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High-Tech Marketing Business Plan
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Acme Consulting
Company summary company overview ) is an overview of the most important points about your company—your history, management team, location, mission statement and legal structure.">.
Acme Consulting is a new company providing high-level expertise in international high-tech business development, channel development, distribution strategies, and marketing of high-tech products. It will focus initially on providing two kinds of international triangles:
- Providing United States clients with development for European and Latin American markets.
- Providing European clients with development for the United States and Latin American markets.
As it grows it will take on people and consulting work in related markets, such as the rest of Latin America, the Far East, and similar markets. It will also look for additional leverage by taking brokerage positions and representation positions to create percentage holdings in product results.
2.1 Start-up Summary
Total start-up expense (including legal costs, logo design, stationery and related expenses) comes to $18,350. Start-up assets required include $7,000 in short-term assets (office furniture, etc.) and $25,000 in initial cash to handle the first few months of consulting operations as sales and accounts receivable play through the cash flow. The details are included below.
2.2 Company Locations and Facilities
The initial office will be established in A-quality office space in the Santa Clara County “Silicon Valley” area of California, the heart of the U.S. high tech industry.
2.3 Company Ownership
Acme Consulting will be created as a California C corporation based in Santa Clara County, owned by its principal investors and principal operators. As of this writing, it has not been chartered yet and is still considering alternatives of legal formation.
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Technology Business Plan Template
Written by Dave Lavinsky
Over the past 20+ years, we have helped over 1,000 entrepreneurs and business owners create business plans to start and grow their technology businesses. On this page, we will first give you some background information with regards to the importance of business planning. We will then go through a technology business plan template step-by-step so you can create your plan today.
Download our Ultimate Business Plan Template here >
What Is a Business Plan?
A business plan provides a snapshot of your technology business as it stands today, and lays out your growth plan for the next five years. It explains your business goals and your strategy for reaching them. It also includes market research to support your plans.
Why You Need a Business Plan
If you’re looking to start a technology business, or grow your existing technology business, you need a business plan. A business plan will help you raise funding, if needed, and plan out the growth of your technology business in order to improve your chances of success. Your technology business plan is a living document that should be updated annually as your company grows and changes.
Sources of Funding for Technology Businesses
With regards to funding, the main sources of funding for a technology business are personal savings, credit cards, bank loans and angel investors. With regards to bank loans, banks will want to review your business plan and gain confidence that you will be able to repay your loan and interest. To acquire this confidence, the loan officer will not only want to confirm that your financials are reasonable, but they will also want to see a professional plan. Such a plan will give them the confidence that you can successfully and professionally operate a business. Personal savings and bank loans are the most common funding paths for technology businesses.
If you want to start a technology business or expand your current one, you need a business plan. Below are links to each section of your technology business plan template:
Executive Summary
Your executive summary provides an introduction to your business plan, but it is normally the last section you write because it provides a summary of each key section of your plan.
The goal of your Executive Summary is to quickly engage the reader. Explain to them the type of technology business you are operating and the status. For example, are you a startup, do you have a technology business that you would like to grow, or are you operating technology businesses in multiple markets?
Next, provide an overview of each of the subsequent sections of your plan. For example, give a brief overview of the technology industry. Discuss the type of technology business you are operating. Detail your direct competitors. Give an overview of your target customers. Provide a snapshot of your marketing plan. Identify the key members of your team. And offer an overview of your financial plan.
Company Analysis
In your company analysis, you will detail the type of technology business you are operating.
For example, you might operate one of the following types of technology businesses:
- Network technology : this type of technology company specializes in providing the computers, printers, scanners, and phones within an organization and making sure they are all linked together in order to work seamlessly with one another.
- Software technology: this type of technology company specializes in providing and/or installing the appropriate software needed for the business. This will include the programs and productivity tools for the organization’s computer network.
- Customer relationship technology: this type of technology company focuses on providing a customer relationship management system (CRM) that keeps track of all customer interactions and information in order to consistently provide exceptional customer service.
In addition to explaining the type of technology business you will operate, the Company Analysis section of your business plan needs to provide background on the business.
Include answers to question such as:
- When and why did you start the business?
- What milestones have you achieved to date? Milestones could include the number of client companies served, number of positive reviews, reaching X amount of client companies served, etc.
- Your legal structure. Are you incorporated as an S-Corp? An LLC? A sole proprietorship? Explain your legal structure here.
Industry Analysis
In your industry analysis, you need to provide an overview of the technology industry.
While this may seem unnecessary, it serves multiple purposes.
First, researching the technology industry educates you. It helps you understand the market in which you are operating.
Secondly, market research can improve your strategy, particularly if your research identifies market trends.
The third reason for market research is to prove to readers that you are an expert in your industry. By conducting the research and presenting it in your plan, you achieve just that.
The following questions should be answered in the industry analysis section of your technology business plan:
- How big is the technology industry (in dollars)?
- Is the market declining or increasing?
- Who are the key competitors in the market?
- Who are the key suppliers in the market?
- What trends are affecting the industry?
- What is the industry’s growth forecast over the next 5 – 10 years?
- What is the relevant market size? That is, how big is the potential market for your technology business? You can extrapolate such a figure by assessing the size of the market in the entire country and then applying that figure to your local population.
Customer Analysis
The customer analysis section of your technology business plan must detail the customers you serve and/or expect to serve.
The following are examples of customer segments: individuals, small businesses, and local companies that need technological services.
As you can imagine, the customer segment(s) you choose will have a great impact on the type of technology business you operate. Clearly, large companies would respond to different marketing promotions than small businesses, for example.
Try to break out your target customers in terms of their demographic and psychographic profiles. With regards to demographics, include a discussion of the ages, genders, locations and income levels of the customers you seek to serve.
Psychographic profiles explain the wants and needs of your target customers. The more you can understand and define these needs, the better you will do in attracting and retaining your customers.
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Competitive Analysis
Your competitive analysis should identify the indirect and direct competitors your business faces and then focus on the latter.
Direct competitors are other technology companies.
Indirect competitors are other options that customers have to purchase from that aren’t direct competitors. This includes technology companies such as Geek Squad, local stores that sell and rehab tech equipment, online technology companies, etc.
With regards to direct competition, you want to describe the other technology businesses with which you compete. Most likely, your direct competitors will be technology businesses located very close to your location.
For each such competitor, provide an overview of their businesses and document their strengths and weaknesses. Unless you once worked at your competitors’ businesses, it will be impossible to know everything about them. But you should be able to find out key things about them such as:
- What types of technology do they provide?
- What areas do they serve?
- What type of technology company are they?
- What is their pricing (premium, low, etc.)?
- What are they good at?
- What are their weaknesses?
With regards to the last two questions, think about your answers from the customers’ perspective. And don’t be afraid to ask your competitors’ customers what they like most and least about them.
The final part of your competitive analysis section is to document your areas of competitive advantage. For example:
- Is your technology business more capable than the competition?
- Will you provide technology services that your competitors don’t offer?
- Will you provide faster technology service?
- Will you provide better customer service?
- Will you offer better pricing?
Think about ways you will outperform your competition and document them in this section of your plan.
Marketing Plan
Traditionally, a marketing plan includes the four P’s: Product, Price, Place, and Promotion. For a technology business plan, your marketing plan should include the following:
Product : In the product section, you should reiterate the type of technology company that you documented in your Company Analysis. Then, detail the specific products you will be offering. For example, in addition to technology services, will you provide computer repair, 24/7/365 service, phone installation, and any other services?
Price : Document the prices you will offer and how they compare to your competitors. Essentially in the product and price sub-sections of your marketing plan, you are presenting the services you offer and their prices.
Place : Place refers to the location of your technology company. Document your location and mention how the location will impact your success. For example, is your technology business located near an office complex, an urban setting, or a busy neighborhood, etc. Discuss how your location might be the ideal location for your customers.
Promotions : The final part of your technology marketing plan is the promotions section. Here you will document how you will drive customers to your location(s). The following are some promotional methods you might consider:
- Website and SEO marketing
- Commercials
- Social media marketing
- Local radio advertising
- Business networking
Operations Plan
While the earlier sections of your business plan explained your goals, your operations plan describes how you will meet them. Your operations plan should have two distinct sections as follows.
Everyday short-term processes include all of the tasks involved in running your technology business, including updating technology, client communication and scheduling, marketing, and implementing and installing the new technology for a client.
Long-term goals are the milestones you hope to achieve. These could include the dates when you expect to obtain your XXth client company, or when you hope to reach $X in revenue. It could also be when you expect to expand your technology business to a new location.
Management Team
To demonstrate your technology business’ ability to succeed, a strong management team is essential. Highlight your key players’ backgrounds, emphasizing those skills and experiences that prove their ability to grow a company.
