· Web viewHow are you planning to get the word out that you’re open for business? For each...
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Transcript of · Web viewHow are you planning to get the word out that you’re open for business? For each...
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LET’S GET THAT BUSINESS OF YOURS DOWN ON PAPER…A good business plan is essential for your Start Up Loan application. The
process of completing it helps you to validate that your business idea is
going to stack up. We’re here to guide you through the Start Up Loan
application process starting with this business plan template, so you can
show us why your business is going to be a success!
This document is designed to help you create a business plan that is relevant for your application
for Start Up Loan funding through Virgin StartUp.
WHAT MAKES A GOOD BUSINESS PLAN?
Check out our diagram on what makes up a good business plan.
We are big believers in doing as much planning and research as possible before starting your
business – knowing the market and who your customers are will dramatically increase your chances
of success.
The idea, your ability to launch and operate the business, and the logistics, are all very important
considerations but first you need to demonstrate that there are customers for your business and
that you have access to this market.
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WHERE DO YOU START?
4PART 1: YOUR BUSINESS PLAN
BEFORE YOU START Details about you and your business.
1 YOUR BUSINESS IDEA 10% Once you have your initial idea it’s important to build up each layer to inform the next. See steps 3 – 6. As you research
your market and customers you should refine and improve your idea to make sure it is something your customers want.
2 YOU 10% We want to know all about you, the brains behind the idea. You’ll be responsible for driving your business forward so it’s
important that we understand a bit more about your past experience and what gets you out of bed in the morning.
3 MARKET RESEARCH 20% Market Research forms the base of a good business plan. You have to know what is happening in your market to make
sure you understand current trends and what your competitors are doing.
4 CUSTOMER RESEARCH 30% Once you have established where your business will sit in the larger market, it’s time to think more about your
customers. This is the most important part of the plan and should be given the most attention. It’s really important that
you are able to present your own information that you have gathered yourself directly from your customers.
5 MARKETING 20% Now that you know who your customers are you can use that information to make a marketing plan that will help you
launch and grow your business.
6 OPERATIONS 10% Premises, staff, suppliers, rules and regulations – Now that you know all you can about your market and customers you
can make an operational plan about how you’re going to pull it altogether.
PART 2: GUIDE TO COMPLETINGYOUR BUSINESS PLAN
For each of the 6 sections of your business plan noted above there is a handy guide jam-packed with tips, links and examples. As
you work your way through Your Business Plan make sure you benefit from all this extra advice by selecting ‘Click here for more
guidance’ to link you with the relevant advice for that section. You’ll spot this link throughout the plan so make sure you use it!
Remember! Completing a business plan for your business is a process of exploration that helps you to look objectively at your idea. A good business is the product of
refining of the initial idea over time using what you learn through your research and experience with your customers. Listening to and learning from the people who’ll be
paying for your product or service is the key to creating a successful business! Good Luck!
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BEFORE YOU STARTWe need to grab a few details about YOU and YOUR BUSINESS
Your Name
Your Business Name
Describe your business in one sentence
Your Business Partner(if also applying for a Start Up Loan)
Loan Amount Requested(Minimum £500 – Maximum £25,000)
To be Repaid over(months) C hoose an item.
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Business Website
Business Social Media Facebook: @Instagram: @Twitter: @Snapchat: @
Other:
Your Living Costs1. How do you currently pay for them?
Choose an item.
2. How will you pay for them when the business launches? Choose an item.
Contingency PlanAs this is a personal loan we must consider how you would be able to make the loan repayments and meet your living costs if the business was to fail or generate less income than forecast. Please describe in detail how you would do this referencing your living costs, loan repayments, and earnings ability.
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1. YOUR BUSINESS IDEA Click here for more guidance
What will your business do and what is the opportunity? Describe, in detail, the products and/or services your business will be selling, what channels you will use to sell them and who you will sell them to. What does your brand stand for? What is the business philosophy and values? Include any pictures, drawings, or links that help bring this to life.
Type your answer here
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2. YOU AND WHY YOU’RE STARTING Click here for more guidance
Tell us about yourself, where the idea came from, and how your knowledge and experience will help to make the business a success.
Type your answer here
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3. MARKET RESEARCH Click here for more guidance
3.1 The Big Picture
Describe the wider market you are planning to operate in and identify where your company will sit in this landscape, as well as any key statistics or trends to support why you have chosen this area of the market.
Type your answer here
103.2 Competitors
No matter how good your idea is, there will always be other businesses fighting for the same customers – either on price or features or quality. You need to make sure you understand your competitors’ strengths and weaknesses.
