LEVA

Giving the happiness that you deserve.

Business Plan 2012

1. Executive Summary

2. Vision and mission statement a. The Vision b. The Mission c. The Value 3. Company History 4. Business & Industry Profile a. Company Goals & Objectives b. Outlook for the Future & Stage of Growth 5. Business Strategy a. SWOT-analysis 6. Company Products & Services a. Description b. The Categories c. Future Products & Services 7. Marketing Strategy a. Our Target Market b. Comparison Matrix c. Instilling Trust d. Our Marketing Mix i. Product ii. Price iii. Place iv. Promotion e. Guerilla Marketing Tactics 8. Location & Layout a. Location b. Layout 9. Competitive Strategy Description of Management Team 10.Plan of Operations 11.Financial Forecast 12.Loan or Investment Proposal a. Important Assumptions b. Financial Statements c. Break-Even Analysis 13.Appendices

1. Executive summary
LEVA is a startup company established in Singapore with a business idea already proven to be successful overseas in Sweden. Today, depression is a widespread issue in many 2

developed countries. Our business idea is to help the Singaporeans who suffer from mild depression, which today is estimated at 33 000.

We will be offering help online, and differentiate ourselves from the ordinary psychologists by the discreetness, convenience, flexibility and convenience of our service. These aspects will help LEVA attract a portion of the market not yet served: the mild to medium depressed people. These people are currently not in treatment for their depression problems due to the social stigma related to using the conventional solutions of physically visiting the specialist regularly. They will now be able to get the help and support they need and have been searching for, in a secure and safe environment at home. LEVA aims to target the customers that feel their depression, but do not dare to reach out for help. The service will be offered at a significantly lower price than the conventional treatment. Discreetness will be one of our core values and we seek to achieve it in every step of our service-provision, from the way our site is structured to the way communication with clients are handled and how payments are done. The industry of our service has not been explored locally in Singapore, therefore the direct competition is limited which gives LEVA the benefits of being a first mover on the market. This will also give us the ability to work with the existing psychological clinics and local hospitals, instead of having them as competitors. They can offer LEVA the knowledge and the consulting, whereby we can help them to reach more customers and make the service go viral. Ultimately, though, Elva seeks to build a network of psychologists and clients and grow it so big so quickly that it deters new competition in the domain. LEVA shall focus exclusively on mental diseases and seeks to achieve a leadership in the field. Break even Beginning of 2014 (975 patients) 45 % market share 2016 1 350 000 net income 2016

2. Vision and mission statement

2.a The Vision

To be a premier online platform for guiding and mentoring mentally unstable clients, in the journey towards their wellness, and be internationally recognized for improving peoples health and lives. LEVA will be a global platform for convenient and discreet technologically enabled help and support for its clients. The internet is the lifeline of the world and LEVA is committed to using its convenience and discreteness for an effective support for the many clients affected by mental health problems. LEVA aspires to create a community for connecting clients around the world where they can investigate and compare symptoms, cures and prior experiences of clients with similar conditions. 2.b The Mission To create an ecosystem for supporting mentally unstable clients by engaging trusted psychologists to offer quality treatment and support at an affordable price and in a flexible, discreet and convenient way. LEVA will be an internet based portal that offers cognitive psychology treatment by step-bystep and direct contact between clients and psychologists. Initially, the business will focus on supporting mildly depressed clients with gradual expansion into other conditions that can be treated without always consulting the specialist in person. Often, mildly depressed persons cannot tell if they need treatment and/or are skeptical about visiting a specialist for advice. LEVA shall endeavor to help people lead better lives by overcoming such mental obstacles in a discreet and flexible way over the internet. Towards this end, it is focused on creating a network between psychologists and the clients who wish to get support and advice on the platform. It will provide a rewarding environment for both the specialists and clients to kindle and sustain a healthy and happy lifestyle.