Ideally you and/or your team members have direct experience in managing technologys. If so, highlight this experience and expertise. But also highlight any experience that you think will help your business succeed.
If your team is lacking, consider assembling an advisory board. An advisory board would include 2 to 8 individuals who would act like mentors to your business. They would help answer questions and provide strategic guidance. If needed, look for advisory board members with experience in managing a technology business or are connected to a wide network of professional organizations that frequently utilize technology.
Financial Plan
Your financial plan should include your 5-year financial statement broken out both monthly or quarterly for the first year and then annually. Your financial statements include your income statement, balance sheet and cash flow statements.
Income Statement : an income statement is more commonly called a Profit and Loss statement or P&L. It shows your revenues and then subtracts your costs to show whether you turned a profit or not.
In developing your income statement, you need to devise assumptions. For example, will you take on one new client company at a time or multiple new client companies ? And will sales grow by 2% or 10% per year? As you can imagine, your choice of assumptions will greatly impact the financial forecasts for your business. As much as possible, conduct research to try to root your assumptions in reality.
Balance Sheets : Balance sheets show your assets and liabilities. While balance sheets can include much information, try to simplify them to the key items you need to know about. For instance, if you spend $50,000 on building out your technology business, this will not give you immediate profits. Rather it is an asset that will hopefully help you generate profits for years to come. Likewise, if a bank writes you a check for $50,000, you don’t need to pay it back immediately. Rather, that is a liability you will pay back over time.
Cash Flow Statement : Your cash flow statement will help determine how much money you need to start or grow your business, and make sure you never run out of money. What most entrepreneurs and business owners don’t realize is that you can turn a profit but run out of money and go bankrupt.
In developing your Income Statement and Balance Sheets be sure to include several of the key costs needed in starting or growing a technology business:
- Cost of technology to be installed
- Cost of software and equipment
- Payroll or salaries paid to staff
- Business insurance
- Taxes and permits
- Legal expenses
Attach your full financial projections in the appendix of your plan along with any supporting documents that make your plan more compelling. For example, you might include your list of technology services, types of clients you will be targeting, and the areas your technology business will serve.
Putting together a business plan for your technology business is a worthwhile endeavor. If you follow the template above, by the time you are done, you will truly be an expert. You will really understand the technology industry, your competition, and your customers. You will have developed a marketing plan and will really understand what it takes to launch and grow a successful technology business.
Technology Business Plan FAQs
What is the easiest way to complete my technology business plan.
Growthink's Ultimate Business Plan Template allows you to quickly and easily complete your Technology Business Plan.
What is the Goal of a Business Plan's Executive Summary?
The goal of your Executive Summary is to quickly engage the reader. Explain to them the type of technology business you are operating and the status; for example, are you a startup, do you have a technology business that you would like to grow, or are you operating a chain of technology businesses?
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Other Helpful Business Plan Articles & Templates
MassChallenge
Innovation Blog
7 steps to create a technology startup business plan.
- Published on: April 26, 2022
- Author: masschallenge
Many entrepreneurs still overlook the importance of a technology startup business plan. In a space as competitive as the tech industry, a lack of preparation will surely pave the way to disappointment.
Instead of diving in without any concrete strategy, a plan provides a foundation for sustainable business growth.
In this article, we’ll explore the essential elements of a tech startup business plan, and provide the insights you need to create a plan for success.
What Is A Business Plan?
A tech startup business plan is a document that details the premise of your technology business, summarizing vital financial objectives and operational goals, as well as details on how you will accomplish these goals.
Put simply:
It’s a road map that describes what you intend to do, and how you intend to do it.
A typical business plan will comprise the following seven elements:
- Executive Summary
- Company Description
Market Research
- Description of Products and/or Services
- Management & Operational Structure
- Marketing Plan
- Financial Plan
3 Reasons You Need a Business Plan
Before we dive into the individual aspects of a startup business plan, let’s first consider why you need one.
Just what are the benefits of a business plan?
1. It Offers Greater Clarity
Having a business plan will give you a much better understanding of your business and the objectives you are trying to achieve. Even the most basic technology startup business plan example will seek to define your goals in more objective terms.
For example, you can set specific targets for website traffic, sales volumes, or profit margins. This makes it easier to track and measure success and aligns your decision-making with sales and marketing initiatives.
2. It Increases the Chances of Success
A report from the Harvard Business Review found that companies with a business plan are 16% more likely to succeed.
Furthermore, companies that have a business plan also enjoy higher growth rates than companies without a plan.
3. You Are More Likely to Get Investment
Angel investors and venture capitalists aren’t in the habit of making bad bets. When they part with large sums of money, it’s a carefully considered decision they base on the likelihood of earning a positive return on investment (ROI). When you have a business plan, you give your startup strategic focus, which helps you create an identity that is built to succeed. This makes for a more attractive prospect in the eyes of investors, so it’s easier to raise capital for your startup when you have a plan.
How to Write a Business Plan for Your Tech Startup (7-Steps)
So, now that you understand the motivation behind creating a tech startup business plan, it’s time to see how it’s done. By including the seven elements below, you’ll have a plan that gives your company a much stronger footing.
1. Executive Summary
The executive summary is, without a doubt, the most critical element of your tech startup business plan. Despite this, a lot of plans fail here because the summary doesn’t captivate readers. If you can’t hook prospective investors, partners, or employees with your executive summary, they may never read the rest of your business plan.
Source: The Balance
This section should be compelling yet concise, giving people enough to understand what makes your startup unique, and how it will be able to offer solutions in an existing, competitive market.
While you want to keep it brief, there is a lot to pack into this opening section of your business plan. Here are the crucial components of an executive summary:
- Business Model – What is your product or service? How will you make money?
- Target Market – Who will benefit from this product or service?
- Business Opportunity – Why do consumers need your product or service?
- Marketing Strategy – How will these consumers learn more about your product or service?
- Competition – What other companies are competing for market share?
- Goals – How will your startup transform the marketplace with this product or service?
As the executive summary is such a vital aspect, it’s a smart move to write it last. By waiting until you have finished the rest of the business plan, you can draw from the other sections to craft an excellent executive summary.
2. Company Summary
The company summary essentially boils down to a single sentence, otherwise known as a headline statement. When it’s done right, this summary can be the perfect elevator pitch to capture the imagination of would-be financial backers or partners, and it will serve as a natural lead-in to your more detailed business plan.
Source: Gusto (credit: LivePlan)
The company summary or headline statement should do the following:
- Give people a brief overview of what your company does.
- Communicate the value you offer.
- Highlight the opportunity in the market.
Here is a good template to create your company summary:
<Your company> is a <type of business> who sells <product or service> to <target customer> , who needs <solution> , but doesn’t get it from <competition> .
Don’t worry if you can’t create the perfect summary now. When you develop your business plan, you will get a better understanding of what this headline statement should be, and then you can refine it to reflect your vision and value proposition.
We’re sure you have a great idea, but that’s no guarantee that everyone is going to love it as much as you do. No matter how good you think your startup may be, you still need to conduct proper market research to learn more about your ideal customers and competitors.
Identify your Target Market
Without a viable market for your product or service, your business is doomed.
Many startups have failed quickly because the owners were so obsessed with their own product that they were effectively blind to the fact that nobody else cared about it.
Source: CB Insights Image: Cleveroad
Initially, you can adopt a broad scope to get a sense of your total addressable market (TAM), which is the potential revenue opportunity your new product or service could generate. Of course, with the competition, and changing consumer interests, it’s unlikely you will dominate the entire TAM.
Once you have this broad idea, you can hone your sights to go more niche. While this presents a smaller audience, it is more effective. By narrowing your targeting, you can market to a more engaged audience that will be more receptive and likely to purchase your product or service.
Consider the following factors when segmenting your audience:
- Demographic – What age group? What gender?
- Geographic – In what country or city do your prospects live?
- Behavior – What websites/blogs/news sources do they use? What are their purchasing habits? What retail sites or brands do they buy from?
With in-depth data analysis and evaluation of your prospective customers, you can create detailed buyer personas that help you refine your marketing strategies.
Perform Competitor Analysis
During the market research stage of your tech startup business plan, you should also carry out a thorough competitor analysis.
This will help you determine the key differentiators between your company and the competition.
Ask yourself these questions:
- Why should people choose my product or service?
- How can I improve on the existing solutions in the market?
- Why do people not already buy the products in the market?
By thinking about current trends or flaws in existing products, you can identify opportunities for innovation so that your business can connect with customers on a deeper level.
Knowing your audience is crucial, and therefore, your business plan must demonstrate a deep understanding of your target market, and your competitors.
3. Description of Products and/or Services
Here, you must highlight the link between what you are offering, and what people need, so you can prove that people are ready and willing to pay for your product or service.
