Startup Star - The Ultimate Startup Guide

By Wonuola Okoye

This startup kit is a compilation of personal business experiences from the BSU team as well as veteran entrepreneurs and startup coaches worldwide. It touches on the key areas of fortification that every new business needs in order to survive whatever life throws at them.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Sep 20, 2018
• ISBN: 9780244718022

Book preview

THE COMPLETE STARTUP KIT

Wonuola Okoye

TABLE OF CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION      8

ABOUT US      9

HOW TO USE THE STARTUP KIT      10

1. BRAND IDENTITY - Who are you and what’s in a name?      11

Step 1: Establish Your Core Values & Mission Statement      12

Step 2: What Is Your Unique Selling proposition (USP)?      14

Step 3: What Is Your Brand Story?      15

Step 4: How Effective Is Your Brand Name?      17

Step 5: How Impactful Is Your Brand Visual Language?      20

2. LEGAL JABBERWOCKY      22

Private Limited Liability        23

Public Limited Company (PLC)      24

Proprietorship      24

Partnership       25

Trademark, Patent and Copyright      25

Trademarks vs. Business Registration      26

3. DISCOVERING YOUR BUSINESS MODEL - How the Magic Happens      28

Part 1 - Vision Board - Where do you see yourself in 3 years?      29

How to Create a Vision Board      29

Part 2 - Value proposition and Business Model Canvas       30

Value Proposition Canvas       30

How to use the value proposition canvas       30

Customer Segment       32

Business Model Canvas      34

How to use the Business Model Canvas      35

Block 1 - Customer Segments       35

Block 2 - Value Proposition       35

Block 3 - Channels       36

Block 4 - Customer Relationships       36

Block 5 - Revenue Streams       36

Block 6 - Key Resources       37

Block 7 - Key Activities       37

Block 8 - Key Partners       38

Block 9 - Cost Structure       38

The Big Startup Business Model Story      38

Minimum Viable Product       39

4. GOALING FOR IT, OBJECTIVELY      40

Long-Term Goals       41

Medium- and Short-Term Goals       42

SMART Goals       42

Objectives       43

5. FINANCIAL PROJECTIONS      44

Financial Projections      45

6. MARKETING AND COMPETITION      48

Launch marketing plan      49

Phase 1 – Strategy and development      49

Strategic positioning49

2. Brand development      49

3. Web presence      49

4. Blog strategy      50

Phase 2 - Advertising      50

5. Online and traditional advertising      50

6. Strategic PR      51

7. Crowdsourcing campaigns      51

8. Speaking and Briefing      51

7. THE PITCH      53

Pitch Deck       54

Must have slides       54

1. Intro - Get their heads turning       54

2. The Business Opportunity       54

3. The Business Model       55

4. Why can you beat the market?      56

5. The Team      56

6. Traction      56

7. Financials       56

8. Call to Action       56

Information Memorandum (IM)       57

Must-have sections       57

Letter from the Director 57

2. Investment Highlights       58

3. Executive Summary       58

4. Company History       59

5. Expansion Plan       59

6.  Market Overview      60

7. Key Success Factors and Metrics      61

8. Risks       62

9. Management Team       62

10. Financial Information       62

11. Finance Required       63

12. Long-term goals       63

8. STARTUP SPACE      65

When do I need an office space?      66

Who should be involved?      66

When should I start the process of finding office space?       66

What kind of financial guarantees will be required?      67

What are my options?      67

How much space do I need?      67

How do I narrow the search?      68

What is the parking situation?       68

Space Design       69

This is where it all starts…       70

Contributors      71

References       72

Dear Entrepreneur!

Congratulations on making a concerted effort towards starting your own business. It will be one of the most rewarding and educational experiences you will ever face and we hope to be able to make a positive contribution toward your success.

This startup kit is a compilation of personal business experiences from the BSU team as well as veteran entrepreneurs and startup coaches worldwide. It touches on the key areas of fortification that every new business needs in order to survive whatever life throws at them.

The kit is designed to be an interactive workbook that you can have by your side throughout every startup decision-making process, guiding and validating your choices.

Thank you for deciding to take this journey with us. Get ready to go from startup to success!

Wonuola Okoye

Founder, Big Startup

INTRODUCTION

Before we start…

We all hear the highlights associated with owning your own business, having your own employees and dictating how you spend your time. However, what we hardly hear is how much time, sweat and blood is invested to reach those goals.

Although small business failure rates are on the decline (about two-thirds of businesses survive the first 2 years in business, half of all businesses will survive 5, and one-third will survive 10) we would like to emphasize the practices that ensure startups are on the success side of the story.

Before you take this amazing and fulfilling journey that at times can be treacherous, you’ll need to objectively assess yourself and business by asking these honest questions:

You’re probably nodding your head in agreement and exclaiming YES!, But I can assure you that throughout the course of your startup journey you’ll come back to this page, roll your eyes and ask yourself again - IS THIS JOURNEY FOR ME?

This startup kit was created to help you answer this life-changing question.

ABOUT US

I LOVE startups. I really do!

I’m passionate about startups and new businesses and even more so about helping to build the right foundation.

I’ve seen a lot of businesses come and go. These business believed in the old model of starting a new business - have an idea you think is great, put together a ‘business plan’ that is 100 pages long, then invest a tonne of money into executing the plan. Forty-five percent of these startups cannot survive the first year because they haven't tested their hypothesis.

The first step is to understand that a startup is not a smaller version of a larger company, it is a temporary organization that is designed to search for a business model - how a company creates value for itself while providing goods and services - that are repeatable and scalable.

Once you've found the right business