Starting an Online Business
1.1 Online Business Types and Models
Online Business Types:
Communications:
An online communications business is an organisation which provides a service to customers which allows them to…
Communicate with each other
An example of an online communications business is…
Twitter, Instagram, Facebook
Real-time Information:
Such as BBC news, sports, etc.
Software:
Businesses like Apple, Samsung, EE, O2 are examples of software companies
E-commerce:
Businesses like Amazon, Argos, Asda, any business that sells their products online as well as in their store
Education:
Open university (university that can be attended entirely online)
Apps:
A lot of companies have apps for their products, like amazon, Netflix, etc. This is because they can target an audience who mainly use mobile devices
Consultancy/Coaching:
Getting feedback from the customer (coaching) can help excel a business as you can adapt to interest your audience and consulting tells the client what to do, for example, what to buy with targeted ads.
Affiliate Marketing:
Affiliate marketing is the process by which an affiliate earns a commission for marketing another person's or company's products. The affiliate simply searches for a product they enjoy, then promotes that product and earns a piece of the profit from each sale they make.
Entertainment:
Netflix, Youtube, Disney + are examples of entertainment businesses
There are 4 main structures of media businesses. These include but are not limited to; conglomerates, independent businesses, subsidiaries and public services. Below I have discussed the definition of these as well as their advantages and disadvantages
A conglomerate business is a…
Corporation made up of a number of different, sometime unrelated businesses (Walt Disney)
An independent business can be defined as…
A business that is free from outside control, usually a privately owned establishment (Local corner shop)
A business which is defined as a subsidiary is a…
Business partially or completely owned by another business (Sky Atlanta)
A public service is...
Something produced, provided or sold by organisations owned and run by the government
(BBC)
To demonstrate my knowledge of business types and structures, I researched and presented a case study on Sky. Here is what I found out about this online business:
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Introduction
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History
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Ownership
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Business Type
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Business Structure
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Advantages & Disadvantages of their structure
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Market Position
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Competitors
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Media Products
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Examples of products
Entrepreneurship
Entrepreneurship is the activity of setting up a business or businesses, taking on financial risks in the hope of profit.
Profile of an everyday entrepreneur
Motivation. Hard-working business owners are incredibly motivated to succeed.
Creativity. No matter what industry you're in, employers want workers without-of-the-box ideas.
Persuasiveness.
Vision.
Versatility.
Risk tolerance.
Flexibility.
Decisiveness.
An Entrepreneur I idolise (Elon Musk)
Elon Musk is a great businessman and entrepreneur because of his skills. For example, his entrepreneurial spirit, his passion for innovation, his positive energy, his strategic direction and his personal integrity/influence. Elon Musk owns companies like Tesla and SpaceX but you have to start somewhere and his first big success was pay-pal. He had a startup company called Zip2 which he sold in his 20s to make him a multimillionaire.
The Data Protection Act (DPA) protects the privacy and integrity of data held on individuals by businesses and other organisations. The act ensures that individuals (customers and employees) have access to their data and can correct it, if necessary.
The Consumer Protection (Distance Selling) Regulations 2000 were brought in on the 31st October 2000 to implement the EC Distance Selling Directive in the UK. The Regulations cover sales made at a distance between businesses and consumers, such as the following: Mail order, catalogue shopping. Digital TV sales.
The Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003 is a law in the United Kingdom which made it unlawful to, amongst other things, transmit an automated recorded message for direct marketing purposes via a telephone, without prior consent of the subscriber.
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) is the UK's independent advertising regulator. The ASA makes sure ads across UK media stick to the advertising rules (the Advertising Codes). The Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP) is the sister organisation of the ASA and is responsible for writing the Advertising Codes. An advertising code that can affect an online business is the Non-broadcast Code as it focuses on advertisement, sales, promotions and direct marketing communications.
1.2 Branding Ideas
Idea 1:
Brand name: JRM film and television
Slogan/Mission statement: we will film and edit, you won’t regret it!
This web domain (jrmfilmandTV.co.uk) is available
Youtube Channel - will be regularly updated with content like BTS of nature documentaries, which will be my main specialty, and editing videos. There will also be playlists of a variety of Film and television like documentaries, adverts, trailers, etc.
Channel art
Idea 2:
Brand name: JRM videography
Slogan/Mission statement: We film and edit anything to do with movies Quick and Cheap
The web domain (jrmvideography.co.uk) is available
Social Media: Create an instagram account to post snippets of each project we make (BTS) and pictures of editing.
