Lesson 5 (Technopreneurship)

February 23,2013

Business Plans

• The business plan is not abstract,not uninformative,not theoretical,not mysterious.
• It is document that convincingly demonstrate that the business can sell enough of its product or services for satisfactory profit.
• It is a selling document.

*4 Elements supporting Successful Business Plan*

1.SIMPLE

         -Easy to understand and act on

         -Does it communicate its contents easily and practically?

2.SPECIFIC

        - Is the plan specific?

        -Are the objectives concrete and measurable?

        -Does it include specific actions and dates of completion

       -Specific persons responsible and specific budget.

3.REALISTIC

           -Is the plan realistic?

           -Are the sales goals,expense budgets and milestones dates realistic

           -Achievable,doable

           -The business plan is not abstract,not uninformative,not theoretical,not mysterious.

       -It is a document that convincingly demonstrate that business can sell enough of its                         products and services to make a satisfactory profit.

          -It is a selling document.

       

4.COMPLETE

         -The requirements of a business plan vary depending on the context.

*Use of a Business Plan*

1.    Define and fix objectives
2.  To create regular business reviews and course direction
3.  To support a loan application
4.  To define agreements between partners
5.   To set a value on a business for sale,or legal purposes
6.   To evaluate a new product line, promotion or expansion.
7.   To define a new business.

*The Don'ts of Business Plan*

·         1.       Don’t use a business plan to show how much you know about your business.

2.       Nobody reads long winded business plan, so limit it to 50 pages.

*Importance of Graphics*

·         -    Tables and charts present information in visual formats with greater impact the word alone.

 -     Plans should include graphics, bar charts and pie charts to illustrate the following.

1.       Cash Flow- The single most important numerical analysis in a business plan

2.       Sales Forecast with break even information

•            Profit or Loss statements or cost-benefit analysis
•         Projected Balance sheet
•         Market Analysis

 *Sample Business Plan Outline*

·         1.    Executive Summary – write this last, a page or two of the highlights

   2.    Company Description- History, establishment, start-up plan

   3.    Product or Services- describe your selling focusing on customer benefit

  4.    Market Analysis- you need to know your market, costumer’s needs, where they are and how to reach them.

  5.   Strategy and Implementation- be specific, include management responsibilities with dates and budgets.

  6.   Management Teams- backgrounds of key members of the team, personnel strategy and details.

 7.    Financial Plan- Profit and Loss, Cash Flow, Balance Sheet, Breakeven Analysis, Assumptions, Business ratios

  

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