---
name: sales-planpros
description: "PlanPros (planpros.ai) platform help — an AI business-plan generator by business-planning author Dave Lavinsky (of Growthink) that turns a guided questionnaire into a full investor- and lender-ready plan with 5-year financial projections across 1,000+ industries, bundled with an investor/funding-source database and expert courses, exported to PDF, Word, or Google Docs. Use when generating or editing a plan in PlanPros, interpreting its AI-written 5-year financials, fixing a plan that reads generic or cookie-cutter, working around its missing AI section-rewrite / tone / what-if controls, deciding whether the flat one-time access is worth it, using the funding-source database to find lenders and investors, or asking whether it has an API to export or automate plans. Do NOT use for the tool-agnostic validate-before-building method or comparing business-plan tools across the market to pick one (use /sales-idea-validation), or building the smoke-test landing page (use /sales-funnel)."
argument-hint: "[describe what you need help with in PlanPros]"
license: MIT
version: 1.0.0
tags: [sales, validation, pre-launch, platform]
---

# PlanPros Platform Help

PlanPros (**planpros.ai**) is an **AI business-plan generator** with a pedigree: it's built by
**Dave Lavinsky**, co-founder of **Growthink** and a long-time business-planning author — its main
differentiator in a crowded field of anonymous AI plan wrappers. A **guided questionnaire** (idea,
industry, market, model) generates a **full "investor-ready / lender-ready" plan** in ~12 minutes —
executive summary, company overview, market/competitive analysis, marketing strategy, operations plan,
management team, and **5-year financial projections** — across **1,000+ industry types**. Two bundled
extras set it apart: an **investor/funding-source database** (advertised 80,000+ investors/lenders) and
**expert courses**. Plans **export to PDF, Word, or Google Docs**. Sold as a **flat one-time payment
for 12-month access** (not credits/subscription) with a money-back guarantee. **UI-only — no public API.**

## Step 1 — Gather context

If `references/learnings.md` exists, read it first for accumulated platform knowledge.

Ask only what you can't infer:

1. **What do you want from PlanPros?**
   - A) Generate/edit a plan section (market analysis, competitive, operations) and interpret the output
   - B) Read or fix the **5-year financial projections** and make the plan **investor-/lender-ready**
   - C) Fix a plan that reads **generic / cookie-cutter**, or work around the **missing AI
     section-rewrite / tone / layout / what-if** controls
   - D) Use the **investor/funding-source database** to find lenders/investors, or the bundled **courses**
   - E) Understand the **flat one-time 12-month pricing** (vs credits/subscription), or whether it fits an
     **idea-stage / nonprofit** use
   - F) Export or automate plan generation (the API reality)
2. **What's the real question — "is this idea worth building?" or "how do I use this tool?"** If it's the
   go/no-go decision itself, that's `/sales-idea-validation` (a generated plan is not demand) — route in Step 2.

Skip-ahead: if the user already gave enough context, or wants to compare business-plan tools across the
market to pick one, go straight to Step 2.

## Step 2 — Route or answer directly

| If the user's question is about… | Route to |
|---|---|
| The validate-before-building **method**, or the go/no-go decision itself | `/sales-idea-validation {question}` |
| A **cross-market ranking** of business-plan/validator tools (Upmetrics, VentureKit, Bizplanr… to pick one) — but answer a quick PlanPros-vs-X *how-they-differ* inline first (Step 4) | `/sales-idea-validation {question}` |
| Building the smoke-test / fake-door **landing page** to test real demand | `/sales-funnel {question}` |
| Growing a pre-launch **waitlist** / capturing real demand | `/sales-audience-growth {question}` |

When routing, give the exact command: "This is a {domain} question — run: `/sales-idea-validation {original question}`"

Otherwise, answer PlanPros-specific questions using Step 3.

## Step 3 — PlanPros platform reference

**Read `references/platform-guide.md`** for the full reference — the module set (questionnaire plan
generator, 5-year financials, investor/funding-source database, courses, 1,000+ templates), the flat
one-time 12-month pricing and money-back guarantee, the PDF/Word/Google Docs export, the no-public-API
reality, the Dave Lavinsky / Growthink pedigree, and how to feed rich input to avoid generic output.

Answer using only the relevant section — don't dump the full reference.

## Step 4 — Actionable guidance

You no longer need the platform guide — focus on the user's specific situation.

