FAQ Hyper-links:
$20,000 Projection?
Altman's Z-Score
Assumptions
Bank Loan
Basic Format
Business Type?
Capitalized Assets?
Depreciation Schedule
Development and History
E.B.I.T.D.A.
Historical Financial Data
Password Protected Pages
Payroll Assumptions
Sales Calculation
User-Friendly?
Which one should I use?
Why so Cheap?
Why so Expensive?
FAQ Hyper-links:
$20,000 Projection?
Altman's Z-Score
Assumptions
Bank Loan
Basic Format
Business Type?
Capitalized Assets?
Depreciation Schedule
Development and History
E.B.I.T.D.A.
Historical Financial Data
Password Protected Pages
Payroll Assumptions
Sales Calculation
User-Friendly?
Which one should I use?
Why so Cheap?
Why so Expensive?
FAQ Hyper-links:
$20,000 Projection?
Altman's Z-Score
Assumptions
Bank Loan
Basic Format
Business Type?
Capitalized Assets?
Depreciation Schedule
Development and History
E.B.I.T.D.A.
Historical Financial Data
Password Protected Pages
Payroll Assumptions
Sales Calculation
User-Friendly?
Which one should I use?
Why so Cheap?
Why so Expensive?
FAQ Hyper-links:
$20,000 Projection?
Altman's Z-Score
Assumptions
Bank Loan
Basic Format
Business Type?
Capitalized Assets?
Depreciation Schedule
Development and History
E.B.I.T.D.A.
Historical Financial Data
Password Protected Pages
Payroll Assumptions
Sales Calculation
User-Friendly?
Which one should I use?
Why so Cheap?
Why so Expensive?
FAQ Hyper-links:
$20,000 Projection?
Altman's Z-Score
Assumptions
Bank Loan
Basic Format
Business Type?
Capitalized Assets?
Depreciation Schedule
Development and History
E.B.I.T.D.A.
Historical Financial Data
Password Protected Pages
Payroll Assumptions
Sales Calculation
User-Friendly?
Which one should I use?
Why so Cheap?
Why so Expensive?
FAQ Hyper-links:
$20,000 Projection?
Altman's Z-Score
Assumptions
Bank Loan
Basic Format
Business Type?
Capitalized Assets?
Depreciation Schedule
Development and History
E.B.I.T.D.A.
Historical Financial Data
Password Protected Pages
Payroll Assumptions
Sales Calculation
User-Friendly?
Which one should I use?
Why so Cheap?
Why so Expensive?
FAQ Hyper-links:
$20,000 Projection?
Altman's Z-Score
Assumptions
Bank Loan
Basic Format
Business Type?
Capitalized Assets?
Depreciation Schedule
Development and History
E.B.I.T.D.A.
Historical Financial Data
Password Protected Pages
Payroll Assumptions
Sales Calculation
User-Friendly?
Which one should I use?
Why so Cheap?
Why so Expensive?
FAQ Hyper-links:
$20,000 Projection?
Altman's Z-Score
Assumptions
Bank Loan
Basic Format
Business Type?
Capitalized Assets?
Depreciation Schedule
Development and History
E.B.I.T.D.A.
Historical Financial Data
Password Protected Pages
Payroll Assumptions
Sales Calculation
User-Friendly?
Which one should I use?
Why so Cheap?
Why so Expensive?
FAQ Hyper-links:
$20,000 Projection?
Altman's Z-Score
Assumptions
Bank Loan
Basic Format
Business Type?
Capitalized Assets?
Depreciation Schedule
Development and History
E.B.I.T.D.A.
Historical Financial Data
Password Protected Pages
Payroll Assumptions
Sales Calculation
User-Friendly?
Which one should I use?
Why so Cheap?
Why so Expensive?
FAQ Hyper-links:
$20,000 Projection?
Altman's Z-Score
Assumptions
Bank Loan
Basic Format
Business Type?
Capitalized Assets?
Depreciation Schedule
Development and History
E.B.I.T.D.A.
Historical Financial Data
Password Protected Pages
Payroll Assumptions
Sales Calculation
User-Friendly?
Which one should I use?
Why so Cheap?
Why so Expensive?
FAQ Hyper-links:
$20,000 Projection?
Altman's Z-Score
Assumptions
Bank Loan
Basic Format
Business Type?
