Business Plan templates + Initial questions

[CharlesB]

Hey everyone,

New to the forum but have been reading posts across the various sub topics and have already found some good insights for things to do but also avoid.

I wanted to give a brief introduction to the Limited company I have setup with a business partner and then follow up with a few questions that will likely be 'bread and butter' for many of the experienced people on here.

Business Offering
Our company will be offering team and individual photography to amateur sports teams. Yes, I know photography businesses are a dime a dozen, but we have contacts that should allow a constant stream of revenue, as well as offering an onsite subscription based editing platform that allows them to repurpose shoots and create other assets throughout the season. We also have very low overheads and have full time jobs so this would allow for a small weekend side income if nothing else.

Questions
These are the following questions that I have been pondering so would be great to hear any thoughts.

• Do people have any recommendations for business plan templates? Have done the usual google searches but felt it worth to ask others from experience.

• Is it recommended to get an accountant based off turnover or the likely number of transactions we will face? I ask as I would feel comfortable tracking this myself as there will not be many transactions, both ingoing and outgoing but am unsure of 'value' of accountant, especially around how we would potentially inject capital / get paid from the company.

• One issue we have is scalability (with just two people) - has anyone got advice on how you would go about bringing in freelancers (not sure of how employment would look with regard to our company). For example we want to get someone to cover a shoot either in a location that is too far from where we are based or we are too busy. Not sure how much they would get paid relative to the revenue the sale generated.

These are just a few of the main thoughts I had, could probably write all day if required...

Thanks to anyone who read through.
Charlie

 

[Ozzy]

Firstly, welcome!

Do people have any recommendations for business plan templates?

There are many different versions and best practice, and @Mark T Jones did speak about this in our webinar yesterday and will have his own thoughts.
Mine are, don't focus so much on getting the "template" right but instead write up your business plan in a way that makes sense to you and you can work from and refer to.
Cover your aims and objectives, the threats to you business and how you'll overcome them, and plan out your next three years financial projections based on that.

I would feel comfortable tracking this myself as there will not be many transactions, both ingoing and outgoing but am unsure of 'value' of accountant

Your day-2-day transactions sounds like you'll be fine using a basic online bookkeeping service like KashFlow, Xero, Quickbooks or similar. When it reaches a stage that you are struggling to keep up with your books bring in a freelance bookkeeper to do it for you.
Your accountant will/should earn their money probably a couple of times a year. Once at your year end when wrapping up your annual accounts and another point near the start of your financial year in helping you plan your financial management (how to handle costs, purchases, drawings).

One issue we have is scalability (with just two people)

This should come out in your business plan. If you write your plan and work through how you will reach the stage where you start to grow then how you will handle that growth will come out in the plan too. Will you recruit, will you work in collaborations, or as you say bring in freelancers. The option you choose will be down to what you end goal objectives for the business are.

 

[CharlesB]

Firstly, welcome!

There are many different versions and best practice, and @Mark T Jones did speak about this in our webinar yesterday and will have his own thoughts.
Mine are, don't focus so much on getting the "template" right but instead write up your business plan in a way that makes sense to you and you can work from and refer to.
Cover your aims and objectives, the threats to you business and how you'll overcome them, and plan out your next three years financial projections based on that.

Your day-2-day transactions sounds like you'll be fine using a basic online bookkeeping service like KashFlow, Xero, Quickbooks or similar. When it reaches a stage that you are struggling to keep up with your books bring in a freelance bookkeeper to do it for you.
Your accountant will/should earn their money probably a couple of times a year. Once at your year end when wrapping up your annual accounts and another point near the start of your financial year in helping you plan your financial management (how to handle costs, purchases, drawings).

This should come out in your business plan. If you write your plan and work through how you will reach the stage where you start to grow then how you will handle that growth will come out in the plan too. Will you recruit, will you work in collaborations, or as you say bring in freelancers. The option you choose will be down to what you end goal objectives for the business are.

This is incredibly helpful. Thanks Ozzy!

I'll make sure I check out the webinar now. Sounds like the best approach for the business plan. I think I can get a bit too regimented with some of these things, hence looking for templates etc.