COMPETITOR 1Click here for more guidance
NameType your answer here
Type of CompetitorType your answer here
What will you be competing on
Type your answer here
Strengths of CompetitorType your answer here
Weaknesses of Competitor
Type your answer here
Summary of How you will compete with them
Type your answer here
11COMPETITOR 2
Click here for more guidance
NameType your answer here
Type of CompetitorType your answer here
What will you be competing on
Type your answer here
Strengths of CompetitorType your answer here
Weaknesses of Competitor
Type your answer here
Summary of How you will compete with them
Type your answer here
12COMPETITOR 3
Click here for more guidance
NameType your answer here
Type of CompetitorType your answer here
What will you be competing on
Type your answer here
Strengths of CompetitorType your answer here
Weaknesses of Competitor
Type your answer here
Summary of How you will compete with them
Type your answer here
13COMPETITOR 4
Click here for more guidance
NameType your answer here
Type of CompetitorType your answer here
What will you be competing on
Type your answer here
Strengths of CompetitorType your answer here
Weaknesses of Competitor
Type your answer here
Summary of How you will compete with them
Type your answer here
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4. CUSTOMER RESEARCH Click here for more guidance
This is perhaps the most important part of planning and launching your business - Validating your idea by talking directly to the people that will be buying your goods or services is the only way to ensure you are solving a problem the right way, and that there are customers willing to pay you to do it.
4.1 Test Trading
If you have undertaken any Test Trading – Describe what test/existing trading you have carried out so far. How long have you been doing this for and where? How much have you sold – provide a weekly/monthly breakdown of sales. Based on this trading what insights have you gained into your business or customers and how will you be implementing these into your business going forward? If you haven’t undertaken any test trading but are in a position to start, give it a go and come back and readdress this section.
Type your answer here
154.1.2 Direct Research | Click here for more guidance
If you have not undertaken any test trading describe what research you have done with your potential customers, what the findings of the research were, and how you have used this to validate your idea.
Type your answer here
164.2 Evidence of Demand |Click here for more guidance
Describe how you have you used your customer research or test trading to build up a picture of your sales forecast.
Type your answer here
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5. MARKETING Click here for more guidance
5.1 Customer Profile
Based on your market and customer research/test trading you should now have built up a good idea of the different types of customer your business will appeal to and how to reach them with your marketing activity.
CUSTOMER PROFILE 1
CustomerType your answer here
Description of CustomerType your answer here
Why are they your Customer
Type your answer here
Channels you will use to market to them
Type your answer here
Activities within channel and related
costs
Type your answer here
18CUSTOMER PROFILE 2
CustomerType your answer here
Description of CustomerType your answer here
Why are they your Customer
Type your answer here
Channels you will use to market to them
Type your answer here
Activities within channel and related
costs
Type your answer here
19CUSTOMER PROFILE 3
CustomerType your answer here
Description of CustomerType your answer here
Why are they your Customer
Type your answer here
Channels you will use to market to them
Type your answer here
Activities within channel and related
costs
Type your answer here
20CUSTOMER PROFILE 4
CustomerType your answer here
Description of CustomerType your answer here
Why are they your Customer
Type your answer here
Channels you will use to market to them
Type your answer here
Activities within channel and related
costs
Type your answer here
215.2 Route to Market | Click here for more guidance
Whether through a personal connection, an existing network of contacts, an audience you have built up on social media, or sign-ups you have collected on your website, it’s important to demonstrate you have access to the market you plan to sell to – Who are your first customers going to be and why have you chosen this as your route to market?
Type your answer here
225.3 Launch Marketing | Click here for more guidance
How are you planning to get the word out that you’re open for business? For each channel or medium you’re planning to use explain how and why you’re going to use it – this should be relevant to the customers you have identified in your customer profile.
Type your answer here
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6. OPERATIONS Click here for more guidance
6.1 Premises
Where will your business operate from? If your business premises plays an important part in your marketing/attracting customers (shops, restaurants etc.…) you will need to have a specific premises identified and explain why you have chosen this premises. Also explain any fit out costs that will be incurred.
If the business is less dependent on a specific location (operated from a readily available type of premises such as an office or industrial unit) you may not need to provide this but you should provide evidence of example properties that are currently available within your budget that suit your requirements.
Type your answer here
246.2 Staff | Click here for more guidance
Are you planning to employ any staff in the first 12 months of trading? If so, make a list of them here, what their role will be, when they will start, how many hours per week they will work and what they will be paid. You should ensure the timings are accurately reflected in the Cash Flow Forecast and that 10% is added to the cost to reflect employer’s national insurance.
Role/Job TitleWhat will the job title be or what will the functions be?
Hours per month/week or FTHow many hours per month will the employee work if part time? Or state if full time.
CostWhat will their monthly salary, or average monthly cost be? – This should include employer’s national insurance and any other employer’s costs. If they will be paid by the hour please include the hourly rate as well.
