What is in a
Good Business Plan?
John R. Castle, Sc.D.
Lecturer in
Entrepreneurship
UW School of Business
castlej@u.washington.edu
425-503-1079
Copyright 2008
John R. Castle
What is in a good Business Plan
1
Summary of a
Good Business Plan
What do you do?
Who wants it and why?
Who are you?
What is in it for me?
Copyright 2008
John R. Castle
What is in a good Business Plan
2
“I have the skills to go
anywhere.
Where do I want to go?”
Mt Tenerife,
North Bend,
Washington
Copyright 2008
John R. Castle
What is in a good Business Plan
3
The Opportunity
What industry are you in?
What is missing from it?
Why does anyone want it?
What is it worth to them?
Copyright 2008
John R. Castle
What is in a good Business Plan
4
Window
Pueblo Bonito
Chaco Canyon, NM
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John R. Castle
What is in a good Business Plan
5
Industry Analysis
What events have shaped this
industry?
What is happening now?
What is changing?
What is causing the changes?
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John R. Castle
What is in a good Business Plan
6
Who wants your solution?
Who are these potential
customers?
What do they need?
How important is it to their
business?
What are their options?
Copyright 2008
John R. Castle
What is in a good Business Plan
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Old Mining Equipment, Nolan Lake Mine, Colorado
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John R. Castle
What is in a good Business Plan
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Who wants your solution?
How many people have this
problem?
Who are they? Describe them.
Why do they each want your
answer?
What is a solution worth to them?
Copyright 2008
John R. Castle
What is in a good Business Plan
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What do you do?
What does your product look
like?
What does it do?
How does it solve the problem?
How is it protected?
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John R. Castle
What is in a good Business Plan
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Nolan Lake,
Colorado
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John R. Castle
What is in a good Business Plan
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How well do you do it?
Why is your product better?
How much value does it provide
to the customer?
Does the customer believe you
can provide those benefits ?
Copyright 2008
John R. Castle
What is in a good Business Plan
12
Hummingbird
Avon, Colorado
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John R. Castle
What is in a good Business Plan
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Who will beat you to it?
What other companies do
something similar?
How else can the customer
get the job done?
How this pie is divided?
Where you fit in the picture?
Copyright 2008
John R. Castle
What is in a good Business Plan
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Who will beat you to it?
Ptarmigan Trail, CO
Bandera Mtn, WA
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John R. Castle
What is in a good Business Plan
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How will you reach customers?
How will they know you exist?
How can you show them your
product?
When will they buy?
Who will make the decision?
Copyright 2008
John R. Castle
What is in a good Business Plan
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Can You
Forecast Sales?
“I know where I want to go.
How do I get there.”
Old silver mine,
Fancy Pass,
Colorado
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John R. Castle
What is in a good Business Plan
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Can you forecast sales?
How many can you sell? At what
price?
Who will be the first buyers?
Which customers are your real
targets?
How soon will they start buying?
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John R. Castle
What is in a good Business Plan
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Who are you anyway?
Who is on the team?
What are the team members
good at?
What are their personal work
styles?
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John R. Castle
What is in a good Business Plan
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The titan; Snoq Falls
The Titan,
Snoqualmie Falls
Fisher Towers State Park, Moab, UT
Snoqualmie, WA
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John R. Castle
What is in a good Business Plan
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How cohesive is the team?
What has the team done like
this before?
How well do you work
together?
Do you have a common goal?
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John R. Castle
What is in a good Business Plan
21
No Whiners
on
Silver Peak, WA
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John R. Castle
What is in a good Business Plan
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What is this all worth?
How much money will you
make and how soon?
How much will you spend and
how fast?
How will I get my money out?
What do you want from me?
Copyright 2008
John R. Castle
What is in a good Business Plan
23
Sitting on top of the world,
New York Mountain, Colorado
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John R. Castle
What is in a good Business Plan
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