- **Treat the plan and 5-year projections as AI estimates, not facts.** PlanPros produces a polished,
  investor-formatted plan fast, but the financials are the model's estimates. Tell the user to keep the
  structure and market framing, then **replace every projection, market-size figure, and unit-economics
  assumption with their own real numbers and cite sources** — a lender or investor scrutinizes the
  financials first. And say it plainly: **a polished, fundable-looking plan is a *document*, not
  validated demand** — if the build-or-not question is still open, the go/no-go belongs to a **real
  behavior test (a smoke test or a pre-sale), routed to `/sales-idea-validation`**, not to the plan.
- **De-genericize the plan by feeding richer input and editing hard — PlanPros can't AI-rewrite for
  you.** Its known weakness is **generic / cookie-cutter** content when it fills gaps with its own
  ideas, and unlike some rivals it has **no AI section-rewrite, no tone control, and no layout
  editing** — refinements are **manual**. The fix is input richness (exact customer, the specific
  problem, how it's solved today, business model, pricing, any traction) plus **hand-editing** the
  competitive and operations sections, which are thinnest by default.
- **Set expectations on the financial modeling — it's a static forecast, not a model.** You **can't
  tweak assumptions, run what-if / scenario analysis, or compare actuals vs forecast** inside PlanPros.
  If the user needs a connected, editable financial model or plan-vs-actuals tracking, PlanPros won't do
  it — point them to a spreadsheet-native or forecasting-first tool (Upmetrics, PrometAI, BizPlanBuilder;
  see `/sales-idea-validation`).
- **Steer idea-stage and nonprofit users elsewhere.** PlanPros assumes a **real, for-profit business** —
  reviewers flag it as **not built for the pure idea stage or for nonprofits**. If the user is still
  deciding *whether* to build, the plan is premature; route the go/no-go to `/sales-idea-validation`
  (a real behavior test — smoke test or pre-sale), and only write the plan once there's demand.
- **There's no public API — don't plan an integration around it.** State plainly that PlanPros is
  **UI-only: no public API, no webhooks, no Zapier/Make, no MCP**. The only data-out path is a **manual
  export to PDF, Word, or Google Docs**. For programmatic plan generation, **call an LLM API directly**
  instead (see the guide's Recipe 2).
- **Present all pricing as best-effort and point to planpros.ai.** It's a **flat one-time payment for
  12-month access** (no subscription, no per-plan credits) with a money-back guarantee, but sources
  disagree on the price ($49 vs $97, plus an AppSumo lifetime deal) — have the user **confirm the current
  price, access window, and refund window on the live site**.
- **Frame the two bundled extras honestly.** The **investor/funding-source database** (advertised 80,000+)
  is a **contact list to research and personalize outreach to — not a warm intro**, and cold-emailing
  investors/lenders needs the same targeting and compliance care as any outbound. The **courses** are
  educational, not a substitute for real demand evidence.

If you discover a gotcha, workaround, or tip not covered in `references/learnings.md`, append it there.

## Gotchas

*Best-effort from research (2026-07) — PlanPros pricing and feature specifics move, and third-party
sources disagree on price and the investor-database size. Verify at planpros.ai.*

- **AI-generated financials are guesses.** The 5-year projections are the model's estimates; replace
  every number with your own real figures and cite sources before a lender or investor sees them.
- **Plans read generic for niche/complex businesses.** It fills gaps with its own cookie-cutter ideas;
  a thin input makes it worse. Feed a rich description and edit heavily.
- **Limited customization — refinement is manual.** No AI section-rewrite, no writing-tone control, no
  layout editing. Adjust the draft by hand.
- **Limited financial modeling.** No assumption tweaking, no what-if / scenario analysis, no
  plan-vs-actuals tracking — it's a static forecast, not a connected model.
- **Not for the idea stage or nonprofits.** It assumes a real, for-profit business; if you're still
  deciding whether to build, validate demand first (`/sales-idea-validation`).
- **No public API / no automation.** UI-only: no API, webhooks, Zapier/Make, or MCP. Export is a manual
  download to PDF/Word/Google Docs. Automate with an LLM API instead.
- **Pricing is unsettled.** Sources list different one-time prices (e.g. $49 vs $97) plus an AppSumo
  lifetime deal, all for 12-month access. Treat prices as best-effort and confirm on the live site.
- **The investor/funding-source database is a contact list, not intros.** A listed investor/lender is a
  research target to vet and personalize outreach to — not validated interest, and not exempt from
  outbound-email compliance.
- **A generated plan is not validated demand.** PlanPros will confidently write a plan for an unwanted
  idea — settle the go/no-go with a real behavior test, not the plan.

## Related skills

- `/sales-idea-validation` — The tool-agnostic validate-before-building method + the full business-plan/validator landscape (use this to actually decide build-or-not; a generated plan is not demand)
- `/sales-venturekit` — VentureKit platform help (AI business-planning software angled at lender/SBA-ready funding docs, with a built-in LLC-formation service; UI-only/no API)
- `/sales-upmetrics` — Upmetrics platform help (mature, team-oriented suite — deeper multi-year forecasting, plan-vs-actuals tracking, QuickBooks/Xero import, white-label consultant tier; the financial-model depth PlanPros lacks; UI-only/no API)
- `/sales-prometai` — PrometAI platform help (AI plan generator whose edge is a connected financial model — DCF valuation, stress testing, scenario analysis that recalculate together; the what-if modeling PlanPros lacks; UI-only/no API)
- `/sales-bizplanbuilder` — BizPlanBuilder platform help (established, spreadsheet-native suite — a real, customizable Excel model you own, valuation, cap table, what-if/sensitivity; UI-only/no API)
- `/sales-funnel` — Build the smoke-test / fake-door landing page the real demand test runs on
- `/sales-audience-growth` — Grow a pre-launch waitlist and capture real demand
- `/sales-do` — Not sure which skill to use? The router matches any sales objective to the right skill. Install: `npx skills add sales-skills/sales --skill sales-do -a claude-code`

