New York SBDC Research Network

By Sabrina Parsons From Bplans The basic idea of a sample business plan makes perfect sense. If you haven’t done a business plan before, a sample plan gives you an instant idea of what you should include, how to structure it, and even what to write. A sample business plan gives you an idea of how another small business or startup in your industry built their own plan. A good business plan example will have all the elements your bank or angel investor (or venture capitalist) will expect to see when you ask them for funds. The most important thing to remember when looking at sample business plans is that they’re samples (that’s why we call them that). They’re not pre-written plans that you can pick up and use right out of the box for your business. And anyone who tries to tell you that you can is wrong—or is trying to make a buck off of you.

From Bplans : Everyone knows that a business name is important. It is the single most used aspect of your future brand. Ideally, yours will be mentioned by reporters, shared by referrals, and hopefully remembered by customers when the need for your solution arises. A great name like PayPal can introduce your company, hinting at what makes it unique and interesting. PayPal is a payment solution with an upbeat brand and uniquely easy user experience—their name brilliantly captures this value proposition. An intriguing name like Uber can help build buzz, causing people to wonder, “What is that?” An emotive name like SalesForce can resonate deeply with potential customers, lending a sense of authority. Naming is often one of the first business activities where the rubber meets the road—where an idea becomes a reality... We have discovered that a great name evolves from an excellent business plan. A company that has gone through the process of defining their business by writing a

From Bplans : Most people think that writing a business plan has to be hard. I’m here to tell you that it doesn’t have to be. In fact, it’s possible to write your initial business plan in less than an hour. After all, you’re always thinking about your business and the strategies you’re going to use to grow, so getting those ideas down on paper shouldn’t be hard—it can even be an enjoyable experience. A business plan no longer needs to be a long document that takes weeks to write and research. It’s not something that you print, bind professionally, and then stick on a shelf. Instead, modern business planning is a simple process that helps you discover your ideal business strategy. For modern business planning, I encourage you to embrace a concept called lean planning—it has all the benefits of traditional business planning without the pain and hassle of creating a long business plan document.

by Briana Morgaine   Critical issues and decisions for start-ups are discussed: "In a recent article, Palo Alto Software founder Tim Berry equates startup marketing to throwing darts at a dartboard. While existing companies can get away with throwing their “marketing darts” a little aimlessly, a startup has to be more careful and precise. The established company just has to worry about hitting the dartboard; the startup needs to hit the bullseye. If precision and focus are the name of the marketing game for startup companies, what is the best strategy for marketing your startup? I asked the members of the Young Entrepreneur Council for their advice on how to market startup companies most effectively. All these entrepreneurs advocated for employing focus, consistency, and using a variety of unexpected sources, many of which are low cost—always a plus for a new startup. Read more at: bplans"

Nearly all businesses, whether they are small or large, are comprised of intellectual property (IP) and trade secrets, which can serve as the foundation for commercial success. The World Intellectual Property Organization defines IP as, “creations of the mind,” which, depending on the business, can take many forms. One thing is certain: The more valuable the IP and trade secrets, the more vulnerable they are to theft and infringement. When starting a business in today’s digital age, one of the most important actions one can take is protecting the intellectual property and trade secrets of that enterprise, from the very beginning. The intellectual property of a business, which in many instances functions as the lifeblood of a company, is almost always financially valuable and that value increases as the company grows and starts generating revenue. For any business, it is critical to establish evidence for the creation date and authorship for all IP at the earliest point possible,

If you’ve been thinking about starting a business for a while, chances are you’ve got an idea of what your business location is going to look like. That’s great, but it’s not enough. Choosing the right location is about so much more than finding the place that looks closest to the one you’ve envisioned. It’s about being somewhere your customers will see you, about being in a competitive location, about staying within budget, and about meeting local and state regulations and laws. Read more at: Bplans

Do you juggle several tasks at once during your workday? If so, multitasking probably tops your list of skills. But is multitasking really beneficial to productivity? There’s a lot of research that suggests it hurts productivity, rather than helps it. Multitasking decreases productivity Many people assume that multitasking can improve their productivity. After all, if you can send emails during a meeting, or scan reports while listening to a conference call, you’re being more productive, right? Not necessarily. One study reported in the Journal of Experimental Psychology found that students took far longer to solve complicated math problems when required to switch to other tasks. In fact, they were 40 percent slower than those that didn’t have to keep switching. The study suggests that no one actually multitasks; in reality, they just do a whole lot of “task-switching.” Read more at: liveplan

When how to write a business plan is at the top of the SBA list of the ten steps in how to start a business, it tells you something about how important the experts consider it to be. Planning a business and writing a business plan is more than just having a location picked and a product or service to sell. Financing, marketing strategy and future growth all require a well-researched and thought out business plan. Read more at discoverbusiness

Items that make excellent collateral include real estate, cars, business inventory, and even cash savings. If there’s one aspect of the American dream that seems to appeal to just about everyone, it’s the idea of owning and running your own business. Whether you’ve always dreamed of running an Asian-Italian fusion restaurant downtown, or simply can’t wait to open up that quaint little boutique filled with your own fashion designs, it’s only natural to be excited about someday becoming your own boss. Knowing that you’re ready to open a small to mid-sized business is one thing, but knowing how to secure the funding you need is another. Read more at Bplans

