By Mark Reynolds and Tim Holtkamp
So, imagine you’re developing your business plan for your start-up. Now, you know you have the BEST business concept and you know you’ll get the capital resources you need to start! But when you show your business plan to your investor or bank, things don’t go as planned.
That’s why our April Bank & Brews workshop was focused on The Ultimate Bizkill: Top 3 things that can derail your business plan. We want you to be as prepared as possible when starting your business, so we shared things to not include in your business plan, what a sample business plan looks like, and local resources to support you throughout your start-up endeavor.
What are the top three things that can derail your business plan?
- Lack of support for sales projections
- Make sure you include data to justify demand for your business’ products and services
- Aggressive expectations
- Don’t have a “less is more” mindset when estimating costs/expenses for your start-up
- Guard against immediate gratification
To avoid these pitfalls, it’s important to take a step-by-step planning approach in order to create a complete and thorough business plan. We wanted to provide you with a sample business plan to help you create your business plan (and check to make sure you don’t have any bizkills)! Click here to download the workshop’s presentation and a simple business plan.
Resources to help you!
- For topical and specific questions, utilize the Mentor Network at Start Up Waco
- For business plan development, engage counselors at MCC Small Business Development Center like Tim Holtkamp & Jane Herndon
Along with the above resources, you can reach out to both of us if you have any questions!
Mark Reynolds – MReynolds@extracobanks.com
Tim Holtkamp – THoltkamp@mclennan.edu
We are looking forward to our May workshop—The Ultimate Bizkill Part Two: Decoding the Extrapreneur Application! Check our Facebook page to learn more!
Information about Bank & Brews
In partnership with Start Up Waco, Bank & Brews is designed for anybody who wants to learn more about starting or growing a business! These monthly events are free and hosted at Hustle Co-working space. Visit Extraco’s Facebook page to learn more about upcoming Bank & Brews!
About Extraco Banks®
Extraco Banks and its affiliate companies are dedicated to building people, businesses and communities. Since the Great Recession, Extraco has extended over $2.5 billion in loans to 25,000 customers, while financially supporting over 1,275 community organizations working to create economic vibrancy, job growth and overall quality of life to our communities across central Texas. Founded as a cotton warehousing company, Extraco, at $1.4 billion in assets, is the largest and most comprehensive locally owned bank between Dallas and Austin, serving over 120,000 customers’ banking, mortgage, insurance and wealth & trust needs with creative and innovative excellence. Learn more at: https://www.extracobanks.com/.