How to Write a Business Plan For Investors (That They Will Love)

You want to write a great business plan that investors will love, but you have no idea how. luckily, the experts at bizplan have given us some great tips check out this in-depth, point-by-point breakdown of how to write an awesome business plan..

April 14th, 2022    |    By: The Startups Team     |    Tags: Development , Pitching , Leadership , Growth , Management , Team , Communication , Pitch Deck , Customers , Scaling , Planning , Product/MVP

A good business plan does more than just inform readers about what your company does, how you earn money, or what you want to do. It persuades the reader that your company is awesome, gets them excited about the opportunity to get involved, and makes them want to help you succeed.

But how do you write a good business plan for investors? You probably didn’t go to business school and if you’re a first-time founder, it can be really hard to figure out how to do something so technical. But don’t worry! This guide will walk you through how to write a business plan for investors, will help you answer the most important questions about your business, and will show you the best ways to illustrate them. We’ve also thrown in some additional resources you can turn to for help.

And if that’s still not enough, Bizplan is giving Startups.com readers 50 percent off their first month of business planning services. Check it out here .

The Big Picture

Writing a business plan for investors

There are 14 important sections of a business plan. But that is by no means an excuse to write out your entire life story on paper. The average business plan should be around 15 pages — no more than 20.

In the past, the average business plan was anywhere from 40 to 100 pages, and guess what they found out? No one was reading all of that. So don’t let important information about your company get lost in a jumble of words. Investors look for founders who can provide the most value in the least amount of time, and your business plan is a great indication of that ability.

The Big Questions

By the time readers are done reading your business plan, they should have a clear understanding of the following: Why (Why this? Why now? Why you? Why them?) and how (How will you make money? How will you get customers? How will you grow your business?).

These questions should be answered throughout your business plan, and should prove to those reading it that your company has the right product, market, team, time, and strategy to make them a return on their investment.

So without further adieu, here is a breakdown of writing a business plan for investors:

1. Executive Summary

The Executive Summary is an introduction to the main ideas that you will discuss in the rest of the plan. If an investor read only the Executive Summary and nothing else, you’d want them to be able to walk away with a clear understanding of the main highlights of your business and why it’s exciting.

A good Executive Summary includes quick, one to two sentence overviews of the following information: mission statement, product/service summary, market opportunity summary, traction summary, next steps, and vision statement.

Pro tip: Although the Executive Summary comes first, it is often helpful to write it last because you’ll have worked through everything by then.

2. Investment Opportunity

The Investment Opportunity section is where you tell investors what your goals are, why they are integral in helping you achieve those goals, and what they have to gain from getting involved with your company. This includes:

  • Your Funding Goal : How much money do you need to move forward
  • Terms : What will investors get in exchange for their investment?
  • Use of Funds : How do you plan to use those funds? (Hint: a 6-figure salary for yourself isn’t what they’re looking for here)
  • Milestones : What will you be able to achieve with their investment?

Again, the most important question to answer here is why: Why should investors want to be a part of your company, and why is now the time for them to get involved? Identify the three to four key factors that make your company a great opportunity and make sure they’re included in this section.

3. Team Overview

This is where you introduce your team and how you’ll work together to bring the business to life. An ideal Team Overview section makes the case not only that your team is the right team for the job, but that you’re the only team for the job.

In order to do this, you need to create a bio for each member of the team. Each team bio should include: the team member’s name; their title and position at the company; their professional background; any special skills they have developed as a result of their past experience; their role and responsibilities at your company; and what makes them uniquely qualified to take that role on.

Pro Tip: This is not the time or place for cheesy fun facts or hobbies. Aim for three to five concise sentences on each team member.

4. Market Opportunity

Before you do a deep dive into what your company does, it’s important to set the stage and provide readers with some insight about why you’re starting this company in the first place. A good market opportunity section addresses two key points: The problem that your product/service solves, and the industry trends that make now the time for your company to succeed.

When writing the “problem” part of this section, consider two questions: What problems do your target customers face that your product/service solves? What annoyances or inconveniences do they face that your company helps to eliminate?

When writing the “trends” section, consider these three questions: What recent emerging trends have you developed your product/service in response to? Are there any new or emerging technologies that make your product/solution possible? Are there any specific brands you can point to that illustrate the demand for products/services like (but not too like) yours?

And to sum it all up, write a conclusion that answer this question: How do the problems customers face and the trends that are happening come together to create the perfect environment for your company to succeed?

5. Company Synopsis

The company synopsis section is where you introduce readers to your company and what you have to offer. This is the easy part: It’s where you get to talk about what you’re doing and why it’s awesome.

Consider these questions if you’re having trouble getting started: What does your company do? How does it solve the problem you’ve previously outlined? What products and services do you offer? How will customers use your product/service? What are the key features? What makes your product/service different from anything currently available?

6. Revenue Model

This is where you answer the age-old question of any business: How does your company make money? Identify all current/initial revenue sources, including pricing, COGS, and margins.

Ask yourself: Why is this revenue model the right fit for your current stage? How does your pricing compare to competitors? Are there additional revenue sources you plan to add down the line? If you haven’t started generating revenue when & how will you “flip the switch”?

7. Traction/Company Milestones

It’s important for investors to see that your business is more than just an idea on a cocktail napkin; it’s an actual, viable business. Traction is a huge part of making that case.

Here are some key categories of traction that signal to readers that your company is making moves.

  • Product Development : Where are you in the process? Is your product in the market?
  • Manufacturing/Distribution: Do you have an established partner for production/manufacturing? Distribution?
  • Early Customers and Revenue : Do you have existing customers? How many? And how fast are you growing? Have you started generating revenue?
  • Testimonials and Social Proof : Do you have any positive client reviews of your product/service? Any high profile customers or industry experts?
  • Partnerships : Have you secured partnerships with any established brands?
  • Intellectual Property : Do you have any patents for the technology behind your company? Is your company name trademarked?
  • Press Mentions : Has your company been featured by any media outlets? Which ones?

8. Industry Analysis

The industry analysis section provides a bird’s eye view of the industry your company is positioned in, what’s happening in the industry, and where your company stands in relation to your peers. You want readers to walk away from your business plan seeing not only that you’re an expert in your company but that you’re highly knowledgeable about the industry you’re entering into.

Be intentional about the statistics you include in the plan. Include only numbers that really help to illustrate: the size of the opportunity your company is positioned to address; the demand for your solution; the growth of the audience/demand for your product that is already happening; and competitor analysis.

Now that you’ve introduced readers to your industry, it’s time to give them a glimpse into the other companies that are working in the same space, and how your company stacks up. Identify at least three sources of competition for your company and answer the following questions about each one:

  • Basic Info : Where are they based? What stage of growth are they in?
  • Traction : How much revenue do they generate? How many customers do they have? Have they received funding?
  • Similarities and Differences : What are their strengths? How do you plan to neutralize them? What are their weaknesses? How is that an advantage to you?
  • The Takeaway : What can you learn from your competitors to make your company stronger?

Pro tip: When identifying competitors, it’s important to think outside the box, and look beyond companies that are offering the exact same product or service that you are. A skimpy competitor analysis section doesn’t tell investors that your solution is unrivaled — it tells them that you’re not looking hard enough.

9. Differentiating Factors

The differentiating factors section is where you outline how your product/service is different from others on the market and how those differences will help you to maintain your strategic edge. Ask yourself: What are three to five key differentiators between your company and other solutions out there? How will these advantages translate into a long-term advantage for your company?

10. Target Audience

The target audience section is where you show readers that you know who your audience is, where they are, and what is important to them.

Some questions to help you get started include: Who are the people that your product/service is designed to appeal to? What do you know about customers in this demographic? Does your target audience skew more male or more female? What age range do your target customers fall in? Around how many people are there in this target demographic? Where do your target customers live? How much money do they make? Do they have any particular priorities or concerns when it comes to the products/services they buy?

11. User Acquisition and Marketing Strategy

Now that we know who your customers are, the next question is: How do you plan on getting them?

Ask yourself: How will you get your first customers? Who will you target first? Will you introduce your product in certain key geographic locations? Are there any existing brands that you are planning to partner with? How do you plan to raise awareness for your brand? What forms of media will you use? Why? Do you have a presence on social media? Which platforms do you use and why? Essentially, what is your marketing strategy ?

12. Future Growth and Development

Once you’ve accomplished all the short-term goals, built out your initial product offering, and acquired your first customers — what will you do to grow your business from there?

Ask yourself: Do you have any new products in the pipeline? How will these new products enhance your current offerings? Are you planning to expand into new markets (new cities, new demographic categories)? Can you provide a timeline of when you expect each new development to take place? What metrics or conditions will help you to decide when it’s time to move forward? What are some potential exit strategies for your company down the road? Will you seek acquisition by a larger company? Do you plan to take the company public with an Initial Public Offering?

13. Financial Overview

Financial data is always at the end of the business plan, but that doesn’t mean it’s any less important. In fact, poor financials can rip apart anything you initially had going for you. The charts, tables, and formulas in your financial section show an investor how well you’re doing and what your odds are for continued survival.

The three most important things to include are: cash flow statement, income statement, and your balance sheet. While these three things are related, they measure quite different aspects of a company’s financial health.

We’re Here To Help

There you have it: A comprehensive guide to writing your next business plan for investors. Sound like a big undertaking? Our friends at Bizplan.com have your back. Click here for a Startups.co exclusive discount on their services. Good luck!

About the Author

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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 Convincing Business Plan for Investors

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Noah Parsons

9 min. read

Updated November 29, 2023

Raising money for your business is a major effort. You need lists of investors to reach out to and you need to be prepared for your investor meetings to increase your chances of getting funded . You need to practice your pitch and be ready to intelligently answer any number of questions about your business. A key to making this entire process much easier is to invest a little time and write a business plan . It’s true — not all investors will ask to see your business plan. But the process of putting together a business plan will ensure that you’ve thought through every aspect of your business and you’re ready to answer any questions that come up during the fundraising process.

  • Why do investors want to see a business plan?

The business plan document itself isn’t what’s important to investors. It’s the knowledge that you’ve generated by going through the process that’s important. Having a business plan shows that you’ve done the homework of thinking through how your business will work and what goals you’re trying to achieve.

When you put together a business plan, you have to spend time thinking about things like your target market , your sales, and marketing strategy , the problem you solve for your customers, and who your key competitors are . A business plan provides the structure for thinking through these things and documents your answers so you’re prepared for the inevitable questions investors will ask about your business. 

Even if investors never ask to see your business plan, the work you’ve done to prepare it will ensure that you can intelligently answer the questions you’ll get. And, if an investor does ask for your business plan, then you’re prepared and ready to hand it over. After all, nothing could be worse than arriving at an investor meeting and then getting a request for a business plan and not having one ready.

Beyond understanding your business strategy, investors will also want to understand your financial forecasts. They want to know how your business will function from a financial standpoint — what is typically called your “ business model .” They’ll also want to know what it will take for your business to be profitable and where you anticipate spending money to grow the business. A complete financial plan is part of any business plan, so investing a little time here will serve you well. 

  • What do investors want to see in a business plan?

There’s no such thing as a perfect business plan and investors know this. After all, they’ve spent years, and often decades, hearing business pitches, reading business plans, investing in companies, and watching them both succeed and fail. As entrepreneur and investor Steve Blank likes to say, “No business plan survives first contact with a customer.” 

If this is true, then why bother writing a business plan at all? What’s the value of planning and why do investors want them if they know the plan will shortly be outdated?

The secret is that it’s the planning process, not the final plan, that’s valuable. Investors want to know that you’ve thought about your idea, documented your assumptions, and are on track to validate those assumptions so that you can remove risk from your business. 

So what do investors want to see in your business plan? Beyond the typical sections , here are the most important things that investors want to see in your plan.

A vision for the future

Investors, particularly those investing in early-stage startups, want to understand your vision . Where do you see your company going in the future? Who will your customers be and what problems will you solve for them? Your vision may take years to execute — and it’s likely that the vision will change and evolve over time — but investors want to know that you’re thinking beyond tomorrow and into the future.

Product/market fit and traction

Investors want more than just an idea. They want evidence that you are solving a problem for customers. Your customers have to want what you are selling for you to build a successful business and your business plan needs to describe the evidence that you’ve found that proves that you’ll be able to sell your products and services to customers. If you have “traction” in the form of early sales and customers, that’s even better.

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When you’re pitching investors, you need to know how much you’re asking for. Your financial forecast should help you figure this out. You’ll want to raise enough money to cover planned expenses and cash flow requirements plus some additional funding as a safety net. In addition, you’ll want to specify exactly how you plan on using your investment . In a business plan, this section is often called “sources and uses of investment.”

A strong management team

A good idea is really only a small part of the equation for a successful business. In fact, lots of people have good business ideas — it’s the people that can execute well that generally succeed. Investors will pay a lot of attention to the section of your plan where you talk about your management team because they want to know that you can transform your idea into a successful business. If you have gaps and still need to hire key employees, that’s OK. Communicating that you understand what your needs are is the most important thing.

An exit strategy

When investors give you money to start and grow your business, they are looking to eventually make a return on their investment. This could happen by eventually selling your business to a larger company or even by going public. One way or another, investors will want to know your thoughts about an eventual exit strategy for your business.

  • What documents do investors want to see?

Even if investors never ask for a detailed business plan, your business planning process should produce a few key documents that investors will want to see. Here’s what you need to be prepared to pitch investors:

Cover letter

These days, a lot of fundraising outreach is done over email and you’ll need a concise cover letter that sparks investor interest. Your cover letter needs to be very brief, but describe the problem you’re solving for your target market.

Great cover letters are sometimes in a “story” format that hooks readers with a real-world, relatable example of the problems your customers face and how our product or service The goal of the cover letter isn’t to explain every aspect of your business. It’s just to spark interest and get a meeting with an investor where you’ll have more time to actually pitch your business. Keep your cover letter brief, engaging, and to the point.

If you get an investor meeting, you’ll almost certainly need a pitch deck to present your idea in more detail and showcase your business idea. Your pitch deck will cover the problem you’re solving, your solution, your target market, and key market trends. Read our detailed guide on what to include in your pitch deck here and for inspiration check out our gallery of more than 50 Industry Pitch Deck Examples .

Executive summary and/or one-page plan

You might not get a meeting right away. Your cover letter may generate a request for additional information and this is where a solid executive summary or one-page business plan comes in handy. This document, while still short, is more detailed than your cover letter and explains a bit more about your business in a page or two.

Read more about what goes into a great executive summary and how to build a lone-page business plan.

Financial forecasts

Investors will inevitably want to see your financial forecasts. You’ll need a sales forecast, expense budget , cash flow forecast , profit and loss, and balance sheet . If you have historical results, you should plan on sharing those too as well as any other key metrics about your business. Investors will always look deep under the hood of your business, so be prepared to share all the details of how your business will work from a financial perspective.

  • What to include in your investor business plan

When you put together a detailed business plan for investors, you’ll follow a fairly standard format. Of course, feel free to customize your plan to fit your business needs. Remember: your business plan isn’t about the plan document that you create — it’s about the planning process that helps you think through and develop your business strategy. Here’s what most investor business plans will include:

Executive Summary

Usually written last, your executive summary is an overview of your business. As I mentioned earlier, you might use the executive summary as a stand-alone document to provide investors more detail about your business in a concise form. Read our guide on executive summaries here .

Opportunity

The opportunity section of your plan covers the problem you are solving, what your solution is, and highlights any data you have to prove that people will spend money on what you’re offering. If you have customer validation in any form, this is where you highlight that information.

Market Analysis

Describe what your target market is and key trends that are occurring in this market . Is the market growing? Are buying patterns changing? How is your business positioned to take advantage of these changes? Be sure to spend some time discussing your competition and how your target market solves their problems today and how your solution is superior.

Marketing & Sales Plan 

Most businesses need to figure out how to get the word out and attract customers. Your business plan should include a marketing plan that describes how you’re going to reach your target market and any key marketing initiatives that you’re going to undertake. You should also spend time describing your sales plan, especially if your sales process takes time to close customers.

Milestones / Roadmap

Outline key milestones you hope to achieve and when you plan on achieving them. This section should cover key dates for product development, key partnerships you need to create, and any other important goals you plan on achieving.

Company & Management

Here’s where you describe the nuts and bolts of your business. How is your organization structured? Who is on your team and what are their backgrounds? Are there any important positions that you still need to recruit for?

Financial Plan

As I mentioned, you’ll need to create a profit and loss, cash flow, and balance sheet forecast. Your financial plan should be optimistic, yet realistic. This is a tough balance and your forecast is certain to be wrong, but you need to document your assumptions and plans for the business.

Finally, you can include an appendix for any key additional information you want to share. Product diagrams, additional details on how you deliver your service, or additional research can all be included.

  • What comes next?

Writing a business plan for investors is really about preparing you to pitch your business . It’s quite likely that you’ll never get asked for the actual business plan document. But, the process will prepare you better than anything else to answer any questions investors may have.

Create a business plan that maximizes your chances of securing funding

Content Author: Noah Parsons

Noah is the COO at Palo Alto Software, makers of the online business plan app LivePlan. He started his career at Yahoo! and then helped start the user review site Epinions.com. From there he started a software distribution business in the UK before coming to Palo Alto Software to run the marketing and product teams.

how to make a business plan to present to investors

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Tips on presenting your business plan to investors

Find out what you need to know before you walk into an investor pitch. Presented by Chase for Business .

how to make a business plan to present to investors

You put days, months — maybe even years — into crafting your business plan. You double- and triple-checked all the numbers. You had it professionally designed. And now the day has come. All that hard work has paid off and you have a chance to present your plan to a potential investor or group of investors. And while who you know is often a big advantage in business, in this case, what you know is even more important.

Know your business plan

Once you’ve made it to the step of presenting your winning business plan  to potential investors, chances are they’ve already read it, or at least part of it, and want to hear more. Be sure you know your plan inside and out. They may ask you to give a 30-second elevator speech, which is a high-level summary of your business, your customers and what sets you apart. Or they may want you to recite the entire executive summary from memory. The point is, you have to be ready for anything. Prepare to reiterate, elaborate or consolidate what’s in your plan, and anticipate any questions investors may have.

Know your audience

Many career investors will speak about their experiences, their backgrounds, what they look for in business partners, what they like to hear during a pitch (and what they don’t), industries they’re interested in and more. That’s why it could be valuable to do some research upfront. Look for any interviews they may have given, articles or blogs they’ve authored and what’s on their social profiles. If you know anyone in their network, talk to them. The better you know the audience you’ll be presenting to, the more you can cater the presentation to appeal to them. For instance, if you know that a potential investor is a staunch environmentalist who believes in saving trees, you may not want to bring a dozen copies of a 30-page business plan to the meeting.

Know your customers

Investors want to know the people they may be getting involved with, and that includes your customers. Thoroughly research your target audience. Instead of presenting a bulleted list about your customers, you might engage investors by telling a story. Walk them through a typical day in the life of a customer. Where do they live? What do they like to do? What are their needs? And how does your product or service help fulfill those needs? If investors become vested in your customers, they may be more likely to invest in your business.

Know your data

When it comes to letting go of their hard-earned money, most investors just want you to show them the numbers. It wouldn’t be unusual for a potential investor to ask for market statistics, revenue forecasts or customer acquisition costs during a pitch. Be sure you have realistic data and can back it up. After all, no matter how much investors like you as a person or believe in your product, their main goal is to make money. Their wheels are always turning as they try to figure how much of a return they can get on their investment and how long it will take.

Know your environment

You were so excited to get the meeting invite with a potential investor that you glossed over the details. But taking a closer look can make all the difference between being well prepared and scrambling at the last minute.

