Comments on: 5 Apps That Make Your Business Plan More Useful

By: Kitty Bateman

Kitty Bateman — Fri, 17 Sep 2010 16:15:23 +0000

I love google notebook and used to rely on it for all of my work-related notes. However, I have in the past inadvertantly deleted a note because of my touch trackpad, and because google notebook doesn’t have a revision history like google docs does, all my work was lost. I’ve also lost info on notebook by using the iphone app, updating notes and running into some bugs that deleted my work forever. If google would add a revision history feature to notebook I would use it constantly and would definitely use it to build a business plan!

By: TOMAS

TOMAS — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 17:07:41 +0000

@P.J. Ryan – Thanks for the insight and I really like the idea of using the term working plan as a better description of a living business plan.

By: P.J. Ryan

P.J. Ryan — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 07:14:17 +0000

I’m a big fan of MS OneNote and have been using it for several years to help me organize and build my craft/design business. My favorite feature is grabbing inspiring images off the web. And clipping articles like this one for reference.

The 2007 Version has many improvements that I love.

Don’t just use it for your business plan, but for your “working plan”, too.

By: TOMAS

TOMAS — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 23:37:07 +0000

@Chase – It’s a good question, and definitely one you should ask yourself if you’re worried about sensitive info being online.

Obviously anything you do online always comes with a risk, so to lessen the risk you could pay for enhanced security with Backpack—PlanHQ is already hosted on servers that house sensitive info—or use “https” with Google Notebook.

By: Chase

Chase — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 00:06:08 +0000

Should anyone be concerned about putting such confidential information into an online app? I wouldn’t. What am I missing?

By: TOMAS

TOMAS — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 17:19:30 +0000

@Chris – I’ve read about mind mapping tools and think that it’s definitely a great idea for generating new ideas and coming up with creative solutions to problems, but I guess I would have to play with the software myself to see if it would serve as a foundation for an actual business plan (although I could definitely see how it could assist in the planning process). Thanks for the tip though, I had forgot about mind mapping.

BTW, this would make a nice topic for a blog post *hint-hint*.

By: Chris

Chris — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 03:36:22 +0000

What do you think about something like http://www.mindjet.com (mind mapping software with export functions to word, powerpoint,etc.) I use it for a lot of projects/decisions/planning…

By: TOMAS

TOMAS — Sat, 10 May 2008 18:14:09 +0000

@Lee – I completely agree with your idea of a business plan being a roadmap. In the end, a business plan should help your business succeed through planning; it shouldn’t be some daunting and cumbersome task that’s reminiscent of a term paper.

By: Lee

Lee — Sat, 10 May 2008 17:49:06 +0000

There’s some debate about the importance of having a Business Plan or not. Not all start-ups use them. But as we all know, VC’s want to see them and some Angels (not all) do too.

I hope to one day enjoy creating a Business Plan. It’l like doing my taxes….

However, on the plus side – I have noticed that when things go awry – I review my original Business Plan and low and behold from what I thought was BS is a solution to my alternative step and I keep stepping forward.

In the long run, it’s a road map. You may take some side roads along the way, but it will get you were you want to be. Really help you focus…

By: TOMAS

TOMAS — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 15:28:31 +0000

Hey Tim, PlanHQ is what Business Plan Pro should be, which is why I included it in the fray. I definitely think that you have focused on what’s most critical to a business and packaged it in a sleek webapp. Kudos to all the work you and your team have done, you’ve definitely created a useful product.

~Tomas