Month Start (1 – 12)What month in year 1 will they start assuming the month you receive the loan is month 0.
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Role/Job TitleWhat will the job title be or what will the functions be?
Hours per month/week or FTHow many hours per month will the employee work if part time? Or state if full time.
CostWhat will their monthly salary, or average monthly cost, be? – This should include employer’s national insurance and any other employer’s costs. If they will be paid by the hour please include the hourly rate as well.
Month Start (1 – 12)What month in year 1 will they start assuming the month you receive the loan is month 0.
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266.3 Suppliers and Third Parties | Click here for more guidance
Make a list of all suppliers and major third parties your business will deal with throughout the first 12 months, what they will be supplying, and how they are relevant or connected to your business.
Type your answer here
276.4 Risks | Click here for more guidance
What are the operational risks facing your business and what are you doing to mitigate the effect these will have on you and your customers.
Risk Factor Impact on Business Mitigation and Outcome
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286.6 Legal and Regulatory | Click here for more guidance
What legislation and regulations apply to your business? Are there any specific licenses or qualifications required for you to operate the business either legally or for credibility? Please provide evidence of these.
Relevant Law, regulation, or qualification Evidence of Compliance provided
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7. NEXT STEPS Click here for more guidance
If your application is successful what are the next steps you need to take to successfully launch your business, when do you need to complete them by and what is the cost associated at each stage?
Need to do By When Associated Cost
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Need to do By When Associated Cost
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GUIDE TO COMPLETING YOUR PLANThis is your how-to guide for completing your business plan for your Start Up Loan application. We have provided you with everything you need to complete a solid first draft of your business plan, there’s advice on what to write, research and attach as well as providing handy examples and links to online content.
This Guide should be read alongside the relevant section in the business plan and we’ve included helpful links between each section in the business plan and this guide to make this as easy as possible.
You really can’t go wrong if you follow this guide!
1. THE BUSINESS IDEA2. YOU3. MARKET RESEARCH4. CUSTOMER RESEARCH5. MARKETING6. OPERATIONS
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1. THE BUSINESS IDEA Click to jump back to your business plan
In this section provide a summary, which someone who has never met you, and knows nothing about your business, would be able to use to gain a basic understanding of your proposition. We recommend finalising this section after you have completed your customer research.
Check out some great content on our website to help you with this section
Common Business Plan Mistakes and How to Avoid Them
Business Plan: How to Write an Executive Summary
Business Planning - Six Entrepreneurs Pitch their Business Idea
Include a summary of:
What your business will do. What products and/or services the business will sell. What the market opportunity is –Why is there a need for it? And how will you address this
gap in the market? Your business’s philosophy and values, and tell us about what your brand stands for and
who it appeals to. Who your customers are. What you have achieved so far – Website, social media following, test – trading, existing
trading etc.… What the business structure will be. Any other directors or shareholders as well as what their input into the business will be and
what shareholding they have if applicable.
Supplementary attachments to provide:
1. If the look and visual impact of your business is important to its success (e.g. a clothing company, or anything reliant on design such as packaging or branding material) please attach any photos or mock ups of your products, work you have done on your brand and identity, mood boards or anything else that would help tell the story of your business visually.
2. If your business is already trading or you have carried out test trading please provide evidence of your sales in the form of bank statements or management accounts.
3. Anything else that will provide evidence of the work you have done on the business so far.
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2. YOU AND WHY YOU’RE STARTING Click to jump back to your business plan
In this section tell us a bit about you and your experience in each of these areas:
Professional Academic Entrepreneurial What is your motivation for starting the business
Be sure to emphasise how your knowledge and experiences are relevant to the business. What triggered the idea and why have you decided to start the business now.
Supplementary attachments to provide:
An up-to-date copy of your CV
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3. MARKET RESEARCH The Big Picture | Click to jump back to your business plan
In this section tell us all about the market you are planning to operate in. This should be formed of information and data you have gathered from reading case studies, market research reports, relevant articles and web content. Some key information would be: How big is the total market for your products or services? What are the niches within this market and how big are they? What are the trends within the market and what factors are driving these? Is this a new or mature market? If it is for a new or innovative product how does the market for this work or how will you be doing things differently? Where does your company fit into this overall landscape? The more complex your business or market, the more detail you will need to provide to make sure the proposition is clear.
Check out some great content on our website to help you with this section
How to Research Your Market When Starting
How to Validate your Idea with Google Trends
Competitors | Click to jump back to your business plan
In this section provide an analysis of:
Direct Competitors Indirect Competitors Substitute Competitors
Someone who is competing with you for the same customers for the same good or services.
Someone solving the same problem or fulfilling the same need as you but in a different way.
