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10 Best Business Opportunities in Philadelphia

Within Philadelphia there are a number of exciting business opportunities that an aspiring entrepreneur can capitalize on given the rapid growth of this market. In this article, we discuss several different types of businesses and services that are in demand within Philadelphia:

Restaurants, Bars, and Nightclubs

Foremost, one of the most exciting areas to enter within the Philadelphia market is the food and beverage based businesses. Given the large population, there is always a substantial demand for food as well as nighttime entertainment. Within many of the major up-and-coming areas of Philadelphia, there are a number of people that are interested in experiencing unique cuisines. Additionally, the demographic profile of the Philadelphia metropolitan area is now skewing towards younger people. As such, the demand for nighttime entertainment – which includes bars, sports bars, nightclubs – is fast growing. As more and more young people move into cities in order to find higher-paying jobs, the demand for quality venues for nighttime entertainment and eating become greater. In many areas of Philadelphia, there are still retail locations that can accommodate a large-scale food and beverage business affordably.

Professional Cleaning and Janitorial Services

Given that there are many busy professionals within the Philadelphia area, the demand for clean houses and offices is substantial. As such, janitorial and home cleaning services are another very popular and economically viable business that can be started at a moderate cost within the greater Philadelphia area. One of the nice things about these businesses is that they generate highly recurring streams of revenue especially when companies engage in janitorial services for commercial and industrial enterprises. Given the high median incomes of the Philadelphia market, especially among busy professionals, the demand for quality in-home cleaning services is also very significant. These businesses can be started for as little as $50,000 and they typically become profitable within the first year of operation.

Accountants, Lawyers, Doctors and Dentists

The large population base of Philadelphia lends itself to having a number of professionals that need to render services to the general public. This includes practices such as CPAs, attorneys, physicians, surgeons, and dentists. In major metropolitan areas, the demand among licensed professionals is always substantial. Additionally, the per-hour billings are typically higher than that of when these services are rendered in a suburban or more rural market. One of the other interesting things about these businesses is that they enjoy high barriers to entry given the substantial educational requirements of the owner.

Personal Transportation Services

Transportation services are also extremely popular in major metropolitan areas; especially Philadelphia which has a substantial issue with the amount of parking that is available for residents. Given that this is a major metropolitan area, many people opt to not have a car when living or residing in the greater Philadelphia metropolitan area (and especially within the city limits). As such, taxi services, limousine services, and other companies that maintain large fleets of vehicles for personal transportation are almost always profitable in this market. Additionally, with the advent of applications such as Uber and Lyft – these businesses can immediately begin to generate revenue once they acquire their vehicles.

Freight Transportation


Trucking and transportation businesses are also extremely important in the Philadelphia area given that many wholesalers and retailers need to move large amounts of merchandise throughout the city. Much like transportation companies that focus specifically on individuals that need to get from point A to point B – freight services are another highly profitable and highly economically stable business within the Philadelphia metropolitan area.

IT Consulting and Networking Services


Given that the greater Philadelphia market has a substantial business startup scene, the demand for high quality information technology services and information technology consulting is also significant. One of the nice things about owning an IT focused business is that they almost always generate highly recurring streams of revenue on a month-to-month basis for service contracts. These businesses are able to provide secure networks especially for businesses that handle a substantial amount of sensitive materials. One of the other great things that these businesses is that their revenues are completely immune from negative changes in the economy given that both companies and individuals need to have properly installed and maintained networks in their businesses and homes. This will continue to be a major source of growth within the Philadelphia area.

Coworking Spaces and Rentals


As relates to real estate, co-working locations are also very popular in this market. This is due to the fact that many people now work as freelancers or as small entrepreneurs and need to have office space on a short-term basis. Coworking companies have become extremely popular in almost all major metropolitan areas given the trends of more and more people working within the gig economy rather than having a full-time job. These businesses typically have moderate startup costs depending on whether or not the owner acquires the building that is going to be used as a co-working space. However, one of the slight downside to these businesses that during times of economic recession – their revenues often suffer a bit given that more people will seek to have full-time employment rather than operating as a freelancer or independent entrepreneur.

Real Estate Agents and Brokerages


Further into real estate, real estate brokerages are almost always able to remain profitable and cash flow positive in the Philadelphia market given that people are always looking for business space, home rentals, and to purchase a real estate. This is one of the most mature industries within the United States, and their revenues typically mirror that of the general economy and the housing economy as a whole. Given the substantial demand for real estate within this market, almost all real estate agents and brokers are able to make a decent living providing the services to the general public.

Property Management Firms


Finally as relates to real estate, property management firms are very much in demand in Philadelphia. There are a number of companies as well as wealthy individuals that own a number of properties that need to be properly maintained on a month-to-month basis. Property management firms always earn a highly recurring stream of revenue from providing the services on an ongoing basis. One of the common trends within this industry is to offer flat rate property management services rather than taking a standard 10% of aggregate rental fees. This is one of the ways that many newer property management firms are able to effectively compete with established companies within these markets. For individuals or companies that have the proper license to operate as a property manager business – there are substantial and lucrative opportunities in the Philadelphia metropolitan area for companies that want to be engage in this type of activity.

Pet Care Services


As with the rest of the millennial generation, pets have become an important part of daily life. Many people between the ages of twenty to thirty-five have decided to either not have children or start a family much later in life. As such, many people acquire a dog or cat in lieu of starting a family right away. As such, the demand for quality pet care services – including daily pet walking services – is substantial in this market. Although some people do bring their pets to work, this is very uncommon and most pet owners need to have their dog cared for during the course of the day while they are at work. As such, a pet care agency that offers both pet walking services as well as overnight care can be a highly profitable business for an entrepreneur that is looking to start a low-cost business. These companies are highly scalable.

Developing a Pitch Deck (with Pictures)

Pitch decks have become very popular over the past five years as more people want to see information regarding a business displayed in a clear and concise manner. Of course, nearly every individual investor or financial institution that requests the pitch deck will more often than not request the business plan as well. In my experience, as a seasoned business plan writer, I have found that the best way to develop a pitch deck is to first complete the full business plan. The vast majority of the information that is put into a pitch deck is typically drawn specifically from the business plan. This is especially true as it relates to the financial portion of a business planning model that is going to be showcased within a PowerPoint presentation.

A well-written pitch deck should be no more than 15 slides. However, there are exceptions to this rule especially if the business is engaged in a highly specialized technology or has significantly difficult operations to manage. For a general pitch deck that is specific for capital raising, 15 slides is usually more than enough. Below is a breakdown of how we develop each slide.

Slide Section One

 The first slide should focus heavily on providing information in a bullet-ed point fashion regarding the business. This includes the name of the business, how much money is being raised, whether this capital is coming as an equity investment or loan, and it brief overview of the products and services that are going to be provided. Usually, 18 to 24 point font should be used so that it is very easy to read.

Pitch Deck Introduction
Pitch Deck Introduction


Slide Section Two

 In this section it is important to provide a brief overview of the products and services that are offered. This can be expanded into two slides especially if the business has proprietary technology or a specialized operational method that sets the business apart from its competition. Again, it is very important to be as brief as possible in this part of the presentation as many people often go overboard with the amount of information they include in this aspect of operations.

Slide Section Three

 Here, it is time to discuss the market analysis. Unlike the business plan, the market analysis that is included within a PowerPoint presentation or pitch deck should be kept to a minimum. For local businesses, this can include showcasing the target demographics of the business while providing an overview of how many people fall into the company’s target market radius. For businesses, such as online focused companies, a substantial focus can be placed on the potential number of people on either a national or global level that could become potential users or customers of a company’s services or products.

One of the important keys to developing a pitch deck that stands apart is to include a number of different graphics that can be clearly showcased to a potential funding source. The pitch deck, again, is generally meant to create a substantial amount of interest in the business while focusing on the fact that a full business plan is available upon request.

Slide Section Four

 In this slide, it is time to discuss the marketing. Again, much like any other aspect of this document – a specific focus should be placed on using bullet point overviews in less there is some highly proprietary marketing strategy that will be implemented by the business.

Marketing Plan - ROI Analysis
Marketing Plan – ROI Analysis

.As with all businesses these days, it is very important to focus substantially on the online marketing strategies will be used specific for your organization. If your business is an online company then it is appropriate to develop this part of the pitch deck as up to a three-slide overview of how you will be conducting your marketing operations. Specific topics that many funding sources want to see within a pitch deck specific for marketing is how the brand will position itself online through the use of social media as well as search engine optimization. One of the other tables that can be included in this part of the pitch deck is the anticipated return on investment that will be generated from each dollar of marketing expenditure undertaken.

Slide Section Five

Here, the anticipated financial results of the business are provided to a potential funding source. This includes images of the profit and loss statement, cash flow analysis, and balance sheet. Additional metrics such as a breakeven analysis, common size income statement, and business ratios can be kept off of the pitch deck as this is usually shown very thoroughly within the business plan self. Below are images of how the financial statements are showcased within a pitch deck document:

Pitch Deck - P&L Statement
Pitch Deck – P&L Statement
Pitch Deck - Cash Flow Analysis
Pitch Deck – Cash Flow Analysis
Pitch Deck - Balance Sheet
Pitch Deck – Balance Sheet
Pitch Deck - Personnel Summary
Pitch Deck – Personnel Summary
Pitch Deck - Organizational Summary
Pitch Deck – Organizational Summary



Slide Section Six

Finally, an overview of the biographies of the founders and management team should be included in the section. This can usually run anywhere from 1 to 4 slides depending on the expertise of the individual as well as the number of people that are on board with this business.

If any specific individual is extremely well known in the industry or has had substantial success with similar businesses then this should be clearly highlighted within this part of the pitch deck. Most importantly, keep this section to an absolute minimum in less it is completely imperative that a full resume or curriculum vitae is shown to potential funding source. The only true instances where a full resume should be included within a pitch deck is if the business surrounds the highly specialized expertise or professional background of the owner or management team.

Slide Section Seven

On the final page, we include information regarding how to contact the point person for the business, and we reference the fact that a full-scale business plan is available upon request. Usually, the name, address, email address, and contact phone numbers are included in this section. If the business already has a website available to view, then this information should be included as well on the final slide of the pitch deck.

Conclusion

A pitch deck is a great way for a company to gain immediate exposure from a potential funding source. Again, these days people are inundated with information on a daily basis and having a pitch deck that can quickly convey exactly what you’re looking to achieve, the anticipated financial results your business, and your specific funding request. This can go a long way into having a funding source thoroughly review your developed business plan. In subsequent articles, we’re going to discuss how you can create other forms of presentation that will create a substantial amount of interest in your business.

Thank you for taking the time to review this article, and we want to note that we offer more than 550 different business plans and pitch decks on this website. Please feel free to browse our entire selection, and if you have any questions you can always reach us at our email address info@bizputfundingresource.com or via live chat below.

The Sections of a Marketing Plan

There are five primary sections to a well-written marketing plan. First, is the introduction. In this section, an overview of all the different marketing strategies that will be used to create visibility for a brand or its products and services should be briefly outlined. This includes discussing specific online marketing strategies, print advertising strategies, and any type of public relations campaign that will be undertaken from the onset of operations. This section of the marketing plan should be about one page in length given that it will provide a top-level view of the overall operations of the marketing department while providing a guide for the rest of the marketing plan. Including graphics and charts, most marketing plans run anywhere from 18 to 24 pages. Approximately half of the work of the marketing plan is specific for the costs associated with each type of advertising, marketing, or public relations campaign that will be carried out.

Specific parts of the introduction can be done in a bullet point fashion to provide a brief overview of the rest of the document. Examples of this include briefly discussing local print advertisements, sponsorship of local sports teams, any type of regional advertising will be completed, and what online marketing campaigns will be engaged.

The next chapter of your marketing plan deals specifically with online marketing strategies. There are many different ways that you can expand and create visibility through usage of the Internet as well as social media. Of all the different sections within the marketing plan, this has become the most important. Nearly everyone has a mobile phone that can be used to find local businesses, read reviews about businesses, and receive contact information for any specific organization. As such, a bulk of the text of your marketing plan should be specific for online marketing strategies.