2.c The Value

LEVA seeks to create value in the world by offering a discreet, convenient and flexible support to clients suffering from mental unwellness. The existing option for these clients is to visit psychologists for help. However, given the nature of these diseases, it induces a feeling of reluctance in the patients for seeking help because of the potential self-inferiority that may result if they are seen by others visiting the specialists clinic. This holds back many mildly depressed people from seeking help and sets the trajectory for the condition to snowball into severe depression. LEVA seeks to close this gap by offering clients a discreet treatment over the internet. The business shall professionally treat the target customers as clients and not as patients, in an effort to be more welcoming to them. Human beings bear an inherent reluctance to admit to personal mental illnesses and, being cognitive of the fact, LEVA shall downplay the sickness aspect by projecting it as just a condition. After an initial consultation with the psychologist, clients can log onto their LEVA accounts to attend most of the sessions online in the form of reading assignments and videos. Throughout their treatment, clients can also communicate with the specialist who would continue to monitor their progress. This way, clients can enjoy convenience by getting the requisite treatment sitting at home and can change certain aspects to suit their schedules and preferences. It also reduces the physical contact between the specialist and the clients, thus allowing the specialist to treat a greater number of patients in the same time, for a higher income. Based on these attributes, LEVA shall leap out of the red ocean to create an unchartered blue ocean for itself. It is the first player in the market and seeks to leverage this for achieving premiership by developing core competence in providing comfortable treatment to clients. LEVA shall use the trust it builds to prolong its presence as a leader in the market.

3. Company History
LEVA was founded in January 2012 as an outcome of a project in the module TR2201 Entrepreneurial Marketing at the National University of Singapore (school page). One of the co-founders, Gustav Thorn, has experience with a similar project in the summer of 2011, in Sweden. The service is performing very well in Sweden and there are also similar services offered in the US. Gustav and Alexander Lindgren, another co-founder, presented the idea and concept of LEVA to a group, including a professional entrepreneur, at the National University of Singapore and it was well accepted. The company's achievements and success 5

havent had the opportunity to show off, but there is no doubt that a committed execution of the idea will pay off. The idea is new for the Singapore market but the positive feedback from the many interactions with the local population has shown that the service has great potential.

The name of the company is LEVA has its origins in the eponymous swedish word, which means to live. The choice of the word aims to support our clients to stay healthy and alive, and with our treatment they are able to live the normal life they all have been striving for.

4. Business and industry profile

LEVA is inspired by the variety of online cognitive behavioral therapies that exist in Sweden today. The swedish online concept, Livanda, is a therapeutic center that treats mild mental illnesses e.g. overweight, mild insomnia etc. For example, a mildly depressed person who visits Livandas website in order for treatment would faced a few questions about her/him as a means of client evaluation. The asked questions can be answered by yes or no, and if any answer is positive the system shall recommend a traditional psychologist to the client. This questioning method is used by Livanda to differentiate the mild depressed clients from the severely depressed. Similar treatments exist in the US as well, but there are no such treatments available in Singapore yet. As there is a wide range of psychological states of mental illness, they all need different treatments and therapy methods. The focus of LEVA is on the mildly depressed persons who do not require any drugs for their treatment. LEVA aims to provide Cognitive Behaviour Therapy ,CBT in short, to its mildly depressed clients.

More severe cases of mental illness usually need face-to-face treatments and in some cases visit the hospital or rehabilitation centers. The target clients for LEVA are people suffering from depression that affects their view of themselves and the surrounding world. The negative thinking in life affects their average day, without them knowing it. This negative pattern eventually drives people to depression that in a later stage can develop to severe mental illness. CBT is a recognized way of helping such people and, in most cases, does not involve medication. 4.a Company goals and objectives

LEVA aims to target the customers who feel depressed but do not dare to reach out for help. Worldwide, getting help for mental reasons is often negatively looked at and the people needing help are afraid of being judged as abnormal and being left outside their social circle. By CBT, people can be aware of their negative thoughts and how those are affecting their everyday life, in order to change the way they think about themselves. People sometimes can get caught in a circle of thinking negatively, and it becomes a bad habit, which can then lead to more severe depression. As any other habit, it can always be broken. By offering people help at an early stage, LEVA gives them an option and opportunity to actually get consultation and walk in the right and positive direction.

Sometimes the worst judge is not the society, but the individual her/himself. People experience an emotional dilemma in asking for help and admitting to themselves that they can not handle the situation. They feel it would be embarrassing to show their weakness in front of friends and family. LEVA believes that by offering help online, it can help those mildly depressed people with the support they need, and have been searching for, in a secure and safe environment at home. It is even optional for them to be anonymous, if that is preferred. 4.b Outlook for the future and stage of growth As the use of internet grows, peoples awareness of their surrounding improves and their flow of feelings, perceptions and thoughts is majorly affected by the outside world. By getting more viral, peoples understanding of and contact with people from different regions improves, thereby increasing their international exposure. Things that maybe were the end of the world for a specific person start becoming less serious and depressing as they experience and exchange information with the rest of the world. By eventually creating an international community, LEVA shall foster this and its clients can get a better perspective on life and the issues they deal with. CBT entails the clients thoughts, feelings and behavior and the only one who can really improve those is the client himself. In order to help the mildly depressed, the best way is actually to guide and support them in helping themselves. With online CBT, LEVA can offer the patient all the tools needed to proceed in the process of helping themselves, in their own customized way and their own speed, with support and follow up from the psychologist. More and more people are getting comfortable of using and having an identity online, and the 7

service even costs lesser than conventional treatment. This shall make the service attractive to a bigger population by appealing to more users than just the initial target, Singapore.

