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This book is an invaluable resource for any creative with a great business idea. Starting your own business does not need to be a complicated and daunting process and serial entrepreneur, Dragon's Den investor and business educator Doug Richard, shows you how. He sets out a ten-point plan teaching creatives how to shape their startup business into a success.
Written in plain English, without the dense text and technical jargon of other business books, and illustrated with visual cues to help the message stick, Doug's practical advice is accessible to all. Real-life case studies are interspersed throughout from successful creative startups that include, Tatty Devine, Paul Smith, Time Out and LoveFilm, which expand upon the theory and bring it to life.
In 10 chapters, Doug asks the fundamental questions any aspiring creative entrepreneur must answer. By following the questions from start to finish, and working through the get your hands dirty activities, you will get the theory first and then apply that theory in a practical way to the real world and your own business. By the time you reach the last question, you will have the foundation of a very solid creative business.
You will answer:
What do we do or need that people need or want?
Who is our customer?
Who is our competition?
What is our pricing model?
And more! Doug walks you through the process for researching, answering and, ultimately, overcoming the challenges posed by these questions for your own business plan.
Whether you are passionate about craft, design, advertising, antiques, film and video, music, performing arts, or any other creative field, this fantastic guide will help you start your business today
List of contents
1.
What do we do that people need or want? This will look at the business proposition.
2.
Who is our customer? This will look at markets and segments.
3.
How do customers find out about our products? This will look at marketing
channels.
4.
What distribution channels should we consider? This will look at distribution
and support.
5.
How much is it worth to the customer? This will look at revenue models.
6.
What pricing model should we choose? This will look at pricing models.v
7.
What kind of relationship do we want with our customers? This will look at
customer service.
8.
Who are we up against? This will look at the competition.
9.
What do we have in common with our industry? This will look at the industry.
10.
What must we be good at? This will look at key assets and resources.
About the author
Doug Richard is a UK based Californian serial entrepreneur and angel investor. Richard came to public prominence as a result of the BBC TV programme Dragons' Den, where he appeared as a 'dragon', or investor in the first two series. He subsequently became known for the Richard Report, the Entrepreneur's Manifesto and several other initiatives directed at improving UK support for startups and small businesses. He is regularly invited to appear on business initiatives and economic development pieces with some frequency on the BBC and financial news networks. Doug has received a host of honours and awards during his career and was the first American to receive The Queen's Award for Enterprise Promotion. Amongst others, he became a fellow of the RSA and received an Honorary Doctorate of the University of Essex for his contribution to entrepreneurship education. In 2008 Doug started School for Startups through which he has educated nearly 20,000 startups on the skills required to be successful. In 2010 Doug started School for Creative Startups with the sole remit of teaching creative people how to turn their creative hobbies into sustainable lifestyle businesses.
Summary
Anyone thinking of starting their own creative business will find this book an invaluable resource. Doug Richard takes the reader through ten clear steps of shaping and then launching their business, with real-life examples of a huge range of creative start-ups to bring the information to life.
