Bankable Business Plans: Second Edition

I am in the middle of starting my own small business. I bought 4 different books on business plan writing and this one is the one that I kept referring to. It is by far the best of the bunch. It's very readable, and it is organized so well that I was able to use it as a reference book while I was working on my plan. I also used their online tool too, which helped me generate preliminary financials to take to the bank (and to my now first investor). Overall, if you are at any point of the seemingly daunting task of writing a business plan, this book is the best one I found to get you through it.

Having spent my legal career advising clients who are either seeking financing or trying to resurrect failing businesses, I am constantly amazed at the absolute lack of insight that most of them bring to their own business. When they present plans to lenders and potential investors it becomes clear to me that they have not done the thinking or the research which are necessary to convince anyone of their vision for their company. I have read and given copies of Dr. Rogoff's excellent book to a number of clients and look forward to reading the 2nd edition. This book is a clear road map for any serious business person. More importantly the tools in this book will allow a business person to gain the kind of understanding of their own business which will help them avoid making unfortunate missteps. Anyone who is serious about obtaining financing for a business either existing or startup needs to follow the plan set forth in Bankable Business Plans. I plan to continue to make this book one of my top recommendation to my clients, before they approach investors or lenders.

For anybody who wants to raise money for their new business, this book is a must read.

I am toying with the idea of starting a IT consulting company and this book has forced me to really think things through. It is not easy to get a succesful venture started and it helps if you do all the hard work before you meet with potential investors.

This is a great conceptual book that is helping me understand what to think about while brainstorming and planning. It is finely written and easy to read. I would not say this book is full of tools to use. So, you won't find hundreds of templates and samples, rather it thoroughly explains what is important and tells you why. I am planning two initial readings, one to get the gist of it and a second to do the work it recommends. I feel this book will be useful again and again but more as a guide rather than a toolkit.

Not only did Bankable Business Plans help me to launch a start-up, the organization, writing style and succinct instructions contained in the book unfolded logically and clearly. This book helped me to forge ahead, undaunted, with my plans for a new business. Each step of the way, I understood what and why I was doing what I was doing. This is a great resource!