Ecommerce Business Plan

[gpohl]

I am looking for a professional company to assemble an Ecommerce business plan for me. Does anyone have a company they would strongly recommend?

[marc77]

Business plans should be done in a close cooperation with your local bank (respectively the people you want you to lend money ;-) For a small business I think that this is best managed by yourself (as mentioned in partnership with your bank account manager).

Maybe also in cooperation with a third person that has some experience and background (e.g. a business owner or self-employed freelancer working in the same industry as you want to start with) that can give you an objective point of view.

Anyway, there are surely consulting agencies that assist you, but you should be aware that this could be a very expensive task... I can only speak about the situation in Germany, but a professional consultant / specialized lawyer may charge you an amount of $5.000 USD+ to get this done for a mid-sized business plan. And a business plan is no guarantee that you "will finally make it"...

[webshzu]

While I completely agree that "a business plan is no guarantee that you 'will finally make it'...", I think certainly improves the odds, if done properly.

The concern I have with getting a business plan consultant, even a "strongly" recommended company, is the evaluation process of the consultant. There are so many scams out there and I've heard so many stories about money not well spent.

One suggestion I have is -- measure the success of the websites of anyone making a recommendation, so you know if there is substance behind the recommendation and get an idea of the specific contributions made by the business plan.

Do you have metrics for evaluating any recommendations? Would you consider doing your own e-commerce business plan with some guidance? If yes, there may be some very reputable mentoring resources available, depending on where you are located.

[gpohl]

Thank you so much for your advice, I truly appreciate it. I am going to require assistance when creating the business plan, as I have no experience arranging anything of this kind.

I've created an idea, and a very elementary summary of that idea, but that was enough to peak the interest of a very anxious VC. Now, I need to get this going, and strike while the iron is hot, but be absolutely positive that it is absolutely flawless. What do you think? Thank you!

[gpohl]

Another question I had, was that in doing research on the formation of internet giant Myspace, it seems that Tom Anderson was the creative mind behind the concept, but Chris DeWolfe used his experience in the industry and enthusiasm to add weight to the concept and assist in the formation of the company profile. Is there a "safe" way to discuss the idea with an individual that might be a good fit for a "DeWolfe" like role?

[webshzu]

When you say "safe" I assume your mean preventing soemone from stealing your idea. The typical safeguards are confidentially agreements and non-disclosure agreements.

There are boilerplate agreements or you need to work with a lawyer. It depends on your budget and level of comfort. When you talked to the VC, did you have an agreement?

"Flawless" is a tough goal to meet. Business plans require dealing with a lot of unknowns. They're blueprints that force you to do the numbers, formalize your concept and define a strategy. But nothing is executed exactly to specs. You need to remain flexible. Your VC should understand that.

[veikoh]

What’s the objective of your business plan? For funding? Each funding organistation have their own criterias how it should look and what must be covered. It's different for a entrepreneurship agency, bank, VC, etc?
I could help you if you know who the audience will be or probably you can get help from some local entrepreneurship agency. They usually run business courses.