Recent Articles Published by Tim Berry
Start With an Initial Assessment
Start the business planning process with a quick initial assessment. Even for an ongoing business, take the time to step away from the business and assess your business opportunity. Read more »
Should You Stick to the Business Plan or Change It?
One of the hardest parts of business planning is answering this question: Do we stick to the business plan, or do we change it? Here's how to decide if you should stay the course, or revise your business plan. Read more »
Estimating Realistic Startup Costs
What will it cost to start that business? Although of course you can’t be sure, you can still estimate realistic startup costs. You can do this either by using a startup worksheet that stands alone, or by including all pre-launch spending and pre-launch financing in your initial projections. Read more »
The Difference Between Cash and Profits
Never forget: Profits are not the same as cash, and understanding the difference between the two is an important part of running a successful business. Brush up on the crucial difference between cash and profits with this guide. Read more »
The Different Types of Business Plans
Business plans go by many names: Strategic plans, operational plans, internal plans, and many others. Here's a rundown of the different types of business plans, so you can decide which one is right for you. Read more »
How to Forecast Sales
Sales forecasting is much easier than you think, and much more useful than you imagine. It’s not about guessing the future correctly. We’re human; we don’t do that well. Instead, it’s about assumptions, expectations, drivers, tracking, and management. Here's how to forecast sales for your business. Read more »
How to Forecast Cash Flow
A profitable business will still fail if you can't pay the bills—so a good cash flow analysis might be the most important piece of a business plan. Here's how to forecast cash flow. Read more »
A Simpler Plan for Startups
What kind of business plan do you need? It depends on the size of your business, and what you're using the business plan for. Here's how to determine what kind of business plan is right for your startup. Read more »
How to Develop a Market Analysis for Your Business Plan
The sales and marketing section of the standard business plan includes three parts—the market analysis, the marketing plan, and the sales plan. Keep it short and simple—just big enough to cover your actual business need. Here's how to develop your market analysis for your business plan. Read more »
How to Use Your Business Plan to Be a Better Manager
Use your business plan to set milestones, tasks, performance measurements, and numbers to track. Then get the people together once a month (or so) to review results. The outcome? The management "magic" of business planning. Read more »
8 Common Business Plan Mistakes
What are the most common business plan mistakes? While including the necessary items in a business plan is important, you also want to make sure you don’t make any of these common errors. Here's what to avoid. Read more »
How to Develop Your Business Strategy
Business strategy doesn't have to be complex—it's all about assessing the problem, your solution, the market, and your business identity. Here's your guide to easily creating a solid strategy that will help grow your business. Read more »
What Is a Business Plan?
In its simplest form, a business plan is a guide—a roadmap for your business that outlines goals and details how you plan to achieve those goals. Here's what a business plan entails, and how to choose what type is right for your business. Read more »
Strategy Is Useless Without Execution
Strategy is useless without tactics for execution. The plan was brilliant on the whiteboard, but never got to the real world. What happened? Don’t leave that whiteboard without developing key tactics. Read more »
4 Essentials of the Growth-Oriented Business Plan
Strategy in your growth-oriented business plan serves as a reminder of what’s most important. Hint: It's not about what you're doing; it's all about what you're not doing. Read more »
Forecasting Models: What You Need to Know
Forecasting should be a regular part of your process—not something you do once, or once a year. But how do you know if your forecast is reliable? Read more »
SWOT Analysis Examples
Conducting a SWOT analysis on your business? One of the best ways to prepare yourself is to turn to SWOT analysis examples, which can provide both help and inspiration. Read more »
How to Do a SWOT Analysis for Better Strategic Planning
Conducting a SWOT analysis of your business will enable you to make a solid strategic plan for your business's growth. Here's how to get started. Read more »
How to Write a Mission Statement in 5 Easy Steps
Your company’s mission statement is your opportunity to define your goals, ethics, culture, and norms for decision-making. Here are the steps to writing a great mission statement. Read more »
How to Write an Executive Summary + Video
Your executive summary is the doorway to your business plan—after looking it over, your prospective investor is either going to throw your business plan away, or keep reading. Here's how to write an executive summary that sets your business plan apart. Read more »