An example of this would be discussing things such as use of social media in order to create a greater degree of brand awareness. This includes maintaining profiles on popular social platforms including FaceBook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. Special important should be made as a release discussing how much money is going to be spent on a monthly basis for online marketing activities. This includes carefully crafting a budget that showcases what percentage of overall marketing expenditures will be geared towards paid social media promotion, search engine optimization, as well as pay per click marketing.

Generally, the online marketing strategy chapter is broken down into two sections – social media and search engine marketing. Again, as it relates to social media – this should focus substantially on usage of FaceBook, Twitter, and YouTube as these are the most popular social media platforms in the world.

By developing videos as well as well-crafted social media posts, a business can receive a substantial amount of traffic to their website via viral marketing messages. If you are unfamiliar with this type of marketing than it may be in your best interest to hire a social media consultant that can aggressively handle this aspect of your marketing operations. Although social media consulting firms are expensive, a substantial amount of time can be saved by outsourcing this work to a company note knows exactly what they’re doing.

The same applies for search engine optimization strategies given that this is a complex method of marketing that requires time, effort, and patience. Many search engine optimization firms estimate that it takes anywhere from three months to six months for this type of marketing campaign to become effective. As it relates to the cost of these expenditures, most SCO firms charge anywhere from $500 all the way up to $10,000 per month to carry out a moderate to large scale search engine marketing campaign. A substantial amount of this work is done through content marketing.

The third chapter of the marketing plan deals with your demographics. This should include discussing the types of customers that your targeting, their age, annual household income, and specific aspects of their life that will make your product or service stand out to them. A thorough demographic analysis should be developed as almost all marketing campaigns center around targeting this very specific type of customer. Many marketing firms on a regional level can assist you with developing appropriate demographic analysis given the product or service that you offered to the general public.

The fourth chapter of your marketing plan to deal with your print advertising strategies. It should be noted that many companies have decided to either eliminate or heavily scale back their print related marketing given that most businesses are now found online. However, for some businesses – like restaurants – it is still important to distribute flyers and coupons to these customers so that they will come to the location. Most print advertising that is distributed is specific for retailers as well as food /beverage businesses there trying to drive traffic specifically to their locations.

The fifth chapter of the marketing plan is specific for the differentiating factors that are taken into account regarding products and services offered. This analysis should focus heavily on the benefits of using your products or services, and how the business is differentiated from other competitors in the target market. Usually, this chapter runs about one to two pages.

The final section of the marketing plan deal specifically with the anticipated return on investment for all of the different types of marketing and advertising that will be undertaken by the business. This includes having a number of tables that showcase the anticipated revenues of the company as a function of how much money you spent on marketing activities. Below are images of how these charts look and how these calculations are made:

Marketing Plan Revenue Overview
Marketing Plan Revenue Overview
Marketing Plan - Localized Target Market Analysis
Marketing Plan – Localized Target Market Analysis
Marketing Plan -Demographic Analysis
Marketing Plan -Demographic Analysis
Marketing Plan - ROI Analysis
Marketing Plan – ROI Analysis

Writing a Business Plan Guide with Pictures and Free Template

A complete step-by-step guide (with pictures and free downloadable business plan template) that guides you through the entire business planning process.

For many entrepreneurs, writing a business plan can be an extremely daunting task. Many people are intimidated by the amount of content that needs to go into the business plan, and they are often unsure of how to properly write one. In this guide, we will down each of the steps that are necessary in order to complete a comprehensive business plan.

First, our sales pitch. If you are having difficulties developing a business plan on your own, our website provides a number of templates that you can use to assist you in this process. Each plan that is showcased on this website is specific to its title. The package includes a word document with a completed business plan that you can alter or modify to your needs. Additionally, each package includes a number of other support materials including Excel files that will assist you in developing the financial portion of your business plan.

Please download both files. Also, please note that the purchased version is far more comprehensive. We have 550 different business plan templates available.

On the quick side note, if you are truly struggling with developing a business plan then there are many professionals that can assist you without the process. Over the past 14 years, I have written more than 4,000 business plans on a domestic and international basis. At this point, writing a business plan is basically bodily function. Many people do feel that it is sort of cheating to hire someone to develop a business plan on your behalf. However, and although I may be biased here, this is simply not the case. Many entrepreneurs have a perfect vision of how they want to develop their business and simply struggle with putting down their concept onto paper in a presentable format. My firm specializes in developing comprehensive documents that are specific for capital raising among investors as well as financial institutions. We take our clients vision and simply transform into a beautiful presentation that any person can read and understand. As such, if you find yourself continuing to struggle with developing a document then it may be in your best interest to hire a third party to help you.

Now onto the guide. First, let’s talk about how a good business plan is written. When we develop business plans, we first produce the market research for the document. As this serves as the foundation for a good business plan, it is important to do this that first. Many people try to start the work by writing out their executive summary. However, I have found that it is best to wait until the very end to write the executive summary as a well written executive summary acts as a guide for the rest of the business plan.

Completing the Market Research

There are a number of online resources that you can use when developing your market research. First, let’s look at the important sections that need to be included in this part of the business plan. The first section is generally an overview of the economy as a whole and how a negative change in the economy can impact your business operations. Specific points that should be discussed in a one to two paragraph section including the current unemployment rate, current interest rate environment, prices of assets among all classes, as well as of where the economy is heading. At the time of this writing, October 2019, unemployment rates have remained very low while interest rates have remained low as well despite substantial increases in asset prices. The trade war between China and the United States may impact the economic climate moving forward.  Tariffs have caused the prices of many common goods to increase substantially as a majority of consumable products within the United States are manufactured in China and other overseas markets. Additionally, other issues pertaining to currency valuations can impact the economy moving forward. This is a strong example of specific things that should be discussed in the economic section of your market research.

The next section of most business plans deal with the industry analysis. This includes taking a look at the industry or industries in which you are going to be operating, the number of people that are employed by the industry, annual revenues generated from all businesses included within the industry, as well as any market trends. For most industries, they are highly established. For instance, an industry like the food and beverage service is not going to have very many changes in the way that they conduct business moving forward. Restaurants and other eateries have been around for hundreds of years, and they typically have growth rates that are in lockstep with the economy as a whole. However, if you are in a business such as financial technology – then you may need to conduct a much more in-depth analysis regarding trends within this industry. This would include discussing major competitors, any pieces of legislation or regulation that may impact your business, and other facets of operation that are going to need to be addressed on an ongoing basis.

Third, in this section it is also important to outline the average customer profile or user profile of your services or buyer of your products. This includes examining annual median household income, age, gender, as well as any specific types of character traits that are specific to the type of product or service that you are offering. In this section, many people also outline the estimated number of people within the target market that would be potential buyers. This is extremely important especially for local or regional businesses as you want to ensure that you’re going to have enough people within your market to support an economically feasible business. For instance, returning to our discussion regarding a restaurant, you’re going to want to look at population size and population density as compared to the number of other restaurants within your target market. This will ensure that in any given night there are a number of people that are willing to come to your restaurant so that it operates near 100% capacity. For other businesses, such as online businesses, you may want to take a look at the number of people within a specific country or on a worldwide basis that are potential users of your services.

Fourth, in this section we typically discuss the competitive issues that a business will face as it progresses through its launch as well as ongoing expansion. For local and regional businesses, conducting a competitive analysis is relatively easy given that you’re familiar with the area and can simply find what competitors are offering products or services that are similar to yours. An examination of competitors should include their estimated annual revenues, number of employees, and how long they have been in business. A more subjective overview of a competitor includes the strength of their brand name, how long they’ve been in business, and their market reach. For larger scale businesses, such as online businesses, it is slightly more difficult to carry out a competitive analysis given that you’re going to have to find companies that operate throughout your entire country or on a worldwide basis. Conducting this type of market research is little more of an involved process but can be easily achieved through use of search engines. When carrying out these types of operations you should use specific keywords and phrases that are specific to the products and services that you’ll be selling. This will allow you to see the more prominent competitors within your field.

One of the ways that you can make your market research stand out is by developing a number of charts and graphs that are specific to your industries. Below are some links to companies that you can use to acquire graphics specific for the industries that you operate within:

https://www.IBISWorld.com

https://www.Statista.com

The Financial Plan

After the market analysis is done, it is time to develop the financial plan. Most business plans have a three-year to five-year pro forma financial model included. Generally speaking, it is very difficult to estimate anything beyond a three-year period. A financial plan consists primarily of three parts: a profit and loss statement, cash analysis, and balance sheet. It is also important to include other metrics such as the breakeven analysis as well as important business ratios that are applicable to your operations.

As it relates the profit and loss statement, this table showcases your revenues, cost of goods sold, your operating expenses, as well as your pre-tax profit. The profit and loss statement showcases your estimated taxes as well as any interest expense that you may incur. Below is an image of a standard profit and loss statement:

Profit and Loss Statement
Profit and Loss Graph
Profit and Loss Graph

Relating to the profit and loss statement is the cash flow analysis. Here, in overview of the cash coming in and cash going out is showcased. Although this may seem very similar to the profit and loss statement, it is actually very different. The top line of the cash analysis showcases the net profit of the business. The net profit is the income that is generated after all expenses including taxes and interest are paid. The cash flow analysis showcases any equity investment that has and made into the business, any increase in borrowings, accounts payable, accounts receivable, as well as any asset purchases that are made and any dividends that are distributed. Below is an image of a standard cash flow analysis:

Cash Flow Analysis
Cash Flow Analysis
Cash Flow Analysis Image
Cash Flow Analysis Bar Graph

When developing a financial plan, this is where most people start to have some issues. Most people commonly understand the concept of a profit and loss statement as it is simply a measure of income generated minus all expenses. With a cash flow analysis, certain metrics and deductions are made that do not impact the profit and loss statement. One of the key things to note as well is that if you are taking on a business loan to develop your business then the interest is deducted from the profit and loss statement while the repayment of principal is deducted from the cash flow analysis.

Once the cash flow is completed then it is time to finalize the balance sheet. This is a measure of all assets owned by the business minus all liabilities. Common assets that are acquired by businesses include furniture, fixtures, and equipment, the cash that is held in a bank account, as well as any inventories that are carried. A balance sheet looks like this:

Balance Sheet
Balance Sheet



As it relates to liabilities, this includes any payables that are owed to third parties, tax liabilities, as well as any outstanding business loans or lines of credit that have been taken out in order to launch or expand the business. The value of the company is calculated by subtracting the total value of assets minus the total value of liabilities. It should be noted that there are certain instances where you may have negative equity. However, this is done more of a managerial standpoint basis. If you are having certain issues developing your balance sheet or if you are an existing business then may want to consult with a certified public accountant that can assist you with developing this part of your business plan.

On a quick side note, your certified public accountant will be an invaluable resource not only for managing your tax issues and accounting issues, but also for business advisory perspective. They can assist you greatly with developing your business plan while providing you with insightful advice about the best way to expand your business or organization. Most CPAs are very affordable for most small business owners.

Once the profit and loss statement, cash analysis, and balance are completed then it is time to carry out some other calculations. First, you’re going to want to take a look at your breakeven analysis. This segment of your financial plan will showcase how much revenue you need to generate on a monthly or yearly basis in order to reach breakeven. This is a very important metric that most business owners use in order to ensure that they can reach profitability quickly. This calculation is completed by taking a look at your total fixed operating expenses and dividing by the amount of gross profit that needs to be produced on a monthly or yearly basis. A sample breakeven analysis is shown below:

Breakeven Analysis
Breakeven Analysis

A common metrics table is usually included within the financial planning part of the business plan document. Key metrics that are examined in this table usually include sales growth, assets to liabilities, assets to equity, as well as certain metrics regarding liabilities to amount of cash on hand. Some of these metrics are a little bit more theoretical in nature given that certain circumstances do not occur in the actual business world. However, many of these metrics showcase the overall financial health of the business. Many lenders as well as many investors frequently want to see these metrics charted within a business plan.

