Business Plan Report: Think Big Currency Consulting Service Analysis

This report outlines a comprehensive business plan for 'Think Big Currency Consulting,' a service designed to assist exporters and importers in managing foreign currency exposure. The plan includes a detailed market analysis, identifying exporters and importers as the target market, and highlights the benefits of the service, such as enhanced profits, improved knowledge of currency movements, and reduced financial risk. The business model encompasses various service offerings, including daily consultancy, research reports, and a live currency screen, with a premium skimming pricing strategy. The organizational structure, financial projections, marketing mix, and critical success factors are also addressed, providing a clear roadmap for the business's establishment and long-term growth. The report concludes with a discussion on the importance of competent employees, effective promotion strategies, and excellent customer service for ensuring the business's success.

Think Big
Currency consulting service

Introduction
The process of establishing a new business venture is known as entrepreneurship (Drucker,
2014). The business may or may not be for profit and the group of individual/s who initiate the
business are entrepreneurs (Barringer, 2012). For the long term growth of any country,
governments encourage entrepreneurs by providing them necessary resources. This particular
report highlights upon a unique business of ‘Currency Consulting’. The details of the business
are as below.
Why Currency Consulting
Before establishing a new business, it is recommended to find the need for that particular
business (Baker, 2016). Therefore it is important to understand why currency consulting. Just
like stock market entities, different currencies of the world are traded on national platforms. The
value of these currencies is highly volatile and fluctuates by the second. As people, these
fluctuations do not have a direct impact on us. But there is a section of people whose businesses
largely depend upon the currency fluctuations.
Currency Consulting Business
There are various exporters and importers across the globe that make and receive payments in
foreign currency. Hence, these currency fluctuations impact their business’s financials. This new
business will gain expertise in understanding currency fluctuations and predicting them using
fundamental as well as technical analysis. The business clients would be exporters and importers
and the primary business offering would be to understand the client’s foreign exchange exposure
and provide them guidance about how they can hedge their portfolios from foreign currency risk.
Target Market
For the success of a new business, it is imperative to define the business’s target market at the
initial stage of the business. Target market of a business is ideally that set of buyers whose needs
the business model aims to fulfill (Armstrong et. al., 2015). Therefore, the target market for the
currency consulting business would include importers and exporters. Australia majorly exports
commodities, coal, iron ore, wool, alumina and wheat. The country imports machinery,

computers, telecom equipment and crude oil (Economy Watch, 2010). Exporters and importers
with an annual turnover of over AUD 0.2 million would be targeted directly by the business.
Benefits associated with currency consulting
Enhanced profits
The primary purpose of the business is to improve profits and enhance revenues for clients. By
hedging the currency risk faced by clients, their risk would be minimized and may even lead to
improved profits.
Improved knowledge
By providing clients with daily consultancy, the business would also aim to enhance the overall
level of knowledge associated with currency movements in the country.
Reduced risk
The clients associated with the business would be advised to hedge their currency using the most
appropriate tools after immense research. This would reduce their risk arising from unforeseen
currency fluctuations.
Business’s revenue model
The clients would be offered two option in order to compensate the business’s services. Clients
can pay a 100% advanced fee or they can pay a 50% advanced fee and share 5% of the profits
made by the client upon the consultant’s guidance. A portfolio sheet for every client would be
maintained in order to track the clients’ profits/losses made post consultation.
Organizational structure
Department Number of employees
Human resource management 3
Sales Team 12
Consultants 15
Finance and Accounts 2
Research 3
Marketing and PR 2

Sources of finance
The business does not require a hefty investment as it is primarily a service. However, the
business would require an initial investment as below:.
Particulars Approximate expenses
Human resource expenses including
recruitment cost and salaries of employees
AUD 10000
Rent and office infrastructure AUD 30000
IT expenses – Bloomberg Terminal and live
screen
AUD 22000
Cost incurred by sales team AUD 2000
Promotions and Customer relationship
management
AUD 15000
Office overheads AUD 1500
Total AUD 80500
Forecasted revenue
Year Expected Costs Expected Revenue
Year 1 AUD 70500 >AUD 46600
Year 2 AUD 50600 >AUD 68000
Year 3 AUD 45200 >AUD 82000
Therefore, the business will achieve break-even in the third year of running.
Critical success factors of the business
Generated revenue, number of clients, number of clients who renew service agreements and
overall brand positioning in the market are critical success factors that guide the business.
Marketing Mix
Product
The business would guide clients on a daily basis regarding their foreign currency exposures.
Every client would be allotted a dedicated advisor who would keep track of the client’s portfolio.
Research reports would be sent across to clients on a daily basis. A research team of three people
would solely dedicated to curating three research reports in a day. A Live screen with current

