BIZEQUITY

CASE STUDY

The Challenge

A small-business bank wanted to increase their customer acquisition and position themselves as the go-to for small business education. Knowing that there was distrust in banks as a whole, an alternative to marketing the primary, standard, business lines of loans and accounts was requested.

The Goal

Create a new subsidiary company, under the parent company, that would drive small businesses to find value outside of banking. The new subsidiary company would provide the business’s information to the parent bank, allowing it to have direct acquisition-oriented contact with those businesses.

Our Approach

Based on market research, we found that 65.8% of small business owners didn’t know how to quantify or calculate the financial value they’ve created in their businesses. A small business, like a home, is often one of a person’s main assets. While it’s relatively easy to determine the value of a home, it is difficult and expensive for most business owners to evaluate the worth of their business.

Using this void in the market, BizEquity, a small business valuation site was created. It allowed users to search millions of estimated business valuations based on publicly available data and “rules of thumb” for different industries. Users were able to find valuations for their business and others like them, get helpful reports and charts on industry trends, communicate with industry experts, and find useful tools and articles on the blog.

The tagline created asked the simple question, “What’s your business worth?”

To generate excitement and use of the platform, a viral and strategic marketing plan was put into place to build a buzz. BizEquity launched at DEMO’s technology-focused fall conference in San Diego where the staff each dressed as different “types” of business owners (a doctor, a farmer, an artist, etc.) With almost every other conference attendee dressed in suits, the outfits generated a good deal of positive press mentions (including a piece in the Wall Street Journal). The site began drawing in users exponentially while also boasting the staff as thought leaders resulting in interviews with Forbes, Entrepreneur, and the New York Times.

While the valuation itself was free to business owners and allowed for the user data to be shared with the primary bank, generating revenue was the next step. After the user was able to establish their estimated valuation, a full verified report and valuation was also available for the user to fill out—at a cost. The primary bank, naturally, was the resource for the verified report.

Today, BizEquity boasts 4 patents based on the original algorithm for providing business valuations and database services.