A business plan is an indispensable tool for an entrepreneur and not only because of its importance to the fundraising process, but because of how it helps businesspeople crystallize their strategy and evaluate their process. These are the three major reasons to create a business plan if you are a hopeful entrepreneur.

Fundraising

Most literature on business planning focuses on the need for a plan to encourage external investment into the company, whether it is through loans or equity investment. Most funders will not consider putting money into a company without seeing a well-written, convincing business plan. An entrepreneur must make sure the plan speaks in terms the funders will understand, and meets their requirements for the qualifications of the management team, funding requested, and financial return.

Strengthening Strategy

When strategy is an amorphous concept, existing in the minds of the various company founders, it is loose and perhaps even contradictory. It also does not necessarily make use of the best research on the market, customers, and competitors. The process of creating a business plan requires the entrepreneurial team to go through this research and analysis systematically, creating a better foundation for strategy. Having to write down the strategy also creates an opportunity to make sure all of the founders are literally on the same page about what they intend to do. If they are not, fruitful discussions can be started which are better to get out of the way at this early stage while plans are still much more flexible.

Evaluating Progress

Finally, while the action plan outlined in the business plan is being implemented over the first months and years of operation, the business plan is both a guide and a means to see how well the results of the business stack up to the projections made early on. The pro forma financial statements can make this type of evaluation very easy. Make sure that the original pro formas are kept in spreadsheet format so that actual financials can be laid out alongside them. If your budgeted targets are saved in your accounting software, such as Quickbooks, this kind of comparison can be even easier and variances can be measured automatically.

A business plan is an important document for any type of business, at any stage. Not only is it necessary to raise funds for the company, but it is used to craft a better company strategy through reflection on the past and projection into the future and to bring all employees together under that common mission.

Fundraising

At certain times in the life of a business, an opportunity arises to move forward which requires a capital investment beyond what the company can afford with its own resources. The startup phase is certainly one of these times, as is the situation when a business is ready to expand to additional locations, create a significant product extension, or to franchise. Fundraising requires convincing outside sources (investors or lenders) of the strength of the business’s plans and a written document is needed to support this argument.

Reflection and Projection

A business plan helps a business create a stronger strategy in the first place. The process of creating a plan creates a specific time for reflection on the past of the business (or of the industry and market if it is a new company) as well as projection into the future. Reflection should yield valuable insight into what tactics have worked and which have not. Projection into the future creates financial metrics against which the progress of the business can be measured.

Getting the Team On Target

A business plan is a document which can be shared with the managers and even staff of the company. By understanding the strategy and mission of the business, and the market research which has been done, staff and managers should all gain a greater understanding of why the business is run in the way it is. They should also gain a greater idea of the company culture that they should be trying to create. Writing a unified plan is a way to hand down marching orders to managers and staff.

The main purpose of this plan is to save maximum number of houses from foreclosure. The foreclosure does not serve the purpose of the creditor or lender because the property prices have depreciated and foreclosure negatively affects the prices of houses in the vicinity.

Some of the main features of the Obama’s Mortgage Stimulus Refinance Plan are as follows:

* The rate of interest applicable is going to be fixed at 4.5%

* This mortgage modification plan comes as a blessing for those who have their depreciated by 15%

* The home owners are going to find the modification and refinancing quite easy.

* This plan is going to be a relief for those indebted home owners who are facing foreclosure.

One can refinance home loan at reduced rates with the help of this plan. Loan modification facilities can be one of the incentives of this program. The terms of the loan and the rate of interest can be modified. This plan has been designed for aiding 9 million homeowners from being victims of foreclosure. The home owner has two alternatives, either to opt for home loan modification or home refinance packages. The qualifications and benefits for both the alternatives are a bit different from each other.

Qualifications for home mortgage refinancing are as follows:

* The house is the debtor’s primary residence

* Large value is associated with the home

* You fulfill the eligibility criteria including the submission of mandatory documents.

The principal amount in case of home mortgage refinancing is not reduced but the benefit of home mortgage refinancing is that the applicable rate of interest is drastically reduced and this reduction in the rate of interest is applicable till the loan is discharged.

Qualifications for home mortgage loan modification:

* You are current on your present home mortgage

* The home is owned by you and it is primary residence

* The amount that you owe does not exceed $729,750.

* The monthly payment on the present mortgage should exceed 31% of your gross income.

Benefit of Home mortgage loan modification is that, till a limit of $5,000 the debtor can get reduced rate of interest. The debtor can avail “specialized” advice about this alternative from the lender.

