Posted: May 29th, 2015

Entrepreneurial business plan

Entrepreneurial business plan

Executive summary

Our business idea is to come up with new generation technology CCTVs that will help solve the existing security needs. The CCTV that we look forward to inventing will enhance remote areas monitoring as it will have the capability of capturing videos from a very wide geographical coverage. The cameras will also be able to capture multiple videos at the same time and will have software that will be able to detect any suspicious behavior and alert the relevant individuals. The new CCTV will also be able to capture videos even in the dark, and the owners will be able to access the videos through the web. The devices will allow organizations and individuals monitor their premises from any location. The main goal of our business is to ensure that individuals and organizations effectively manage security in their premises by use of the modern technology. We have a goal of not only serving the US market but also growing through partnership and franchising and offer the products worldwide. We aim at helping our customers and at the same time maximizing our profits by exploiting the technology. We aim to use integrated marketing communication to promote our products and increase brand awareness. We will use advertisement, sales promotion, and sponsorship to promote the product. The products will be availed to customers through the B2B and B2C distribution channels. We will lease our operating premises and buy machines that are required for assembling of the CCTVs. We will embrace the “just-in-time” inventory system so as to cut on the cost associated with inventory keeping. Professional advisors will be contacted once in a while to allow smooth running of the company. The starting capital will be around 4.5 million. Two million will be obtained from bank loan; 1million will be contributed by partners, 1million from the sponsor and 500 thousand from friends and relatives. The business aims at recovering the capital within the first six months of operation.

Background, Mission and Business goals

Background: Business Idea Description

Our business aims at enhancing security in the society through introduction of new generation CCTV that will enhance surveillance. The new generation technology CCTV will be a digital one and that which will be able to cover a wider geographical area than the existing CCTV. Moreover, it will be able to detect suspicious behavior and individuals thus helping prevent some serious crimes that happen in the world we are living. It is after realizing the increased rate of crimes in the society such as property thefts, killings and terrorism that we came up with this idea. Currently, the CCTV that are in place in most buildings and areas can only cover a small area and are not able to detect any suspicious behavior. Furthermore, there is a need for remote monitoring in various industries to promote security and safety. The new generation technology CCTV will help close this gap that has been in existence (Boghossian & Black, 2005). The business idea also seeks to allow the company to access the CCTV videos and signals via the web thus saving time. Moreover, the business seeks to reduce the maintenance costs that are associated with CCTVs that are available currently. The business also aims at solving the bulky cabling that has been existence with some existing CCTVs, thus enhancing efficiency in the security systems in homes, industries, and society as a whole.

Mission Statement

Our mission statement is to enhance security and prevent serious crimes in our society by introducing a more reliable easy to maintain and operate new generation technology CCTVs.

Goals

To provide a cost effective CCTV that will be able to cover a wider geographical area to all customers within USA within the first year.

To be able to bring change in a security system that is existing making it more effective and preventing crimes. Within the first two years, we would like to increase our team so as to produce enough products that will better the market.

To be able to produce the new generation CCTVs in bulk so as to serve not only the US, but also neighboring countries within the first three years of our business operation. We also aim at opening subsidiaries in other countries.

Management plan

Business structure

The business is going to be a partnership. The reason for choosing this structure is to make it easy gather capital and ensure idea sharing between the two partners. My partner and I are going to contribute equally to the capital and will have an equal place in the management. We decided to have a partnership as it is easy to register and easy to manage as we will be sharing all the costs (Li, & Qian, 2007).

Management team

The management team will first include me and my partner. I have masters’ degree in business administration alongside other causes such as an advanced IT course. I have held a management level post in a reputable organization, thus have the relevant knowledge that is required in the management. My partner Jobs is an IT specialist who has a rich background of management. Together we will combine our efforts and take this business to higher levels.

Personnel

To develop our new product-new generation technology, we will require recruiting capable personnel. We plan to start the business with a team of 10 capable employees. To ensure that we recruit the best candidates, we will open a website where we will post our vacancies. The applicants will be required to write a short easy describing an innovative idea. We will then screen the applicants and those with most innovative ideas will be invited for a physical interview. After the interview, the new recruits will go trough training to make sure they understand the job. This method of recruiting will help us obtain most creative and innovative candidates who will help in the development of the new CCTVs (Ford, Bornstein, & Pruitt, 2010).