People are generally afraid of visiting the psychologist, because of the fear of being judged as mentally disabled. Mental illness has long been considered as something bad and taboo. People are still afraid of asking for help because they do not want to be classified as crazy. A general issue that todays society still is struggling with is to make it acceptable to talk to someone about a mental unwellness. Historically, mental health was classified as an issue that was soon was connected to differentiation from the general crowd, which was not supported or accepted by the society. That perception still prevails in the back of peoples minds. People are generally embarrassed of asking for help and rather stay home than go to see a psychologist.

The industry of our service has not been explored locally in Singapore. Therefore the direct competition is limited, which gives LEVA the benefits of a first mover in the market. The biggest competition is within the local hospital and existing psychological clinics with their consulting services. Instead of working against them, a goal for LEVA is try to establish a good relationship and cooperation. They can offer LEVA the knowledge and the consulting, whereby we can help them to reach out to more customers and make the service go viral.

5. Business strategy
The initial desired position in the market is to become the leading online platform for cognitive behavioral therapy in Singapore. LEVA will offer online support and guidance that is convenient for people with mildly depression to use. LEVA is aiming for to be recognized as the number one search choice online. As the business is based on an interaction with individuals, the platform shall feel:

Secure Safe Professional Open-minded Anonymous

Additionally, it is going to be a cheaper and more convenient alternative of getting treatment than going to a psychologist or a rehabilitation center.

As a professional website that gives a positive first impression, LEVA is going to pay a lot of attention to every customer in order to make them feel taken care of and listened to. This will give the clients confidence and in the long-term way build a good reputation and earn their loyalty.

An important issue is to develop a system for the clients to easily access a lot of information and also feel that their information is kept confidential so that they can use the platform freely. This will enhance the loyalty in LEVAs relationship with its clients and shall also contribute to the clients feeling safe and secure on the online platform. As mentioned before, LEVAs goal is to establish cooperation with Singapores key persons within the industry, instead of competing against them. By collaborating with reputed people in the industry, LEVAs acceptance among the public shall improve. This will not only increase the professionality, but also contribute to the competitive edge and set us apart from the competition. The platform is easy to copy, but the value is in the network, relationship and consulting knowledge that the platform offers. As the direct competition does not really exist, LEVAs first mover advantage shall make the concept innovative and the company unique. 5.a SWOT- Analysis Strengths - Internal A strong benefit that internally supports our objectives is the fact that we offer a service that is convenient, it can be used everywhere at any time. The clients can use and practice the material in any area where they feel safe and comfortable. Another feature that is offered is anonymity. LEVA believes that this is a key factor why people do not dare to approach and reach out for help in the traditional setting. People are in general afraid of being judged and excluded by the society. With anonymity, the risk decreases and eventually that will lead to more approaches to the platform. LEVA also offers its customers the flexibility to tailor the treatment according to their needs and preferences (discussed under Products and Services). Additionally, LEVA aims to build a knowledge base and establish close contacts with key players in the business to protect the business and sharpen its competitive edge over time.

Weaknesses - Internal The actual service that is provided is requires thorough professional knowledge on the subject- mild depression and cognitive behavior therapy. At the moment, the companys human resource has limited knowledge within the profession. The weakness is though something that LEVA strategically will work on to turn into a great strength. Another weakness is that of having an internet based interaction within this industry is that it creates distance between the two interactors, the client and the specialist. The distance has the potential and space for miscommunication and misunderstanding. Because the distance the loyalty between the interactors is harder to establish, which need to be kept in mind. However, LEVA seeks to alleviate this weakness by offering different packages/schemes.

In the beginning phase, the company may lack experience in psychological treatment and knowledge of the psychological theories. Therefore, gradually, LEVA shall recruit talented personnel to assist in the pursuit of establishing a trusted network.

Opportunities - External The industry has a long history. Over the years there have been a lot of interesting methods to cure mental illnesses. From that perspective, the market is old. But it is a relatively untapped market when it comes to online platforms and viral support. Even if the internet has the ability to create some relationship issues, the opportunities that are brought with it are greater. By going viral more potential clients can be reached, this is favorable for the companys growth and future expansion.