Writing a good business plan requires a lot of time. Business plan is a roadmap of success for any startup, as well as an already established business. It tells where you are, and where you want to go.

Below are some important steps to writing a business plan:

• Research: Research what is needed by your audience; what can lead your business to success.
• Concept: Develop the concept of your business in your mind; it contains information about your business and your product or service; in short, overview of your business.
• Establish your vision/mission: After establishing the concept, establish vision/mission of your business. Establishing mission/vision helps you to focus on one point.
• Goals and Objectives: Set goals and objectives of your business.
• Create outline: It contains information about the company & industry, products & services, market, management, financial plan and funds required.
• Products/Services: Description of products or services and there features and benefits are included in this section. Be careful in writing about features and benefits of your product/service, it should be based on true.
• Define target market: It contains proper research about market; you should have knowledge about your target market.
• Know your target customers: It is one of the most important steps of writing a business plan, as well as for stating a business. You must know about your customers, their needs and desires.
• Demand for your product: Before spending large amount of capital, research demand for your product. For successful business, it is necessary that the demand for your products/service exceeds supply.
• Competitive analysis: This includes description about your competitors. You must have proper knowledge about your competitors for running successful business.
• Marketing strategy: This section includes sales target, future products, budget for marketing, sales tactics, etc.
• Financial projection: It contains your financial highlights, break-even, statements and use of funds.
• Review & Editing: When you are done writing a business plan, it is necessary to proofread and edit it where required.

Writing business plan is not easy, but by following above important steps, one can write a good business plan that leads there business to success in future.

A business plan is a written document describing goals and objectives of your business. It is an essential tool for any business. There are a number of business plan companies, which provide facility of writing a good business plan for you.

Following are the benchmarks for becoming a successful business plan company:

• Research: Research thoroughly what is needed by most audience, market target, potential customers and market and competitors.
• Create proper outline: Before writing final copy, create an outline of business plan. This will help you to stick to your goal of writing good business plan.
• Pages: Your business plan should not be more than 20 to 30 pages.
• Appendices: It must include appendices
• Easy to understand: A good business plan should be easy to understand by everyone. It must be in easy words; avoid high-class vocabulary.
• Supporting facts and figures: Your business plan must support facts and figures. Avoid writing what is wrong.
• Clear and well-arranged: For successful business company, it is necessary that your business plan must be clear and well-arranged. It must be easy to understand by the investors and lenders.
• Free of errors: Business plan is a very crucial document because your whole funding is depending on it. So, it should be 100% free of errors.
• Professionally written: It must be written by the experts. Business plan companies must hire professionals for writing business plan.
• Secrecy: It is necessary for business plan writers to keep the entire data secret.
• On-time delivery: For a successful business plan company, it is necessary that they should meet deadline, which is given by the company to write business plan.
• Proofread and edit: Before submitting final copy to the clients, don’t forget to proofread a business plan. Proofreading can remove all the errors

Above are some benchmarks for becoming a successful business plan company.

For most Canadians, buying a home is the largest financial decision they will make in their lifetime. Yet, consumers across the country are more likely to painstakingly review dozens of investment possibilities for their portfolios than to scrutinize their mortgage choices. The mortgage world – like the investment world – can sometimes be confusing. There is a vast array of choices – open, closed, fixed, floating, long or short amortization, prepayment options, portability… and of course, the rate itself.

Making the right mortgage decision can have a huge financial impact over the long term. Many Canadians have an investment advisor to help them sort through their choices. Now, Canadians are also beginning to turn to mortgage brokers to help them make better mortgage decisions. Canadians are just now catching up with their counterparts south of the border, where mortgage brokers already arrange approximately 70 per cent of mortgages for U.S. properties.

So what is a mortgage broker? The role of a mortgage broker is to understand your mortgage needs, seek out the best options for your situation, and guide you through the lending process. A mortgage broker does not work for any individual institution or lender, but is independent, and has up-to-the-minute loan rates for a wide array of banks and other lending institutions.

There was a time when the banks exercised the view that they “owned” their customers, and mortgage brokers were perceived only as a last resort for home buyers with poor credit history. But times have changed, and home buyers in every bracket are learning they can benefit from the professional advice of a mortgage broker.

A good investment advisor can make you thousands of dollars. But a good mortgage broker will SAVE you thousands of dollars. Whether you are buying a home or renewing a mortgage, consider making a mortgage broker part of your financial plan this year.

Most businesses start out thinking the first thing they need is a great business plan. The popular myth is that potential lenders will place great stock in your business plan as a major consideration for approving the financing you need.