Channel art:
Idea 3:
Brand Name: JM Documentaries
Slogan/Mission statement: Professional nature documentary maker and editor. I will make quality content, Cheap and efficient!
The web domain (jmdocumentaries.co.uk) is available
Social Media: Create an instagram account to post snippets of each documentary we do, the editing and BTS.
Channel art:
Unit 337 1.2: Personal Branding Feedback
Idea 1
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Do you think you could specialise in a specific tv/film genre? This might help hone your skills more
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Logo is quite simplistic but works well in a circular shape. Would fit many different social media platforms
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Compared to the other two logos, it lacks some creative elements/patterns.
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Enjoyed the rhyming slogan
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Web domain appears quite long? Could it be shortened to TV?
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Social Media Headers would be good to see from the Youtube point of view
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Are there any examples of content/BTS stuff you could list here? Playlist names etc
Idea 2
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Hierarchy of the design needs a re-think as I read the letter ‘M’ first. We want that J to be the most prominent.
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Do you think you could specialise in a specific tv/film genre? This might help hone your skills more
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Within your mission statements/tag-lines - try and avoid general statements like “We can film and edit everything”. Try and find a USP to draw customers.
Idea 3
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Don’t think the logo shape suits online businesses too well. Circular shapes appear better especially on social media
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Good web domain, I think the term videography encompasses everything.
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Twitter probably isn't the best social media platform for showing your imagery. I’d think more about instagram.
The idea that I will be following is idea 3 as it pleases my interests the most as I would like to make documentaries (specifically wildlife documentaries).
1.2 Branding Analysis & SWOT Analysis
1.3 Business Plan
Idea 3:
The 6 principles of persuasion:
Reciprocity - Responding to someone who has done something good for you with an action that is good for them. I could use this in my brand by contacting other businesses or just shouting them out so they get traffic from my business, then they return the favour.
Scarcity - to use the fear of shortage to sell more. Scarcity can also increase the perceived value of the item or service you're providing. An example of this would be black Friday sales. If i was to use this method, I would send out a limited amount of discount codes for your next purchase of my services or a limited time deal.
Authority - To be the best and have control over others, for example a company in authority would be YouTube in the video content market. I would use authority in my business plan to assert my dominance over everyone else as a great documentary maker.
Consistency - Consistency means your target audience is being exposed to core messages, visual branding, and other brand elements repeatedly, which can help to solidify brand recognition. An example of this would be Wix as they constantly send emails about deals and promotions. I would incorporate this into my plan by posting on social media 2 times a week showing the projects I'm working on and send emails about offers and deals but not spam.
Liking - According to the liking principle, we are more likely to be persuaded by people we like and those we want to be like, the more you like someone the more likely you are to say yes to them. So say you knew someone who runs a similar business, it's more likely for them to say yes to you than the BBC saying yes to you.
The way I would use Liking in my business plan is by finding a business I can work with and build a reputation with, then occasionally asking for more work opportunities and go from there.
Consensus - People will look to the actions and behaviours of others to determine their own. For example, If you were staying in a hotel and there was a sign saying “please reuse your towel”, not many people will be swayed by this but, if the sign said “more than 70% of people in this hotel reuse their towel, please do the same”
This will tell them that other people are doing it so you have to do it as well. If i was to use this method in my business plan, I would first set up different payments for my services (£20 an hour, £50 for 3 hours ,etc.) Then I would check my analytics and see which is the most popular one, then put text underneath it saying “Most popular option” or “the majority of people choose this and are happy with the outcome”.
The tables below show my competitors in the Wildlife documentary genre and social media success:
The way I would make revenue through my business is by selling products and my services. Firstly, I would like to sell the equipment off my website like cameras, lights, microphones, tripods, SD cards, etc. These products will be good quality and perfect for people who want to start up their own business. Over time, I would like to increase the amount of stock and the quality of the equipment as technology improves so that my customers are still buying from me as if my stock isn’t good quality for money, they’re going to go elsewhere.
Secondly, if people don't want to film their own documentary (or any film product) they can hire my services for a certain amount of time for a certain amount of money, for example they could pay £100 for an hour of filming and post production, so there will be different deals for my services like the example and I will look at the analytics of my site to see which is the most popular one and make sure that people know that, so more people will purchase it. Over time, this will develop and probably get more expensive, but there will be more discounts as there is more traffic. The reason for the price increase will be because at this time I would’ve built a good reputation and I would have a bigger crew than just me so the whole process would be a lot faster.