For an in-person meeting, the invite most likely includes the address, floor number, conference room name or specific location. If you’re close enough and have the time before the meeting, you may want to consider visiting the location. And if you’re able to get into the conference room, even better. If it’s not possible to visit, think about calling the meeting coordinator to ask any specific questions about the meeting room. Either way, here are some things you may want to confirm before the big day:

  • What is the size/layout of the room?
  • Is there one big conference table?
  • Is there a large TV or monitor?
  • Will everyone be sitting?
  • Will you need a microphone?
  • Does the room have an internet connection? Is it password protected?
  • Are there available outlets?
  • Will you need to bring an extension cord or an HDMI cable?

If the meeting is virtual, you’ll still want to prepare but in a different kind of way. With this type of meeting, you may have to work a little harder to keep your audience’s attention. Be ready with these tips:

  • Make sure the sound, picture and material are clear, crisp and engaging.
  • Set up your space ahead of time.
  • Check the lighting in the room at the time of day as the meeting so that you can open or close shades, add additional lamps or make any adjustments.
  • Be sure the background is uncluttered and professional.
  • Try signing on to the video platform you’ll be using to avoid any last-minute login issues.
  • Check that your speakers and computer microphone are working properly.
  • Do a practice run with a friend or family member, and record the presentation to see what it will look like from your audience’s point of view. 

Know your time

The last thing you want to do is prepare an amazing 30-minute presentation, only to find out you only have 10 minutes to present. Even though the meeting invite may indicate a one-hour meeting, things change and some meeting booking programs don’t allow customizations. It wouldn’t hurt to confirm how much time you have to present so there are no surprises.

The bottom line

In the same way it helps to develop a business plan checklist when crafting a business plan, it’s also important to put the same time and effort into creating a strategy for presenting that plan to potential investors. Following these tips can be a great place to start. As with anything in business and in life, knowledge is key. The more you know, the more prepared and comfortable you’ll be come pitch day.

For more ideas on how to get funding to grow your business, speak with a Chase business banker .

For informational/educational purposes only: The opinions expressed in this article may differ from those of other employees and departments of JPMorgan Chase & Co. Opinions and strategies described may not be appropriate for everyone and are not intended as specific advice/recommendation for any individual. Information has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable, but JPMorgan Chase & Co. or its affiliates and/or subsidiaries do not warrant its completeness or accuracy. You should carefully consider your needs and objectives before making any decisions and consult the appropriate professional(s). Outlooks and past performance are not guarantees of future results.

JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. Member FDIC. ©2023 JPMorgan Chase & Co.

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Introduction

A business plan is a formal document outlining an entrepreneur's goals, strategies, and ideas for achieving those goals. It serves as a roadmap for business success and typically contains details about an organization's market analysis, operational plans, financial forecasts, and marketing strategies. The purpose of presenting a business plan to investors is to obtain financing for the business venture, persuade potential partners to join the business, or secure investments from venture capitalists.

This article will provide an overview of how to present a business plan to prospective investors. It will cover topics such as the importance of presenting a compelling business plan, the information that needs to be included in the business plan, and the steps to take when presenting the plan. By the end of the article, readers will have a better understanding of the process and be better prepared to give an effective pitch to investors.

Organization of Your Business Plan

Organizing your business plan for a presentation is a critical step for you to become successful in your endeavor. Planning for the presentation should start with researching related information and preparing materials. To achieve success when presenting to investors, it is important to structure your business plan properly.

Thoroughly research before the presentation

Before structuring your plan, it is important to thoroughly research the appropriate resources and industry. Research the investment preferences of potential investors that apply to your business model. Also, consider the level of technical understanding that is necessary for your presentation. Utilizing your research, you can prioritize the relevant information and tailor the content for the investors at hand.

Present a well-structured business plan

When creating your business plan, it is important to establish a clear and concise structure. Your plan should be logical and have a consistent flow of information. Consider creating an outline that includes a description of your products and services, an analysis of the market, your target market and your competitive advantage. Additionally, consider discussing your financial goals and resources, such as funding and capital. Lastly, it is important to continuously evaluate your plan and adjust it accordingly if need be.

Summarize key features in an executive summary

An executive summary is the most important document for any business plan. This document should include a summary of the company’s mission, its financial position, strengths, and goals. It should also include a brief explanation of key features and products or services offered, as well as a short description of the management team. Before presenting your plan to potential investors, review the executive summary several times to ensure that it is clear and concise.

Pitch Preparation

Creating a pitch to present your business plan to potential investors is a crucial part of the journey. A pitch is a chance to prove how your business can be successful and why people should invest. There are a few key steps to take when preparing for a pitch to ensure your business gets the best reception.

Customize your presentation to the individual investors

A pitch should be tailored to the individual investor or investors listening. Before you present, research and get to know the investors you are pitching to. You should understand their background, any businesses they have invested in previously, and what type of business or product they tend to invest in. Having the knowledge of their history and interests allow you to customize your pitch to fit with their values, and make it more likely for them to take an interest in what you have to offer.

Focus on key selling points

The pitch should focus on the key selling points of your business. What is unique and innovative about your business? How is your business different from its competitors? What makes it stand out and attractive to potential investors? These are critical points to emphasize in your pitch to convince the potential investor that your business is a worthwhile venture.

Practice your presentation

It is important that your presentation flows well and that you are comfortable speaking in front of an audience. So it is essential to rehearse your presentation until you can recall it with ease. You should practice in front of friends and colleagues to ensure that it sounds natural and flows easily before you prepare to present to investors. Listening to your own presentation and hearing feedback from friends or family can help you identify any areas or points that could use improvement or further clarification.

Presentation Tips for Presenting Your Business Plan to Investors

Presenting your businesses plans to investors is one of the most important steps in the process of starting a business. As an entrepreneur, you must come across as confident, composed, and knowledgeable of your plan. Here are some tips to ensure you make a great impression.

Be Confident and Show Enthusiasm

Confidence and enthusiasm are two very important factors when it comes to presentations. People want to invest in plans they believe in and that come with an exciting pitch. Make sure you project a positive attitude and emphasize the growth potential of your plan.

Speak Clearly and Slowly

Investors have short attention spans, so it's important to make sure you and concise and concise. Speak slowly and pause to allow investors to process and ask questions. Don't rush to explain every detail; let investors ask specific questions, that way you can be sure you are communicating your ideas correctly.

Use Visuals to Help Explain the Concept

Investors will appreciate the use of visuals and charts to help illustrate how your business plan works. Visuals are a great way to explain complex concepts and help investors better understand the plan. Be sure to have a few helpful slides prepared that you can refer to during the presentation.

Address Any Potential Investor Concerns

Investors will have concerns about the business plan and will want to make sure all of their questions are addressed. Before the presentation, make sure you research any potential issues that may arise. Be prepared to answer any questions about the plan and don't be afraid to ask for feedback.

  • Be confident and show enthusiasm
  • Speak clearly and slowly
  • Use visuals to help explain the concept
  • Address any potential investor concerns

Presenting your business plan to investors is a critical step in launching your venture and securing the necessary resources to make it a success. A well-explained business plan will not only lead to further discussions and investments but also reinforce the potential of your venture.

Reinforce the Benefits of the Business Plan

When summarizing your business plan, be sure to emphasize the potential tangible and intangible benefits of your endeavor. Not only do you need to explain what kind of return on investment potential exists, but you should also provide evidence from reliable sources to back up your claims.

Focus on the Potential Return on Investment

This is the primary concern for most investors, so be sure to explain in concise terms what would be the potential return. Outline both short-term and long-term financial gains that prospective investors can expect and provide evidence in the form of financial models, market research, and other related documents.

Encourage and Invite Follow-Up Questions

At the culmination of your presentation, it is important to be open to questions and further discussions. Encourage and invite constructive feedback since it will create a clearer picture of your venture and affirm the investment opportunity. Keep in mind that any questions your investors may have will likely be an important part of the discussion, so being prepared and open to questions is key.

Post Presentation Advice

Congratulations! You successfully presented your business plan to investors. Now, it’s time to turn that interest into an investment. There are key steps for finalizing this process and making sure you are successful. Here are some post presentation advice tips that can help.

Follow up with a Thank You Note

Take the time that day or the very next to write a thank you note to each investor for allowing you to present your business plan. Make sure to be specific about something you discussed that you found interesting or helpful. Send out the thank you note via email or if you prefer, through a handwritten card. This simple gesture can show your appreciation and help you stand out.

Show that You are Willing to Incorporate Feedback

It’s likely that the investors you presented to have given you feedback or direction before you left. Use this feedback and incorporate it into your business plan if you think it’s something that can benefit your business. Demonstrating this willingness to take their advice shows your dedication and ability to adapt. This can leave a lasting impression with investors.

Stay in Contact with Investors

Finally, don’t forget to stay in contact with investors. Keep them updated on your progress and any changes that you have made. This allows you to remind them of your capabilities and can give them the confidence to invest. You don’t have to stay in contact every day, but keep them up to date on a regular basis.

  • Follow up with a thank you note
  • Show that you are willing to incorporate feedback
  • Stay in contact with investors

By following these post presentation advice tips, you can strengthen your case and create a better chance to gain investments from your presentation. All it takes is some small steps and you’ll be on your way to a successful business launch.

Presenting a business plan to investors can be a daunting experience. However, armed with the knowledge of how to prepare a successful business plan presentation and what to include, entrepreneurs can confidently enter any situation knowing they are providing potential investors with the information they need to make an informed decision.

By focusing on the key elements of the business plan, including the company overview, target market and financial projections, entrepreneurs can be sure to provide investors with a comprehensive overview of their business. Additionally, the use of visuals, storytelling and industry expertise can be key to convincing a potential investor.

The suggestions outlined in this article provide entrepreneurs with the tools to present their business plan and secure the funding they need to launch and grow their business. With the right outlook and preparation, entrepreneurs can easily and confidently present their business plan to investors.

Summarize the advice discussed

This article discussed the key elements to presenting a successful business plan to potential investors, including the different sections of the plan, visuals and storytelling, and industry expertise and experience. Additionally, entrepreneurs were encouraged to practice their presentation and be prepared with questions from the investors.

Explain the benefits of a well-presented business plan

A well-presented business plan helps investors better understand the entrepreneur's vision, objectives and goals. Presenting a well thought-out business plan to investors also helps increase the chances of securing the required funding and gaining a strong support network. With the right advice and preparation, entrepreneurs can easily and confidently present their business plan to potential investors.

Encourage readers to use the suggestions outlined in the article

Using the suggestions outlined in this article, entrepreneurs can create an effective and impactful presentation for their business plan. The following strategies can help entrepreneurs succeed:

  • Compose a clearly structured business plan
  • Include visuals and graphics
  • Tell a compelling business story
  • Be knowledgeable and confident in their industry
  • Practice presenting the business plan
  • Answer questions with confidence

By integrating these strategies into their presentation, entrepreneurs will be better positioned to gain investors' trust and secure the funding they need to achieve their goals.

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How to Develop a Killer Business Plan Presentation [with Template]

Written by Dave Lavinsky

business plan presentation

On This Page:

What is a Business Plan Presentation?

How to create a business plan presentation, free business plan presentation templates to download, when should you create a business plan presentation, business plan presentation mistakes to avoid [& how to do it right].

Before they meet you to discuss the possibility of funding you, investors will frequently want to read your business plan or at least your executive summary . If they like what they see, then you’ll have to present your business plan/concept to them.

You will use your written business plan to create a presentation or pitch deck to show your audience, which may include potential business partners, angel investors, venture capitalists, lenders and others. Whether you are starting a new business or growing an existing venture, if you need to raise funding, you need to nail this presentation!  

A business plan presentation is a summary of your business idea which highlights the company’s purpose, business model, funding requirements, development status, and other business essentials.

A presentation template typically includes the following:

  • Product and/or Service Demo
  • Business Model
  • Competition
  • Go-To-Market Strategy and Marketing Plan
  • Financial Projections
  • Funds Being Raised

Investors want to know more about your business and how you’ll make them money before they invest their money in your company. Make sure you provide the necessary information in your presentation to meet their needs.

Most business plan presentations are in the form of a pitch deck, or slide deck, however, there are some options in terms of the platform you use to present your business plan presentation. This may include Microsoft Powerpoint, Google Slides, Prezi, Canva, etc. Note- presenting a business plan with a unique format could be a mistake because investors like to keep things simple.

To create a business plan presentation, often referred to as a pitch deck, you will need to go through the business plan itself and highlight the key points that investors need to know.

Start with a title slide with the basic information about you, any business partners you may have, and your company.

Then, follow the steps below for each essential slide in your business plan presentation:

On this slide, describe the major problems that your target customers are experiencing. Try to express the problem in simple language so that investors can grasp it quickly, especially if they aren’t within your target customer segments.

For example, if you have a website development business, you may want to express the problem as:

“Many business owners waste valuable time, energy, and money trying to create a business website on their own. This is because they lack technical knowledge of business website design and business development.”

2. Solution

Once you’ve successfully convinced the audience that there’s a problem, it’s time to present them with your company’s product or service. So on this slide, explain how your firm intends to address the issue you highlighted. Emphasize how scalable your solution is. Scalability refers to a business’s ability to expand as demand for its services grows.

Continuing with the website development company as an example, your solution might be:

“Our business provides website development services to business owners who lack the technical knowledge of business website design and business development.”

3. Product and/or Service Demo

On this slide, you’ll detail your product(s) and/or service(s). If you have a working prototype of your invention, it should be shown here. If a prototype isn’t feasible, attempt to convey your offering to the investors as best as possible. Offer pictures or screenshots of your product/service in use from customers.

For example, in a website development business presentation, you may want to show your business’s working product as follows:

“We provide website development services including business website design, business hosting, and business email setup. Our clients are able to manage their business websites independently without having to rely on external IT support.”

Describe the real or predicted size of your target market in this slide to back up your claims about the scale of the problem and your company’s scalability.

This section of your presentation will pique the interest of potential investors. They want to know if the market is big enough and whether you can grow big enough to pay them a good return on their investment if you achieve a significant share of the industry.

So, describe the size of your market, key trends, and how big your business may develop if it achieves a major market share. This slide will be highly data-driven and is frequently evaluated by investors. Make sure your data is from trustworthy, verifiable sources and that all of your estimates are accurate.

For a website development company, this section may be as follows:

“There are over 25 million business owners in the United States alone. There were an estimated 32.4 million business websites worldwide by 2016 and this is expected to grow exponentially as business computing takes root across the globe. In fact, research from developer Gartner forecasts that business’s digital business models would generate more than $340 billion of business value by 2020, leading them to estimate that more than three out of four business processes will involve digital technology by 2018.”

5. Business Model

On this slide, you need to describe how your business generates revenues.  You can include things like your business’s pricing plan, how much it costs to acquire each customer, the business channels you’ll use, etc.

Your target audience must find your business credible and pricing feasible. If you’re targeting large enterprises with big budgets, mention that in this slide.

For example, in a website development company, you might  say something like this:

“Our business provides business owners with website development services. We provide business hosting and business email setup, both of which are paid services. Our business also offers business website design as a free service.”

6. Competition

On this slide, you’ll describe your rivals — those firms or solutions that are currently addressing the issues you described above. Clearly show how various options to your company exist in the market.

Competition is generally a good thing. Investors frequently believe a market or issue does not exist if there are no competitors.

Perform a SWOT Analysis for similar organizations and emphasize their distinct qualities. How does your firm distinguish itself from the competition? What makes your product or service stand out? What is it about your company that gives it an edge over the competition? State what gave you a competitive advantage.

Competitors for a website development company might include business website builders, business email providers, and business hosting services.

“Our company provides business owners with website development services. We provide business hosting and business email setup, both of which are paid services. Our business also offers business website design as a free service.”

Your business plan presentation should include the specific benefits that your business brings to customers. Financing demand is not enough; you need to show the compelling reasons why people will buy your product or service rather than someone else’s.

7. Go-To-Market Strategy

The goal of the Go-To-Market approach is for your company to communicate its unique value proposition to specific target consumers.

On this slide, you’ll explain how you intend to attract consumers to your product or service. If some aspects of your marketing plan are already in place, note them and the outcomes. The goal of this presentation deck’s slide is to demonstrate to investors that you have the capacity to expand your business into a global market.

As a website development business, your go-to-market approach may include business networking events, business trade shows, and business partnering opportunities.

“Our business networking events provide us with the opportunity to market our business by meeting potential clients. Businesses that are interested in finding out more about what we do attend these business networking events.”

On this slide, name the individuals on your management team. To demonstrate how and why they are the ideal individuals to manage your project, describe their skills and prior accomplishments.

Investors will be particularly interested to learn who will be in charge of executing the company ideas outlined in the presentation. Due to bad execution, a lot of wonderful business ideas never get off the ground because there are not enough competent individuals in the correct positions. 

9. Traction

The term “traction” refers to evidence or proof that consumers desire your firm’s goods or services.

On this slide, you should include the following information: annual growth rates for your business based on relevant measurements such as sales, website traffic, users, sign-ups, downloads, and so on.

If your business is growing at a consistent rate, add a graph to the slide. Include indicators that are most easily measurable in your company’s success and expansion. 

For a website development business, the indication of traction may be the business website traffic count.

“Our business has more than 10,000 business websites on our hosting service plan.”

10. Financial Projections

Here you’ll include a three to five-year projected income statement for your company. If you’re a startup, make sure your estimates are reasonable since you won’t have any prior data.

Investors will use your projections to determine the potential future scale of your business and whether it may satisfy their desired ROI.

On this slide, indicate when you anticipate breaking even and begin generating profits. Also note where additional fundraising is required, which advances to the following slide. 

5 year income statement

11. Funds Being Raised

The final slide of your business plan presentation should detail the amount of money you’ll require to reach your objectives. Rather than providing a fixed figure, you may wish to provide a range and demonstrate what you can accomplish with various amounts of money.

Importantly, emphasize the core benefits of the funding. Is it for staffing, product development, marketing strategy, or something else? To grow your company, where and how will the investor’s money be utilized?

An example of funding requests for a website development company may look like the following:

Business Plan Presentation Template – Google Slides Format Business Plan Presentation Template – Microsoft PowerPoint Format Business Plan Presentation Template – PDF Format

Investors want to know more about your business and how you’ll make them money before they invest their money in your company. Make sure you are providing the necessary information in your presentation to meet their needs.

Also, be sure to make your presentation deck well in advance leaving you enough time to rehearse your pitch, so that you feel confident during the actual presentation.  

No matter what platform you choose to design your presentation there are common mistakes business owners make when developing the presentation. If you avoid these pitfalls, you will have a much higher chance of success.

Focusing on Non-Essential Information in the Presentation

One of the most common mistakes when creating presentations is including the entire business plan into the deck instead of just the main points your recipients want to see. Most investors do not have time to read hundreds of pages of non-essential information.

How To Do It Right:

Before you start crafting your presentation deck, create an outline highlighting the main points necessary for presenting to your potential investor. Be sure to answer the following questions when designing your pitch deck:

  • How is this company different from others?
  • Why should I invest in your business when there are other funding options available to me?
  • Who is the target market for this company?
  • What measurable outcomes do you hope to achieve in the next 3 years?
  • What will be your biggest obstacles to success in achieving these business goals?

Not Timing Your Presentation

If you have thirty minutes (or ten minutes or five) to present, you simply must time your presentation to use the time available – no more and no less. If you go over the time allotted you might not be cut off, but they will keep in mind that you could not follow directions when they consider starting an investing relationship with you. If you do not use the entire time available, you will lose a valuable opportunity to explain your concepts further and they may, again, consider you somewhat incompetent.

Practice, practice, practice! Building a beautifully designed deck is only part of the presentation. Practicing is the single most critical part of the presentation. Rehearsal is especially important if you are pitching to a new company or people with specific expertise who will be looking for every detail in your presentation. Remember, timing is not just about how long your pitch deck should be but also about getting up and walking around to keep your audience’s attention. As you become more comfortable with your presentation, your confidence will also grow which will initiate a more memorable experience for your investor.

