Excluding successful companies from the competitive analysis
Over-emphasizing partnerships with well-known companies
Focusing too much on the future
Not tailoring management biographies to the company's development phase
Asking investors to sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA)
Indiscriminately incorporating investor feedback into the business plan
Stressing first-mover advantage
Focusing too much on your proprietary technology
Presenting large, generic market sizes
Making financial projections too aggressive
Excluding successful companies from the competitive analysis -- Mentioning successful and/or public companies can be a good strategy. Other companies' success can imply the market is big and that your venture could see substantial profit and potential for liquidity.
Over-emphasizing partnerships with well-known companies -- By themselves, partnerships have limited value. Business plans must show equitable and value-added partnership terms.
Focusing too much on the future -- The best indicator of future success is past performance. Your business plan should highlight your past track record
Not tailoring management biographies to the company's development phase -- You need different management skill sets to launch, grow, and/or maintain a company. Highlight these skills accordingly.
Asking investors to sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) -- Only proprietary technology is truly confidential. Investors don't (or shouldn't) care about the confidential aspects of the technology, only the benefits that technology offers to consumers/ buyers and its impact on the venture's bottom line.
Indiscriminately incorporating investor feedback into the business plan -- Like the rest of us, investors have various tastes. You should only incorporate common concerns.
Stressing first-mover advantage -- Simply claiming a "first mover" advantage is not enough in today's funding environment. Your business plan must explain how you will create long-term barriers around your customers to insulate them from the competition.
Focusing too much on your proprietary technology -- While proprietary technology is a big factor in investment decisions, it is much more important to show how the technology meets a large, unfulfilled customer need.
Presenting large, generic market sizes -- Mentioning trillion-dollar markets is generally irrelevant, as no venture could possibly reap US$1 trillion in sales. Business plans must specify the relevant market size, which would be your venture's sales if it were to capture 100 percent of the specific niche of the market.
Making financial projections too aggressive -- Showing penetration, operating-margin, and revenues-per-employee figures that are poorly reasoned, internally inconsistent, or simply unrealistic hurt the credibility of your entire business plan.
Over-emphasizing partnerships with well-known companies
Focusing too much on the future
Not tailoring management biographies to the company's development phase
Asking investors to sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA)
Indiscriminately incorporating investor feedback into the business plan
Stressing first-mover advantage
Focusing too much on your proprietary technology
Presenting large, generic market sizes
Making financial projections too aggressive
Excluding successful companies from the competitive analysis -- Mentioning successful and/or public companies can be a good strategy. Other companies' success can imply the market is big and that your venture could see substantial profit and potential for liquidity.
Over-emphasizing partnerships with well-known companies -- By themselves, partnerships have limited value. Business plans must show equitable and value-added partnership terms.
Focusing too much on the future -- The best indicator of future success is past performance. Your business plan should highlight your past track record
Not tailoring management biographies to the company's development phase -- You need different management skill sets to launch, grow, and/or maintain a company. Highlight these skills accordingly.
Asking investors to sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) -- Only proprietary technology is truly confidential. Investors don't (or shouldn't) care about the confidential aspects of the technology, only the benefits that technology offers to consumers/ buyers and its impact on the venture's bottom line.
Indiscriminately incorporating investor feedback into the business plan -- Like the rest of us, investors have various tastes. You should only incorporate common concerns.
Stressing first-mover advantage -- Simply claiming a "first mover" advantage is not enough in today's funding environment. Your business plan must explain how you will create long-term barriers around your customers to insulate them from the competition.
Focusing too much on your proprietary technology -- While proprietary technology is a big factor in investment decisions, it is much more important to show how the technology meets a large, unfulfilled customer need.
Presenting large, generic market sizes -- Mentioning trillion-dollar markets is generally irrelevant, as no venture could possibly reap US$1 trillion in sales. Business plans must specify the relevant market size, which would be your venture's sales if it were to capture 100 percent of the specific niche of the market.
Making financial projections too aggressive -- Showing penetration, operating-margin, and revenues-per-employee figures that are poorly reasoned, internally inconsistent, or simply unrealistic hurt the credibility of your entire business plan.