1. Business Plan Vs. Executive Summary Robert Glazer Founder, Acceleration Partners rglazer@acceleration-partners.com www.acceleration-partners.com

2. Business Plan? The Business plan is dead Academic institutions and the real world have gone in opposite directions However, its contents do live on

3. The Executive Summary What is an executive summary? Objectives of executive summary Contents of an effective executive summary Detailed components of executive summary Things to do, Things to avoid What else do I need?

4. A snapshot of the business plan… …NOT the entire business plan What Is It?

5. Effectively communicate the business opportunity and product offering to potential investors, partners and employees to: Secure face-to-face meeting with associates or partners at investment firms (partners preferred!) Convince potential partners to dedicate resources and help your company grow Convince a potential candidate to pursue an opportunity with your company You won’t get a check in the mail! Objectives of Executive Summary

6. Overview/Intro (“What We Do”) Market Opportunity Product/Service Overview Marketing & Customer Acquisition Strategy Competition & Competitive Advantage Team & Advisors Financial Overview Milestones (optional) Capital Requirements/ Use of Proceeds Contents of an Effective Executive Summary

7. One core statement that describes your business (1-2 sentences TOPS!) Followed by: One paragraph extension of the core statement that describes your business in more detail Finish with one sentence of what you are looking for in terms of funding. Overview/Intro

8. Do not waste words on BS or buzzwords, you lose the reader instantly “We are a b-to-b application integration service and solution provider for next generation e-businesses, providing essential tools to monetize traffic online (blah blahblah…)” Simple, clear verbiage is most effective “In order to meet the enormous demand for energy‐efficient homes, FreeGreen provides free, expertly designed, online plans for ready‐to‐build “green” homes and home renovations.” Overview/Intro Cont.

9. 50% of all executive summaries fail to answer this question effectively – and end up in the trash Your business before market No matter how sophisticated your product/technology or market opportunity, make sure a high school student can understand your value proposition Ask your mom if she understands what you do after reading the overview “What We Do”

11. Think ‘addressable’ market ANALYZE your stats, don’t just spout them Separate short-term and long-term market opportunities Market Opportunity & Sizing

12. Detailed information on product and/or product lines Stay at 5,000 feet Describe business model without stating it implicitly by showing margins, pricing, costs High level technical specs if relevant Address scalability concerns Discuss future development plans versus launch plans Product & Service Overview

14. Painkillers and vitamins

15. Prove the demand

16. Remember: ‘free’ implies low-quality

17. “Social media” is not a marketing strategy

18. “We’re going to devote 50% of this investment to advertising” (good luck)

19. Creative marketing – piggybacking, leveraging others, business development, etc

20. Contracts talk, LOIs cut it, ‘they’re interested’ and ‘we’ve met with’ means littleMarketing & Customer Acquisition

22. Ignoring your competition proves you are unprepared

23. Highlighting too many competitors proves you do not know your market and/or cannot differentiate your offering from others

24. The best plans identify current and future competition and intelligently discuss competitive advantages and disadvantages, as well as strategies for market success

25. Direct competition and wallet share competition Competition & Competitive Advantage

26. Use a framework for analysis (ie direct versus wallet share) Provide a paragraph that focused on major competitors, their products, strengths and weaknesses Provide any factual, non-public information Competition cont.

27. Short, concise bios of key team members only! Highlight relevant experience Include: Executive Team Board Members (optional) Current Investors (optional) Advisors (beware of the promiscuous advisor!) Team & Advisors

28. Don’t predict 10 years out, keep it simple (3-5 years) Include other key business drivers that give credibility to numbers (italics) Revenue by market and/or product line Gross and net margins Roll-up SG&A Show “Path to profitability” (but don’t use these words! …buzz…buzz…) Financial Overview

29. Show momentum and pace of progress Key hires, product development achievements, funding, customer relationship, signed deals, implementation dates etc. Reverse chronological order Milestones

31. SIMPLICITY – 3-4 pages tops Perception is key: clarity and design of summary builds credibility from first glance. PDF Include an intro e-mail in first correspondence, reference a mutual third party if possible Provide contact info at conclusion Remember that you are trying to get a meeting or call, not a check. Other Things To Do

32. DO NOT ASK FOR AN NDA No need for a cover sheet Not a brochure, don’t need lots of graphics Hobbies/personal info don’t belong in bios Don’t get advisor/who-we-know happy. Things to Avoid

33. Take Control Of The Process Get comfortable with sending your summary, Don’t send more details without a meeting; the exec summary is the ‘in-the-door’ tool Don’t fall for the business plan trap Take control of the process!

34. Executive summary Intro e-mail 10 pp PPT presentation (4-6 bullets per slide) Prepare back up materials (financial, model, sales pipeline, IP, contracts, etc) Consistency in all materials and discussions References Be ready for “Yes” What Else Do I Need?

35. Robert Glazer rglazer@acceleration-partners.com (617) 264-0334 Questions? Copies?