A lot goes into making a thriving RV park, but without a good business plan, that becomes a near-impossible feat to attain. So this article is to guide you on how to write and create the best RV business plan.
What Is An RV Park Business Plan?
Before we can understand what an RV park business plan is, we need first to understand what a business plan is.
A business plan is a document that clearly defines the objectives of a company and how the company intends to achieve its goals.
A business plan is a company’s written roadmap from marketing, financial and operational viewpoints. It is essential for both start-ups and established businesses.
Now that we know what a business plan is, an RV business plan is a document that provides a clear view of where your RV park currently stands and clearly states your growth plan for the next five years.
Your RV business plan should include your business goals, your intended strategy for achieving them, and any market research that supports your objectives.
How Do You Get Funding For Your RV Park Business Plan?
A business plan is required to get funding for your RV park business. Sources of funds for RV parks are relatively limited since it is not a conventional business venture.
Investors such as venture capitalists do not fund or invest in RV parks. But all hope is not lost as there are still two primary sources of funds for your RV park business plan. They are:
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Bank Loans
Getting a bank loan hinges a lot on your business plan and specifically on the financial section of your business plan. When applying for a bank loan, your business plan has to be well articulated, and your objectives should be detailed and attainable.
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Angel Investors
This kind of investor is usually a wealthy individual who funds your business in exchange for equity, or they will give you a loan like a bank. They would usually request to see your business plan to ensure that you can pay and confirm the safety of their investment.
RV Park Pitch Deck
A pitch deck is a brief presentation that allows prospective funders or customers to have an overview of your business plan, products, services, and projected growth traction. It helps funders know more about your business.
A good pitch deck will help captivate investors and get them interested in your RV park business. Your RV pitch deck presentation should have several slides that help you tell a compelling story about your business.
Your RV pitch deck should introduce your business to investors, the problem you are trying to solve, how you intend to solve the problem, the market size and opportunity, the product, your projected financial growth, and what makes you unique.
How Profitable Is An RV Park?
RV camping has become quite popular among young people. So the RV park industry has become a quite lucrative and worthwhile property investment.
The majority of RV campers are usually long-term guests and prefer to pay their rent on a weekly or monthly basis. There’s an average of about 30-50 month-long RV campers, and based on your customer service, park upkeep, and rates - you can demand a reasonable price for the long-term customers.
Short-term RV customers stay for about one to three nights at an RV Park and are usually charged more for temporary rental. As a result, weekly to monthly fees are a little cheaper and a more assured income.
RV park industry data states that a night in an RV park can cost anywhere between $25 and $80 depending on the location, the size of the property, and what amenities it provides.
A profitable RV park can gross anywhere from $50,000 to $90,000 a year and about $10,000 to $35,000 a month. RV park owners typically make about 10-30% of returns on their investment after a while.
Is It Hard To Start An RV Park?
Starting an RV park like every other business can be a little taxing. But once you do some setup work and pay initial filing and annual fees, it becomes a little less complicated. Here are a few steps to take to make it easier when starting an RV park:
- Create a business plan
- Pick a location
- Find out the land use requirements
- Decide your attractions and activities
- Are you going to be a franchise or an independent park?
- Determine your target market/target audience
- Choose Your RV Park Store Business Structure
- Determine Your Business Costs
- Create a business name
- Register Your Business and Open Financial Accounts
- Purchase Equipment for Your RV Park Business
- Market Your RV Park Business
What Makes A Good RV Park?
Being a thriving RV park goes beyond having a massive property for people to park their RVs. There are a variety of indicators that help you determine if your RV park is a good one or a bad one. Here are some of them:
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Location
Your RV Park should be strategically located and have a pleasant captivating view so your campers can enjoy nature’s beauty.
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Great Community
It seems that many campers want their privacy and may not be interested in socializing with other campers. The opposite is the case for long-term campers. They appreciate a friendly atmosphere when they do interact with others.
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Amenities and Freebies:
Providing quality amenities like Wi-Fi, free coffee, hot water, picnic tables, and firepits makes your RV park more alluring to campers. This way, you are not only providing them with a place to park their RV, but you also provide them with comfort.
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Friendly Owners and Staff:
If the owners and staff of an RV park are welcoming and friendly, it goes a long way in making your campers feel comfortable and at home.
Why You Need a Business Plan
A business plan is necessary when trying to start an RV park or expand and grow your RV park. A business plan will aid in your quest to raise funds when required and helps determine and define the trajectory of your RV park.
Planning out the growth of your RV park helps you increase the chances of success of your business. You should also update your business plan as your company grows and changes because a business plan is a living document.