Market research and analysis

Industry Trends

The security industry is fast changing due to the introduction of the new technologies. Individuals are looking for various ways to reduce various risks associated with security by embracing the new technology. As security threats increases, innovation for systems that will enhance physical security in industries is also fast increasing (Griffin, 2014). The existing CCTVs make use of DVRs that keep on failing thus requiring replacements. With the new technology, individuals will be able to embrace the new generation CCTVs that do not require to be replacing as they have long life span and make use of IP. As security technologies advance, organizations are willing to embrace them so as to enhance their security. It is anticipated that there will be increased adoption of the video surveillance in industries with an aim of enhancing security, as well as management efficiency (ASIS International, 2015).

Competitors

There is a very stiff competition in the security industry. Many firms are striving to provide security measures and devices that are unique so as to remain competitive in the market (Ecorys, 2009). Security monitoring devices are produced by different private companies thus making the price of the devices low and affordable by a majority in the society. There are several categories of CCTV cameras that are being produced by competitors with an aim of increasing security efficiency. However, despite the competition, our company will develop a unique CCTV, which will give us a competitive advantage and remain competitive in this market. For example, our cameras will have the capability of covering wider geographical areas than those in already available in the market. Moreover, our CCTVs will be manufactured in such a way that they will be able to operate even in the dark and will be able to detect any behavior and send the signal immediately to the authorities. These features will help our products be unique thus preferred by many organizations (Hemsley, n.d).

Potential strategic allies

There are several mid-level security industries that produce CCTVs and other security devices. These companies have innovative teams, and if well managed and given enough capital, these firms can go very far in the security industry. These firms are a good opportunity for expanding in various parts of the world through joint venturing and entrepreneurship. We believe that three years to come our business will have gathered enough capital that will help us be able to exploit these opportunities. Moreover, through collaboration, these mid-level innovative businesses our business can develop more advanced devices at very low cost. This will enhance growth and maximizing profits (Nicholson & Meessen, 2005; March; Murphy & Hamalian, 2006).

SWOT analysis

Strengths

Our business will have strong teams who are experienced thus will be able to help the company grow very fast through excellent management. Being an innovative idea that is bringing a solution to pressing issues in the society, our business idea is likely going to attract many sponsors thus solving the funding problem. By recruiting innovative individuals, we are going to produce quality products that will enhance the brand image in the market.

Weaknesses

Being a new company may experience difficulties raising capital that may require us to take several loans. Another weakness is that, being new to the industry, we will be required to invest much in research and development and market research.

Opportunities

Advancement in technology and the growing the new technology security measures in the society gives our company an opportunity to grow very fast. An increased need for advanced physical location security in industries also offers and expansion and growth opportunity to the business.

Threats

The main threat to our company is the competition in the security industry. Moreover, there is also a threat of production of counterfeit products that may lead to tarnishing the reputation our brand.

Marketing plan

Segmentation

Market segmentation involves dividing of the market into smaller groups that the marketer design the marketing message for. For our business, we will use the geographical and the situational segmentation. Under the geographical segmentation, we are going to cover the US to begin with. Our marketing messages will be directed to individuals living in the United States showing them how we will help solve the existing security issues for them. The other segmentation is the situational segmentation where we will divide the market depending on the situations when the CCTVs may be required. Under this category, we will have the physical security in organization and homes as well as organization monitoring to enhance better services to the customers (Tanner & Raymond, 2011).

Marketing strategies

Products and the target market

Our business is going to offer unique CCTVs in the market which will be offered at affordable prices. This will help organization both large and small be able to access the products thus enhancing the security of their premises. The CCTVs that will be offered by our company will be smaller in size, easy to install and monitor. The camera will have the capability of capturing videos even in he dark and alerting the authorized individual in case of any interruption (Armstrong, Adam, Denize, & Kotler, 2014).

The CCTVs will also have the capability of capturing videos in a wider geographical area thus enhancing remote monitoring. Our products will be made of quality materials that are environmental friendly. The cameras to be manufactured are also going to be able to capture multiple videos and transmitting them effectively without any overload problems. The cameras will also have settings that will allow the organization or individuals connect any monitoring devices they would wish to have including smartphones. In case of any unusual behavior detected by the cameras, an alert message will be received by the person monitoring using the device set for monitoring. This will help individuals monitor their premises from whichever location and in case of danger, an action will be taken on time thus enhancing security in the society. Our products will be available to not only the organizations but also for home use by individuals. The new generation technology CCTV will enable individuals monitor their home even while on vacation and their place of work even when at their home or on business plan thus enhancing security in the society. The new CCTVs to be provided can also be installed in parks and along the roads to monitor crimes and in case of any danger send an alarm to the local police to take action. We will offer installation services for free to customers who buy our products and live in the US (Armstrong, Adam, Denize, & Kotler, 2014).