The options available today for CBT are costly and require booking appointments and showing up on time in person. The time spent with the consultant comes at a huge cost and therefore not affordable for the general customer base. The high price tag for a mildly depressed client leads them to rather wait till it gets worse. This would logically give the most value for the money, but is absolutely not the best given option for the client. By being viral, the facility and inventory costs can be neglected and the end price gets reduced ultimately. The significantly lower price will help LEVA capture the opportunity that exists in this untapped market. Threats The biggest threat that the internet and all online based platforms face is the opportunity for competitors to copy the concept. There is always the risk of a competitor to pick up the 10

business idea and start a similar service and, in a worst case scenario, earn more credibility. There is always a threat from the big players in the industry, if they see value and money in the business. Therefore, it is important for LEVA to grow very big very fast and build a wide network of clients and psychologists. An established network would deter new entrants. LEVA also seeks to cooperate with certain influential people/organizations in the sector to fend off any competition from them. The details of the association shall be worked out according to LEVAs negotiation power to achieve a best deal for the company.

6. Company products and services

6.a Description LEVAs service is a step-by-step cognitive psychology treatment together with direct contact between a psychologist and depressed patients. However, there shall be different categories with varying degrees of convenience and flexibility to account for differing prices. The basic attributes, nonetheless, would remain the same. All categories will involve an initiation with a direct contact between the specialist and the patient. This will help the specialist examine the patient in person and determine the condition and severity of the depression. Following that, the patient can take classes on LEVA on a frequency prescribed by the specialist. Typically, there would be reading assignments and videos to be followed over a period of 12 weeks for mentally unstable clients. The specialist can be contacted electronically all along and the kind of access shall vary across the different categories. The specialist will continue to monitor the patients progress by meeting them occasionally. 6.b The Categories Basic: This includes one consultation with the specialist at the initial direct contact. During the treatment, the patient will undergo cognitive psychology treatment over the internet. Whenever the patient wishes to communicate with the specialist, she/he can write an email, which will be responded to within 24 hours. This scheme would cost the patient SGD 268 for the full treatment, which will roughly be around 12 weeks. Premium: This includes one consultation with the specialist at the initial direct contact. However, whenever the patient wishes to communicate with the specialist, she/he can call the specialist 11

for immediate help. If the specialist is unavailable for some reason, the call will be returned as soon as possible. This scheme will cost the patient SGD 408 for the entire treatment. The premium is on account of the instant access to the specialist. Protection: LEVA, the concept, will not be protected by any patent or trademark. Instead, the aim is to grow the network so big so quickly that there is little room for competitors to spring up in the markets where the service is offered. Building the community will be tough as it will first require the company to earn peoples trust. However, the fact that LEVA is the first mover in this space, will work to our advantage in growing the company. Once the network becomes very wide and trusted, LEVA can maintain its blue ocean by dissuading competition largely on the basis of its sheer size. LEVA shall focus exclusively on mental diseases and seeks to be the leader in this market. This shall also eventually deter competition as currently, the hospitals in Singapore do not have specialist departments for mental diseases. The existing clinics shall also not offer much competition as LEVA seeks to target those clients -initially, mildly depressed clients- who do not normally seek treatment from the conventional clinics. LEVA shall also tie up with the NUS Department of Psychology. Such an association shall feed the latest research to LEVA and in turn it could provide the Department of Psychologys staff and students target audience for their research. The latter would necessarily require our clients consent but there will likely not be objections from the clients owing to the anonymous setting. The latest research and development that LEVA secures from the Department of Psychology will also help it differentiate and maintain a lead over future competitors. In addition, if there are synergies in tying up with a hospital/clinic, LEVA shall seriously consider the opportunity.

6.c Future Products & Services Gradually, as the concept gains acceptance among mildly depressed patients, LEVA shall expand its scope to include other mental diseases curable over the internet such as mild

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insomnia, social phobia and bulimia. For any new geographical market that we launch in, mildly depressed patients will remain our primary targeted customer segment. This is because we could leverage our success in successfully curing those patients elsewhere for a good performance in the new market. However, if we achieve competence in curing another disease before entering a particular market and that market presents a good opportunity for us in the respective disease, LEVA may launch its operations by focusing on it.

The WHO mentions that depression is more prevalent in developed countries than in developing countries. Because of this, and the fact that developed economies have a better infrastructure to support online treatment, LEVA shall focus its efforts on developed markets. In Asia-Pacific, we shall gradually foray into Hong Kong, Shanghai, Seoul, Tokyo and Australia. Depending on the competition in the markets, LEVA may eventually grow into markets in Europe and North America. There is a Swedish company already offering a similar service in Europe and may also expand into North America. LEVAs priority lies in Asia, not only because of the opportunities currently present, but also due to the estimated rise in depression cases as this part of the world grows. We want to be fully established to tackle the spurt in depression and other mental diseases in the future in Asia.

