I’m sorry, but I’m angry this morning.
I just saw another blogger, who knows better, bad-mouthing the business plan as part of the startup; because investors want to know you and see your pitch first, instead of just reading a business plan.
Are the following points not so obvious that I have a right to get angry?
- Given the choice, nobody would choose reading a business plan over meeting the people and letting them pitch.
- Investors get the choice.
- But Jeez! How dumb is it to suggest that you need a pitch presentation instead of a business plan?
Seriously: Don’t confuse having a plan with having a full, formal business plan document. You want a plan. And until you need to produce it as a document, skip the parts that are only for show. Do the core stuff, and leave it on your computer.
Don’t confuse not needing a full formal business plan with not wanting to have a plan. Plan your business strategy and have some idea of who does what when, how much time and money it costs, how long it takes and how much revenue it generates. Do you really want to do a 20-minute pitch to investors without having a plan? What if they respond with a question? Are you going to say, “I don’t know, but I’ll get back to you on that?” 
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{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
You’re right! Every business is different, and every business plan is different. You may not need a formal thirty-pager with attachments. You may even have just a file folder or computer file full of all the pertinent information.
But, there are definitely some essentials that you must be able to communicate and have available in writing on fairly short notice. Otherwise, you’ll just be forgotten between your pitch and that crucial next step.
Tim,
I couldn’t agree with you more! In my opinion, just going through the process of putting together you business plan is invaluable. It forces you to really analyze your business, and organize the information into an coherent format. It gives you more opportunity to see holes and gaps. And it makes putting together a killer presentation approximately 1.2 billion times easier.
And if you think about it, you darn well should have gone through all the analysis that you’d have to for the business plan, whether your end goal was the bplan or not. So, even if you get investors that just want a presentation, for crying out loud do the business plan anyway, even if it’s just for yourself (although I agree, you also need it on hand should it be requested or you can’t give a presentation).
I actually tell people heck, if you can, even after you’ve got funding and you’ve been up and running for a year, revisit the business plan and make changes and reanalyze.
Cheers,
Kate
Please don’t apologize. I know you want to see people succeed and the only way to succeed is to have it down where you are going and to be able to tell how to somebody else. You never heard it from me that a business plan is a waste of time!
Dennis
Intriguing. You made a superb point.