. I don't suck at writing (in my native language) but I still couldn't make it interesting enough.

I made a powerpoint presentation instead, with the same subject and almost got a standing ovation from a board of directors.

I'm no expert on this subject. But whatever your business plan is, I think a great presentation is more important. Learn from Steve Jobs.

Why VCs?

[Wiseleo]

I run a fairly successful company.

It has a specific and complicated business plan, and some of it is written down. You can easily write a business plan once you actively start working on stuff and have some prospects or customers.

VCs are not faceless creatures. Sooner or later you'll actually get to know some as your personal network grows. I probably could get some financing right now if I really wanted to. I'd say VC hunting is like job hunting - tedious and time-consuming, unless you have the inside track where some lunches can turn up to be quite profitable.

If you want to run a company, you need to figure out what exactly your product will do and who needs it. I know that it seems like everyone needs it, but that's not the case.

With regards to storefronts, you may be better off selling someone else's established product as a channel partner. What do you bring that no other storefront product has done so far? Shopping carts were new in 1997. I worked for a company that developed one of these first successful shopping carts. That means that you are catching up on NINE YEARS of development.

Now, if you want to do .Net, find a partner with Microsoft who has a good solution and sell that. The profits you'll make from these sales and customizing these products will eventually fund your own niche product. Some products are more profitable than others - I have a 40% margin on some stuff I sell.

If you can't describe at least one relevant aspect what you are doing in less than 30 seconds, you need more focus.

I find formal business plans to be a nuisance, but it may help you clarify your vision. As long as my key assumptions are on the paper, that's good. My vision is very simple and seemingly unattainable, yet I am exactly at the point I wanted to achieve by this stage now.

I just ran a search for storefronts written in .Net through Microsoft Partner channel - there are quite a few.

Watch "Dragon's Den"...

[Bazman]

The title may sound like some sort of LARP show but its not. They get entrepreneurs in front of four VCs each of which has a HUGE PILE OF CASH in front of them. The entrepreneur then explains their product or idea, and says something like "I want 50,000 UKP and you get 10% of my company".

Each VC, or 'Dragon', then says "You sweat too much, I'm out", or "I cant work with you, you're clearly a moron, I'm out", or if you are lucky one will say "I'll give you 25,000 for 15% of your company". Well, that's no good, unless you get all the money you ask for you get nothing. So maybe Dragon 4 will say "I'll give you the other 25k for another 15%". So now you've got your money but you've lost 30% of your company. If you want it.

  Anyway, see if you can check out the show (on BBC2 in the UK). Anyone who dithers about figures or sales projections or plans is out on their arse immediately. Anyone who seems to have a clue tends to reject the VCs even if they do get an offer, thinking they can get better elsewhere....

  Barry