http://imaginecup.planasyougo.com Helping You Present Your Idea as Well as Possible Thu, 15 Jan 2009 16:54:45 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en I noticed this very plan-as-you-go post by Guy Kawasaki on the American Express Open Forum. What I like about it, particularly, is where Guy says "set goals" and then lists these four desirable qualities of goals: Measurable. If a goal isn't measurable, its unlikely you'll ... http://imaginecup.planasyougo.com/the-art-of-execution/ Your starter plan is supposed to be a simple summary, covering just a few important points. It should be formatted as a single document with 12-point font for the main text (some of your judges will be old enough to need reading glasses) and clear headers. Divide it into the headings ... http://imaginecup.planasyougo.com/submitting-the-starter-plan/ Your starter plan is a simple summary of the business background of your qualifying round submission. It is one of three documents you need to submit before the January 15 deadline. The other two are the design requirements document and the development schedule, which are separate documents. Templates for those ... http://imaginecup.planasyougo.com/starter-plan-outline/ Business ideas are interesting, exciting stuff to build a business by, but they are worth nothing (in general) until somebody builds a company around them. Opportunities are the best of the ideas. An idea is just that. An opportunity is an idea you can implement. You have the resources, and know-how ... http://imaginecup.planasyougo.com/sidebar-tt-filter-ideas-from-opportunities/ After you've installed Business Plan Pro, click here to download the Imagine Cup Blank Starter Plan, and save it onto your hard disk using a name and location you can easily remember. After downloading, find the file icon on your hard disk (wherever you saved it) and double-click it to launch ... http://imaginecup.planasyougo.com/starter-plan-and-business-plan-pro/ There's a couple of simple ways to optimize your starter plan submission for Imagine Cup using the starter plan you've built in Business Plan Pro. Use the starter plan file that has the starter plan outline built in, as explained here. Use the Export command in the File menu as shown here: Choose ... http://imaginecup.planasyougo.com/output-the-starter-plan-from-business-plan-pro/ When you pass through the qualifying round and get into the semi-finals round your submission for the semi-finals will include a business plan. It's going to look and feel a lot like the classic formal business plan. It will cover what the starter plan covers, plus more depth on strategy, ... http://imaginecup.planasyougo.com/semi-finals-plan/ Here's a great resource for you, or a collection of resources, as you think through the marketing, identity, and focus factors that make up the heart of your plan. It's almost too big, but at least it's divided into subsections, and it's a great list. Thanks to Spotlight ID for this ... http://imaginecup.planasyougo.com/spotlight-ideas-top-250-blog-posts-advertising-marketing-media-pr/ I talk about the secret sauce a lot, in my seminars and in my class, at the office. It's definitively another view of the same reality I'm calling the heart of the plan. So that's one thing to add for the next edition. The secret sauce is the ... http://imaginecup.planasyougo.com/the-secret-sauce/ This is a flash video, set for 800x600 dimensions, which will require that you install Flash on your system if you don't already have it. just click this link ... Planning as you go with Business Plan Pro ... it should open up a new window with a media ... http://imaginecup.planasyougo.com/plan-as-you-go-and-business-plan-pro/