Business Ratios Chart
Business Ratios Chart



Products, Services, and Operations

In this section analysis, it is time to showcase the products and services that will be offering to your customers or clients. This is the section of the business plan that can be a little bit more sales focused as a relates to connecting with your investor or funding source. Generally speaking, a more scientific and clinical approach is taken to writing the rest of the business plan to showcase the feasibility and economic viability of your planned business. In this section, however, you can thoroughly discuss why you are offering an outstanding product or service that will be in demand among a number of consumers or clients. In most business plans, this section of the business plan ranges anywhere from one to four pages. If you are offering a number of products or have developed a proprietary product then you can also include images in this section of the document.

One of the other things that is frequently discussed in this section of the document as well is the overall operations of the business. This includes discussing matters such as customer service, hours of operation, layout of any retail facility, and other pertinent information as it relates to properly providing the service or selling your product to the general public.

Another point that is discussed in the products and services section is the pricing that is associated with your product line. It should be noted that if you offer a number of products, such as hundreds of products, it is in your best interest to reference a product catalog that can be seen separately from the business plan. One of the common mistakes that I see when I’m reviewing business plans that people have written on their own is that they list every single product that they offer in this section of the business plan. In order to keep the business plan as short as possible, a product catalog can be included as a separate document so that a funding source can review it should they choose to do so.

The Financing

In this section of the business plan, in overview of the capital you are seeking to raise is discussed. Most importantly, a table should be created that allows you to show the funding source to see exactly how these funds are to be used. If you are purchasing substantial pieces of tangible assets then you may want to list them all within the section, but keep in mind that brevity is important. Below is a sample table that showcases what a use of funds chart generally looks like:

Use of Funds Table and Chart
Use of Funds Table and Chart

Other important aspects of this section of the business plan include discussing the equity that we provided to a potential investor should they place money with your company. Additionally, the current ownership structure the business is discussed in the section as well. Finally, this section generally ends with an overview of the exit strategies that will be associated with your business.

In nearly all circumstances, as it relates to exit strategies, a business is sold, in whole, to a third-party. While many people discuss the usage of an initial public offering, the fact of the matter is that very few companies actually go public. In fact, there are only tens of thousands of business is in the United States are publicly traded. The remaining 100 million businesses are privately owned and operated, and are eventually sold to third parties for substantial earnings premium. One of the key things that should be discussed with in your exit strategy is the anticipated price to earnings multiple that similar businesses in your industry self or on an ongoing basis. This will assist the funding source, especially an investor, with an understanding of how much the business could potentially be worth by the 3rd to 5th year of operation. In many other instances, you can also include a pro forma valuation table that showcases the potential valuation based on profitability.

The Overview of the Organization

In this section the business plan, general information regarding launch dates, mission statements, mission statements, and organizational values are showcased. This section of the business plan is usually placed in the middle of the document. In business plans that I write professionally for people, I put this as the fourth section of the business plan.

One of the key components of this section of the business plan is the development of a proper mission statement. For many smaller businesses, this can be less of a priority as are simply trying to convey that you are trying to provide a great product or service to the general public, while developing a profitable enterprise. For larger companies, especially those with proprietary technology or a proprietary operating methodology, this is a little bit trickier as you want to clearly state exactly what you’re organization is looking to achieve on a very large scale level. This is something it takes a little bit of time to develop, and you can actually keep this part of the business plan open ended as you complete the rest of the work. Many people often take one month or two to develop the proper mission statement. It should be noted that this is a relatively small aspect of the overall business plan, and most financial institutions – especially for smaller businesses – do not place much weight on a properly developed mission statement.

The Marketing Plan

Of all the sections of developing a business plan that I enjoy writing, the marketing plan is my favorite. This is primarily due to the fact that you can outline exactly how you want to position your product or service and business to the general public. In this section, is important to start with a bullet outline of specific objectives that you’re going to look to achieve on a yearly basis. This includes discussing how to maintain a major presence on social media, carrying out comprehensive print campaigns, as well as developing a loyal customer base that will refer customers or clients to your business on an ongoing basis.

One of the things that I often include in the section of the business plan is a breakdown of all revenues generated by the business by product category. Below is an image of what this table looks like:

Revenue Center Chart
Revenue Center Chart

As you can see, in this example I show that three different products and two different services are being provided to the general public. This is an important table as well as an important part of the marketing plan as it shows exactly where your revenue centers and profits are coming from on a yearly basis. This is something that can be thoroughly discussed within the marketing plan as it relates to pushing specific services to your potential customer base.

An overview of the yearly sales, in word format, is often discussed as well in this section. Primarily, in overview of first-year sales and second-year sales are thoroughly discussed while third year to fifth year sales are mentioned briefly to showcase the operations of the business once it is fully established.

The marketing strategies that you’re going to use to promote your business need to be thoroughly discussed within the section of the business plan. Generally, this section should run one to two pages. This includes, again, discussing all the ways in which you will promote your business. One of the interesting things about writing a marketing plan these days is that a heavy focus must be placed on online marketing activities. This includes the use of a proprietary website as well as maintaining a presence on popular social media platforms such as FaceBook, Twitter, and Instagram. Many marketing plans also include a discussion regarding usage of platforms like YouTube to develop video commercials and presentations that will showcase products and services to the general public. One of the interesting things about online marketing is that many of these platforms are completely integrated with one another. If you develop a video presentation for your business you can seamlessly share it on other social media platforms once it has been uploaded to YouTube. These are all topics that should be very thoroughly discussed within your business plan.

For local and regional businesses, special importance remade in regards to showcasing a traditional print marketing campaign, distribution of mailed flyers and brochures, as well as establishing relationships with other organizations in your target market. Many small business owners find that they are able to generate a substantial amount of business by becoming members of their local chambers of commerce as well as joining a number of other small business organizations. For instance, when we develop a business plan specific for a real estate brokerage we focus heavily on that individual and business becoming enrolled in his many organizations as possible in order to develop a referral and business network.

The Personnel Summary

In this section of the business plan, we outline of the organizational structure is provided. Below is an image of a simple organizational structure specific for a delivery business:

Organizational Chart
Organizational Chart

Additionally, this section of the analysis also includes a chart showcasing the different types of employees will be hired, their pay, and headcount of the business. A sample chart showcasing this looks as follows:

Personnel Summary Chart
Personnel Summary Chart


One of the other common things that is put into this section business plan is the biography of the founder. This includes discussing all relevant biographical information, work experience, and educational credentials. This can be kept somewhat short and it should not exceed more than three to four paragraphs. Generally, we write a biography for the owner and then reference the fact that a resume or curriculum vitae is available upon request or is it included as part of the overall business plan package.

SWOT Analysis

This is usually one of the appendices that we include in each of our business plans. A well-developed SWOT analysis focuses on the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats that are going to be faced by the business on ongoing basis. Generally, we do this in a bullet point fashion and it should not be more than one page.

Critical Risks and Issues Section


As any entrepreneur knows, nothing ever goes according to plan. As such, it is important that a page that is specific to the issues that a business may face is included as well. This is of tremendous value to any potential reader – including private investors and financial institutions – as it will show that you have properly prepared for major issues that may occur as you progress are your business operations. Generally, we break this down into five sections.

The development risk paragraph focuses on issues that could occur during the course of start up. The primary development risk for most startup companies is their ability to acquire the capital that is being sought in the business plan, while concurrently launching revenue-generating operations.

The financing risk paragraph focuses heavily on the usage of funds, and what would happen in the event that the business does not work out as planned. For instance, an example of discussing the financing risk for restaurant would be to focus on the fact that a substantial amount of furniture, fixtures, and equipment as well as other tangible assets are going to be purchased with any debt capital or equity capital from a funding source. The high margins that are generated from food and beverage sales generally offset ongoing risks relating to this type of financing. In the event that a business is liquidated, the tangible assets can be used to pay back any funding source.

The marketing risk paragraph is followed after the financing risk paragraph. This discusses the marketing strategies that will be used in order to promote interest in the business and its products and services. It should be noted that many marketing strategies are relatively expenses, and they can often not produce the revenue results that are anticipated in a business planning document.

Valuation risk is followed by the marketing risk section. This discusses the potential returns on investment for an investor should the business not produce as much profit as anticipated in the financial plan. This can be done on a bulleted point basis.

Finally, exit risk is discussed. For many businesses, it takes anywhere from 1 to 2 years to properly prepare and sell a business to a third-party. As such, issues pertaining to liquidity as well as how long it would take to properly sell the business for an appropriate price to earnings multiple should be discussed in this paragraph.

Although this is a lot of content, this can all be included on one page.

Reference Sources

In this section of the analysis you should include a list of all reference sources ever used in regards the business plan.

Executive Summary

This now takes us to the executive summary. Of all the sections of the business plan, this one is the most important sections is it is designed to capture a reader’s attention immediately. There are a number of different ways that you can go about writing your executive summary, but we have developed a streamlined approach that allows the executive summary to state exactly what you’re looking to achieve all acting as a guide for the rest of the business plan. A well-written executive summary should be about two pages in length.

First, your opening paragraph to discuss the type of industry they are operating within, the name of the business and where you’re located, and how much capital you’re looking to receive in order to launch or expand operations. The names of the founder and owners should also be included within this paragraph. One of the other things that we include is the anticipated start date or quarter of starting or expanding revenue-generating operations.

Second, a two paragraph overview of the products and services that you are selling should be included next. This includes any specific information regarding any proprietary technology or proprietary service that you will be offering to the general public.

Third, an overview of the management should be included as well. This is important if your business requires specialized expertise is required by the owner or any key member of the management team. You do not need to put a substantial amount of biographical information in this section edits it is covered in the personnel summary. References to varying aspects of the business plan should be included as well. For instance, if you reference your background in having a substantial amount of retail experience then you should direct readers to the section of the business plan that discusses your background by chapter name.

Fourth, a quick overview of the anticipated profit and loss statements over a three-year period should be included as well. A sample image of house this looks is shown below:

Profit and Loss Summary Chart
Profit and Loss Summary Chart

Finally, an overview of how you intend to expand the operations of the business should be included as well. This includes discussing substantial reinvestment into marketing infrastructures, developing new product lines, creating new service lines, expanding inventories, as well as the potential development of additional locations if this is applicable to your business.

Expanded Profit and Loss Statements and Cash Flow Analysis

In this section business plan, it is common to include a profit and loss statement and casual analysis that is showcase monthly for the first year of operation as well as quarterly for years two and three. These charts looks as follows:

Profit and Loss Year 1
Profit and Loss Year 1
Profit and Loss Year 1 Cont.
Profit and Loss Year 1 Cont.
Year 2 Profit and Loss Statement
Year 2 Profit and Loss Statement
Year 3 Profit and Loss Statement
Year 3 Profit and Loss Statement
Year 1 Cash Flow Analysis
Year 1 Cash Flow Analysis
Year 1 Cash Flow Analysis Continued
Year 1 Cash Flow Analysis Continued
Year 2 Cash Flow Analysis
Year 2 Cash Flow Analysis
Year 3 Cash Flow Analysis
Year 3 Cash Flow Analysis

Preparing Your Business Plan For Distribution

The vast majority of business plans that are developed are transmitted electronically as either a word or PDF document. We strongly recommend that if you are distributing the business plan that you send as a PDF document as this is locked and cannot be edited by any third party. Additionally, if there is a substantial amount of sensitive material in your business plan then you can create a watermark that acts as a numbering system to parties that have received the document. This will ensure that any proprietary information or intellectual property cannot be shown to a third party. One of the common things that is also included in a business plan is a standard nondisclosure agreement. This can be included in the business plan right under the table of contents or it can be attach as a second document that must be signed by a third party before the business plan is distributed.

If you are planning to submit your document in paper format, then we strongly recommend that you take it to a printer that can put the business plan into a binder or nicely laminated folder. These companies typically charge a minimal fee for printing out a 30 to 50 page business plan and including them in a bound manner.