Obsessing Over Graphics and Animation

You should spend time on your presentation deck because it is a reflection of you, not because you want to use cool animations or graphics. If an animation needs explaining, don’t do it – just go with plain pictures that are easy to understand. Animated slides that are not used sparingly can lose their effect and be distracting.

How to Do It Right:

Your slides should be easily understood by individuals who have little background in your industry – just like the investors you are pitching to. If an animation or graphic is necessary to illustrate a concept, keep it simple and to a minimum so as not to distract the intended listeners.

Presenting Poorly Designed Slides

Avoid using too much text on the slides by including all the information from your business plan. The problem with too much text on slides is that the investor will attempt to read rather than listen to what you are saying. And if there is too much text, it will become more and more difficult to read the font size.

Quality slide design takes practice and is a topic in and of itself. To develop presentations with quality slide design, entrepreneurs should either hire a designer or become trained on the proper presentation software – most likely PowerPoint, Prezi, or KeyNote – so they can do it themselves.

Each slide should be focused on graphics or a few bullet points. Paragraphs or lists of text should be narrated by the presenter rather than written on the slides. Double-check all slides for spelling and grammatical errors. Having another set of eyes on the presentation will help to get another perspective.

The investment owners make to improve their presentation delivery will be well worth it as prospective investors are often turned off by owners who do not have professional slide designs and mistakes throughout the presentation.

Giving the Full Financials

Presenting the complete pro forma financial statements on slides is another serious mistake. In a short presentation, an investor does not have the time to take in all of this data and all you will convey is that a) you have a financial plan and b) you don’t know how to present.

Financials should be presented in summary format with just a few key metrics and numbers on each slide. Presenting these numbers in chart or graph format is an even better idea. If the numbers you show interest the investors, they will have time to peruse the complete financial projections and statements within your business plan at a later time.

Lack of Clarity and Confidence

Remember that these presentations may be the first, and only, impression with your prospective investors. If you seem ill-prepared or muddled when presenting the deck, investors will not get an accurate picture of what your business is about.

Rehearse your pitch multiple times until you can deliver it in a way that is clear and confident. You need to know what you want to convey in each slide and how this information compliments your business. Practice your pitch with family members or friends who will provide constructive feedback to help you prepare.

Failing to Deliver the Message

Business plan presentations are not meant to be a reiteration of a business plan. While you may think that you should convey all aspects of your plans, remember you are really marketing yourself and your business idea.

A successful presentation is about your ability to execute your business idea or concept by highlighting the following pieces of important information: who you are, what you want to accomplish, why this will succeed, and how you plan to do it.

This means that while there should be enough content in the slides for investors to conduct more research on your company on their own, your mission is not just to slide through hundreds of pages but convey a specific pitch in just a few slides.  

The business plan presentation is your opportunity to show investors what you have planned for the future of your business. If you want to learn how to present a business plan and create a perfect business plan presentation, utilize the information in this article and remember these quick tips:

  • Keep it simple and focused on one or two key points.
  • Make sure that your business slides are easily understood by those who don’t know much about business, especially your industry.
  • Present the numbers in charts and graphs rather than as full financial statements.
  • Practice! Rehearse until you feel confident and clear before taking on any potential investors.

You’ll be able to make an excellent first impression with them if you do all of this right – now go out there and ace those presentations!  

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Click here to see how our professional business plan writers can create your business plan for you.  

Other Helpful Business Plan Articles & Templates

Business Plan Template & Guide for Small Businesses

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Business Plan Advice

As a budding entrepreneur, when you think about what relationships you’re going to need to support you on your journey, you probably think about the importance of building better customer relationships or the importance of building relationships with your key resources. However, there is one kind of crucial relationship that’s often overlooked: the relationship with your initial stakeholders. Investor relations, particularly during the very early days, are the very foundation of practically all successful organizations. 

Investor Relations

Building a good relationship with investors, right from the very start, is critical, especially if you’re planning to rely on outside investments to launch, develop, and grow your idea from concept to reality.  One of the best ways to build a good relationship is to ensure that you’re communicating your message in the very best way; that you’re presenting your business plan in a way that attracts attention, gets investors excited about you and about what you do, and that puts you both on the same page.

business-owners-build-business-plan

But it’s not always as simple as that. The problem is that while you may be offering something unique, investors can’t always see how you differ from the rest. After all, the number of new startups is rising rapidly, with reports suggesting that in 2010, there were 560,588 businesses in the US under one year old . Today, that figure stands at 804,398, so investors are seeing more business plans than ever before. 

The secret to standing out, attracting attention, and building the right relationships, with the right people, is creativity; presenting your business plan in an innovative and creative way that not only lets you communicate your idea and share your message but also ensures you’re heard and understood. 

Creativity in Investor Relations

Investor relations are already beginning to become more creative. Some entrepreneurs have been boldly moving away from the tried-and-tested business plan and embracing the more modern pitch decks, for example. But this isn’t necessarily the right approach. The truth is that both the traditional business plan and the more condensed lean startup business plan are highly effective ways to get your ideas down in a structured, valuable way. The secret to attracting, engaging, and building relationships with stakeholders isn’t in redesigning the business plan; it’s in redesigning the way that you present this plan to investors. 

Here are three simple yet effective ways to mix up your presentation strategy for a bigger impact:

1. Look Beyond Reality

Isn’t realism the foundation of any good business plan? In a way, yes. Investors will always want to see a realistic overview of your financials. But the problem with realism is that when you’re at a point where your idea is just that - an idea - you haven’t really got all that much reality to base your business plan on. 

So have a bit of fun with it. Run with it. Rather than just presenting the real facts and figures, and looking at the most likely possibilities, use your presentation as a way to set foot beyond reality and get your potential investors excited not about what you will do, but what you could do. In your presentation, don’t be afraid to ‘go big’, acknowledge the bigger picture, and incorporate fictional aspects alongside your real data to demonstrate the wider potential of your idea beyond the restricted confines of reality. 

use-mind-mapping-to-fine-tune-business-pitch

The best way to present this ‘big picture’ potential is through mind mapping . Why? Because a mind map - a brainstorming diagram that features a central idea surrounded by associated concepts - allows you to go off on tangents without losing sight of the core notion. While other types of brainstorming software like digital whiteboards and online sticky notes can help you to build your business plan, the strong visuals and simplicity of mind maps are great for actually presenting these ideas in a clear, impactful way.

2. Become a Storyteller

The standard business plan consists of a range of facts and figures, all connected through narrative. But the problem with basing your business plan on these facts and figures is that data isn’t unique. Investors may well have heard 5 other business plans earlier in the day, each presenting the same information. 

A better and more creative way to present your ideas is by turning the traditional business plan around, building it on narrative, and interspersing this narrative with your data. Why? Because data sets can be seen by anyone. But your story is your story. By presenting your idea in a more personal way, you’re giving your business plan something that no other person could possibly give it: you. So, while facts and figures are important, communicating this data through storytelling is an even more critical factor. 

There are a number of different ways to become a good storyteller. One is to use your real-life experiences building your product or service and transform these experiences into a strong narrative. Another way is to create your own protagonist from scratch, walking your potential investors through your journey through the fictional yet relatable and relevant experiences of your target audience.

3. Go Off-Script

Not for the faint of heart, this third creative technique involves presenting your elevator pitch - your quickfire overview of you and your business idea - and nothing else. Instead, following your introduction, you transform what should be a business presentation into one giant Q&A session, going 100% off-script. 

Turn the traditional pitch into a new and unique opportunity for your potential investors to take the lead, asking their questions rather than just listening to your answers. One of the biggest problems with pitches today is that they are over-rehearsed, and it shows. When investors ask questions, they want their questions answered. What they don’t want is pre-generated auto-responses that have been molded to try and fit the question. And yet, most of the time, that’s exactly what they’re getting. 

two-business-professionals-meeting

While it’s important to practice and to be prepared for practically every scenario, a more creative and authentic way to present your ideas is by listening to what’s being asked and coming up with your own answers to specifically meet these questions in real-time. It’s a nerve-wracking technique without a doubt, but it’s one that helps you stand out through greater transparency, openness, and honesty. 

Finding the Right Approach

Standardized presentations are outdated. Why? Because it’s becoming increasingly clear that not all investors are looking for the same thing, so a blanket approach isn’t going to cut it. Research shows that, while some investors prioritize financials , others look more at the market, and some base their decisions on investor fit. Attracting and engaging today’s investors means utilizing different approaches based on each different investor. This highlights how important it is for entrepreneurs to research their audience. 

Is an investor creative? Are they quiet, careful, and committed to the bigger picture? Then visual presentation ideas like mind maps could be the key to success. Are they driven equally by emotion as they are by logic? Storytelling could be the solution. Are they more of the spontaneous type? Going off-script could be what it takes to have an impact. Remember: your business idea and data may not be unique…but you are. By taking a creative approach, you’re giving investors something no one else can:

An Easier Way to Prepare Your Business Plan -The Business Model Canvas The Business Model Canvas (BMC) is a one-page business plan that allows you to test and validate the key parts of your business in a manageable format.

Business Plan Presentation Template Use this template when creating a presentation for your business plan.

Copyright © 2023 SCORE Association, SCORE.org

Funded, in part, through a Cooperative Agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration. All opinions, and/or recommendations expressed herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the SBA.

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How to Pitch Your Business Idea to Potential Investors

Table of contents.

how to make a business plan to present to investors

After you’ve drawn up your business idea and crafted your business plan, you need funding to turn your entrepreneurial dream into a reality. When your ability to secure funds comes down to a 10- to 20-minute pitch to potential investors, it’s easy to feel nervous. It’s a pressure-packed moment, and you need to be at your best.

So how can you erase your anxiety and impress potential investors? Business News Daily spoke with a handful of experts, including a former participant on ABC’s Shark Tank , about how to nail a pitch to potential investors.

How to present a business idea to investors

1. tell a story..

A common topic among experts was the need to be personable and create a narrative. While facts and figures go a long way, it’s important to use those numbers to tell a meaningful story. Framing your business idea as a story also helps you explain your passion for your business.

Erin Beck, the CEO of Komae, a cooperative childcare app, believes storytelling sets her presentations apart from those of her peers. She creates an emotional appeal with an engaging pitch. “Make the story more important than what you’re selling because once the market numbers speak for themselves, they don’t connect with you for what you’re doing, but why you’re doing it,” said Beck.

Telling a story can be a great way to connect with your audience and to capture and keep their attention.

2. Define the problem.

You might be head over heels about your business concept. Your prototypes for the product are all stellar, and you’re thrilled about your business plan. Unfortunately, if your product doesn’t solve a problem or fill a need for customers, investors aren’t going to share your excitement.

“Start off with the problem,” said Donna Griffit, a corporate storyteller for startups. “Do you understand the need that’s in the market today? Do you have the facts to back that up?”

It is critical that you can answer these questions when heading into a meeting with investors. Thorough market research , along with customer surveys and interviews, can show if your product is needed. If you lack the data to prove that your idea addresses a problem, it’s difficult to engage the audience and even more difficult to get funding from investors. 

“I’ve seen startups try to take shortcuts on this and end up with glazed-over eyes in their audience,” Griffit said.

3. Practice as much as you can.

The weeks and days leading up to your pitch to potential investors is no time to be shy. Give your pitch to friends, family, neighbors or anyone else willing to listen. Not only does practicing help take the nerves off, but it also allows you to learn where you can improve your presentation.

“You’ve likely told your origin story dozens of times and have it down,” said David Ciccarelli, the founder and CEO of Voices.com. “Now, get ready to tell it possibly hundreds more. During our capital raise, I told our founding story 200 times. While it’s old news to you, it’s new for the investor, so keep it upbeat and tell it with enthusiasm.”

Don’t hesitate to pitch to multiple potential investors. Ciccarelli went with his team to cities across the country and met with a few investors in each city. This gave his group practice and put his business idea in front of more eyes.

Once you’ve gotten comfortable with your pitch, start focusing on the little details.  

“Use the privacy of your home or office to talk through your pitch and work on making it flow well,” Ciccarelli said. “Don’t be afraid to record your pitch, both audio and video, and review it with a critical eye to make sure you nail every sentence.”

Demonstrating proper body language and tightening up speaking mistakes can be the difference between successful and unsuccessful pitches. When you go over the minor details, Ciccarelli recommends planning your pauses. By doing this, you can make a perfectly rehearsed speech sound spontaneous.

Your body language conveys as much, if not more, as the words you speak. Be attentive to the signals you may be sending.

“To make your pitch sound more natural, plan your dramatic pauses out,” he said. “The pause gives the impression that you’re coming up with the material on the fly. Plus, you’ll have a moment to collect your thoughts for what you’re going to say next.”

4. Be realistic.

While practicing the pitch is a must, very rarely will your pitch go exactly as planned. Having realistic expectations will help when you’re preparing. It’s important to practice for a realistic presentation experience, which may include interruptions by investors asking questions.

In addition to expecting disruptions, it’s important to view the presentation from the audience’s perspective. Brian Lim, an entrepreneur who owns three e-commerce businesses (EmazingLights, iHeartRaves and INTO THE AM) that collectively earn more than $20 million annually, pitched one of his businesses on Shark Tank in 2015. He received offers from all five judges on the show and made a deal with Mark Cuban and Daymond John. Lim credits his success to proof of concept: He entered the show with $13 million in sales to date, and his ability to view his business from a different vantage point set him apart.

“I had to imagine myself as an investor and check off boxes that I would want to see if I were going to invest money into a company,” Lim said. 

Presentation mistakes to avoid

There are also some important things not to do when making a pitch:

  • Be late for the meeting.
  • Dress inappropriately. What’s appropriate will depend on your audience and your company/product brand.
  • Fail to convey clear benefits for your intended target market .
  • Use terminology, lingo or acronyms your audience may not recognize.
  • Talk over or interrupt those in your audience.
  • Be self-congratulatory; e.g., “This is a great idea/product!”
  • Argue with your potential investors.
  • Bring up deal details, like pricing, too early.

Move forward with confidence

It takes time and tenacity to make and close a business deal. Following the ideas above about what to do and what not to do can help you ensure that you’re prepared to make the pitch.

While immigrants and women entrepreneurs can face additional challenges , these stories of successful young entrepreneurs can provide inspiration to push onward.

Maintaining your confidence and conveying your belief in your business or product idea, without being arrogant, is key to making a positive impact and getting the funding you want.

Additional reporting by Linda Pophal.

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How to Write a Business Plan That Investors Will Like

Writing a business plan is an important first step for any startup. Although you’re not legally required to have one, a good business plan is the blueprint that maps out your goals and can help keep you on track.  

If your business will require significant capital to start properly, you may be searching for investors. This is when a good business plan is essential. Investors know that a company with a solid business plan is less likely to make mistakes and better able to handle things like unexpected costs. In fact,  29% of failed startups  attributed closing their doors to lack of funding — with exactly 8% attributing their failure to a lack of investor interest.

When it comes to securing funding for your small business from people like angel investors or venture capitalists, a business plan is vital. Before investors sink money into your company, they want to make sure it can make money. In this guide, we’ll go over how to create a business plan investors will love. 

What’s Included in a Business Plan?

Although business plans can vary greatly, there are a few essential elements. Here are eight sections that a business plan should include:

  • Executive Summary:  This is an overview of the rest of your business plan. It will summarize things like your mission statement, plans, goals, structure, and financial needs. Keep this section short.
  • Company Description:  This section will identify the key parts of your business model, like its owners, location, and clientele. It also introduces products, states company goals, and mentions timelines for growth.
  • Market Research:  This section identifies the problem that your service will solve for your customers. It shows how your product will meet market needs and the overall market size. It should be backed up by solid research and statistics.
  • Product or Service Description:  This section describes your new product. It includes pricing, marketing strategy material, and future plans. It also defines the process of delivering products.
  • Marketing and Customer Acquisition Strategy:  This section shows where you’ll find new customers and how you’ll market to them (e.g., social media).
  • Business and Team Structure:  This section charts out the roles the members of your business will play. It also includes your team’s qualifications.
  • Company Financials:  This section estimates your company’s worth and financial forecast. It notes an income statement for your own business, projects financial milestones, and describes how cash flow will work.
  • Request for Funding:  This section shows the amount of money your company needs and outlines the way the money will be used.

Check out our  guide to writing a business plan  for even more resources on what each of these steps looks like in action. 

What Do Investors Want to See in a Business Plan?

Starting your own store can be a daunting task, especially with such big players already in the game. But starting an Amazon seller store is easier than yo

At the end of the day, investors are looking for a business with profitability potential. They’re different from bank lenders, who are primarily  worried about credit history. They want you to convince them that your company will make them money. That’s why your business plan should be easy to understand, well-thought out, and plausible. 

A good business plan will walk an investor through your company’s road to success. Investors are risk-takers, but they want to take calculated risks. You need to show them that your business is their best bet through four key areas:

  • Clear direction
  • Competence within the team
  • Competitive advantage
  • Financials that add up 

Clear Direction

One of the first things an investor will want to know is where your business is headed and how it will get there. A clear direction guides all your business decisions to make sure they bring you closer to your goals. That’s why it’s important that your executive summary is straightforward and concise. 

This section is where you’ll want to grab the investor’s attention. Be direct, and be succinct. You may be tempted to describe your business opportunity in depth, but you want to keep the investor’s attention. Instead, try to describe your business opportunity in two sentences.

If an investor can’t understand your executive summary, they may not even read the rest of your business plan. That’s why it can be a good idea to write your summary last; you’ll have a better idea of what a clear summary entails after you’ve finished the rest of your business plan.

Competence Within the Team

If an investor is putting money in your business, they’ll want to know that it’s run by capable and devoted people. Your management team is just as important as the service you’re selling. In your business and team structure section, go over your team members’ qualifications and the reason they’re involved. Show why they’re the best at what they do. 

You can mention each member’s position (e.g., CEO, CFO, manager), past experience, accomplishments, or advanced degrees and certifications. Add a quote or blurb on why each person is passionate about the industry.  Even if you have a  sole proprietorship , you’ll still want to highlight your qualifications and strengths. 

Be sure to clarify anything an investor might not be familiar with. For example, they might not know that, as a master electrician, you’ve received the highest certification in your industry (and have at least 4,000 hours of experience).

Be professional. Backers aren’t keen on fun facts or personal details. All they want to know is that everyone has the skills to get the job done. Save details like “favorite ice cream flavor” for your PR material, when you’re trying to relate to your target market. 

ZenBusiness has helpful templates for things that can help you plan the foundation of your company, like  business plan templates .

Competitive Advantage

Investors need to know that your new company can compete in your field. When you’re presenting your market analysis, be sure to show what problem your service is designed to solve. You’ll also need to describe the obstacles that might keep other companies from taking some of your market share.

Let’s say you’re starting a business as a freelance digital marketing consultant. Here’s how you might lay out your company’s competitive analysis:

  • Problem your business solves:  Companies without a strong online presence aren’t able to reach broad demographics and market segments like those that can market online efficiently.
  • Barriers to entry for competitors:  You have an advanced OMCP (Online Marketing Certified Professional) certification that requires 5,000 hours of experience and additional training. Your competitors don’t have the experience or qualifications that you have.

Back up any claims you make with actual research. For the above example, you could explain that landing pages are underutilized in most digital marketing plans. While they have the highest conversion rate, companies use them less than other types of registration forms, like pop-ups. With your skill set, you can help companies use landing pages to increase conversions.

There might be many other obstacles that could lock out competitors. You might reference things like high material costs, intellectual property your company owns, or a unique geographical area you service.

Financials That Add Up

The ultimate goal of an investor is to make money. They want to know how much profit they can expect for the amount of ownership they buy. The more specific you can be, the better. Project how much revenue you’ll expect to generate in the  next five years , and break it down further than that if you can (e.g., monthly income).

