Suggestions
1. Remember, this is a working plan. Few, if any, companies ever meet their projected earnings, but they need targets to shoot at.
Once you've calculated your costs, double them.
Take your sales revenue estimates and cut them in half
2. Strive for realism be able to explain and document your numbers.
Investors want to know what your assumptions were for your forecasts. Make them
clear .
Include an evaluation of the risks. There are always risks. Be sure you address
them, or investors may think you aren't properly prepared or are hiding something.
3. If this is a brand new startup, you can get budget estimates to work from through:
Robert Morris Associates' Annual Statement Studies.
Dun & Bradstreet's Cost of Doing Business.
4. Choose a few key ratios to present. Your text provides 12 important ratios. Choose the ones most relevant to your business, and be able to justify why you track those and not others.
Know which ratios are strong and why.
Know which ratios are weak, and be able to explain what you will do/are doing about it.
5. Be clear about how much money you want and what it will be used for.
Tie the request to your marketing and production plans.
Be realistic.
Plan on using the money to grow the business. Paying off debts, while needful at
times, is not growing the business.
6. Provide audited statements on request. Be sure they support your business plan projections.
7. While this tends to be a section on the financial and tangible assets of a company, don't forget to consider the value of intangible assets: patents, trademarks, goodwill, and contracts.
Resources Needed to Write
1. Have at least three years' history of your financial data and three years of projections.
2. To create your cash flow statement, you need:
to determine an adequate minimum cash balance.
a forecast of your sales.
a forecast of your cash receipts.
a forecast of cash disbursements.
3. Pro forma financial statements.
4. Breakeven analysis and key ratios: liquidity, profitability, leverage, and activity.
A great deal of this section will take the form of financial statements. There are some issues that must be dealt with in narrative. The following headings cover both narrative and numerical issues. Refer to the appendices referenced for examples of the financial form.
Sources and Uses of Funds
1. Where is your money coming from? See Figure 4-2, page 112.
How will it be used?
Sources of Funds
Debt:
Term Loans $ __________
Refinancing of old debt $ __________
Lines of credit
Line 1 $ __________
Line 2 $ __________
Mortgage $ __________
Equity:
Investments $ __________
Uses of Funds:
Property $ __________
Inventory $ __________
Equipment (itemized)
1. $ __________
2. $ __________
Etc. $ __________
Working capital $ __________
Cash reserve $ __________
2. What will be the return for investors?
When can investors cash out?
In what form?
Financial Practices
1. What is your accounting method?
Cash.
Accrual.
2. What are your collection practices?
3. How will you manage your accounts receivable?
4. How will you manage your accounts payable?
5. How will you control costs?
How will you monitor and control funds?
Who has that responsibility?
Cash Flow Statement
1. State your assumptions.
Percent of cash sales versus credit sales.
Minimum cash balance desired.
Collection pattern for credit sales.
2. Prepare three different cash flow statements based on:
a pessimistic sales forecast.
a most likely sales forecast.
an optimistic sales forecast.
See Appendix HI - Sales Forecast, for the form for these forecasts. Triplicate the form. In this space make note of your assumptions, growth percentages, etc., for filling in those forecasts.
Cash Budget
Cash Receipts
Cash sales
Receivable collections
Interest
Owner contributions
Other receipts
Total receipts
Minus Disbursements
Cash purchases
Payment of accounts payable
Wages and salaries
Advertising
Office costs: supplies, utilities, rent/mortgage, telephone, insurance
Legal/accounting fees/costs
Taxes and licenses
Interest payments
Loan principal payments
Dues and subscriptions
Travel
Miscellaneous disbursements
Total disbursements
Ending Cash (Beginning cash + receipts - disbursements)
Balance Sheet
1. This shows all your owned assets and what is owed against them, liabilities. The difference is your net worth. Be accurate and clear.
Record your raw numbers here but refer to Appendices H, for the form.
Profit and Loss Statement
For help in completing this section, check SBM:EB pp. 113-114.
1. This document is your best approximation of your projected sales apd expenses. Be reasonable, but realize your performance will vary from projections.
Project three sets of numbers, low, most likely, and high.
Record your raw numbers here, but refer to Appendix H for the form.
Breakeven Analysis
For help in completing this section, check SBM:EB pp. 115.
1. Calculate this in terms of units and dollars.
Offer comparative data from Robert Morris Associates' Annual Statement.
Financial ratios (Choose the ones that make the most sense for your business.)
1. Financial ratios show investors both that you are a sophisticate in financial management and that you are staying on top of your day-to-day business operations. Some ratios from which to choose:
" Liquidity.
Current ratio.
Quick ratio.
Inventory to net working capital.
Implications of liquidity ratios.
Profitability.
Gross profit margin.
Return on assets.
Return on equity.
Implications of profitability ratios.
Leverage/debt.
Debt to assets.
Debt to equity.
Long-term debt to equity.
Implications of leverage ratios.
Activity.
Inventory turnover.
Fixed-asset turnover.
Average collection period.
Implications of activity ratios.
Intangibles--Intellectual Property
1. What patents do you hold?
2. Any copyrights?
3. Any trademarks registered?
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