Writing a business plan is a daunting proposition, which is probably why many agencies (many businesses, in fact) don’t have one — or an underdeveloped one at best. After all, there’s so much to consider. What should be included? What’s a good format? How should you present your sales projections? Where does the marketing plan fit in? How should you present your funding plan in a way that maximizes its chance for favorable acceptance?
Business Plan Pro 2004 by Palo Alto Software offers a relatively painless and reasonably priced ($99.95) software tool for creating your business plan — correctly and completely. Not only are you guided through a step-by-step process, but also things are designed to make sure you don't miss any crucial items along the way. There are excellent examples and advice at every step of the process. I advise methodically stepping through the entire process initially just to get a feel for what is needed, but you can go back and refine your plan at any time.
Before you get started on your own plan, it is helpful to take a look at some of the more than 400 samples — coffee exporting, law firms, sports equipment rental, regional airlines — including, you guessed it, insurance brokerages. Each sample contains 21 to 58 pages, depending on the type of business. The samples are online, and will be updated by Palo Alto Software, but are also included on the CD that comes with the package. If you want, you can simply start with a sample plan and modify it with your own data.
Start your plan
Before you do anything, check "Resources" for quick access to the Department of Commerce, census information, Industry-at-a-Glance Reports, and lots of other online resources and additional research suggestions.
The EasyPlan Wizard takes you methodically through the entire process. Go through each task and complete as much information as you can. As you progress and add to your plan, you can always go back and edit completed material in your plan. If you don't know what to fill in at any point, check the examples and additional material. Also check the included electronic books:
Because these books are all PDF documents, you can use the bookmarks to quickly go to the section you want to read and print out any pages you'd like to read offline.
"Plan Setup" is the first step in the wizard. You start by answering a series of questions about your business — startup or ongoing, for profit or non-profit, whether you sell products or services, whether you already have a Web site, your business name and contact info, etc. You then save the plan. Next, you begin with the "Concept Kick-start." If you use any of the newer QuickBooks products, you can import your QuickBooks® balances into your plan, making the financial data easier to input.
Concept Kick-start
At this point, the software asks you to make a quick assessment. Business Plan Pro suggests that even an ongoing business should take the time to step back and look at the basics. For example, do your business numbers really make sense? Here, you'll also establish your objectives, mission, and keys to success. In addition, you'll complete a quick break-even analysis.
The first screen is titled “Objectives.” Here you are presented with a blank page, but don't be overwhelmed. There are examples to help you get started. Click the "Paste into topic" button to copy the example right into your plan and then change the numbers to fit your own situation. This program walks you step-by-step through the process, giving you ideas of what should be in a good business plan.
Here is a sample of the advice offered:
"Set measurable objectives, such as people served or funding growth, for example. Your chance of implementation depends on being able to track progress and measure results. Where general or intangible goals are critical to your business, find a way to make them specific. For example:
After you state your mission and establish your fundamental goals, you'll define your Keys to Success.
Typical
screen in Business Plan Pro.
The entire process is outlined in the left panel,
the current section is shown on the right.
The top of the right section is the help area,
and the bottom section shows the actual copy for your business plan.
The next item in the plan is a Break-even Analysis Table. This is presented in a spreadsheet format with everything filled in except for your actual numbers. Examples are provided, and there is a Break-even Wizard to make it even easier for you to understand what information should be included.
Typical Business Plan Pro screen for spreadsheet-type input.
Again, the top section provides the help and explanations,
while the bottom section presents your actual information.
Your Company
With the previous Kick-start steps complete, you then proceed through the process of summarizing and describing your company in detail, including ownership, history, a past performance table and a section conclusion. The Past Performance Table will require that you gather your financial data, but it clearly shows what information should be included and explanatory help is available for every item in the table.
Share your Plan
Here's a nice feature: sharing your plan with others for review, comment, and input. If you choose this feature, you send your plan to SecurePlan.com, a secure Web site where you can share your plan with business partners, investors, and others you designate. It is password-protected, so only those you specify will be able to access it.
Here's how it works. Click "Send to SecurePlan.com." You provide your e-mail address, which will be your username. In a return e-mail PaloAlto sends you a password. Enter your password in the wizard and then choose the URL name for your plan (yourchoice.secureplan.com). After your plan is published to the Web site, you can log in and read it. You can also grant individual or generic reader access to the plan. Now anyone you choose can give you input on the plan and you can even provide the URL to your lending institution if you'd prefer. I would suggest, however, that you print out the plan and deliver the hard copy in a nice-looking binder!
What You're Selling
Again, you’re presented with another blank page. This section should be easy to write because you know your products and/or services better than anyone. Make it as general or detailed as you like. If you need more guidance, plenty is available in the Hurdle book and Resources area. Also in this section, you'll complete a market analysis summary and table, as well as describe your target market and market segmentation.
The Business You're In
In this section you describe your business segment and competition and buying patterns. The Hurdle book includes 13 pages on this topic with lots of suggestions for additional research.
Sales and Marketing Plans
Your Sales Forecast has to be an educated guess, but the help offered by Business Plan Pro will make that guess easier and more accurate. The program walks you through the steps and provides lots of help. The next step is Your Marketing Plan. Palo Alto offers a separate program that helps you develop a complete marketing plan (I'll be reviewing that program, along with their Web Strategy Pro program, in separate articles). But Business Plan Pro gives you enough to initially provide a plan to investors.
The remaining steps
The "Your Management Team" section gives you an opportunity to feature your key team members. Then you need to work through the Bottom Line, Cash Flow, and Financial Plan sections before finalizing the plan and getting it ready to submit.
Bottom Line
All along the way, Business Plan Pro offers help and suggestions, resources, and samples. The process is methodical and covers everything you need to set up your business plan properly. And, after all that work, it goes on to help you implement your plan and suggests that you re-visit it regularly, evaluate your progress, and make adjustments where needed. Because Business Plan Pro is reasonably priced and actually delivers a professionally prepared plan, there really is no excuse for not having this basic and essential business document on hand. I recommend it!
© Copyright 2003 by Sound Internet Strategy. All rights reserved
Because Business Plan Pro is reasonably priced and actually delivers a professionally prepared plan, there really is no excuse for not having this basic and essential business document on hand.