7. Marketing Strategy
The marketing strategy is a mix of focus, differentiation and low cost.

We aim for pursuing a differentiation strategy in the market for depression treatment where we differentiate from the existing players in terms of discreetness, flexibility and convenience of our service. These aspects will add up to us attracting a portion of the market not yet served, namely mild to medium depressed people who are currently not in treatment for their depression problems due to the social stigma related to using these services and the inconvenience of setting aside weekly physical appointments when trying to fit all the pieces of modern life together. The uniqueness about LEVAs proposition is that it offers the differentiated service at a lower cost than the traditional solutions existing in the market.

While building our differentiation from the existing players in the industry we shall recognize the importance of also performing well on the dimensions of a psychological service that are expected of a legitimate actor within the industry. We identify these dimensions as trust, professionalism and effectiveness of service. 13

7.a Our Target Market The share of the Singaporean population suffering from depression is around 5 percent, adding to that women are highly over represented amongst those outweighing the men by 2:1. Furthermore, the incidence of depression is higher among married women than among unmarried and lower income groups are overrepresented in the statistics.

Using this data we can see that depressed women in Singapore is an interesting market consisting of {(5076700*0.05)/3}*2= 169 223 potential clients, although this number becomes smaller when considering that research proves that online cognitive behavioural therapy is not effective in treating severely depressed clients. We can further specify this group by recognizing that the incidence of depression is higher among married and low income groups.

We believe that we can bring value to this group due to the discreet way our therapy programs can be used, because of the low price for one full treatment that we can offer due to the rationalization enabled by the use of internet and the proven effectiveness of this kind of treatment in other countries. 7.b Comparison Matrix An elementary step in every company's marketing strategy is to look at the existing actors in the market and try to identify areas where they are weak or strong, which potential features of the product or service they currently neglect and what consumer segments they focus on. This basic market and competitor analysis has been provided in the business plan. Beyond those, LEVA differentiates itself from the solutions already out there in the marketplace on various aspects. Given the nature of our business model, namely one of identifying unmet customer needs and trying to bridge the distance between the practicalities of present solutions and the customer with the help of modern technology, we will compare our solution to the existing ones from the perspective of our target segment.

As has already been explained, our target market is that of mildly to medium depressed individuals who do not feel that they want to go through the hassle of booking weekly meetings, explain their issues with their peers and pay hefty fees for a service of which effectiveness they are unsure about from the beginning. Therefore we use the aspects of price, 14

stigma related to using the service (both social and as felt by the individual), the effectiveness of the treatment and the trust that motivates patients to share about their inner feelings and thoughts because of the assuredness that it will be dealt with sensitively.

By looking at these aspects in relation to how they compare to the traditional cognitive behavioral psychological treatments we can clearly see that we have the potential to provide benefits to our customers they cant get from existing competition.

7.c Instilling Trust In order for a customer to share their inner feelings and fears, their mental state and their future dreams, it requires complete trust both in our confidentiality and in our competence. So how do we instill this trust? How do we convince our clients that educated psychologists provide the service and that what they share is handled in a discreet way?

One key aspect of this is through branding. We need to be perceived as a safe and legit service provider in the medical industry. We need to clearly communicate the research that the cognitive behavioral methods are based on, for example through publishing the research findings on our homepage.

Furthermore, being a provider of a service rooted in the medical profession demands a highly qualified workforce. We will publish names, contact information, facial pictures, curriculum vitaes and alma maters of the psychologists working at our company. All messages sent by them should be electronically signed by them in order to clear any doubts about the competence of the personnel handling the direct communication with clients.