Someone who is competing with you for the same customer spend but for a different product
Example:
Coffee Shop vs Coffee ShopTwo coffee shops located in the same area will be competing for customers on the exact same basis – somewhere to sit and have a coffee/drink or to get a takeaway coffee/drink.
Example:
Coffee Shop vs Online coffee bean subscriptionFrom a purely functional point of view, if a customer just wants coffee and is not interested in, or dislikes the experience of going to coffee shops, they may prefer to drink coffee at home, which is also more cost effective and convenient.
Example:
Coffee Shop vs PubIf it is a sunny afternoon in the weekend people may prefer to meet friends in a beer garden over a drink rather than at the local coffee shop.
John’s Deli: P.34 Tesco: P.35 The Farm Café: P.36
Keep reading to see how to best represent your market research of your competitors.
35Example of a Direct Competitor | Click to jump back to your business plan
Name The name of your competitor John’s Deli
Type of competitor
What type of competitor are they and background information about them.
Direct Competitor. John’s deli has been established locally since 2001 and has a strong local clientele. John’s has a strong focus on imported goods from continental Europe and America.
What will you be competing on
What will you be competing with them on – Price? Convenience? Quality?
We will sell a lot of the same types of products at approximately the same price, and will be based on the same High Street.
Strengths of competitor
What does this competitor do well?
John’s is very well established and has additional revenue streams working as a distributor for a lot of their suppliers, supplying wholesale to local cafes and restaurants as well as retail directly to consumers. They have exclusivity of a number of high demand products.
Weaknesses of competitor
What does this competitor do badly?
While all the staff are very friendly their lack of use of technology makes it very unreliable and the service is very slow. They do not have a proper POS till system and have no website to show what they do and don’t have in stock. When you call to place a larger order it is written down on a piece of paper and called through to suppliers rather than being entered into a system to track the order - As a result orders are often not passed on or fulfilled. They also have no database of customers to use for marketing purposes instead relying entirely on “inbound” sales.
Summary of how you will compete
with them
Based on these factors what will your business do, and what specific activities will you engage in to make customers choose you instead?
We will be exclusively selling products that have been sourced from within a 100 mile radius of our shop. There is a strong trend to localism as a more sustainable way to do business, and as an area rich in producers of all kinds there is a huge range of products available. This will be a strong USP compared to John’s. We will be buying directly from the producers ensuring our prices remain competitive while maintaining margins. We have our stock database linked to our website so customers can see at any time what we have in stock, and can also place orders online and track the orders. We will capture all customers email addresses so we can market new and related goods to them as well as keep them informed with what is going on with producer hosted events at the shop.
36Example of an Indirect Competitor
Name The name of your competitor Tesco
Type of competitor
What type of competitor are they and background information about them.
Indirect Competitor. The UK’s largest supermarket chain.
What will you be competing on
What will you be competing with them on – Price? Convenience? Quality?
On the most basic level we will be competing with them on the sale of food and ingredients to cook and eat at home.
Strengths of competitor
What does this competitor do well?
Cheap and convenient – there is a large Tesco and 2 Tesco Express stores within a short walk of our shop where similar goods are cheaper, and they have more convenient locations next to the main train station and a large car park.
Weaknesses of competitor
What does this competitor do badly?
Tesco don’t have a very strong public image and are seen in some ways as the enemy of small local businesses and suppliers; While they offer some premium lines the quality of their produce is generally poor; They do not have a very good selection of organic sustainably sourced products which is becoming increasingly important to our target customers; Due to their large scale they aren’t able to offer the same niche range of products or offer any products from small, local suppliers.
Summary of how you will compete
with them
Based on these factors what will your business do, and what specific activities will you engage in to make customers choose you instead?
We will deliberately be sourcing a wide range of products that Tesco and other large supermarkets don’t stock. We will focus a lot of our marketing on the local suppliers we are using, and communicating how much more of the retail price they get to keep by buying from a small local business who sources directly as opposed to large multiples who have to put constant downward price pressure on their suppliers to keep margins high to cover their large overheads. We will focus our marketing on a very small range of customers who we believe only go to Tesco or large supermarkets out of necessity rather than choice.
37Example of a Substitute Competitor
Name The name of your competitor The Farm Café
Type of competitor
What type of competitor are they and background information about them.
Substitute Competitor – They have a very similar ethos to our business sourcing all of their products from local producers but they are a restaurant that specialise in cooked meals for breakfast and lunch. They have been open for two years and have a very strong reputation locally.
What will you be competing on
What will you be competing with them on – Price? Convenience? Quality?
We will be competing with them for the same customer’s spend – while we provide ingredients to prepare and eat at home, they use the same high quality ingredients in their meals – customers may choose to go out for a meal rather than buy the ingredients to cook at home.
Strengths of competitor
What does this competitor do well?
High quality, sustainable, Locally sourced ingredients; Good reputation and very good reviews on TripAdvisor; Provide very good service and have strong well followed social media presence.
