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Creating Contingency Plans for Emergencies or Setbacks

Emergencies

Life is unpredictable, and unexpected emergencies or setbacks can strike when we least expect them. Whether it’s a natural disaster, a personal crisis, a financial downturn, or a business setback, having a well-thought-out contingency plan can make all the difference between chaos and stability. In this blog article, we will explore the importance of creating contingency plans for emergencies or setbacks and provide a step-by-step guide on how to develop effective contingency plans to ensure resilience and preparedness in the face of adversity.

Why Contingency Plans Matter

Contingency plans are essential because they allow individuals, families, businesses, and organizations to respond swiftly and efficiently to unforeseen events. They provide a framework for making quick decisions and taking appropriate actions, thereby reducing the negative impact of emergencies or setbacks. A well-crafted contingency plan can:

Minimize Disruptions: Contingency plans help mitigate the impact of unexpected events, allowing businesses to maintain operations and individuals to sustain their daily routines.

Ensure Safety and Well-being: Personal contingency plans ensure the safety of loved ones and yourself, while business contingency plans protect employees and assets.

Maintain Trust and Confidence: For businesses, having a contingency plan in place fosters trust among clients, customers, and stakeholders, assuring them that the organization is prepared for the worst.

Facilitate Resource Allocation: Contingency plans allow for efficient allocation of resources during emergencies, preventing wastage and ensuring essential needs are met.

Creating Your Contingency Plan

Identify Potential Risks: Start by listing potential emergencies or setbacks that could affect you or your organization. These may include natural disasters, economic downturns, supply chain disruptions, data breaches, or health crises.

Assess Impact and Probability: Rank the identified risks based on their potential impact and probability of occurrence. Focus on the high-impact, high-probability events as the priority for your contingency plan.

Set Clear Objectives: Define specific goals you want to achieve with your contingency plan. For instance, ensuring the safety of your family, maintaining business continuity, or safeguarding critical data.

Develop Response Strategies: Create detailed strategies for each identified risk, outlining step-by-step actions to be taken. Ensure that responsibilities are clearly assigned, and everyone involved understands their roles.

Build Communication Protocols: Effective communication is crucial during emergencies. Establish communication channels and protocols to keep everyone informed and coordinated.

Test and Revise Regularly: A contingency plan is only effective if it works in practice. Conduct drills and simulations periodically to identify weaknesses and areas for improvement. Revise the plan as needed to stay relevant and up-to-date.

Maintain Documentation: Keep your contingency plan well-documented and accessible to relevant stakeholders. Regularly update contact information, procedures, and any other relevant details.

Review Insurance and Legal Matters: Ensure you have appropriate insurance coverage and comply with any legal requirements related to emergencies or setbacks.

Conclusion

Creating contingency plans for emergencies or setbacks is an essential part of being prepared and resilient in an unpredictable world. It provides the assurance of knowing that you can effectively handle unforeseen events and emerge stronger on the other side. By identifying risks, developing response strategies, and maintaining clear communication, you can build robust contingency plans that protect your loved ones, your business, and your future. Remember, preparation is the key to weathering any storm that life may throw your way.

Who we are: Funded.com is a platform that is A+ BBB accredited over 10+ years. Access our network of Angel Investors, Venture Capital or Lenders. Let us professionally write your Business Plan.

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What Exactly Is An LLC? Definition, Benefits, and Drawbacks – Business Advisor

LLC

What we will learn from this content is the learning object.

1-How an LLC Company Works

2- What are the advantages of forming an LLC?

3- What are the drawbacks of LLC corporations?

4: With an LLC, what can you invest in?

5-How are LLCs different from other types of businesses?

Before learning about the benefits and features of LLCs (limited liability corporations), it’s important to understand what they are and how they operate.

What Is Exactly a Limited Liability Company (LLC)?

Various forms of limited liability companies (LLC) in the United States protect their owners from being held liable for their company’s debts. A company with limited liability is a type of business that can have different elections, even a S-Corp.

