BizPlanBuilder was the first, proven strategic business planning software...

and continues to be recommended by thousands of bankers, consultants, entrepreneurs, and investors for organizing and financing your business. It's now in its 11th revision!

We wrote the first business planning software 20 years ago and have been refining and perfecting it ever since. Many things have changed and BizPlanBuilder has too. It's still the fastest and easiest way of turning your ideas into a winning plan and a successful business. That's why BizPlanBuilder is so widely accepted (and often referred) as the best business planning software by so many people who really understand business planning and business plans today.

JIAN's BizPlanBuilder is our BEST BUY because it cuts through the complexity of developing a plan and helps you produce slick-looking results. Its exhaustive template walks you through the every step from cover letter to appendix, with plenty of samples... BizPlanBuilder also offers a better collection of financial tables, ratios, and projections than any competitor. Click here to read the entire review.

Investors and lenders work with entrepreneurs every day. You're doing this once, maybe a few times during your lifetime. A textbook business plan no longer works. You need all the help you can get with a planning system that can get you into business (or keep you going) with or without outside capital — then your deal becomes even more attractive.

In an uncertain economic climate with a credit crunching and financial markets in mayhem, how do you finance a startup or an expanding company? 

The need for expertise in detailed business planning is rising exponentially as investors & lenders have become more demanding, choosy, and risk-averse in the continuing economic downturn. In fact, your ability to deliver a solid, realistic, and compelling business plan may well be the single most important factor in moving your valuable innovations to the next level and securing the funding that will be its lifeblood.

While the bar for admission has unquestionably been raised, there IS still venture capital out there, along with other sources such as friends & family, customers, corporate partners and even government grants.

Even if you don't need outside capital right now, you can use BizPlanBuilder to reinvent your company to run more efficiently.

If you have sales traction and are cash flow positive without institutional investment, then that's a solid testament to your business' value proposition to customers, so now you're looking for expansion funding instead of seed capital to test your idea. BizPlanBuilder is full of ideas for building your business without needing outside capital. Nevertheless, you still want to...

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Create business plans the way investors & lenders want to see them

Afterall, you too are an investor and lender... and you must be very careful with your own money. BizPlanBuilder brings together an experienced group of entrepreneurs and investors and shares their knowledge on what it takes to build a viable company in the current climate, and what advice can be gleaned from past experience.

• Build a "Capital Efficient" business that's good for you
• Collaborate over a network, server or online with consultants, partners and colleagues
• Where do you find the people & resources for next to nothing?
• Ideas help you generate revenue straight out of the gate
• If you can generate revenue and have minimal expense, you may not need Venture Capital
• What investors are looking for in a business plan (Avoid what makes them cringe.)
• Learn the rules of investor etiquette
• Clearly identify benefits, core philosophies, and business goals
• Avoid the common blunders that guarantee failure
• Include data lenders & investors demand to back up your plan's assumptions
• Incorporates the best practices in defining marketing and sales strategies and projecting costs
• Presentation template that will capture your prospect's attention and keep your plan at the top of the stack

Whether you are raising $5,000 to $50 million, or organizing your strategy for going forward, BizPlanBuilder will help you to produce an investment-grade business plan quickly and efficiently. It's real, up-to-date, and has the right combination of art and science with the structure and content to help you all the way from idea through financing to the ongoing management of your growing company.

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The business planning software system for many uses...

It's amazing how many uses you can find for a good business plan. Use it now for what you're looking for, use it again and again as opportunities arise and your business grows. BizPlanBuilder has been proven useful and successful for all of these applications:

• Organize your ideas and do the math to start a business
• Prepare your presentation to raise angel or venture capital investment
• Here's everything you'll need to apply for an SBA-backed loan
• Ideas, advice and structure to reorganize your company for greater growth
• Revise your strategy and get your people pulling in the same direction
• Analyze your prospects for franchising your operation
• Gain support or a grant for a Not-for-Profit
• File a comprehensive plan to avoid or to emerge from bankruptcy
• Successfully complete an MBA project or win the competition!
• Think through the prospects and valuation of an acquisition
• Add value to your business for a lucrative merger or acquisition
• Easily make changes as you go after new opportunities

As you research business planning software, remember to count and compare the number of real-world success cases reported by users. BizPlanBuilder seems to have more than all of the others combined! Reviews are nice, but we think you'll prefer cash and business success.

The sections of your plan that a lender will focus on include those addressing historical performance, projected future performance, and management experience. (If you need help putting together an appropriate business plan, try using JIAN's BizPlanBuilder software tool. It is easy to use and recognizable to most lenders.)"
- Doug Hood, Rainmaker Capital, Atlanta, GA

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The business plan loved and hated by more investors & lenders

With over 2,000,000 customers and more than two billion dollars raised through venture capitalists, investors, banks, the SBA and corporate management, BizPlanBuilder is the proven tool for developing your concept and presenting it to those who can back you. No other business planning software has the praise given to BizPlanBuilder for overall ease of use, quality and the sheer success of its users. 

"People come to us all the time seeking funding, and we use BizPlanBuilder to show them the business plan content and format we like to see."
- David Wilt, E.D. Wilt Investments, Washington DC

BizPlanBuilder business plan software is also the most hated business planning software because it makes you too smart, too prepared, too savvy... too "on to them." And that's all true. Some VCs say they want you to write your plan from scratch! Yes, they're testing you. Why not use an abacus to do the math as well? We're on your side, not theirs. (Many want you to over promise so when you fall short, they throw you out and take over. BizPlanBuilder helps you beat them at their game... and succeed anyway. )

Plus, these days investors and lenders are asking more questions than ever and they want to be absolutely sure that everything is addressed before they'll write you a check. You can't afford to take any chances here — since we've been developing business planning software longer than anyone, you can be sure that you'll anticipate and address all of the questions and concerns. With BizPlanBuilder you'll build a solid foundation for yourself and for your company. BizPlanBuilder business plan software helps you communicate effectively to investors and lenders, and show them the logic and math that clearly illustrates a good investment opportunity.

What inspired the original development of BizPlanBuilder? Click the video!

Click here to watch all of Burke Franklin's videos on YouTube.

The best of hundreds of plans built-in give you more ideas!

Over the years, we've taken the best of hundreds of business planning components and incorporated them into a useable number of great prototype documents you can build upon. You'll find that this method is far more robust than deconstructing and rebuilding a limited so-called industry-specific cookie-cutter plan template. (Read the Reviews.) We've already done the work for you, plus we have been working with entrepreneurs and investors for 20 years. Click here for more details...

Click here to see the bullet-list of functional features...
And, although others may provide a variety of free Internet resources like we do, we also reveal to you some potentially "politically incorrect" stuff because that's what will give you the edge you need. (For example, did you know that many investors won't invest in a Nevada corporation because the ownership/management need not be disclosed?)

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Includes everything else you need for financing

While a great business plan is necessary, BizPlanBuilder also includes all of the crucial supporting documents to use for presenting your plan and raising the money, plus $600+ worth of useful extras. For example:

• Sample letters inviting potential members to join your Board of Directors
• Prospective investor tracking worksheet
• Private Offering Disclaimer

I've used a lot of the free stuff (what did I expect?) and some of your competitors' products (some slick programming, but thin on actual content and useful advice). I want to tell anyone who might be worried about using the right software for this project that you guys have made the genuine effort and done it right. At the end of the day, the $100 invested in BizPlanBuilder will save a lot of work, assure you of a great plan, and prepare you mentally to face any investor or lender.
- Patrick Morris, Management Consultant, Orinda, CA

Menu-driven from start to finish makes it easy to write a compelling plan

BizPlanbuilder's organized system gives you sample plans and built-in financial models that have been thoroughly proven. (These have also been torture-tested with several billion dollars worth of investors over the years as well!)

Click image to enlarge click again to shrink

As you research business planning software, remember to count and compare the number of real-world success cases reported by users. BizPlanBuilder has more than all of the others combined! Reviews are nice, but we think you'll prefer reports of real cash and business success. (If you're wondering if you even need a business plan, click here.)

