A requisite to the funding process at Lauton Funding is also essential to business in general. Your business plan is a pivotal component of your undertaking and is necessary, not only for putting together a profitable business but, as your company evolves, to help you benchmark the achievement of pre-established goals. This “road map”, as it were, will be continually used throughout the life of your business. As such, it is vital that it truly reads as a detailed landscape of where you are and where you want to go.

Naturally, there are questions as to how to start writing a proper business plan and how much information you should include. Although this topic can be looked at in its most minuscule detail, today we’ll limit our discussion to 5 items that are essential to a well written business plan. We’ll cover additional aspects in future posts.

The logical starting point to any series of questions is who, what, how, why, and when. Because they’re a great beginning they’ll work very well as our outline for the 5 common features found in outstanding business plans. To start, it’s fairly obvious that any potential investor or partner will want to know who you are before they decide to invest in your enterprise. Your experience as it relates to the business you’re establishing or operating, who you will be bringing on board and their relevant expertise will set the ground work for how you fit within your industry.

While your “who” may be a little lengthy, your “what” will encapsulate the pure essence of your venture. What does it aim to do and what purpose will it serve? Your Executive Summary should express this in a few sentences as this is where investors will go to find an quick snapshot of your proposal. The rest of your business plan will elaborate how your experience and your overall goals make your project or business a bankable idea. Here’s your opportunity to highlight all of the research you’ve conducted on your competition, market base, revenue projections and the amount of funding required. Investors expect you to explain these aspects in complete detail.

The next section you’ll include is “why”. “Why” entails an honest assessment of the risks associated with your venture. No matter how excited and passionate you may be about your project, playing devil’s advocate allows you to think outside of yourself and see what a potential partner or investor may think of your concept. This is something you definitely want to bounce off a few seasoned people. There’s no better way to identify and strengthen weaknesses you may have overlooked or underestimated. While this acid test is in no way a pleasant experience (no one likes it when they rain on their parade), mature and accomplished business people understand that it is an absolute necessity when trying to identify the potential pitfalls and failings of any undertaking. You want to always hope for the best but be prepared for the worst.

Now, “when” is also essential to the overall scope of your venture. Be sure this section answers the following questions: When are you prepared to take your idea from the initial planning stages into full scale development? By when do you need the required funding? Ideally, your answers should be represented in the form of a timetable which displays critical deadlines and milestones that need to be reached.
A final word of advice. Don’t jump the gun. You don’t want to risk souring investors and funding sources by putting something in front of them that’s still raw. Take your time and refine your business plan so that it accurately reflects the breadth, scope, reach, meticulous planning and brilliance of your project. Remember as well to run your spell-check a couple of times and to verify that your grammar is spot on. This is your chance to tell your story. Don’t blow it with poor spelling or grammar (you laugh but you have no idea of how many poorly written business plans we have to suffer through).

That should cover it. In the next few weeks, we will continue to look at the business plan and other aspects of your project package. Of course, if you think you would benefit from the assistance of a professional firm to put your package together properly we’d be more than happy to refer you to highly respected firms in our network that”ll handle everything from writing your business plan to preparing feasibility studies to drawing up your PPM. We look forward to getting your feedback on other topics you would like to learn more about so please don’t hesitate to drop us a line.

Author's Bio: 

After more than 10 years within the construction industry, Joseph Polanco came to understand the intimate relationship that exists between real estate development and financing. As he embraced residential financing, he became involved with sophisticated commercial transactions. However, the more time he spent working on these types of projects the more he felt his clients’ frustrations with the entire funding process. This became the driving force behind Lauton Funding’s focus and singular goal: to ensure that clients enjoy a seamless and gratifying experience. Recognizing how vital it is that the free flow of information between principals and non-traditional capital sources be maintained, Lauton Funding continues to serve as a dynamic nexus throughout the entire funding process.

Joseph is very passionate about his role and implements it throughout; from the first introductory call with a prospect to the successful culmination of the deal. His position within Lauton Funding has allowed him to interact with those seeking funds for a myriad of ventures such as major development projects, residential sub-divisions, medical research, green energy or economic developments in third world countries.

With the realities of our current economic situation, Joseph observes that our way of doing business has fundamentally and irrevocably changed. The conventional business model will always exist; however, those who work with non-traditional firms will capitalize on solutions that would not have been available to them otherwise. In essence, for those in need of funding, there will be more viable capital resources at their disposal from non-traditional entities while the more familiar brick and mortar services continue to struggle to meet their needs.