Business Surgery: Motorhome Holiday Company

Company name: The Motorhome Holiday Company

Year established: 2015

Where the company is based: Brislington

Sector: Leisure and Tourism

Number of staff: 4

Company owners: Matt Sims

Key clients: Current client base is mainly in the South West, however an upcoming move to new premises just minutes away from Bristol international airport will mean greater opportunity to service customers from Europe and worldwide.

The company

The Motorhome Holiday Company is based in Brislington and offers a range of motorhomes for rent, and the opportunity for motorhome owners to rent out their own vehicle.

Established in November 2015 with just three luxury motorhomes they have since grown to operate a fleet of 12 vehicles with occupancy around 80 per cent. In 2017 there are plans for expansion around the UK and Ireland as well as launching a ‘try before you buy scheme’ alongside partner, Adria.

Priding themselves on great customer service the company has responded to a number of changing trends since trading began including very short lead times for bookings, average age of hires falling below 40 and the need to keep weights of vehicles under 3 and a half tonnes as limited amounts of customers have a C1 driving license. They even cater for the family pet and have dealt with everything from dogs to snakes.

The Challenge

Our greatest challenge is raising capital to support our planned growth for 2017. We’re aiming to expand our fleet from 12 to in excess of 20 luxury motorhomes, which means an expenditure of around £450,000. We’ve launched an investment scheme, Belmont Leisure Investments, as a means to create funding, which allows individuals to invest in the company and receive a healthy financial return or a motorhome holiday as well as a part financial return, but the challenge for us its how we raise awareness of this innovative opportunity?

FEEDBACK

Miranda Glover, Business Director, E3

Amplifying brand message through digital channels is the most cost-efficient way to reach your target audience. Creating a campaign that puts the user at the centre of the message will gain the most impact. Placing your paid and earned media through the channels they frequent (e.g. LinkedIn/Facebook/Instagram or Twitter?) and at the times they are most likely to be there, is critical to your ROI. Ensure the message is designed to appeal to their audience need. Do you want to capture their adventurous spirit? The opportunity for a fast financial return? Their chance to be associated with a cutting edge entrepreneurial project? At e3 we understand the challenge brands face to keep pace with their consumers – mapping out the customer journey from initial engagement to final conversion and beyond are the keys to your success.

Adam Newman, Principal, Newman Langley Financial Consulting

Raising finance for any fledging or start up business (under 18 months trading history) can be tough and it is a great start that you have been looking at innovative and creative alternative methods for financing growth. However, it would be best to take professional advice to see if you are making the most of tax efficiencies, for example SEIS or EIS status on this type of offering. That said, if this alternative funding method is the most appropriate, to start  raising awareness try;

• Mobilising your existing personal network – Separate your contacts into lists of friends, family, business and acquaintances. Know the influencers on your list, try asking for advice on your investment campaign. You will be extremely surprised about who this resource gives you access to and even if these are not direct investors they could introduce interested parties.
• Harnessing your social Media followers – Besides your own social media network, look at the network of other businesses or groups related to your campaign. Try contacting the other group to see if you can guest post on their blog or if they can give you a shout out about your attractive campaign. Make a Compelling video that clearly explains what you are offering, make sure it is legal/compliant and don’t forget to make it engaging.
•  Develop your PR contacts – then implement a strategy with them to promote your investment opportunity. It is not easy to get journalists to pay attention, or write about you, however, sometimes smaller and more niche news sites can be very effective in getting your message out and even better at reaching people who are relevant.

Remember, spending time developing and managing your own funding marketing strategies will take up your time and resources from running the business day to day. 

Read more: Business surgeries