You will find a plethora of resources about writing a solid business plan online. If you are familiar with it, you can set out by starting with the business canvas appraoch which will deliver a core set of thoughts for you to build out from.
My comments will attempt to tackle what it takes to make your business plan stand out, beyond the traditional format requirements.
Fundamentally you need to be able to tell a great story, substantiated by traction and evidence to your claim and market research that makes clear what your potential is.
Telling a great story…focus on the WHY? Simon Sinek has a great Ted Talk on this. What new experience are you bringing to the market, and why are you uniquely placed to deliver this? Ideally the mix of your story and why you, should be so compelling that it comes across as though you either seem to have a grasp of something that no one else knows, or that you know something to be true that others do not see…Peter Thiel´s book Zero to One explains this concept excellently.
The next aspects should demonstrate what market you will be proceeding to infiltrate, and why you will dominate in your region. Ideally at this stage you have equipped your story with great traction from an MVP and have leading metrics that can convince third parties that you are on to something. The litmus test is paying customers, recurring paying customers is better, but when not possible, user engagement metrics are a strong selling point too. MVPs differ from industry to industry, you need to research yours.
When discussing metrics I like to ask “What difference have I made to my customer´s success story?”. It´s unavoidable that your startup will be assessed on revenue metrics, but being able to provide measured evidence of the significant gains or problems you solved for your customers is a powerful message to deliver during your pitch.
The final point, linked to the previous two, is knowing why your product is an excellent fit for the market. You need to also demonstrate that you have demonstrable advanced knowledge of the market, essentially that you are an expert in your field.
Hopefully my notes will help you create a business plan that makes a difference. Oh btw, allow your plan to flow as you learn from your business don´t allow it to become a self-created blockage.
It´s unavoidable that your startup will be assessed on revenue metrics, but being able to provide measured evidence of the significant gains or problems you solved for your customers is a powerful message to deliver during your pitch.