Agree that any growth will determine the need for future collaborations and thankfully the 'sporting season' that we are targeting offers a solid cycle for planning the next years of trading and hopefully growth.

On the account subject, would you recommend approaching an accountant nearer to the end of the tax year, whilst keeping our transactions organised in the mean time? I feel like that this might make sense but also not sure if just getting someone onboard straight away is preferable for both parties.

Thanks again!

 

[adamjohnusa]

There are many business templates available, find the most trending templates according to the business niche. The growth of the business is dependent on the services and product you offer, and how to display in your website.
design and develop your trending website templates with professional developers only.

 

[Ozzy]

On the account subject, would you recommend approaching an accountant nearer to the end of the tax year

Some people choose to hold off engaging an accountant until they "need" them to try and save some money. Don't pay out till you need it, and there is some logic in that, but my personal view is engage an accountant much sooner and start off on the right foot.
Ideally have the accountant help you setup your bookkeeping process, it will save you money in the long run and make things easier to understand.

 

[Mark T Jones]

Firstly, welcome!

There are many different versions and best practice, and @Mark T Jones did speak about this in our webinar yesterday and will have his own thoughts.
Mine are, don't focus so much on getting the "template" right but instead write up your business plan in a way that makes sense to you and you can work from and refer to.
Cover your aims and objectives, the threats to you business and how you'll overcome them, and plan out your next three years financial projections based on that.

I'd certainly mirror this.

I have created some simplistic templates and guide here https://www.kickstartbiz.co.uk/business-plan-review/ - you can get far more sophisticated/evolved ones from many banks or accountancy firms.

BUT, as Ozzy says, it's your business and your plan, the template is there to guide you, not to contrain you.

What I often suggest is that people start their plan with a cashflow projection; it's not about numbers in boxes, but the thoughts, questions and research that goes into establishing those numbers.

By all means call in professionals to complete, verify and challenge your numbers, but initially they are your numbers, so should come from you.

 

[CharlesB]

There are many business templates available, find the most trending templates according to the business niche. The growth of the business is dependent on the services and product you offer, and how to display in your website.
design and develop your trending website templates with professional developers only.

Thanks for the post Adam.

Will look at business plans around Photography for some inspiration. Regarding web development I am able to handle that myself as one of our revenue streams is an inbuilt photoshop like tool specifically for our niche.

 

[Socio South West]

Having worked in the pro photography supply trade for a good number of years post digital revolution I saw very large numbers of people jump on to the 'Uncle Bob's Weekend Warriors' photography bandwagon as a weekend/part time additional occupation... and promptly fall off again...

Main reasons for failure?

1) Inadequate marketing and sales experience... the business is NOT about photography - its about getting the customers in and then upselling product. You may have initial enthusiasm and ready customers, but its after they are exhausted that your marketing skills become vital.

2) Total failure to realise that equipment wears out and needs replacing, vehicles are needed for travel and they break down/wear out etc etc

3) Sudden realisation after a while that they haven't had any free time for a while, and the day job is actually much more lucrative than the photography.

4) Ignorance of the fact that the competition is NOT other photographers.... Your competition is other leisure spend items.

If you are going to do it, make it worth your while: Don't try to be in the race to the bottom of the price pile - look for the customers that value your skills and your product, and in turn produce a good quality product and offer a good service.

One of the Photography Associations has an active business school where there is free advice available on all aspects of the photography biz. You may find some very relevant material there.

 

[CharlesB]

Having worked in the pro photography supply trade for a good number of years post digital revolution I saw very large numbers of people jump on to the 'Uncle Bob's Weekend Warriors' photography bandwagon as a weekend/part time additional occupation... and promptly fall off again...

Main reasons for failure?

1) Inadequate marketing and sales experience... the business is NOT about photography - its about getting the customers in and then upselling product. You may have initial enthusiasm and ready customers, but its after they are exhausted that your marketing skills become vital.

2) Total failure to realise that equipment wears out and needs replacing, vehicles are needed for travel and they break down/wear out etc etc

3) Sudden realisation after a while that they haven't had any free time for a while, and the day job is actually much more lucrative than the photography.

If you are going to do it, make it worth your while: Don't try to be in the race to the bottom of the price pile - look for the customers that value your skills and your product, and in turn produce.

a good quality product and offer a good service.