Research Problems in Market
It helps to conduct some face-to-face research, asking potential customers about the problems they have. Don’t try to usher the conversation in any direction or shoehorn their answers to fit your product – instead, look to learn from their honest responses about the solutions they need.
You should do this research before creating the product. After all, it makes more sense to create a product for an existing problem, instead of trying to find a problem for your product.
Source: ProductTribe
Tailor Product to Problems
After doing your research on the existing problems in the market, trim your list to focus on a few of the most important issues. Describe how your product or service will be the ultimate solution to these problems.
For instance, if people believe the existing solutions are too expensive, you can offer a product with a more attractive price point.
By matching up consumer problems with specific solutions, you can develop a product or service that has a more significant value proposition.
4. Management & Operational Structure
The next stage of the traditional technology startup business plan template delves into the people that make up your company. You must highlight the strengths and experience of your existing team, as new partners effectively invest their money in the team as much as the business idea.
Ideally, your team will consist of several experts whose respective skill-sets complement one another. For example, your tech startup may have a coder, a graphic designer, an inbound marketing expert, and a sales professional. Discuss the merits of each team member to convey the value they add to the business.
You can also speculate about prospective new hires and the key attributes you will seek in future team members. If you haven’t already got a chief financial officer (CFO), it’s a smart move to mention adding one soon. This will add backbone to your business plan by reassuring people that you have good financial sense.
Organizational Chart
Here, your plan should clearly define the organizational structure of your startup. For now, it may just be you and a couple of business partners.
However, by including a graphic that visualizes the structure you intend to build, people will get a clear understanding of the distribution of power and chain of command.
For example, it may look something like this:
Having a hierarchy prepared before starting helps prevent any debates about who is in charge of each department, and makes it easier to understand who reports to who.
5. Marketing and Sales plan
No tech startup business plan would be complete without mentioning the marketing and sales strategies you intend to use.
Sales channels
To clarify the difference, marketing channels are used to promote your business, and its products or services, whereas sales channels are the mediums that enable people to purchase those products or services.
You may only have one direct sales channel to begin with, such as an online e-commerce store. Make sure you explain it in your business plan.
Marketing activities
In this section, you must detail how you will acquire leads and customers.
At the base level, you should do the following:
- Launch a company website
- Develop strategy to get organic traffic (i.e. visitors from search engines like Google)
- Develop a PPC strategy to get immediate online exposure for your most important product/service keywords
- Develop channel partnerships
- Build an email subscriber list
Over time, you can use marketing to nurture stronger customer relationships, which in turn, help you build an audience of loyal followers that will, hopefully, become customers.
The marketing section of your business plan will need to account for several factors, including your goals, risks in the market, and your budget. Which brings us to the final aspect of your tech startup business plan.
6. Financial Plan
Lastly, any good business plan must include pertinent details about your company budget and sales goals.
This can be daunting for many new entrepreneurs and is all the more challenging when you have no balance sheets, cash flow reports, or even any stable income on which to base your projections.
That being said, it’s still possible to make educated projections – so long as you have done solid market research.
When it comes to financial matters, your business plan should include details about:
- Revenue streams – how will the company generate income?
- Major expenses – What high costs do you anticipate in the year ahead?
- Salary demands – Are you still bootstrapping or are you and the partners taking a salary? If so, how much?
- Financial milestones – Detail your expansion strategy by considering future hires or store openings that will impact the books.
Many startups aren’t profitable in the first year. Your financial projections should maintain a long-term view for success, keeping ambitions realistic and honest. That way, you’ll be able to produce a more accurate break-even analysis .
With these long-term projections, you must consider the financial impact of expanding. You may be making more money in Year 3, but opening a new store will set you back.
Keep everything in perspective and make sure you don’t set yourself or your investors up for any nasty shocks down the road.
5 Tech Startup Business Plan Templates
When you have all the elements above in place, your business plan will be in good shape. However, presentation matters. If you want to make the best first impression, getting creative with your technology startup business plan template can make a big difference.
Not only will your research and expertise shine through, but you will have a visually stunning presentation that catches the eye of investors.
Here are five tech business plan examples to inspire you.
Business Plan Infographic PowerPoint
This plan allows you to present in-depth market analysis, statistics, and projections in a professional visual infographic. With several hundred editable slide options, it’s well worth the $16 fee for the license.
Source: Medium
Emaze Business Planning With Analytics
This is more than the average technology startup business plan template. Emaze has a diverse array of creative collaboration tools, making it easy and enjoyable for teams to create unique plans together from any of the built-in templates. Furthermore, you can incorporate analytics, which is perfect for impressing investors. That said, $19 per month for the premium version may seem a little steep for some small businesses.
Source: Emaze
Lean Canvas 1-Page Business Plan
A tech startup business plan doesn’t need to take weeks to create. In fact, with this template, you can have a basic – yet brilliant – business plan all together on a single page in just 20 minutes.
Source: Lean Stack
StartUp Pitch
For $15, you can access the full array of colorful slides in this presentation, which are all customizable to your needs. This template includes many ready-made aspects of the typical business plan, such as SWOT analysis, competitor analysis, and project timelines.
Source: Envato
This is another user-friendly tool for creating short business plans. You enter the information, and then LivePlan will generate a one-page plan in an infographic style.
Source: LivePlan
Make Your Tech Startup Business Plan a Priority
It’s not enough to have a great startup idea.
If you want to stand out from the pack, secure investment, and build a successful company that can earn real profits, growth, and customer loyalty, then you absolutely must have a solid tech startup business plan.
It’s time to create yours.
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Making the Leap from Early Stage to Growth Requires Planning and Documentation
There is an abundance of information about how to write a business plan and our CPAs and consultants have helped hundreds of companies though the strategic and business planning process. Based upon our experiences, we offer the following checklist that can help you assess your business plan efforts:
A 10 Point Checklist for Your Business Plan.
A short, concise, and clear executive summary
A business rationale based upon your vision of the unsolved problems or needs that the business will address – i.e. – a convincing business case or “reason for being.”
A concise description of your differentiating product or service
A clearly defined target market
A competitive analysis and a SWOT analysis
A statement of goals and objectives for the business over time
A comprehensive marketing plan, including both traditional and digital marketing strategies
Bios of key team members, with particular attention to their responsibilities and key skills and capabilities they bring to the business
A roadmap or implementation plan for reaching goals or objectives
A credible financial plan, including projections
What Else Do You Need?
In addition to a full written business plan, we recommend that you also have available:
- An elevator pitch that delivers your value proposition in 2-3 sentences;
- A handout/executive summary of 1-2 pages that clearly outlines key aspects of your business;
- A PowerPoint presentation of 8-20 sides.
Writing a business plan is a fundamental and necessary step for making the leap – your current and potential investors will require one. But its value goes far beyond financial projections – it’s a roadmap to the future.
Freed Maxick has worked with hundreds of high tech companies and startups. Please call us to talk with one of our business advisors on structuring a business plan that will help you with strategic, financing and operational strategies and tactics. Call us at 716.847.2651, or contact us here .
Top 4 Business Plan Examples
Writing your first business plan be sure to review these four business plan examples from the startups community that really stand out from the crowd..
November 9th, 2022 | By: The Startups Team
Founders have to learn so many new skills when they're launching a startup, and writing a business plan is a big one. When you're writing your business plan for the first time, things can get… intimidating.
What do you include? What kind of wording should you use? What do you make sure not to include? Is a mid size business plan different than an enterprise plan or a scalable startup? Do I need to include financials like cash flow statements? What do investors want to see?
It's enough to make even a stalwart startup founder and management team throw in the towel before they've even begun.
Lucky for you — we've created a complete guide to writing your business plan . Check it out if you haven't already. (And if a link from there brought you here, just keep reading!) We'll share some business plan samples so you can get started writing your own professional business plan.
But, while it's nice to be guided step-by-step, it can also really help to have concrete examples when you're approaching creating something for the first time.
So, with that in mind, here are four sample business plans from the Startups community that we think really stand out from the crowd. We hope that these will serve as a startup business plan template and make it easier to write your own. At a minimum, these will provide some great business plan ideas whether you are writing traditional business plans for an established business or biz plans for an innovative new startup. While we would of course suggest you use our business plan creator, Bizplan.com, you can use these examples with any number of business plan apps or business plan software.
Click on the below links to see fully formatted versions or continue reading for the text-only version of Culina's.
LiveShopBuy
CULINA Executive Summary
Fast facts:.
Founded: 2013 Headquarters: San Francisco, CA Founder: Kent McClure Market Size: $12.5 billion Target Audience: Homeowners; property managers; insurance providers.