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We want to create linkages to trusted and renowned institutions in Singapore to further show the legitimacy of our services and business model. This could be done through seeking partnerships with institutions whose interests do not clash with ours and where services could be complementary in nature. We feel that possible institutions for strategic partnerships could be hospitals, NUS (Department of Psychology) or other universities where we are in a position to offer research possibilities, medical associations and research communities.
7.d Our Marketing Mix

7.d.i Product Our internet-based cognitive behavior treatment service is tailored for Singaporeans who suffer from mild to medium depression and want to relieve themselves of their psychological troubles without alerting their peers to the fact that they are unwell. We are careful to provide discretion in every step of our service-provision, from the way our site is structured, the way communication with clients are handled and how payments are done. The products in the form of reading materials will be tailored to suit the Singaporean customer and the contact with our professional staff will be personal. In later stages of our product development we might expand our service to include video-conferencing as an add-on feature, including online treatment for other health issues where online treatment is possible, such as mild insomnia and bulimia. 7.d.ii Price Since we have detected that the incidence of mild depression is higher among low-income groups in Singapore and that we, through our innovation, are able to heavily rationalize the cognitive behaviour therapy treatment, we strive to price ourselves at SGD 268 for the basic treatment which is significantly lower than our competitors offering traditional cognitive behaviour therapy that can cost upto SGD 2000 for the treatment.

To increase the value we provide to our clients we can add related services to our business model. These could be structured to be motivational in nature and focus on the well-being of the client instead of being skewed towards treatment of depression. Clients will feel personal attachment to the psychologist who has led them through the treatment, which increases the possibility of them purchasing these follow up services. By adding these services we will prolong our product life-cycle and thereby our revenue-flows.

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7.d.iii Place The provision of our service involves a physical office but the distribution is handled through our online homepage. The physical aspect of the business ensures that we are a serious company as well as being the starting-point of the treatment where evaluations of clients needs are made. It is also crucial for the personal bonding between the psychologist and the client. The distribution of our service is made online through our homepage, enabling a discreet and convenient way of contacting the psychologist by not involving the clients personal e-mail account. The reading materials and assignments included in the treatment are also exclusively available through our online-platform. By handling all customer-contact through our homepage we control the service process ensuring that the quality is in line with our expectations. We also want to make sure that the focus on instilling trust permeates our distribution channel. This can be achieved by every message from the company being signed by our professional staff with their professional titles and names and photos. 7.d.iv Promotion In order to attract clients we have to make sure that they know about us. Since we are primarily focusing on a market segment not using this kind of service, we have to make them aware of us as a company, teach them how cognitive behavioral therapy works and how our innovation is different from existing offerings as well as convincing them to pay for our lifeimproving service. One way of ensuring our first sales is through encouraging the psychologists recruited by us to bring their existing customers to our business. However, this strategy cannot ensure the future growth of our company for which we need to expand our promotional efforts. As a small upstart lacking a big advertising budget we can turn to guerilla marketing tactics to gain acknowledgement in the marketplace. 7.e Guerilla Marketing Tactics In developing a guerilla marketing strategy it is important to keep in mind the importance of instilling trust amongst potential customers. Many guerilla marketing tactics might take the form of tongue-in-cheek marketing and that is probably not suitable for a company offering the services we provide. There are also ethical issues related to the execution of a marketing strategy for a psychological service. We might end up in the line of fire allegedly exploiting the weak mental-health of depressed people.

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Another problem related to guerilla marketing when used by LEVA is the tension between the tendency of guerilla marketing tactics to act as a catalyst for word of mouth trends and the social stigma of using psychological treatment. This problem is also present when making the company visible on social media sites such as facebook and twitter. Potential clients might be hesitant of visibly liking or in other ways endorsing a page that might induce their peers to believe they have mental-health issues.

Nonetheless, guerrilla marketing can be a powerful and low-cost strategy to reach out to potential clients by checking the aforementioned pitfalls. Therefore we have identified a few tactics that can be used by the company:

Blogging By having a blog where cutting edge research in the field of depression is presented and discussed in a comprehensive way we can catch the attention of potential clients interested in the treatment. Furthermore, blogging about these issues can be done without tarnishing the image of trustworthiness we want to project to our customer. It may further prove the scientific basis of our approach.

Encouraging PR We are considering approaching a range of media outlets to write about our innovation since we feel that gaining publicity in that way does not clash with the image we want to project to our target market. Our service is also remarkable enough to justify articles relating to it. Targeted media outlets should be womens magazines such as Motherhood Magazine and Female Bride. In return, we can advertise those magazines on our website. Such a mutual agreement can potentially eliminate any cost for LEVA.

Market size and current trends We identify our target market as consisting of 33000 singaporean citizens (consult Appendix A for more detailed info). Since depression is a disease prevalent in developed countries we dont see a large drop of in these numbers anytime soon. In times of economic recession we believe that the number of people troubled by depression symptoms will increase.

8. Location and layout

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8.a Location One of our most important value is discreetness. People, who dont want to be seen when getting help for mental conditions, shouldnt therefore be seen when they are going to the first mandatory meeting with the psychologist. Its favorable if the location is close to a MRT or bus station, because our clients are not only those who require discreetness, but also those who cant afford going to an ordinary psychologist. The entrance will be unobtrusive, looking as an ordinary store. No big signs, just a small text on the door so the patient knows they have found the right door.