One of the Photography Associations has an active business school where there is free advice available on all aspects of the photography biz. You may find some very relevant material there.

Appreciate the feedback, I am rather skeptical of most business ideas myself, which is probably reflective in my opening post.

1) Our whole model is built on our ability to do marketing and find clients. I am a marketing professional as my day job and my business partner is in sales. Neither of us are actually photographers.

2) Despite us not being photographers ourselves we have advice from people who are in the industry and have planned for all equipment, insurance and recurring overheads such as vehicles and fuel.

3) The bulk of the work is on weekends (specifically mornings) and would only creep into the rest of are time if it was scaling and we were seeing a return.

Whilst I've repeatedly used the term 'photography' as I didn't want to over complicate my opening post around business plans and more general business advice our offering is actually far greater and is attacking a niche where people are willing to spend money. Photography is just a part of this relationship but is a solid foundation for us to build on.

Appreciate the feedback

 

[sarahosmond066]

Hello and Welcome CharlesB,

I've read your thread where you have asked different questions and You will get the answers to each question.

Q. Do people have any recommendations for business plan templates? Have done the usual google searches but felt it worth askin others from experience.
Answer: CharlesB, as you told me, your business is related to the photographs and content. So, that means your website needs a super quick uploading speed. right? if so, I would highly recommend you develop your templet from a highly expert developer who can optimize the speed of your website. I wouldn't recommend you to choose a template from WordPress, Squarespace, or any other source.

Q. Is it recommended to get an accountant based off turnover or the likely number of transactions we will face? I ask as I would feel comfortable tracking this myself as there will not be many transactions, both ingoing and outgoing but am unsure of 'value' of accountant, especially around how we would potentially inject capital / get paid from the company.
Answer: Well, it depends upon your own decision actually because, for example, as you are saying that you are not expecting a huge transaction for both the incoming and outgoing but still there would be a transaction even it is a small, right, so having a tracking record would be beneficiary for anyone who is tending to a business. (If I am not wrong with your question).

Q: One issue we have is scalability (with just two people) - has anyone got advice on how you would go about bringing in freelancers (not sure of how employment would look with regard to our company). For example we want to get someone to cover a shoot either in a location that is too far from where we are based or we are too busy. Not sure how much they would get paid relative to the revenue the sale generated.

Answer: There are lots of freelancing platforms where you can find the right employee who can remotely handle your work (based on your requirements). But before that all, I would recommend you to get some time to train your remote employee. While as far as the cost of the remote employee could be calculated through the platform from where you are finding the remote source. The prices and the cost charges will be written there for each one.

Thank you.

 

[fisicx]

@sarahosmond066 - I’m not really sure you understood the questions. In any case, your answers are wrong.

 

[sarahosmond066]

@sarahosmond066 - I’m not really sure you understood the questions. In any case, your answers are wrong.

maybe, but my suggestions would be positive for their business if they follow because I've faced these issues.

 

[fisicx]

He wants a business template not a website template. In any case, there is nothing wrong with wordpress or squarespace templates.

He asked about an accountant not a tracking record

He will need a local freelancer not a remote employee.

Your experiences in Pakistan are probably not relevant to the needs of a business in the UK.

 

[Chris Ashdown]

I would suggest you ignore 80% of what's in a business template unless your out to get a loan or investment
Just concentrate first on How you get sales and who are your potential customers closely followed buy a good understanding or cashflow and projecting it realistically. you say you have marketing experience which is good
How much have you done on competition from other companies, have you investigated any?, understanding them will be a great help on selling and marketing
What makes you think you can become photographers, there is a lot of skill in taking a great picture which is what your customers will expect, and also deep knowledge of image software like photoshop, I would suggest before you get started you take some shots and try to sell them, it could save you a lot of wasted time, accounting is the last of your worries for the first 9 months if you use decent accounting software

 

[UkAppCoder]

He wants a business template not a website template. In any case, there is nothing wrong with wordpress or squarespace templates.

He asked about an accountant not a tracking record

He will need a local freelancer not a remote employee.

Your experiences in Pakistan are probably not relevant to the needs of a business in the UK.

