Business Plan Competition Preliminary Proposal Guide
What goes into your Preliminary Business Plan Proposal? What you should know before submitting your entry.
Eligibility and General Info
- Students can participate individually or as a member of a team (three to five members). Cross-disciplinary teams are strongly encouraged.
- A team or individual can submit only one proposal. An individual cannot be a member of more than one team.
- Your strategic business plan must be developed during the student’s time at the university.
- Participants, whether teams or individuals, can have advisers and coaches. These advisers can be faculty members, business executives, entrepreneurs or family members. This is not a requirement. However, it is the students who must present their business plan and participate in the competition.
- Only students are eligible to earn prize money. No payments will be made to non-students.
Preliminary Proposal
The name and nature of the proposed venture:
- An overview of the project and the key points
- Layout the steps needed to launch the project successfully
- Describe the product or service or concept you wish to provide
- Who will be the user of your product, service or concept?
An assessment of the need for your product or service or concept:
- Who is your target market? How did you identify them?
- What is your solution and what benefit will your product, service or concept provide?
- What will make your product, service or concept competitive to the user?
A review of existing and potential competitors:
- What similar competitive products or services are there?
- How will you compete with them?
A description of how the product, service or concept will be created, distributed and sold:
- How will the product/service/concept be made and distributed to others?
- What resources are required to make this product/service and implement this concept?
Sources of financing, prospects for success and appeal to potential investors:
- What is the expected cost of launching this project?
- What are the potential sources of funding to launch the project?