 

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Intuitive document management system uses familiar Office applications

• Easily edit the pre-written plans in Word — avoid problematic file conversions.
• Spreadsheets in Excel format provide the ultimate in flexibility and customization.
• Expert advice throughout guides you every step of the way.
• JIAN's Multi-user Interactive Document Assembly System (MIDAS) makes adding, editing and managing Office documents fast and easy (Macintosh users, please click here.)
• Share the project and your plans over a network, server or online with consultants, partners and colleagues

Multi-user system enables remote access & team collaboration

With this new version of BizPlanBuilder, we overhauled the entire system to make it a true multi-user program. Now you can easily share your business planning project with others — management team, consultants, investors — with complete access control and 128-bit security. Collaborate over a network, server or the Internet. (Emailing, cutting and pasting files is no longer necessary!) For yourself, you can work on your business plan from your office, home, and laptop. It's easy. (Click the "Collaboration" tab above for more details.)

 

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Expert comments throughout explain everything

The next best thing to having us do the work for you is to have our collection of expert advice, comments and suggestions woven throughout every section explaining what to do and why. (Only you will see them—they don't print.) Also, the JIAN Handbook of Business Planning included with BizPlanBuilder provides a wealth of experience, ideas and information, plus a variety of additional tools to help you build your business and manage it more effectively — with or without outside financing.

"I bought 2 other software programs.
After reading all three, I went with yours!"
- Chuck Stasny, Missouri City, TX

Built for professionals as well as novices

For the first-time business planner, you'll appreciate how much has already been done for you. We've written most of the text and lead you through completing the sentences, we've provided expert comments throughout, plus we've included a complete set of financial models that will vividly demonstrate the effects of sales and expenses over time.

I teach a class for SCORE on how to prepare a business plan. You will be pleased to know that most of our counselors recommend Biz Plan Builder to our clients. Thank you!
- Terry Little

Our business plan financial models offer excel flexibility and easy customization. If you're a business planning pro, you will appreciate the flexibility of the BizPlanBuilder system as well as the quality of the content that you would expect — for you, this is a real working toolset.

 

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Flexible financial models help you project your financial future

Whether you're writing a formal business plan for investors or developing a meaningful forecast for your business, BizPlanBuilder's financial models will make the process faster, easier, and yes — even fun! It's never been easier to organize your ideas, see how sales and expense projections effect your bottom line, and quickly output professional-looking, beautifully formatted documents required by banks and investors — so you can get funded fast! Click here for more details.

As an expert financial consultant, I was amazed at the depth of the package and its ease of use.
- Tom Devine, The Clayton Group, New York

BizPlanBuilder prints a professional business plan presentation approved by investors, lenders and the SBA. All of the financial models are completely configured, so you don't have to be a spreadsheet or financial expert. Just enter your sales, expense, growth and other assumptions and variables and let the program run the calculations to produce investor-ready financial statements. See "what-if" when you change scenarios.

Automatic assembly & complete customization

Once you've completed the selected sections, BizPlanBuilder automatically assembles your plan... ready for review, final printing, or saving to a web site. A comprehensive business plan can help you get what you want for your business. BizPlanBuilder makes it easy.

"JIAN's focus on business planning is tighter and more concise than many of its competitors, with a strong dose of sales and marketing insights that help the plan serve as a working document rather than just a financial tool."
- Dave McClure, Accounting Today

Use it for 60-days with a Money-Back Guarantee!

How can you judge if something is worth the investment? If you order and download BizPlanBuilder now, you can see how well it handles your specific needs and fits the nuances that make your business unique. More than likely, after 60 days, you'll be happily down the road with a completed business plan. If it's not right for you, we will pay you back — there's nothing to ship, no taxes, and you can keep the software anyway!

Why choose BizPlanBuilder strategic business plan software?

BizPlanBuilder was inspired by our work with entrepreneurs. These people think fast and move fast. The idea of a traditional business plan was out of the question. An innovative, fresh approach to business planning was required, and BizPlanBuilder was born.

From the very beginning, our goal has been to support new products and services entering our world. We want the best stuff to prevail. Entrepreneurs, inventors and others who offer something great and want to succeed in the face of extraordinary competition, overwhelming odds and tight budgets need all the help you can get

BizPlanBuilder includes short, pre-written Microsoft Word® templates, Microsoft Excel® financial workbooks and a Microsoft PowerPoint® presentation template — All easily customizable to suit your unique business.

Expert comments on every page provide direction and insights to improve your plan as well as your business model. BizPlanBuilder provides everything you need to accomplish your goals, including important supporting documents, plus $600+ worth of extras.

The best of a thousand business plans in one...

We’ve discovered that it’s easier and better for you if we gathered the best ideas and proven concepts from every industry and incorporated them into just a few master templates. That way, you get more, better ideas and it’s only your task to edit the multiple choices, complete the sentences, and delete things you don’t need.

If you want to start a dog walking business, you can find that among the 500 sample plans offered by a competitor. If you work for the government and you have unlimited time, we can recommend another software system that drags you through 1,200 questions before generating a canned business plan for you.

However, if you have a unique concept, not something easily canned, perhaps even something that will make a contribution to our world, please bring it on! And keep reading...

Hundreds of sample plans are already integrated.

A competitor hired part-timers to produce 500 sample plans to make you think you're getting something special. (One of the people sent us his resume hoping that we would hire him to do the same no-brainer job! His qualifications should frighten you.)

Instead, we've taken everything we've learned over the past 20 years—from angel investors, bankers, consultants, successful customers, VCs—and synthesized it into a few fundamental plan prototypes. These can be customized beyond the 500 sample plans in a few minutes.

See how other users have succeeded using BizPlanBuilder in almost every industry.

We didn't strip out otherwise good ideas to make your plan fit a specific industry—it's actually more work to undo those sample plans in order to get a good plan you can use! We actually give you more to work with in an easier to use system. Think of BizPlanBuilder as a carefully compiled collection of the best of business plans providing you the very examples of exactly what to say. Only we make sure it all makes sense and that you can rely on it.

With BizPlanBuilder, you also benefit from the cross-pollination from many industries, supporting your business's uniqueness, and implementing the best-practices sought after by investors, lenders and others who can help you.

More business plan and planning software development experience

We've been developing business planning software since 1988. While that may seem dated to some, to you it means that we didn't just build a web site and start downloading software. We've been through many business cycles — we've been making this software and content better for a long time, and we're excited to say that this latest version of BizPlanBuilder is the most effective and streamlined yet... We listened to the professional business consultants in our network. We listened and incorporated ideas we got from thousands of successful customers..

20 years studying what investors & lenders finance

Our customers report having raised over a billion and a half dollars through venture capitalists, investors, banks, the SBA and corporate management. While many investors will tell you they want just a 2-3 page plan (you'll use the Executive Summary), it will really take a lot more than that to extract any real investment. While BizPlanBuilder provides everything in one document, it also is designed like a quick-reference guide to quickly access and address all of their questions. Given our unique experience, we help you anticipate investors' and lenders' questions, such as:

• Have you thought about...?
• What about...?
• How many...?
• Who else...?
• How much...?
• Can you prove...?

Written from the investors' and lenders' point-of-view

We often remind people that, "The better job you do on your plan, the better deal you'll get!" And, that your language can either attract capital or repel it. For these reasons, we provide you a planning system written from the investors and lenders point of view—because they are the ones who will give you the capital you need. Need proof that this works? Just read the comments at left (or at the bottom of this page.)

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3 Reasons BizPlanBuilder Out-Performs the Other Business Planning Software

1. Topping $2+ billion in capital raised, BizPlanBuilder incorporates professionally-written, compelling text that provides the desired content and demonstrates the style proven with investors & lenders. The idea is that it's easier to edit than to write from scratch -- rather than answer a series of questions in a vacuum and let the program assemble a collection of canned paragraphs, BizPlanBuilder presents the text and numbers in familiar Word, Excel & PowerPoint templates where the user can see the context into which their answers will go — finish the sentences, overwrite the examples, and modify the formatting to make it perfect for your business. The financial models have evolved over 20 years and include characteristics gleaned from angels, VCs, bankers, and customers worldwide. For advisors working with business owners on their plans, BizPlanBuilder provides a valuable business education in itself.
   