Quick Description:
Culina is a San Francisco-based IoT and home automation company. We design an advanced smart hub technology that enables users to interconnect and remotely monitor all of their cooking devices and kitchen appliances through a single user-friendly platform.
Our Mission:
To make homes smarter, more connected, and safer for families while helping them save money and conserve energy through the power of affordable, automated technology.
Our Vision:
To become the leading provider of IoT technology for kitchen appliances on a global scale with applications across both residential and commercial properties.
Company Synopsis:
Culina Tech is the next leading name in home automation and IoT. We're committed to leading the charge in creating the ultimate smart kitchen for homeowners all around the world. Our revolutionary Smart Plugs enable users to make any kitchen appliance or cooking device intelligent. Compatible with all existing brands that plug into standard two or three-prong wall outlets, Culina creates an entire network of Wi-Fi-connected kitchen devices. The Culina App allows users to remotely monitor the status of and control all devices connected to our Smart Plugs. Whether it's remotely turning on the coffee pot after getting out of bed, turning off the stove if it was accidentally left on via smartphone, or switching on the crockpot before getting home from work, Culina is purpose-built to deliver unrivaled convenience and peace of mind.
With the ability to set energy usage caps on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis, Culina helps homeowners stay within their monthly utility budget and save energy in the kitchen through more efficient use of the dishwasher, refrigerator, freezer, stove, and other common appliances.
When a device reaches its energy limit, Culina alerts users through their smartphone and is built with the ability to power down the device automatically if the user chooses. The App measures key usage metrics in real-time, allowing users to get an instant dashboard view of energy consumption as it occurs.
Our team has already finished the product development and design phase, with 3 prototype iterations completed, and we are now ready to begin mass manufacturing. We've also gained major traction among consumers and investors alike, with 10,000 pre-ordered units sold and $5 million in capital secured to date.
With this round of funding, our objective is to ramp up hardware manufacturing, improve software UX and UI, expand our sales and marketing efforts, and fulfill pre-orders in time for the 2017 holiday season. We are currently seeking a $15M Series B capital investment that will give us the financial flexibility to achieve these goals. On behalf of the entire Culina Tech team, we'd like to thank you for your time and interest in our company and this investment opportunity.
Funding Allocation:
⇾ 30% Manufacturing ⇾ 25% Sales & Marketing ⇾ 25% Key Hires ⇾ 20% Operational
Team Overview:
The kitchen is the heart of the home. It's a quintessential gathering place where families and friends come together to break bread, be merry, and make memories. But the kitchen is also where tragedy often strikes due to misuse of appliances. Kent McClure and his team set out to make the kitchen a safer and more energy-efficient place for the family after a tragic fire struck his own kitchen in late 2012. Thankfully, no lives were lost and everyone in his family made it out safe and sound, but Kent couldn't help but wonder “what if.”
With decades in the industrial design space, Kent knew he had the knowledge and the industry contacts to set out to improve upon home automation devices for the kitchen with a solution that not only made homes safer but also cut down on energy consumption and associated costs. In early 2013, Culina was born. Since that time, Kent and the Culina team have made it their mission to completely revolutionize the home automation and IoT space with innovative, AI-powered technology.
Kent McClure | Founder & CEO Kent is a Carnegie Mellon graduate with over 10 years of executive leadership experience in industrial design and engineering. He has a successful entrepreneurial history, founding a prior tech-based startup which he grew to $100 million in revenue, followed by an acquisition in 2010 and then IPO shortly after.
Sherri Carlson | COO Sherri earned her MBA from Harvard Business School. She oversees all of Culina's ongoing operations and procedures and is responsible for driving Culina to achieve and surpass sales, profitability, cash flow, and business goals and objectives.
Martin Frink | CTO Martin is a Stanford University alumnus with extensive technical expertise and over a decade of experience at venture-backed tech companies. He is responsible for Culina's technical vision, heading up all aspects of our technological development, strategic direction, development, and future growth.
Margaret Burns | CFO Margaret earned her degree in Financial Management from NYU. Prior to joining Culina, Margaret spent seven years as CFO for a publicly-traded mobile tech company headquartered in Silicon Valley. She currently manages Culina's financial risks and handles all financial planning, record-keeping, and reporting.
COMPANY OVERVIEW
Market opportunity.
An enormous need exists for dramatic reductions in energy consumption. Businesses alone consume 12-20% of the total US energy supply on food production, processing, manufacturing, distribution, and preparation.
On the residential side, the Energy Information Administration estimates that the average US household uses 11,280 kWh per year. Many homeowners are simply unaware of the large amount of energy consumed by many small household kitchen appliances:
Dishwasher: 133 watts Television: 1,200 to 2,400 watts Coffee Maker: 900 to 1,200 watts Washing Machine: 350 to 500 watts Toaster: 55 to 250 watts Window Fan: 800 to 1,400 watts
The majority of US households now spend roughly 35 percent of their energy consumption on appliances, electronics, and lighting.
Most homeowners don't think about the little details that can help save them money on their energy bill. The vast majority of people keep the refrigerator or freezer too cold, fail to make sure refrigerator door seals are airtight, neglect to regularly defrost fridges and freezers, overload their dishwashers, and keep dishwasher water temperature too hot. As a result, energy consumption remains high, and energy bills remain high.
Not only do kitchens represent a primary source of household energy consumption, but also a primary source of house fires. More fires start in the kitchen than in any other room in the home, and household cooking appliances frequently account for billions of dollars in fire-related insurance claims every year. The number one cause of house fires and house fire injuries is the stove.
✓ 46% of house fires caused by cooking equipment ✓ 62% of house fires caused by ranges or cooktops ✓ $4,000 average fire and smoke damage repair costs
Culina is actively solving both of these common challenges caused by cooking equipment simultaneously. Our technology provides homeowners with immediate, real-time insight into their energy consumption by aggregating data for all kitchen appliances connected to our Smart Plugs while also delivering the preventative intelligence necessary to reduce kitchen-related disasters.
Key Features and Benefits:
We designed our Culina Smart Plugs to work in tandem with an intuitive, user-friendly mobile application — allowing users to gain a much-needed technological upgrade to the most popular room in the house.
Easy Setup:
Culina Smart Plugs work with standard two and three-pronged appliances and cooking devices. Simply attach the Culina Smart Plug to the appliance's electrical, plug it into the wall, download the Culina app, connect, and configure.
Constantly Learning:
Powered by machine learning artificial intelligence, our Intelligent Culina Response System learns user habits every time someone uses an appliance connected to one of our Smart Plugs.
Multi-Threat Sensors:
Our state-of-the-art sensors detect a variety of potential threats to the kitchen — including sudden and unusual temperature fluctuations, poisonous gas and emissions, toxic smoke, and more. Homeowners receive alerts whenever unusual activity is in progress such as a stovetop being left on for too long or during an unusual time of day.
Remote Monitoring:
Users can monitor all information directly from an easy-to-navigate dashboard in real-time using the Culina App for iOS and Android. Users can check metrics such as fridge and freezer temperature, cook time, and usage data as it is being gathered.
Remote Appliance Control:
With the Culina App, users can control all connected appliances and devices. If our Smart Plug is attached to a crockpot, for example, a user can add the ingredients before they head to work, activate the crockpot remotely, and come home to a readymade meal waiting for them the moment they step through the front door.
Remote Shut-Off:
Not only does remote operation over appliances provide convenience, it also serves to prevent kitchen-related hazards. The Culina App includes auto shut-off capabilities allowing users to turn off appliances using their smartphone even when they're not at home. This is particularly useful in the event that users forget to turn off the oven or stove to prevent potential house fires.
Advanced Notifications:
In addition to notifying users if an appliance is left on by accident or if it detects a potential hazard, Culina also reminds users anytime regular maintenance is required.
Energy Consumption Data:
Users can also monitor energy consumption on a weekly basis right from the Culina App. By providing at-a-glance insight into whether energy use has gone up or down, users gain the ability to adjust their usage accordingly in order to conserve energy and ultimately save money in utility bills the long term.
Inter-operability:
Our cloud-based technology integrates with other popular platforms including Google's Nest and Lowe's Iris.
Cost-Saving Benefits:
Not only can users conserve money in energy consumption bills with Culina, but new insurance guidelines also provide significant discounts for homeowners who deploy smart technologies in their homes.
Pricing and revenue
Culina will initially monetize from hardware sales.
Our product will sell for $149 MSRP with approximately 40% profit margin. We will initially sell our product through popular e-commerce platforms and through our website — followed by brick-and-mortar outlets including Lowe's, Best Buy, Home Depot, and other major big box retailers.
Company Milestones:
With much of the heavy lifting already completed, Culina has laid the groundwork for rapid expansion going forward. Here's an overview of our accomplishments since first founding the company in 2013.