## Examples

### Example 1: "PlanPros gave me a full plan with 5-year projections — can I take it to a lender?"
**User says**: "It generated an investor-ready plan with revenue projections in about 12 minutes. Is it lender-ready as-is?"
**Skill does**: Credits the speed and the polished, expert-authored format but flags that the
**financials are AI estimates**, not facts — a lender probes them first. Tells the user to keep the
outline and market framing but **replace every projection, market-size, and unit-economics figure with
their own real numbers and cite sources**, and to expect to **hand-edit** the thin competitive/operations
sections since PlanPros has no AI section-rewrite. Adds that a fundable-looking plan is a document, not
validated demand — if the go/no-go is still open, route it to `/sales-idea-validation`.
**Result**: The founder submits a plan grounded in real numbers instead of AI-padded projections.

### Example 2: "Can I call PlanPros's API to batch-generate plans and export them?" (developer/automation)
**User says**: "I want to script PlanPros to generate plans for a list of ideas and pull each out via the API or a webhook."
**Skill does**: States plainly that PlanPros is **UI-only — no public API, no webhooks, no Zapier/Make,
no MCP** — so there's no supported way to batch-generate or export programmatically; the only data-out
path is a **manual export to PDF, Word, or Google Docs**. Recommends **calling an LLM API directly** for
programmatic plan generation (with the same "financials are estimates" caveat), and notes the thing
actually worth automating for a go/no-go is a real demand signal (landing-page analytics), routed to
`/sales-funnel`.
**Result**: The user avoids planning an integration around a nonexistent API and picks a workable path.

### Example 3: "My PlanPros plan reads generic and I can't change the tone — how do I fix it?"
**User says**: "The plan is polished but cookie-cutter and I can't get it to rewrite sections or change the writing tone. How do I make it specific?"
**Skill does**: Explains that PlanPros **fills gaps with generic ideas** and has **no AI section-rewrite,
tone, or layout control** — refinement is manual. Prescribes feeding a **rich input** (exact customer,
the specific problem, how it's solved today, business model, pricing, traction) and **hand-editing** the
competitive and operations sections, which are thinnest by default, plus replacing the AI financials with
real numbers. Notes that if the user needs a connected, editable financial model or what-if scenarios,
PlanPros can't do it — point to Upmetrics/PrometAI/BizPlanBuilder via `/sales-idea-validation`.
**Result**: The user turns a generic draft into a specific plan and knows the tool's editing limits.

## Troubleshooting

### "PlanPros made me a plan in minutes but the financials look made up"
**Symptom**: The 5-year projections look plausible but aren't grounded in the user's real numbers.
**Cause**: The financials are **AI estimates** calibrated to the industry, not your actual unit economics
— and PlanPros gives you no way to tweak the underlying assumptions or run scenarios.
**Solution**: Keep the structure, then **replace every projection, market-size, and unit-economics figure
with real numbers and cite sources**. If you need a connected model with what-if/scenario analysis or
plan-vs-actuals tracking, PlanPros won't do it — use a forecasting-first tool (Upmetrics/PrometAI/
BizPlanBuilder via `/sales-idea-validation`). A grounded plan is still a document, not demand.

### "The plan reads generic and I can't get it to rewrite sections or change the tone"
**Symptom**: The output is cookie-cutter and refinements have to be done by hand.
**Cause**: PlanPros **fills gaps with its own generic ideas** and, unlike some rivals, has **no AI
section-rewrite, no writing-tone control, and no layout editing**.
**Solution**: Feed a **detailed** description (target customer, the exact problem, how people solve it
today, business model and pricing) up front, then **hand-edit** the competitive and operations sections,
which are thinnest by default. Don't expect the tool to re-draft for you.

### "Is PlanPros right for my idea-stage / nonprofit project?"
**Symptom**: The plan feels off for a project that isn't a launched, for-profit business.
**Cause**: PlanPros **assumes a real, for-profit business**; reviewers flag it as **not built for the
pure idea stage or for nonprofits**.
**Solution**: If you're still deciding *whether* to build, a full plan is premature — validate demand
first with a real behavior test (smoke test / pre-sale) via `/sales-idea-validation`, and write the plan
once there's evidence. For a nonprofit, use a nonprofit-specific plan template instead.