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How to Write an Effective Executive Summary. Pitch First 1. Your business plan will be a pitch Create your presentation first Your executive summary is a concise write-up of your presentation It should truly summarize your entire business plan Assume it is all the investor will read.
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Pitch First1 • Your business plan will be a pitch • Create your presentation first • Your executive summary is a concise write-up of your presentation • It should truly summarize your entire business plan • Assume it is all the investor will read
What to Cover2 • The context • The opportunity • Your business model • The people • Risks and rewards
The Context • Every opportunity exists within a context • What is going on in the world to create your opportunity? • There may be a gap • There may be a change occurring • There may be a problem that needs solving • What circumstances make your opportunity timely?
The Opportunity • Explain the need/problem/demand that your business will address • How do existing offerings by others fall short? • Or, if your idea is something entirely new, why customers will want it? • How large is the potential market?
Your Business Model3 • Value proposition • Value creation and delivery • Value capture
Value Proposition • Your offering • Your target market • Your basic strategy and approach to competitive advantage: why will customers want to buy this from you?
Value Creation and Delivery • Your value chain: what activities you will undertake? • Your position in the value network: how will you reach key suppliers, complementors, and customers • Key resources and capabilities: what do you have or are good at that enables you to deliver your value proposition?
Value Capture • Sources of revenue • Economics of your business: cash flow and margins
The People • Identify each team member and key advisers • What do they know? • Who do they know? • How well known are they?
Risks and Rewards • Projected sales and net income • What are your key assumptions? • What could go wrong? • What will you do? • How much money do you need? • How will investors be rewarded?
References • The Art of the Start by Guy Kawasaki • “How to Write a Great Business Plan” by William Sahlman, Harvard Business Review, July-August 1997 • “The Business Model Framework” by James Richardson, jamesr@hawaii.edu • “Executive Summary Guide” on the PACE website