Capitalized Assets?
Depreciation Schedule
Development and History
E.B.I.T.D.A.
Historical Financial Data
Password Protected Pages
Payroll Assumptions
Sales Calculation
User-Friendly?
Which one should I use?
Why so Cheap?
Why so Expensive?
Frequently Asked Questions!
"Our Firm had a track record of 100% success with these projections for almost 20 years.If we agreed to work with a client, the bank always accepted our proposal!"
We assembled (a list of questions asked by customers and prospects since September, 2008) in an effort to give you as much information as possible about our Projection Software.
Our templates are extremely Interactive, Predictive, Professional Looking, and Easy to Use! You won't find a better Financial Modeling Template anywhere at any price!
"Can I really create a business plan worth $20,000 using your tools?"
Yes!Our Projection Software (and our Free Business Plan Narrative) provides you with the tools and resources you need to create a business plan that will impress anyone! When we create a business plan in-house, we always start with the same templates made available here.
Viser Business Tools has prepared a great number of business plans over the last 20 years - including an IPO and dozens private equity offerings. We have often been hired by Venture Capital Firms directly:
These arrangements don't happen as often as they used to. VCs still insist on a Professional looking business plan, but now they often allow the customer to provide it.
This is important to note:
When any firm prepares a business plan, the customer does most of the work. The firm gathers information provided by the customer, and then compiles it into a professional looking package. IE: It's the consultant's job to provide questions and guidance. The business owner does the homework and provides the answers. During the process, the owner learns valuable information about his business and his industry. So whether you hire someone to prepare a business plan, or whether you do it yourself, there will still be a great deal of work involved.
Our tools walk you thru the process of creating a business plan by providing questions and guidance within the business plan narrative and the financial projection software. Our tools can help you create a business plan that will impress everyone!
"What is the Altman's Z-Score? What does it measure and why is it relevant?"
The ALTMAN'S Z-SCORE is a series of ratios is used to predict a bankruptcy up to 2 years before it happens. The original Z-score formula was developed by Dr. Edward I. Altman in 1968.This widely accepted tool adds the results of 5 financial ratios. The resulting total is used to to assess the company's financial viability as a going concern:
- Working Capital / Total Assets.
- Retained Earnings / Total Assets.
- Earnings Before Interest and Taxes / Total Assets.
- Market Value of Equity (MVE) / Book value of Total Debt. MVE is not a readily available number for privately held companies, so I often use a 'rule of thumb' valuation to calculate the Market Value of Equity.
- Net Sales / Total Assets.
Your business plan will be more impressive if you provide ratio analysis and the Altman's Z-Score. Banks and investors will calculate this data anyway; but offering the information saves them time, and it gives them confidence that you are willing to do the work needed to be successful!
"How are financial assumptions entered or updated?"
Every income and expense item is expressed as an algorithm. Formulas were chosen for their predictive merits. There are 4 primary assumption pages:- Sales: The Sales and Headcount pages should be filled out first.
See the Sales Calculation FAQ for details about sales projection options. Headcount: Here's where you enter the size of your workforce and their wages. Wage information will not print - in fact it won't even display on the screen. We did this to keep wage information as confidential as possible. Financial Assumptions page: This page lists every income and expense item in detail. It shows up to 2 years of historical activity; totals for the first projected year; input cells highlighted in yellow; and a detail explanation for how each number is calculated. The numbers react instantly to changes in assumptions, giving you immediate feedback and helping to speed up the preparation process! Depreciation Schedule: This schedule is updated automatically by assumptions in the Headcount field and the assumptions page. If you enter historical Depreciation numbers in the yellow highlighted fields, it will make the schedule even more accurate!
How does the program work? What is the basic format and design?
Our Projections are written in a Spreadsheet Program format (.xls). There are a series of input sheets and output sheets. There are 17 worksheets total - including all input, calculation and output sheets. Input Sheets are highlighted in yellow. Output sheets are labeled with a (P). When you are satisfied that everything has been input properly, simply go to each output sheet & click "print". The first two years are projected on a monthly and annual basis. This is a great cash modeling tool! Our feature template includes a balance sheet, income statement, cash flow statement, and financial analysis.The output sheets are already set up to print properly; they are also in order (from left to right), as they should appear in a report, including a binder cover and table of contents.