The Table of Contents

Most business plans follow a 7 to 9 chapter format. How you structure the business plan is completely up to you, but this is the common two types of formats that we use when developing a business plan. The seven  chapter business plan our formatting is as follows:

Chapter 1 – Executive Summary

Chapter 2 – The Financing

Chapter 3 – Products, Services, and Operations Overview

Chapter 4  – Strategic and Market Analysis

Chapter 5 – Marketing Plan

Chapter 6 – Personnel Summary

Chapter 7 – Financial Plan

SWOT analysis

Critical Risks and Problems

Reference Sources

Expanded Profit and Loss and Cash Flow Analysis

In a full-scale nine chapter business plan, which include certain elements additional to a standard format a plan we use the following table of contents

Chapter 1 – Executive summary

Chapter 2 – The Financing

Chapter 3 – Products, Services, and Operational Overview

Chapter 4 – Overview of the Organization

Chapter 5 – Strategic and Market Analysis

Chapter 6 -Key Strategic Issues

Chapter 7 -Marketing Plan

Chapter 8 – Personnel Overview

Chapter 9 – Financial Plan

SWOT analysis

Critical risks and issues

Append reference sources

Expanded Profit and Loss and Cash Flow Analysis

Conclusion

Overall you can you can see that developing a business plan is a pretty in-depth and involved process. Generally speaking, it takes about two weeks to four weeks to develop a proper business plan. Professional writing services, like the ones that we offer on a customized basis typically take about a week to complete. One of the ways that you can greatly expedite this process is by acquiring a template that already has the necessary market research and financial model ready to be modified.

On this website, again, we have 550 different business plans that are all specific to their title. Each of these plans includes all the necessary industry research, economic analysis, and Excel model that would be needed to complete a business plan on your own. In areas that you need to determine on your own, we provide a comprehensive guide on how to most effectively complete the sections of the document.

In closing, thank you very much for taking the time to read this article and we always encourage everyone who has any questions to leave feedback in the comments below or you can email us directly at info@bizfundingresource.com. You can also reach us during normal business hours via the live chat.

52 Small Business Tips

1. Developing Your Business Plan Appropriately

Arguably the hardest part of starting any new business venture is raising capital. However, while this process may take a significant period of time, it is not overly time pressure sensitive. Before you even start your business operations, you are going to need to develop an in depth business plan that outlines exactly what you will need to do to get your business off the ground. Most importantly, when you are developing your business plan – you are going to determine whether or not you have an economically viable venture on your hands. Many businesses fail due to the fact that they should never have been businesses in the first place. For instance, if you live in a small town with a small population then there is no need to try to open a large scale department store. The first pieces of advice that we can offer to you is that you need to honestly look at your business, almost from a scientific perspective, to make sure that your business will be able to start to turn a profit in the first two years of operation. As it relates to time management, you should spend at least a month (or about two full working weeks) dedicated to writing a business plan that has complete industry research and a reasonable financial projection.

2. When Raising Capital, Do What is Best for You

Given that it is difficult to raise capital, it is important that you always do what is best for you depending on the type of capital that you are seeking. Many people make the mistake at taking the first offer that comes to them when it comes to getting the capital they need. It is important to remember that if one person is willing to invest in your business then other people will most likely be willing to do the same. Many new business owners jump at any offer for capital that they receive thinking that they will never find another funding source for their business. Nothing could be further from the truth. Additionally, if you are seeking a loan – it should be noted that there are thousands of banks and funding sources that will be willing to look at your business venture in order to make a lending or investment decision. With the advent of the internet and crowd funding, you will find that you will be able to find the capital that you need. In regards to time, you should expect that the capital raising process will take three months to a year depending on the type of capital that you are seeking. It is far easier to get a bank loan than it is to source capital from a number of private investors.

3. When You Are Trying to Get a Bank Loan – Be Extremely Prepared

When you are raising capital for your new business venture, remember that investors are looking for a return on their investment while banks are looking to earn interest payments from you each and every month that the loan exists. Banks make highly scientific decisions as to whether or not you and your business can repay the loan without defaulting. Prior to approaching a bank for a business loan, you are going to want to have a properly prepared business plan, a list of all of your assets, a list of all of your debts, and two to three years of tax returns. This is a must if you are seeking a Small Business Administration Loan. Your bank may require additional information from you as they review your application. As such, having all of your ducks in a row is imperative if you are going through this process.

4. Your Credit Needs to Be In Good Shape At All Times

As it relates to raising capital, your credit can be your most valuable asset outside of your plan to start an economically viable business. If you are seeking capital from private investors then your credit is not as much of an issue. Of course, the downside is that you are going to need to sell a portion of your business to a third party in order to get the capital you need. When you obtain a business loan, you still own 100% of the business. These days, the minimum credit score you need is 650 (using the FICO scale). However, in reality, your credit score should be in the 700 range in order to get the best terms possible. If you have some outstanding credit issues that need to be fixed, you should have those issues fixed by a licensed credit counselor that can effectively and quickly remedy the situations with your personal credit. Remember, you will need to personally guarantee any new business loan that you are taking out and that is why your credit score is so important for this process.

5. If You are Working With Investors Then Make Sure You Have a Proper Terms Sheet

If you are seeking a business loan then the process is pretty straight forward. You submit a business plan, tax returns, and lots of other paper work and then you either get the money you need or you don’t. When it comes to investors, the terms are never straight forward. Some investors want a substantial amount of control as it relates to your business while others want to be more hands off. Some investors want to take dividends while others would rather see the profits reinvested into the business. As such, when you are working with a private funding source it is imperative that you have a properly formatted terms sheet that shows exactly what the investor will be providing, and how much control they will have over how the business operates on a day to day basis. Your attorney and your investor’s attorney should be involved in each step of the process. This will ensure that any misunderstanding or legal issue is kept to an absolute minimum.

6. If Possible, Try Not to Use Capital from Friends and Family

This is always a difficult situation. If you have a great idea for a new business or new product then you may want to approach your friends and family for a loan or investment into your business. If other ways of raising capital are available to you then you shouldn’t. Friends/family and money rarely mix well. If your business does not end up working out as planned (and your friends and family lose money) then you may have resentment from them. On the flip side, if your business is extremely successful then you may have issues as well. First, if you were loaned the money then your friends and family may feel left out as you are now running a successful business on money that they lent to you (a loan does not entitle the lender to profits…just a loan repayment). This can result in jealousy. Two, if they did provide you with investment (meaning that they own a certain percentage of your business) then they may want to become an active part of your business. This happens more often than you would think. As such, unless this is really your only option for raising capital, then you should try not to use their money to start or expand your business venture.

7. Finding The Best Location For Your Business and Just Having to Deal with the Landlord

This is one of the trickiest and aggravating aspects of starting a new businesses. If you are operating in an online capacity then you do not need to worry too much about your location as you can work from anywhere. However, if you are starting a new business like a restaurant or retail store then it is absolutely imperative that you find the best location possible. Even if the location is more expensive than you budgeted for, you should make sure that your business gets the most visibility possible.  You can expect that it will take one to three months to find a suitable location for your business. One of the issues regarding this matter, as it applies to time management, is that much of your negotiations will be at the whim of the landlord. As such, you can expect that you will be called during both working and non-working hours to handle these matters. This is just one aspect of starting a new business that is out of your control as it relates to time management.

8. Do Not Get Overly Anxious About Leaving Your Job

Now that you have spent a tremendous amount of time developing your business plan, sourcing capital, and finding your location – now it is time to leave your day job. For many new entrepreneurs, this is the most difficult aspect of launching a new venture. At your job you most likely had a salary, benefits, and a retirement program (all of these things if you are lucky in today’s job environment). The most important thing to remember when you are about to start your business is that you have done all of the necessary leg work to show that you will ultimately have a profitable business venture on your hands within one to two years. However, these one to two year periods can be extremely anxiety provoking. This is even more true if you have a spouse and a family that is depending on the success of your business. The best advice as it relates to this matter is to keep a scientific mindset when you are about to launch your business. You’ve put in the groundwork, now it is time to get this business running. This should be your primary focus.

9. Be Prepared To Work Like Hell For One to Four Years

The first one to four years of a new business venture are absolute hell. Between knowing that you have put a tremendous amount of time and effort into your business (not to mention money), you are going to need to work extremely hard to make sure that everything runs smoothly. During this time, you will be developing a number of protocols and procedures that will ensure that your business will become profitable quickly. You will be constantly looking at your monthly profit and loss statements while making sure that every employee is doing their job correctly. For me, it took four years of 80 hour work weeks before I actually felt comfortable running my business on a day to day basis. From there, I was able to better structure my work days and understand how to properly prioritize everything. I strongly recommend that you use a day planner to map out each hour of the day. When you are running a business, there are always going to be surprises, but when your day is structured – it becomes easier to deal with unexpected matters appropriately without losing your mind.

10. Learning How to Say No

When you are starting a new business venture, it is extremely hard to say no to customers or clients. This is because you are desperate for the business. In your mind, you are thinking that one bad customer experience or one bad customer review will bankrupt you. However, this is not the case. While customer service is the most important aspect of your business, you are going to need to say no to clients/customers that want to take advantage of you. For me, 98% of my clients are great and reasonable people. The other 2% cause about 80% of my business ownership stress. In many cases, these people are extremely unreasonable. While early on you will make the mistake of doing whatever these people ask of you – over time you will develop a extremely keen sense of what clients will become a problem. These clients or customers will eat away at your time.

11. Trust Your Employees

For many business owners, this is the toughest part of the job. The truth is that no one cares about your business as much as you do. They get paid first, you get paid last, and yet you care the most about what happens on a day to day basis. When you are starting a new business or expanding a venture, you should hire people that are extremely trustworthy. In time, you are going to have these people run your business when you are away, and by not micromanaging these people you will find that they like their jobs. Once someone has a complete understanding of what needs to be done and how to resolve small problems as they arise – they will feel a certain sense of ownership over their work. As such, once your employee(s) have reached this stage then there is no need to continually monitor them unless you expect that they are up to something suspicious.

12. Don’t Be Paranoid

While this may sound strange, it is important that you not become paranoid when it comes to your employees. This is one of the things that I have noticed among some business owners. The truth is that many people simply want a day job that they can rely on and get paid for on a biweekly basis. I once had a client that made every one of their employees sign a non-disclosure agreement and non-complete cause (no matter what the job was) as soon as they were hired. I’m not even certain that those contracts were legal. However, he was only running a small consignment store (not a high end technology firm), and he was convinced that employees were there so that they could get an understanding how his business worked in order to start a competing business for themselves. While these events do happen from time to time, they are extremely rare. Unless you are running a business that uses highly proprietary information or trade secrets – try not to become overly paranoid about your employees’ intentions. They want a stable job that they enjoy.

13. Incentivize Your Employees

People like getting their paychecks every two weeks and a nice bonus at the end of the year. However, if you truly want to run a strong business then it is in your best interest to provide them with financial incentives when the business does well. This will not only increase productivity, but you will have a much happier staff. The incentives do not have to be large, but if you develop a proper structure for providing financial incentives – you will find that amazing things will happen. Most importantly, your employees will feel that they have an ownership stake in the business. While this may be as simple as a profit sharing program, by implementing this type of program you are aligning your interests with those of your employees. They will want to work harder for the business, and in turn you will most likely have a much more successful business venture in the long run.

14. Frequently Meet With Your CPA

If you are a small business, you most likely do not have a chief financial officer on staff. When you launch you new business venture, you will be amazed at the number of regulations and laws – as it relates to taxes – that you will need to comply with on a day to day basis. Personnel taxes, sales and use taxes, and business income taxes are extremely complicated. As such, you should find a CPA that you can work with on an ongoing basis, and in a sense you should treat them as if they are a partner in your business. They will be able to provide with an invaluable amount of information and assistance as it relates to running your business on a day to day basis.

15.Use a Payroll Company

 Although it is somewhat expensive to have a payroll company – you will save yourself a tremendous amount of hassle as it relates to having a third party produce your paychecks and file all necessary local, state, and federal filings when you have employees. The paperwork that is associated with hiring and maintaining an employee base is massive. With my small business, I generate upwards of a 1000 pages a year in documentation regarding employee timesheets, payrolls, paycheck stubs, and other documents that can drive a person mad if they do not have a business that is dedicated to maintaining this aspect of a business. If a business owner was to do this on their own – it would easily eat up 25% of their work day. The expense is worth it.

