CASH MAP

BUSINESS PLAN WRITING FOR VENTURE CAPITAL

Do you have your personal and business tax returns, accounting statements and similar important financial documents in a single location or otherwise in order?
1.7.1

1.7.2

PROVIDE FINANCIAL DOCUMENTATION AND PROJECTIONS (1.7)

BEGIN DOCUMENTING FINANCES

New business owners should keep a running tally of all start-up costs. These comprehensive lists of costs should be applied to your financial accounting

UNDERSTAND FINANCIAL STATEMENT

FINANCIAL FIGURES ORGANIZED?

NO

GATHER FINANCIAL INFORMATION

1.7.3

This is the most important part of your BP to some investors. They want to see a clear picture of growth and/or profit from an established business and they want a realistic and comprehensive look at your finances no matter how long your business has been around TIP: Make sure you highlight any assets you have which could serve as collateral for your business loan
1.7.5

YES

Centralize all available information about your income, assets, current investors, debts, operating expenses, weekly revenue, etc. Be comprehensive and think broadly while gathering your financial information
1.7.4

1.7.6
YES

BALANCE SHEET SYNONYMS

Assets - Items of Value Liabilities - Debts

NEW BUSINESS?

CREATE BALANCE SHEET

LEARN ABOUT BALANCE SHEETS

NO

Assets and liabilities can be complex terms: Assets include cash, inventory, land, equipment, etc., while liabilities may include debt, depreciation and various annual expenses. Take some time and document your assets and liabilities
1.7.7

A balance sheet is a portrait of your business' finances and its net worth on a given date. A simple way to create a balance sheet is to use this formula: Assets minus liabilities equals net worth. Review a number of balance sheets at http://www.bplans.com/sample_business_plans.cfm
LEARN ABOUT CASH FLOW STATEMENTS
1.7.9

Net Worth - Equity

LEARN ABOUT INCOME STATEMENTS

CREATE INCOME STATEMENT

1.7.8

CREATE CASH FLOW STATEMENT

1.7.10

A simple way to think about income statements is by using a formula: Revenue minus expenses equals profit. As your business becomes more complicated, your income statements will have more facets

Using a spreadsheet tool, create an income statement. There are countless free tools online with sample income statements and balance sheets

This is a monthly document used to monitor and project the financial health of your business. This statement should detail the profits and expenses you incur and the amount of cash you have on hand

Document your income and expenses using the spreadsheet program you've already selected

CONDUCT AND DOCUMENT BREAKEVEN ANALYSIS

1.7.11

1.7.12

1.7.13

CREATE PROJECTIONS

SYNTHESIZE INFORMATION

FINANCES DOCUMENTED

The documents you've made already should provide you with a good list of your monthly costs. Add these monthly costs up, including all fixed costs. The resulting figure will be what you need to clear in sales in order to break even

Base anticipated growth on your history and be conservative and comprehensive. Investors will look for inconsistencies and gaps in your data

This will likely be the longest section of your BP. Compile a clear, comprehensive document which uses a series of spreadsheets, graphs and/or narrative statements TIP: Have an accountant help you create and/or proofread your finished document

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