We will save costs on not needing a big office, but by having a office we get more credibility, and we will seem more as a real business than just a company having a homepage. All the psychologists will have a key and just go to the office when a meeting is booked.

A location not so central is also good for patients coming by car, thus finding a parking spot will be much easier than in the city center. On Locanto, which is a website for finding offices for rent, an office space of 10 square meters is available in Toh Tuck Link, with air-conditioning, wireless network and parking, which is all that we need. The monthly rent for the office is 450 SGD per month. The office can be reached from the city center in about 45 minutes by bus. That it takes a long time is not a huge problem, after all the patient is only going there once.

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8.b Layout The homepage is simple and minimalistic offering four alternatives: Doctors, Treatment, Us, Contact.

Doctors

Here will the patient find a presentation of all psychologists with their name, picture, resum and alma mater.

Treatment

This shall explain the difference between depression and mild depression. It will also describe the kind of treatments that exist today and what we are offering the client. We will also provide recommendations for specialists to clients with more severe depression.

Us

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Describing the company, from where we gathered the inspiration and how its working in Sweden. It will show the management team, our vision and beliefs.

Contact

Easily accessible email and phone contact.

There will be a link to the log in on the front page.

When the clients receive their Log-in information, which is handed during the personal meeting, they can access their own account. There they will find a window where all communication with their personal contact is made. One tab will be Latest exercises and information for you where the psychologist

step by step gives the patient their exercises with instructions. Another tab will be Forum where users can post anonymous questions and concerns.

These can be answered by both other users and specialists, with the latters response always stacked up first. This will also work as FAQ later. More urgent or personal question is posted directly to the psychologist.

*See more specified in the exhibits

9. Competitive strategy
LEVA targets a niche and focused group. The target group, as mentioned above, is mildly depressed patients. Those people suffering from mild depression, which affects their view of themselves and of the surrounding world, do not have an existing discreet, convenient and flexible solution for their condition. The conventional solution, of visiting the specialist regularly, does not offer patients discreetness, convenience or flexibility, which in turn dissuades them from seeking treatment . Because of this, the demands of the customers in this segment have been largely unmet.

The solution that LEVA brings to this segment is therefore unique and will potentially be very attractive and appreciated by the clients. The differentiation is an important factor which contributes to LEVAs competitive advantage.

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LEVA is actually offering the same treatment as the location based clinics, but internet based. By having the treatments available online, the clients are able to undergo a large part of the treatments without having to physically meet the psychologist. Therefore, the cost of the service will be markedly lower, which gives LEVA the strategic advantage against the existing competitors. The unique model of a differentiated service offering juxtaposed with the low cost positioning indeed carves out a blue ocean for LEVA.

10. Description of management team

Dzenita Damjanovic (Marketing and Operations) Education: B. Sc. Mechanical Engineering M Sc. Industrial Production at the Royal Institute of Technology Experience: Marketing Executive, FiETT. A new start-up incubated by NUS and NOC. Mostly worked within B2B and e-commerce. Gustav Thorn (Finance) Education: B.Sc Mechanical Engineering. Pursuing a M.Sc in Mechanical engingeering and a B.Sc in Business Administration. Experience: Worked in two start-ups: a management consultancy in the healthcare sector and, his current workplace, a incubator for medical technology. Johannes Bokesten (Marketing) Education: Pursuing a B.Sc in Business Administration at Lund University, Sweden including a semester at National University of Singapore. Experience: Earlier work experience in the service sector as well as in industrial production. Alexander Lindgren (Management) Education: Pursuing a B.Sc in Strategic Management at Lund University, Sweden including a semester at National University of Singapore. Experience: Worked with one earlier startup, in the educational business, also wide experience from selling. Johannes Loftn (Management) Education: Pursuing a B.Sc in Economics at Lund University, Sweden including a semester at National University of Singapore. Experience: Internship at the finance department of a major hospital in Stockholm, Sweden.

Vaibhav Saharan (Marketing and Sales) Education: Pursuing a Bachelor of Business Administration (Honors) in Finance at the National University of Singapore. Studied courses on nutrition. Experience: Embarked on Marketing and Risk Management internships in Singapore.

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11. Plan of operation

11.a Form of Ownership
LEVA will be a private limited company. The reasons for this are many: it will have its own legal identity, the companys existence will not depend on a continued membership of any of its members, it is easy to raise capital, it will give LEVA a credible image which is very important when offering health services, transfer of ownership is easy and finally, tax benefits are possible.