Agreed. I don't know whether Sarah realises that the constitution of the said business after removal of the overall value of mitigation would be worth it. Indeed, as an advocate of multi-disciplinary theories of economical success, it follows that many entities within the system would fail.

It makes absolutely no sense at all when considered within an environment of such systemic convolutions. I mean, how would she feel if the vendor were to suddenly declare that legal action should be taken against the highest international authorities?

I recommend that the depletion of artificial intelligence sources be accelerated forthwith pending the submission of reports relevant to the Board of Intergalactical Enquiry responsible for the anomalous appearance of irregular wormholes in Sector 164.34.004.73 of the Delta Quadrant.

 

[Mark T Jones]

I would suggest you ignore 80% of what's in a business template unless your out to get a loan or investment

I'd somewhat disagree - they key mistake people make on funding business plans is trying to be too clever, dressing them up rather than focusing on what matters - how you are going to run the business.

That really boils down to

Marketing (which incorporates competitor analysis)
process
people
financials.

 

[Financial-Modeller]

Sounds like an interesting idea @CharlesB

If I understand correctly, you will engage freelancers to take photographs, then you and your business partner will add value with your "inbuilt photoshop like tool specifically for our niche." whilst building the sales and marketing side.

My thoughts in response to your questions:

• Is it recommended to get an accountant based off turnover or the likely number of transactions we will face? I ask as I would feel comfortable tracking this myself as there will not be many transactions, both ingoing and outgoing but am unsure of 'value' of accountant, especially around how we would potentially inject capital / get paid from the company.

Yes. Get an accountant sooner rather than later. A good one will save you more than they cost you and take away headaches.

• One issue we have is scalability (with just two people) - has anyone got advice on how you would go about bringing in freelancers (not sure of how employment would look with regard to our company). For example we want to get someone to cover a shoot either in a location that is too far from where we are based or we are too busy. Not sure how much they would get paid relative to the revenue the sale generated.

Don't consider employing anyone yet!

Identify decent professional photographers locally as they will always be able to recommend similarly good people in other locations.

Paying a freelancer is straightforward. Agree terms and pay them on production of a valid invoice. Keep records.

However don't underestimate the perils of being let down by an amateur who will turn up late / at the client's home address instead of the shoot location / on the wrong day / not at all, then have a 'technical glitch' and lose the memory card / photos they have taken.

• Do people have any recommendations for business plan templates? Have done the usual google searches but felt it worth to ask others from experience.

Re business plan, an ambitious plan will take time and money to get into a condition that meets lender's due diligence requirements etc, but for starters (whilst you're both putting free time into this) use a spreadsheet to be able to answer the "what if..." questions and the "when will we be able to afford to..." questions.

When you need something more solid - for a lender or investor for example - worry about something more robust then.

 

[MiniAndrew]

Can I just add one or two item to your business plan idea if you are in partnership with somebody else which is something many people never consider when a business idea is young and you join up with an aspiring 'partner' - Sit down with that partner and discuss an exit plan!

If this is being done via a Limited company, that will be share driven so who has what number of shares?

What happens when you fall out or there are differences in opinions and one wants to leave or go back to the day job?

Does either partner have a casting vote over disputes?

Shares of the money often drives disputes, so who gets what, when and how is it distributed.

'What If's' was mentioned in a post above, go through those what if's with regard to the relationship between the partners as well as all the business related things.

I have lived through a Ltd Co 'divorce' in a 50-50 partnership with somebody 'I thought I knew' and I can assure you, things can get really nasty when you don't have this clearly set out from day 1. The main culprit to this nastiness did not actually come from the partner himself, but from his partner at home- his wife who seemed to be at the steering wheel behind most of his decision making disputes and I'd advise getting to know who is behind the partner at home who shares the success or failure of the venture too.

We all take our troubles home with us and are guided by our loved-one's God bless em!

I have seen this situation many times with start-ups and there's actually nothing wrong in getting a business started with a collective of skills only to out-grow one or another, but if you get your what-if's up front from the beginning, recognising this may happen further down the line, you'll have in place a written agreement between you as to how that exit plan will be structured and the business can survive and prosper rather than hit the rocks once someone decides they've had enough.

Good luck anyway-and we make our own luck don't we?