Placement

Our business will use both the business to the business distribution channel, as well as a business to customer’s channels. We will identify reputable retailers who will help in the distribution f our products. Moreover, various businesses that deal with security gadgets will have the capability of obtaining the cameras on wholesale and selling them at retail to customers. We will also open our retail shops in various cities to enhance the distribution of our products throughout the country (Armstrong, Adam, Denize & Kotler, 2014).

Our business will be strategically be located in areas where there are good infrastructure t ensure that customers can easily access our premises. The area will also be spacious enough to offer enough packing for all our customers. We will have at least five vehicles for distributing CCTVs and related parts to various customers who will order their products online. We will critically manage our supply chain to ensure that all materials and parts are received on time, and that we provide our products at the right time when the customers need them (Tanner & Raymond, 2011).

Promotion and advertisement

Various promotion activities will be embraced to ensure that we create enough brand awareness. We are going to use integrated marketing communication so as to reach a wider range of potential customers. We are going to use advertisement first of all. Our advertisement message will be communicated to the customers using the mass media, printed media, brochures, as well as billboards. The adverts about our new generation CCTVs will be available in various newspapers and business magazines (Belch & Belch, 2003).

We are also going to open a website in which we will advertise our cameras. We will also open a social media profile in the Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. In each profile page, we will ensure that we provide a column in which customers can write their reviews about the product. The various designs of the cameras will be displayed on the internet and their respective prices. The website and the social media pages will be made simple to navigate, and easy to understand language will be used to write the information about the products (Lui, Piccoli & Ives, 2007).

Sales promotion will also be used to promote the products and increase that brand awareness. Several t-shirts, bags umbrellas and cups bearing our new generation CCTV brand name will produce and issued to individuals. This will help individuals to recall our brand thus enhancing the awareness. For example, the t-shirts and the umbrellas will also have a message for enhancing security in our society (Armstrong, Adam, Denize, & Kotler, 2014).

We also plan to promote our products by sponsoring sports in the country. We look forward to sponsoring national football league once in a year so as to promote our CCTVs. During the matches, the playing grounds will bear our names. People attending the match will be issued with t-shirts as well as umbrellas. The winning team will be issued with a trophy alongside other presents some of which will bear the name of our brand (Jobber & Ellis-Chadwick, 2012).

We are going to be careful to ensure that all the media communicate the same message to our potential customers. As such there is going to be a collaboration between our marketing team to ensure that the message disseminated through all Medias is consistent and does not confuse the intended audience. We will also take the time to design the message so as to use similar theme and design to allow a uniformity of the message in all Medias we are going to use. This way we will facilitate faster understanding of the message about the brand (Smith & Taylor, 2004).

Pricing Policy

We are gong to use the cost plus and the psychological pricing strategies. The cost plus pricing policy involves calculating the cost of producing a product and fixing a price that will cover the cost and give profit. This type of policy is essential as it will help us cover all our cost and make profits. However, to make this strategy successful we will need to be careful with where we obtain our products from so as to keep the cost as low as possible. The low cost will enable us to lower the prices of our products. Since there are many competitors in the market, we will be required to keep our quality very high so as to attract customers even if we offer products at price that is slightly higher than the competitors (Jobber & Ellis-Chadwick, 2012).

Psychological pricing strategy is the one that is likely to influence the customers in making their decision. In our case, our prices will be ending with a 9 as customers tend to round off the prices to the nearest lowest price and not to the nearest whole number. For example if we price our new generation CCTVs at 2999.99, customers are likely going to associate the price with 2000 and not 3000. This strategy will be useful to us as we will be able to offer our products at a high price without affecting the customers (Jobber, & Ellis-Chadwick, 2012).

Operational Plan

Location and premises

           We are gong to locate our business in the city of New York where we will be required to lease our operating premise as construction is expensive and time-consuming. The premise that we are going to lease will need to be spacious enough to allow easy offloading of materials into our plant and loading of the finished products to be distributed in various retail outlets. There will also be enough packing for our customers who choose to buy directly. In the manufacturing premises, we are going to have two individual to begin with who will be responsible for offering installation services to our customers. However, we will need to outsource installation services to make the work easier (Chambers, 2007).

Licensing

We are going to collaborate with my partner and register our company jointly. We will choose an attractive name for our company that will be related to security and technology. After registering our company, we will ensure that we obtain all relevant licenses to allow our company to be legally recognized. We will make sure patent our company to prevent it from being copied by others in the society (Chambers, 2007).