   
2. BizPlanBuilder is the only "open" business planning system on the market.
   Most business concepts are very unique today, rendering most industry-specific sample plans useless. Instead, BizPlanBuilder provides the best of hundreds of business concepts cross-pollinated from every industry enabling the user to quickly adopt proven ideas and include them in their plans. A pull-down menu even lets you include external documents. The financial planning models incorporate Excel workbooks designed to make it easy to enter all of your assumptions, play "what-if", and handle the presentation to investors and lenders. An interesting addition is the inclusion of a table in the "Use of Proceeds Summary" page suggesting levels of investment required over 9/12/18/24 month periods — compelling the user to plan for certain milestones. The financial models are completely flexible enabling perfect customization to any business model, plus they allow an unlimited number of links to and from external spreadsheets. (not so with Business Plan Pro)
   
   
3. Multi-user system enables time-saving collaboration over a network, server or web.
   The BizPlanBuilder system is optimized to enable collaboration with an unlimited number of others over a network, server or the Internet. Entrepreneurial and/or consulting teams can easily divide projects and work together no matter where they are. No more emailing sections, cutting & pasting or overwriting each other's work. Most of JIAN's 10 business-building titles run on this same system — learn one, use them all. (You can even drag and drop a section of your business plan in to your employee policies manual!) Beyond the templates; however, business teams can even use the JIAN system itself for developing their own custom projects like technical manuals, sales books, or procedures guides. Likewise, individual users can enjoy anytime access to their plans from office, home, and laptop PCs.

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The best content, resources & support — Re-use your effort in the future

Downloading BizPlanBuilder is a great start. What if you could also take your work on your business plan and reuse it with other important projects in the future? JIAN offers a complete suite of companion products to help you market, publicize, and build your business as it grows. We make it easy for you to cut and paste from your business plan to your employee handbook, expanded marketing plan, PR plan and press releases, etc. Our web site is also rich with articles, affiliates and links which will be invaluable to you in addition to the software programs.

The many advantages of BizPlanBuilder

Some of the advantages of BizPlanBuilder are simply unique; no-one else does it. For many BizPlanBuilder just goes further, bigger and better.

Easy - Uses native Word & Excel / Office (required) so you can quickly edit and customize your business plan without software import/export hassles
Fast - Sample plans are already written & integrated
Comprehensive - Plan + Financials + Everything you'll need
Modular - Intuitive Office document assembly system
Multi-User - Access your plan from your office, laptop or home
Collaborative - Share the project with your team and consultants over a network, server, or the Internet
Flexible - Financial models are in familiar Excel workbooks
Proven - More real (and BIG) success stories than any other
Refined - This is version 10, refined longer than any other
Reliable - Input from practicing experts in every field
Teaching Video - "The Thinking Behind Your Business Plan"
Web links - Free web-based Resources
Better - See this list of advantages
Guaranteed - Download it, use it... 60-Days or Money Back

Includes this Informative Video

The Thinking Behind Your Business Plan
Watch this 100-minute video on your computer. JIAN founder and CEO Burke Franklin talks to a group of entrepreneurs about the various aspects of business planning, and about the audience to whom you are presenting your business idea and plan. At risk of being politically incorrect at times, he's very real, he's been there, done that, and really wants to help you to understand the process and pitfalls. Watch it here.

Achievable. Believable. Clear. Complete. Concise. Focused. Professional. Realistic...

And, "the best business plan I’ve ever read." These are the responses countless customers have told us they’ve heard from bankers, investors, prospective partners and senior managers when they presented their plans they created by using BizPlanBuilder. The unique JIAN process assures that you'll be prepared—ready to face even the toughest audiences and able to answer every question.

Try it for 60-Days Risk-Free

Sometimes the best way to see if something fits what you are doing is to just try it. If you download BizPlanBuilder now, you can see how well it handles your specific needs and fits the nuances that make your business unique. If it's not right for you, we will pay you back—there's nothing to ship, no taxes, and you can keep the software anyway (your karma can be the judge!).

Consultants, Reviewers, and Users Weigh-In...

The truth is we developed BizPlanBuilder before anyone developed any kind of business planning software, even Business Plan Pro. It may seem tacky to put a section like this on our site, but the truth (see below) speaks for itself—and we just had to pass along this knowledge. If you're betting the next few years of your life on a new or expanding business, starting with the right planning software could make all of the difference in the world.

In general, how does JIAN differentiate itself from all the other products out there?

• JIAN has been in business for 20 years — that means more ongoing development and feedback than any other.
• All JIAN software is written enabling you to use your own familiar Word, Excel and PowerPoint software (eliminating import/export issues that cause problems and waste time)
• JIAN software is therefore more flexible enabling customization and comprehensive
  
• JIAN's multi-user platform enables collaboration (not email over a network, server or the Internet
• We have more positive reviews, comments, success stories (money raised) than any other program
  
• With JIAN, each product is compatible with an entire suite of business tools — all JIAN products work on the same platform the same way.

Also, you'll find that BizPlanBuilder adds much more than you might expect from a business planning software package (we include hard won real-life business insights above and beyond what most business planning authors or software programmers bring to their products) — and it even compares very favorably against the much more expensive Business Plan Pro Premiere...

SBDC Consultants Prefer BizPlanBuilder

I have used both Business Plan Pro and BizPlanBuilder in my past management positions. With all the so-called sample plans in Business Plan Pro, it's easy to think you have the final product. You really don't — it's not really that user friendly, especially if you are not comfortable writing the narrative. Instead, with JIAN's BizPlanBuilder, it's much easier for me to help a client develop a professional business plan that I don't have to entirely rewrite.
- Sajata Strong, Area Director, Clark Atlanta University SBDC, School Of Business Administration, Atlanta, GA

The product was recommended to me over Business Plan Pro by the consultant from the Minority Business Development Center in Honolulu, who is assisting me with plan development.
- J Furumura, Honolulu, HI

Former Business Plan Pro Users Convert to BizPlanBuilder

Here’s what they report:

1. BizPlanBuilder is lot easier to format... I can just pour my own words into what has already been set up.
2. Business Plan Pro is not as detailed as BizPlanBuilder (PC World concluded the same thing.)
3. The spreadsheets in BizPlanBuilder are much more thorough and flexible, and cover a wider range of possibilities. (PC World concluded the same thing.)
4. BizPlanBuilder’s financials all interact together (Business Plan Pro’s are fixed.)
5. I can modify the financial models in BizPlanBuilder (In Business Plan Pro, I cannot.)
6. It’s easier to print the BizPlanBuilder financial statements.
7. BizPlanBuilder is altogether much easier to complete.
8. BizPlanBuilder allows me to plug in my company’s historical numbers and go forward (Business Plan Pro is like starting from scratch.)
9. Business Plan Pro doesn't help me calculate the value of my company and the stock give-up. BizPlanBuilder does.
10. While Business Plan Pro may initially impress you with some technical bells and whistles, the end result that I show investors is dramatically superior with BizPlanBuilder from JIAN.
11. I have edited a number of business plans written from software, regardless of Business Plan Pro's many sample plans (which I had to deconstruct), BizPlanBuilder provides a far superior basis for a business plan. It is by far better written, better structured, and makes much more sense in the final analysis.
    - (Aggregated and consolidated from many emails; all names withheld)

Program is wonderful! I like it much better than the Palo Alto software I have...
- Andrew Garstkiewicz, MBA, Quality Engineer, GE Consumer & Industrial

I’m sending you this email to let you know that I think you have an excellent product. I’ve used Business Plan Pro and it doesn’t come close to being as robust as BizPlanBuilder. It used to be frustrating to get my plans looking the way I needed them to look. Thanks again for offering such a thorough and complete. Feel free to quote me on this!
- David Vallejo, President/CEO, LatinsOnline, Monterey Park, CA,

Upgraded from Business Plan Pro to BizPlanBuilder

Another Former Business Plan Pro User Switched to BizPlanBuilder
Here is her account:

• We were going NUTS trying to pull together our business plan and the financials by using Palo Alto's Business Plan Programs. We spent countless amount of wasted hours trying to make do with their products.
• Comparison: Jian - you plugged in the figures in the assumptions and they used it elsewhere on other pages. Key fact: You could see the formula used to reverse engineer documents and make changes. BPPro: You could not tell what was being used where and you could not see the formulas used at all. What information was extracted from where?
• Jian was extremely user friendly. Simple to select which forms. Forget the so-called tables & charts. Investors like seeing hard-core figures.
  Palo Alto forced us to use a certain template on the business plan. It was not until the third page that the product was unveiled. No one wants to read three pages of information without knowing what it is in the first place.
• Palo Alto's email collaboration never worked! We were all using AOL and it is not AOL friendly. Support: Palo Alto's was nonexistent. Refused to help us -- assumed answers. Jian was unbelievable!! Helped us with issues that were finance related and not their software issue. Went way above & beyond the call of duty.
• When we discovered Jian's products, specifically the financial templates, everything became so simple for us. There was NO COMPARISON between the two programs.
• Jian's financial templates allowed us to key in the basic figures and the software plugged it in where ever the figure was needed in other sheets. We could check figures by tracing the formulas. It was fantastic, accurate and easy for a NON-Financial wizard.
• Jian used the industry standard sheets -- Balance sheet, Budget, Break-even analysis, etc.

You could massage the looks to match whatever the rest of your business plan looks like since it is using Microsoft Excel.
I cannot tell you how simple the product is and how supporting the company was when I called for help.
- Verron Federation, IDentaSafe, Alpharetta, GA

I preferred BizPlanBuilder over Business Plan Pro.
It's far easier to use, liked that interface better...
It works better with Word & Excel.
It's more business like.
Business plan pro seems like it was written by a 5th grader
- R Trube, Detroit, MI

This may not be as detailed a comparison as you would like since I only spent about two hours actually using the other package before I blew it off.

Quick history: In 2000 my wife and I started a small retail business - Accent Market. My wife is a talented interior decorator and seamstress. Accent Market became the "store front" for her design consulting business. Utilizing BizPlanBuilder we quickly developed our business plan and within a few weeks received start-up funding from a local bank. Two years later we sold the business, for a nice profit, based on the strength of our original business plan and the comparison of our actual results to the results we forecasted in that plan.    Recently, I began developing an idea for a new business. I couldn't locate my original copy of BizPlanBuilder and found myself at my local Comp USA shopping for business plan software.    I didn't find BizPlanBuilder so I purchased Business Plan Pro instead. After two hours of struggling with Business Plan Pro I gave up and called you for relief. (I love the PANIC button on your web site.) From my brief usage of Business Plan Pro herewith my thoughts:    Not intuitive. The mere fact that it comes with a manual that's a couple of hundred page suggests that you need to read it. The accompanying text "Hurdle: The Book on Business Planning" would undoubtedly be useful if I were writing a paper in B-School, but I don't have a semester to get this done. BizPlanBuilder is more akin to a Vulcan mind meld. Perhaps in Ver. 11.0 it will be able to read your mind.    Plan building process based on proprietary modules. Using "Excel® like" spreadsheets and exporting to Word® isn't even close to actually using Excel® and Word®. In fact, this was the basis of my giving up on Business Plan Pro. First, it was very frustrating that I couldn't cut and paste the logo I created in Word®. Also, my business model is a little more complicated than "buy low/sell high". I had already created a rather complex financial model that I couldn't import and would never have been able to recreate in the "Excel® like" environment. Their web site suggested that a $200 upgrade to "Premier" would permit me that luxury.    (Everything is extra. The basic $99.00 package gives you just enough to get you to buy more.) That's when I browsed over to your web site. BizPlanBuilder gives you everything you need, and more, for the same C-note. Plus BPP doesn't have Heidi! I rest my case.    Kindest regards,
- Gary D. Faulkner,www.MyFavoriteAtm.com

Our company is a computer security software startup. We were asked by an important first customer and a venture fund to submit a project and venture funding proposal and business plan. I have done this with a few different companies over the past few years, and I like BizPlanBuilder better than the financial projection software packages I have tried, because of the unhindered flexibility to export it to an Excel workbook. Once I export it, I attach my own Excel worksheets to the workbook, to build up our own assumptions, then write formulas into the cells of the exported JIAN exported 'Assumptions' worksheet to suck values in from my various assumptions worksheets. Surprisingly, I don't know why, I couldn't get that unrestricted flexibility with your competitors. In fact, I opened the new "Comprehensive" model you sent me, and I am surprised to find that you at JIAN have now built in a bunch of assumptions worksheets just the way I have always done in the past. That's great.
- Michael Culver, CFO, Aesec Corp, Palo Alto, CA

Professional Software Reviews

JIAN's BizPlanBuilder is our BEST BUY because it cuts through the complexity of developing a plan and helps you produce slick-looking results. Its exhaustive template walks you through the every step from cover letter to appendix, with plenty of samples... BizPlanBuilder also offers a better collection of financial tables, ratios, and projections than any competitor.
- PC World Magazine (Read the entire review here. Their experts also compare BizPlanBuilder favorably against Business Plan Pro)

Read More Reviews Here

Over the years we've heard many wonderful successes customers have attributed to using BizPlanBuilder to produce their business plans. We've started gathering photos and more detailed backgrounds to give you some ideas of what is possible and how others have done it.

$3,000,000 Aviation Start-Up

In 1991 Darrin Perdue had three partners, with ten years combined flying experience and a vision for a jet charter company.

His plan was to first raise money and then buy a jet. The first investor laughed him out of his office. Then, while pursuing other investors, Darrin remembered that he knew a gentleman who owned two Lear Jets. Darrin used his business plan to convince the jet owner to let Darrin's company, SP Aviation, manage the planes. The company prospers to this day!.

Recently, Darrin used his business plan once again to approached a large corporation to manage the chartering of their Gulfstream G4 business jet. Today, Darrin’s company has 12 pilots and is on call 24 hours a day—providing jet charter services to executives, celebrities and medical transplant teams throughout Northern California. How did he do it?

" My business plan wasn't extremely complex.
I just edited through the Executive Summary,
following the easy instructions that BizPlanBuilder gave me,
and then put it all together. "
- Darrin Perdue, President & CEO, SP Aviation

Important Lesson Here:

Darrin originally thought he needed money, until he remembered that his goal was jets. There are many ways to get what you need to build your business—it doesn't always take lots of money. The most important ingredients are an imagination, some nerve and a logical and thorough plan of action.

$700,000 SBA Loan for Wellness Center

My talented wife/business partner and I have used BizPlanBuilder annually to clarify our business ideas to help us keep score as we compare our business to those of our competitors in the health/fitness/spa services industry. The self-assessment questions in BizPlan have helped us stay lucid and eloquent about our business growth strategies and profitability. Our preparedness paid off when we went to the bank for an SBA loan to purchase a $700,000.00 wellness center in San Mateo,CA. I truly believe BizPlanBuilder helped give us a roadmap to follow to be ready for an opportunity just like this.

As a member of the first Olympic Sports massage Team, I developed a body-therapy technique that helps boost sports performance and eliminate pain for thousands of people from all walks of life.

After a brief pre-qualifying interview, the branch VP pulled out a stack of forms to fill out. Usually the forms require most applicants up to six months to have their act together and their story straight. We were back in 3 days, with everything they needed to process the loan.

With BizPlanBuilder it was easy to compile our information to suit the bank and the Small Business Association.

Yes, we had the credit history and business income to make the loan work. However, I truly believe BizPlanBuilder helped give me a roadmap to follow to be ready for an opportunity just like this.

Aaron Ulysses Parnell
www.AaronParnell.com

$65,000 bank loan for a pet store

In 1992 Linda Bleoo was working as an employee at a pet store in Mississauga, Canada. After she discovered that the company was going bankrupt, her friends convinced her to buy the store for herself and run her own small business.

At first, she didn't think she could do it. Besides, seven established pet store chains were competing for the deal she wanted.

