How to win a business plan competition
You can learn a lot about what it will take to win an upcoming business plan competition by heeding the advice of companies that have entered – AND WON – similar competitions in the past. They’ve managed to pull it all together, impress the judges, and walk away with a cash prize (and usually a whole lot more, like exposure to angels and VCs).
Fortunately, the Rhode Island Business Plan Competition has asked some of the winners from their 2007, 2008, and 2009 events to put together PowerPoint presentations about what it takes to win a competition. And they’ve posted these presentations to their site for all to view! Just click on these links:
BioIntraface (PPT) – 2009
Runa (PPT) – 2009
MissingPatient.com (PDF) – 2008
Campus Guardian (PPT) – 2007
Providence Health Solutions (PPT) – 2007
You won’t find a whole lot of detailed explanation in these slides, but you will find great, practical advice from the competitive trenches and some extremely useful tips. I especially appreciated the presentation from David Spenciner, COO for BioIntraface Inc. Take a few minutes to read through them – it will be time well spent.
Co-founder of Bizplancompetitions.com. 2009 graduate of Nazareth College (Rochester, NY) who enjoys riding horses and motorcycles (in that order).