Weaknesses of competitor
What does this competitor do badly?
Due to the size and type of their premises (large restaurant) their overheads are much higher, and as they use more fresh ingredients that spoil their waste is higher, both of which mean their meals cost well in excess of average for the area and it is definitely perceived as “expensive” whereas our products are priced in line with, or are cheaper than comparative quality products at the supermarket.
Summary of how you will compete
with them
Based on these factors what will your business do, and what specific activities will you engage in to make customers choose you instead?
We will focus our marketing on the joy and advantages of cooking at home - we will provide free recipe cards that will be available in the shop as well as on our website about how to get the most of the ingredients, as well as creating short videos showing fast and easy recipes busy people can use to prepare a meal with our ingredients in under 10 minutes. We also plan to launch free cooking classes featuring our more interesting products that are hard to source elsewhere to encourage people to buy them afterwards.
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Check out some more great content on our website to help you with defining your Competitors:
How to Sell Smarter than your Competitors: SkinsincereVideo on How to Beat your CompetitorsPaul Munnery: How to Research and Beat Your CompetitorsBusiness Plan How to Better Your Competitors
Click to jump back to your business plan
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4. CUSTOMER RESEARCH Click to jump back to your business plan
It is essential that you have either done some test trading or spent considerable time conducting your own meaningful research with your potential customers. You need to demonstrate that your idea has been validated and that there is sufficient demand for your product or service for the business to be viable. This will help you test the original hypothesis about your business, and the feedback you get from your potential customers can provide insights you may have otherwise overlooked. It is important that you go into this process under the assumption that your idea isn’t perfect - This will help you be more objective in listening and applying what your customers are telling you.
Check out some great articles from our website:
GEW: How to Validate Your Business IdeaHow Four Entrepreneurs were Funded Through Virgin Startup and Validated their Business IdeasHow to Build a Standout Startup Brand
Test Trading or Existing Business
In this section please provide as much information as possible about your trading to date and provide evidence of this in the appendices. Provide monthly, weekly, or daily sales figures depending on the nature of your business and how long you have been test/trading.
Tell us what your assumptions were going into your trading, what actually happened once you started, and what you have learned from your customers that you will be applying going forward.
Supplementary attachments to provide:
Please provide third party confirmation of sales such as bank statements. If the business has been trading for more than 12 months provide annual accounts prepared and filed by an accountant – in this instance a profit and loss statement must be included. Note that invoices and any other documents you have produced yourself will not be sufficient.
Check out some great articles from our website about how to pop-up
How to Sell Pop at a Popup StallFour Reasons a Pop-Up can Benefit your BusinessHow to Run an Amazing Pop-Up: Lexie SportHow to Run a Pop-Up at a Train StationHow to get Customers Before You Start Selling
Direct Research | Click to jump back to your business plan
40Test trading will not always be possible depending on the nature of your business. If this is the case for you it is really important that you have personally spoken to as many people as possible who are potential customers for your business. You need to gather your own information based on what is important to your business succeeding – as well as providing vital information you can use to shape your offering it will also go a long way to demonstrating you have access to the market you want to sell to.
It is important to get feedback from the people who will actually be paying you. If you are a wholesaler for example, selling to other businesses rather than direct to the consumer, as well as validating your idea with consumers that it is something they want or need, you will also need to contact the businesses you will be selling to get their feedback and find out if it is something they would potentially buy from you. In an ideal world you would be able to secure some pre-sales or letters of intent depending on how far your business has progressed. We know that as a start-up this isn’t always possible but it is very important you are able to provide evidence of some “warm leads” - that is to say customers who like your idea and want you to get back in touch with them once you are up and running with a view to being your customer or client in the future. You should use this feedback to inform your business plan to ensure the idea behind the business you are trying to launch has been validated
In this section provide as much detail as possible about what research you carried out, what your methods were, who you spoke to, and what their feedback was.
How to Build a Great Website for less than £100How to Prove your Business Idea Will WorkMichelle Lower: How to do Market Research on a Startup BudgetHow to Test a Product: Annabel Karmel
Supplementary Attachments to Provide
Please provide evidence of this having been done in the appendices - Email chains are a good example, as well as summarised survey results.
41Crowdfunding | Click to jump back to your business plan
If you can successfully raise funds, or demonstrate meaningful interest through a crowdfunding campaign, you can use this in addition to other research to demonstrate evidence of demand for your business.
How we Validated our Idea Crowdfunding: MBJ London
Evidence of Demand
In this section explain why you now feel the business idea is validated, and using the information from your test/trading or research explain the logic that will underpin the assumptions that drive your sales forecast.