Consumer Validated:
Our first-generation product is market-ready and primed for commercial manufacturing. We have pre-sold 10,000 units, representing approximately $1,890,000 in pre-launch revenue. Our immediate customer base growing by the day and we have successfully proven that this is a product that consumers want and are enthusiastic about.
Investor-Backed:
We have secured a total of $5 million in funding from angel investors, founder capital, friends and family, and VCs.
Proprietary Technology:
We have applied for and have been granted a provisional patent for our Smart Plug technology.
Strategic Partnerships:
We are in the process of building relationships with notable industry leaders, influencers, and development teams in the home automation sector. We are also in advanced-stage partnership discussions with a number of major name insurance providers.
Press Mentions:
Culina has received coverage in many of today's most renowned tech and entrepreneurial publications, including The Wall Street Journal, The Huffington Post, TechCrunch, The Verge, WIRED, and Engadget, among others.
Manufacturing:
A US-based contract manufacturer has been secured and is ready to begin production with the capacity to produce around 50K units per month as we scale.
Future Development
Our initial focus on the consumer space with our launch product is just the first step in our long-term roadmap to growth. In order to capture a larger market share and continue scaling the company exponentially, we are planning on rolling out a B2B model in the future. This will provide Culina with new revenue streams and will offer a valuable, tech-driven solution for businesses.
Commercial Kitchens:
Commercial kitchens consume a huge amount of energy — roughly 2.5 times more per square foot than any other commercial space, according to the EPA.
The Foodservice Consultants Society International (FCSI) estimates commercial kitchen equipment is often only 50% efficient. The challenge with reducing energy consumption in commercial kitchens is that it's neither practical nor affordable to replace all kitchen equipment or redesign entire workspaces.
In an effort to reduce CO2 emissions, some governments are offering incentives to businesses that can cut back on their carbon footprint. In the UK, Enhanced Capital Allowances allow businesses to benefit from 100% tax relief on their qualifying capital expenditure on energy-saving equipment. This can provide a cash flow boost and an incentive to invest in energy-saving equipment which normally carries a price premium compared to less efficient alternatives.
Our 2nd generation product will represent a revenue-generating and energy-saving solution for commercial kitchens where equipment is frequently selected based on low capital cost with little regard to whole life-cycle cost and the resulting negative energy consumption.
Built on cloud computing, machine-to-machine communication, and information-gathering sensors, the Internet of Things market is rapidly making more and more commonplace devices “smarter.” Factor in the increasing prevalence of smartphones and tablets, and home automation and IoT products are now becoming much easier to use and significantly more affordable than they have ever been before.
What was once only reserved for the wealthy and tech-savvy, everyday consumers now have direct access to and can take advantage of a growing number of home automation devices. The evolution of the Internet of Things has enabled consumers to digitally connect and remotely control everything from their door locks to their thermostat to their garage opener and essentially everything else in between. Evidence of the enormous impact home automation tech has had in the consumer space can be seen in the enormous adoption of products like Nest and Amazon Echo.
The home automation market and Internet of Things (IoT) space is a thriving industry with growth expected to exceed $50 billion by 2020. This represents an estimated 300% increase from today's market of $12.5 billion. Around 8.4 billion connected devices will be installed globally by the end of 2017, representing a +31% increase in just one year. Around 63% of these devices will be used by consumers, with the remainder deployed by businesses.
Culina is perfectly positioned to capitalize on a major multi-billion dollar market opportunity to provide greater protection, actionable intelligence, lower energy consumption, and more cost savings to the millions of homes in the US.
Target Audience
We are directly targeting three specific target populations for our product:
Homeowners:
Homeowners are our end users and will benefit the most from our product. For homeowners, Culina represents safety, peace of mind, increased convenience, and an economically-wise investment that pays for itself over time.
Residential Property Managers:
Including apartment complexes and student housing owners. Culina offers increased owner ROI, occupant satisfaction, and significantly lower operational and maintenance costs.
Insurance Companies:
By reducing home fires caused by unattended cooking and the resulting billions of dollars in related insurance claims filed every year. Insurance companies can also leverage our technology to adjust homeowners insurance policy pricing.
Marketing Strategy
Culina has carefully developed a diverse marketing plan intended to keep our brand in the hearts and minds of our existing and prospective customers, enabling us to continue expanding our reach and grow our business. Between our massive social network followings and email database contacts, we regularly communicate directly with over 100,000 consumers.
SEO & Social:
We will drive traffic and conversions to our website using social media marketing via Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, YouTube, and others. We are also exploring SEO and SEM.
Content Marketing:
We consistently release marketing content through our blog that aims to educate our audience about the value that our product provides. Our content marketing efforts aim to influence and persuade readers without having to rely solely on conventional direct selling tactics.
Influencer Marketing:
We will launch an initiative to guest blog articles and features in IoT, home automation, and startup tech publications like TechCrunch, Wired, VentureBeat, and other outlets in our industry.
Competitive Landscape
Primary competitors for Culina include other companies that are currently operating in the home automation and Internet of Things space, such as Nest Labs, Amazon Echo, and Wallflower Labs.
Leading home automation company Nest introduced its first product, Nest Learning Thermostat, in 2011. The company was founded in 2010 by former Apple engineers Tony Fadell and Matt Rogers and is headquartered in Palo Alto, California. Nest was acquired by Google on January 14, 2014, by Google for $3.2 billion and still operates under its own brand identity.
Nest Labs designs programmable, self-learning, sensor-driven, Wi-Fi-enabled thermostats, smoke detectors, and other security systems.
The 3rd generation Nest Thermostat prices at $249; Nest Indoor and Outdoor Cams are $199; and their Smoke & CO Alarm retails for $99.
Key Weaknesses:
After Nest's acquisition, the company has underperformed in sales and fallen below the expectations that Google set for them when it purchased the startup.
Amazon Echo
Amazon Echo, also known as Alexa, is a voice command device powered by artificial intelligence and designed by mega online retailer Amazon.com. The smart home hub was initially released in November 2014.
Alexa is a voice-activated virtual assistant housed within the Echo smart speaker. Users simply say her name and then ask a question or give a command.
The Amazon Echo retails for $99 for Amazon Prime members and $170 for everyone else.
However, some users have noted the uneven sound quality and limited “skills” capabilities. Users can also only interact and communicate with Alexa in English and German.
Founded December 1, 2013, Wallflower Labs is a Charleston, MA-based startup that designs an internet-connected smart plug that works with any freestanding plug-in electric stove. The company's founder previously founded Yap — a speech recognition technology that was acquired by Amazon in 2011 to help develop Alexa. The startup has raised a total of $2.5 million from three rounds of equity funding to date, with the most recent funding reported at $1.5 million via a convertible note on August 30, 2016.
The smart plug sounds an alarm and alerts homeowners via smartphone when the stove is turned on, someone forgets to turn it off, when a cooking time expires, or the smoke alarm activates.
Because Wallflower Labs are still in the pre-launch phase, the company has not yet publicly released consumer pricing information.
Unlike Culina, which connects with all smart appliances and cooking devices in the kitchen, Wallflower Labs is solely focused on monitoring stove usage.
How Culina Measures Up:
Differentiating Factors
Culina maintains a unique competitive advantage over other existing home automation and IoT products in several categories. Our biggest differentiators include:
Diverse Product Capabilities
Culina makes it possible to gain an across-the-board view from an entire network of interconnected devices. Whether they're connected to the refrigerator, gas or electric-powered stove, microwave, or dishwasher, our Smart Plugs can deliver insight into everything from smoke and gas detection, to temperature changes, and usage metrics — regardless of the brand and through a single, user-friendly app.
User-Friendly
Our technology is easy to use and doesn't require any technical-savvy. Setup and configuration are simple, users are able to be up and running out of the box in approximately 10 minutes, and software updates are deployed over the air.
Affordability
Culina is priced below our competitors' products while delivering superior functionality and value. This will be an essential factor in helping us continue to gain market share nationally.
Team Strength Our team is comprised of industry veterans who bring decades of experience to the table across industrial design, mobile tech, cloud-based technology, artificial intelligence, and more.
Our leadership team has a history of starting and leading companies to successful exits and has established valuable relationships with industry leaders along the way that will help us strategically position Culina as a market innovator in the days ahead.
Investment Opportunity
Culina is currently seeking a total of $15M in Series B equity financing to fuel the next stage of company growth — including manufacturing, pre-order fulfillment, ongoing development of our platform, and marketing efforts in order to continue expanding the Culina brand. Any remaining funds will be allocated as operating capital.
Why Invest in Culina? With Culina, investors have the opportunity to get in on the ground floor with a company that's positioned to grow into a leading innovator in the home automation and IoT space.
