According to this post on a BP Expert Views Blog Andrea
"is an independent pitch expert and advisor in the United Kingdom. She has
her own business Brick Handbag and has worked for Microsoft in the past. Why have a business plan?
What to look for in a plan?
During a talk in 2008 Andrea says that some of the most important things to show in a
business plan are that the company is going into a market that is growing and
"has a need for your product or service." She also says that the
plan must show that the team behind it all has the experience and talent to
make it happen, and last, but not least, the plan must show that the
"product or service is groundbreaking."
Why these are key
Andrea says, "These specifics are
necessary to increase the strength of the pitch for financial backing." An
investor will be asking themselves why the business should be started and if it
will be successful enough against competitors to be profitable.
And now, for something
completely different…
The same expert blog lists Chuck as a "serial entrepreneur and
business success mentor" who believes that business plans actually do more
harm than good. He says that forming a business plan to look into the future
takes time away from the changes that could be implemented now to change the
future as the company goes. Essentially, take care of today, and tomorrow will
take care of it’s self.
Why to avoid a plan
Writing business plans wastes time and can make things worse by allowing a
company to follow the wrong trends, could make the company miss opportunities, fill a niche, or become a leader.
Why this is key
Chuck offers these statistics as evidence of
his points. I encourage all readers to vista Mr. Blakeman's article and take a
look at it entirely and then leave a comment below and let us know where you
stand on the topic!
“A
Harvard researcher found that 97% of all businesses leave their prime objective
in order to be objective. The world’s greatest past and present businesses
(Apple, Google, Facebook, HP, 37signals, etc.) all started out to do something
other than what they ended up doing. And none of them did much pre-planning, if
any.”
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