Business entities can get the legal status of a limited liability company (LLC). With this classification, the business becomes its legal entity, and the owners may not have to pay for its debts or other obligations.

In the case of bankruptcy or a legal problem with the business, the owner’s personal belongings, like bank accounts, homes, and cars, are usually not counted as company assets.

One or more people are called “members” and own an LLC. If you are the only owner, the LLC only has one member. A multi-member LLC has more than one proprietor. A single members LLC are very common.

LLCs have both positive and negative aspects. The five advantages are that property and protection of personal property are offered to the owner or owners of an LLC. This means that, as the owner of an LLC, you may not held accountable. You are individually liable for any debts incurred if you are a sole proprietor.

Creditors or entities suing your LLC cannot seize your personal property, including your home, car, or bank accounts, and you are not personally liable unless you pledge it as a personal guarantee. They can only take money from the assets of your LLC, such as its bank account. However, due to the restrictions that must follow, the limited liability of a corporation may not be appropriate for a small, informal organization. Organizations are responsible for various tasks, including yearly shareholder meetings, annual reports, and different tax structure. Accounting can be more and opening a corporate bank account can be more money to keep at a minimum balance.

The Tax Benefits of a Limited Liability Company:

When it comes to taxation, LLCs enjoy the best of both worlds. As a general rule, LLCs can be taxed by the federal government under a different corporate bracket.

No matter how many owners there are in an LLC, the Internal Revenue Service treats them as either partnerships or single member LLC. Accordingly, to sometime federal taxes on LLCs it can be a better tax break then running it through a sole proprietorship. You can separate out better legal deductions that your tax professional can help you find.

Management Flexibility

This set management structure includes a board of directors that controls the company’s policies and officers that handle the day-to-day business operations. To run the corporation, shareholders, or owners, must meet once a year to elect board members and manage other businesses. There less requirement for certain LLC structures, and the owners of an LLC can make more decisions about how they run the business and what they do.

Ownership Flexibility

Since S corporations’ benefit from pass-through taxation, they have several ownership restrictions. For instance, they are prohibited from having more than 100 shareholders, including foreign investors and companies, as shareholders. On the other hand, LLCs offer pass-through taxation without restrictions on the number and type of owners they can have.

LLC Disadvantages: Everything You Need to Know

To decide which legal system is best for your business, you need to know the LLC’s cons.

Cost of Limited Liability Company

Depending on the area, the cost of forming an LLC could be between $100 and $500 depending on the state and if it’s a single member entity or S- Corp. Each require annual filing which can be done electronically with the Secretary of State and mostly for free unless you forget a year. Registered Agents for your address may be required accept notices and charge an annual fee of $100-150, but they can also provide valuable annual renewal reminders.

(LLCs’ taxes)

There are two important tax disadvantages of an LLC that are often misunderstood. To begin with, even if you do not receive a share of the company’s revenues, since you’re an LLC member, you must pay income taxes on your portion of the earnings. In addition, LLC owners pay self-employment taxes. This includes Social Security for Medicare for their portion of income.

Keep Monies Separate in Limited Liability Companies (LLCs)

It is required to run your LLC like a corporation and keep separate bank accounts and expenses. It is good to have a separate accounting software to keep your books good and in sync with your accountants’ records for tax filings. It is good to show a record of annual corporate meeting even if it’s just you. In the event you incur a liability, and your LLC is challenged in court, you need to show you have kept everything separate from your personal accounts and expenses.

With an LLC, what can you invest in?

LLCs can invest in a wide range of stocks, bonds, real estate, and digital assets. The only difference is that you can’t make investments with a (retirement account) or Roth IRA.

You’ll have to open a separate bank account for your business and a trading or investment account.

Here are some things an LLC can put money into.

  • Real estate (commercial and residential)
  • Land (commercial and residential)
  • Stocks and bonds
  • Index funds and mutual funds
  • Deposit certificates (CDs)
  • Gold or silver bars, as well as other valuable metals,
  • Cryptocurrencies and NFTs:
  • Crowdfunding efforts
  • Other businesses that use cash or a share of ownership
  • Different LLCs

Is it possible for one LLC to invest in another LLC?

