The Successful Business Plan: Secrets & Strategies (Successful Business Plan Secrets and Strategies, 3rd ed) (Paperback)

by Rhonda Abrams (Author) "The ultimate purpose of developing a business plan is to have a successful business..." (more)
Key Phrases: plan preparation forms, software training services, assumption sheet, Executive Summary, Ariel Vineyards, Larry Leigon (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
This completely updated third edition of Rhonda Abrams' best-seller is a complete, step-by-step guide to researching and writing a knock-out business plan. Required reading at America's top business schools, it's been called "the entrepreneur's bible," having helped thousands of successful business people get the funding they need to launch their businesses. With a foreword by renowned venture capitalist Eugene Kleiner, THE SUCCESSFUL BUSINESS PLAN is packed with insider tips on writing and formatting a business plan that will stand out from the crowd.

Book features:

-- 99 worksheets help you get started quickly, taking you through every critical section of a successful business plan
-- A fully-written sample business plan offers guidance on length, style, formatting and language
-- Special chapters address issues of concern for service, manufacturing, retail, and Internet companies
-- The Abrams Method of Flow-Through Financials helps make easy work of number crunching-even if you're a numbers novice
-- A special chapter on classes and competitions help students prepare a winning business plan
--Nearly 200 insider secrets from top venture capitalists and successful business owners and CEOs reveal what most impresses funders

From the Publisher
Now you can find what venture capitalists and bankers really want to see before they fund a company. Gives you their personal tips and insights for successful business plan development. The sample business plan provides a guideline for you to follow in writing your own plan. Breaks the chore down into easy-to-manage steps, so you can end up with a fundable proposal. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 409 pages
• Publisher: Running "R" Media; 3rd edition (March 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0966963520
• ISBN-13: 978-0966963526
• Product Dimensions: 10.7 x 8 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (32 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #202,721 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #23 in	Books > Business & Investing > Small Business & Entrepreneurship > Business Plans
  #83 in	Books > Business & Investing > Management & Leadership > Planning & Forecasting

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

45 of 48 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best Business Planning Book, PERIOD., December 28, 1999

By	The Marginal Way "Paul P." (California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Successful Business Plan: Secrets & Strategies (Paperback)

I have read a lot of them and written a lot of them... business plans and bus planning books. This is BY FAR the best book available. It has depth and the detail needed to write a SERIOUS business plan. The only reason it has been criticized in reviews here is that it has a lot of detail and requires WORK. If you want the Daffy Duck business plan book (don't want to work), go elsewhere. If you want to get money (are willing to work), buy this book and do it from cover to cover. A MUST HAVE BOOK.

27 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book, some flaws...but not enough to lose stars, June 8, 2003

By	Blurb "Joker" - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Successful Business Plan, 4th Edition: Secrets and Strategies (Successful Business Plan Secrets and Strategies) (Paperback)

This book was well organized and some of the worksheets were a little hard to use but its still one of the better books I've looked at. The worksheets I had problems with were the financial planners. Some of them were not well explained and therefore hard to use. Overall, the book was very thorough and hopefully it will help my plans for starting a business go through.

Pros:
-The sample plans were the strongest part of the book because it allowed you to see how the worksheets were put together.

-Very thorough book.

-Leaves nothing out in terms of how to write a business plan and then how to get the money.

Cons:
-The book fell apart on me after reading through it a few times. For such a high quality text I expect a better put together book.

-Some of the financials were not matching other sections of the sample plan to see how it was put together overall.

-Some of the worksheets especially the financials were not well explained.

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good starting point and reference, July 20, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Successful Business Plan: Secrets & Strategies (Paperback)

I have probably purchased 5 business plan books over the last year. I have also purchased a couple of business plan software programs (both unsatisfactory). None can be considered a definitive "best" book or resource. Each one has strengths and weaknesses, and anyone searching for a drop-in guide should re-think their goals. Abrams book, on the whole, is certainly one of the better business plan books. The advise and focus of the content are very salient to anyone out there looking for OPM.