16. Remember that Being an Entrepreneur is a Profession

When you decide to become a business owner, you have decided to enter into a profession. You are no different than a lawyer, doctor, or accountant. Although anyone can run a business, the best advice is that you treat what you are doing in your business venture as if it was a professional practice. You are professionally engaged in the business of turning a profit. As such, you should have the proper understanding of all facets of running a company before you decide to go into business for yourself. Although many aspects of running a business are intuitive, many are not. As such, you should become an expert on matters pertaining to accounting, marketing, and business management before you start your new business venture.

17. Learn About Accounting

Everyday, I speak to people that want to run their own business and have a business plan developed. Among my clients, there are often times when individuals have no understanding of how to properly read a profit and loss statement, cash flow analysis, or balance sheet. Prior to starting a business, you should become an expert on basic financial statements. When I see businesses fail, more often than not, the owner was not at all attuned to how financial statements work. In the long run, you will save yourself a great deal of headache when it comes to running  your business, on a day to day basis, if you have a strong understanding of financial statements. Again, you are becoming a professional business owner – regardless of your industry – and you need to have a full understanding of how well your business is doing from both a profit and loss statement overview to how you are doing as it relates to your cash balances. This is especially true if you business sends out invoices for work that has already been completed and you now need to collect on outstanding invoices.

18. Keep Your Accounts Receivable to a Minimum

Wouldn’t it be great to order something that you needed and then never pay for it? Although this may sound like a ridiculous question, it is very common among businesses. For instance, what if you are a contractor and your provide someone with a new deck that they need? You send them the invoice, and the never pay. This happens far more often than you would think. In these instances, you have already paid your staff and for materials needed to complete a job and now the person who wanted the work didn’t pay you. In some cases, you may need to take the person to court. As such, when you are starting a new business – you need to keep your accounts receivables to a minimum (the people that owe you money). It is not unreasonable to ask for certain aspects of any job to be paid upfront. Additionally, if you are a product based business – it is not unreasonable to ask for the entire amount of the order to be paid upfront before you send merchandise. You wouldn’t walk into a store and tell them that you will pay them 30 days later, and nor should your clients. Only after years of trust should you provide your clients with credit.

19. Retain an Attorney

In the long run, you will need to have a individual that is very well versed in business law at your side. Our previous tip should illustrate that greatly in that there are going to be instances where your business did what was promised only to not have a client pay for their goods and services. Although there is some upfront cost of retaining an attorney for your business – the benefits are tremendous. Foremost, they will be able to draft legally appropriate letters to non-paying customers while also providing you with advice as to how to handle certain legal matters. Even for small businesses, you may get a lawsuit. As such, your attorney (along with your CPA) is one of your best business partners. They will provide you with forward looking advice regarding how to deal with legal matters while concurrently ensuring that a small legal matter does not get out of hand from an expense standpoint. Additionally, you have complete confidentiality when you speak to an attorney regarding any matter.

20. Your Best Asset is Customer Service

My business survived the worst recession since the Great Depression. The primary reason being, I think, is that I have always strived to offer unparalleled customer service. I am usually always available to my clients (within reasonable time frames). Unlike large corporations, you cannot afford to lose a customer or a client. Again, some people are unreasonable and you will learn to deal with those people (the best methodology is to provide them with a refund). These days most of my business comes from referrals due to the fact that over the past ten years of being in business – I have always been a constant source of help to my clients. As such,  you should treat your clients (as should your employees) with the utmost level of respect at all times. These are the people that are making you a successful business owner. One of the benefits of operating a small business is that you are able to provide a level of customer service that is not found at large corporations.

21. Remember that Revenue Is Not Profit

Recently, I had a client that launched a highly successful retail store. Although this is highly unusual, the business started to take in about $75,000 per month in gross sales. This was more money than the individual every thought imaginable. He started to spend money like a lottery winner. What he neglected was the fact that the business was generating substantial revenues, but no profits. His cost of goods sold was about $50,000 per month. Quickly, he started missing deadlines on inventory invoices and soon the business went bankrupt. He could have had an extremely successful business on his hands, but he got caught up in how much physical cash was coming through his door. When you own a business, you are paid last.

22. Become a Marketing Expert

Although this is a quick tip, it is imperative that you become an expert in marketing your business to the general public. As we discussed earlier, no one cares about your business as much as you do, and getting the word out there regarding what services or products you provide is absolutely necessary to running a successful business. When it comes to running a business, you should be absolutely shameless in your marketing efforts. If you run a small business then you should distribute postcards and flyers frequently. If your business operates on a larger level then you should maintain an expansive web presence that tells people what you can provide for them.

23. If You Run A Service Business, Provide a Set Price For Some of Your Services

Everyone wants to know that something will cost them. Whether it is providing someone with a new roof or doing their taxes, they want to know the expense. If you are a service business then you should develop a program that provides a set price for a specific service. You will be amazed at the number of customers that flock to you door because you simply set a definitive price for your services. This is often a fact overlooked by so many businesses. People do not like open ended billing. As such, if you operate a client based business then have a few services that you offer at a set price. You will many more inquiries about your service.

24. Take Advice from Others with a Grain of Salt

When I was a younger man, I took a lot of advice from people that had degrees from fancy colleges. Although I started one business, I decided to start a subsidiary business that would compliment my main business. One of my business friends that had graduated from an esteemed business college told me that starting that type of business would hurt “my brand.” I took her advice to heart, and after sitting on my hands for a few years with a great business idea – I decided to build the business. It eventually became my most successful business. The individual that had provided me with the advice eventually ended up driving her own business into the ground. My secondary business ended up becoming my primary business, and the best business that I have launched. Long story short, trust yourself and be somewhat wary of people that tell you that you will “ruin your brand.” If this is a concern for you then start a business under a different brand name or corporation.

At the end of the day, you are the one that owns and runs the business – you know what is best to do.

25. If Possible, Do Not Attach Your Name to Your Business

If you are a small business owner – you should be extremely proud of your business. You worked extremely hard, took a risk, worked like hell – and brought a business to profitability. Unless it is absolutely necessary, I usually do not recommend that a business owner attached their own name to their company (unless you are a professional like a lawyer). When it comes time to sell your business (hopefully for a substantial profit), it will make the transition easier to the new owner. In cases where the owner has become the centerpiece of the business, it may be difficult to sell your company because your clients/customers feel like they are dealing with you personally and not your corporation.

26. Learning When To Give a Refund

As it relates to time management, the worst scenarios you are going to encounter are difficult clients. It is very hard to have completed an outstanding project for a client only for you to hear that they hate it or it was not what they expected. It is even more anxiety provoking when the individual is angry about the situation or fails to give you constructive criticism. When I encounter these people (which is rare), I find that remaining calm is imperative. Despite the fact that they may be angry, the best thing for you to do is to ask what you can do so that the project meets their expectations. After some additional work to try to resolve the issue, present the work to your client. If they still aren’t happy – offer to provide them with a full refund. Although this not ideal, it will get that person out of your life so that you can resume working with normal people and getting new clients. Generally speaking, 10% of your clients/customers are going to be 90% of your problems. As such, giving a refund puts a quick end to the problem and the angry client walks away feeling unhappy – but not feeling like they were ripped off. I have even had clients thank me for providing them with a full refund.

27. Hobbies Make Bad Businesses

All of us have hobbies or things that we enjoy doing. In some cases, I see people that want to turn their life long hobby into a business. This is generally a mistake. The love of your hobby is something you enjoy because of its simplicity. A hobby should cost you money, not make you money. Running a business that sells the hobby that is your interest is entirely different. As such, you should keep that in mind if you are thinking about turning your hobby into a source of income. However, if you intend to keep the business small and sell your wares on a small website, Etsy, or eBay then it might not be a bad idea to have your hobby produce a small amount of secondary income. Again, this is totally a personal choice but more often than not I see hobbyists unhappy when they try to turn it into a genuine small business.

28. Use Social Media to Promote Your Business

In today’s world, you need to be connected to your clients and customers. As such, it is imperative that you maintain a strong presence on FaceBook, Twitter, Google+, and other popular social networks that will spring up as time goes on. It is no longer enough just to have a website and use search engine optimization. The best benefit of using social media is that you will be able to connect with your existing customer/client base while attracting people that need or want your services/products. Additionally, without too much effort you can promote discounts and specials that your business is offering. Again, the ability to connect at anytime with your customers will give you a tremendous advantage over your competitors. If you are not familiar with social media then you may want hire a social media marketing firm to help you get this aspect of your business off the ground.

29. Maintain a Website and Use Search Engine Optimization

If you are small business then you need to have a properly developed website. Although this may be somewhat of a large upfront expense for a professional website, the benefits will be substantial. Almost everyone finds local businesses via the internet these days. When you look for local businesses, you often find haphazardly put together sites that look awful. As such, make the investment (usually $1,000 to $2,000). Additionally, the same firm that puts together your website should also help you with search engine optimization. This type of marketing seeks to have links directed to your business’ websites. These firms will enroll in local business directories while also producing content that is quickly found by search engines. As such, when some one does a search for your type of local business in your local market – you will appear on the first page (and hopefully be the first result) or the search.

30. Don’t Look At Your Revenue Everyday

This is so much harder said then done when you first start your business. You will be tempted to look, everyday, at how much money came through the door. At first, you will become extremely anxious if you have a slow day or a slow week. It is important to remember that as a business owner – you are going to have a slow day, a slow week, or even a slow month. If you are a highly established business then this may be part of your normal yearly business cycle. For me, summers are the slowest. Instead of worrying about the lack of business I have come to understand that it is simply because people are out doing summer activities and are not in need of my services. I use this down time to develop new service and take a break myself from my standard 50 to 60 hour work weeks. When you are new, you want as much business to come through that door every single day without realizing that on some days that is just not going to happen. You should only start to worry if start seeking declines in your established business cycle. If you are new – realize that you will notice that certain days of the week are typically better than others. On the days that are slower, and do not generate as much revenue, rather than worry – focus on doing something that promotes your business.

31. Stay on Top of Tax Filing Deadlines

If there is any part of my business that I hate the most, it’s filing taxes and other government documents. Sometimes I procrastinate, which only makes the process that much more nerve racking. When it comes to any type of document that you need to file with a government authority, it is in your best interest to say on top of it at all times. The worst thing you can do is not file important documents that are required by your business in a timely manner. You and your CPA should make a chart of when each type of filing is due for each month. Some states, as it relates to sales tax payments, require that payments are made monthly or bi-monthly. It can get very confusing, very fast. As such, make sure you are aware of each deadline and make your filings before they are due. As it relates to your payroll, make sure that your chosen vendor does this for you. Again, payroll companies are expensive to use but they will save you a world of time in the long run.

32. Be Careful with Advertising Agencies and Marketing Firms

Advertising agencies and marketing firms are great when it comes to developing new promotions and advertisements for your business. However, they are very expensive. Many firms require a retainer or a percentage of how much you intend to spend on marketing your business to the general public. One common issue that I have found with marketing and advertising companies is that they continually want you to increase your budget. Sometimes this is justified, but sometimes it is not. When you are approaching a marketing firm or advertising agency to assist you with marketing your business, you should make sure that they use a metrics-focused approach to determining how successful their developed campaigns have been for your business. This includes showing you figures such as Cost Per Thousand Impressions and Conversions to Marketing Dollars Spent (ie…how many people became customers and how much did it cost you). If you advertising firm is focused solely on having your new ad “go viral” or something of that sort then you may want to find a firm that understands that you are looking to gain the greatest reach without breaking the bank.

33. When You Close Your Doors for the Evening – Do Not Continue to Work

As we have said earlier, when you run a business, it is easy to have it become a total obsession. You are going to be working constantly throughout the day. In order to maintain your sanity, you are going to want to set specific times of the day when you are working. For instance, when I am having dinner with my family – I always put my phone on silent. Even though I leave my office around six, I completely stop checking emails at 9pm. This allows me to relax and unwind. If you start checking your emails right up until the point when you go to sleep then you will not be well rested for your next day. Getting enough sleep is often an issue that is overlooked by most small business owners. If you are not well rested then you will, without a doubt, begin to make mistakes. A sharp mind operates a well run business.


