What investors are looking for is a very simple question, with a very simple answer. Investors want a return on their investment. In other words, they want to be assured that if they invest money in an enterprise, that they have a better than average chance of that investment of money making more money for them. They want to see profit.

Getting a little more specific, investors want an assurance that there is a need for the product or service that a company is marketing. For instance, there would be very little market for pork sandwiches in a predominantly Muslim country because the people there don’t eat pork. On the other hand, a gourmet coffee bar in a college town would have a built in demand for the product offered, gourmet coffee.

After this assurance, investors want to know that the management team and key players involved in the business are competent, that they know what they are doing and are capable of running the business and making a profit. That is the reason that most business plans include resumes for the managers and key personnel.

After key personnel are scrutinized, investors will look closely at a marketing plan to see how the company plans to make a profit. Marketing is a misunderstood work. Because telemarketers are so common, many people think marketing just means selling. Actually selling is a part of marketing. So is advertising, which is paid for and publicity, which is hoped and prayed for. And that is the difference between the two.

Publicity is acquired when a newspaper writes about your company, or a TV station features it on a news program. Advertising is what a company pays to have appear in various media. Other parts of marketing are promotional efforts like trade show. Investors usually like to see an integrated marketing plan, with a specific goal of selling more of the product or service offered.

The IMC, or integrated marketing communications approach, holds to the idea than a coordinated and consistent plan across all levels of marketing will yield better results, and investors love to see this type of plan.

In the end however the answer is still very simple. Investors want to make a profit, and if they invest in your company they want to know how you will go about making that profit.

Frequent watchers of late night television often think that simply applying for a government grant will give them the necessary capital to start a business. While there are a lucky few who get their money that way, they are very few, and very far between.

To receive a grant to start a business it is necessary to be a part of the group for which the grant money is intended and to meet other criteria. While some people do receive grants, and some people do win the lottery, there are more practical and more likely methods.

One of those methods is offered by the SBA, the Small Business Administration While the SBA does offer loans, it offers very few loans directly and prefers to guarantee loans made by banks. The guarantee is valuable because banks are more willing to make a loan knowing that if the loan is defaulted the SBA will make the payments, and knowing that after SBA qualification the rate of default is very low.

Another way to get government help with a small business start up is to locate your business in en Enterprise Zone. These zones are also called Empowerment Zones, and are designed to create economic growth in certain areas that are in need of economic assistance.

In an Empowerment Zone or Enterprise Zone taxes, many times local, state and federal, are waived for a business to encourage the business to come into an area and create jobs. These zones are sometimes located in rural areas that have lost indigenous industry. Others are located in urban areas that have become rundown and need to be built up.

Members of some groups or communities who have suffered a particular hardship, such as the victims of Hurricane Rita and Hurricane Katrina are often given preferential status for business loans to encourage them to start up in areas that were damaged economically.

One of the most overlooked areas of government assistance in business start up is in the area of education, perhaps the most valuable commodity a new entrepreneur can have. Pell Grants and federal student loans make it possible for many people to go to college or technical school. A budding entrepreneur can use a Pell Grant to cover books and tuition to acquire a degree in business and gain the knowledge necessary for success, and increase the chances of creating a successful business.

Investors in your business are a dream many entrepreneurs wish for. Added capital from investment allows business growth, invigorated marketing efforts, new employees, new facilities and expansion. What exactly are potential investors looking for in your business?

Investors are looking for a way to make a profit from their money. A way for their money to make more money. In looking at your business as a potential investment vehicles investors are looking for a way to increase your profit, so that they can have a fair share of it as a return on their investment.
In looking at your business they want to see stability. A strong management team with good employees and little or no turnover.

They want to know that key employees will stay for the long haul, and they want to know how future personnel problems will be handled when they arise. An employee handbook, also known as a policies and procedures manual is a great tool to showcase this positive aspect of your business. If your company doesn’t have one, then this is a great investment for you to make in your company’s future.