The Bank of Montreal chose to back Linda and gave her the $65,000 she needed. (No SBA guarantee here!)

" I don't know how I would even have started a project like this without BizPlanBuilder. I was up against seven big players in the pet industry and managed to beat them all out because of the professionalism in my business plan. "
- Linda Bleoo, Classic Pets, Montreal, Canada

Since Linda purchased her business, she's made a quite a success of "Classic Pets" located in South Common Mall. It's amazing what you can do when you go for what you want and use the right tools.

$850,000 to Start an Athletic Club

As someone who had never turned on a computer, I used biz plan builder and raised $5 million in capital to buy a large health club because of your software.

I still get compliments on my first biz plan when folks want to see what we did to raise our original capital. I always send them your direction!
- Bob Shoulders, Fayetteville Athletic Club, Fayetteville, AR

I don't know if you remember me telling you this story but when I was raising capital, I had one venture capital guy take me to lunch and tell me good news bad news scenario....... the bad news is I'm not gonna do your deal. the good news is if you don't get it done, I would like to hire you to write business plans for me.

$100,000 SBA loan for a Spa!

In 1995 my wife and a business partner had the opportunity to open and own a franchise of a local very successful Day-Spa operation. Both my wife and her partner were employed as managers in the Day-Spa operation at that time. I became the background financial guy. I knew we needed a business plan and I didn’t have a clue how to begin so I purchased your BizPlanBuilder off the shelf at a local computer outlet. I did not even own a computer at that time.  Had one at the office, but couldn’t use it because of restrictions. I took the software over to my best friend’s house (he had a computer and knew how to use it) and we installed the software. It took a while; some trial and error, lots of re-writes, but we finally finished. When we took the business plan to the bank and applied for SBA financing, it was a snap. The financials were in order. They complimented us on the organization of the plan. They liked our vision. The plan had everything they required to get the loan process moving.  In the end we were successful. The SBA loaned us $100,000 based on the experience of the partners and the business plan. We now have two Day-Spas operating in the New Orleans French Quarter. Come see us! 
- Lewis Cocke, Spa Aria at the Hotel Montelone and Shine Spa and Specialty in the French Quarter)

 

Comprehensive financial models use Excel workbooks for maximum flexibility

20 years of development make these beautifully formatted financial forecasting models the best on the market
These are the latest generation of Excel workbook technology with every page automatically linked together. Take them one page at-a-time, dive-in where you want, see where your financial intuition takes you. Whether you're good at this or not, the BizPlanBuilder system will work for you. Test, learn, see the effects unfold as you make even the slightest changes. Best of all, you can modify it as much as you want to tune it perfectly for your unique business model.

The BizPlanBuilder was a life saver in dealing with SBA loans and investors. You have to be so perfect and BizPlanBuilder allowed me to do so. Thanks.
- Shirley Duncan, Duncan Enterprises, Wheeling, IL

Quantify your start-up business model
Creating useful financial projections for your business can be tough, especially if yours is a brand new company with no financial history as any kind of backdrop.

Refine your established business model
Even if you have a running start, BizPlanBuilder makes this challenging job much, much easier, taking you step-by-step through the process of forecasting start-up / expansion costs, sales, operating expenses, financing, capital investments, cash-flow, profits, valuation, stock give-up and everything else.

BizPlanBuilder is the best financial projections software I've used... Our company is a computer security software startup. We were asked by an important first customer and a venture fund to submit a project and venture funding proposal and business plan. I have done this with a few different companies over the past few years, and I like BizPlanBuilder better than the financial projection software packages I have tried, because of the unhindered flexibility to export it to an Excel workbook. Once I export it, I attach my own Excel worksheets to the workbook, to build up our own assumptions, then write formulas into the cells of the exported JIAN exported 'Assumptions' worksheet to suck values in from my various assumptions worksheets. Surprisingly, I don't know why, I couldn't get that unrestricted flexibility with your competitors. In fact, I opened the new "Comprehensive" model you sent me, and I am surprised to find that you at JIAN have now built in a bunch of assumptions worksheets just the way I have always done in the past. That's great.
- Michael Culver, CFO, Aesec, Palo Alto, CA

Updated business forecasting system

This latest version of the BizPlanBuilder Financial Models have been thoroughly revised to assure that you cover everything you (and investors) need. All models show the math, include expert comments, and are easy to understand, use and present. And, they've been proven with more than a billion dollars in business financing.

Comprehensive Budget / Feasibility Plan: Bottom-up / Top-down system helps you build a complete financial picture—particularly valuable for start-up or growing businesses. This model also includes our exclusive one-page "Best/Worst" case (Sensitivity) Analysis, as well as business valuation and investor deal analysis. It's everything you need for preparing a comprehensive budget as well as a detailed financial model for angel investors and venture capitalists.

Bank Loans / SBA Financing: Linked statements for product or service businesses — great for presentation to SBA and lenders. Assumptions page auto-fills the entire model. Five integrated financial calculators help plan future loan financing and automatically calculate all interest expense, loan repayment cash-flow, and balance sheet entries. Scroll down for more details.

Want a forecast, but don't need outside money?
Use the BizPlanBuilder models as a cash forecasting / management system for a growing business not looking for outside capital. These will save you hours and hours of sweating over paper financials or trying to create your own spreadsheets from scratch. Get a full financial picture and have handy model to project "what-if..." happens next.

Excel workbook has everything you need and makes it easy

Since we use Excel workbooks and link every worksheet together, you can click across the color-coded tabs at the bottom of your screen to go to any statement or assumptions page you want. Jump in and make changes. See what happens... more money or not? (CTRL+Z undoes it!) Simply fill-in / update the assumptions pages and the everything else is automatic. Lines that don't apply may simply be hidden or renamed for your purposes. (Assumptions pages are designed to be part of your plan presentation should an investor question your logic.) Print pages individually or the entire financial plan.

Map of the model with pop-up notes simplifies and helps you understand the logic and flow of financial forecasting.

Unlimited customization allows for an exact fit to your unique business

Here is where most other systems crash and burn — they're rigid and inflexible. They're not written using Excel, they must import and that's where the trouble begins. Instead, BizPlanBuilder is based in Excel. It's easy to use and many people around can support you. From there you can easily customize these financials to fit your exact requirements:

• Add worksheets
• Link to or from outside spreadsheets
• Add or subtract lines or sections
• Change formulas
• Format to have them appear exactly the way you want them.

We've also made sure to keep the formulas simple so you can easily trace the logic if you need to. Now you can show how believable numbers can add up — unlike other financial models (input-> [black-box] -> output). Here you will see the math, and be able to explain "how you got there" in a clear and logical manner.

Why these models are so good:

• True "Flow-Through Financials" — enter your financial figures just once, and they'll automatically flow-through to all the other relevant statements, performing necessary calculations along the way!
• Every worksheet is linked together. Just click the tabs at the bottom to go to any assumptions page or statement you want.
• Just enter your sales, expense, growth and other assumptions and variables and let the program run the calculations... It automatically calculates totals, percentages and ratios to show at a glance how much money you'll need, when you'll need it, and how soon you'll make a profit.
• See "what-if" when you change scenarios. It's easy to update — If you change a number, the spreadsheets automatically recalculate for you.
• Exclusive "One-Page Sensitivity Analysis" — No need to create special "best-case" and "worst-case" scenarios, just enter up/down percentages next to each budget category to show what happens with higher sales or lower marketing costs.
• Create projections for up to five years out — year 1 by months, years 2-3 by quarters, years 1-5 by entire years
• Roll-over "Help Balloons" pop-up to provide convenient tips and advice as you build your financial plan
• Charts and graphs are automatically generated for you
• Beautifully formatted—your financials will look great to potential investors, lenders, etc.
• Built using Microsoft Excel®, the industry standard for generating compelling financial forecasts.
• To finish, you can check the boxes for just the pages your want to print or add to your plan.

Built-in expert advice on every page keeps you going

At the top of each page, you'll find an explanation of how to work with each worksheet. The cells requiring input also have bubble help — Roll your mouse over these cells for comments and suggestions for filling in each section of the model. Now you can do the math and understand your numbers and deal.
(Even an "Artist" / non-financial person can use these models!)