Of course, from time to time there is a going to be an emergency or an issue that just takes up more of the day than is expected. This is natural, and you just have to deal with it from time to time. However, these days should be limited and not how your normal day to day business operates.

34. Take Vacations When You Can

This is by far the hardest thing that you can do as an entrepreneur. When I first started my own business, nothing struck fear into my heart than being several hundred or several thousand miles away from my business. Each time I would travel, at least for the first four years I was in business, I would pack up a computer and printer so that I could be ready for any situation that would happen. I would have my office line forward directly to my cell phone so that if a client called – I would be immediately available. As such, I never really felt like I was on vacation. I was merely working from a different location. Now, ten years in, I trust my employees to run my business in my absence. My clients know that I am on vacation, and very rarely will they call unless it is an absolute emergency. Additionally, the most important thing that I learned, is that my business runs better when I am away. Each employee knows what they need to do and they do it well. As an incentive, I pay a small bonus to my staff for keeping the place in running order while I was gone. Also, I get the best ideas for new products or services to offer when I am away from my company. I am not wrapped up in the day to day operations of my business, and it gives me the opportunity to review things with new perspective.

35. Keep Employee Meetings Short

There is nothing in this world more boring for an employee than having to attend an employee meeting. No one likes it, and everyone is afraid to be called upon. Some business owners feel that they are not properly meeting with their employees if they do not hold a daily meeting. Unless it is necessary, try to keep meetings to no more than 20 minutes. During this time, people will remain alert and focused on what is being said. These days, the attention span of people seems to be very limited. After 20 minutes, employees will start thinking about other things (mostly non-work related matters). Additionally, the longer your meetings run – the less time your employees have to complete their assigned work. Some business owners prefer standing or walking meetings. These typically work very well for certain situations.

36. Never Reveal Your Competitive Advantages to Anyone

Give a man to fish, and he will eat for a day. Teach a man to fish, and you just created a competitor for your fishing business. For some entrepreneurs, there is a drive to mentor others that are trying to launch a new business. While advice is important, you do not want to reveal how your business remains successful at all times. Maybe you use a selected vendor to keep certain costs low, or you have instituted a protocol that keeps what is normally a time-intensive task into a short procedure. As such, once you have been running your business for a significant period of time – you are going to have developed strategies that minimize the time needed to do something or something that sets your business apart from your competitors. As such, when doling out advice to new business owners keep anything proprietary out of the conversation.

37. Use Technology But Do Not Overuse It

My business requires that each of my employees have access to a computer that uses high speed internet. They need Microsoft Office and access to email programs. We have not updated some of the programs that we use for years. The primary reason being is that we do not need to. Now that technology has entered each part of our lives, there are numerous advertisements that you will receive as a business owner that pitches their software as the newest, latest, greatest cost savings program that you will ever need. If you continue to read about each and every program that can help you run your business – your head will start to spin. As such, for each technology category type – keep it simple. If your employees need computers – use the same brand. If they need cell phones – they all use the same model. Email software – everyone gets the same. Once in a while you will need to update what programs and computers that people use, but this should be done all in one swoop. I had a client that continually had his employees using new applications and programs every few weeks because he was sold on one certain feature. The end result was absolute chaos with every employee using different applications and wasting time figuring out how to use the new ones that he demanded his employees use.

38. Keep and Pencil and Paper Day Planner

I have found that simply using a day planner with a pencil is the quickest and most effective way for me to manage my day. Each week, I write out which clients I am seeing and when, which people I need to call and on what day, and what other matters to be dealt with during that week. In the same planner, I keep a list of the bills that need to be paid each week. This system has never failed me, and if I lose my day planner then I have only lost a week of scheduling. Each time I complete a task, I scratch it off or write a double check mark next to it. I can feel a little hit of dopamine hit my brain when I write out that double check mark next to a completed task. While this system isn’t for everyone, it is simple and it has worked for business owners for hundreds of years. Again, I don’t like being tied to applications when it comes to running my business on a day to day basis – and it is much faster just to write something down than it is to type into my smart phone.

At the start of each week, I have my assistant enter the information into our database so that employees are aware of what is going on and what needs to be done.

39. Keep Your Expenses As Small as Possible At All Times

It is incredible how quickly a business’ budget can grow once a decent amount of revenue starts to come through the door. While many of your costs are fixed (such as rent, salaries, and some utilities), many of your expenses are not. If you do a lot of business online then you may find yourself signing up for small services that cost $10 to $20 per month. While these may seem like a good idea at first, you will find that they will start to tally up on your corporate credit card pretty quickly. When my business was growing, I signed up for a number of services that helped promote my website (to varying degrees of success). After reviewing my credit card statement, I realized that I had signed up for 15 different services that were charging my credit card anywhere from $10 to $40 per month. When you are running a business, it is easy to forget these service providers. When you do remember, you think to yourself that you will cancel that subscription or service at the end of the month. However, you will forget and hundreds of wasted dollars will go out the window.

As such, you should keep a detailed spreadsheet of every vendor you use. This includes your landlord as well as that service that costs your $10 per month. Believe me, these charges will add up in the long run unless you keep a tight control on them.

40. Only Give Trusted Employees a Credit Card

Unless you absolutely trust the person, don’t give employees a corporate credit card unless it is absolutely necessary. The only individuals that can have access to spending my business’ money are those that have been employed by me for at least a year and hold a managerial level position in my business. Early on, I gave certain employees corporate credit cards just to make my life easier. I once told an assistant to run over to our local office supply store to get what we needed for the next few weeks, and she came back with more than $500 worth of paper, coffee, pens, pencils, and organizers that no one needed. If you do give lower level workers (and I am not implying that they aren’t trustworthy or will steal from you) then make sure that your financial institution puts a limit as to how much can be spent on that card. Additionally, you should make lists of what should be purchased using that card. If you aren’t comfortable at all with giving out corporate credit cards then you should maintain a petty cash box that requires that receipts are deposited at the end of each day for all purchases made. You should have your bookkeeper review these receipts each time they come in (provided they are not a staff employee).

41. Hire a Great Bookkeeper

Outside of your CPA (who gives you tax and financial advice), your bookkeeper will be one of the most important people in your company. In many ways they will act as the comptroller of your business when as it relates to making sure that all receivables are coming in and all bill payments are going out. Additionally, many bookkeepers (especially the experienced ones) are generally very well versed on tax issues. They can assist you, on a day to day basis, when you need to deal with certain routine filings. Although your CPA should be the one to have all final say as it relates to tax matters, your bookkeeper will be invaluable to you in these matters as well. Additionally, during tax time, your bookkeeper can work directly with your CPA to determine how certain transactions were booked. They will also be able to assist in clearing up any confusion regarding any specific type of transaction (such as refund). There will be confusion from time to time, and as such having a bookkeeper is of the utmost importance. Much like with using a payroll company – bookkeepers aren’t cheap. You should expect to spend $20 to $30 per hour for anyone that comes into your business to do your accounting. A person that holds this position should have at least two years of experience as a full charge bookkeeper. When you meet with your CPA, you should try to take your bookkeeper with you. It will make those meetings extremely productive.

From a time management standpoint, you will be very grateful for this person’s work with your company.

42. Avoid Books on Managerial Style

I don’t know why that every billionaire and business magnate needs to write about their managerial style. Typically, these books focus heavily on the success of the individual that wrote it (or the ghost writer that did it for them). As it relates to running any business, it is going to be solely on the owner’s shoulders as to how they run their company on a day to day basis. Some people are micromanagers and some people like to make upper level decisions and let the employees do the rest of the work. You are going to need to develop a managerial style that works best for you. Books on how to properly manage a business are difficult because every business is different. Corporate cultures are different from small business cultures. As such, while these books are interesting to read – try not to put too much stock into them. I once had a client that would read one of those books every other week and then want to reinvest his business in the image of the author that he just read.

43. Some Days You Just Aren’t Going to Want to Be An Entrepreneur and That’s Okay

Everyone gets burned out. Whether you have a 9 to 5 job or own a business (of any size) there are going to be those days when you just don’t want to go into work. This is usually due to the fact that you have been putting in long hours, are mentally exhausted, and you are in need of a good vacation (remember our tip about taking vacations). The short answer is that it is perfectly okay to have these days sometimes. Running a business is not always about trying to make as much money as possible or launch off new products and services every quarter. Some days, when you are running a business, you should take the approach that it is a 9 to 5 job. You will clock in, run the business, deal with employees, deal with customers/clients, and then go home and relax. For me, about two months of the year I act this way. I certainly don’t neglect the business, but I take a bit of  breather from my usual breakneck pace. If I didn’t do this once in a while I would have sold my business a long time ago or worse – had my business fail because I was trying to go in too many directions at once. Once you are established, you will have the luxury of taking it easy from time to time.

44. Don’t Go In Too Many Directions At Once

Although this may seem intuitive, if you are running a business then it is very easy to start to stretch yourself thin. This is especially true if you run a company that specializes in providing new and innovative products and services to your customers. If you are developing a new product or service continue to do so until it is fully developed. Even if you have a good idea for something new, write it down and revisit it when you are finished with your current project. If you have too many new things being developed or going on at once then the quality of all of these projects will suffer. Not only will the quality of your new products or services suffer, but you will develop a tremendous amount of anxiety about needing to get a tremendous amount of work done. As we have discussed, running a business requires a tremendous amount of work. As a business owner, you are going to put a lot of pressure on yourself to succeed. When you continually pile more and more things for you to do grown your business you are going to start to feel that you aren’t successful since you have so much unfinished work that needs to be done.

45. Dealing with the Failure of a Product or Service

Beyond a business failing all together, nothing is more difficult than handling a failed launch of something that you thought would be successful but ultimately wasn’t. A few years ago, I launched a specialized website geared towards financial products. After months of research, planning, and development I uploaded the website and began marketing it to the public. I spent thousands of dollars on marketing. Although almost 30,000 people came to the website – I only made 9 sales. This was a tremendous disappointment for me. Although I was still running a profitable business, I felt as if the entire thing had gone bust. I thought about the failure day and night. It made me restless thinking about where I had gone wrong or why people were interested in a service that I thought was outstanding. The truth of the matter is that to this day – I still do not know why it failed. I had used a similar formula for businesses in the past, and I couldn’t figure out why it did not work out. My lesson from this matter was that sometimes – no matter how good of an idea you have and no matter how hard you worked on it – it just isn’t going to work out. During these times, it’s good to reflect – but not obsess – about what went wrong. For me, I now keep a journal for when things do not go as planned and for when things went as planned. To date, I have started eight businesses. Three have done very well, three have done okay, and two have failed miserably. It’s important to remember that you can always start a new business with a new idea. The true key to being a good entrepreneur is to know that you are going to succeed 70% of the time. If you can remember that then you’re golden.

46. Running More Than One Business At Once

For experienced entrepreneurs, running more than one business at once is not a problem. However, when you have one successful business venture and then decide to open a second one (or buy another one) – you are going to feel immediately overwhelmed and stretched very thin. This is especially true if these business are in different industries. You will be dealing with a different set of customers, and each different type of business has its own unique set of problems. It is recommended that you should be in business for at least five years with an existing profitable business before you try to start a second one. Commonly, for people that have developed a profitable company they think that they can make any business profitable. Their ego starts to get the best of them and just because they have had one success – this doesn’t mean that everything they are going to do is going to become successful. As such, before deciding to develop or buy a second business – you should put a tremendous amount of thought into what you are doing. More often than not when I counsel people on this matter they ultimately decide to try to make their existing enterprise bigger rather than doing something completely different with a second company.