There are a lot of factors that influence the revenue your company will make. When you’re  projecting your company’s future earnings , take into account things like your expenses, your price points, and how often you think your target customers will buy from you. Compensate for the future costs of growing your new business. If you’re an artist, for example, you might plan to move into a larger studio after two years. You can’t predict the future, so you’ll adjust your financial projections as your business runs.

Before you can sell part of your company to an investor, you’ll need to estimate what your company is worth. There are several methods for evaluating your business’ worth. One way is to research the amount that similar businesses have sold for recently. Still, accurately valuing your company can be complicated. It might be best to seek the help of a  qualified business appraiser . Potential investors will need to agree on your valuation.

Investors want to see finances that make sense. If you tell an investor that they can expect to make $500,000 in five years by purchasing 15% of your company, you’d better have the numbers on your financial statement to back it up.

Attracting Investor Attention

To make the most of their money, investors look for businesses with smart leadership, clear goals, solid financial plans and records, and a competitive edge. If you want backing, you need to communicate that your business idea has all four components. Drafting a great business plan is the first step toward getting an investor’s attention.

That doesn’t mean it’s the only way to get on an investor’s radar. Methods like networking are still important and can help you build the right connections to get your business funded. In fact, venture capital firms rarely let business owners they don’t have mutual connections with to the pitch deck. Use every strategy you can.

You love running your small business, but it seems like the work is never-ending.   ZenBusiness  has great resources that will make taking on your administration much easier. This is your dream; don’t let extra paperwork take the fun out of it.

Investor-Ready Business Plan FAQs

Clearly lay out the amount an investor can expect to make, the direction your company is headed, how your services will be successful, and the qualifications of your team. These elements will help inspire the confidence of an investor.

A good business plan shows investors that you’re for real. You’ve taken the time to meticulously plan out your future successful business and you’ll be more likely to make them a profit.

A business plan is a roadmap for every aspect of your business. It introduces your company, staff, and product. It also analyzes your market research and explains the company’s financial situation.

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Find more answers to your questions about creating a business plan in our free library of articles and resources

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How to Present a Business Plan to Potential Investors

Val Baev

Helping ideas to grow into measurable success. InnMind Expert in Metaverse, Crypto, Marketing Growth.

More posts by Val Baev.

Being able to sell your business plan to potential investors effectively is undoubtedly a fundamental skill for a startup founder.

Unfortunately, doing it correctly is not very intuitive. You can easily go overboard on the details too early when your audience is not yet interested enough, or you can showcase too little. Either way, such a mistake could cost you a potential investor.

This article would give you a solid backbone of info, which should help you avoid such basic mistakes that can slow down your fundraising process .

how to make a business plan to present to investors

1 Judge the Level of Interest

You need to adeptly match the information you are presenting with the level of interest of the people you are communicating your business plan to.

People who don’t know much about your project won’t have the interest and patience to read a full 30-page document. At the same time, people who are familiar with your project and business and want to make a serious commitment would expect such details.

Regrettably, this means that one document wouldn’t be enough.

how to make a business plan to present to investors

It helps to imagine the process as a sales funnel. From least-interested to most-interested, people should receive the following business plan communication:

2 Elevator pitch

You should be able to summarize the whole business in a few sentences to people you’re just meeting. It pays dividends to polish this presentation, as you would have to give it constantly to all kinds of stakeholders in your business. You can also use writing services like Trust My Paper , where experts will help you create a quality business plan early in your career.

how to make a business plan to present to investors

3 Pitch Deck

Short pitch deck, lean canvas, or business plan executive summary: the short pitch deck is the industry-standard way to present a startup idea to potentially interested parties. That said, the short pitch deck is great for meetings, but it suffers a bit when you send it by email for people to read, as it is short on text. Because of this, the Lean Canvas and the business plan executive summary could do a better job on such occasions (or even better – you can combine the short pitch deck with one of the other two documents). These documents have the benefit of being succinct but at the same time giving more information than the few-sentence long elevator pitch.

how to make a business plan to present to investors

4 Detailed Pitch Deck

An online presentation made especially to send by email. It has the same structure and contains the same information as the short pitch deck, but it is more text-heavy and detailed. It could also be used for 15 to 40 min presentations instead of the standard 5 to 10-minute pitches. Once again, committing 40 minutes to your project suggests your audience is already relatively interested.

how to make a business plan to present to investors

5 Business Plan

Finally, the full business plan. It is useful only to people who intend to commit to the project – usually investors, but also partners, co-founders, etc. Keep in mind that even though the business plan is usually used as a tool to attract investors, its main purpose is to give the founding team clarity of the path ahead.

how to make a business plan to present to investors

Sell the Core Business Idea Efficiently

Whether you use a business plan or a pitch deck, the central principles of convincing a startup investor of the viability of your project remain the same.

  • Clarity is paramount . Complexity is usually counter-productive because it risks confusing your audience. Moreover, the more complex the plan, the higher the chance it would go wrong when executed.
  • Start with the problem you are tackling (make sure it’s a real problem) and the solution you are proposing.
  • Showcase the (hopefully big) upside of the project by talking about the total addressable market and your possible market penetration.
  • Give evidence – ideally traction numbers sufficient to convince the audience that the story you are telling is founded in reality.
  • Showcase the competence of the team – demonstrating deep domain knowledge and ideally, experience is paramount.
  • Talk about competition and your competitive advantages . Saying there’s no competition is usually a sign of a bad understanding of the space, so do your research diligently.

how to make a business plan to present to investors

Finally, finish with the ask. In a business plan, you have more space to explore what you are looking for – investors, partners, etc., and what you need the resources for.

If you cover the points from above to a satisfying degree, then you are off to a great start to convince potential investors and partners.

Structure Your Business Plan Meticulously

Keep in mind that the business plan isn’t necessarily a document that’s meant to be read from A to Z. Usually people would skim-read it, and then they would use it as a reference document every time they need specific information. This means that it needs to be structured logically to allow people to easily find the information they are looking for even before they’ve read the whole document.

The business plan structure is not set in stone, but people expect to find specific pieces of information there, so being too creative with the structure is counter-productive.

A good business plan structure is the following:

  • Executive Summary : a summary of the whole plan, can be sent as a separate document as discussed above;
  • Opportunity : talk about the problem, solution, target market, segments, and possibly competition;
  • Execution : marketing and operations plan; milestones are helpful to illustrate the road ahead; success metrics are also a great idea;
  • Company Structure : cap table, management team, hiring plan for open/perspective positions;
  • Finance : financial projections – P&L and ideally net present value projections; needed funding; appendix: anything else, plus pictures and videos supporting the story.

how to make a business plan to present to investors

Presenting a business project to investors isn’t as straightforward as one would think, so it pays dividends to invest the needed time to understand what the investor expects to see and to develop the needed documentation that would allow you to build a convincing case.

That said, the pitch deck and the business plan are just a framework – needless to say, the important thing is the content, so make sure you have worthwhile things to say in your business plan.

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How to present a business plan to potential investors

Table of Contents

Specify the problem your business solves

Tell a story in your presentation, do your homework, have confidence and rehearse your presentation, save time on your business finances with countingup.

Presenting your business plan can be a scary prospect for business owners. Laying your hard work bare to be examined by someone who doesn’t know you or your business can feel intimidating. 

This article will help to prepare you to present a business plan to potential investors, through the following steps:

  • Share the problem your business solves

When writing your business plan you should have identified a gap in the market that your products/services occupy. This proves there is a viable market and audience who need your business to fix an issue they have.

Investors will be unlikely to be interested in the business if you cannot prove that your company fulfils a need for customers. When you only have between ten to twenty minutes to sell them on your business, investors want to see quickly that a business is sustainable and will be viable long term.

When planning your presentation, lead with the pain point for the target customer, and how your business solves it. 

Next, illustrate the problem through statistics on the current market. What products or services are out there currently? Show how your business has the edge over your competitors, or what benefits your company can offer a customer when they buy from you over somewhere else. 

To help you prepare, read our guides on how to write up a competitor analysis as well as the market trends part of your business plan.

No one is as passionate about your business as you are. You need to convey that to your potential investors.

You may have told people the story of how you started your business a hundred times over, but these investors will be hearing it for the first time. Be personable, and make them excited to work with you through the passion you have for your venture.

The numbers you’ve gathered in your business plan will speak for themselves but you need to tell a story with them. Create your presentation around why you want to achieve certain goals, not just the how . This is where your enthusiasm and expertise can shine through, for investors to see why you care so much about what you’re doing. They need to buy into you as a business owner and operator, as well as the business idea itself.

How many times have you seen someone fumble their numbers on Dragons Den? This is where entrepreneurs get caught out, and investors will be unlikely to want to work with a business owner that doesn’t know their figures well enough. 

Do your homework before you present the business plan to any potential investors. Learn your market analysis and your financial figures inside out and back to front, because investors are likely to question you on these during the presentation. 

Leave your financial figures until near the end of your presentation because the numbers need context. Include your past performance, your current performance, seasonal trends (is your business more popular at certain times of the year), and your projections for the future.

Be realistic about your sales projections and forecasting figures. Don’t be tempted to overpromise to impress your potential investors, because the truth will come to light when they do their due diligence before you receive any capital. 

If you have not started trading yet you can find out more about forecasting in our other blogs . If you already have sales figure to hand, here is how to create a very basic projection for a product-based business:

  • Calculate how many units of a product you sell each month.
  • Understand if you have seasonal dips or peaks and adjust the monthly figure appropriately for these months.
  • Then add up the total for the year.

If you provide services, then you can do the same by showing how much money will be coming in from contracts or clients you have already won. Calculate how much you’ll be making from each client over the year. Do the same for any customers that are in the pipeline for your business (clients that you are in the process of trying to win). This will also help you find out how many clients/projects you need to win to keep a good amount of cash flow .

Be modest when it comes to your predictions. Set realistic goals that you will be able to sustain because the worst thing you can do is promise an investor that you can make them ‘X amount by next year’ and not be able to deliver.

Exuding confidence and presenting with impact is a skill you will have to learn to present a business plan to potential investors. Making eye contact and using open body language does not come naturally to everyone, but it’s important to look assured when you’re presenting your business plan.

A way to practice this confidence is to record yourself in the weeks or days leading up to the presentation.  Video yourself to examine your body language, or record audio so you can listen to the cadence of your voice and identify where you need pauses or more information.

As cringeworthy as this task might feel, it will make a massive difference to the way you present. Seeing yourself from another perspective will be invaluable in identifying areas to improve.

Another thing to practice is being interrupted. In a real investor meeting, you are likely to be stopped and asked to expand on certain figures or areas. Don’t let this trip you up because you only practised the presentation in one long continuous flow. 

To plan for this scenario, present the business plan to a friend or colleague and have them ask you questions throughout. This will prepare you for a variety of questions at any point in your presentation.

Whilst you are preparing to present your business plan to potential investors, the Countingup app can help you keep on top of your business finances. The business current account with built-in accounting software helps you save hours on accounting admin, so that you can focus on growing your business. Find out more here .

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Home / How to make a compelling business plan presentation (plus free templates)

How to make a compelling business plan presentation (plus free templates)

Whether you’re a budding entrepreneur or have an idea for a new revenue stream within an existing corporation, you’re going to need a business plan .

A business plan is your route to securing investment and funding. It’s also a useful tool for you , clarifying what you want to achieve and how you plan to achieve it in high-def detail.

When it comes to persuading potential investors and stakeholders, you’ll need to condense your business plan into a business plan presentation. This will form a key part of your pitch.

(Cue long nights of stress and worry as you wonder what exactly you need to include to convince an audience that your business idea is destined for success — and worthy of their hard-earned cash.)

Great business plan presentations combine a brilliant business concept, data that proves potential and creative, clever slide design.

The first two are down to you. But luckily, we can teach you all the design tricks you need to achieve the latter. Bring those key components together and you boost your chances of getting the investment or stakeholder approval you need to pursue your ambitions.

Read on to learn what great design can do for you and how you can incorporate it into each of the essential business plan slides you’ll want to include in your presentation.

What exactly is a business plan presentation?

Why is design so important for your business plan presentation, the slides you have to include in your business plan presentation, cover / title slide, the problem, your business solution, competitors.

  • Business model

Use of funds

Already feeling the pressure start with a free template, 10 free templates for your business plan presentation.

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template WealthSimple Business Plan Presentation

A business plan presentation forms part of your investment pitch. It’s a summary of all the information included in your (probably very lengthy) business plan document.

Whilst the document dives deep into business details, your business plan presentation provides an overview (with you on hand to flesh things out a little).

It should tell an audience about your business and the products or services it offers. It has to detail where you’re planning to take your business and how you’re planning to get there.

A business plan presentation should also outline those all-important figures; what will you do with investment and what do investors or stakeholders stand to gain?

That’s a lot to fit onto just a few slides! But — as we’ll discover — it’s important to communicate your business ideas as clearly and concisely as you possibly can .

Whilst you have to know your entire business plan inside out (and be prepared to expand on points if investors and stakeholders have questions), the presentation is an opportunity to highlight need-to-know informational nuggets.

Aim to give investors just enough info to spark their interest and see your potential, without overloading them with the finer details.

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template How to Wow Investors with Pitch Deck Design

A good business plan presentation is all about the facts and figures, right?

Let’s be honest. You won’t get very far without a great business idea and numbers proving its profitability. But forgetting about business plan presentation design is a huge mistake.

Bad design can hamper your message and investors’ confidence in your abilities . A visually confused presentation can’t help but leave a bad impression.

Good presentation design, on the other hand, can help you to communicate your ideas more effectively. It will help you to maximize the potential of every slide, saying more without cramming in tons of text.

It will also help you to engage your audience from the very start.

Some investors sit through lots of pitch presentations . Yours should grab their attention. It should assure them of your professionalism and capability. And it should stick in their memory for all the right reasons.

Good presentation design can help you to achieve all of the above.

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template CopperCow Business Plan Presentation

The perfect business plan presentation should fit into 10 slides — 20 at the absolute most. It should take no longer than 20 minutes to deliver . But, what should be included? Here, we’ve listed the key contents that investors care about the most:

Also, if you’re pitching to a number of different groups, you may want to adapt your presentation as you go, adding in slides in response to commonly asked investor questions.

But start by keeping things short , sweet and digestible as per the structure below. And don’t forget to maximize the potential of each business plan slide by giving careful thought to design.

Cover slides are too often an afterthought. But this first slide has so much potential.

Your cover slide is your first impression. And — as we know — first impressions count. Especially when you have limited time in which to convey what you and your business are all about. 

A cover page should include your company logo and (if you have one) your slogan. It should also feature a title that summarizes your offering.

This slide won’t be information-heavy, but with the right design it can communicate a lot about you and your business. 

How good slide design can help:

Cover slide design sets the scene. It’s an introduction to you — a professional who takes every aspect of their business very seriously. And it should hook your audience from the very start.

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template Design Presentation Cover Page to Grab Attention What to Include

Pick a visually appealing font and layout. Start with a cohesive design you can stick to for the rest of the presentation.

Corporate presentations in blue tones have been seen many, many times before. So when it comes to colors, try to stand out from the crowd. Pick strong but complementary shades, without going too garish or OTT. 

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template Pitch Deck Design Stand out with images color

Also, go big and emotional with images. Images provoke an emotional reaction in an audience that just isn’t possible with text alone. 

So give center stage to an image that reflects what your business wants to achieve for its customers. You’ll draw your audience in with design, ready to hit them with business plan facts and figures.

What problem will your business solve? An audience needs to understand the full extent of this problem before you tell them how you plan to solve it.

So use this slide to explain why this pain point exists, how many people experience it and what it feels like to experience it.

Facts will convince your audience whilst good storytelling will appeal to their emotions too.

Color here is really important. With it, you can associate your brand with the solution rather than the problem.

Pick a color that contrasts with those used in your business branding. Then use this color to present the problem.

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template Make compelling business plan presentation Problem Slide 1

If you’re struggling to pick the right contrast, take a look at the color wheel . Find your primary brand color. Then pick a contrast in the other half of the wheel, avoiding the one directly opposite.

When presenting figures, pick three or four impactful numbers and put them in a BIG font. You’ll surprise your audience with both the content and appearance of your slide, emphasizing the size of the problem in the process.

Your audience understands the problem. Now it’s time to tell them the solution you envisage.

Keeping things simple will create more impact. Diagrams, sketches or just a single sentence will make your solution digestible and memorable.

Back to brand colors with this slide! This will create a link between your brand and the ingenious solution in the mind of your audience.

Creating the right emotion is also really important here. Get your audience to feel something and your solution is much more likely to stick in their memory.

Color and image are key to emotional design . They provoke immediate and largely subconscious responses in an audience. So think carefully about the visuals you include on this slide.  

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template Pitch Deck Design Use Visuals Key Moments

As human beings, we’re instantly drawn to faces. So you could use photos of people looking happy and content along with a calming color scheme to communicate a sense of positivity.

Do it right and your audience will associate those feelings with your brand and your solution.  

Your idea might sound great. But unless you have proof that your proposed market is actually interested in it, you won’t convince investors.

Use this slide to describe your market and your business niche within it. Give evidence of customer interest in your product and service, providing data that demonstrates the market size and potential growth too.

Video is a great way to showcase the opinions of your prospective customer base. So embed some short and snappy video interviews into your slide. Plus, it will give you a break from doing all the talking too!

When it comes to showing market data, take some time to think about your chart design. All charts should fit with the color scheme of your business plan presentation. Leaving your charts unedited is amateurish and a huge design no-no.

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template Pitch Deck Design Custom data charts 1

Also consider what exactly it is you’re trying to say with this data. You can then use color along with other data storytelling techniques to really highlight the important numbers and keep an audience’s attention where you want it.

Who are you up against when it comes to solving this problem and winning over your prospective customers?

Your investors will want to know all about your competition and what you plan to do differently. This slide should show how your customers are currently handling the problem you plan to solve and how alternative solutions compare with yours.

You can be a little sneaky with this slide. Use design to show your competitors in a less favorable light than your own brand.

That could mean displaying their logos in black and white and yours in full color. If you’re using a competitive matrix chart, you could use the most appealing color to represent your company.

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template Make compelling business plan presentation Competitors Slide

And if you want to show screenshots or images of competitor products, opt for the least attractive ones you can find, remembering all the while that your competitors will be doing exactly the same thing to you one day!

The business model

This is where you tell your investors just how you are going to make money — and grow theirs in the process. Solid numbers are the only way to win your audience over.

You should show the cost of customer acquisition and their lifetime value. Financial projections for the years to come, featuring cash flow, burn rate and break-even point are another essential.

Also be clear on what your investors stand to gain and when they can cash out. They’ll only ever be interested in your product and how it helps your audience if it also boosts their bottom line.

This is one slide where balancing depth of content and audience engagement is really important — and a little bit tricky. 

There’s probably lots of info you want to communicate to your audience at this point. Try to keep it simple (but not so simple that your investors don’t have enough data to go off).

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template How to Design Data in Presentation Use Right Chart

This means making the most of every chart. Play around with different charts until you find one that displays your data as simply as possible. Your audience should be able to process the figures at a glance.  

And don’t forget to customize! Highlights, color and great data storytelling will help you to convey your numbers clearly and legibly.

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template How to Design Data in Presentation Customize

What is the business but the team behind it? Investors often want to get a sense of the great minds running your brand.

This slide is an opportunity to introduce them to the management team (and give a sense of their competence and dedication to the task at hand).

Provide brief bios (no life stories here please!) and work to paint a picture of expertise in as little time as possible.

Concise bios and professional headshots are a must. If possible, take photos of team members in the same session so lighting and location are consistent.

Professional photography gear isn’t essential. Smartphone cameras have pretty good capabilities these days.

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template Make compelling business plan presentation Team Slide

But, whatever you do, don’t leave it to the last minute. You’ll end up with the pics your team have had on their Twitter profile since 2014, which definitely won’t fill your investors with the required confidence.