HERE ARE SOME FEATURES THAT MAKE OUR TEMPLATES UNIQUE!
- It's designed to be dynamic and flexible! The projection changes instantly whenever a yellow input cell is updated. The dynamic nature of this tool makes it great for cash modeling, flexible budgeting, and creating sophisticated projections that will impress anyone!
- You can update actual information month-by-month without altering projection formulas! You can enter actual data into the input page, and it will over-ride the projection formulas for every month that is updated! This way you're not delete valuable formulas every time you update the budget for actual activity!
- The income statement is very comprehensive. It's not designed for a specific industry, so there may be categories that won't apply to your company. If this is the case, you can enter zero in the assumption.
- Please note! The template already has assumptions entered in most categories. You will need to update these assumptions
with reasonable data based on your research plus experience with your company and industry.
Please contact us if you would like assistance preparing your first draft, or if you would like help creating your business plan. This tool is definately user-friendly enough to do-it-yourself, but we would also be happy to help you. To date, about 5% of our customers hire us to help them with thier business plans.
"What information will I need to apply for a business loan with the bank?"
We assembled (a list of things often needed for a bank loan) for your convenience. We also provide the tools you need to put the package together! Here's the hyperlink:FINANCIAL LOAN PACKAGE CHECKLIST
"Are your projections designed for a specific industry or business type?"
No. The Projection template is designed to work for just about any business.As you work thru the business plan, there may be expense items that won't apply to your business. Simply leave these items blank or change the value to zero.
For example: The Projected Income Statement includes direct labor and direct materials. If this doesn't apply to your business, they will be blank after you have reviewed and updated the assumptions. You can then decide to either leave the blank items on the statement, or hide them.
- There are two easy ways to get rid of blank sections on your Income Statement or Balance Sheet:
- Hide the rows that don't apply to you. IE: If you are a Professional firm with no Cost of Goods Sold and No Product Inventory, simply hide these rows. Hide sections, don't delete them! Deleting sections could cause a problem.
- We'll alter the financial projection Template for you. Several companies have hired us to run their first draft, and we're happy to do it! All we need is your historical financial statement for 3 years, headcount information, and Payroll information.
"I noticed a negative number on the income statements - 'Capitalized Assets'. Why is that there?"
This is another financial statement format feature we have found to be very useful over the years. We use it on all our income statements - for projections, business plans, budgets, and historical financial statements.On our financial statements, all expenses run thru the income statement. Capitalized expenses are not taken directly to the balance sheet. We feel this makes the statements more comparable from year to year, and it helps quickly answer questions about certain expenses; like total office expenses, total computer expenses, and total repairs and maintenance expense.
I hope this make sense. Please fee free to use this reporting convention on your own statements. We haven't patented it or anything!
"How does the Depreciation Schedule Work?"
Our Depreciation Schedule is a great tool! and it's included with all our Projection Templates; even the Projected Income Statement! The schedule is updated automatically based on changes in headcount, and based on data entered on the assumptions pages.For example: If you add an employee on the headcount sheet, the projection assumes you are buying furniture, a computer, and software. The depreciation schedule is automatically updated along with the Income Statement, Balance Sheet, Assumptions Narrative, and the Statement of Cash-Flows. You can also improve the accuracy of Projected Depreciation Expense by adjusting the following information:
- You can enter historic depreciation totals from your previous year's depreciation schedule
- You can also adjust the useful life of assets capitalized each month.
E.B.I.T.D.A.
"Depreciation and Interest Expense are listed separately, below
General and Administrative Expenses and above Income Taxes. Why?"
We want to provide financial information that is as informative and relevant as possible.
Banks and investors often measure a company's ability to generate working capital by making a calculation called E.B.I.T.D.A.. aka Earnings Before Interest, income Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization (EBITDA). Our Income Statement format includes a calculation of EBITDA. This saves time for the user and it provides valuable, relevant information.
We've been using this financial format for years in our projections as well as our historical financial statements. We believe it makes our Income Statement more useful and easier to read.
"How do I update the projections with actual financial activity without ruining the formulas?"
If you've used spreadsheet based programs before, you know what happens when you update the projection with actual activity: It deletes formulas and ruins the spreadsheet!You never have to overwrite formulas with our software! Actual financial activity is entered on a separate sheet. The Output files are programmed to use projection formulas unless actual data has been entered. This way, you never corrupt your spreadsheet over time. It's also very easy to update the projection from year to year. Just change the historical numbers!