Roll your mouse over any red triangle and an explanation immediately appears.
The "Cap Table" lets you play what-if? with certain stock scenarios and valuations.

Show investors & lenders what they want to see — Manages the 'pitch' for you

Investors and lenders have different ideas and often want to see something unexpected. We want you to be ready for them. Some want detail, some want a summary, others have some business interests few can imagine. Nevertheless, using BizPlanBuilder, you can easily select what you need to print to be fully prepared with multiple statement options:

• Year 1 by Months
• Years 2-3 by Quarters
• Years 1-5 by Year
• (All of the above)

Financial Worksheets included:
(Assumptions pages are designed to be part of your plan presentation.)
Macros enable you to print individual pages or the entire financial plan.

• Set-up by products, product lines, or profit centers
• Incorporate up to 3-years of historical financial data to show past, present & future continuum
• Start-up Costs / Summary Use of Proceeds
• Headcount & Space Planning (out to 5 years)
• Demand/Revenue Model (list potential customers x share x prices)
• Assumptions - Sales (easily adjust mix & seasonality from tables)
• Assumptions - Marketing (use % of sales or actual)
• Assumptions - COGS (use % of sales or actual)
• Assumptions - R&D (use % of sales or actual)
• Assumptions - G&A (use % of sales or actual)
• Assumptions - Cash-flow (enter debt, equity, etc. — shows cash balance from cash-flow statement to make it easy to see the effects of changes)
• Assumptions - Balance Sheet (use historical numbers if available)
• Assumptions - Financing. Five integrated financial calculators help plan future loan financing and automatically calculate all interest expense, loan repayment cash-flow, and balance sheet entries.
• Capitalization Table
• Personal Financial Statement (perfect for attaching to loan applications, etc.)

Financial Statements Included:

• Financial Summary - consolidation of financial projections, plus headcount and capital requirements - automatically generated, including graphs and charts
• Gross Profit Analysis (by product/service)
• Income Statement (+ NOL carry-forward)
• Balance Sheet (with out-of-balance flag)
• Cash-flow Projection
• Sensitivity Analysis (What-if... all on ONE page!)
• Comprehensive Ratio Analysis (Shows 31 success indicators & trends—with ideas for corrections! Also includes direct links to BizStats.com enabling you to quickly compare with your industry. Free.)
• Valuation (see below)
• Investor Deal Development & Analysis (enables planning for several rounds of financing + IPO)
• Equity/Ownership Give-Up (see section below)

Charts Included:

• Market Segments
• Units Sold
• Revenue Projections / Profit Center / Product
• Revenue / COGS / Profit
• Seasonal Sales
• Headcount Growth & Personnel / Department
• Use of Funds

Charts & graphs can be easily customized in Excel to your needs.

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Loan Wizard automatically manages up to 5 different loans

Modeling debt financing is easy.

Enter the loan start date, amount, and interest rate.

Interest expenses, cash flow and balance sheet line items are all automatically calculated — showing on separate line listings for each one on each statement for added clarity.

The blue text is variable so you can also label each loan with the title of your choice. These headings will also automatically copy to the Income Statement, Balance Sheet and Cash Flow statements where needed to identify their respective line-item calculations.

This helps dramatically to enable you to make adjustments where necessary and for investors and lenders to intuitively understand your plan.

Use this section to...

• Restructure debt to vendors.

• Purchase vehicles

• Borrow working capital

• Build up inventory

All loans are independently calculated so you can start them on any date from the beginning of your plan to any time in the future.

Financing Assumptions Statement below this "Loan Wizard" automatically summarizes all of your financing calculations here.

If / when you want to make a change, just update this page and everything else will recalculate and all changes will automatically appear in their proper places.

 

 

 

One of several Assumptions pages makes forecasting easy.

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Updated: Revenue/Demand model demonstrates growth potential

It's important to demonstrate clearly the magnitude of your opportunity. Investors always want to know how big the "universe" of potential customers is. Input the entire universe of potential customers, then project your market share. Building upon that, estimate the % of customers who will buy at a given price... See how believable numbers add-up—by using BizPlanBuilder you'll be able to easily explain and justify your projections.

Easily segment your markets and estimate penetration rates — investors often look here first.

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How much is your deal worth?

Important question. Investors will inevitably ask... and you need to have a good answer—especially one that has some good analysis behind it. This is a big part of any financial model and we use several methods to triangulate a respectable valuation for your business as well as to provide a credible explanation that you can use:

Harvard Model
1st Chicago Method
Discounted Future Cash-flow
Common VC Formula
Weighted Average (all of the above)

Quickly analyze & compare various financing scenarios — for yourself as well as your investors

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Return on Investment... Stock Give-up?

Given a certain amount of investment, how many shares would your investor(s) get? What % of the company would they own? (We included a calculation to help you see that you will still become wildly wealthy even when your investor(s) get rich too!) What might rounds two and three look like? If you went public, what might that look like? Perfect for busy CFOs as well as start-up entrepreneurs — the logical presentation especially saves time explaining to non-financial stake-holders. We also include a separate spreadsheet that helps you calculate your net return/profit if you were to sell your business.

BizPlanBuilder is the only business plan software system built for collaboration

Multi-user business plan software lets you share your files over a network, server, or the Internet so you can collaborate with your team.

The BizPlanBuilder system is optimized to enable collaboration with an unlimited number of others over a network, server or the Internet. Entrepreneurial and/or consulting teams can easily divide projects and work together no matter where they are.

Even if you are doing this project by yourself, you can enjoy anytime access to your files between your office, home PC and laptop!

Most of JIAN's 10 business-building titles run on this same system — learn one, use them all.

This new version of BizPlanBuilder business planning software is a true multi-user program enabling you to share files with others — management team, consultants, investors — with complete access control and 128-bit security.

No more emailing files!
Please don't be fooled by the old-school business plans that make you email files, then cut and paste back into your plan. Emailing files and cutting & pasting back into your business plan is not collaboration — it's a mess! Especially when one of you overwrites the others's work (Or they overwrite your work!)

BizPlanBuilder is the only "open" business planning system on the market — meaning that you can completely customize it to your exact needs. BizPlanBuilder works with any version of Windows Vista, XP or 2000. You will need any version of Microsoft Office 2000, XP, 2003 or 2007.

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NEW! Multi-User Access to Shared Files Enables True Collaboration

Work from your office PC, home PC or laptop to easily access your files from a server or shared storage device. Designate an unlimited number of additional users to collaborate with you using password-protected access. (They'll need to have their own licensed copy of BizPlanBuilder.)

• Management Teams – Share the work and get your plan done.
• Consultants – Create plans and keep connected with your clients.
• Educators – Oversee and participate with your student teams.
• Investment Bankers – Quickly make changes and update plans.

This is true multi-user file-sharing for collaboration — much more than email transferring of files.

Password Security with 128-bit encryption protects your projects, while still enabling secure control of additional users

• Add an unlimited number of users.
• Control other users' access: None/Read-Only/Full-Edit.
• Section by section Check-Out & Check-In.

File Check-Out enables a collaborator to grab one of the files for working on privately (preventing multiple people from making changes and over-writing each other's work.) Check-In automatically returns the file to the same place in the system.

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Document assembly system manages Office documents

The revised design even enables adding previous business plan pages, other documents, and blank sections. You can easily drag and drop within the flexible organization to produce a business plan that works for you.

One click assembles your custom document — Quickly complete your plan and get in front of investors and lenders. If you need to make changes, you can easily jump back in, edit and reprint.

• New! Instantly add your own documents...
• ...and easily incorporate them into your business plan.
• Include your previous business plan documents.
• Click browse to to add any document in your system.
• Drag & drop sorting lets you organize your plan your way.
• Build your own custom documents using this powerful document assembly system.

NEW! Collaborate Over the Internet

If you have storage online, you can share files securely over the web. The application runs on your PC and the data file can be easily dragged and dropped to an internet-based folder. When you work together with your team, each of you will open documents stored online, edit them locally, then save them back to the online folder. Automatically.