With Culina, we've tapped into something truly extraordinary that's being celebrated by both early adopters and investors alike. With 10,000 units pre-sold and $1.89M in pre-launch revenue , we've already successfully demonstrated validation in the consumer space. With over $5 million in funding secured across several financing rounds, we've already proven that investors believe in our company, our mission, and our ability to succeed.
We've also established a scalable business model and robust product pipeline that will prime us for widespread expansion in the days ahead. We're now seeking investors who share our passion and commitment to pushing the boundaries of what home automation can be and do through nextgen technology.
We're looking forward to working with you in accelerating Culina's growth to become a dominant player in the booming global home automation and IoT industry.
In Conclusion
We hope these business plan examples will get you started on the right path in getting your business idea into a full-on company. Keep in mind that these startup business plan examples are not a uniform guide for every business, and some information may vary. You may need a 5-year business plan template, or perhaps just some business plan examples for students. Make sure to remember this as you start writing your business plan, and comment below to let us know if these examples of business plans for startups were helpful in your startup journey.
For more helpful founder information: check out our podcast! The No BS version of startup life you've been looking for: Startup Therapy .
About the Author
The startups team.
Startups is the world's largest startup platform, helping over 1 million startup companies find customers , funding , mentors , and world-class education .
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How to Write a Tech Startup Business Plan to Win Investors
You have a great business idea. Now you’re doing the hard part: raising capital.
With a failure rate of 63% in the tech startup industry, you need to have a highly compelling business idea and go-to-market strategy to win over investors.
We’re going to make writing a startup business plan really simple by providing you with a step-by-step guide along with a business plan template you can use to build startup business plan that wins investors.
What is a tech startup business plan?
Why do you need a technology startup business plan.
- 1. Executive summary
- 2. Market opportunity
- 3. Product or service overview
- 4. Marketing and sales strategy
- 5. Team and management structure
- 6. Key milestones
- 7. Financial plan
Sample tech startup business plan [template]
A technology startup business plan is a document that is used to outline the goals, strategies, and objectives of a new tech startup business. This document is often used to secure funding from investors and to help the business leaders form a unified sense of identity and purpose.
The business plan should include information on the products or services offered by the startup, the market opportunity, the business model, the team, the financial projections, and the risks and challenges associated with the business. A tech startup’s business plan should generally address three major areas of the business:
As a startup moves through various stages of growth, the business plan should be updated with new information and forward-looking goals. In this way it can serve as a “source of truth” for all of the startup’s stakeholders.
A business plan is an essential tool for any tech startup. It provides a road map for your business, helping you to define and communicate the company’s vision, goals, and strategies. Having a singular document that acts as a single source of truth for the business will help to keep the startup’s core leadership team unified and provides guidance on how to navigate the often-complex world of starting and growing a business.
You can utilize your startup business plan to secure funding and partnerships. A well-crafted business plan can also help you attract and retain top talent.
In summary, you need a technology startup business plan to:
- Unify the startup’s leadership team
- Secure funding and partnerships
- Attract top talent
- Act as a guide for navigating starting a business
This article will act as a guide for writing a business plan for tech startup founders.
7 key components of tech startup business plan
You know you need a business plan for your tech startup. You know generally what should be included. But, now you need to actually get to writing. We’re going to try to make this as easy as possible by outlining the 7 key components your technology startup business plan should have.
If you’re looking for a real shortcut, make sure you download our easy tech startup business plan template. Included in it you’ll find a sample business plan and an outline of what we’ll cover below.
Stick with me if you’re looking for a more detailed explanation of each of the 7 components.
- Executive summary
First up is an executive summary. This brief section should provide some context to readers as they begin to read your business plan. It’s your opportunity to share, at a high level, your business idea.
At a minimum, this section should outline what your business is, the general market you target or industry you are in, and what your products or services are. Optionally, you can include some information about your business’s history, bios of key members of your leadership team, competitive advantages, key customer benefits, and your company’s goals. How detailed you get with this section is up to you. Use this as an opportunity to provide an overview before you get into more detail in the other sections of your business plan.
- Market opportunity
This is where you will start to go into more detail about your business. Starting with the market opportunity allows you to paint the picture of the why _behind your tech startup before you go into the _what . Ultimately, you can only sell the feasibility of your business by backing it up data on who your potential customers will be. This section will help to inform the marketing strategy and sales plan later in the startup business plan document.
Take the time in this section to walk through the research you have done on your audience. To start, you should have data points on the following:
- Demographic data for your target market (age, gender, income, occupation, location)
- Main pain points of your target market
- Values and interests of your target market
- Needs and wants of your target market
It can also be compelling to provide some information on how your products or services will stand out from the competition. Consider answering the following questions in this section:
- Who are your main competitors?
- How will your products or services meet the market’s needs better than the competitors?
- Will your products or services be able to reach a currently unreached audience?
- How will you differentiate yourself from the competition within your target market?
All of this data should back up what the real market opportunity is for your business. Make sure this market opportunity is realistic and achievable. This should lead well into our next section which will cover in more detail the products or services your tech startup will offer to the market.
- Product or service overview
After you have outlined the market opportunity your business will take advantage of, it’s time to provide more details on the exact products or services that you will offer to your market.
Each product or service you include in this section should have a corresponding functional and technical description. The functional description should aim to outline to a layperson what the product or service is, what it does, and how it will be used. The technical description should outline the technologies each product or service utilizes or what technology has been developed specifically for the new business. It’s appropriate to go into detail here to give potential investors more confidence in your product or service.
It’s also important to include information on how the products or services will ultimately benefit customers and what problem they will solve for customers. If you have more than one product or service, make sure to outline this information for each one.
- Marketing and sales strategy
The marketing and sales strategy section of a technology startup business plan should include a description of the target market, the company's marketing and sales objectives, the strategies and tactics that will be used to reach these objectives, the key marketing and sales metrics that will be used to measure progress, and the budget for marketing and sales activities. In short, it should outline your business’s marketing and sales plan.
Starting with the objectives, you should outline specifically what you are trying to achieve with your marketing and sales efforts both in the short term (likely for launch) and long term. Each of your objectives should align with your overarching business goals and make sense for the market you outlined earlier in your business plan. Be realistic here. It’s better to estimate low and over deliver than to overestimate your success.
As you outline the strategies and tactics you will use to achieve your objectives, consider both the what _and the who_:
- (What) What tactics will you employ to achieve your goals?
- (What) What marketing tools do you need to achieve your goals?
- (What) What marketing channels will you use?
- (Who) Will the marketing work be done internally?
- (Who) Will you hire freelancers or a CMO to help implement the work at hand?
- (Who) Will you need a sales team right away?
- (Who) How will marketing and sales work together to achieve your goals?
Your marketing and sales strategy should be backed up by the market opportunity information you provided earlier. The strategies and tactics should be aiming to reach your target market.
Next, outline the metrics that will be used to measure marketing and sales progress. You should include specifically when these metrics will be measured and who will be held accountable for them.
Finally, include a marketing and sales budget in this section. The budget should be broken down by channel and tactic, so that dollars can be accurately tracked and attributed to results.
- Team and management structure
Up next is the team and management structure part of the business plan. To start, provide an overview of the startup’s organizational and management structure. Providing a graphical representation of the reporting structure can be helpful.
This can then lead into an overview of who owns or manages each of the key sectors of the business (CEO, CTO, CMO, etc.). It’s a good practice to provide a bio of each of the members of the leadership team, including their education, work history, and relevant expertise. Along with their bio, provide a description of their role and responsibilities within the organization.
After you have covered the leadership team, outline the other team members along with their roles and responsibilities. Following this, include some commentary on the team’s strengths and weaknesses as well as what gaps remain within the organization. If additional staffing is required, provide a hiring plan that includes a description of the role, salary, and strategy for recruitment.
End this section with an overview of the organization’s values. Paint a picture of what it’s really like to work for your company and how you build a sense of ownership and responsibility within the team. Highlight how you intend for the team to work together to accomplish the company’s goals.
- Key milestones
At this point in the business plan you have outlined the target market, products and services you will offer as well as the members of your team that will bring the company’s vision to life. In this section you’ll provide a timeline of the past and future milestones for your business. This will help to illustrate your startup’s growth path and how you intend to move forward.
Some key milestones to consider when writing this section:
- When business was founded.
- When the business was/will be launched publicly.
- When the business was/will be profitable.
- When the business reached/will reach funding milestones.
- When development project milestones were/will be reached.
- When marketing milestones were/will be reached.
- When key staff were/will be hired.
- Future product release dates.
You might consider showcasing this information in the form of a graphic like this:
In addition to a company timeline, we recommend you include additional data in this section such as:
- Current number of employees and the number of employees projected in the future.
- The amount of revenue generated in the past and projected for the future
- Key clients or contracts that have been signed or that are in the works.
