How to Conduct Competitive Research
Who are your closest rivals—and how do they talk about themselves, as well as your company? It's time to find out. Read more
Writing a Business Plan
Recent Writing a Business Plan Articles
Elevator Pitch: Nixle
Nixle helps police send text-message alerts to local residents. Can it raise $7.5 million? Read more
How Would You Sell a Virtual Farmer's Market?
Local Dirt helps people find produce from local farms. Read more
Elevator Pitch: SpeakerText
SpeakerText adds transcripts to online videos. Can it raise $500,000? Read more
Top Business Plan Mistakes
For starters, don't pitch a company that relies solely on one product. Read more
How to Present Your Business Plan
Hitting a home run with potential investors requires selecting the right pitch. Read more
How to Revamp Your Marketing Plan
How should Denim Therapy market its jeans repair service? Four entrepreneurs weigh in. Read more
Elevator Pitch: eDivvy
eDivvy helps people buy group gifts online. Can it get investors to pitch in $1.5 million? Read more
How to Evaluate a Franchise Business Plan
If you are thinking of buying into a franchise, you must review the business plan with an eye toward learning whether there will be enough revenue to reward ... Read more
How to Structure a Partnership
Partnerships are incredibly common--and incredibly hard to sustain. Here's how to set up a partnership that is equitable, efficient, and mutually rewarding. Read more
How to Write a Marketing Plan
Experts know that careful planning is integral to marketing success. Here's your guide to crafting a thorough marketing plan - and learning more about your c... Read more
Elevator Pitch: Prime Time Boxing
Prime Time Boxing helps people channel their inner Rocky Balboa. Can $500,000 take it another round? Read more
How to Write a Great Business Plan
Advice for small businesses on what it takes to create a solid business plan, including forming an outline, integrating financial specifics, and spelling out... Read more
How to Write the Financial Section of a Business Plan
An outline of your company's growth strategy is essential to a business plan, but it just isn't complete without the numbers to back it up. Here's some advic... Read more
The Best and Worst Industries of the Next Decade
A new analysis predicts which industries will experience the best and worst revenue growth over the next ten years. Read more
Elevator Pitch: ERT Systems
The safety tracker from ERT Systems helps firefighters keep track of one another. Will the company light a fire under investors? Read more
10 Mistakes to Avoid When Writing a Business Plan
Writing a business plan is often a crucial first step to getting your start-up off the ground. But a plan riddled with errors? It can sink you. View slideshow
Elevator Pitch: Green Sherpa
Green Sherpa wants to help organize your finances. But first, it's looking for $5 million of its own. Will investors go for the deal? Read more
Students Win Money for Best Business Plan
NFTE selects the winners of it's annual youth entrepreneurship challenge; winners to meet President Obama. Read more
Elevator Pitch: Guitar Affair
Guitar Affair is like Netflix for high-end guitar rentals. Now it wants to raise $150,000 from investors Read more
Elevator Pitch: Healthy Fare for Schoolkids
Health e-Lunch Kids feeds schoolkids. Will $1 million put more food on the table? Founder Monica Tomasso makes her case to investors Read more
How to Conduct Market Research
A guide to using market research to understand who your customers are and what they want Read more
The Power of a One-Page Marketing Plan
When launching a new product or a new line of business, many companies make the mistake of starting with either engineering or design. This is wron... Read more
How to Start a Beauty Company
If you have smarts, style, and nerve, then Maureen Kelly of Tarte Cosmetics says that you could hit it big Read more
How to Start a Beverage Company
You don't need tons of capital, says Clayton Christopher of Sweet Leaf Tea. You might, however, need Grandma's recipe Read more