Example:
An excellent example of this comes from a business we funded to open a small take-away coffee shop on the platform of a suburban train station.To establish if there would be sufficient customers for the business to be viable we counted the number of people that use the platform between 6.30 and 8.30 from Monday to Friday over the course of 2 weeks. The results varied a lot but on average 1200 people used the platform each day between these hours. We are proposing that the business is open longer hours but have identified this as the key period that will make or break our business.
Each day we asked 100 people if they would buy a coffee or tea from a shop located on the platform if one existed. Roughly 10% of those asked said they would buy one every day, which we have assumed as 4 days/week to account for holidays etc.…
Another 10% of people said they would buy one regularly which we are conservatively estimating to be 2 days/week.
30% of people said they definitely wouldn’t buy one at all and the other 50% said they would buy one occasionally which we are assuming to be once every 2 weeks.
Weekly sales calculations:
1200 x 10% x 4 = 4801200 x 10% x 2 = 2401200 x 50% x 0.5 = 300
Total Sales = 1020 units x average price £2.40 = revenue of £2,400/week, or £5,000/month.
We are assuming it will take 6 months to grow to this level and that our first month’s revenue will be half of this figure.
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5. MARKETING Click to jump back to your business plan
Before getting started on this section you should have a look through the great articles and videos on our website about how some of our successful applicants and other inspiring entrepreneurs market their businesses.
Virgin Startup - Examples of Successful Marketing
Social Media Strategy
Creating a Social Media StrategyHow the Meringue Girls built an instagram following of over130,000How to use influencer marketingHow to build an email list of 80,000 subscribersHow to get influential people talking about your brand and grow leadsHow to build an instagram strategyHow to grow your business with linkedinHow I market my business with facebookNew social media marketing channels for startups
Brand Awareness/Get Noticed
Market your business by breaking a guinness world record titleHow to get your business noticedHow to get your startup in the mediaHow to do PR on a budget by Frugl
Online and Social Media Advertising
How to create a great Facebook adHow to get started with PPC
Customer Profile
While it’s important that your business is welcoming and open to doing business with all types of customers, from a marketing point of view, it’s important to focus the time and resources you have at the specific groups your research or test trading tell you will be your best customers. If you try to market your business to everyone you may spread yourself too thin, and by diluting your messaging to try to appeal to everyone, it may end up appealing to no one. For example the language and methods you would use to market your business to a teenager would be very different to what you would use to market to someone who is 60. It would be very difficult for a start up to find a way to market effectively to both these demographics with a single marketing approach. By targeting specific customers via channels and messaging tailored specifically to them, you increase your chances of your marketing being effective.
In this section provide a detailed analysis of who your customers are and how you are going to reach them.
433 Examples of Customers for a Gourmet Burger Restaurant | Click to jump back to your business planCUSTOMER 1
Customer
Based on your research or test trading, provide a
description of the type of customer you will be
targeting
Burger Aficionados and bloggers.
Description of Customer
What lifestyle factors or behaviours does this group
of people have in common, where do they shop, what
do they buy, if relevant how much money do they earn
These customers are predominantly male, aged 30 – 40. They are always on the look-out for new burger restaurants so they can be the first to review and post to social media.
Why are they your Customer?
Describe how these factors are aligned with your
business’ values, price, products/services and
location
We will be using high quality ingredients, such as grass fed beef and artisan baked buns, and focus on the quality and provenance of our ingredients.
Channels you will use to market to them
List the channels you will be using to reach your
customers. Be as specific as possible and say why you
have chosen this
Instagram, Facebook – most used platforms by this demographic.
Personal Invitations – personal touch that will encourage people to attend more than a blanket email or social media post. By only sending to a limited number of people it will also be more exclusive.
Activities within channel and related
costs
For each channel you have identified, describe in more
detail what specific activities and strategies you
are planning to use and what the associated costs will be and how regularly you will incur these costs
Instagram – we will post pictures of all of our burgers taken by professional photographers. We will use hash tags and tag relevant burger blogs and groups. Instagram is heavily used by this group.
Facebook - use Facebook ads and promoted posts to have content visible in the feeds of people who like other burger restaurants and bloggers.
Invitations – we will have a soft launch evening where we will invite prominent burger bloggers to the restaurant.
44CUSTOMER 2 | Click to jump back to your business plan
Customer
Based on your research or test trading, provide a
description of the type of customer you will be
targeting
Foodies
Description of Customer
What lifestyle factors or behaviours does this group
of people have in common, where do they shop, what
do they buy, if relevant how much money do they earn
These customers are an even mix of male and female and generally aged 25 – 45. They like eating in new restaurants and follow new food trends. They could live anywhere in the city but most weekends would make a special trip to at least one new eatery they have heard about. They would prefer craft beer or real ale to lager and would more likely favour independent businesses over buying from big chains.
Why are they your Customer?