This section should clearly demonstrate your startup’s ability to grow from an idea into a business. Providing concrete dates and real data in this section will provide some validity to your startup and showcase what you’re able to accomplish.
- Financial plan
The final section of your technology startup business plan should be a financial plan. This is the section of the business plan that outlines how the business has been funded to date and how it will be financed moving forward.
There is no one way to write the financial plan section of a business plan, as the amount and type of information that needs to be included will vary depending on the business and the specific financial goals of the plan.
However, there are some basic elements that should be included in most financial plans. These include a pro forma income statement, balance sheet, sales forecast, and cash flow statement. The pro forma financial statements should be based on historical financial data, if available, and should include assumptions about future revenue and expenses. The financial plan should also include a discussion of the company's capital structure, including its debt and equity financing.
If you’re at a very early stage with your startup and seeking a modest amount of funding, it’s probably sufficient to air on the side of brevity. If you’re seeking series A, B, or C funding, you’ll likely need a very comprehensive financial summary along with a detailed plan on how the funding will be utilized to grow the business. Seek counsel from a business accountant if you’re unsure of how to provide adequate financial documentation.
We have walked through the 7 key elements of any tech startup business plan. Now we’re going to share a sample business plan template to help you get started with writing your own!
Innovation is critical to success in the software industry. The executive team of this startup believes they have the next big thing. They have developed a new software application that helps businesses manage their social media accounts more effectively. The software provides insights on when to post, what to post, and how to engage with customers. The software also allows businesses to track their social media analytics and see the return on investment for their social media campaigns.
The executive team has extensive experience in the software industry and believes this new product has the potential to be a game-changer for businesses. The team is seeking $1 million in seed funding to help with product development, marketing, and sales. The company plans to generate revenue through monthly subscription fees and by selling data analytics services to businesses.
The social media management software market is expected to grow from $9.3 billion in 2020 to $17.4 billion by 2025, at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 13.2%. This growth is being driven by the increasing use of social media by businesses of all sizes and the need to effectively manage social media accounts to drive brand awareness and customer engagement.
The software application developed by the startup helps businesses manage their social media accounts more effectively. The software provides insights on when to post, what to post, and how to engage with customers. The software also allows businesses to track their social media analytics and see the return on investment for their social media campaigns.
The software is available on a monthly subscription basis and businesses can also purchase data analytics services to help them further understand their social media campaigns.
The company plans to generate awareness for the software through online and offline marketing campaigns. The team will target small businesses and medium businesses that are active on social media but do not have the resources to effectively manage their accounts.
The company will use a mix of paid and organic marketing to reach its target audience. For paid marketing, the company will use Google AdWords and Facebook Ads. For organic marketing, the company will use content marketing and social media outreach.
The company plans to sell the software on a monthly subscription basis. The team will offer a free trial to businesses to get them started with the software. Once the free trial expires, businesses will be charged a monthly subscription fee.
The executive team of the startup consists of experienced software professionals. The team has a proven track record of developing and marketing successful software products.
The company plans to hire a sales and marketing team to help generate awareness and drive sales of the software. The team will be based in the United States and will consist of sales and marketing professionals with experience in the software industry.
The company plans to achieve the following milestones over the next 12 months:
- Launch the software application
- Generate 500 paying customers
- Achieve $1 million in annual revenue
The company is seeking $1 million in seed funding to help with product development, marketing, and sales. The company plans to generate revenue through monthly subscription fees and by selling data analytics services to businesses.
The company projects the following financials for the next 12 months:
- Revenue: $1 million
- Expenses: $500,000
- Profit: $500,000
As a startup founder you know that having a software startup business plan on hand is critical to win over investors and get your business funded. However, no one wants to spend days writing a complicated it startup business plan. It’s much more important to focus on the day-to-day operation associated with building your tech startup.
To help save you time (but still create a winning startup business plan), we’ve outlined the 7 key components of any tech startup business plan:
As you tackle writing your own, make sure you refer back to this guide along with our template to ensure you’re writing a compelling business plan that is sure to win over investors!
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10 Most Common High Tech Business Plan Fails
Oct 4, 2017 By Tim Berry
I was asked about high-tech business plan fails on Quora recently. So this isn’t about lean plans for all business owners, but just the business plans submitted for angel investment and business plan competitions. I read about 100 of those business plans per year. So here’s my list of high-tech business plan fails:
- Naive profits . Drives me crazy. First of all, startups are rarely profitable. Secondly, get a clue – if the industry average is 8% profits to sales, you aren’t going to make 43%. You’re not showing that your business will perform way better than most; you’re showing you don’t know the business. Thirdly, why would I value your plan based on numbers that aren’t credible. It makes your plan worse, not better.
- Self-assigned superlatives . Disruptive, game changing, etc. Skip the fashionable check-the-list buzzwords. The more you claim it, the less credible you are. Stick to the content and leave the adjectives out.
- Not having projections . You don’t get to say projections are useless. Readers won’t believe them on the surface, for sure. But savvy plan readers want to look at your projections not because they will believe the top or bottom lines, but to see how well you understand the drivers and the workings of the business. Do you know what drives sales? Do you understand direct costs? Are your expenses realistic?
- Amazing headcount . I often see plans that would run enterprise-level businesses with startup-level head counts. I’ve seen plans in which 20 people supposedly run $20-million-annual-sales businesses. (Yes, this is a variation on #1 above; and relates to #3)
- No marketing expenses . Another variation on #1 and #3. The projections show huge profits and tiny marketing expenses. Fat chance. Marketing expenses are what make profits and growth incompatible.
- IRR and NPV . Nobody cares what your calculator or spreadsheet function tells you is the results of multiplying one far-out unrealistic assumption by another and another. These analyses are useful for teaching the time value of money and for some sophisticated financial analyses. Not for business planning.
- No competition . A sure-fire sign of lack of research, depth, and understanding of the way competition actually works.
- Cash machines . I’m surprised how often this happens. Plans that are supposed to be related to angel investment project cash immediately and more cash every day, and even accumulate huge cash balances. First of course that’s completely unrealistic. Second, why would you share ownership of that cash machine with investors?
- Good business, bad investment . This is quite common, and I often encourage and admire these. Businesses that don’t need investment do show up now and then. Hats off and congratulations. But that doesn’t make a good investment for outsiders who need you to need more cash and eventually to exit to liquidity.
- Vague puffery in team backgrounds . Way too often people talk about relevant experience in generalities. For example, “a startup veteran” or “had a successful startup exit.” Tell me what companies and when. When the vitals are left out everybody suspects exaggeration. I sometimes insist on details and discover there was really nothing there. The startup was a poster campaign on a college campus. The exit was dissolving the business and selling the computer it owned.
Tim Berry is co-founder of Have Presence , founder and Chairman of Palo Alto Software , founder of bplans.com , and a co-founder of Borland International . He is author of books and software including LivePlan and Business Plan Pro , The Plan-As-You-Go Business Plan, and Lean Business Planning , published by Motivational Press in 2015. He has a Stanford MBA degree and degrees with honors from the University of Oregon and the University of Notre Dame. He taught starting a business at the University of Oregon for 11 years.
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Technology Business Plan Highlights Hi-Tech Opportunities
JUL.15, 2013
A technology company creates and sells technology, setting it apart from companies that simply use or expand on existing technology. There are several large, successful technology companies like Microsoft and Apple in existence today, and they started with business plans. Since a technology company is a state-of-the-art business, it requires a state-of-the-art business plan. Developing an Executive Summary that clearly and succinctly conveys the new products and services that represent applied scientific knowledge is absolutely critical.
The effectiveness of the business plan depends on being able to present complex information that keeps the interest of funders and provides clear direction for management in a complex environment.
The business description, market business strategies , competitive analysis and management plans have to be written in a way that make it possible for the reader to quickly grasp the mission, goals and planned strategies, which encourages a variety of potential funders from venture capitalists to traditional lenders to take an interest in the company or project.
- What hi-tech sector will the business venture operate in, i.e. software/hardware, medical, green energy, telecommunications, etc.?
- How will competition be identified and defined?
- How will branding set the technology company apart from a crowded field of global technology businesses?
- What continuous process improvement will be instituted to ensure long-term viability?
- Are there plans for outsourcing elements of product development or services delivery?
- Will marketing focus on business clients (B2B) or consumers?
- Are the targeted markets domestic or global?
- What pricing structure will be put in place and how will competitive rates be maintained?
A successful technology business plan will identify the specific market needs and present the solutions the startup or existing company has developed. Given the thousands of hi-tech companies started every year, it is critical that the market benefits of the proposed solutions are carefully and thoroughly explained. The technology industry is characterized by rapid advances, and a startup or new project seeking funding must be able to show how its state-of-the-art products and services fulfill consumer or commercial market needs.