Indeed, LLCs can invest in other LLCs directly. As a result, the investing LLC joins the financed LLC and receives a stake in the new business. Accordingly, the operating agreement for the LLC should reflect the transaction.

Summary

An LLC can be a suitable business entity, especially for people who want to protect their assets from liability. But it’s essential to look at and choose your tax options carefully. While there are benefits, like keeping your assets safe, there are also drawbacks, like higher startup costs and more complicated taxes, that you should think about.

Overall, forming an LLC is smart for many entrepreneurs and business owners because it is simple and easy. You may visit a couple resources for LLC Set up and Registered Agency.

Who we are:  Funded.com is a platform that is A+ BBB rated over 10+ years. Access our network of Investors, get instantly matched with a Lender, or get a business plan by visiting us Funded.com

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Smart Reasons to Use Business Credit Cards

Business credit cards

Whether you’re a startup or you run an established brand, a business credit card is essential for the financial well being. A business credit card is much more than a way to pay for your business purchases. It is a convenient mode for entrepreneurs to increase their company’s power. Not only does it enable access to revolving credit lines but also provide a range of lucrative rewards, fraud protection, and most importantly, smooth out the cash flow.

A business credit survey from Federal Reserve showed that nearly 52 percent of companies that have at least 50 employees use business credit cards for several purposes. With a set credit limit, the business owners make purchases, transact money, and withdraw cash. Many businesses use credit card although, like a regular consumer card, they carry an interest charge if the entrepreneurs don’t repay the balance in the billing cycle.

Despite a high-interest rate, using business credit cards is considered beneficial when it comes to making smart purchases. Here are some reasons why purchasing on your business credit card is more savvy and advantageous in the long run.

Why You Should Use Business Credit Cards

1. Brings You Travel Rewards

You may have seen many entrepreneurs putting marketing ad from Google and Facebook on their business bank cards. They use it for the monthly payments. The trick is tremendously advantageous for gaining an extra thirty days of cash flow at zero cost.  Plus, it is an easy way to scale their business quickly. 

To put it simply, the travel mile strategy with business travel credit card offers a plethora of lucrative rewards. However, to make the most of this strategy, you need to choose your business bank card wisely. That means if you typically fly from a specific airline, consider using the co-branded credit card of that airline.

 The idea is great to receive a variety of traveling perks that may include easy airline status, priority boarding, and checked bags at no cost. Choose a business bank card that comes with flexible travel rewards that you can use with more than one provider.

2. Better Reward Protection

If you have ever tried to use your business credit card to deal with outside or international vendors, you must know that it is critical to pay them through the plastic. In other words, making foreign transactions with business credit card protects entrepreneurs to dispute the payments or save their cash on hand.  The fraud protection strategy of business credit cards provides great fraud protection. The federal law doesn’t put fraudulent charges more than $50 on the cardholders. Many card issuers offer 0 percent liability.  It is worth noting that this offer is not the same when you use a business debit card as per federal law. So using a business credit card is a better and smarter choice.

3. You can Finance large Business Purchases

One of the significant benefits of using a business credit card is that the entrepreneur can leverage its equity to purchase things that help their business to grow. It is because come with a strong financing strategy, you can finance large or small purchases inexpensively. Use your business credit card with a relatively low-rate balance transfer or low introductory rate.

Also, remember that even you use a credit card that comes with a 16 to 20 percent interest rate is a cheaper option than other financing options for your business. They may carry hidden high rates.

4. Insurance Coverage

You might not have heard about that you can save on rental car or travel insurance by paying through business credit card. The travel saving insurance makes an excellent offer for traveling enthusiasts. Several business credit cards come with collision damage coverage when a customer rents a vehicle. This primary coverage means you don’t need to file claims for your auto insurers first. Some banks offer secondary coverage that provides many benefits if auto insurance does not cover the amount of damage or loss.

