Loading...
Answers
MenuWhere can I get a confidential draft business plan/idea review, critique, and advising?
I have drafted business plan, but I need someone to critique my business plan and model to expose any weakness that haven't been thought of, and advise accordingly.
Answers
Happy to sign a reasonable NDA and take a call.
Yes. I can provide that for you. I operate a consulting service doing just this. There are often a number of factors that are missed and thus strategy, focus and execution are often flawed. You are doing really good by simply acknowledging this and seeking advice upfront.
With that said, don't spend too much time on the business plan itself, instead develop it, move on the marketing analysis and plan for execution.
There are numerous reputable business plan consultants who will do this (for a fee). Happy to connect you if you need an intro nathan@venturearchetypes.com
I am a Inc. 5000 & Dallas Business Journal Top 100 CEO who has started 6 companies over the past 18 years. I donate some of my time to helping entrepreneurs just like you, if you would like to discuss, reach out... if not, best of luck in your ventures.
You may want to consider some platforms that can work within your budget, timeline and criteria. I suggest looking at HourlyNerd.com, Expert360.com and (my firm) Quantifye.co.
The picture you present to your banker/investor makes all the difference between a denial, and an approval - and you can never make a 1st impression twice!
I can walk you through the process of being able to submit a package that you'll be proud of - and the recipient impressed! All calls will be followed up with a comprehensive list of what your individual package should include, based on your particular deal as revealed during our conversation. Please be sure to check out my LinkedIn profile, so that you can feel confident in my ability to provide you with a much needed value that will save you hours of time - and may even make all the difference to your ultimate success. And, then lets schedule a call!
Hi, I won't criticize. But I'll coach you so you can, not only improve your current business plan, but also be able to autonomously create a solid your business plan in the future. I look forward reviewing your plan!
Serena
Hi there, this is a service I offer directly and I'd be happy to help you on a call.
It's great that you're asking for this support - it's important to get someone to look at your business plan objectively as it often brings up ideas you haven't thought of and it can really boost your strategy. Did you create the plan by yourself, or with a partner? Having a potential customer read it can also help, too.
Before you write your business plan, it's important to understand the purpose of creating it in the first place.
Establish a business focus: The process of creating a roadmap to your goals will help you determine your business focus and pursue growth.
Secure funding: One of the first things private investors, banks or other lenders look for before investing in your business is a well-researched business plan. Attract executives. As your business grows, you will likely need to add executives to your team.
The specific details you include in your business plan largely depend on your audience. If you're trying to secure outside funding, providing a complete, detailed overview of your cash flow, expenses and projections is critical.
However, regardless of your audience, all business plans generally follow a similar format:
1. Executive summary. First and foremost, it should provide an overview for readers.
2. Company description. This section is especially important when securing funding as it provides a high-level overview of your history, business legal structure, your products/services, key partners, and summaries of your financial and business goals.
3. Products/services. Next, your business plan should include a detailed description of the products or services you provide. This section should illustrate how your product benefits your target customers.
4. Market analysis. In this section, you really only need to explain two things: the market needs and how your products and services satisfy that need. This includes targeted customer segments, industry statistics, pertinent marketing data, and a thorough examination of your competitors' strengths and weaknesses.
5. Management team. Before anyone will invest in your company, they want to know who is running the business. Include an organizational chart with departmental descriptions and information regarding the owners, key employees, the management team, board members, advisors, etc.
6. Financial plan. The last section of your business plan should be created with the help of a professional accountant. Include important financial statements, such as historical financial data from the past three to five years, realistic budget forecasts over the next five years and an analysis of your all financial data.
“Don't get mesmerized by the attractive macro data you can find on the web,” said John Mullins, Ph. Even after you embark on your business endeavour, you want to ensure you are attracting and retaining customers before asking for capital, Mullins added. As with any business project, research is critical to a solid business plan. “Research is one of the big values adds of writing a business plan,” said Joseph Ferriolo, director of Wise Business Plans.