Milestones are concrete, specific achievements, such as a product launch, some number of customers, opening of a new location, number of reviews, presence in some list, overcoming some legal hurdle such as approval by the FDA or a patent, finishing a draft or a complete document, reaching the 1000th blog post, some defined number of likes on Facebook or Twitter followers, or some other measurable, visible, trackable achievement. Read more from BPlans.com

The problem you solve. This is also called “why-to-buy.” It’s a way to set a target market and potential growth in a single thought. Show the underlying need. And it doesn’t have to be all problems and needs as if your business is going to save the world. Lots of things nobody really needs make good businesses: expensive coffee, gourmet foods, perfume, and so forth. More from BPlans

Too many people try to  start a small business  without first developing a clear roadmap for the trip ahead, making success that much harder.  Don’t be one of them! Take advantage of December as National Write a Business Plan Month and nail the  six steps to writing a solid business plan. Looking for more help? Check out this  step-by-step tool   for writing a business plan.

Small Business Administration : Way too often, you can add up the percent of ownership in the heads of the partners and discover between them they think they own 200% of the company. That’s because one thinks the idea was worth 50% or more of the ownership, the other thinks the day-to-day work was worth 50% or more of the ownership, and another thinks having written checks and invested was worth 50% or more of the ownership. What I particularly hate in this context is when people spend the time and do the work and develop the business without spelling these things out, and then, when it’s way too late, discover that they had radically different ideas about who owns what. This is a great use of the business plan. If there’s awkwardness about who owns what when friends and family are involved, you solve that with the need to spell it all out for the plan. Don’t wait. Don’t wonder. Talk it out. The business plan is a built-in natural format that all of you can understand. The key

As the lean startup method quickly gains popularity among the high-tech startups of Silicon Valley, many entrepreneurs may question the necessity of a business plan. But statistics prove that businesses are overwhelmingly better off when they set goals and implement a plan for how to achieve those goals. The report, based on a survey of almost 400 small businesses conducted in January 2014 by Palo Alto Software, found that small business owners who regularly plan and track their business’s financial metrics expect more growth in 2014 than business that don’t plan. According to the survey, 79 percent of companies with a business plan say they are better off financially compared to a year ago, while only a third of small businesses without a business plan can say the same thing. Additionally, nearly 75 percent of established companies that have a business plan in place expect to grow more than 10 percent in 2014, compared to only 17 percent of companies that don’t have a business plan

SBA and Dun & Bradstreet Credibility Corp have teamed up for a webinar series this month to help entrepreneurs learn how to build business credit and how to prepare for a business loan. It's free, but registration is required. • 5 Steps to Building Business Credit Tuesday, April 22 | 2pm ET > Click to register • Access to Capital: Preparing to Meet Your Lender Wednesday, April 30 | 2pm ET > Click to register AARP and SBA Webinar – The Secrets to Writing a Good Business Plan Have you considered developing a plan for your small business? Learn why it is important to have a small business plan during this free, one-hour webinar on April 22 by joining AARP and SBA as we help age 50+ individuals get your small business up and running. > Read more

The New York Public Library in conjunction with its sponsor, the Citi Foundation, is proud to announce the 5th Annual New York StartUP! Business Plan Competition for New York-based startup entrepreneurs with cash prizes totaling over $30,000. New York 2014 StartUP! gives aspiring entrepreneurs the opportunity to bolster their business acumen. Entrants gain practical insights about starting and growing a business, while learning about the comprehensive small business resources at NYPL's Science, Industry and Business Library (SIBL). Eligibility: • You must be 18 years of age or older, live in Manhattan, The Bronx, or Staten Island as a legal resident or US citizen, and wish to start a business in Manhattan, The Bronx, or Staten Island. • Start up businesses only. Operating businesses that have earned revenue and/or have paid taxes are not eligible. Any business incorporated prior to October 13, 2011 is not eligible to enter. • This competition is for For-Profit Businesse

Melissa McCarthy hosts SNL . "You're missing out on a great business opportunity."

Steps to Starting a Business, Writing a Business Plan, and More

Here is a great article from the Up and Coming Blog by Bplans. Having viewed several business plans over the years, a common (and very important) item missing from most plans is a breakdown of the company’s TAM, SAM and SOM in the marketing section of their plan. Wondering what these acronyms mean? Well you’re not alone – many entrepreneurs are not familiar with these terms. Here’s a quick explanation of what they mean, followed by an example: TAM, SAM and SOM - huh??

If you’ve ever started a business, been involved with a Startup, or know somebody who has; a business plan in a static state is good for a matter of days. It is not that the process of planning is bad. It is that fact that things in the business world change at warp speed. I recently found a solution to this problem that I am going to share in the post below. Recently I came across a tool called www.fundingroadmap.com . In their own words they are a “..fast and easy multiple choice planning platform built in the cloud.” So….what does that mean? It means it has never been easier to build a business plan. It means it shows you everything you need to take your idea and put some meat to it. It means that when you show this to an investor it shows you know what the hell you’re doing. More HERE .