SMART goals: Achievable in a year and achievable in 5 years
In 1 year:
> Get 1000 followers on Instagram. I will do this by changing the format of my current IG account as it is a personal account with around 400 followers, I will start posting more documentary type content and anything that I am doing with a camera. I will try promoting myself on my clients social media as well.
> I want to have done work for at least 5 clients. I will achieve this by sticking to the wildlife documentary side to start off with as I am most passionate about that. I will contact local zoos, sanctuaries or even Vets and see if they’re interested in my services.
> I want to be able to sell camera equipment on my website. I will do this by either getting sponsored or a partnership with another film company. By doing this, I will build trust with my customers and gain a reputation.
In 5 years:
> I would like to be making the average or more annual income for a camera operator (around £30,000). This would be achieved by working hard and consistently.
> I would like to work with big names like the BBC and ITV on wildlife documentary projects. I would achieve this by building a great reputation and being well known as a top brand by most people in the industry.
> I would like to reach a following of around 300k on instagram and have other socials like Twitter, Facebook and Linkedin. To achieve this I would have to constantly post on all socials or have people do it for me as to be an independent brand that big, it is going to be hard without a team.
Source Funding
The source funding I would use to start up my business would be Personal investments, Love money and Government/bank loans. The reason I would use personal investments is because I would be using my own money, so I wouldn’t have to pay it back, to invest in other companies or properties so that over time I will get more money. To get the money I will take a percentage of my wage and put it aside for personal investments. With love money, I would ask for a small amount of money from my parents to pay back eventually and put that money into personal investments or web advertisement to help promote my business. Finally, with government and bank loans, I would get a lot of money to help start up my business but I would have to pay them back with interest like £100 a month. Unless I get a Grant from the government so I won't have to pay them back but it means I’d really have to impress them with my ideas.
Business Description
The type of business I have made is an independent business. I have done this because all the ideas are mine and I would like to run everything myself, instead of having to take orders from higher chains like a conglomerate or subsidiary business like Asda or Disney+. So, I would be the sole-proprietor. The way I would make revenue is by selling my products and services. For example, I have plans for my products to be sold on my website along with my services, but I would sell camera equipment like cameras, tripods, microphones, SD cards and lights. To get this stock in the first place however, I would have to get a sponsor or a partnership with a company that could supply the stock and to do this, I would have to build my reputation as a good documentary maker and have great reviews.
For my services, I would also be selling them on my website, but the customer would be able to rent out me and my skills for whatever they would like me to film and edit. The prices of my services would vary depending on how long they would like me for. For example, if the buyer would like me for an hour (post production fee is included) it would cost around £50 then £100 for 2 hours, £150 for 3 hours and so on. To help make more sales, I would check my analytics and see what service is most popular and add some sort of indication saying that this one is best for value.
Target Audience Description
The certain people I would be targeting are people men and women in the media industry as my products and services adapt to all types of media but I specialise in Documentaries. The type of demographics that will help define my target audience are their occupation as they have to require my services or products, their income so they can afford my services and products and their education level so I know that they’re experienced and educated. So if my target audience was in a socio-economic group they would be in group B. Moving onto Psychographics, the type of person that would appeal to my brand would be an explorer as they are experienced, adventurous and indulgent in new brand ideas.
Executive Summary
Are you looking for a cheap, reliable documentary maker? Then look no further!
My business name is JM Documentaries and it is an independent brand so I am the sole-proprietor. My USP is that compared to other documentary companies, I will do what they want cheaper and efficiently.
My SMART goals:
In a year:
> Get 1000 followers on Instagram
> Do work for 5 clients
> Sell camera equipment on my website
In 5 years:
> I would like to work with big companies like BBC and ITV
> I would like to make the annual income for a camera operator
> I would like to get a following of around 300k on all my socials
My key competitors are Silverback films, Icon films, True To Nature and Wild Space productions.
My products will be camera equipment sold on my website, and my services will be on my website as well but people will be able to purchase my services for an amount of time post production not included in the time.
The social media I will mainly be using will be Instagram because it is most popular for my target audience and I already have a following on it.
I am a sports media student at Boomsatsuma and I am an aspiring wildlife documentary camera operator.
To kick start my business I will need around £39,172 in total.