5. Help You Fund Your Startups

Business credit cards, without a doubt, offer multiple benefits if you’re a startup. As mentioned earlier, many small business owners spend hundreds of dollars to run online ads and make payments with their business credit cards. Using that for payments adds many reward points or perks may help business owner pay for other expenses and purchases.

The startup financing strategy of business credit cards often relies on the personal credit card scores or history; especially when issuers evaluate applications. That means these business credit cards offer you a financing option for your new businesses if accessing other finance forums is difficult for you. Additionally, you can use other sources than just business revenues to meet the income requirements of banks.

6. Save Money on Expenses

Cashback strategy includes in some of the popular rewards that any business or brand can use.  Your card can have flat cash reward on all your purchases. Also, you can have large cash back rewards for some specific categories of your spending.

Cards that come with a high reward may charge you higher fees. However, the best way to maximize cash back is to use multiple cards. Know that if you analyze your spending carefully, you will be able to determine and understand which business credit card is best for you.

7. Provide Excellent Employee Perks

Many smart entrepreneurs accumulate their cash back rewards of the year and use them for annual celebrations and bonuses. Others share travel perks and miles with competent employees. Thus, making purchases or using a reward that benefits in-house or even remote employees is an excellent idea.  This is undeniably a smart strategy to positively impact on employees’ productivity and satisfaction.

Final Thoughts

To crown it all, using business bank cards for purchases, payments, and rewards is an easy way to keep the business cash flow running. Thus, the given reasons are advantageous for using business credit cards smartly.

Access our network of Angel Investors, Venture Capital or get instantly matched with a Lender, or get a business plan by visiting us Funded.com

Get Matched with a Credit Card!

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Steps to Get Credit report for Free

A credit report is typically a financial report. If you have ever used a credit card or requested a loan, your bank evaluates credentials through your credit report. From the number of credit cards you’ve used in past, payment details, money that you owe on cards to the loans you’ve taken, a credit report lists them all.

All these factors make your credit card score, which is a three -digit number that indicates how risky of a borrower you are. That means if your borrowers’ grade point average is low, you might face difficulties in applying for new credit cards and loans. It is important to note that your credit report is thoroughly evaluated when you apply for a new loan or credit card.

That is why checking your credit report is of paramount importance multiple times a year to make sure that its information is correct. However, you must not pay to get a credit report.  If a lender or website is charging you money or asking your personal information for a credit report, do not fall for this fraud.

It is because you can easily get your credit report without spending a penny thrice a year. You can submit your direct request to AnnualCreditReport.com, or you can receive it from credit bureaus Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax.

 Let’s see what steps you can follow to get credit report for free;

Steps to Get Your Credit Report for Free

1.     Select a Credible Source

While sources like Credit Sesame or Credit Karma allow you to see credit scores at anytime, you cannot access your credit report more than three times a year. You can only check once when major credit card bureaus send you. This is what makes picking an appropriate source an important step to get a free credit report.

2.     Call 1-877-322-8228 or Submit Request at AnnualCreditReport.com

To receive a free credit report, you can submit a request through AnnualCreditReport.com. Also, you can call on the verified number 1-877-322-8228. Remember that if any other source claims to provide a credit report and ask you to exchange personal information, it is a fraud.

Moreover, requesting a credit report will not negatively affect your credit history or credit, but you are limited to receiving three reports a year as per federal laws.

3.     Fill an Online Credit Report

If you want your credit report through a website, you need to fill out a submission form. Regardless of how many forms you want (one to three), submitting the form for the allotted report is necessary.  You will have to fill out some basic information in the form such as your name, your current residential address, and social security number.

4.     Decide Number of Credit Reports You intend to Review

You need to select the credit bureau you want credit report from. Pick Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax, or all three major credit bureaus. These bureaus have all your credit-card histories and information that they get from creditors.  However, not all three of them contain the same information. This is where you need to choose the right credit bureau as this may lead to variation in your credit history information each bureau has recorded.