When you want it, you can sign up with our online storage partner for anytime/anywhere access to your documents. Visit Support for more details.

Beyond the templates; however, business teams can even use the JIAN system itself for developing their own custom projects like technical manuals, sales books, or procedures guides. Just add external documents and blank sections to create your own. Sort them into the order you want, assemble and print. It's that easy.

Automatic Assembly & Complete Customization

Each plan is a complete template unto itself. Choose the one most like your business, then you can select a section from any of the other plans and drag & drop it anywhere into the plan you are working with.

The BizPlanBuilder document management system lets you open any section you want, add/edit/save, work on another section... assemble your entire plan, complete with formatting and page numbering... print or email the finished plan.

Once you've completed the selected sections, BizPlanBuilder automatically assembles your plan... ready for review, final printing, or saving to a web site.

The unique JIAN process assures that you'll be prepared—ready to face even the toughest audiences and able to answer every question.

Everything you need to produce a winning business plan to raise the capital you want

Eventually, investors and lenders will ask a lot of questions before writing you a check. We know. In BizPlanBuilder address as many of them as possible for you. Scroll-down and you can see for yourself that BizPlanBuilder offers more expertise, tools and connections than any other planning software tool in the world. Use as much or as little as you need. You can build as you go, always able to come back for more if/when you need it.

BizPlanBuilder business plan software includes everything you'll need to for your presentation to investors, banks, the SBA and others—following all of their prescribed formats and requirements. Plus, we've already done most of the writing for you

We’ve added new sections, made major enhancements, and incorporated a variety of new tools to help you succeed:

Pre-Planning Tools

(These are Word documents you can easily edit.)

• Business Assessment Questions
• Executive Team Bio
• Personal Assessment Questions
• Personal Mission Statement
• Start-up Checklist
• Vision Statement
• Writing About Your Business
• Email Introduction to Friends

Cover Letters to...

• an Angel Investor
• a Business Acquirer
• an Investment Banker
• a Lender (includes a Summary Letter for Loan/Line of Credit)
• a Leasing Agent
• a Venture Capitalist

Elevator Pitch Outline & Sample

20-Minute PowerPoint Presentation Template
In slide #8 (of 16) we position your solution relative to everything else... We go to the VC presentations, we've present there too, we also take in everything everyone says and add these ideas to BizPlanBuilder.

We show you a sample "pitch" presentation to investors. Here is an important slide depicting how you compare to "everyone else out there."

Complete Business Plans

Start with Your Choice of Five Complete Plan Prototypes. These are written from the investors and lenders point-of-view. All are complete with integrated samples.

• Concept Evaluation Plan (to test your ideas)
• Angel/VC Plan Product / Development / Manufacturing Plan
• Internet / e-Commerce Plan (dot.com—a profitable dot.com!)
• Retail Store
• Service Business

Each plan is a complete template unto itself. Choose the one most like your business, then you can select a section from any of the other plans and drag & drop it anywhere into the plan you are working with. The BizPlanBuilder document management system lets you open any section you want, add/edit/save, work on another section... assemble your entire plan, complete with formatting and page numbering... print or email the finished plan.

Cover

Title Page

Executive Summary

Company Overview

• Business Model
• Objectives
• Financing Requirements
• Exit Strategy / ROI

Market Opportunity

• Market Size
• Customer Requirements

Purpose

• Mission / Vision
• Objectives / Goals
• Values

Company Overview

• Legal Business Structure
• Government Regulations

Business Strategy

• Revenue Model / Revenue Sources
• Purchase Options
• Sales Channels
• Strategic Alliances

Everything is available to you, but you may not need it all... click sections on/off with a click in a check box. We've integrated the best of the best sample business plans enabling you to 'cross-pollinate' from many industries to give you the biggest advantage of many ideas for building your unique business.

Product/Service Strategy

• Research & Development
• Useful Features/Benefits
• Proprietary Technology(?)
• Product/Service Life Cycles
• Product/Service Development/Selection Criteria
• Planned Products / Services
• Exhibits
• Service & Delivery
• Service Process
• Costs

Competition

• Competitor Comparison
• Competitive Advantages

Market Analysis

• Industry Analysis
• Market Segments
• Strengths
• Weaknesses
• Opportunities
• Trends
• Customer Profile
• Demographics
• Psychographics
• Customer List

Internet Strategy

• Presence
• E-Commerce
• Privacy / Security

Risk

• Competitive
• Economic
• Environmental
• Government
• Industry
• Liability
• Market

It's crucial that you think through as many possibilities for selling as possible. Leave no stone unturned, and we will help you do it efficiently — be ahead of investors, customers and competitors!

Marketing Plan

• Branding / Positioning
• Features / Benefits
• Pricing / Margin Structure
• Selling Strategy
• Sales Channels
• Executive to Executive
• Direct
• Manufacturer Representatives
• Distributors
• Retailers
• OEMs
• Direct Response Mail
• Telemarketing
• International
• Strategic Alliances
• OEM Relationships
• Joint Marketing Agreements
• Joint Development Efforts
• Direct & Indirect Campaigns

Advertising & Promotions

• Media Objectives
• Media Strategy
• Advertising Campaign
• Preliminary Media Schedule
• Promotion
• Incentives
• Direct Mail
• List Management
• Company Capabilities Brochure
• Sales Support Collateral Materials
• Advertising Budget
• Media Schedule
• Our Spending vs. Industry Average
• Outside Advertising Suppliers
• E-mail
• Roll-out Program
• Trade Incentives
• Customer Service
• Returns & Adjustments Policy
• Publicity / Public Relations

Publicity Strategy

• PR Campaign
• Press Releases
• Editorial Visitation
• Internal/External Newsletter
• Trade Shows
• Sales Support

Management Team

• Backgrounds
• Stock Allocation
• Responsibilities
• Board of Advisors
• Board of Directors
• Outside Support / Consultants
• Staffing Requirements

Operations

• Facilities
• Staff
• Production / Manufacturing
• Costs
• Service Delivery
• Product Fulfillment
• Packaging & Transportation
• Shipping Terms

Present Situation

• Management
• Products / Services
• Market Environment
• Profitability & Cashflow
• Customers
• Operations
• Priorities

Comprehensive, Flexible Financial Models in Excel Workbooks

Choose from 3 All New GAAP-Compliant Financial Models

• Basic Financial Statements
• Integrated Financial Model
• Advanced Model (outlined below)

If you are at all uncomfortable with finance — the language, concepts, meaning, anything — we have included comments within the cells to make sure you are clear about what is being asked. It won't insult your intelligence, but it will prepare you to think, plan, and speak financially. More...

Investors want to know who, and how many, are likely to become customers — BizPlanBuilder reduces your hip-shooting to believable and workable numbers — then manages all of the arithmetic for you.

Financing Plan

• Assumptions
• Start-up Costs
• Uses of Proceeds Summary
• Sales Projections
• Market Size / Demand / Growth
• Customer Acquisition
• Seasonality
• Product Mix
• Sales Channel Mix
• Staffing / Space Requirements
• Cost of Goods Sold
• Marketing & Advertising
• R & D, Equipment, Facilities
• General & Administrative
• Financing, Interest, Taxes

Automatic Financial Statements

• (Yr 1/Month, Yr 2-3/Quarter, Yr 1-5/Year)
• Gross Profit Analysis
• Income
• Cashflow: Debt, Equity, Asset Sale / Combinations
• Balance Sheet
• Break-Even Analysis
• (21) Ratio Analysis
• Combination: Past/Present/Future P&L over Balance showing Ratio Trends

Select financial projections from the buttons across the bottom of your screen. Use just what you need. First year detail by month, second & third year detail by quarters, 1-5 year summaries by the year totals... Everything adds up. You can see the math. Expert comments appear to explain every variable.

Valuation / Exit / Investor Deal Analysis

• Exclusive 1-Page Sensitivity (Best Case / Worst Case) What-If? Analysis
• Valuation & Stock Give-Up
• Capitalization Table
• Investment Analysis / 1,2,3 Financing Rounds / IPO / Sale?