So, your investors are prepared to cough up the cash you’re looking for. How much do you need and what will you do with it?

This slide is a place to list your goals, and demonstrate how you’ll reach profitability (or a next round of funding) with the money your investors are putting up.

Remember earlier, when we talked about emphasizing the size of the problem faced by your market by putting figures in a BIG FONT?

Don’t scare your investors by doing the same thing here!

When you’re asking for money, keep fonts to a reasonable size. Also use calming colors, avoiding exciting reds and yellows wherever possible. You don’t want heart rates racing at the sight of those dollar signs.

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template Make compelling business plan presentation Funds Slide

Logically presenting your goals is important too. The more logical your layout, the more manageable and realistic your goals will seem.

Try presenting your goals in columns, rather than in bullet points. And then use icons to illustrate your points and reinforce your message. 

Find here more really useful info on avoiding dreaded bullet points in presentations .

Your conclusion

Just like your title slide, your conclusion should be given the same thought and attention as all the rest. End on a high note with a short but inspirational recap . 

And don’t forget your contact details too!

We’d recommend fading to a dark slide background here. That way, all attention focuses on you.

With a simple, minimalist slide design, you and your closing statements take center stage. Pick the right words and this style of presentation conclusion can leave a lasting impact on your audience.

Getting ready to pitch your business idea to investors is stressful enough, without having to worry about presentation design.

If visuals aren’t your forte, leave it to the graphic design experts at Slides Carnival and choose from one of our free business plan templates .

These templates all include a business timeline, roadmap, SWOT analysis, competitor analysis and lots of other really useful business plan key elements and visuals. Use them to add credibility to your content and convince investors and stakeholders that you’re a risk worth taking.

Slides Carnival Google Slides and PowerPoint Template Free marketing Powerpoint template Google Slides theme transparent frame

Subtle Bevel Presentation Template

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Upward Arrows Presentation Template

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Technology Pixels Presentation Template

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Business Geometric Presentation Template

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Clean Corporate Presentation Template

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Tech Illustrated Presentation Template

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Diverse People Presentation Template

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Modern Corporate Presentation Template

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Blue Corporate Presentation Template

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Cool Circles Presentation Template

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How to design powerpoint slides for oral presentations, how to write a preface for a business plan.

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Presenting your business plan is an important step in raising capital.

Making a business proposal presentation to prospective investors is stressful for nearly all entrepreneurs. Even if they are confident their business plan is well thought out, they still worry that they will not be able to express the most important aspects of their plan and engage the investors’ interest in the short time allotted for the in-person presentation. The keys to a successful presentation are advance preparation and rehearsal until your delivery is smooth and polished.

Preparing the Business Plan Presentation

Business plan presentations are designed to sell your idea to investors through a concise and engaging overview of what your business does, how it fills a consumer need and what you are looking for in terms of an investment. Seasoned investors are busy, and typically aren't interested in a long, drawn-out presentation filled with irrelevant information. In fact, many seasoned venture capitalists and angel investors will give you a specific time limit and a suggested outline for your presentation; if you receive these suggestions, it's a good idea to follow them. If you don't receive specific guidance, focus your presentation on the following key points:

  • Introduce yourself, your company and its products. 
  • Describe your market and how you solve your customers' problems. 
  • Explain how your product is different than anything else on the market.
  • Discuss the size of the market for your product
  • Explain who your customers are
  • Demonstrate growth in your market in the next 3-5 years 
  • Discuss the competitive advantages your venture has that will lead to outstanding revenue growth and profitability. 
  • Demonstrate your projected revenues and pretax profits for the next 3-5 years. 

Slides 9-10

  • Discuss your marketing strategies, including distribution channels and sales strategies

Slides 10 and beyond

  • Introduce your management team and advisory board members. Include one or two points about each person’s background and experience. and explain how each person on the team brings a critical element necessary for your company’s success.

Final slides

  • Reveal the total amount of capital you need and a short list of major expenditures.

By following this general outline and focusing on the most important information, you'll answer most of the investors' questions and give them the details they need to make a decision. Remember to only hit the highlights, and don’t try to fit your entire business plan into the presentation. Too many slides can result in information overload, and they will not remember the most important pieces of information. Aim for a business plan PowerPoint of about 10-12 slides.

Rehearsing Your Presentation

Once you've created the presentation, practice presenting it to ensure that you appear polished and professional come presentation day. Again, keep time limits in mind, and respect the investors' time. Don't forget to include time for questions in your overall presentation plan.

To begin rehearsing, create an outline of your the presentation, addressing the important points that you want to cover. If you are using presentation software like PowerPoint, print a copy of your presentation in outline view, and use that to identify the key points you want to make from each slide and jot down additional notes about what you want to say. Creating the outline not only ensures that you cover all of the key points, it also keeps you from simply reading what's on the screen, which will quickly bore the audience.

Once you have an idea of what you are going to say, rehearse your presentation with colleagues. Invite members of your management team or trusted associates into a conference room and conduct a dress rehearsal of the presentation. Get their feedback on what parts of the presentation might need editing or clarification. Time your presentation and cut it down if necessary. Rehearse the presentation several more times on your own.

Succeeding on Presentation Day

It's normal to be nervous come presentation day, but do your best to relax and calm your nerves. Try some breathing or visualization exercises ahead of time to clear your mind and get into the right frame of mind. If you are well-prepared and know your presentation inside and out, there is nothing to be nervous about. Just be yourself – the investors are evaluating you as well as your business plan, after all – and do your best to project an image of confidence and competence.

Show enthusiasm and urgency, but avoid coming across as desperate or unfocused. Speak slowly, smile, make eye contact and refer to your notes if you need to and you'll impress investors with both your business and your presentation skills.

  • Entrepreneur: 10 Tips for Creating a Winning Business Plan in PowerPoint
  • Business News Daily: How to Give a Great Business Presentation
  • Close the presentation with a sense of urgency. Show why now is the right time for your company to enter the market. Timing is often critical with early stage companies.
  • Don’t try to fit your entire business plan into the presentation. Too many slides can result in information overload for the people you are presenting to, and they will not remember the most important pieces of information. Ten to twelve slides is sufficient.

Brian Hill is the author of four popular business and finance books: "The Making of a Bestseller," "Inside Secrets to Venture Capital," "Attracting Capital from Angels" and his latest book, published in 2013, "The Pocket Small Business Owner's Guide to Business Plans."

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Write your business plan

Business plans help you run your business.

A good business plan guides you through each stage of starting and managing your business. You’ll use your business plan as a roadmap for how to structure, run, and grow your new business. It’s a way to think through the key elements of your business.

Business plans can help you get funding or bring on new business partners. Investors want to feel confident they’ll see a return on their investment. Your business plan is the tool you’ll use to convince people that working with you — or investing in your company — is a smart choice.

Pick a business plan format that works for you

There’s no right or wrong way to write a business plan. What’s important is that your plan meets your needs.

Most business plans fall into one of two common categories: traditional or lean startup.

Traditional business plans are more common, use a standard structure, and encourage you to go into detail in each section. They tend to require more work upfront and can be dozens of pages long.

Lean startup business plans are less common but still use a standard structure. They focus on summarizing only the most important points of the key elements of your plan. They can take as little as one hour to make and are typically only one page.

Traditional business plan

write traditional plan

Lean startup plan

A lean business plan is quicker but high-level

Traditional business plan format

You might prefer a traditional business plan format if you’re very detail-oriented, want a comprehensive plan, or plan to request financing from traditional sources.

When you write your business plan, you don’t have to stick to the exact business plan outline. Instead, use the sections that make the most sense for your business and your needs. Traditional business plans use some combination of these nine sections.

Executive summary

Briefly tell your reader what your company is and why it will be successful. Include your mission statement, your product or service, and basic information about your company’s leadership team, employees, and location. You should also include financial information and high-level growth plans if you plan to ask for financing.

Company description

Use your company description to provide detailed information about your company. Go into detail about the problems your business solves. Be specific, and list out the consumers, organization, or businesses your company plans to serve.

Explain the competitive advantages that will make your business a success. Are there experts on your team? Have you found the perfect location for your store? Your company description is the place to boast about your strengths.

Market analysis

You'll need a good understanding of your industry outlook and target market. Competitive research will show you what other businesses are doing and what their strengths are. In your market research, look for trends and themes. What do successful competitors do? Why does it work? Can you do it better? Now's the time to answer these questions.

Organization and management

Tell your reader how your company will be structured and who will run it.

Describe the  legal structure  of your business. State whether you have or intend to incorporate your business as a C or an S corporation, form a general or limited partnership, or if you're a sole proprietor or limited liability company (LLC).

Use an organizational chart to lay out who's in charge of what in your company. Show how each person's unique experience will contribute to the success of your venture. Consider including resumes and CVs of key members of your team.

Service or product line

Describe what you sell or what service you offer. Explain how it benefits your customers and what the product lifecycle looks like. Share your plans for intellectual property, like copyright or patent filings. If you're doing  research and development  for your service or product, explain it in detail.

Marketing and sales

There's no single way to approach a marketing strategy. Your strategy should evolve and change to fit your unique needs.

Your goal in this section is to describe how you'll attract and retain customers. You'll also describe how a sale will actually happen. You'll refer to this section later when you make financial projections, so make sure to thoroughly describe your complete marketing and sales strategies.

Funding request

If you're asking for funding, this is where you'll outline your funding requirements. Your goal is to clearly explain how much funding you’ll need over the next five years and what you'll use it for.

Specify whether you want debt or equity, the terms you'd like applied, and the length of time your request will cover. Give a detailed description of how you'll use your funds. Specify if you need funds to buy equipment or materials, pay salaries, or cover specific bills until revenue increases. Always include a description of your future strategic financial plans, like paying off debt or selling your business.

Financial projections

Supplement your funding request with financial projections. Your goal is to convince the reader that your business is stable and will be a financial success.

If your business is already established, include income statements, balance sheets, and cash flow statements for the last three to five years. If you have other collateral you could put against a loan, make sure to list it now.

Provide a prospective financial outlook for the next five years. Include forecasted income statements, balance sheets, cash flow statements, and capital expenditure budgets. For the first year, be even more specific and use quarterly — or even monthly — projections. Make sure to clearly explain your projections, and match them to your funding requests.

This is a great place to use graphs and charts to tell the financial story of your business.  

Use your appendix to provide supporting documents or other materials were specially requested. Common items to include are credit histories, resumes, product pictures, letters of reference, licenses, permits, patents, legal documents, and other contracts.

Example traditional business plans

Before you write your business plan, read the following example business plans written by fictional business owners. Rebecca owns a consulting firm, and Andrew owns a toy company.

Lean startup format

You might prefer a lean startup format if you want to explain or start your business quickly, your business is relatively simple, or you plan to regularly change and refine your business plan.

Lean startup formats are charts that use only a handful of elements to describe your company’s value proposition, infrastructure, customers, and finances. They’re useful for visualizing tradeoffs and fundamental facts about your company.

There are different ways to develop a lean startup template. You can search the web to find free templates to build your business plan. We discuss nine components of a model business plan here:

Key partnerships

Note the other businesses or services you’ll work with to run your business. Think about suppliers, manufacturers, subcontractors, and similar strategic partners.

Key activities

List the ways your business will gain a competitive advantage. Highlight things like selling direct to consumers, or using technology to tap into the sharing economy.

Key resources

List any resource you’ll leverage to create value for your customer. Your most important assets could include staff, capital, or intellectual property. Don’t forget to leverage business resources that might be available to  women ,  veterans ,  Native Americans , and  HUBZone businesses .

Value proposition

Make a clear and compelling statement about the unique value your company brings to the market.

Customer relationships

Describe how customers will interact with your business. Is it automated or personal? In person or online? Think through the customer experience from start to finish.

Customer segments

Be specific when you name your target market. Your business won’t be for everybody, so it’s important to have a clear sense of whom your business will serve.

List the most important ways you’ll talk to your customers. Most businesses use a mix of channels and optimize them over time.

Cost structure

Will your company focus on reducing cost or maximizing value? Define your strategy, then list the most significant costs you’ll face pursuing it.

Revenue streams

Explain how your company will actually make money. Some examples are direct sales, memberships fees, and selling advertising space. If your company has multiple revenue streams, list them all.

Example lean business plan

Before you write your business plan, read this example business plan written by a fictional business owner, Andrew, who owns a toy company.

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Home Blog Business Business Plan Presentations: A Guide

Business Plan Presentations: A Guide

Cover for Business Plan Presentation guide

A vital element in today’s highly competitive business landscape is the ability to craft and deliver a business plan presentation. This applies to both entrepreneurs and corporate leaders. 

This guide describes essential aspects required to build a business plan presentation and deliver it to stakeholders. 

Table of Contents

What is a Business Plan Presentation?

Is a business plan presentation the same as a business presentation, executive summary, justification of the business proposal, swot analysis, the niche of the proposal & actors in the industry, competitors, competitive intensity, trend analysis and critical variables, value chain, market analysis, jobs-to-be-done, value proposition, revenue streams, cost structure, distribution channels, key partnerships for the business model, organizational structure & management, go to market and marketing plan, development plan, qa, and continuous improvement model, distribution plan, inventory management, initial funding and financing structure, projection of income and costs.

  • Evaluation of Projected Return vs. Required

Risk Evaluation

Sensitivity to critical variables, how to present bibliographical information in a business plan presentation, how to deliver a business plan presentation.

A business plan presentation is the medium we use to communicate a business plan to an audience. 

Presenters commonly ask what is the target length of a business plan presentation in terms of slides. Our expertise in this field tells us it’s advisable to work between 13-20 slides, remaining as concise as possible and using the help of visual aids. Let the graphics speak rather than fill your slides with text blocks.

No. A business plan presentation is used to communicate an identified business opportunity and how it is planned to be served in a way that generates profit. A business presentation is a more generic term, explained in our article about business presentation examples . 

How to Create a Business Plan Presentation

This section will list our recommended content for a successful business plan presentation. We broke it down into four stages which help the presenter build the story backing the business: a-. The opportunity and the competitive landscape analyzed, b- the business model designed and tested to serve the opportunity, c- the implementation plan of the business model, and finally, d- the financial and economic projections estimated that show the profitability of the opportunity.

For the purpose of this guide, the slides will refer to a case study of photo editing software.

Stage 1 – Identifying the Opportunity

After the title slide that defines how to start a presentation , any business plan should proceed by introducing the executive summary in a concise but impactful format.

The purpose of the executive summary is to inform the audience what to expect from the presentation and its conclusion.

Executive Summary slide in a Business Plan Presentation

Work with a maximum of two slides for this section, highlighting the key elements through visual cues. Check our guide on how to present an executive summary .

The next slide should disclose all the reasoning behind the business plan proposal, why this plan is being presented at this present moment, and projections of how the plan aligns with the current market trends.

Presenters can share the analysis done by the Market research team as long as it’s made clear which problem is relevant to the current market trends that this business plan aims to solve.

Mention all the references used to arrive at the conclusions expressed so data is backed with meaningful sources.

Justification of the Business Proposal slide

Any corporate PPT template can help you craft this slide, but presenters can also boost their performance through the use of infographics . If your solution for the selected problem involves a complex process, consider using a process flow template to expose the step-by-step justification of this proposal.

Use a SWOT template to showcase the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats of this business opportunity.

SWOT Analysis slide in a Business Plan Presentation

Make sure the SWOT diagram is legible. Work your way to meet the same aesthetic style despite speeding up the process with templates. Mention the tools used for gathering the information for this SWOT Analysis in the footnote and ensure the audience understands which information elements help you reach conclusions in each quadrant. Check our guide on how to create a SWOT analysis and see if your business plan requires a SWOT or SOAR analysis . 

Every business plan is scoped under a niche or industry sector. With this slide, describe the sector in which the proposal is immersed. Communicate its value,  list the actors involved, and describe their high-level relationships.

Actors in the Industry slide in the Business Plan Presentation

List the analyzed competitors. Communicate their attributes. The competitors’ comparison in business plan presentation can be visually explained using tools from the Blue Ocean Strategy framework, like the Strategy Canvas . 

Blue Ocean Strategy Canvas in Business Plan Presentation

The competitive intensity of an industry sector is studied through the Porter’s 5 Forces model. This intensity expresses how attractive the industry is. Explain the conclusion in each force showcasing the model.

Porter's Five Forces Analysis in Business Plan Presentation

First, introduce the variables identified as important for the industry sector, citing the insight’s source. Secondly, drill down each variable and break down the different trend dimensions ( PESTEL ) 

  • Use a highly visual slide, like a dashboard template , to introduce factual data regarding the trends over a specific time period. Growth rates must be represented in time frames of over 180 days to evaluate the trend accurately.
  • List the critical variables (consumers, product, production capability, and financing) briefly.
  • Disclose how each variable can affect pricing and your position within the niche for that trend. Presenters can refer to case studies from successful competitor stories on how they responded to trend changes in the niche.

PESTEL Analysis slide for a Business Plan Presentation

When presenting the value chain, we ought to articulate the sequence of activities the company handles to create value within the business plan. Start by breaking down the value chain into its key components, briefly explaining the stages from inbound logistics all the way through customer service. It is important to highlight the linking point between each stage and express the value of coordinating team activities to enhance overall efficiency.

Value Chain Layout slide in a Business Plan Presentation

We can use flowchart diagram templates as visual aids for the audience so they can understand the process sequence. Check our guide on how to make a flowchart .

Present the identified Market and its Segments. Continue explaining how conclusions were driven through the analysis and sizing of the market.

TAM SAM SOM for Business Plan Presentations

Presenters can use target market analysis templates , market segmentation templates , or TAM SAM SOM templates to compare their target market with the total available market. 

We recommend you check our guide on market segmentation for this process.

Then drill down with a Persona definition.

This study can be made by creating ideal customers, describing their demographics and psychological factors that make them prospective candidates to purchase the product or service this business plan presentation refers to.

Here is our guide on creating buyer personas . 

The Jobs-to-be-Done theory explains why certain customers are attracted to products and services and how those elements solve core problems in the consumers’ lives. 

A Perceptual Map is a tool we can use to measure the consumer perception of different products/services in the same market. This can be particularly useful if our value proposal is to brand ourselves as cheaper alternatives to already existing solutions. Check our guide on perceptual maps for further information.

Check our guide on the Jobs-to-be-Done framework and add suggestions to the business plan presentation.

Stage 2 – Business Model

To describe the  Business Model in your Business Plan Presentation, use the business model canvas analysis tool. Display your design in one slide.

Business Model Canvas for a Business Plan Presentation

For specific sections of the BMC, you can add slides if you need to drill down for further details. In our experience, the following sections require a deeper level of explanation.

List the Segments targeted in your Business Model. You can include a slide with additional information and segment size. Reference the Market analysis explained earlier to justify the selection or which were the pivots applied.

Customer Segmentation slide in a Business Plan Presentation

In order to explain the reasoning behind the Value Proposition and how it serves the segments selected, you can use the Value Proposition Canvas tool to explain the logic behind this selection.

Value Proposition Canvas slide for Business Plan Presentation

The Value Proposition outlines the unique benefit our product or service offers the market and why customers should choose our offer over potential alternatives. Since we have already analyzed the potential buyers and presented the market, it’s time to deliver that value proposition using our best assets: customer testimonials, report data, surveys, etc.

As testimonials often weigh the most in established brands, be sure to present this information through a narrative that showcases why your product or service had a positive impact on the life of that customer. You can use customer testimonial templates to give an extra boost through visual aids.

Customer testimonial slide in a Business Plan Presentation

Explaining how much the customers will pay for the product/services is critical to understanding the viability and profitability of the business. Showcase for each segment the pricing model and the engagement terms.

The Income Model expresses the sources of revenue for our business plan. This has to be in relationship with the pricing strategy for established businesses. Lean startups can work concerning their minimum viable product (MVP) and then elaborate with projections for future releases or changes in their income stream structure.