“Research forces companies to learn what they can expect to make and what the industry trends are”. Mullins advises asking yourself how large and attractive your market is, how quickly it is growing, and if there are any trends that will make it grow in the future. Additionally, research critical success factors, or important areas to focus on when starting out. Some examples are finding the right location, competing with like companies, and retaining efficient employees.
Discuss your CSFs with your team to guarantee they are on board with your goals, said Mullins. For your company to succeed, all employees should understand the dynamics of the business plan. “The business plan keeps an organization focused, it needs to be shared, “said Brian S.
Besides if you do have any questions give me a call: https://clarity.fm/joy-brotonath
Related Questions
-
How do you get your first customers for a consulting business?
Back when I started LinkedIn wasn't as huge as it is now. I wish it was. I didn't have a large network and those networking sessions NEVER brought me any clients. I used to go to all sorts of them hoping to get clients. There were a couple of nibbles here and there, but never anything serious. The only thing that helped was reaching out DIRECTLY to people in my target market. That meant cold calls and cold emails. I'd sell myself while thinking about their needs. Once I got a few bites I'd build good rapport by keeping in touch, asking questions, repeating back what they were saying so that they knew I was on the same page and kept my promises. If I said I'd call them back next Tuesday at 2:15 I'd do so. Eventually I built trust with them without having a network, or an insane amount of experience. Oh and the most important thing about consulting is to LISTEN. When those first clients notice that you're truly listening and you're not selling the cookie cutter solutions everyone else is trying to sell them that's when you got them hooked. You start to understand their problems, fears, and see through their eyes and not just yours. A network will help, but in the beginning just good 'ol salesmanship will get the ball rolling.JC
-
What is the best way to write a cover letter to an early-stage startup?
Better than a cover letter is to actually proactively DO something to help them. It'll show them not only that you've researched them, but you're passionate about the startup and worth bringing on. A man got a job at Square early on for just making them a marketing video on his own (back before they had one). Since you're a web designer, design a stellar 1-pager that's targeting their message to a particular niche. Something they could use on social media or something. If they're like most startups, they're not interested in reading cover letters. They're interested in passionate individuals who can add value to the organization.AS
-
What is the best way to capture and track referrals directed from a landing page?
There are a few ways to track things automatically, but they get complicated: - referral program software - Give your referrers special URL's with parameters that identify them as the referrer (like http://url.com/?referrer=JohnDoe), then push that value into a hidden form field - Create a separate landing page for each referrer I'd keep things much simpler to start. Just tell your social club that there's a referral program in place, then add a form field on your signup process asking who referred the new customer. If John Doe knows that there's a program in place, when he refers someone, he's likely to tell them "make sure you say I referred you". When the new customer joins, they'll likely remember to enter "John Doe" as the referrer. It's not bullet proof, but it's an easy way to start.CD
-
Can a C Corp be the owner of and fund several LLC's? Can these LLC's have the same paid Directors?
Yes! But is very tricky. I have a C Corp own two LLCs. You should have separate board of directors in the C Corp that are not owners in the LLCs. Pay through bonuses rather than salaries and aggregate expenses of the LLCs as op. expenses as SBUs of the corp. The reasons for having a C own LLCs can vary, my reasons were that it allows me to join or create new ventures without having to formalize them with dedicated teams, just cycle my team to different efforts while seperatig expenses, not reporting publicly what is being worked on, and if the product takes off the formation is already there to grow the product into a division or umbrella product of my main company. LLCs are easy to form, while C corps are not... One example would be having a conglomerate of investors under a c corp and have advisors and creating an LLc for each new rental construction development project completed. Each is his own, if something goes wrong the LLC covers the C entity- this protecting its investor members. Best of luck! Humberto Valle #unthinkHV
-
A tech startup fully outsourced. What problems would be in this situation?
The ideal way would be to hire the engineer while the project is still under development. You and the engineer should follow up with the outsourced partner in the process. This will give hold to the engineer and later more staff can be trained in upgrading or follow on versions of the product/service.SM
the startups.com platform
Copyright © 2025 Startups.com. All rights reserved.