A professional and attractive business plan also highlights market entry strategies, sales models and financial projections. However, given the volatility of the technology market, the business plan must also address risk factors associated with rapid technology changes and ease of market entry for competitors. Professional business consultants at OGS Capital have extensive experience in addressing the unique characteristics of the technology business in the business plan. Completing the simple form to the right will put you in contact with experts who can provide assistance with business development , including market research and industry analysis.
Download Technology Business Plan Highlights Hi-Tech Opportunities Sample in pdf
Professional OGS capital writers specialized also in themes such as business plan for a web hosting , technology business plans , budget planning for tech business plan , business plan for biotech company , business plan computer repair , computer store business plan and many others.
OGSCapital’s team has assisted thousands of entrepreneurs with top-rate business plan development, consultancy and analysis. They’ve helped thousands of SME owners secure more than $1.5 billion in funding, and they can do the same for you.
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Insights / Tech and Service Providers / Article
5 steps to validate new high tech product planning.
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July 02, 2021
Contributor: Brian Michelotti
Technology product managers should follow these five steps to make high tech product planning decisions in the face of uncertainty.
High tech product planning is a high-stakes effort that requires decisions to be made in the face of uncertainty — it’s important to know if customers will embrace the new offering or not.
Learn more: Power Your Product Strategy with Gartner Product Decisions
In high tech product planning, once an idea stands up to extended internal scrutiny, momentum builds
All companies across the global marketplace offer different types of products. Some new product ideas are formed through discussions over a period of months. Others materialize as an inspiration overnight.
Regardless of the origin, soon after an interesting idea is formed, there is a self-administered checkpoint: Do we think there will be a big enough market? Is this something we could be successful at selling? In most cases, the answer is “no,” and the product team goes back to the ideation phase.
To start the validation process, a new product idea should be defined with enough clarity to know the following:
- Who is the target customer ?
- What is the customer’s need that will be addressed by the new product?
- What is the product; what does it do?
- What is the #1 key benefit that will be provided to the customer?
The hypothesis for each of these elements will be tested and may be refined through the validation process. If the product idea survives the validation of the high tech product planning process, stakeholders can have confidence in its probability of market success.
Step 1: Share the concept
The first and simplest step in high tech product planning is to share the concept inside and outside your organization. This type of validation need not be time-consuming or expensive.
To start, you should pitch the idea to five or more people within your professional network. To supplement your own network, you can attend Meetups or other events that provide an opportunity to interact with other technology professionals.
Listen for critical feedback
It is not important, or expected, for the feedback to be overwhelmingly positive. The primary goal of this step is to refine the idea through repeated discussion. The biggest challenge in this step is listening for critical feedback. It may be subtle or buried deep within words of encouragement.
Product managers may have confidentiality concerns and may hesitate to seek outside feedback, particularly when working on an innovative idea. But except where patent filings, mergers or acquisitions are involved, strict confidentiality in order to gain a time-to-market advantage is overrated. For most technology product ideas, there are not many other companies (if any) with the skills, resources and motivation to copy the idea and release it first.
Step 2: Examine the market
After a product idea is refined through sharing the concept, the next step in high tech product planning is to evaluate the competitive environment that the new product will enter. In this step, focus now on confirming things such as – what category the product will be a part of, what alternative solutions are available, how is the product idea different from these solutions? Knowing the shortcomings of the alternative solutions is important because it can inform the decision of if and how you will aim to disrupt them.
When initiating high tech product planning, find alternative products close to your offering that are already in the market
The biggest challenge in this step is avoiding the temptation to quickly declare that there are no alternative products, and that the new product will establish a new category. If a customer might consider another product as a potential solution to the same business problem, then it should be thought of as an alternative, even if the new idea uses dissimilar technology or has significantly different capabilities.
If no alternatives can be found, it is critical at this stage to understand or develop a hypothesis about why none exist. Knowing why no alternatives exist can provide more confidence in the idea, or to the contrary, it could trigger a serious reconsideration of whether to move forward.
Step 3: Assess the value to customers
If no significant concerns are raised by the market search performed in Step 2, the next step in validation is to begin to estimate the business value that the new product can provide to customers.
Financial value is always a consideration in B2B technology purchase decisions, and it is likely that in every customer opportunity at least some buying team members will be intently focused on the numbers. This validation step is needed as an early checkpoint to ensure that the product will be compelling when viewed through a financial lens. It’s also needed to confirm which roles within a customer organization will benefit most (and therefore will be likely to pay for it).
Attempting to build a rough customer business case will help crystalize the questions that remain to be answered
With many unknowns at this stage, it will be difficult to build an exact customer business case. But making an attempt will help crystalize the questions that remain to be answered. It should not be a long process — the time required for this step should be measured in hours or days, not weeks or months.
The two biggest challenges in this step are:
- Determining the specific financial benefits that the product will provide; for example, “dollars saved on contract labor” (contrasted with a more generic benefit like “reduced cost”)
- Accounting for the customer’s total cost, which could include many factors beyond the product itself
If the product is planned for an established category with direct competitors, there is likely a sound financial proposition possible. But if you are not able to estimate the benefits, it should be viewed as a red flag indicating that more research of customers’ uses for the product and business drivers is needed.
If the customer financial impact cannot be estimated and the product is envisioned as creating a new category, the technology may be overshadowing the customer need in driving the product idea. Proceed with caution.
Step 4: Validate high tech product planning hypotheses with target buyers
The next step is to validate these hypotheses with target buyers. The purpose of speaking with target buyers is not to presell the product, but to confirm and expand your understanding of buyer needs and their willingness to buy.
The biggest challenge in this step is speaking with the right target buyers. A product manager for an established provider may rely on existing customers, potentially utilizing a customer advisory board. Depending on the product idea, these customers may or may not be a good proxy for the target customers for the new product. Another mistake is to interview an employee of a target customer organization who is in a role that would not be responsible for championing the purchase of your product. At this stage, validation should come from real buyers.
Positive comments are encouraging but be careful about building confidence from feedback such as “We would be interested” or “Please keep us updated as you get further along.” You need more than to hear that potential buyers think the product is a good idea.
In this stage of high tech product planning, you need validation that target buyers are willing and able to pay your targeted price
The level of validation you are seeking is for three or more potential buyers of the product to say “Yes, I have that need and I would pay that amount for the product you described.”
To get further validation, the questions intended for potential customers can also be asked to technology analysts or others who have a deep understanding of the customer perspective. These interviews should supplement but not replace conversations directly with potential customers.
Step 5: Release a minimum viable product
If you have progressed to this step of high tech product planning, your product idea has been validated on paper — the problem exists, and customers appreciate your envisioned solution. But words can go only so far in validating a product idea. The purpose of this step is to prove before fully committing to the idea that customers are willing and able to pay, and that they will buy from you as a provider.
Up to this step, validation could have been performed with very little expense. But building an MVP generally requires a meaningful investment from the engineering team and cross-functional involvement to introduce the MVP to market. A business case to justify the investment will typically be developed before starting to build an MVP. Providers should determine for their organization the appropriate levels of due diligence, financial modeling and approval required before initiating Step 5.
To ensure that the MVP is meaningful and valuable to the target customers, plan the scope of the MVP around one or more business moments
The MVP does not need to address all the use cases and capabilities planned for the product. But it must provide a high-quality and differentiated customer experience for the business moment(s) that it addresses.
The two biggest challenges in this step are first creating an MVP that is a viable product, not simply an incomplete version of the final product, and second, not letting momentum alone carry the idea forward.
The MVP step may be approached incrementally if necessary, building from a manually delivered service to a productized offering, until there is demonstrable demand and customer enthusiasm for the new product. If you reach that point, you will be ready to commit to the new product idea.
High tech product planning can be risky, but pays off if done the right way
Developing and launching a new product is risky. The high rate of product failure makes it clear that every new product idea should be validated to ensure the market timing is right before significant resources are committed.
Simple steps can be followed to validate an idea, helping to refine and improve the product vision early in the development cycle and potentially avoiding wasted investment in ideas that do not stand up to real-world feedback.
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Recommended resources for Gartner clients*:
5 Steps That Tech Product Managers Should Take to Validate a New Product Idea
Pivot Forward: A Product Marketing View Into Messaging in a Disruptive Crisis
Tech CEOs: Structure Product Organizations to Build Marketable Products
Critical Steps for Tech Product Managers: Analyze the Competitive Landscap
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I read about 100 of those business plans per year. So here's my list of high-tech business plan fails: Naive profits. Drives me crazy. First of all, startups
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Step 1: Share the concept · Step 2: Examine the market · Step 3: Assess the value to customers · Step 4: Validate high tech product planning