At this point, companies need to present the sources of revenue depending on their origin:

  • Product Sales
  • Subscription Model
  • Freemium Model
  • Partnerships with other brands in different niches
  • Advertising and Sponsorships
  • Monetization

Check our guide on pricing strategy models for more information about how to present this point. You can use revenue stream templates to represent this data in style.

Pricing table slide in a Business Plan Presentation

Drill down the cost structure categories and relate them to the Value Chain explained earlier. Show a cost breakdown chart to make it easier for the audience to understand their weight in the total costs.

As this step can be a bit complex to articulate, we recommend you check our guide on Cost Structure to see how you can resume all that information in one slide.

At the business model stage, distribution channels should be briefly introduced since they will be mentioned again in the Distribution Plan . In some industries, it is important to highlight which channels are chosen over others for the sake of revenue and faster operation.

Our Distribution Channels PowerPoint Template is a perfect resource for this.

Distribution Channels slide in Business Plan Presentation

Presenting the strategic partnerships for the business plan is a way to prove the plan’s potential reach and success factor. On this behalf, companies must list which resources they are sharing with their business partners regarding expertise, technology, distribution channels, or capital, as these elements will impact the cost structure.

You can use the Business Partnership PowerPoint Template to present this information in a professional-looking format.

Stage 3 – Implementation

The business plan is designed to offer a product, deliver a service, or combine both. At this stage, the business plan presentation drills down on how the organization will build/deliver the product/service implementing the business model outlined earlier.  

Describe how the company operates regarding human capital and its roles. Presenters must describe to the audience the hierarchical structure, responsibilities, and how they play a role within the value chain.

Org Chart in a Business Plan Presentation

You can use Org Charts to represent the roles and responsibilities in the organization visually. It is also advisable to highlight the expertise and experience of the management team, as it helps to build trust.

The Human Resource Plan must refer to your planned recruitment, training, and employee onboarding. Which talent will be required, and how is it planned to build the different teams of the structure.

HR Plan slide in Business Plan Presentation

Check the Go To Market Strategy guide and describe how the Business Plan will enter the market and overcome the initial barriers. Continue with the Marketing Plan limited to 1-2 slides resuming the plan’s tactics to increase brand awareness and the selected channels for this strategy. 

You can use the Marketing Plan Templates help to speed up the process by focusing on the content to fill rather than the design or creating complex charts from scratch.

Go-To Market Framework in Business Plan Presentation

Present the sales plan describing the full sales process, lead generation, nurturing customers, and conversion strategies.

Use Sales PowerPoint Templates to visually illustrate your sales process, like the Sales Pipeline Slide Template for PowerPoint , which depicts the process from lead acquisition to a closed deal.

Check our guide on Sales Plan for further information on this topic.

This step refers to presenting the product/service development plan, the Quality Assurance processes behind its validation, and your company’s commitment to a continuous improvement process based on surveyed data or customer feedback.

We can refer to testimonials, user case experiences our team successfully troubleshot, or experiences we learned from competitors in the same niche.

Presenting the distribution plan involves addressing logistics topics, supply chain , and sharing fulfillment strategies. Although we already presented the potential distribution channels, this is the step in which you detail how each will interact and their impact on the estimated revenue. 

Present one slide mentioning your company’s approach to these channels, if applicable:

  • Direct Sales (either physical store or e-commerce)
  • Retail Partnerships
  • Wholesalers or Distributors
  • E-Commerce marketplaces

This step involves two different approaches depending on the kind of industry we’re in. For traditional business, inventory management in a business plan presentation must highlight how the inventory will be handled to minimize transportation costs or overproduction. Projections must be shown per quarterly period and take into account seasonality if it has a significant impact on the required storage capacity.

On the other hand, e-commerce companies have to present their online infrastructure to secure the product’s availability 24/7, how customer tickets are handled when the customer cannot access the product, server costs, and how we prevent online leaks.

Stage 4 – ROI and Risk Evaluation

This section will outline the Financial Plan of your Business.

Showcase the financial structure, including equity, debt, and potential investors, at the moment of kick-starting this business. It is a good practice to consider the initial funding slide to be a brief summary of those points, with particular emphasis on the funding needs.

Cash Flow Diagrams , Comparison Chart templates , and Timeline templates to showcase when funds help to meet each of the plan’s milestones are good ideas to represent the elements on this slide.

Income and expense projections must be presented over a defined time period by using graphs or charts to clearly visualize the trends supporting each change.

Revenue and Expenses breakdown slide for Business Plan Presentation

Break down the revenue sources with clear, identifiable icons to showcase: product sales, subscription fees, advertisement, affiliates, etc. Sales estimations have to be realistic and conservative, as they will be contrasted with the production, marketing, administrative, and personnel costs to leave a gross profit margin calculation. 

Evaluation of Projected Return vs. Required 

Demonstrate the feasibility of your business plan. Start by presenting the profit margins in relation to the projection of income and expenses, then introduce the break-even analysis .

Presenters can make their message more relevant by presenting an ROI calculation and contrasting it with industry benchmarks in the same niche. By following this approach, presenters prove how the ROI offered by this business plan aligns with the investment’s risk projection.

Presenting a risk evaluation analysis in a business plan presentation involves introducing both risks and their mitigation strategies. 

Risk Management templates , like the ROAM framework, can help organize potential risk sources by their severity and impact on the organization. A pyramid diagram can be used to demonstrate how risk management can be delegated across the organization to completely eradicate the risk factor depending on its severity. 

The elements you should consider presenting are mainly regulatory changes, market changes, competitors (new or existing), and financial crises. 

The final point in our business plan presentation involves summarizing how key variables can influence the projected returns in our plan. Examples of these variables can be sudden increases in raw materials (affecting production costs and sales prices), a new pandemic (affecting workforce capacity and shortage of raw materials), geopolitical situations like war, etc.

We highly recommend presenting these critical variables using scenario analysis techniques according to measured data. Introduce best-case, worst-case, and most likely-case to give a full panorama of how your organization is prepared against any contingency.

An often overlooked point in a business plan presentation comes when listing the bibliographical information used to craft the business plan. Follow these steps to ensure a professional outcome for this slide or document.

  • Use a title like: “Bibliography,” “Source Credits,” or “References.” If your business plan presentation cites examples from other companies, use a “Works Cited” section.
  • References are usually shown in the APA style, but the MLE or Chicago style can be requested depending on your location or situation.
  • Maintain a consistent style in terms of reference style used, font, text size, and formatting options across the entire slide deck. Footnotes or in-text citations can be used for important data.
  • Verbally acknowledge your sources when required throughout the course of your presentation. This helps to establish credibility and respect for other people’s work rather than just dropping a slide with chunks of text.

This section will cover the most commonly asked questions on delivering a business plan presentation.

How many slides should my business plan presentation list?

This will depend entirely on your niche and the complexity of the business plan. Generally, work with at least 15 slides and no more than 30. It is best to use an extra slide rather than overcrowd an existing slide with tons of information.

What is the best format to present a business plan?

There are different options to present any business plan, so the selected option will mostly consist of the presenter’s preferred style and the audience’s age and interests.

  • PowerPoint Presentation : You can start from a blank slide and go all the way through a professionally designed PPT template . PowerPoint documents allow you to present images, text, audio, videos, and any kind of graphic to help you convey the core ideas behind the business plan. They can work with any PC or Mac device, as well as mobile devices.
  • PDF Documents: This can be a choice made in a hurry or by preference. Sharing a PDF document can work, but you must include the fonts used in the original document, as some compatibility issues can be present. 
  • Pitch Deck : Rather than doing a lengthy business plan presentation, a pitch deck consists of a maximum of 15 slides to deliver your proposal concisely. This is the typical approach we can see in TV shows like Shark Tank. 
  • Video Presentation : In some cases, using a video in a business plan presentation is relevant, especially if we are to introduce an innovative product in the market. You can use videos to showcase features, present services in a live format, introduce your team, and plenty of other options.

Are printables required in business plan presentations?

Although they are not required, using supplementary material in business plan presentations can be useful. You can prepare reference material for investors, especially involving complex data like graphs in an amplified format (and reference the slide in which they appear and vice versa).

Providing a printable to accompany your business plan presentation helps to give an image of professionalism and respect to your proposal.

What are the don’ts of writing a business plan?

The main purpose of this article is to craft and deliver a business plan presentation. Still, we would like to clarify some common errors seen in business plans that typically affect the performance of the presentation.

  • Using overcomplicated language : Jargon or unnecessary acronyms may confuse spectators who are not in touch with all the details relevant to a particular industry. 
  • Ignoring the audience : Not considering the variety of interests among investors, partners, and team members can hinder your presentation.
  • Neglecting/underestimating competitors : Any realistic business plan considers the existing competitors in their niche and perhaps potential newcomers. Not doing so will leave you unprepared to present a doable business plan.
  • Ignoring Risk Assessment : Omitting the Risk Assessment analysis and mitigation strategies does not respect the value investors and your team have. 

How long should the business plan presentation be?

As a general guideline, try to fit your business plan presentation between 20-30 minutes. Some complex plans may require additional time to be presented.

Does the presentation need to be tailored to different audiences? 

Using this tactic can be a winning factor for both investors and your team, as you prioritize effective communication for the roles they are relevant. Take these items into consideration for tailoring the presentation for specific needs.

In-Company Presentation

The focus should be on goal accomplishment and the strategies targeted to the team’s roles. Emphasize how teamwork is the pathway to success and how each individual contributes to the bigger picture.

If new technologies or knowledge are required as part of the business plan implementation, then this is the moment to disclose that information and inform the process to coach the team into it.

Board Meeting

Whenever delivering the business plan presentation to a board of directors, focus on the strategic goals, financial projections, and KPIs. 

Showcase how this business plan aligns with the company’s core values, mission, vision, and long-term strategy. 

Potential Investors

Presenting your unique value proposition, potential ROI, and highlighting the market opportunity is extremely important. Focus on selling your business model and vision with accurate financial projections and growth strategy. 

Dedicate some minutes to present your industry’s competitive landscape and answer why your product or service is a better offering than what competitors produce.

As we can see, creating a business plan presentation is a process that can be time-consuming if we lack the required business plan presentation tools to turn data into visually appealing formats. 

Remember to work concisely without losing the big picture of what you intend to explain. Your presentation is the entry point into the heart of your business; therefore, by adopting a structured approach, you can deliver an experience that engages, inspires, and builds confidence. 

1. Coffee Shop Illustration Business Plan Slides

how to make a business plan to present to investors

Create your new business plan presentation with quality vector illustrations for Coffee Shops. Ideal for cafeterias, coffee bars, barista giftshop stores, bookshops and more.

Use This Template

2. Real Estate Business Plan PowerPoint Template

how to make a business plan to present to investors

Realtors looking to start their own agencies should take a look at this attractive selection of slides with tailored real estate vector illustrations. These presentation plan slides show the different stages that a prospective buyer may incur, from hiring the services of a Real Estate agent, checking different properties, to finally buying a home.  Graphs and charts are included in vivid colors that are fully editable to meet the required branding.

3. Restaurant Business Model PowerPoint Template

how to make a business plan to present to investors

As we’ve seen with the previous cases, these vector images depicting typical restaurant activities can help us build a business plan presentation sample to discuss with our team prior to an important meeting. Save time and money by introducing these professional designs into your presentation.

4. One Pager Business Plan PowerPoint

how to make a business plan to present to investors

To briefly summarize the objectives of your business plan, work in-team with this one-pager business plan slide. Ideal to take notes, give a general picture of the current status of the business plan and key growth opportunities.

5. Business Plan PowerPoint Templates

how to make a business plan to present to investors

If you want to create the best business plan presentation, this slide deck can make that task 100% easier. Containing all the elements described in this guide, introduce your data and prepare to deliver a powerful speech.

6. Flat Bold Business Plan PowerPoint Template

how to make a business plan to present to investors

Another slide deck intended for those looking at how to make a business plan presentation that delivers a memorable experience. With a minimalistic design approach, it perfectly balances formal elements and impactful visual cues to help increase your audience’s retention rate.

7. Car Sharing Business Plan PowerPoint Template

how to make a business plan to present to investors

Create the next Uber-like car-sharing service with the help of these carpooling vector illustrations perfectly arranged in a cohesive business plan slide deck. Presenters can explain the ins and outs of their business model with highly detailed graphics that grab the attention of potential investors. Check it out now!

8. Beauty Salon Business Plan PowerPoint Template

how to make a business plan to present to investors

Business plan presentations don’t have to look formal or boring. This slide deck is geared towards beauty salon businesses, especially for those targeted to women. Chic design, bold color scheme, and extremely useful tools like a pricing list to present an idea like a subscription-based model where consumers see the total value of their investment.

9. CrossFit Business Plan PowerPoint Template

how to make a business plan to present to investors

Finally, we list an option filled with tools and gym vector illustrations for those looking to start a gym business or CrossFit academy. These illustrations were crafted with care to express the core idea on every single slide, such as human-shaped graphs to present relevant KPIs.

how to make a business plan to present to investors

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How to Make a Business Plan Presentation? Guide & Examples

This guide helps you make a strong business plan presentation easily. You will learn about important parts, how to organize them well, and use visuals effectively to explain your business idea clearly. You will get better at telling your business story to feel more confident in a competitive environment.

How to Make a Business Plan Presentation? Guide & Examples

An innovative way to display your ideas and convince your team or clients is to present an idea with a business plan presentation. An effective presentation can showcase your mind and create an engaging meeting covering all necessary plan elements.

Every venture requires funding to start or grow and expand its business. A clear and detailed business plan will make it easy for the investor to understand your vision and goals. Hence, making it easier for them to fund you.

Whether you are a team, investor, or client, you must understand the importance of a business plan PowerPoint presentation. With the right strategy, you can influence anyone about your objectives and pitch your idea with an effective presentation. In this article, you will learn how to make a business plan presentation to grow your business. 

What is a business plan presentation?

The purpose of a business plan presentation is to summarize a company’s strategic goals, operational details, and financial forecasts concisely and visually engagingly. It typically includes key information such as the business model, target market, competitive analysis, marketing strategy , and financial projections. The business plan aims to communicate the business concept, demonstrate viability to stakeholders, and secure support or funding.

How to Make a Business Plan Presentation Tutorial & Examples blue infographic with four people

Key elements Of A Business Plan Presentation

A business plan presentation must include certain content that accurately represents your ideas. Usually, about 10 to 12 slides are required for an effective presentation. The key elements of the business plan must include the following:

Customer Profiles

Marketing and sales strategies.

  • Organizational Structure And Management

Services And Products

Financial plan.

Your plan must have details about the company profile and should be explained using infographics in your slides. With the right graphics, one can better understand your company and its objectives. The company profile usually includes the history of the company, an overview of products and services, its customers, and its targeted market. 

Company Profile Global PowerPoint Template for How to Make a Business Plan Presentation?

The market analysis in your business plan presentation explains the size of your target audience, the problem it solves, and the consumer’s needs. It should include the strengths and weaknesses of your products and services. It must also include competitors’ market research and how your product will handle the competition. This way, you can show your investors how your product will stand out from the competition and your Unique Selling proposition. 

Comparative Market Analysis Template for How to Make a Business Plan Presentation?

It is a sub-part of your market analysis. Your market research not only focuses on the competition but also the consumers. The customer profile includes most customers’ age, career, or location. It also includes their goals, problems, and behavior patterns. It can also provide how to attract that particular audience section and how they will trust your products. With customer profiles, you can determine the right price point, after-sales services, and market reach for consumers (both online and offline).

Target Audience Behaviour PowerPoint Template for How to Make a Business Plan Presentation?

Once you explain your products’ needs, the next step is to market them. It is best to have a better market analysis to understand the ins and outs of your targeted market. The strategies usually include budgets, communication channels, marketing goals, and the resources needed to sell the products. Any investor investing in your product will be more easily convinced if they see a foolproof plan that guarantees a solid return on investment. Nothing is better than showcasing your marketing and sales strategies and impressing investors with effective plans. 

Digital Marketing Strategy PowerPoint Template for How to Make a Business Plan Presentation?

Organizational Structure and Management

The next order of business after your marketing strategy is the team. It is better to introduce your team and management people to make your investors acquainted with the ones in charge. Investors bet on the foundations, and your team is your foundation to grow your business It is easier for them to trust when they know who your team members are. 

An organizational chart representing your team and explaining their work and roles in the project is a good start. It will also highlight the effective hierarchy of work and establish a formal order of command that is followed. This structure will ensure your team follows a professional work culture. 

Org Chart PowerPoint Template How to Make a Business Plan Presentation?

The services and products include tools that can benefit the targeted consumers. These tools include product canvas, value proposition canvas, and many others. Such tools ensure that the product fits the said customer. It also helps define your customer profiles and explains the market needs. 

Service Catalogue PowerPoint Template for How to Make a Business Plan Presentation?

The last but most important section of this business plan is the project’s financials. It is what the investors most care about. You can include the history data to establish your successful operations and how it will give you an edge in handling your new product.

Along with history, a future plan about how much funding you need and how you will execute your plan to use the said funding. You can use templates to save your time. They are available online. For example, try SlideUpLift templates to create a financial map for your investors. This plan must include all financial data and a plan B. This shows the investors that you are well prepared for all the situations.

Budget Finance Table PowerPoint Template How to Make a Business Plan Presentation?

It is best to conclude your presentation with an executive summary . It is a great way to explain how and why your plan is the right step for them. You can also add features and services you will offer. A precise yet appealing conclusion can offer you an edge. You can take it as the perfect ending as it concludes your plan. 

How to Make a Business Plan Presentation?

What is the difference between a business presentation & a business plan presentation?

A business presentation is a method of presenting information about your business. It can include marketing strategy or any other aspect related to the business. 

On the other hand, a business plan presentation is a way to interact with your investors, shareholders, and the audience. It includes your objectives, market research, customer profile, financial stakes, and the core of your idea. The business plan PowerPoint presentation is a foolproof roadmap of how you will execute your idea into a business model. 

How to make a business plan presentation?

A business plan presentation helps you explain your plan and execution strategies in an organized way through visuals. You can influence your audience with a good presentation that includes step-by-step interaction with all the sections. Each part and content of the presentation displays the need for your product and ensures trust and confidence for the investors. It is best to include useful information through a well-prepared visual aid and verbal explanation.

Here are the steps on how to create a business plan presentation:

Review essential business information

The first step is to review each element of your business plan closely. It acts as the base while collecting information for your presentation. It creates a firm foundation and effectively starts your business plan.

Research business competitors

You must also include your competitors’ information and statistics in your business plan presentation. With sufficient information and facts, you can help your product stand out. This information can help you build your reputation as a unique brand. This will create a professional and reliable image of your business for the consumers.

Network with prospective investors

Once you have collected the necessary information and prepared your strategies, the next step is approaching the right investors and stakeholders to showcase your business plan. You have higher chances of maximizing your investments by reaching the right audience. It also helps you understand and question your product in detail before you enter the market at your full capacity. Investors can also provide their valuable feedback, and all of this requires networking. 

Recommended: Explore our Strategy Roadmap PowerPoint Template here!

Create a slide presentation of your business plan

The next step is to display your plan uniformly and convince them to put their money into your product. One can attract investors and stakeholders better with effective strategy and influential products. Slides presentation is a visual approach and is better at convincing investors than just sharing statistics tables. 

Practice your business plan presentation

The final step is to practice your presentation before presenting. You can do a demo run of the presentation for your team members and understand the common doubts they have. A demo run can help you identify your faults and prioritize which section is more vital than others. Your team must also brainstorm questions your investors are likely to ask so that you are well-prepared beforehand.

Top 10 slides you need for a business plan presentation

You need at least ten slides to present your idea effectively. Covering one topic in each slide is more appealing as it helps the audience counter questions after each slide. Here are the top 10 slides you can add to the plan presentation:

How to Make a Business Plan Presentation Tutorial & Examples slides that are included

Slide 1: The Title Slide

A title slide is an introduction to your presentation. Just add your business name, logo,  slogan, and motto you believe in. You can begin your presentation with the next slide with just a few introductory lines.

