A : angel

One of the most popular investment options, particularly for early series funding. Angels have often done what you're doing, so it's a chance not just for investment but for personal mentoring and advice.

B : business plan

No matter how good your idea is, you'll still need it documenting, researched and constantly updated. Your business plan is your business.

C : creativity.

The first stage of innovate and the process that should never stop. Whatever your business idea, creativity counts.

D : digital

Whatever your business it's a digital world. Make sure you're up to scratch in terms of understanding your digital presence, making the most of it and always driving traffic to your company.

E : exit

Whether it's sale, IPO or a buy-out, planning for exit begins the moment you start your business.

F : funding

Different funding routes apply at different stages of your business

G : go-to-market

The plan that's going to take your idea through to making inroads on market share and revenue generation.

H : help

There are plenty of sources of help, both online, real, through business support organizations and through virtual networks like innovatrs.net It can be lonely when you're starting out so make use of all the networks that you can.

I : innovate

The online, open-source framework for all entrepreneurs to deliver high-growth businesses.

J : Jobs, Steve

The ultimate innovator.

K : killer proposition

If your product doesn't significantly change the way people already do something then you have to work extra hard to displace the current approach. Work on exactly how your product is better, explain it in terms that everyone understands and keep working it till you have a winning proposition.

L : love

If you fall out of love with your business idea or the business, you'll struggle to convince others of its worth. Stay passionate to stay successful.

M : market

It's all about the market. The market you're in, the market you want to be in, the size of the market and how to interact with the market. Never ever lose sight of what's happening.

N : Netscape

One of the original Internet companies that defined a generation of online businesses and fuelled the dotcom boom. It went to IPO in 1995 with its young management team led by Marc Andreessen and Jim Clark. Sold to AOL in 1998, Andreessen went on to found many more Internet businesses running his own venture fund.

O : open source

The open source movement has led to a new way to develop technologies and is the startpoint of many innovations. Being a part of this movement can help you develop ideas faster through collaboration and sharing.

P : pitch

In the early stages of your business you'll be overwhelmed with suggestions as to pitch your business: for investors, for potential customers and for the people you want to come on board. Practice makes perfect. Always be able to pitch your business succinctly.

Q : question

Think of Robert Kennedy's quote "There are those who look at things the way they are, and ask why... I dream of things that never were, and ask why not?" Always be questioning how something could be done, so that you're not creating once, but many times.

R : revenues

In the world of different sorts of funding, it's sometimes easy to lose sights of direct revenues. There are apocryphal tales of businesses getting round after round of funding but never actually selling a product. But revenues will ultimately be what makes you successful. And increasingly investors want to see hard evidence of revenues before making that investment.

S : strategy

Goes hand in hand with pitch. You must have a strategy. It must be clearly and succinctly written - create your one page strategy paper using our template. Use this as the basis for the decisions.

T : team

The team you put together will have as much impact on the success of your business as the product. Ask any investor why they choose a company and the team makeup will be almost important as the concept itself. So hire carefully, be aware of your weaknesses and recruit to fill them.

U : unfulfilled

The world is full of entrepreneurs with unfulfilled ambitions and dreams. Don't join the long list, take the step forward to making your dreams come true.

V : venture capitalist

Deciding to go down the VC route for second stage funding involves a lot of soul-searching, planning and decisions on how much equity you want to release. It's not for everyone.

W : web

Your business cannot survive without it. It doesn't matter whether you're manufacturing oil platforms or selling fashion accessories, your web presence is now one of the biggest aspects of your brand.

X : x-factor

Not a tv show for aspiring singers but the simple gut feeling that your idea is really something special. Without it, well it's just another idea.

Y : Ycombinator

The first of the new-style incubator/accelerators and the model for many followers. Taking you through pitch competitions, accelerated programmes in their incubators, it's hothousing for startups. Now replicated in Europe with programmes like Springboard.

Z : zzzz, Sleep

It's precious but don't plan on having too much of it if you're heading to startup success.