Production process and delivery system

We are going to embrace the just in time delivery system. This will help us save most of the costs associated with keeping inventory. As such we will no need a big warehouse for keeping materials. However, we will be required to ensure that the supply chain is well managed to ensure on time deliveries. Furthermore, the electronic ordering system will be well maintained to ensure on time order placement for the materials and parts. We will also be required to have a very strong relationship with our suppliers so as to manage the system (Rogoff, 2007).

Equipment

We will require a new machine that we will use for assembling our CCTVs. Our IT team will ensure that each CCTV camera is well tested before it packaged for distribution. Our products will be sold, and each CCTV will have a warranty for at least one year. This will help assure our customers of quality. We will also lease retail outlets in various parts of the country to enhance the distribution of our products throughout the country. We also require about five computers in our company that will help better conduct our research about the products and manage our online market (Rogoff, 2007).

Professional advisors

We will need some professional advisors especially in the accounting sector to help us better understand our investment. Our financial advisors w ill be charged with analyzing our financial reports and advising us accordingly. We will use reputable banks to be our advisors. We will also require management consultants once in a while to help us remain on the track (Rogoff, 2007).

Financial plan

Capital generation and other financial information

To gather enough capital for our business, we will require taking a loan of about 2m dollars from a bank that we will pay within the first year of operation that we will use to buy the required equipment. We will also seek sponsor who will help us with about one million. As partners, we will contribute the remaining 1 million dollar to reach the targeted four million dollars that are estimated capital. This money will help us cover various costs such as administration, leasing of plant and retail shops and distribution as well. Due to miscellaneous expenses, family and friends will help us gather about 500 dollars (Chambers, 2007).

Sales forecasts

Within the first six months of operation, we expect to produce and sell about 1000 new generation where each camera will be sold at an average cost of 5000 dollars. This means that, within the first six moths, we will be able to cover our capital. We expect the sales to increase by at least 5% each year that will be possible by increasing the promotion activities and opening more retail shops. We also expect our profits to increase by 5% profits within the first three years.

Action plan

1-6 months

Within the first three months, we will ensure that we gather all the required capital. We will approach various banks and obtain the two million as planned. We will also locate and start renovating the premises we intend to work from installing all necessary equipment. We expect to launch our business six months from now. To realize this, we will be required to recruit and train the employees immediately after acquiring the premises so as to train them in advance and familiarize them with the working conditions.

Month 7 to Month 13

We will concentrate on manufacturing of the CCTV and intensively marketing them. The product is going to be launched during the seventh month from now. During the launching ceremony, several speeches will be given on the CCTVs and how they are going to enhance security. Various promotional materials such as T-shirts, mugs, umbrellas and caps among others will be given to all those who will attend the launching ceremony. The productions of all these promotional materials will have been sponsored by various NGOs.

Year 2 onwards

Once the company becomes established within the United States, we will start looking for capable partners and franchisee from the neighboring countries as well as within the US. We will invite various proposals from willing franchisees. This is a strategy that will help us increase our market share national wide and even in foreign countries.

References

Armstrong, G., Adam, S., Denize, S., & Kotler, P. (2014). Principles of marketing. Pearson Australia.

ASIS International (2015). Trends and Technology Driving Change in Security Insights from the Latest Industry Research and Data. Retrieved from https://www.asisonline.org/Education-Events/Education-Programs/Webinars/Pages/Trends-and-Technology-Driving-Change-in-Security-Insights-from-the-Latest-Industry-Research-and-Data.aspx

Belch, G. E., & Belch, M. A. (2003). Advertising and promotion: An integrated marketing communications perspective. The McGraw− Hill.

Boghossian, B., & Black, J. (2005, June). The challenges of robust 24/7 video surveillance systems. In Imaging for Crime Detection and Prevention, 2005. ICDP 2005. The IEE International Symposium on (pp. 33-38). IET.

Chambers, K. D. (2007). The entrepreneur’s guide to writing business plans and proposals. Westport, Conn: Praeger.

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Ecorys(2009).Study on the Competitiveness of the EU security industry. Brussels: Ecorys research and consulting. Available at http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/policies/security/files/study_on_the_competitiveness_of_the_eu_security_industry_en.pdf

Ford, B. R., Bornstein, J. M., & Pruitt, P. T. (2010). The Ernst & Young business plan guide. John Wiley & Sons.

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Hemsley, J. (n.d). Technology and the private security industry. Asia Pacific police technology conference.

Jobber, D., & Ellis-Chadwick, F. (2012). Principles and practice of marketing. McGraw-Hill Higher Education.

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Nicholson, D., & Meessen, J. (2005, March). Technologies for multimedia and video surveillance convergence. In Electronic Imaging 2005 (pp. 1-13). International Society for Optics and Photonics.

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