Describe how these factors are aligned with your
business’ values, price, products/services and
location.
As premium/gourmet burgers are a food trend at the moment, and we have a clear USP with our offering, people who are interested in, and enjoy trying new food are likely to want to try our burgers.
Channels you will use to market to them
List the channels you will be using to reach your
customers. Be as specific as possible and say why you
have chosen this.
Instagram, Facebook – most used social media platforms by this demographic.
Activities within channel and related
costs
For each channel you have identified, describe in more
detail what specific activities and strategies you
are planning to use and what the associated costs will be and how regularly you will incur these costs.
Instagram – we will be using Instagram stories to show our chefs creating new burger recipes. We will post at least 5 photos of burgers to our feed per day as well as 5 funny or interesting posts such as quotes about food or our ingredients.
45CUSTOMER 3 | Click to jump back to your business plan
CustomerBased on your research or
test trading, provide a description of the type of
customer you will be targeting
Local Residents
Description of Customer
What lifestyle factors or behaviours does this group
of people have in common, where do they shop, what
do they buy, if relevant how much money do they earn
They live within an easily commutable distance of the restaurant
Why are they your Customer?
Describe how these factors are aligned with your
business’ values, price, products/services and
location.
From a geographical point of view these are the customers who are most important to us and who we would expect to make up a large part of our customer base.
Channels you will use to market to them
List the channels you will be using to reach your
customers. Be as specific as possible and say why you
have chosen this.
Resident’s discount, local newspaper, loyalty card
Activities within channel and related
costs
For each channel you have identified, describe in more
detail what specific activities and strategies you
are planning to use and what the associated costs will be and how regularly you will incur these costs.
Resident’s discount – we will have an opening party offering free burgers and fries to the first 100 customers. We will make conversation with customers and ask where they live; if they are local we will give them a key ring which will allow them to have half price meals on Monday and Tuesday night. As we see people come in regularly we will ascertain if they live locally and provide up to 100 key rings in total.
Local Newspaper – it’s very important for us to be part of the local community – we will advertise our monthly special in the local paper every week.
Loyalty Card – those that live locally are the most likely to be repeat purchasers, to encourage this we will have a loyalty card that will allow the customer to get every 10th burger for free.
46Route to Market |Click to jump back to your business plan
In this section tell us who you’re first customers are going to be. If you are planning to start a bricks and mortar business with street frontage this will be less relevant as you will have passing trade to rely on, (the launch marketing section will be very relevant to you) but if you’re business is Business to Business (B2B), or an online or office based Business to Consumer (B2C) business that can’t rely on passing trade to get noticed, you need to be more specific in identifying who your first customers will be. This could be through an existing network of contacts or through customers you spoke to during your initial research or test trading. You could have the best product or service in the world but you need to be able to demonstrate you have access to the market so you can actually sell it - you need to be able to provide evidence of these relationships (such as emails from customers who want to buy your product or service, or expressing a strong interest in doing so when the business is operational) to verify you have a viable route to market. If you are an online business you might want to think about how you can leverage existing audiences to hit the ground running, such as using popular platforms like EBay, Amazon, or Etsy, or using influencer marketing through social media.
How to Partner with a Big Brand
Launch Marketing | Click to jump back to your business plan
How are you going to get people’s attention to let them know you’re open for business? Depending on your business and how progressed it is it may be a good idea to focus a lot of marketing activity around your launch. This could be through concentrated spend on advertising through channels you know your target customers are using, opening day discounts, or free trial periods.
If you are planning to use any of the start-up loan funds for launch marketing, use this section to provide a detailed breakdown of how much will spent on each activity.
Example:
Facebook Ads –
Launch Event – Approximately £500 for hire of venue plus welcome drinks ½ page advertisement in local newspaper - £150 per issue, run for 4 weeks = £600
Flyers – Planning to a do a flyer drop in the local area 5,000 fliers = £200 including delivery
Discounts – Free for first day promotion – total cost to us approximately £1000 worth of raw materials.
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6. OPERATIONS Click to jump back to your business plan
Premises
In this section tell us where your business will operate from, why you have chosen this location and what the associated costs are.
If the businesses premises or location play an important part on the fabric of your business, such as a restaurant or retail premises requiring footfall, you should provide a full description of the premises, the surrounding area (what other types of businesses and people are nearby and what effect will this have on your business) detail of any fit-out work that needs to be carried out, and why you have chosen this location. To do this accurately you need to have specific premises in mind that is available to rent. You need to provide evidence that you have been in touch with the landlord or agent, and have an agreement in principle that you will be able to rent the premises for your required purpose, along with the term and cost of the arrangement.
