Customer Reviews

Business Plan Pro Premier 15th Anniversary Edition [OLD VERSION]

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I am a consultant who works with small businesses on startup, growth, and cash flow. I'm no stranger to writing business plans. I've sweated through a number of them for my own businesses and those of my clients. Business plans are time consuming and costly, and really kind of a pain in the neck...until now. I'm using Business Plan Pro Premier version to write my latest plan. I wish I'd started using it years ago, I'd have fewer gray hairs.

This software provides more than 500 sample business plans so I don't have to start from scratch. I can find a similar business and use that as my guide to get started. One headache gone.

The software guides me through step by step asking relevant questions in easily understandable language. And the navigation is simple and intuitive. Another headache gone.

The financial features are terrific. I enter information step by step and magically I get a spreadsheet and even charts detailing my projections. I don't have to struggle trying to remember how to create a chart in Excel. Very cool! The cash flow features are awesome--and remember, I work with cash flow everyday for a variety of businesses in a variety of industries. Nothing is more important than cash flow!

The Premier version even allows you to do what-if scenarios with your cash flow--"what if my sales are higher/lower?", "what if my receivables don't come in as planned?", etc. Very cool feature. The premier version also gives you the ability to enter your actual numbers as you work your plan so that you can see your progress and adapt your plan as needed.

**That means the software continues to be a valuable resource long after your plan is done!**

Now, for those businesses that need to present their business plan for funding or to get investors...Your business plan can be exported to PowerPoint! That's an amazing time saver right there. No need to reinvent the wheel. And, when all is said and done you have a very professional plan (Small Business Administration approved format) that is ready for presenting.

This software gives you all the pieces you need to create a professional business plan with the least amount of headaches and time. I love this program!

I tried to create a business plan by following the guidelines and outlines of many books that I checked out from the library. They all had different ideas and formats and this frustrated me.

I bought this software in the hopes that it would guide me - much like a program such as TurboTax guides a user in completing their tax returns. To my surprise and relief, that's exactly what this program does.

You will be able to select three different levels of complexity from the start - a short business plan that comes out to about 20 pages depending upon how much you write to a medium that is probably twice as long and then a very long and has a complex format.

Once you begin, the program guides you with instructions and examples of how to complete the marketing analysis summary, then on to other topics such as the executive summary, and etc. It will also allow you to enter your financial numbers into a built-in spreadsheet.

The best part of it is that the program puts all of your pages in the proper order with a table of contents and automatically creates colorful graphs, too and does a great job of formatting the whole thing.

I could go on, but this was a tremendous help for me and allowed me to create a business plan that I was very proud of.

I only gave it four stars, though, because the word processing part of the program is quirky and doesn't quite work as well as Microsoft Word. Sometimes you can't copy and paste sentences that easily.

Overall, I recommend this program!

This product is a good tool if you have never done a business plan and you need some help learning what to put in it. Not only that, but the software does all of the calculations and stuff for you, so that you don't have to worry about making trivial mistakes.

I bought this software so that it could interface with Excel, but the interface is not good. When there are errors or things to fix as suggested by software, it does not take the user directly to the location where the error is located. Data entry tables are tedious to fill. The rest I have yet to see once I finish all the bugs out of my Business plan.

In short there is ample room for improvement.

I've never written a business plan, nor have I done any serious work with financial spreadsheets. Just using examples found online or in books seemed a bit overwhelming. When I got the software installed and running on my computer, I was very pleased at the intuitive way the program was laid out. All of the text sections that I needed to write came easily with the clear instructions and samples.

I had troubles with the spreadsheets. When I had the Business Plan software check my spreadsheets, it claimed there were errors. The good news is that the software even listed the name of the spreadsheets, which had the errors (I had not noticed the spreadsheet names before this point). The software even told me how to fix my errors. This was great!

Sadly, I could not just link to the offending spreadsheet with a click of the mouse. Confusingly, the spreadsheet names did not match the software program outline titles. The spreadsheet names were also in a different order than the business plan outline. I had to manually hunt through every section of the entire software program to find the offending spreadsheet. By the time I had found the spreadsheet, I had forgotten HOW I was supposed to fix the error. Once I found the right spreadsheet, I ended up manually writing down the business plan outline section where the spreadsheet was located so I could find it again, then I went back to the spreadsheet check section for information on how to fix the spreadsheet.

And worst of all to me, I still did not understand how the numbers went together when the software printed out the tables. I know the numbers I have from my research, but the software did not make this section simple or intuitive enough for me to understand.

Lastly, when I finished the work I could do and took it to a local Small Business & Entrepreneurship Development place, I was told there were a couple of spreadsheets of information missing:

1.) A spreadsheet listing the cost of fixtures and equipment is needed to justify the dollar amount I listed on the line "Start-up Assets To Fund" under Table: Start-Up Funding. Currently it appears the software just asks for a single number input to cover everything you need to start, which seems pie-in-the-sky, pick a number at random, and not hard financial data. Also, I have no idea where my advertising, website development, and other start up expenses before opening the business are supposed to go since those are not "assets" as is defined by my understanding of the term.

2.) A "Personal Assets" spreadsheet is needed. This software is missing that critical piece of information that lenders will require about a borrower's loan worthiness.

I'm still working on this part, so I don't know if I can import these extra spreadsheets into the program, or if I'll have to print out my spreadsheets separately and add them to the back of the business plan.

Overall, despite the spreadsheet issues I'm still working through, this software is very worthwhile. I went from knowing nothing about business plans, to having one that will work when I get the extra spreadsheets finished. The director of SB&ED had even complimented me on the written portion of my plan, citing the details written. Considering I knew nothing about how to construct a business plan, that impressed me.

The software was intuitive and every step of the business plan was layed out in helpful formats. I would recommed this to anyone creating a business plan even if its only for your own internal use. The program takes you through every step with explanations and examples.

Tech support is also excellent. I was unable to open a saved file after having had issues with my computer. I emailed the file to Palo Alto tech support and within 24 hours they repaired it and returned it to me.

I spent many years in business writing strategic plans, reviews, and such for funding proposals and investments. I know how to write a plan. So, why buy the product? I bought it because most plans have a similar flow and set of "boilerplate" that doesn't require someone to reinvent every time. It's sort of like cooking. You start with a recipe to follow and add your own personality to it. Same thing applies with a business plan.

This program allows you to add your own personality to a suggested structure for a business plan. The added benefit is that you have access to many example business plans to review, selectively pick and choose from, etc...

I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 because once the plan is pretty much in place, it sometimes takes some mouse clicking to go back and make edits of data or prose; however, not too much of a big deal.

The overall output produced by the software is no better than the input that you provide. The old saying, "garbage in ... garbage out" applies.

I'd buy it again and recommend it to others as I have here.

Purchased this item to help in writing a business plan. Software was easy to load and fairly easy to use. Has many examples of different business plans to review before you begin your own. Used software to write the plan and used the plan with the bank and SBA to acquire loan for the business. Would recommend for anyone wanting to update an existing plan or write one for a new business. Great customer support available on line or by phone.

I have used Business Plan software for a number of years, and I find it to be a great combination of robust functionality and ease of use. Whether you are a beginner, or a seasoned plan writer, Business Plan Pro organizes you plan in a way that ensures that nothing is overlooked.

i've been using business plan for years and i love it. i got the latest version and i think it is the best tool to create a BP.