"Some pages are password protected! What's the password?"
Output sheets are password protected to help maintain the integrity of the projection.If you would like to make changes to an output page, the password is "projection".
We strongly suggest you make a backup of your projection before making changes to the spreadsheet. If you happen to make unwanted changes to the original, and then can't figure out how to fix it; please (contact us within the first year of your purchase) and we'll send you another template!
"How are Payroll Expenses calculated?"
The Payroll cost projection system will accommodate professional service, manufacturing or construction companies. Just enter the variables in the yellow highlighted fields, and the system will calculate the costs for you.We spent a great deal of time putting payroll assumptions and formulas together, and we've proud of the results! The system is designed to accommodate a full-blown manufacturing or construction cost accounting system*, but you can also ignore this functionality by putting zeros in the applicable cost and labor fields:
- Headcount and labor costs are entered on the 'headcount' page. You can also build in pay increases (or decreases) on a monthly basis.
Direct Labor expense is expressed as a percentage of Net Sales on the assumptions page. The Production staff is assumed to be 90%
efficient, meaning part of their pay will always be part of General and Administrative expenses; even if the company's production is
estimated to be over capacity.
When sales are below expected capacity, your Production Staff is assumed to be doing non-billable work. IE: A bigger portion of their cost
ends up in General and Administrative expenses! We feel this is a conservative position that should be taken on all budgets, business plans
and projections.
(New hires in production) don't improve capacity (aka generate revenue) for 3 months. This accounts for ramp-up time, training, etc.
Payroll taxes are expressed as a percentage of total labor. The rate can be different for the last 3 months of the year to account
for employees who may have exceeded the FICA limit!
*Costs are measured globally. The projection doesn't measure revenue and cost on a per-client or per-project basis.
How are sales calculated?
'Projected Sales' is the most important number on your projection. You should be prepared to defend this number with users of your projected financials. They should be more interested in this number than any other.We provide a detailed process for calculating sales based on historical production headcount and historical sales by month. If you don't have historical sales or headcount figures, you should still use these fields to establish expected revenue activity and/or an expected sales cycle.
It's important to get the sales cycle accurate.
It strongly affects collections and cash-flow!
Once a base sales cycle has been established, you have two options for calculating sales: You can enter expected revenue per production headcount in a single yellow input field, or you can enter a total sales figure in the over-ride field.
Is the program user-friendly?
Yes!If you look at some of the cell formulas, you'll see they look very long and complicated. Fortunately; you don't have to bother with formulas and formats! We've done all this work for you.
The Program is designed to take the data you enter in the yellow highlighted fields, and create a very sophisticated and professional looking set of Projected Financial Statements!
Which projection template will work best for my project?
I depends on your company size and/or your objectives.We assembled
checklists
for various Financial Projects.
Click here to see which
tools will best serve your needs.
for various Financial Projects.
Click here to see which
tools will best serve your needs.
Why is the projection software so cheap?
We get this question from other CPAs and many customers! After you have reviewed the sample spreadsheet, read all the FAQs, and read our testimonials, we think you'll agree that these projections are a great value!So why are the projections so inexpensive? It's simple. We want to serve the small business community with great tools and great service! We priced our products so that any business owner can afford to use them.
Why is the projection software so expensive?
There are many in the small business community who would like us to offer this software free of charge. Almost 50% of those who find us thru search engines include the word "free" in their search phrase. The small business community has a tough time spending money.We can't give you our projections free of charge; but you will be surprised what you get for the price!
Our projections can be an important part of a companies financial decision process, so it's worth the expense many times over! Our products will save you a tremendous amount of time and expense. They are very sophisticated, very user-friendly, and they provide information that every business needs to know regarding operations, cash flow projections, income projections, etc..
We once helped a client who was anticipating layoffs. They plugged their information into our software and concluded that they would actually save money by retaining employees and borrowing money to survive a difficult business cycle.
Such information is not easily demonstrated until it is accurately quantified; so in this case, our software helped save jobs!
We truly believe this is the best Financial Modeling Software Available! You could spend 20 times more money, and not get an interactive and informative tool as good as ours.