Slide 2: The Problem Statement

As we discussed, it is better to come directly to your product and explain the problem it solves. Rather than beating around the bush, please focus on the facts and explain them with a story. You can also include effective infographics, fun facts, and engaging questions to increase audience attentiveness. You must ensure that your problem statement is short, clear, and easy to understand. This slide will shape your whole presentation. You will attract your audience’s attention by clearly conveying the problem your business solves. 

Slide 3: Your Business Solution

Now, as soon as you discuss the problem, you must focus on the solution to how your products solve the problem and conclude the slide by connecting it with the story. You can add a step-by-step solution or use graphs to help your audience understand the process.

Slide 4: Your Pricing Plan

The following slide should discuss your price strategy. A more effective payment plan will only retain prospective customers. It is better to attract customers with appealing prices and impress them so they keep on purchasing your product or service. It is easier said than done. But once you convince investors of your problem/solutions, you must impress them with your revenue stream strategy. You may also add your competitors’ pricing to this slide to justify how reasonable your pricing plan is.

Slide 5: Business Operations Information

Briefly explain your business objectives and operations in your Business Plan Presentation. Add how you have planned to streamline your business operations to save time and resources. You can help them understand your work better by explaining it step-by-step. 

Slide 6: Your Marketing Plan

Now you have a Problem statement and your solution. But how will you enter the market?  How will you let your target audience know about your services and products? A product is as good as nothing if it doesn’t reach your customers’ hands. For this, you need a marketing strategy. Add your go-to market strategy to this slide. It helps investors understand how you will reach your targeted audience. The more you impress investors with a marketing strategy, the more chances you have of investment. 

How to Make a Business Plan Presentation?

Slide 7: Industry Overview

This slide shows current industry conditions. It includes your competitors and how they are operating the market. Just keep the data fact-based to make it more credible. 

Slide 8: Financial Projections

This slide displays how fast you will grow and what your investors can expect in returns. It will include money management and growth strategy as well. Add all the details about how much you will spend on various stages. Include your revenue and profit expectations for the following years as well. Financial projections for 3-5 years can help you reach your goals faster.

Slide 9: Your Team

This slide is an introduction to your team. Add all the crucial team members responsible for executing the plan. This will give investors a sense of your company’s hierarchy. And help them understand who is responsible for what. A well-established team with dedicated and motivated people always boosts investors’ and stakeholders’ confidence in the business.

Project Team Leadership PowerPoint Template for How to Make a Business Plan Presentation?

Slide 10: Concluding Slide

The last slide must be an executive summary or a conclusion. This slide will discuss all the essential topics you discussed in a precise form and help you conclude better. Adding this slide is best; it helps your audience remember the vital topics and keeps them engaged throughout. 

Business plan powerpoint presentation examples

There are thousands of business plan powerpoint presentation examples and templates you can select from. Besides basic free presentations, you can download executive summary templates , project management presentation templates , and other templates from many online resources. It is easier to select among these templates once you have a concept in mind. Even if you have no budget to buy premium PowerPoint templates , you can download a free template to cater to your needs from SlideUpLift’s website.

How to present a business plan presentation?

The best way to present your business plan is with PowerPoint presentations. You can use ready-made templates and edit them as per your requirements to ease the job. Usually, up to 15 slides must be displayed to display your overall execution strategy. But you can add or remove slides as per your content. Using simple vocabulary and easy-to-understand terminology for such business presentations is vital. 

Most interesting presentations have a variety of graphs, tables, and infographics to engage the audience. You can also add a risk assessment to ensure you are prepared for every situation. With effective market and consumer research, you can convince investors better. Even if you have the best presentation, you might lose the opportunity if you don’t practice it well. Always practice presentations multiple times and be prepared for questions from investors. 

Collection of Business Plan PowerPoint Template to understand How to Make a Business Plan Presentation

Tips and Tricks to make your Business Plan powerPoint more Memorable

Here are some tips that can help you present your business plan presentation effectively and influence investors easily:

Focus on the Main Points

The presentation usually covers a vast range of topics and information. However, it is necessary to focus on the prioritized data. Most investors are more interested in financial data than understanding each other’s aspects. Provide precise yet critical points about each slide and ask questions after each topic to ensure they know everything. It is not ideal to explain each topic in detail as It will make your presentation boring.

Use Common Language

Use simple yet professional language for your presentation. Try to use easier words over technical language or over-the-top vocabulary, as it will make the presentation challenging to understand. Most financial data is already too entangled, and using confusing language can make it worse. Using simple, layman-like, and understandable language to express your viewpoint is better. Also, use infographics and graphs to make it more engaging and easy to grasp.  

Genuinely Deliver Information

A presentation is a serious matter for your business. It is essential to maintain professionalism so that your investors can rely upon you with your money. Always stay excited and try to deliver information genuinely. Try to avoid using filler content. Write to the point and short content. Ensure your overall presentation is easy to read and skimmable. 

Prepare for the Questions Beforehand

Always prepare an expected questionnaire for the investors. These must include all questions you and your team think your investor will be curious to ask. Put yourself in the investors’ shoes and think. If prepared beforehand, you can give accurate answers and include the necessary information.

Practice Again and Again

The best thing you can do is practice repeatedly. The more presentations you give, the better you will be at presenting them. It’s better to present twice in front of your team so you are prepared overall. 

Time Management

Any presentation that goes on for long will eventually become boring. With just facts and data, your audience will lose interest. Hence, it is better to share necessary information quickly. Always time your presentation and try to keep it on point. This will maintain audience enthusiasm about your product and help you answer their questions correctly.

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Mistakes to Avoid When Making A Business Plan Presentation

Sometimes, no matter how much you try, mistakes are unavoidable. But there is no harm in minimizing these to present your product efficiently. Hence, here are the most common mistakes one can avoid in a business plan presentation:

Not Timing Your Presentation

The most obvious mistake is not timing your presentation. If one fails to time the presentation, it can become extended and boring. It must catch up on the targeted goals and shouldn’t become repetitive. It is better to keep the presentation precise and short. With just 10 to 12 slides, one can present effectively and share the overall project without wasting time on unnecessary topics. 

Focusing on Non-Essential Information in the Presentation

The presentation usually involves a variety of topics. You must focus on the priority topics more than the rest of the information. If each topic is explained thoroughly, it will consume a lot of time. Deciding what is necessary and what must be explained well is better. This also guides investors to understand what your primary goal is and what comes next.

Overloading Data

Refrain from overloading your presentation with information. Keep your slides’ data content precise and short. Also, explain it in keynotes, as explaining each topic will elongate the presentation. The audience can better understand your presentation with simple bullet points and visuals.

Lack of Graphs and Tables

A presentation is more engaging than raw data because of the infographics. It can be just a data dump if your presentation lacks graphs, tables, and other visuals. Creating a business plan presentation filled with visuals, color schemes, and easy-to-read fonts is better to keep the audience interested in your idea.

Ignoring Audiences and Their Needs

One of the blunders you can make while creating a presentation is to ignore your audience. You must prioritize your audience’s needs and keep pushing how your products solve those needs. You should buy your product and assess it like your consumers. This can decide whether your investor thinks your product is worth it.

Why you should choose SlideUpLift’s pre-made business plan presentation templates

A premade presentation template from SlideUpLift can offer you an edge and make the business plan presentation process much faster. Our ready-made, fully editable presentation template can be easily altered to your needs and likes in just a few clicks. You can add more or reduce the amount of data you want. With thousands of templates, SlideUpLift covers all bases to create your desired perfect presentation. Not only do we offer free PowerPoint templates, but we also have an exclusive variety of templates for Google Slides as well at affordable prices.

How To download SlideUpLift’s business planning templates? 

The most essential step before downloading SlideUpift Templates is registering on our website. You can then login and select from a range of templates. Depending on your need, you can either pay for a template or select a free template for your presentation. In addition, we also offer membership plans if you are interested in getting various other services apart from professionally designed business plan presentations. The process of getting the membership and downling these templates is simple and easy to follow. 

how to make a business plan to present to investors

Here is a list of some of the best and most used templates from SlideUpLift:

  • Executive Summary Templates For PowerPoint & Google Slides
  • Project Management Presentations Collection PowerPoint Template
  • Roadmap Templates For PowerPoint & Google Slides
  • 30 60 90 Day Plan Collection For PowerPoint
  • List Templates Collection For PowerPoint  
  • Business Planning Isometric PowerPoint Template
  • One Page Strategic Plan PowerPoint Template

Business Plan Presentation — Conclusion

The best answer for how to make a business plan presentation is to use research data appealingly. A simple download template can be converted into an effective way to engage an audience and convince them to understand your business model. 

With effective sales, marketing, and business strategies, a business plan presentation can showcase your objectives clearly and ensure your idea influences the investors. Your presentation can become a vision for your business, so it should inspire your investor as it motivates you. 

With SlideUpLift, download, edit, and create your own version of a presentation that helps you to see the bigger picture. With attractive templates, fonts, and color schemes, find your own way to deliver your vision and display it in a structured manner. 

A business plan presentation is a way to interact with your audience to display your business plan. It is a detailed presentation that targets investors and shareholders to get inspired by the product and acquire funding for the business.

How do you create a business plan presentation?

The simplest way to create a business plan presentation is to download a premade template online. You can then edit it according to your needs. You must research the market, targeted audience, and your competition in-depth. 

This will include information, and your business plan must include such data. Also, include a financial strategy to ensure your business is a wise choice for investment. One can also include sales marketing and awareness strategies to attract more customers. Finally, a risk assessment makes your plan more foolproof. Hence, including one will make your presentation more engaging

One can present a business plan presentation with at least ten slides. Each slide should include a topic and explain why the product stands out to the investors. Data must be kept short and precise, and graphs and infographics must be presented enough to engage the audience. With easy-to-understand language, more straightforward vocabulary, and effective planning, a presentation can inspire your audience and encourage them to invest more and more in your project. 

What should be included in a business plan presentation?

The business plan presentation must include every detail of your overall business plan. It must include your team, operations, marketing, and sales strategies, and financial goals. Along with these, it must also include your mission, vision, objectives, and how you solve the issues. It should be a gateway to your product’s vision, so you must be precise and explain why and how it is essential. 

Where do you find the best templates related to business plan PowerPoint?

There are hundreds of websites that offer business plan PowerPoint templates. Among others, SlideUpLift stands as the best there is to offer. With over 4000 templates, we cater to every professional’s needs. You can select free-of-cost, affordable, or exclusive templates depending on your needs. Professionally designed templates allow you to edit and create unique presentations as per your requirements. With SlideUpLift’s easily customizable templates, you can inspire the audience better.

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MarketBeat

7 growth stocks that will prove growth is back in 2024

Posted: February 15, 2024 | Last updated: February 15, 2024

<p><span>If you've been investing for any length of time, you've probably heard a lot of time-honored investment maxims. Things like "time in the market beats timing the market." One that I like to keep in mind is to "skate where the puck is moving."</span> </p> <p><span>There's a reason for that. Investors frequently believe they need special knowledge to be successful at investing. Let's be clear: you do have to put in the work. But the information you need to be a successful investor is not unknowable, even without a background in finance or accounting. </span> </p> <p><span>However, investors can choose from thousands of stocks, ETFs, and mutual funds. And that's just equities. There are also bonds, precious metals, real estate, and – for those so inclined – cryptocurrency to consider. It's impossible to stay on top of every emerging story. </span> </p> <p><span>Sometimes you need a little nudge. </span> </p> <p><span>This special presentation focuses on growth stocks that may be flying under investor's radars. Some of these stocks are already growing – and have room to grow some more. Others haven't participated in the rally but have strong growth potential in 2024 and beyond.</span> </p> <br> <br>

If you've been investing for any length of time, you've probably heard a lot of time-honored investment maxims. Things like "time in the market beats timing the market." One that I like to keep in mind is to "skate where the puck is moving."  

There's a reason for that. Investors frequently believe they need special knowledge to be successful at investing. Let's be clear: you do have to put in the work. But the information you need to be a successful investor is not unknowable, even without a background in finance or accounting.  

However, investors can choose from thousands of stocks, ETFs, and mutual funds. And that's just equities. There are also bonds, precious metals, real estate, and – for those so inclined – cryptocurrency to consider. It's impossible to stay on top of every emerging story.  

Sometimes you need a little nudge.  

This special presentation focuses on growth stocks that may be flying under investor's radars. Some of these stocks are already growing – and have room to grow some more. Others haven't participated in the rally but have strong growth potential in 2024 and beyond.  

<p>The first company on this list is from the fintech sector. But <a href="https://www.marketbeat.com/stocks/NYSE/NU/"><strong>Nu Holdings Ltd. (NYSE: NU)</strong></a> may not be well-known to investors. That's because it's not a U.S. company. However, Nu is the largest fintech bank in North America.  </p> <p>The digital-first bank was founded in 2013 as a way to disrupt the Latin American banking system, which is dominated by a small number of large banks. Among other things, this trapped customers in an ecosystem of high fees for limited services. </p> <p>The company has already signed up five million customers and has a total addressable market that can potentially bring in millions more. Revenue is growing year-over-year, and the bank is solidly profitable. Nu Holdings is also projecting earnings growth of 75% in the next 12 months.  </p> <p>The concern is how much of that growth is priced into a stock up 97% in the last 12 months. The <a href="https://www.marketbeat.com/stocks/NYSE/NU/price-target/">Nu Holdings analyst ratings on MarketBeat</a> show that analysts are beginning to bid NU stock higher, with <a href="https://www.marketbeat.com/stocks/NYSE/UBS/"><strong>UBS Group AG (NYSE: UBS)</strong></a> reiterating its Buy rating with a price target of $11.50.  </p>

#1 - Nu Holdings (NYSE:NU)

The first company on this list is from the fintech sector. But Nu Holdings Ltd. (NYSE: NU) may not be well-known to investors. That's because it's not a U.S. company. However, Nu is the largest fintech bank in North America.  

The digital-first bank was founded in 2013 as a way to disrupt the Latin American banking system, which is dominated by a small number of large banks. Among other things, this trapped customers in an ecosystem of high fees for limited services. 

The company has already signed up five million customers and has a total addressable market that can potentially bring in millions more. Revenue is growing year-over-year, and the bank is solidly profitable. Nu Holdings is also projecting earnings growth of 75% in the next 12 months.  

The concern is how much of that growth is priced into a stock up 97% in the last 12 months. The Nu Holdings analyst ratings on MarketBeat show that analysts are beginning to bid NU stock higher, with UBS Group AG (NYSE: UBS) reiterating its Buy rating with a price target of $11.50.  

<p>Artificial intelligence is driving a super cycle in the chip sector. <a href="https://www.marketbeat.com/stocks/NASDAQ/QUIK/"><strong>QuickLogic Corporation (NASDAQ: QUIK)</strong></a> is a fabless chipmaker. That means the company designs and markets semiconductors and owns its intellectual property. But since it's a fabless company, it doesn't fabricate (i.e., fab) them.  </p> <p>QuickLogic has seen a sharp spike in revenue largely fueled by unprecedented demand for chips to handle AI applications. In its most recent quarter, the company posted positive earnings. And the company is projecting a full year of positive earnings.  </p> <p>QUIK stock up 116% in the last 12 months. So, it's logical to wonder if it can move any higher. And the company is not widely covered by analysts. However, here's something to consider. QuickLogic is mainly known for designing chips for industrial and defense applications. That niche is likely to grow due to demand from aerospace and defense contractors. The company also has a history of beating analysts' expectations.  </p>

#2 - QuickLogic (NASDAQ:QUIK)

Artificial intelligence is driving a super cycle in the chip sector. QuickLogic Corporation (NASDAQ: QUIK) is a fabless chipmaker. That means the company designs and markets semiconductors and owns its intellectual property. But since it's a fabless company, it doesn't fabricate (i.e., fab) them.  

QuickLogic has seen a sharp spike in revenue largely fueled by unprecedented demand for chips to handle AI applications. In its most recent quarter, the company posted positive earnings. And the company is projecting a full year of positive earnings.  

QUIK stock up 116% in the last 12 months. So, it's logical to wonder if it can move any higher. And the company is not widely covered by analysts. However, here's something to consider. QuickLogic is mainly known for designing chips for industrial and defense applications. That niche is likely to grow due to demand from aerospace and defense contractors. The company also has a history of beating analysts' expectations.  

<p>Chinese stocks took a beating in 2023. <a href="https://www.marketbeat.com/stocks/NASDAQ/LI/"><strong>Li Auto Inc. (NASDAQ: LI)</strong></a> was a notable exception. The stock is up 18% in the last 12 months despite being down 25% in the last three months. Li Auto is the leading manufacturer of electric vehicles (EVs) within the People's Republic of China.  </p> <p>However, this appears to be a case of a rose getting buried among the thorns. A lack of demand in the United States has beaten down the EV sector. The same can't be said of China. In the company's third quarter 2023 earnings report, Li Auto reported a <a href="https://www.marketbeat.com/originals/li-auto-smashes-estimates-proving-evs-can-be-profitable/">271% year-over-year increase in revenue</a>. And the bottom line grew at a similar year-over-year pace.  </p> <p>Elon Musk has already sounded the alarm about the <a href="https://www.axios.com/2024/02/14/chinese-ev-electric-vehicles-sold-america">potential dominance of Chinese EV makers</a>. In fact, Li Auto outsold <a href="https://www.marketbeat.com/stocks/NASDAQ/TSLA/"><strong>Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA)</strong></a> in October 2023 and now leads China in EV sales.  </p> <p>The <a href="https://www.marketbeat.com/stocks/NASDAQ/LI/price-target/">Li Auto analyst ratings on MarketBeat</a> project a stock price gain of 164% in that same time. That's likely due to the company's expectation that it will increase earnings by more than 83.5% in the next 12 months. </p>

#3 - Li Auto (NASDAQ:LI)

Chinese stocks took a beating in 2023. Li Auto Inc. (NASDAQ: LI) was a notable exception. The stock is up 18% in the last 12 months despite being down 25% in the last three months. Li Auto is the leading manufacturer of electric vehicles (EVs) within the People's Republic of China.  

However, this appears to be a case of a rose getting buried among the thorns. A lack of demand in the United States has beaten down the EV sector. The same can't be said of China. In the company's third quarter 2023 earnings report, Li Auto reported a 271% year-over-year increase in revenue . And the bottom line grew at a similar year-over-year pace.  

Elon Musk has already sounded the alarm about the potential dominance of Chinese EV makers . In fact, Li Auto outsold Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) in October 2023 and now leads China in EV sales.  

The Li Auto analyst ratings on MarketBeat project a stock price gain of 164% in that same time. That's likely due to the company's expectation that it will increase earnings by more than 83.5% in the next 12 months. 

<p>No matter how you feel about <a href="https://www.marketbeat.com/cryptocurrencies/bitcoin/"><strong>Bitcoin (BTC)</strong></a> as an asset class, you must acknowledge that it's been one of the best-performing assets in 2024. <a href="https://www.marketbeat.com/stocks/NASDAQ/RIOT/"><strong>Riot Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ: RIOT)</strong></a> gives you a way to invest in a blockchain future without owning the digital currency.  </p> <p>Here's why. Bitcoin is "mined" via specialized, high-speed computers that compete to solve complex cryptographic problems. Riot operates one of the largest blockchain mining networks in the world. As a result, it has the lowest mining costs, which means it's a very efficient company. That's not the case with many Bitcoin miners. </p> <p>The company's low mining costs will stand out as the next Bitcoin halving occurs in April 2024. This means miners' profits will be cut in half (as Bitcoin nears its maximum supply of 21 million). This will benefit efficient operators like Riot even as RIOT stock is up 161% in the last 12 months.  </p>

#4 - Riot Platforms (NASDAQ:RIOT)

No matter how you feel about Bitcoin (BTC) as an asset class, you must acknowledge that it's been one of the best-performing assets in 2024. Riot Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ: RIOT) gives you a way to invest in a blockchain future without owning the digital currency.  

