Before you hang the "Open" sign in your storefront
window, you must formulate a plan that captures the essence of your
business and anticipates the rush of customers, the cost of
employee benefits and your competition's weaknesses. For some,
it's a painstaking task that makes them quit before they ever
get started. Others seek answers from a box.
Business-plan software can offer helpful, step-by-step advice to
get budding entrepreneurs over the threshold of procrastination. It
can also help secure investment. According to the American Bankers
Association, 52.3 percent of bankers believe a complete business
plan is key to securing a loan.
Business Plan Pro from Palo Alto Software is a great example of
an out-of-box solution that is user-friendly and produces a
formatted final product you can circulate among potential
investors.
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Terry Levine, 49, used Business Plan Pro before launching her
Overland Park, Kansas-based lingerie boutique Clair De Lune in
2004. Levine, who admits she's not extremely computer-literate,
confesses, "The most intimidating part for me was working out
the tables and projection numbers, and having it in the format that
I could turn around and give to a banker." The software paid
off-Levine secured a $150,000 loan after visiting just two bankers.
Levine expects her first-year sales to reach between $275,000 and
$300,000.
When selecting business-plan software, you should choose one
that gives file-exporting flexibility and delivers a robust
financial model, says Bryan Howe, business-plan consulting firm
Masterplans.com's CEO. Howe says exportation is important
because it allows investors to modify your business model
throughout negotiations.
Alight Planning from Alight LP is a great software solution for
those who would rather drink curdled milk than input spreadsheet
formulas. One of the coolest functions of Alight Planning is the
ability to manipulate time assumptions with the click of a button.
For example, if your product hits the market two months behind
schedule, click a button and your financial numbers adjust
appropriately. This versatile software also allows users to input
an unlimited number of line items, link line items without
complicated formulas used in traditional spreadsheet software,
create an unlimited number of forecast scenarios and much more. One
caveat to Alight Planning is that it only delivers a financial road
map, not a mission statement, competition analysis or other aspects
of financial planning.
Get With the Program
These software solutions can help clarify your vision and present a
professional package.
Software: Alight Planning
Key Features: Superb financial modeling, easy financial
scenario-builder and easy time assumption manipulation
Price: $349
Website:www.alightplanning.com
Software: Business Plan Pro 2005
Key Features: Thorough, step-by-step wizard that imports
from QuickBooks and includes over 435 sample plans
Price: $99
Website:www.paloalto.com
Software: Business Plan Template 3.0
Key Features: Extremely affordable, preformatted templates
in Microsoft Word and Excel
Price: $39
Website:www.business-plan-success.com
Software: PlanMagic Business 8.0
Key Features: Fill-in-the-blank templates, automated
Microsoft Excel financial templates
Price: $99
Website:www.planmagic.com