If your business premises is less dependent on exact location to reach customers (such as operated from an office, or an online business that is not limited by geography to reach customers) it will be sufficient to provide examples of properties that are currently available within your budget that fit your requirements. This is not required if you are planning to operate your business from home but you should make reference to this specifically in the business plan.
Supplementary Attachments to Provide
Email chains with landlord or agent confirming the property is under offer or that there is an agreement in principle to let the property to you. Heads of Terms or a draft copy of the lease. Mock-ups, designs, floorplans etc.… that show what you plan to do with the property. Quotes for any fit-out work required.
48Staff | Click to jump back to your business plan
Are you planning to employ any staff in the business other than yourself? If so, provide full details in this section. Include what the role will be, what month the role needs to be filled, how many hours per week they will work or if it is full time, and how much they will be paid.
Role/Job TitleWhat will the job title be or what will the functions be?
Hours per month/week or FTHow many hours per month will the employee work if part time? Or state if full time.
CostWhat will their monthly salary, or average monthly cost, be? – This should include employer’s national insurance and any other employer’s costs. If they will be paid by the hour please include the hourly rate as well.
Month Start (1 – 12)What month in year 1 will they start assuming the month you receive the loan is month 0.
General Manager Full-TimeSalary of £35k/year, total cost of £38,710 including employer’s National Insurance
Month 1
Sales Assistant x 42 x part-time working approximately 20 hours/week, 2 x FT.
Part time employees will get £10/hour and full time employees will be paid a salary of £20k to £25k depending on experience. Including employer’s NI this will cost up to £27,330 per FT sales assistant.
1 full time to start in Month 1, 1 part time to start in month 3, and an additional full time and part time to start in Month 6
49Suppliers and Third Parties | Click to jump back to your business plan
To ensure you are getting the best prices from your suppliers and service providers, and that your cash flow forecast is as accurate as possible, you should have contacted a number of these parties to get quotes and discuss payment terms – take this into consideration when preparing your cash flow forecast.
In this section make a list of the major suppliers and service providers you will use, what you will buy from them, at what prices, and what the payment terms will be. Focus on larger costs that will have a material effect on your cash flow.
Risks | Click to jump back to your business plan
In this section identify key operation risks to your business, what the impact will be, and what steps you are taking, or have taken to mitigate the effect of these risks.
Risk Factor Impact on Business Mitigation and Outcome
Reliant on one distributor for 80% of all products
If there was a problem with delivery or unfavourable change in terms it would have an effect across all of our products due to how much we purchase from this supplier. We would have to increase prices or reduce margins to remain cash flow positive. In the instance of a delivery problem we may not be able to open on the effected days.
We have built relationships with 3 other suppliers who between them can supply everything we get from our main supplier. They are located very close to us and have provided assurances around their ability to deliver at very short notice – this service costs more which is why we do not use them as our main suppliers, but would enable us to stay open and limit financial and reputational damage of being closed for periods of time.
50Legal and Regulatory | Click to jump back to your business plan
In this section provide details of legislation and regulations that apply to your business. Are any specific licenses or qualification required for you to operate the business either legally or for credibility?
Relevant Law, regulation, or qualification Evidence of Compliance provided
A3 Premises use (restaurant) Planning permission granted for change of use – letter from local authority attached
Personal Alcohol License License attached
Premises License License attached
Food Hygiene Level 2 Certificate attached
Supplementary Attachments to Provide
Evidence of your compliance with each of the legal and regulatory requirements you have identified as applying to your business.
51Next Steps | Click to jump back to your business plan
In this section provide detail and timelines for each step you need to take from when you get the loan to achieve your first sale.
Need to do By When Associated Cost
Sign lease and pay deposit Day loan is drawn down (end of March) Deposit - £4,000Legal costs - £1,500
Start shop fit-out 1 April £5,000
Buy Equipment End of fit-out circa 30 April £2,500
Contact web developer to build website Day loan is drawn £1,500
Contact mailing list about launch party 30th May £0
Send invites to local social media influencers about pre-launch 15th April £1000 – cost of pre-launch party.
Buy stock 15th April – 30th April £5,500
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CONGRATULATIONS - YOU’VE COMPLETEDYOUR BUSINESS PLAN TO APPLY FOR A START UP LOAN FROM VIRGIN STARTUP!You’re one step closer to turning your business idea into a reality and it’s a big step we want to celebrate with you – share your progress with the startup community and tweet us @VirginStartUp.
If you have any questions about the business plan email [email protected] and one of the Virgin StartUp team will be happy to help you.
Also, make sure you check out www.virginstartup.org for even more advice and inspiration.
Good luck and remember…
RICHARD BRANSON, FOUNDER VIRGIN GROUP
“BUILDING A BUSINESS IS NOT ROCKET SCIENCE; IT’S ABOUT HAVING A GREAT IDEA AND SEEING IT THROUGH WITH
