business-planI’m part of a startup that hasn’t launched or get any fund yet. We are developing an online platform that is currently functioning as alpha version, and preparing the material to apply for an accelerator. We have a detailed presentation about the idea, what is the problem that we are trying to tackle, target etc. but we still don’t have a complete business plan.
Is it something an accelerator is expecting to see (even if not professional or accurate), or is something that can be redacted during the acceleration with the proper competence?
If you are applying to a reputable startup accelerator then chances are they will NOT want a detailed business plan.
In the startup world the most valuable resource you have is time, you will have 1,000+ things to do every day and must pick the most important to do at any given time. Anyone who has worked with a startup accelerator will likely believe that spending weeks building a detailed business plan is a huge waste of time! (The exception being if you are going to ask a bank for money, they will likely want one).
What you should do is use the business model canvas or lean business model canvas to get a good overview of your business.
There are many advantages of a canvas over a business plan, some include...
And many more...
To learn more about the canvas(s) check out the following books...
Lean Canvas: Running Lean by Ash Maurya
Business Model Canvas: Business Model Generation
Also, you can do your own lean canvas online at...
Good luck to you with you accelerator application and your business!
The proper stage is right away. If you’re lazy you can get away with postponing it indefinitely, but you risk getting to a certain point where you are locked into poor decisions which were made early on.
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