| Sports bar
business plans focus on three major elements: entertainment,
entertainment and entertainment!
KEY CONSIDERATION
Whether your sports bar or
tavern will feature massive TV screens throughout, or slick
billiards tables, there is just no doubt that your clientele is
there for fun. And that's a major distinction from a "business
meeting" kind of place.
STRONGEST ADVANTAGE OF
SPORTS BARS AND TAVERNS
Everyone knows the territory.
And everyone enjoys it. Few, few people do not have a favorite
sport. Fewer still are those who don't enjoy company while they
watch it. So the "desire" is pretty much a given.
STRONGEST DISADVANTAGE
The liquor license. The
buildout. The equipment. The lease. The advertising. Not to
mention the initial payroll. It is all expensive. There aren't
many investors who would trust a rookie with that amount of
money. In no uncertain terms, your job is to prove that you've
got what it takes to run that business profitably.
OVERCOMING THE DISADVANTAGE
WITH YOUR SPORTS BAR BUSINESS PLAN
A sports bar business plan
focuses on a defined geographic area.
No matter where your business is located, it is imperative that
you define who your clientele will be. Look closely at
demographic information to identify
- Number of people
- Income level
- Educational level
- Ethnic hubs nearby
- Family composition
- Number and location of
competing sports bars
... and anything else you can
dig up.
Prove that you have the
experience to make the sports bar business successful.
This is no training ground for
newbies. Really take the time in your sports bar business plan
to outline where you got all your experience.
- Spotlight challenges you
have met and overcome.
- Tell how you have handled
tough economic times.
- Show how you have selected
and trained a strong staff.
- Show your accountability.
- Go in with professional
drawings of what the sports bar will look like.
- Present a full blown
marketing plan for your sports bar.
Getting the attention of
lenders for a sports bar business plan is no cake walk. Everyone
has a dream of owning their own bar. Few have the talent to make
it successful. Demonstrate how you will accomplish that.
Identify your core clientele
for your sports bar marketing plan
Hit the decks running with a
full blown marketing plan ready. More than anything else, this
is what will demonstrate to the lender/investor that you have
what it takes to successfully operate your sports bar. Your
lender may not especially enjoy playing pool, but she will
recognize a great marketing plan.
Devote a minimum of 5-8 pages
of your sports bar business plan to your specific marketing
plan.
- Identify your core
clientele.
- Identify the number of your
core clientele in your immediate area.
- Have some initial ads or
promotions developed to demonstrate your skill in this area.
- If you have any celebrity
endorsements, flaunt it.
- Detail too how you will get
free publicity -- this will be essential for your success.
Base your projections on valid,
provable statistics. No pie in the sky here -- it just won't
fly.
OTHER PLUSSES IN A SPORTS
BAR BUSINESS PLAN
This is a business that demands
a broad spectrum of knowledge and experience, from health
department regulations to parking and advertising issues. There
is little on the job training. If you are going to successfully
operate a sports bar or tavern of any size, know your stuff
before ever approaching a lender or investor.
You will need to dig for the
local rules and regs that will affect your business. Don't be
afraid to apprentice yourself to a non-competing sports bar just
so you can learn the inside scoop. Prove that you have the
inside scoop, no matter where it came from, and that your
business plan takes these rules and regs into consideration.
Put particular emphasis on how
you will promote yourself as a sports bar. It's fine to say that
"word of mouth" will make your business soar, but in truth you
will need more. Print advertising can be devilish expensive, so
look to all the less expensive, and free, marketing tools that
you can find, like articles about your business, promotion at
local Chamber of Commerce events, business fair events, etc.
FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
FOR SPORTS BAR BUSINESS PLANS AND YOUR MARKETING PLAN FOR YOUR
SPORTS BAR BUSINESS
For statistical information on
the sports bar industry for your marketing plan, go to
BizMiner.
At the home page, do a KEYWORD
search for "tavern". You will be taken to a page where you can
choose between an Industry Financials and Market Research. You
would do well to get both.
These two reports compile information from nearly 20,000
taverns, providing you with industry averages for all sizes of
bar.
Be sure to look in the left
hand column of that page for the LOCAL MARKET VITALITY SERIES.
You will find a wealth of information on your area, with age,
income level, housing type, educational level, etc. --
everything you need to target your customer base in your
catering business plan.
YOUR LIKELY LENDER/INVESTOR
The
SBA
is usually your best bet.
If, however, you are planning
on regional or national expansion, or if this is NOT your first
sports bar, check out appropriate venture capital groups in your
area. And be sure to check out the newest development in venture
capital:
venture lending. For more adventuresome businesses, be sure
to check out
angel investors.
YOUR ONLINE PRESENCE
Odds are that you will want to
promote your business online.
Potential guests, as well as
lenders/investors, want to see what you can do. So strut your
stuff. See the best web
host for more information on our preferred web host.
YOUR SPORTS BAR BUSINESS
PLAN
There are a number of different
angles you can take with your sports bars, such as:
- Local sports bar
- Sports bar restaurant
- Sports bar and grill
- Sports tavern
- Sports grill
- Sports pub
- Sports lounge
- Bar and grill
- Billiards
- Bar and tavern
- Sports grille
- Sportsbar
Sports bar business plans
will help them all. A sports bar business is too
often seen as a hobby business for people with time on their
hands. It is your job to demonstrate that yours is a very
serious business, with very real potential for success.
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