market rates of all the currencies would be given to clients. The primary service offerings of the
business would include the following:
Service Type Service Description
Basic Service Daily consultancy + Research reports
Advanced Service Daily Consultancy + Research reports +
Currency live screen and mobile application
to track currency rates + monthly trainings on
currency concepts
Place
The business would be based out of Canberra but would be targeting exporters and importers
from across the country.
Price
The business would adopt a premium skimming strategy. Price skimming strategy includes
pricing a particular product or service higher at first in order to recover the costs incurred in the
business (Zhang et. al., 2014). It also serves the purpose of establishing a premium positioning of
the brand (Spann et. al., 2014). After the certain period of time, the price would be reduced in
order to target lower income groups and enhancing brand reach.
Promotion
Promoting a business is crucial in order to reach out to the targeted customer segment (Lovelock,
2011). The following promotion strategies would be adopted by the business:
Event marketing: Large scale seminars and conferences will be organized wherein different
exporters and importers would be invited. Event marketing is an efficient strategy to target a
large number of customers under a single roof and at the same time (Daniel et. al., 2012).

Tie ups with associations: There are leading associations of exporters and importers. The
business would be tying up with these associations and addressing their members who are
exporters and importers.
Digital marketing: Digital marketing is the process of promoting a product or service through
digital platforms including search engines and Social media marketing. Digital marketing
enables optimized search process for the brand and hence leads to enhanced brand awareness
(Ryan, 2016).
Television ads on finance news channels: Televisions ads which would be creative yet
professional would be broadcasted across leading financial news channels. The advertisements
would be broadcasted during market open hours (9AM to 5PM).
Relationship marketing: Relationship marketing is a part of customer relationship management
that focusses on increased customer engagement (Agariya & Singh, 2011). Existing customers of
the business would be asked for references and then those clients would be targeted. Customer
relationship management is imperative for long term client retention (Kumar & Reinartz, 2012).
Therefore, the business would pay high attention to ensuring effective CRM.
Conclusion
Beginning a new business is an extensive process. This report highlights upon a currency
consulting business which is aimed at providing guidance and consultancy to exporters and
importers in regards to their foreign currency exposure. The high volatility and the massive
dependency of export/import businesses on foreign currency has created a need for the business.
For the long term success of the business, competent employees must be recruited with a natural
knack for currency’s analysis. Effective promotion strategies and excellent service provided to
customers would ensure the long term success of the business.

References
Agariya, A. K., & Singh, D. (2011). What really defines relationship marketing? A review of
definitions and general and sector-specific defining constructs. Journal of Relationship
Marketing, 10(4), 203-237.
Armstrong, G., Kotler, P., Harker, M., & Brennan, R. (2015). Marketing: an introduction.
Pearson Education. India.
Baker, M. J. (2016). What is marketing? In The Marketing Book (pp. 25-42). Routledge. United
Kingdom.
Barringer, B. (2012). Entrepreneurship: Successfully Launching New Ventures, (2012). BELK.
Daniel, M., Bogdan, G., & Daniel, Z. (2012). The use of event marketing management
strategies. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 46, 5409-5413.
Drucker, P. (2014). Innovation and entrepreneurship. Routledge. United Kingdom.
Economy Watch, (2010), ‘Australia exports imports and trade’, Available at
http://www.economywatch.com/world_economy/australia/export-import.html, Retrieved
on 30 April, 2018.
Kumar, V., & Reinartz, W. (2012). Customer relationship management: Concept, strategy, and
tools. Springer Science & Business Media.
Lovelock, C. (2011). Services marketing: People, technology, strategy. Pearson Education India.
Ryan, D. (2016). Understanding digital marketing: marketing strategies for engaging the digital
generation. Kogan Page Publishers. United Kingdom.
Spann, M., Fischer, M., & Tellis, G. J. (2014). Skimming or penetration? Strategic dynamic
pricing for new products. Marketing Science, 34(2), 235-249.
Zhang, J., Chiang, W. Y. K., & Liang, L. (2014). Strategic pricing with reference effects in a
competitive supply chain. Omega, 44, 126-135.

Appendices
Business Model Canvas
Key Partners Key activities Value Proposition Customer relations Customer segments
Two founders
Head of sales
Head of consultancy
Consultancy
CRM
Research
Sales
Marketing and PR
After sale and pre sale
service
Increased profits
Increased knowledge
Managed Risk
Daily advisory and
market update
Monthly meetings
Dedicated CRM
personnel to every client
Relationship building
Exporters
Importers
Key Resources Channels
Human resources – all
employees.
Financial resources
Knowledge resources
Event marketing
Cold calling followed by
meeting
References by existing
clients
Marketing and PR
Activities
Cost Structure Revenue Structure
Fixed cost
Employee salaries
Land and building expenses – lease payments and
rent
Bloomberg/ Reuters terminal
Variable Cost:
Promotion expenses
Consultation fees paid by clients
Bonuses shared on profits made by clients

Travelling expense