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Use biz plan software or do it on my own?

MaggieWMaggieW subscriber Posts: 1
edited September 2007 in Business Planning
Hello! I am really trying to dive into business planning as I`ve said I would
for months. Should I use the software of do it on my own in Word? I can`t
decide because I don`t know how specific the lenders want it to be. Can I
jump in on my own based on this website`s step-by-step advise on
business plans? Or will software provide steps that I wouldn`t think of?

FYI, I`ve been in business for several years, but my partner and I haven`t
taken it as seriously as we do now. We want to re-locate to a high foot
trafficked area (we`re in her mom`s remote, discounted bldg. now) and we
want to address everything needed for a succesful gallery/boutique
(build-out/merchandising, marketing, employee and self pay, rent,
merch,etc.) which I know will be costly. We will be quitting our day jobs
so will have to pay ourselves from the loan at first. So we know we have
to be making money from day one! We have an established reputation
and lots of fans, we`re just in a bad location. Oh, and very little business
savvy - so this site has been wonderful!

Thanks so much,
Maggie
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    stonesledgestonesledge subscriber Posts: 608 Silver Level Member
    Hi Maggie,
    Here is some great resources that you may want to take a look at. Plan.htm
    I think that this will help you to understand what you need.
    Erin
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    MaggieWMaggieW subscriber Posts: 1
    Thank you, Hersh. That is very helpful! We`ve done some of the necessary
    figuring, like our cost of goods for the last 2 years, but I didn`t know if I
    could plug them into a financial statement without step-by-step assistance.
    Based on your answer, I think I`ll go with the software. When you say $200, I
    assume you`re referring to the Palo Alto software referred to in other posts?
    Thanks!
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    robertjrobertj subscriber Posts: 0 Member
    Maggie,
    One of our previous clients is JIAN Software. They have a number of software "tools" for small business folks including BizPlanBuilder and a product called LoanBuilder. You might want to check them out at www.jian.com</A>
     
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    DwayneGarrettDwayneGarrett subscriber Posts: 1
    In my opinion, and many others like Donald Trump endorses, Business Plan Pro is the best software on the market.  It cost about $79 in your local office store.
    The key though is to make sure your writing skills are up to par, and if you are going to be dealing with lenders, they really want to see how you plan on paying them back.
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