47. Franchises Are a Great Idea

If you are worried about starting your own business from scratch then franchising may be for you. Some business consultants do not like the idea of franchising due to the constraints of what you can or cannot do as a business owner – I love the idea of franchising. When you buy into a franchise you are getting a well known brand name, a protected territory, and marketing support. Although it is expensive due to upfront start up costs, initial franchise license fees, and ongoing royalty payments – the benefits can be tremendous in that much of the risk with starting a new business venture is immediately removed.  If you are thinking about buying into a franchise system then you should be aware that you a certain extent you may feel like you are a business manager than a business owner. In some respects, this is true. Generally, you cannot dictate your own marketing campaigns and you are required to adhere to extensive contractual agreements about how the business is run. However, most franchising businesses give you tremendous opportunities to expand via the ownership of more locations. In fact, most franchisors prefer that existing franchisees develop new locations rather than having to train new franchise owners. As such, if you are wary about starting a new business then you may want to see if franchising it right for you.

48. If You Buy a Franchise, Also Hire a Lawyer

Although we mentioned retaining an attorney earlier, this is doubly true if you are buying into a franchise. This is because there is a document known as the FDD (Franchise Disclosure Document) that is hundreds of pages long and contains every detail of how you have to run your business (sometimes its called a Uniform Franchise Offering Circular). There is very little wiggle room for you to put your own spin on how your franchise is run on a day to day basis.

These details are often written in highly complex legal language. Even seemingly simple things like how you decorate your location may be dictated in this contract. As such, your attorney should put every detail of this agreement into simple every day language for you so that you know exactly what you are getting yourself into. Additionally, you are going to need to train your employees very well on all operating facets of how customer service is handled. Often, franchising companies will hire mystery shoppers to go into locations to use services or buy products. These shoppers then report back to the franchisor, and if their are issues you could risk losing your franchise license. This is something that you should consider heavily.

49. Buying a Business Can Be a Great Way To Reduce Risk

As an alternative to starting a business from scratch, you can buy a business that is already up and running. This is a great way to reduce the risks associated with starting a new business as you are buying an already profitable venture. However, you will be paying a premium for this business. For instance, if you want to buy a local plumbing contracting business that is making $75,000 a year in profits then you can expect to pay $200,000 for it. This is because you are paying the person who is selling your business for the risk they took in starting this profitable venture. It may have only cost them $50,000 to start the business but they were the person that did the marketing, got customers, and built a brand name for the business. As such, when you are buying a business – the premium you are paying for is someone else’s hard work. However, if you are well capitalized and want to start making a profit right away then buying a business may be a better solution for you. One of the best parts about buying a business is that you can immediately start to grow the company once the ownership transitions to you (which is usually a six month process).

Additionally, banks love to loan money to people that are buying businesses. This is because they are a proven money making business and the risk of business default (depending on how long the business has been in operation) is substantially lower than that of a new company.

50. If You Are Going to Buy A Business – You Are Going to Need to Do Your Homework

First, you are going to need to find the business that want to purchase. Much like with real estate, there are a number of websites available that lists businesses for sale. Popular sites include BizBuySell.com and BusinessesForSale.com. These sites have thousands of businesses that are available to be purchased and basic information about the business. However, you are going to need to do a tremendous amount of your own homework as it relates to a potential candidate for a business purchase. The process will take you just as long as if you were raising capital to start a new business on your own.

You are going to need to review all of the tax returns and financial documentation that the owner gives to you. Generally, you will be required to sign a non-disclosure agreement as to any information that you receive. Additionally, you are going to want to talk to employees, customers, and other people familiar with the company. You should also do checks on the company’s rating with the Better Business Bureau, and you are going to want to make sure that all online reviews are accurate. Although it is often overlooked, you should ask the seller to provide you with a third party independent valuation of the business before you make any offer.

As with any large transaction, you are going to need a CPA and an attorney to assist you. Your CPA will make sure that all information provided by the owner is correct while the attorney will produce all of the necessary legal documents to carry out the sale. You should make sure that the transaction is insured with Errors and Omissions Insurance (this kicks in if the owner lied to you about something).

Finally, the owner of the business should be willing to stay on as an employee or consultant for a few months while  you transition the business to your ownership. Be wary of business owners that want to jump ship quickly.

51. Starting Your Business Slowly

Not every type of business requires that you immediately quit your job and dedicate yourself fully to starting a new business venture. Some businesses, like online e-commerce websites, can be started from home at very little cost. There are a myriad of ways to make money online or by starting a business very locally. For instance, we recently had a client that wanted to open up her own dog sitting and dog care business. Rather than quit her full time job (which paid a decent salary and benefits), she decided to make it into a weekend business. People that wanted to get away for the weekend dropped their dogs off at her house for two days at most. People that wanted to take day trips dropped them off for the afternoon. She did an outstanding job, and word spread around about how reliable she was as it related to dog care. After she built up a roster of about 100 customers she decided to take the plunge and rent out space where she could run the business seven days a week. This business is now the highest rated dog care center in my area.

As such, if it is possible – see if you can “toe in” to starting your own company before launching the whole thing at once.

52. Once You Hit Profitability – Consider Yourself a Success Story

The moment you hit profitability gather up your friends and family to celebrate. You’ve done it! You have put the work in, you took a major risk, and you have now created a profitable business. Many businesses fail and never get to profitability. It is important that once you hit this point – consider yourself extremely successful. Even though you are going to want to continue to grow your revenues and profits, you now have a profitable business venture that you can grow even bigger by reinvesting profits, attracting investors, or by acquiring a business loan or line of credit. Never think that you are not a successful business owner because you aren’t running a business that is going to go public or be sold for tens of millions of dollars. While those stories are the ones most likely to grace the covers of business magazines, the vast majority of profitable businesses are barely featured in a local news article.

Talking with Investors

For many specialized startups, the only way to obtain funding is to work with a private investor or related group. Most banks and financial institutions will not extend credit to a startup unless the founder has substantial collateral for the loan or line of credit. To this end, many of these entrepreneurs seek to acquire equity funding in exchange for a negotiable percentage of a business. Most importantly, when you are talking with investors it is important to note that you should have a CPA and an attorney work with you in order to ensure that a proper negotiation is taken place. Your CPA can help you greatly as it relates to issues pertaining to valuation. This is especially important if you have developed proprietary technology (including patented technology).

The vast majority of private investors want to see both a pitch deck and a business plan. Usually, they will review the pitch deck first in order to get an overview of what you are looking to achieve. Most pitch decks range in length from 10 to 15 slides. It should not be any longer than this as it is designed to pique an investor’s interest. The business plan is where most of the information regarding how your company will operate can be found. The business plan should feature three to five year financials (profit and loss statement, cash flow analysis, balance sheet, burn rate, and breakeven analysis). It should also include full industry research specifically geared towards what you are looking to achieve.  The business plan should also have sections that discuss what will occur if things do not go according to plan. This is important as it will indicate to the investors that you understand that there are going to be numerous hurdles that must be mounted before your company becomes profitable. Exit scenarios for both the investor and the company as a whole should also be clearly defined in this document. We have a number of documents on this website that showcase potential exit strategies for a variety of different types of businesses.

Once you begin your negotiations with an investor, this is the time where your attorney should be actively involved with the process. They will ensure that all of the necessary investment terms are clearly spelled out within the contract as well as all matters pertaining to contingencies. A properly produced investment contract will mitigate any potential legal matters that may occur down the road. Your attorney may also draft out your operating agreement.

One of the other factors that you will need to consider with your attorney will be corporate structure. This is something that only a qualified attorney can assist you in determining as each entity has its benefits and drawbacks. The limited liability company (LLC) is the most commonly used structure, but this may not fit in with what you are looking to achieve. A simple discussion with a qualified business attorney will ensure that the business is properly formed to receive capital from a private investor.

On a side note, the vast majority of private investors are going to want to acquire an equity interest in the business. Often, many entrepreneurs feel that they can acquire a private loan from these entities but it is rarely the case. They are going to want to obtain the capital appreciation and potential dividends that come from a successful business over a long period of time. As such, you should plan ahead for this very likely scenario when you are developing your business plan. As such, it may be in your best interest to have a formal valuation completed so that you can properly negotiate with a private funding source in regards to what equity percentage will be provided to a private investor. However, this can be expensive. Many proforma valuations can have a cost of $2,000 to $10,000 depending on the scope and scale of the study. Another document that is usually accompanied by a proforma valuation is a feasibility study. This overview focuses on whether or not the business can achieve profitability based on a number of different factors (including market size, number of competitors, etc.). Much like a proforma valuation, a feasibility study can range from $5,000 to $10,000 depending on the scope and scale of the project. It is important that you find someone that has extensive experience in your field as a consultant in order to have these issues addressed appropriately.

Another consideration when working with an investor will be to determine what would occur in the event of a business liquidation. Most importantly, some investors want to ensure that nearly all of their capital will be returned in the event of a business failure. The terms of your investment contract may include providing the investor with all tangible assets in the event that things to do not go as planned. These are further issues that your CPA and attorney can guide you with as you progress through this process.

After the contract is signed, the funds are usually deposited into the corporate account (all at once or in steps) within a few business days. From there, your business has officially launched. Good luck with your new venture!

Writing an Executive Summary

The executive summary of the business plan really is the focal point of the document given that many people read through these documents many times a day and they’re looking for a high impact statement so that can be given to the reader. Most importantly, one of the things that is often omitted by many people that are writing their own executive summary is a table that showcases the anticipated profit and loss statements that are done for the first three years of operation. One of the most exciting aspects of any business is its ability to produce revenue and profits over a substantial period of time. As such, it is important that the document feature information that alludes to how lucrative the potential business or project can be. Usually, this is not a full profit and loss statement but rather a small table that overviews the revenues, gross profits, operating expenses, and EBITDA. The smaller table can provide a very quick overview as to the financial picture of the business especially as it relates the amount of capital that is being sought by the entrepreneur.

One of the things that should not be included within the executive summary – but is often done so by inexperienced business plan writers – is the industry research. Many people often put way too much information into the executive summary which really needs to be showcased within the entire business planning document and not within the first 2 to 3 pages. The industry research usually runs about two pages to three pages in length and it is more appropriate for the body of the text rather than the introduction.

If the owner-operator or entrepreneur has a significant amount of experience within the industry then a small biography should be included right at the onset of the executive summary. Usually this overview of the senior management should run about two paragraphs or three paragraphs in length for each key member of the management team. For single owner-operator this can just be the 2 to 3 paragraphs that are specific for the owner. This is not need to be the full resume of the individual given that these are usually included as part of the overall business planning package and are not directly put within the document itself.

An overview of the products and services being sold also need to be included within the executive summary, but it is important not to go too overboard with this as the business plan is going to showcase all the products and services that are being offered throughout the entire document. One exception to this is if the company has developed or is developing a very unique piece of technology or other proprietary product that is really going to stand apart within the market. In this case, it may be very important to have a few dedicated paragraphs that showcases the technology and why it will be a highly lucrative business investment once it is applied to the market as a whole. One of the key things to do if you are writing an executive summary specific for a technology business is to keep the technical jargon down to a minimum given that not everyone that is going to be reading this document has a similar background in electronics, computer science, or any other industry that involves highly complicated technical matters.

Usually the final element to an executive summary is the overview of how the business will grow over a five-year period. This includes discussing things such as organic growth, growth through acquisition, and related reinvestments of after-tax profits in order to further grow the business on a year-to-year basis. This section of the executive summary usually runs that one paragraph to two paragraphs given that the real focus should be on the start up more immediate expansion of the business rather than looking down the road 5 to 10 years.

The executive summary is generally one of the more difficult parts of the business plan to write given that it really is the first thing that a potential funding source or business partners going to see when they open the business planning document. If this executive summary is part of a much larger document and it is usually best to write this section last given a each other element can be included within this 2 to 3 page document. In some cases, many entrepreneurs will distribute the executive summary as a standalone document while referring to the fact that a full business plan exists upon request.

Writing a SWOT Analysis

The SWOT analysis is usually one of the easier sections of the business plan to write. In most cases, a SWOT analysis is drafted in a bullet point format. Specific issues regarding strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats are showcased in four different sections. As it relates to the strengths section, most entrepreneurs focus on the fact that their business offers a unique product or service that is highly competitive in the marketplace. One of the common strengths for a new businesses is that they are able to effectively undercut their competition in regards to price. This is true especially for service-based businesses that are looking to expand their visibility at the onset of operations by offering substantial deals on the services that they render.