The best practice is to review all three credit reports to different point in time. Setting reminder to send a request for your credit report will help your view each report individually. However, if you are planning to make a big purchase such as buying a house or car that requires you to check credit, you can request all credit reports at once. This way, you can review all three of them for identity theft and accuracy.

5.     Respond to Security Questions

Before you receive your credit report, bureaus ask some security questions to assess your credibility or verify identity. The information in the questions is based on your credit report and is often tricky. You are given only five minutes to complete the answers.

 If you want to request all three reports from different bureaus, you have to answers the questions for each bureau.

6.     Submit a Request to Review Credit report

Once all the steps mentioned above are complete, the credit card bureau website will generate your report within minutes. If the report is requested via phone, the bureau will send it by mail that may take 15 to 20 days.

Your credit report has five sections:

  • Personal Information: the section comprises your name, addresses, date of birth, and contact details.
  • Accounts: the section incorporates the entire history of your different credit lines you have had, account status, current balance, and account opening date, minimum payment, credit limit, and highest balance.
  • Public Records:   the section lists your legal matters related to bankruptcy, tax lien, etc.
  • Hard Inquiries: your applications for new loans and credit cards (in the previous two years) will appear in this section.
  • Soft Inquiries:  if any insurance company, credit-card lender, employer, or lender has made an inquiry for your credit card, this section will show them.

7.     File a Dispute in Case of Any Discrepancy

This is one of the most important steps that hold the main purpose of getting a credit report. Once you receive your credit report for free, inspect it for correct payment details, balance, dates, etc. if you find any discrepancy in the information, or you find the details entirely unrecognizable, and then file a dispute. You can do it online or call the credit bureau helpline.

It is important to know that you only get credit report for free from credit bureaus, but you have to pay for identity-monitoring services.  It is because credit bureaus have unlimited email alerts, and credit reports if a fraudulent application for credit on your ID or name.

Final Thoughts

Overall, requesting a credit report doesn’t only help you determine your payment history but in several other matters. They are immensely helpful when it comes to managing your credit balances and applying for new loans. Thus, the given steps will help you get a credit report for free.

Access our network of Angel Investors, Venture Capital or get instantly matched with a Lender, or get a business plan by visiting us Funded.com

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Guidelines For Successful Postings

Guidelines For Successful Postings

Rules and Guidelines For Successful Postings

Posting your Funding request is essential part of raising capital as creating your Business Plan. In order for you to get the funding you should be able to catch the eyes of the investors. Here are some tips you can follow to attract Investors and funding providers.

Title. Make your title attractive this is the first section our investors will see. Include the title of your business or invention. Make it enticing and give them something they want to hear and continue reading to your letter.

Posting. Write a short summary of your Business idea or Invention that will catch investor’s attention. Make it 2 to 3 paragraph short and make it concise and simple. Avoid too much information and do not copy and paste your Executive Summary. Your posting is not to be confused with a chat or blog. You are selling you and your business to investors and funding providers to raise capital and any posting that is not about your business is not allowed. Remember, concise and to-the-point.

Attach your Business Plan or Executive Summary. If you are looking for an Angel Investor or Venture Capital make sure you attach your Business Plan don’t wait for the investors to ask your Business Plan. Remember your Business Plan is the eye view of your business/invention.  If you don’t have a Business Plan yet at least upload an executive summary.  (You can use the Free Executive Summary template available upon creating your membership). This will give the investor the immediate reaction that you are serious in getting funds.

Private or Public posting. We have two ways of posting your request either public or private post. If you publically post be aware that everyone who not a member of funded.com will see your postings. While private posting only our registered investors and funding providers can see your funding request.

Avoid Personal Information. Even though we pre-screen funding providers, it is an ever increasingly large group and it is ultimately up to you to protect yourself from anyone saying who they are not and promptly reporting any concerns to us. Therefore we suggest not putting your email or telephone number on a public post. Private postings may not have the traffic like a public posting but is limited to our investor network that is viewing your funding request. Keep in mind that if there are investors that are interested in knowing your business venture they can always email you via funded.com and you will receive an email notification on your personal email if they replied on your posting.