These potential cash angels also want to know how their investment capital would be used. What would you spend the money on, and how would it benefit the business and make it more profitable. For this it is wise to have a strategic business plan prepared, outlining future growth, and how it would benefit the company.

A part of the strategic business plan should be the marketing plan. The marketing plan is a roadmap to increased profits through marketing communications such as advertising, promotions and public relations, and the ways in which these efforts will increase sales of your company’s products or services.

The investors will also want to know about the big picture. Where does your company fit in the overall market? This can be locally, regionally or nationally, depending on how far our business reaches out to gather customers. This should include anticipated future trends in the marketplace, and your competition.

Emphasis in the plans your strengths, and ways in which you can capture sections of the market that the competition can’t, and that you are not yet reaching.

Investors interested in your business is a sincere complement to you as a business builder, but don’t expect them to understand the business as you do. Take the time and effort to show them, on paper, how you and your business can help them help themselves.

Creating a financial statement for a small business isn’t difficult, but it does require accuracy and a flair for numbers. What is a financial statement? It is a document that accurately details all financial data of your business. This includes all income from all sources. Also all expenses, all assets and all liabilities. It is a reflection of your financial house, with the result being a method of keeping your house in order.

The financial statement will include all assets. This means all cash on hand, cash in the bank checking account, savings, account, petty cash drawer, etc. Also investments such as the value of equity stocks, bonds, treasury notes, mutual funds, insurance policies, gold and precious metals, and any other investments you might have. This will even include estimated value of collectibles. Then add in assets like cars trucks and other vehicles, real estate, furniture, fixtures, jewelry, and any other physical item of value. Also include loans – money that people owe you.

In the second column you have your liabilities. Here you list money owed, including salaries of employees, outstanding loans, unpaid bills, the mortgage on the real estate, credit card balances, and any other type of liability you may have.

Naturally your hope is that the left-hand column of assets will, when added up, be greater than the right hand column of liabilities. This is the simplest form of financial statement, and one you can create yourself. This will also serve as a basis for discussion with a CPA if he is creating a more detailed financial statement for you. In other words, a place to start.

There are many good books available on creating financial statements, and a business owner can create one himself, but most prefer to leave this in the hands of a knowledgeable professional and turn the chore over to a CPA.

Part of a being an adult is adequately managing your finances and this is especially true for business owners. Unlike the federal government, individuals and businesses live on budgets and need to stick to them to avoid unpleasant situations like bankruptcy. A few basic rules to follow are:

1. Live below your means. If you make $100,000 a year, live as though you made $50,000. Don’t build up unnecessary debt. A business owner needs to be ready to handle unexpected emergencies, and that is easier to do if you are fast and maneuverable, with little debt.

2. If you have debt, pay it off as quickly as possible.

3. Build up an emergency cash fund. Try to set aside enough cash for you to live and the business to operate for a minimum of three months, and six months is much better.

4. Take advantage of legal tax loopholes. If you can save money by leasing a vehicle rather than purchasing one, then lease. If the opposite is true, then purchase. Do what saves you the most money, paying particular attention to taxes.

5. Pay credit cards off in full at the end of each month. Credit card interest is high and cash eat you alive if you allow it.

6. Take advantage of pre-pay discounts. For instance, if you advertise in the newspaper and they offer a ten percent discount for prepaying a year’s worth of advertising, realize that ten percent is better interest than the bank would pay you and pay for a year in advance to get the discount.

7. Buy office supplies and other consumables in bulk. You’ll save five to ten percent on the total.

8. If you fly for business, save frequent flier miles and use them later for free airline tickets, for items you can give to the sales staff as motivational tools and contest prizes, or give them to charity organizations for the tax write off.

9. And finally, think lean. Remember that Sam Walton, the richest man in America, drove a ten-year-old pick up truck when he could afford the nicest Rolls Royce. Think lean, be frugal, and be successful.