If you’re planning on starting a cybercafé business, then there are some things you’ll need to know. There’s a lot of planning that goes into opening a business and won’t be easy. To help you out, here are some of the things you need to open your own internet café.
Have a Business Plan
Before you anything, you must have an internet café business plan and a budget. You need to know what services you’re going to provide, what software will be made available, whether you’ll have LAN games, if you’re going to offer food and refreshments, and what amenities there will be. You’ll need internet café management software, so you can manage each individual computer, allow people to reserve a computer and pay in advance, limit computer use, and have a loyalty programme.
Plan out how much will you charge people, and whether you will charge per minute or per hour, and if there will be an entrance fee. Think about your opening times. People who come to your café will likely want to go before and after work and school and during their lunch breaks. You should also think about whether you will allow people to book the whole premises for teleconferences and online gaming sessions.
Do Some Market Research
You need to do market research to make sure your internet café is feasible, and to see how and if you will meet people’s needs. Check out your competitors to see how well their businesses are doing and to see what services they offer.
Look into whether the people in that area already have access to laptops and computers. You need to know if internet access is expensive or in accessible in the area you plan on opening your cybercafé. You should know who you are appealing to, for example, gamers, students, professionals, holidaymakers, and people who like to socialise. Your internet café needs to be profitable and you should look up ‘management software for gaming cafe’ to ensure you have everything you need.
Finding the Right Premises
You need to find the right premises for your internet café business, because the location in which you open your cybercafé is important. If you open your internet café to close to other cybercafés, a library, or a near a place where people can afford home internet access, then your business won’t be profitable and you won’t have a lot of customers. Examples of good locations are near a college or university because students will need to use computers to fill out applications, submit coursework, and have place to hang out when the uni computer lab is full; and even in an airport, where people will want to use computers to kill time while waiting for their flights.
Once you have found a location, you need to make sure health and safety measures are in place. You’ll need to get comfortable furniture, modern fittings, and fun decorations to create the right kind of atmosphere so that your cybercafé will be a place where people can go to enjoy a drink and a snack or use a computer.
Know What You Need
You need to make sure you have all the necessary insurance, licenses, and certifications before you open. You nee to follow cybercafé requirements, for example, having cybercafé management software and having a dedicated person who will take care of machine maintenance and software updates. You’ll need an ISP and have sufficient internet speed. You’ll also need to know what keyboards, mice, PCs, and monitors you’ll be using and what kind of server and operating system you’ll have in your internet café. You need to know how many staff members you’ll employ and to make sure they are knowledgeable enough to help the customers.
If you’re offering additional services, such as printing, photo printing, scanning, laminating, punching and binding, then you’ll need to purchase all the equipment. You should decide on whether you’re going to sell merchandise and things like flash drives and DVDs too.
Image Credits: Kevin Menajang
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