11.b Company Structure (organization chart)

The company will be organized as a functional organization since we only offer one product. The three functional divisions are seen below. Efforts will of course be made to simplify exchange of ideas between divisions. We will work as a team but when the company grows it is important to have decision-making power within the divisions.

12. Financial Forecast

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12.a Important Assumptions The financial statements depend on important assumptions. Sales We expect to attract the following amounts of clients in the first three years Yearly growth 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 200% 150% 150% 100% Patients 400 1200 3000 7500 15000

This means that we will reach a 45% market share of our target segment (see appendix A for detailed calculations). It is assumed that 80% of sales are the basic package and 20% the premium package.

Payroll The yearly compensation for a psychologist at LEVA will be 42 000 SGD which slightly above the recommended pay according to the ministry of manpower in Singapore (1). Each psychologist will be able to treat around 270 patients (2). Compensation to the management will, initially, be modest - each member will earn 1000 SGD/month the first two years. The compensation will increase to 3000 SGD/month year 3-5.

Marketing/Advertisement Marketing and advertising is determined as a percentage of sales (5%).

Rent

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An office of 50 sqm is assumed to be sufficient for around 3800 patients per year. This is based on 20 min session/patient, 7 hours/day, 70% usage. The price/sqm/year was set to 540 SGD.

Professional fees and administrative costs An IT-consultant will be hired the first month to help set up the webpage. Legal fees and utilities were assumed looking at other companies costs.

Other important assumptions Furthermore we assume that Singapore will not go through any major recession and that the prevalence of depression will not change.

LEVA will be a private limited company which makes it eligible for tax cuts. No tax will be charged on the first 100 000 SGD of revenues, after that the tax is 17%.

(1)http://www.careercompass.gov.sg/Pages/OccupationDetail.aspx?OccupationName=Psycho logist&SectorID=99 (2)http://torepsykolog.se/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/Rapport-om-psykologiskn%C3%A4tbehandling-2010-1.1.pdf

12.b Financial Statements

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Revenue and net income is presented below

Financial projections Revenues Net Income

2012 $120 000 $(81 058)

2013 $360 000 $(12 120)

2014 $900 000 $103 245

2015 $2 250 000 $570 714

2016 $4 500 000 $1 346 585

See Appendix B for income statement and balance sheet. Cash flow for the first three years is presented below. See Appendix C for detailed information.

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12.c Break-Even Analysis

LEVA will break even at around 975 patients. See graph below:

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13. Loans or Investment Proposal

We will seek money from angel investors.

Amount requested We request 50 000 SGD from our investors. This is the same amount as the founders are going to invest. For this, our investor will get 10.7 % of the equity of LEVA. See Appendix D for valuation year 1 based on DCF.

Purpose and usage of funds The money will mainly be used to keep a positive cash balance the first year. It will mostly be spent on payroll for the psychologists we intend to hire and for paying the rent.

Repayment or cash-out schedule (exit strategy) The exit strategy is to sell LEVA to another company after 5 years. We believe the exit valuation of LEVA in year five will be close to 7 million SGD (6 732 927 SGD). This is based on the earnings of year five and a multiple of earnings set to 5. This means that the investor will receive 719 818 SGD which is a ROI of 14. See Appendix E for valuation An IPO is not considered because LEVA will not have enough revenue year 5.

Time-table for implementing plan and launching the business We assume to get our first customer in month 6. Before this, extensive product development has to be conducted. Firstly, we will hire two psychologists. This is assumed to take 1 month. Secondly, the reading material has to be developed: It is assumed to take about 4 months. During the time the reading material is developed, the web page will be built. The webpage does not only have to be visually attractive but also very secure. A consultant will be hired for the second month to aid us where our competencies are lacking. We believe we will have the webpage up and running in month 4. Extensive marketing will be conducted during the whole period in order to increase awareness of our product.

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14. Appendices
The front of the homepage

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Appendix for financials Appendix A - Market size

Population in Singapore Prevalence for depression Of which are mild and medium severe People seeking treatment Eligible for internet treatment Accessible market 5 183 700 5,6% 75% 50% 30% 32 657

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Appendix B - income statement and balance sheet

Appendix C - Cash flow year 1

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Appendix C - Cash flow year 2

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Appendix C - Cash flow year 3

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Appendix D - DCF for investment Discount rate is assumed to be 60 % for the angel investor
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Investor invests 50 000 SGD = 10.7 % of 467 682 SGD

Appendix E - Exit valuation

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