Be patient for responses give some time to our investors to see your request. If you are not getting any responses try to re-write or revised your posting. You may also call us and we can look at your posting and give you tips for success.  Try to be more creative and remember you want to create interest in your business or idea and sometime it takes time for investors and funding providers to notice you, especially the right one that will fund you.

 

 

 

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Crowdfunding Facilitated with New Legislation

Smaller investors can now be solicited via the internet to pool resources in a practice called crowdfunding. The recently passed Jumpstart Our Business Startup Act (JOBS Act) sent to President Obama for signing is designed to make it easier for small businesses to raise capital. The main foundation of the legislation rests in giving businesses the ability to raise a limited amount of seed money or growth capital by encouraging investors to visit an SEC registered website where projects are listed.

The SEC registered websites will be used by entrepreneurs to list their businesses and present their funding needs. To drive potential investors to the website, the business will notify family, friends, customers and other individual investors that the business is listed by using social media tools like Twitter, Facebook and other internet based communication systems. The potential investors can visit the website, read about the business idea and then operate as a community to analyze and pick apart the business idea, investment opportunity, business model and so on. Once the business idea is accepted, investment money is sent by individual investors, accumulated and eventually transferred once the funding target is met. There are a number of other requirements, rules and limitations associated with this legislation, and this is only a brief summary of the law.

Legislating crowdfunding is considered by many to be an important step towards making it easier for people to become investors in small businesses. With tight capital markets, this new form of business funding can become an important source of money for startups and small businesses having difficulty accessing traditional funding sources. Professionals who connect businesses with investors can provide more information about the new legislation, and other sources of funding, and provide critical assistance with developing a successful business plan that attracts funding.

Browse www.funded.com for more advice about getting your business funded.

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Is Your Elevator Pitch Ready for Investors?

Getting the attention of investors takes finesse and a quality business plan. It also takes an “elevator pitch” that can be pulled out at a moment’s notice. If you haven’t heard of the elevator pitch then there’s a good chance you are a young entrepreneur who has a great business idea but are not immersed in the business lingo. All you know is that you need start up funding.

The elevator pitch is a short speech that summarizes your business plan. When we say short, we mean very short. The elevator pitch is prepared for those moments when you have a chance to tell someone about your business idea and have the time equivalent to a short elevator ride. In other words, the elevator pitch should be no more than a minute long. It’s a summary of the summary of a business plan. You can use it during a conversation or online when potential investors ask you to quickly describe your idea.

It can be intimidating to think about compressing an entire business plan into 200 to 300 words. Yet having a well written elevator pitch ready proves two things. First, you are prepared in advance for an unexpected opportunity to sell your business idea and investors appreciate people who are prepared. Second, having a prepared concise statement about your business shows that your business idea is focused. The elevator pitch is the equivalent of a first impression, and you only get one chance to make it.

The best way to approach developing an elevator pitch for investors is to draw from the information in the Executive Summary in the business plan. The Executive Summary concisely highlights the important information in the business plan. Using it as the source document, you can pick the information that will articulate your message in a way that piques the interest of investors. It’s merely an overview designed to start a conversation between an investor and you. Obviously, you cannot include a lot of detailed information in a minute long description, so you need to pick and choose the most compelling information about your business.

The elevator pitch may be short, but it’s a powerful sales tool whether you speak it, email it, or post it on a website.

More detailed information and useful advice can be found at www.funded.com Created by Mark Favre, it offers expertise and assistance with developing and funding your concept, including a private forum for queries and discussions. If you need access to investors and funding providers, please do check our website.

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Showcase Diversity In Your Business

Some investors aren’t just interested in your business ideas. They also want to know that you embrace diversity. A business can have diverse employees or focus on supplier diversity, or encompass both in the business model. As globalization becomes standard practice for all businesses from the large corporation to the sole proprietor working at home, diversity of people and spend becomes more important.