While a well written business plan will assist you when you are seeking financing, it is far down on the lender’s list behind things such as your business management team’s experience, your past business successes and your “lending character “. Having a plan for accessing the business capital you need to execute your business plan is what is required to bring your business success. Not having a viable business financing plan is the direct cause of why 90% of all new businesses fail.

Your lending character means the lender sees you having the ability and stability to repay the loan. They also ask how far they believe you can take the business to maximize the potential earnings and therefore their chances of getting repaid. (more…)

Raising business finance can often be one of the most challenging things an entrepreneur has to do. A Silicon Valley entrepreneur was recently quoted as saying he believes an entrepreneur should pitch 30 venture capital firms; they should expect to get 3 offers; and then they should go and negotiate further before picking the best. This is a gruelling process if you decide to follow it, with a 90% failure rate!

You should take on board the comments of those that knock you back, but you shouldn’t assume that everyone will feel the same about your idea and your business plan. Obviously you have to believe in your idea, but it is also possible that you will have to adapt your business plan to cater for investor appetite, market dynamics and / or a range of other factors.

Following are some of the ways that you could finance your business, and get your plan off to a flying start.

Loans

Raising money from a bank is hard when you are getting started. This is especially the case if you have not injected a decent amount of equity. Other factors such as experience and the competence of management will also play a part into how safe the bank considers its investment. If the banks refuse, consider approaching family and friends to see if they are able to offer a loan – although there are many downsides to this approach, it’s sometimes the only way to get your business plan moving forwards.

It’s definitely easier to get a loan when your company has a stronger balance sheet. Bankers will often talk about the leverage that a business has. This refers to the ratio of equity to loans that your company uses to finance their business. The lower the ratio, the better your creditworthiness, and the more likely a banker will be to offer a decent loan at a better interest rate.

When you leverage up your business more, you are more likely to be able to increase earnings per share, however you also make your business less stable. Your mind may be torn between equity dilution, growth and stability. Keep in mind, slow and steady doesn’t always win the race. Entrepreneurialism is all about accepting a degree of measured risk; you have to decide how much you’re willing to take to reach your goals.

Equity

It’s sometimes easier to raise equity finance, as a small business, than it is to go to the bank. This is especially the case if you will be investing in intangibles, or an IP-heavy business. Don’t be scared to hand over a percentage of your business if you believe that it will enable you to grow that much faster.

Although there are investors who are willing to look at companies in all sectors and at all stages in their growth cycle, you’re more likely to get a favourable valuation if:

You have a unique idea, a protected idea, or you are likely to benefit from a first movers advantage. Your drive, passion, flair and expertise are all extremely important factors too.

The more progress you have shown, in terms of sales and product development, the more favourable your potential investors will be towards your proposal. Anybody can make a business plan but if you already starting to turn it into reality then you will show that you have what it takes to grow the business further.

Financials are important too. The stronger the balance sheet, the greater the cash flow, the more profitable your company is now – the better. However, earning potential will also play a role in the investors mind.

You have to be prepared for getting plenty of rejection if you want to succeed. If you are determined and persevere long enough you will find an investor.

Small business finance acts as a stepping stone for the small businesses, to explore innovative and holistic approach of business to increase their profits. With small business finance borrower can minimize the difficulty of funds that the borrower comes across during the business.

Small business finance depends upon nature of the business i.e. new or seasoned business. Amount fetched through the small business finance can be used for various purposes like buying a land, furniture, raw material, advertisement, machinery, outgoing expenditures etc.

Depending upon the borrower’s requirement he can either opt for the secured or unsecured loans. If the borrower wants to enjoy the attractive features and larger loaned amount then he should opt for the secured small business finance, but for that he has to place some valuable collateral against the loaned amount.

Borrowers who are looking for small amount can opt for unsecured small business finance. Unsecured small business finance is often availed by those borrowers who are unable to place collateral against the loan amount. Tenants or non-homeowners can avail the unsecured business finance at the competitive rate of interest.

Small business finance can be accessed from various lenders like prominent banks, institutions, lenders. With these, nowadays small business finance is also available through the online market.

Online has proved to be a simple and the fast method of acquiring the small business finance. While opting for the small business finance borrower must not forget to compare the quotes of different lenders in respect to repayment period, lower interest rate, and the loaned amount.

Borrower with bad or poor credit history like CCJ’s, bankruptcy, defaults, arrears IVA, etc can freely opt for the small business finance.

The most important task to obtain small business finance is preparing a business plan. In small business finance, business plan provides the borrower to know what amount to be raised for his business.