Read more: How Do You Start A Successful RV Park Business?
RV Park Business Plan Template
Writing a business plan can be very taxing and confusing. People often end up including either too much information in their business plan or too little information. Below, we have provided a template on all you need to include in your business plan to ensure your investor or reader has all the necessary information about your business.
Executive Summary
An executive summary is an introduction to a business plan. It is usually the last thing to be written because it provides an overview of the critical aspects of your business plan.
The main aim of your executive summary should be to captivate the reader. Tell your reader or potential investor what type of RV park business you operate and its current status. Give them a general view of the other sections of your business plan.
Company Overview
Your company overview or analysis is a section of your business plan where you detail the kind of RV park you are operating or intend to operate. For instance, you can decide to run a traditional RV park or a glamping resort.
The Company Overview section of your business plan should give a clear and concise background of your business. It should provide answers to questions an investor could have like:
- When did you start your business?
- Why did you start the business?
- What milestones have your business achieved to date?
- What is your legal structure?
Industry Analysis
When researching your industry analysis, you should provide a clear overview of your RV park business. Many people view this step as unnecessary and overlook it, but it is a crucial part of your business plan and serves various purposes.
Industry analysis helps you to understand the market you operate in or intend to work within. It can help you better your strategy, particularly in market trend identification.
By conducting industry analysis, you can prove to your potential investors and readers that you are an expert in your industry.
Customer Analysis
Here you should clearly define and identify the customers you serve because the customer segment or segments you select play a massive role in determining what type of RV park you will be running.
Young adults and families prefer a different atmosphere and pricing and react to a diverse marketing promotion than older people and retirees. We recommend splitting your target customers based on their demographic and psychographic profiles.
Competitive Analysis
In this section, you should identify the direct and indirect competitors facing your business and emphasize the direct competitors.
In an RV park business, your direct competitors are other RV parks close to your business. On the other hand, your indirect competitors are other options available to customers that aren’t direct competitors. That could include tent campgrounds, hostels, motels, and even hotels.
You should provide an overview of your competitors and identify their strengths and weaknesses.
To conclude this section of your business plan, you should state your areas of competitive advantage, create ways to outperform your competition, and include this information in your business plan.
Marketing Plan
When creating a marketing plan for an RV park, you should consider the 4 Ps of marketing which are:
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Product
What kind of RV park will you be running, and what amenities be available?
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Price
What pricing plans will you offer, and are your prices lower or higher than your competitors’?
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Place
Where is the RV park located, how will it impact your success, and will your selected location provide a consistent customer base?
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Promotions
How will you attract customers to your locations, and what promotional methods will you use?
Operations Plan
While the other aspects of your business plan explain your goals, the operations plan describes how you will meet and achieve those goals.
Any good operations plan has two different sections; the everyday short-term goals (which include all the tasks involved in operating your RV park, and the long-term goals (comprising the milestones you want to achieve).
Management Team
You need to show that you have a formidable management team for your reader to believe in your RV park’s ability to succeed as a business. Emphasize your key team members' skills, backgrounds, and experiences to show their capacity to grow a company.
Emphasize any experience that you think will be pertinent to the success of your business. If you feel your team is not strong enough, you should assemble an advisory board. Your advisory board can provide answers to strategic questions and provide strategic guidance.
Financial Plan
Your financial plan is an overview of the present financials of your business and your projections for growth. Here, you identify your financial goals and the strategies you intend to use to achieve them.
You should also include your business’s assets, liabilities, and cash flow statement showing the influx and outflux of cash into and out of your business. Your financial plan is one of the most crucial aspects of your business plan.
Sustainability and Expansion Strategy
Your sustainability and expansion strategy is also known as the sustainable growth strategy. This section of your business plan will discuss in detail how you intend to grow your RV park, penetrate the market, increase your customer base, your diversification plans, and your strategy to sustain that growth.
It also details how you intend to compete in the market, grow your RV park brand, make more profits, capitalize on economies of scale and occupy a larger market share.
RV park business plan free
You can use this free RV park business plan template to quickly create a great business plan for your new RV park business. Click the link below to download.
Free RV park business template.
Summary
Creating a business plan for your RV park can be challenging. However, it is a worthwhile initiative because it will help you fully understand the RV park business, your competition, and your customers.
With all the information provided above, you should be able to write a business plan and understand how to communicate adequately with your investors through your business plan and pitch deck.
Tips: Use a RV Park Management System to help automate your business and operations. This will help to bring your business to the next level.
To learn more about how our platform can help you with your business management, schedule a call with us now!