For product focused companies, this is a little more difficult given that they do not have the same buying power as large established corporations. One of the other things that is often included in the strength section of the SWOT analysis it is a discussion regarding the experience of the individual entrepreneur or management team. If you or your management team has had significant experience in the industry as well as an established track record of successes with the development of new entrepreneurial ventures then this should be very much highlighted within this section of the analysis. One of the other things that many entrepreneurs will discuss within this section is whether or not their business generates recurring streams of revenue from service. For instance, if your business is an online subscription focused website that you may want to point out the fact that your company will generate income month after month as credit cards or build. This can be one of the primary strengths as it relates to growing the business since these funds can be reinvested. As it relates to specific industries, certain buyers are able to acquire inventories at rates that are lower than that of the general market. As such, if a business has access to distributors that can provide them with their products at a highly competitive rate then this cost savings can be passed on to a customer. These are all examples of how strengths are showcased within a SWOT analysis.

The next section of the analysis is weaknesses. Although many entrepreneurs don’t want to think about their business having weaknesses or issues this is simply not the case. Every business is going to have specific issues that they need to deal with either on a one-time basis or on an ongoing basis. As such, it is important for the entrepreneur to sit down and really think about some of the critical issues and problems that the business or the industry as a whole will have forward. Certain weaknesses include the fact that some businesses are highly sensitive to changes in the economy. For instance, a luxury goods retailer may see a significant decline in the revenues in the event that there is an economic recession. Other examples of weaknesses include medical businesses that may face significant liabilities as it relates to mistakes that are being made. Finally, one of the primary weaknesses in his face by most businesses is that they are our substantial underlying operating costs. For example, a large-scale retailer is going to need to have a substantial space that will have a very high rental expense as well as a number of employees that are expensive on a per hour basis. These can be an example of a weakness for a retailing business.

For the opportunity section, this primarily discusses how the business will expand over a three-year period. Examples of this include the establishment of additional locations, continued expansion of the company’s marketing campaigns, acquisition of third-party companies, and acquiring additional rounds of capital in order to further expand the business. As each business has unique ways that they can grow – it is important for the entrepreneur to think of ways that they can expand the business once they reach profitability. This is especially true in service-based businesses that deal in billable hours. An example of an opportunity for a law firm, which is a service-based business, would be to hire associate that can increase the billable hours on an ongoing basis. Examples like this should be shown within the SWOT analysis.

The final section of the analysis is the threat section. Many people often confuse this with the weaknesses section given that this is again one of the issues that most entrepreneurs don’t want think about given that it can from their livelihoods. However, it is important to assess whether or not specific threats could have a very damaging or deleterious effect on an individual company’s ability to generate revenues. An example of a threat would be a regulation change that could substantially impact the way the company does business. For instance, a lender could face a change in banking regulations that forces them to maintain interest rates at a certain level. This type of threat is external to the company’s operations but it still can have a negative impact on the profit and loss statement. While it is difficult to imagine every different scenario that could occur that could impact the company’s operations – it is important for the entrepreneur to try their best as it relates to viewing certain external risks that could impact their profitability. This is one of the sections that many experienced entrepreneurs will take a tremendous amount of time to develop given that they want to understand all the potential underlying risk that they may face as they develop their business and their respective operations.

Writing a Marketing Plan

Writing a marketing plan is usually the most fun portion of developing a new business and writing a complete business plan. One of the nice things about writing a marketing plan is that it is not overly technical in nature given that you’re discussing the ways in which will target your potential customers. Foremost, it is imperative that the entrepreneur develop a expansive demographic profile that showcases the exact customers – whether business or individuals – it will be targeted via the company’s marketing campaigns. As it relates to individuals that are targeted, common characteristics including median household income, median family income, age range, gender, profession, and psychographics are included in this analysis. It is very important that the marketing plan provide a laser focus on the individuals that will be targeted given that marketing is a very expensive proposition and it is imperative that a new business has a clear sight of who they want as their initial customer base. Of course, if individuals are targeted outside of that demographic base that is great however it is very important that the marketing budget is properly allocated towards specific demographic profiles. If the company is a business to business provider then expensive demographics need to be provided regarding the types of companies will be targeted for the company’s products and services. This includes an overview of the anticipated annual revenues, annual profits, industries operate within, and how much these businesses will spend with the company any given year. These demographics at times can be extremely broad, but it is again important to focus specifically on the customers that are most likely to enroll or purchase the company’s products and services.

Given the number of channels in which marketing and advertising can be carried out these days – it is important to develop a number of different sections of the marketing plan to focus not only in traditional marketing, print marketing, as well as online marketing. Online marketing is of the special importance these days as most people now find product and service providers via the Internet on their desktops and mobile devices. One of the ways that many new businesses will often develop a customer base is by establishing a large social media presence. This includes maintaining profiles on networks such as FaceBook, Google+, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and third-party platforms such as Yelp.com and Reddit.com.

Given that these are low-cost ways to reach an audience, many new entrepreneurs have found that this can provide a expansive return on investment as it relates to each marketing dollar spent. Of course, these platforms are highly competitive for an individual’s attention. As such, many firms will make the decision to hire a social media consultant or similar marketing firm that can assist in guiding them with how to properly carry out a social media marketing campaign. It should be noted that the cost of advertising on social media is increasing given the ability to highly target companies and individuals on these platforms. As such, a cohesive marketing plan that focuses specifically on social marketing should be one of the major components of the overall marketing plan.

Other ways that businesses advertise via the Internet is through the use of pay per click (“PPC”) marketing. This allows individuals to have their websites showcased immediately on the first page of search results given that they are sponsor advertisements. This can be an extremely expensive form of marketing given that a fee anywhere from ten cents all the way to $20 can be charged each time a person goes to a website. Given this high expense, a very specific focus needs to be implemented so that only the most proper demographics are targeted when engaging in a PPC advertising campaign. It should be noted that there are a number of different firms out there that can assist with developing the keywords and target audience specific to the company. These companies typically charge a monthly fee ranging anywhere from $200 all the way to $2,000 depending on the scope and scale of the pay per click marketing campaign. However, usage of this type of marketing on Google, Bing, and Yahoo is generally pretty straightforward. As such, the few hours work – most entrepreneurs are able to develop their initial paper click marketing campaigns on her own. These search engines also have a number of experts on staff that can work closely with the entrepreneur in order to get this operation up and running.

Beyond pay-per-click marketing, many firms will seek to use search engine optimization so that the pages can be found in natural search results over time. This is an expensive proposition and the results can take upwards of eight months to a year before the business sees a return on this type of marketing investment. Search engine optimization is generally considered to be a long-term marketing strategy for most new businesses. There are a number of companies out there that can render the service to a company, but they are expensive and again they do take a significant amount of time for the results to take hold. Generally, a search engine optimization firm will charge a fee ranging anywhere from $100 all the way to $20,000 a month depending on what needs to be done in order to have a website found organically through search engine results. This is usually one of the last types of marketing that a new business carries out given that they want to generate him immediately through the use of pay-per-click advertising and social media campaigns.

Print advertising and television advertising is also extremely popular still. Although the rates of these types of advertisements have declined, they can still be an outstanding source of marketing for any new business. Print advertising and television advertising usually carries more weight for consumers as people put a greater level of trust in a televised advertisement rather than an online advertisement. One of the nice things about developing a television advertisement is that it can be concurrently run on other platforms such as YouTube, Vimeo.com, and other platforms that allow for the sharing of online videos. As such, many television commercials that can be run cost-effectively on cable TV networks can concurrently produce a significant amount of interest the online channels as well. The cost of developing a small commercial advertisement that is appropriate for cable television or online marketing typically is about $2000 to $5000 depending on the videography company used. Extremely high quality videos typically run anywhere from $10,000 all the way to $50,000 depending on the production value of the commercial.

Print advertising is usually one of the ways that most local businesses promote their companies to the general public. The use of flyers, advertisements in local newspapers, advertisements in local circulars, and related print advertising activities typically are low-cost form of marketing that can potentially rates reach tens of thousand households on a monthly basis. However, the return on investment for print advertising is typically in the lower end of things given that the very large amount of mail is sent out to a broad base of demographics. These types of advertisements remain popular with service-based businesses including contractors, restaurants, and highly local retailers. Print advertising is going by the way when someone as more and more newspapers go online and as less mailers are sent out on a yearly basis.

In closing, having a well-defined marketing plan can be a make or break for most businesses given that there can be no customers if people are unaware of the business and what it provides. As such, it is important that the entrepreneur take a significant amount of time when developing the marketing campaign so that they have a complete understanding of who their customers, how they will reach them, and the cost of acquiring each new customer.

Writing a Business Plan

Writing a business plan is a very difficult process for most people. This is primarily due to the fact that an individual entrepreneur always has a number of very good ideas in their head, but often has trouble putting together the documentation that clearly expresses their vision to a third party. Most importantly, many business plans are written specifically for raising capital. As such, entrepreneurs are looking to put their best foot forward as it relates to showcasing with their business intends on doing, how much capital they need, where the business will be over a five-year period, and other information relating to the day-to-day operations of the company.

One of the things that most people have the most trouble with is developing the financial model. It is no secret that forecasting with the potential revenues of a business can be can be excruciatingly difficult given that it is very much uncertain. Even for small businesses that are able to examine a retail space – the revenues and profits can difficult to estimate. In some cases, entrepreneurs have either been spot on were drastically off as it relates to their anticipated revenues. In most cases, it is very prudent and conservative to underestimate what the expected revenues will be while concurrently overestimating with the expenses. One of the common mistakes that many entrepreneurs make when developing a business plan is at the drastically undercut with their ongoing expenses. This is especially true as it relates to salary and ongoing operating costs.

It is important that an entrepreneur that is developing a business plan for a new venture understand with their personal month-to-month capital needs are as it relates to their living expenses. This needs to be heavily factored in into the business plan and the financial model so that an entrepreneur can focus on growing and developing the business rather than making their month-to-month salary needs. Generally, it is wise to seek an amount of capital that will allow the entrepreneur to develop the business over a 12 month to 18 month timeframe. It usually takes most businesses one year or more to reach profitability. As such, this needs to be factored in as it relates to the start up cost as well as the profit and loss statement.

One of the other more difficult challenges in developing a business plan for a new or expanding venture is sourcing the industry information. If you go on the Internet there are literally thousands of sources that focus on providing industry research, local market research, and related information to the general public. As such, it can be difficult to discern which information is credible and what is not. Most importantly, when sourcing information from a private research source this organization should have an extensive amount of usage as it relates to NAICS and SIC codes. The United States government maintains extensive databases of the amount of revenues that are generated for any given industry. As such, this can be an excellent place to start if an entrepreneur that is developing a business plan is stuck trying to source the industry research. One of the nice things about using these research sources that they are completely free and open to the general public. There are times when purchasing a private market research report is important given that the government simply maintains an overview of the number of people operating with any field as well as the amount of revenues that are generated on a yearly basis. More in-depth research regarding industry trends, market trends, and other relevant information can typically be sourced from a private company.

As it relates to the actual writing of the business plan this is something else that many entrepreneurs go with given that they are not good writers. In many instances they will turn to hiring a professional business plan writer in order to ensure that their vision is encapsulated in a document appropriately. This is always a smart move, and as the owner of this business we develop a number of business plans on the customized basis. This is primarily due to the fact that the entrepreneur were struggling with writing their business plan and then turn for professional advice. This website also has a number of templates that will give an entrepreneur a running head start as it relates to the development of their profit producing project.

While it may seem daunting, writing a business plan is not as difficult as it seems. Although it can usually take anywhere from 40 hours to 100 hours to produce a highly polished document – the effort is worth it given that it will provide the entrepreneur with a clear understanding of what they can expect in terms of revenues, profits, and as a guide for business over a three-year to five year period so that they can follow the plan exactly as needed.