Why do investors care? They care because the makeup of the population and the marketplace are changing. In the U.S. alone, the highest birth rates are among minorities and every state has increased in racial and ethnic diversity since the year 2000. However, the U.S. is just one segment of the total global marketplace, albeit the largest single entity. As businesses go online to find rapid business growth, they must attract a diverse customer base. It only makes sense that the business would add diversity to its internal operations in order to better compete.

When investors are considering funding a business, they want as much assurance as possible that the internal culture, systems and processes mesh well with the reality of the marketplace. An organization that is committed to diversity and has a definitive strategy for ensuring diversity becomes a reality is one that proves it fully understands the complexity of the global marketplace. In other words, diversity can be leveraged into enduring success, and that is what investors want to fund – a business that is on the path to lasting operational success.

Before approaching investors, it’s important to analyze the diversity of your organization. Awareness, alignment and sustainability of diversity in employees and suppliers are concepts that should be put into practice.

Browse http://www.funded.com for more advice about getting your business funded.

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Business Plan Show-and-Tell

Potential investors review business plans regularly. It can be tempting to think of the business plan as a tell-all document that describes current status and future plans. However, the business plan is more than a description of goals, strategies and financial projections. It’s a document should bring your business sharply into focus and add credibility to your ideas and claims of potential success. The plan must present your business to its best advantage which means adding your personal style.

In other words, the business plan is not just a “tell” document. It’s a show-and-tell document. The business plan will tell the reader about an invention, but must show how it will be turned into a profitable product or service. You can tell investors about the management team, but must show how specific capabilities and talents make the business leaders uniquely qualified. You can tell funders how much money you need, but you must show how those profits will be generated. In every section, you want to avoid simply telling investors about plans and show them with specifics how you intend on making the ideas come to life in the marketplace and why you are able to make it happen.

Another way to view the business plan is that it must clearly answer questions about uniqueness. How is the idea unique? How will the marketplace judge its uniqueness? What makes the specific product or service unique compared to those sold by competitors? The traditional sections of the business plan are always included – marketing plan, financial projections, competition and so on. But don’t forget to add the “show” to the “tell” because without it your plan will be missing the focus needed to attract investors.

Business plans are serious documents but that doesn’t mean they should be lifeless. Bring your business into sharp focus and that makes it possible for investors to imagine success.

More detailed information and useful advice can be found at http://www.funded.com Created by Mark Favre, it offers expertise and assistance with developing and funding your concept, including a private forum for queries and discussions. If you need access to investors and funding providers, please do check our website.

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Business Innovation Attracts Investors

Innovation is one of the many qualities investors look for when evaluating a potential investment opportunity. Angel investors, venture capitalists and even banks and other financial institutions are looking for new and creative ideas, problem solving approaches, business models and technology. An espresso machine for the car? Clean coal? Heat generated from fabric? “Green” bridge building material? New take on social media? All of these represent real and innovative products and services that attract investors.

Innovation represents a brand new way of managing something whether its products or services. Innovation adds an edge to competitive dynamics by spurring consumer demand and thus business growth. Investors look for the potential that a company can gain momentum as a startup entrepreneurship or as an existing business that is ready to use innovation for expansion.

Innovation in the marketplace is actually the foundation for commerce. Small businesses have generated approximately 64 percent of the net new jobs in the economy over the last 15 years. Small businesses also hire more than half of the employees working in the private sector. Entrepreneurship in all forms attracts a myriad of investors who are ready to fund the next innovation start ups or business expansions. That’s because innovation, by its very nature, finds untapped markets where consumer or business needs remain unmet. Innovation represents a goldmine of opportunity for the entrepreneur and the investor.

To attract the investors, you will need to put your ideas in a business plan. The plan will need to show how and why that untapped market exists and how and why the new idea can fill the gaps in these potential markets. For some entrepreneurs, the difficult part is not coming up with ideas. The difficult part is capturing the innovative spirit of the idea in a solid business plan. Fortunately, it’s easy to get professional assistance because some innovative ideas are simply too good to let them get away.

Browse http://www.funded.com for more advice about getting your business funded.