Here's why. Bitcoin is "mined" via specialized, high-speed computers that compete to solve complex cryptographic problems. Riot operates one of the largest blockchain mining networks in the world. As a result, it has the lowest mining costs, which means it's a very efficient company. That's not the case with many Bitcoin miners. 

The company's low mining costs will stand out as the next Bitcoin halving occurs in April 2024. This means miners' profits will be cut in half (as Bitcoin nears its maximum supply of 21 million). This will benefit efficient operators like Riot even as RIOT stock is up 161% in the last 12 months.  

stock chart graphic

#5 - Enphase Energy (NASDAQ:ENPH)

Solar stocks zigged when they were supposed to zag last year. And if you were an investor in Enphase Energy Inc. (NASDAQ: ENPH) , you know how painful it's been. ENPH stock is down 39.5% in the last 12 months, and that's after a 41% increase in the stock price in the last three months.  

The issue was the company's guidance, which became prescient in its most recent quarter as revenue and earnings fell sharply year-over-year. However, the maker of solar-focused semiconductor-based home energy solutions continues to have a strong long-term story as the United States continues its transition to renewable energy.  

Enphase is forecasting 87% earnings growth in the next 12 months. A reason to believe in that forecast is that the company has the highest margins in the industry. Lower interest rates could also be a potential catalyst. And the E nphase Energy analyst ratings on MarketBeat show a 16% upside for ENPH stock.  

<p>Lithium stocks were expected to be attractive investments in 2023. But as supply outpaced demand on declining EV demand, many of these investments dragged down portfolios. <a href="https://www.marketbeat.com/stocks/NYSE/SQM/"><strong>Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile (NYSE: SQM)</strong></a> was no different. SQM stock is down over 55% in the last 12 months.  </p> <p>The Chilean-based company has a diversified portfolio, but about 75% of its revenue comes from lithium. That could hold the stock price down as lithium prices are expected to be down through at least the first half of 2024. </p> <p>However, the opportunity for the company comes in its brine asset, the Salar de Atacama, which has the highest lithium concentration in the world. The company is also taking steps to secure more lithium production in Australia and China. </p> <p>As the lithium supply-demand dynamic flips in its favor, SQM stock is an attractive long-term investment, trading at just 5.4x forward earnings.  </p>

#6 - Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile (NYSE:SQM)

Lithium stocks were expected to be attractive investments in 2023. But as supply outpaced demand on declining EV demand, many of these investments dragged down portfolios. Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile (NYSE: SQM) was no different. SQM stock is down over 55% in the last 12 months.  

The Chilean-based company has a diversified portfolio, but about 75% of its revenue comes from lithium. That could hold the stock price down as lithium prices are expected to be down through at least the first half of 2024. 

However, the opportunity for the company comes in its brine asset, the Salar de Atacama, which has the highest lithium concentration in the world. The company is also taking steps to secure more lithium production in Australia and China. 

As the lithium supply-demand dynamic flips in its favor, SQM stock is an attractive long-term investment, trading at just 5.4x forward earnings.  

<p><a href="https://www.marketbeat.com/stocks/NYSE/HD/"><strong>Home Depot (NYSE: HD)</strong></a> is one part of a virtual duopoly with <a href="https://www.marketbeat.com/stocks/NYSE/LOW/"><strong>Lowe's Companies Inc. (NYSE: LOW)</strong></a> in the United States. HD stock presents an anomaly for investors. The stock is up 11% in the last 12 months, even though revenue and earnings have fallen year-over-year.  </p> <p>But a closer look at the HD chart shows that much of the growth has come in the last three months. That might suggest that investors are becoming bullish on interest rate cuts that could boost the housing market.  </p> <p>However, with the amount and timing of those rate cuts in question, Home Depot still appears to be a buy because the company has successfully integrated e-commerce and omnichannel services into its business model. That's important because home improvement is a niche market that even <a href="https://www.marketbeat.com/stocks/NASDAQ/AMZN/"><strong>Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN)</strong></a> has been unable to successfully crack. </p> <p>The <a href="https://www.marketbeat.com/stocks/NYSE/HD/price-target/">Home Depot analyst ratings on MarketBeat</a> show that analysts are moving their price targets for the stock higher, and Home Depot offers a <a href="https://www.marketbeat.com/stocks/NYSE/HD/dividend/">solid dividend</a> that has increased for the last 14 years, has a 2.33% yield and an annual payout of $8.36 per share.   </p>

#7 - Home Depot (NYSE:HD)

Home Depot (NYSE: HD) is one part of a virtual duopoly with Lowe's Companies Inc. (NYSE: LOW) in the United States. HD stock presents an anomaly for investors. The stock is up 11% in the last 12 months, even though revenue and earnings have fallen year-over-year.  

But a closer look at the HD chart shows that much of the growth has come in the last three months. That might suggest that investors are becoming bullish on interest rate cuts that could boost the housing market.  

However, with the amount and timing of those rate cuts in question, Home Depot still appears to be a buy because the company has successfully integrated e-commerce and omnichannel services into its business model. That's important because home improvement is a niche market that even Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) has been unable to successfully crack. 

The Home Depot analyst ratings on MarketBeat show that analysts are moving their price targets for the stock higher, and Home Depot offers a solid dividend that has increased for the last 14 years, has a 2.33% yield and an annual payout of $8.36 per share.   

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how to make a business plan to present to investors

Americans who test positive for the coronavirus no longer need to routinely stay home from work and school for five days under new guidance planned by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The agency is loosening its covid isolation recommendations for the first time since 2021 to align it with guidance on how to avoid transmitting flu and RSV, according to four agency officials and an expert familiar with the discussions.

CDC officials acknowledged in internal discussions and in a briefing last week with state health officials how much the covid-19 landscape has changed since the virus emerged four years ago, killing nearly 1.2 million people in the United States and shuttering businesses and schools. The new reality — with most people having developed a level of immunity to the virus because of prior infection or vaccination — warrants a shift to a more practical approach, experts and health officials say.

“Public health has to be realistic,” said Michael T. Osterholm, an infectious-disease expert at the University of Minnesota. “In making recommendations to the public today, we have to try to get the most out of what people are willing to do. … You can be absolutely right in the science and yet accomplish nothing because no one will listen to you.”

The CDC plans to recommend that people who test positive for the coronavirus use clinical symptoms to determine when to end isolation. Under the new approach, people would no longer need to stay home if they have been fever-free for at least 24 hours without the aid of medication and their symptoms are mild and improving, according to three agency officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity to share internal discussions.

Here is the current CDC guidance on isolation and precautions for people with covid-19

The federal recommendations follow similar moves by Oregon and California . The White House has yet to sign off on the guidance that the agency is expected to release in April for public feedback, officials said. One agency official said the timing could “move around a bit” until the guidance is finalized.

Work on revising isolation guidance has been underway since last August but was paused in the fall as covid cases rose. CDC director Mandy Cohen sent staff a memo in January that listed “Pan-resp guidance-April” as a bullet point for the agency’s 2024 priorities.

Officials said they recognized the need to give the public more practical guidelines for covid-19, acknowledging that few people are following isolation guidance that hasn’t been updated since December 2021. Back then, health officials cut the recommended isolation period for people with asymptomatic coronavirus from 10 days to five because they worried essential services would be hobbled as the highly transmissible omicron variant sent infections surging. The decision was hailed by business groups and slammed by some union leaders and health experts.

Covid is here to stay. How will we know when it stops being special?

The plan to further loosen isolation guidance when the science around infectiousness has not changed is likely to prompt strong negative reaction from vulnerable groups, including people older than 65, those with weak immune systems and long-covid patients, CDC officials and experts said.

Doing so “sweeps this serious illness under the rug,” said Lara Jirmanus, a clinical instructor at Harvard Medical School and a member of the People’s CDC, a coalition of health-care workers, scientists and advocates focused on reducing the harmful effects of covid-19.

Public health officials should treat covid differently from other respiratory viruses, she said, because it’s deadlier than the flu and increases the risk of developing long-term complications . As many as 7 percent of Americans report having suffered from a slew of lingering covid symptoms, including fatigue, difficulty breathing, brain fog, joint pain and ongoing loss of taste and smell, according to the CDC.

The new isolation recommendations would not apply to hospitals and other health-care settings with more vulnerable populations, CDC officials said.

While the coronavirus continues to cause serious illness, especially among the most vulnerable people, vaccines and effective treatments such as Paxlovid are available. The latest versions of coronavirus vaccines were 54 percent effective at preventing symptomatic infection in adults, according to data released Feb. 1, the first U.S. study to assess how well the shots work against the most recent coronavirus variant. But CDC data shows only 22 percent of adults and 12 percent of children had received the updated vaccine as of Feb. 9, despite data showing the vaccines provide robust protection against serious illness .

Coronavirus levels in wastewater i ndicate that symptomatic and asymptomatic infections remain high. About 20,000 people are still hospitalized — and about 2,300 are dying — every week, CDC data show. But the numbers are falling and are much lower than when deaths peaked in January 2021 when almost 26,000 people died of covid each week and about 115,000 were hospitalized.

The lower rates of hospitalizations were among the reasons California shortened its five-day isolation recommendation last month , urging people to stay home until they are fever-free for 24 hours and their symptoms are mild and improving. Oregon made a similar move last May.

California’s state epidemiologist Erica Pan said the societal disruptions that resulted from strict isolation guidelines also helped spur the change. Workers without sick leave and those who can’t work from home if they or their children test positive and are required to isolate bore a disproportionate burden. Strict isolation requirements can act as a disincentive to test when testing should be encouraged so people at risk for serious illness can get treatment, she said.

Giving people symptom-based guidance, similar to what is already recommended for flu, is a better way to prioritize those most at risk and balance the potential for disruptive impacts on schools and workplaces, Pan said. After Oregon made its change, the state has not experienced any disproportionate increases in community transmission or severity, according to data shared last month with the national association representing state health officials.

California still recommends people with covid wear masks indoors when they are around others for 10 days after testing positive — even if they have no symptoms — or becoming sick. “You may remove your mask sooner than 10 days if you have two sequential negative tests at least one day apart,” the California guidance states.

It’s not clear whether the updated CDC guidance will continue to recommend masking for 10 days.

Health officials from other states told the CDC last week that they are already moving toward isolation guidelines that would treat the coronavirus the same as flu and RSV, with additional precautions for people at high risk, said Anne Zink, an emergency room physician and Alaska’s chief medical officer.

Many other countries, including the United Kingdom, Denmark, Finland, Norway and Australia, made changes to isolation recommendations in 2022. Of 16 countries whose policies California officials reviewed, only Germany and Ireland still recommend isolation for five days, according to a presentation the California public health department gave health officials from other states in January. The Singapore ministry of health, in updated guidance late last year, said residents could “return to normal activities” once coronavirus symptoms resolve.

Even before the Biden administration ended the public health emergency last May, much of the public had moved on from covid-19, with many people having long given up testing and masking, much less isolating when they come down with covid symptoms.

Doctors say the best way for sick people to protect their communities is to mask or avoid unnecessary trips outside the home.

“You see a lot of people with symptoms — you don’t know if they have covid or influenza or RSV — but in all three of those cases, they probably shouldn’t be at Target, coughing, and looking sick,” said Eli Perencevich, an internal medicine professor at the University of Iowa.

Coronavirus: What you need to know

New covid variant: The United States is in the throes of another covid-19 uptick and coronavirus samples detected in wastewater suggests infections could be as rampant as they were last winter. JN.1, the new dominant variant , appears to be especially adept at infecting those who have been vaccinated or previously infected. Here’s how this covid surge compares with earlier spikes .

Covid ER visits rise: Covid-19, flu and RSV are rebounding in the United States ahead of the end-of-year holidays, with emergency room visits for the three respiratory viruses collectively reaching their highest levels since February.

New coronavirus booster: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that anyone 6 months or older get an updated coronavirus shot , but the vaccine rollout has seen some hiccups , especially for children . Here’s what you need to know about the new coronavirus vaccines , including when you should get it.

  • CDC plans to drop five-day covid isolation guidelines February 13, 2024 CDC plans to drop five-day covid isolation guidelines February 13, 2024
  • Is this covid surge really the second biggest? Here’s what data shows. January 12, 2024 Is this covid surge really the second biggest? Here’s what data shows. January 12, 2024
  • Covid kills nearly 10,000 in a month as holidays fuel spread, WHO says January 11, 2024 Covid kills nearly 10,000 in a month as holidays fuel spread, WHO says January 11, 2024

how to make a business plan to present to investors

IMAGES

  1. Write a Business Plan for Investors

    how to make a business plan to present to investors

  2. How To Create A Business Plan For Investors

    how to make a business plan to present to investors

  3. How to Write a Business Plan

    how to make a business plan to present to investors

  4. Simple Business Plan Template For Startup Founders

    how to make a business plan to present to investors

  5. One-Page Business Plan: The Step-By-Step Guide

    how to make a business plan to present to investors

  6. Step-By-Step Guide to Write Your Business Plan + Template

    how to make a business plan to present to investors

COMMENTS

  1. How to Write a Business Plan For Investors

    1. Executive Summary The Executive Summary is an introduction to the main ideas that you will discuss in the rest of the plan. If an investor read only the Executive Summary and nothing else, you'd want them to be able to walk away with a clear understanding of the main highlights of your business and why it's exciting.

  2. How to Write a Convincing Business Plan for Investors

    9 min. read Updated November 29, 2023 Download Now: Free Business Plan Template Raising money for your business is a major effort. You need lists of investors to reach out to and you need to be prepared for your investor meetings to increase your chances of getting funded.

  3. Tips on presenting your business plan to investors

    Know your customers. Investors want to know the people they may be getting involved with, and that includes your customers. Thoroughly research your target audience. Instead of presenting a bulleted list about your customers, you might engage investors by telling a story. Walk them through a typical day in the life of a customer.

  4. How to Create an Investor Presentation [Templates + Tips]

    Sign up. It's free. Investor Presentation Theme [Edit and Download] Mix and match 100+ slides t0 create your own pitch deck! Create Now The beginning of your investor presentation can make or break the opportunity.

  5. How to Create and Present a Winning Business Plan to Investors

    It will cover topics such as the importance of presenting a compelling business plan, the information that needs to be included in the business plan, and the steps to take when presenting the plan. By the end of the article, readers will have a better understanding of the process and be better prepared to give an effective pitch to investors.

  6. How To Write A Business Plan (2024 Guide)

    Bottom Line Frequently Asked Questions Show more Every business starts with a vision, which is distilled and communicated through a business plan. In addition to your high-level hopes and...

  7. How to Create a Business Plan Presentation [Plus Templates]

    Sign up. It's free. Put another way, you don't have wordy documents to convey your ideas. Instead, you'll need to be clear about selling your idea to investors by sharing all the important details in an engaging and succinct manner. How Many Slides Does Your Business Presentation Need? Ideally, between 10-12 slides are best.

  8. How to Write a Business Plan That Attracts Investors

    April 8, 2022 Successful businesses are built on paper before they set foot in the real market. Building a business requires working simultaneously on multiple projects, and it's easy to get overwhelmed. When that happens, a business plan becomes a guiding light, helping entrepreneurs and leaders work from chaos to clarity.

  9. 7 steps to create a business plan that will wow investors

    Step 3: Customers. Olivia has done her research, which is the fundamentals upon which any business plan should be based. People love statistics. Olivia found statistics describing the growth in plant-based eating in the past decade, as well as the growth of flexitarian dietary choices.

  10. How to Develop a Killer Business Plan Presentation and Template

    5. Business Model. On this slide, you need to describe how your business generates revenues. You can include things like your business's pricing plan, how much it costs to acquire each customer, the business channels you'll use, etc. Your target audience must find your business credible and pricing feasible.

  11. How to Present Your Business Plan

    This is your more formal pitch presentation that you make to investors. Cover the same elements included in your summary memo and in the executive summary of your business plan. Plan on 20 minutes ...

  12. 3 Creative Ways to Present Your Business Plan to Investors

    2. Become a Storyteller. The standard business plan consists of a range of facts and figures, all connected through narrative. But the problem with basing your business plan on these facts and figures is that data isn't unique. Investors may well have heard 5 other business plans earlier in the day, each presenting the same information.

  13. How to Create a Winning Business Pitch for Investors

    1. Tell a story. A common topic among experts was the need to be personable and create a narrative. While facts and figures go a long way, it's important to use those numbers to tell a meaningful...

  14. How to Write a Business Plan That Investors Will Like

    Here are eight sections that a business plan should include: Executive Summary: This is an overview of the rest of your business plan. It will summarize things like your mission statement, plans, goals, structure, and financial needs. Keep this section short. Company Description: This section will identify the key parts of your business model ...

  15. How to Present Your Business Plan Effectively to Investors

    1 Judge the Level of Interest You need to adeptly match the information you are presenting with the level of interest of the people you are communicating your business plan to. People who don't know much about your project won't have the interest and patience to read a full 30-page document.

  16. How to present a business plan to potential investors

    This article will help to prepare you to present a business plan to potential investors, through the following steps: Share the problem your business solves Tell a story in your presentation Do your homework Have confidence and rehearse your presentation Specify the problem your business solves

  17. How to Make a Compelling Business Plan Presentation: Tips and Free

    Pick a color that contrasts with those used in your business branding. Then use this color to present the problem. If you're struggling to pick the right contrast, take a look at the color wheel. Find your primary brand color. Then pick a contrast in the other half of the wheel, avoiding the one directly opposite.

  18. How to Make a Business Plan Presentation

    Describe your market and how you solve your customers' problems. Explain how your product is different than anything else on the market. Slides 4-6. Discuss the size of the market for your product ...

  19. Write your business plan

    If your business is already established, include income statements, balance sheets, and cash flow statements for the last three to five years. If you have other collateral you could put against a loan, make sure to list it now. Provide a prospective financial outlook for the next five years. Include forecasted income statements, balance sheets ...

  20. How to present a business plan to investors?

    Let's start with 5 simple tips you should follow to make your business plan presentation truly successful: Make your presentation short and demonstrative. Avoid making your presentation too formal with highly detailed information; your listeners can lose focus on the main project message. Use only the key indicators in your presentation: the ...

  21. How to Make a Business Plan Presentation with Templates

    Renderforest Staff 26 Sep 2023 13 min read Category Branding Topics business presentation design marketing template Companies that have solid business plans are 129% more likely to grow beyond the startup phase and develop into successful enterprises.

  22. Business Plan Presentations: A Guide

    Business • September 27th, 2023. A vital element in today's highly competitive business landscape is the ability to craft and deliver a business plan presentation. This applies to both entrepreneurs and corporate leaders. This guide describes essential aspects required to build a business plan presentation and deliver it to stakeholders.

  23. How to Make a Business Plan Presentation? Guide

    SlideUpLift Last Modified : January 24, 2024 An innovative way to display your ideas and convince your team or clients is to present an idea with a business plan presentation. An effective presentation can showcase your mind and create an engaging meeting covering all necessary plan elements.

  24. 7 growth stocks that will prove growth is back in 2024

    The first company on this list is from the fintech sector. But Nu Holdings Ltd. (NYSE: NU) may not be well-known to investors. That's because it's not a U.S. company. However, Nu is the largest ...

  25. Futures: Big Test Looms For Rally

    Dow Jones futures edged higher Sunday night, along with S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq futures, with Nvidia looming large.. X. The stock market rally held up relatively well this past week amid hot ...

  26. CDC plans to drop five-day covid isolation guidelines

    While the coronavirus continues to cause serious illness, especially among the most vulnerable people, vaccines and effective treatments such as Paxlovid are available. The latest versions of ...