There is a lot here, but when you take it one page at a time it makes total sense -- the Assumptions you fill in based upon what you know about your business, industry, and reasonable expectations for the future... take the small, believable facts and prove-able assumptions and compound them into a what your business could really become. The financial statements fill in automatically. The exclusive one-page Sensitivity Analysis enables you to see the best and worst case scenarios by changing just a few numbers — no need to recalculate anything. How much capital will it take to build your business? When will it make a profit? What's the deal?

Conclusion & Summary

(Close the deal! Ask for the money…)

Free Video: "The Thinking Behind Your Business Plan"

Watch this 100-minute video on your computer. JIAN founder and CEO Burke Franklin talks to a group of entrepreneurs about the various aspects of business planning, and about the audience to whom you are presenting your business idea and plan.

Supporting Documents

There is more to raising money and building a business than just a business plan. We wanted you to have everything you need to get the job done — whether you need to raise money or not.

Non-Disclosure Agreements for:

• Banker
• Leasing Agent
• Investor

Business Plan Distribution

• Deal Summary Template
• Due Diligence Checklist
• Service Business Start-Up Cash Requirements
• New Resource Materials
• Believable Projections
• Business Topics of Interest w/Internet Links
• Developing Your Management Team
• Things to Think About
• What Investors Look For

Supporting Documents

• Articles of Incorporation
• Core Values & Core Practices
• Executive Résumé Template
• Executive Team Responsibilities
• General Partnership Agreement
• Investor Tracking & Follow-up Log
• Personal Financial Statement
• Press Release—Announcement
• Stock Options Tracking Worksheet

Tools to Manage Your Business

• Application for Business Credit
• Business Start-Up Checklist
• Commercial Lease
• Independent Contractor Agreement
• Investor Game Plan
• Investor Newsletter Template
• Invitation to Board of Advisors
• Invitation to Board of Directors
• Lehman Formula Finder's Fee Calculator
• Management Notebook
• Private Offering Disclaimer
• Proceeds of Sale of Business
• Product Feedback Survey
• Service Feedback Survey
• Service Invoice Log
• Services List
• Space Requirements Planning Worksheet
• Trademark Instructions
• Trademark Overview

Built-in Advice & Support

• PowerPrompt interactive guide
• Built-in Sample Plans
• Expert Explanations on Every Subject
• Book: Handbook of Business Planning
• 65 Funding Methods
• FREE Video: The Thinking Behind Your Plan

Online Advice & Support

• BizPlanBuilder Updates
• Business Planning FAQ's & Best Practices
• Online Business Plan Workshop
• Expert Referral Network

FREE Advice, Downloads, FAQs & Links

• Sales & Marketing
• Staffing
• Facilities
• Finance
• Legal
• Funding Sources
• Market Analysis
• Links to the most reliable business databases, libraries, and news services available.
• Technical Support
• Links to our growing worldwide database of expert mentors and consultants

Software Features

• Usability-Tested interface design
• Automated Document Management
• Automated, Integrated Spreadsheets
• Import/Export Data from Microsoft Office, Excel, Word, and more

Answers to these Frequently Asked Questions help you choose the best business planning software

If you are comparing business plan software, really compare it. You are investing far more than just $150 in a software program — if you're looking to raise $5,000 to $50 million, it's crucial that you choose the right system to write your business plan. If it's your strategy you're building, then what better way to incorporate as many ideas as possible and prioritize opportunities. There is so much to learn. So many things can happen (many you'll want to avoid) and there are opportunities for success everywhere.

Here are some answers to frequently asked questions about BizPlanBuilder:

How does BizPlanBuilder compare to the competition?
When we first introduced BizPlanBuilder in 1988 it was a collection of text and spreadsheet documents. Some time later, competitors, realizing that this was a great idea, created 'application programs' that automated some of their own templates. The problem is they never really got the text or spreadsheets right (For them, it was about the razzle dazzle of the program.), but investors and lenders read and finance the finished plan! We stay on top of the leading competitors and have read many of the 'plans' produced by their software. If you research in more depth, you'll notice that few have ever produced many large financings. In their own words, read what people who have used other software, as well as BizPlanBuilder, have to say.

You seem to offer a lot of add-ons... What does the main program provide? Does the program produce a complete set of financial statements or do I have to buy some additional add-on products?
BizPlanBuilder provides the both text and the financials. It is a complete business plan where most of the writing has been done for you. It is template based, meaning that by adding the information specific to your endeavor, the plan becomes customized.

It appears you need Office for BizPlanBuilder to work. Which versions of Office will work with BizPlanBuilder.
BizPlanBuilder requires any version of Windows Vista, XP or 2000. You will need any version of Microsoft Office 2000, XP, 2003 or 2007. There are several financial model options, giving the user flexibility to describe a very simple business or a very complex one. The entire BizPlanBuilder Table of Contents is listed here...

What are the BizPlanBuilder Financial Models? Are they included?
Yes, a full set of financial models are incorporated in BizPlanBuilder. We also offer them separately. These are the same financial models included in BizPlanBuilder. If you have already written the narrative of your business plan and just require the financial portion, we have un-bundled them and offer them separately for half of the BizPlanBuilder price.

Are all financials linked so that "what if" analysis can be done? For example if I change a figure in the income statement will it update the balance sheet and then the retained earnings statement.
Yes, all financials are properly linked. We use ‘Assumptions’ pages to make it easy for you to enter, update and experiment with your data.
Formulas have been developed and independently tested by qualified and practicing business consultants who hold valid CPA certifications.

Can the financials be easily and fully exported to Excel so they can be customized?
All JIAN financial models are already built using Excel. There is no need to export, no translation problems, data losses or formula incompatibilities. Pull-down under ‘Tools’ to ‘Protection’ and you can immediately enable complete customization throughout each and every spreadsheet.

Can the finished Business Plan be exported to word for further editing or to a publishing program such as Quark before printing?
BizPlanBuilder is already written formatted in Word. You can easily export the text to a desktop publishing program for further refinement. You can also save it as a .pdf or HTML file.

Does the program have a backup function?
Yes, it does. You can pull-down under the 'Options' menu to 'Back Up' or you can click the icon. You will be asked where you would like to store your backup copy. When you click ‘Restore,’ it will automatically return your backup file to your active folder. Note: Restore will overwrite the current file in the active folder.

Does the program include any form of tech support if it won't install correctly, print, or has some other coding problem?
Yes, we provide comprehensive technical support to make sure the program is working properly for you. We are available Mon-Fri 8 am – 5pm Pacific Time. Occasionally, we can address certain business questions, but that is usually beyond the scope of a tech support response. We also provide a database of business consultants available via email to respond to your situation.

Does your licensing allow me to load the same copy of you software on my laptop so I can continue to work on it when I am traveling.
Our philosophy is that you should be able to work on your project from your office desktop, home pc as well as your laptop. We created the multi-user version to enable you to access your files. If you want other people to access your files so you can collaborate, they will need their own licensed copy of BizPlanBuilder.

If my PC crashes can your software be reloaded from the downloaded file or do I have to go through some elaborate process of activation and registration.
Unfortunately that seems to happen a lot. Yes, it can be reloaded from the file that you downloaded. If you lose that, you can always contact us via email for phone for another download.

When you say"check the file out" to work on it and then return it. Does it keep track of the changes? How do you return the file?
File Check-Out enables a collaborator to grab one of the files for working on privately (preventing multiple people from making changes and over-writing each other's work.) Check-In automatically returns the file to the same place in the system. If you want to keep multiple version along the way, we recommend backing up. Restoring writes the backup over the original. You can, however, make a Copy of the plan at any time. Most likely, you will simply want to Copy a plan to another folder, perhaps more accessible to collaborators, or yourself when you want access from home or on the road.

I gather that using an online filing space (like the one you use) will enable us to collaborate on the document. Does this apply to the financials as well?
You can also copy the file to an online filing space — it must be 'mapped to your desktop' so you can easily browse for the folder from within BizPlanBuilder. The financials can be managed the same way.