Product Reviews

Business Plan Pro is designed to help you run an efficient and effective business. It is aimed at everyone, from those who have some experience of running a business to absolute beginners who are setting up on their own for the first time.

As with previous versions, there are two ways to create a plan. The simplest is to use one of the 500 business plans included. These cover businesses ranging from sandwich shops to tanning salons and guide you through the process of creating a plan. You can lift entire sections from the template for use in your own plan or just use them

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as inspiration. A few are niche plans and US-oriented, though, so they are of little use in the UK.

The second method is to create a plan from scratch, which should appeal to those with more experience. This second method is also wizard-led, making it easy to follow.

The 2006 version helps you plan your financial future, whether you intend to sell your company, go public or simply expand. The software covers areas such as creating an effective exit strategy and looking into financial risks and contingencies. Another important feature is the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats (SWOT) analysis, which lets you give your business a health check. This type of detailed examination can help you determine a more successful business strategy.

An improved plan review helps you avoid planning pitfalls and offers tips and advice on how to polish your plan to make it look even more professional. The table wizards have also been enhanced to make creating financial tables for a specific business easier.

This is a thorough, well-thought out product, although the sample plans could have been better designed to help a wider audience.