Product Description

Learn how to prepare and utilize the most important document for any organizationthe business plan. Whether one is just starting out or is already in business and needs to refocus efforts, this practical guide will clearly instruct how to prepare a winning business plan. This book will become a valued resource for entrepreneurs and business owners on their path towards future success.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #38977 in Books
• Published on: 2005-07-29
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 224 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780446694155
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

Review
"This is a must-read book for anyone thinking about starting or expanding a business." -- -Armchairinterviews.com

About the Author
* Garrett Sutton is an attorney with over 20 years of experience in assisting individuals and businesses to determine their appropriate corporate structure, limit their liability, protect their assets and advance their personal and financial goals.

Customer Reviews

A must read!
This is a must-read book for anyone thinking about starting or expanding a business. Rather than simply another book about writing a business plan, Sutton makes the case early and often about why such a plan is needed - and it isn't always to raise money.

Sutton introduces the reader to Robert Kayosaki's Cashflow Quadrant. He points out that those in the E (employee) and S (self-employed) quadrants really focus on operating solo - and as a result have slim chances for building a business. Why? Because they are creating jobs for themselves for which there is no exit strategy. Those in the B (business) and I (investor) quadrants are team players and are always looking at how they remove themselves from the business situation - if and when they want to.

Sutton makes use of practical examples that help the reader understand the various aspects of writing the business plan - and why each part is critical. He emphasizes that it's okay - and perhaps preferable to get help on various parts of the plan - for example engineers can write and entire plan of 30-300 pages, but may find it difficult to boil it down to an effective one-page summary.

The book provides simple common-sense questions to answer that might be difficult for the would-be business plan writer to come up with alone. Questions like: Is the purpose of my business to make money and serve people - or to serve people and make money? The answer to this question is critical - and in the book he explains why.

He also provides simple, but powerful advice on the traditional SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats). He points out that many people struggle with this because they don't want to appear too full of themselves - or because they think that pointing out weaknesses dooms their chances for success and or funding. He powerfully points out that strengths should be common and compelling - that is the strength should exist in most all business of this type - but that you execute better than anyone else. He also helps the reader understand that weakness should be common rather than catastrophic.

Armchair Interviews says: A must read for business owners.

So you need investors and need to write a business plan...
I did, so I bought five books. I will review them from worst to best.

"Finding an Angel Investor In a Day," by The Planning Shop (2007), told me nothing I didn't know, and I didn't know anything about business plans or angel investors. The title is ludicrous and the advice is obvious, e.g., "Your business plan should be concise, compelling, and irresistible to investors." 1 star.

"The ABC's of Writing Winning Business Plans," by Garrett Sutton (2005), walks you through writing business plans for a lawn mowing business and buying a pizza restaurant. If your business is more complicated, this is not the book for you. 1 star.

"The Ernst & Young Business Plan Guide," by Brian Ford, Jay Boorstein, and Patrick Pruitt (2007), is a good book but hardly inspiring or insightful. If you follow this book your business plan will be competent but won't grab investors. 3 stars.

"Angel Financing for Entrepreneurs," by Susan Preston (2007). This book doesn't explain how to write a business plan, but it explains how to make a 10-minute PowerPoint presentation to investors -- a presentation that will grab investors. For example, one question is "How is your product or technology scalable?" I also learned some of the financials that angel investors look for, such as what IRR is expected. This book helped and inspired me to write an excellent presentation, that became the basis for my business plan. 5 stars.

"Raising Venture Capital for the Serious Entrepreneur," by Dermot Berkery (2008). This is a textbook for a business school course about venture capital. This book is full of insights. Every few pages new ideas would compel me to go to my computer and add stuff or rewrite my business plan, for example, Berkery emphasizes the need for clear milestones. Preston mentioned milestones but didn't make it clear why they are so important. The financials that were briefly presented in Preston's book are thoroughly presented in Berkery's book, for example, what gross margin investors look for (80% or more) and why they need such extremely profitable products or services. Plus you learn the jargon or key phrases of venture capitalists, e.g., "a large but well signaled market," the importance of "market power" and an effective "route to customers." I feel that my business plan now speaks to investors in their language, with the numbers they are looking for. 5 stars.

Inspiring!
This book lights a fire under your butt! The author does a great job laying out the steps. Although the lack of skillful editing bothered me a bit in the beginning, it does deliver. After only a few days of reading, I was able to get get very clear and focused on how to present my ideas. In a month, I had my first chunk of real money to work with.