Government Relations / Lobbying Firm

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Executive Summary

Bennett Government Relations is a lobbying and government relations firm in Columbus, Ohio that represents small and mid-size organizations before the state legislature and state agencies. It tracks bills, advises clients on strategy and, once registered, communicates with lawmakers and staff on their behalf. The firm earns monthly retainers and project fees. Year 1 revenue is projected at about $186,400, growing to about $568,200 by Year 3. Startup costs are about $60,500.

Company Description

Bennett Government Relations is an LLC owned by Brian Bennett, who spent a decade as a legislative staffer and policy advisor. The firm must register as a lobbying firm and register each lobbyist and client with the state before representing clients before the legislature, and it follows the state's reporting and ethics rules. Services: bill tracking and weekly reports, strategy and message advice, direct advocacy with lawmakers and agencies, coalition building and testimony preparation.

How we make money. The plan has these income lines: monthly retainers (per client per month) at about $3,200 each, about 47 in Year 1; project and rulemaking fees at about $9,000 each, about 4 in Year 1. Pricing is set so each line covers its direct cost and a share of overhead.

Unit economics. In Year 1 direct costs are about $16,550, a gross margin of about 91% of sales. Pay and overhead take most of what is left, so the plan first shows a profit in Year 1. Prices and volumes are set from the assumptions in the appendix and should be replaced with your own quotes.

Problem & Opportunity

Associations, nonprofits, local governments and small businesses are affected by legislation but rarely have a staff person who understands the process. They learn about a bill after it has moved, miss deadlines for comment or send messages that do not reach the right people. Large firms charge more than they can pay.

Products & Services

Clear monthly retainers for small and mid-size clients with defined services: weekly updates on relevant bills, a written strategy for each session, meetings with committee staff and members and a short report after each key vote. Fees and activities are disclosed as the law requires. Clients know what they get each month.

Market Analysis

State government decisions on licensing, funding, taxes and regulation affect many small organizations. Demand is highest around the legislative session and budget cycles. Likely clients include trade associations, nonprofits, healthcare groups, local governments and technology and energy companies.

Who we serve first. Trade associations, nonprofits, healthcare groups, local governments and small and mid-size companies affected by state policy.

Competitive Landscape

Large government relations firms and contract lobbyists serve bigger clients. Several solo lobbyists also work in Columbus. Bennett Government Relations competes on clear scope, honest expectations and a focus on small and mid-size clients. We never promise outcomes and we disclose conflicts.

Our strengths and weak points. Strengths: Principal with a decade of legislative staff and policy experience; Clear scope and honest expectations that larger firms often skip. Weak points we plan for: Revenue depends on a handful of retainer clients; Legislative work is seasonal and results are never guaranteed.

Marketing & Sales Strategy

Introductions through former colleagues, trade associations, nonprofit networks and past client contacts, plus a few short policy briefs published on the website, and speaking at association meetings. The first goal is four retainer clients by month 6 and eight by month 12.

The first 90 days. Days 1 to 30: file the state registrations, buy insurance and set up bill tracking. Days 31 to 60: publish two short policy briefs and meet 20 association and nonprofit leaders. Days 61 to 90: sign the first retainer clients, send the first weekly reports and attend committee hearings.

Operations Plan

The firm tracks bills with a legislative tracking service, keeps a calendar of hearings and deadlines and produces a weekly report for each client. Registrations and activity reports are filed on time under the state's lobbying law. All client agreements state the scope, fees and conflicts. Gifts and expenses follow the state ethics rules, and the firm keeps records for the required period.

Key resources and partners. Resources: State registrations, a bill tracking service, relationships built over a decade and written policy briefs. Partners: Trade associations, a legislative tracking service, an ethics and election law attorney and coalition partners.

What we measure. Retainer clients, monthly recurring revenue, client retention, reports filed on time and cash in the bank.

Risks and how we plan for them:
- Clients may not renew after a session ends. We build year-round work such as agency rulemaking and quarterly briefings and sell multi-year agreements.
- A client conflict could harm reputation. We check conflicts before signing and disclose them in writing.
- Rules change or a mistake in filing could create penalties. An attorney reviews our filings, and we use a calendar for every deadline.
- We never promise legislative results. Contracts say that outcomes depend on lawmakers and are not guaranteed.
- Early income depends on a few clients. We aim for no client above 25 percent of revenue.

Ethics and compliance. We follow the state's lobbying registration, reporting and gift rules, disclose any conflict before taking a client and never promise a legislative result. An attorney experienced in election and ethics law reviews our client agreements and registration process. Records. Every meeting, communication and expense is logged so required reports are accurate and on time.

Client communication. Every client receives a written scope at the start, a weekly report during session, a call after each key vote and a year-end summary of what we did and what changed, so the value of the retainer is easy to see. Capacity. We cap each lobbyist at a set number of retainers, add an associate before quality slips and decline clients whose interests conflict with existing ones. We also hold a short review each quarter to confirm that the work matches the client's goals and to adjust the plan. At the end of each session we send a written summary of every bill we followed, what happened and what to watch next year. Clients can call or message us any weekday and get a reply the same day. We tell a client plainly when an issue is outside our expertise and refer them to a specialist.

Management & Organization

Brian Bennett, Principal, leads strategy and client relationships. An associate lobbyist and policy analyst joins in Year 2 and a second in Year 4. A bookkeeper handles reconciliation and taxes, and an attorney reviews registration and ethics matters.

Hiring plan. Brian works alone in Year 1. An associate lobbyist and policy analyst joins in Year 2 and a second joins in Year 4 as the client list grows.

Outside help. We rely on an outside bookkeeper for monthly reconciliation and tax filings, an attorney for contracts and licensing questions and an insurance agent who reviews our coverage every year. We meet with these advisors at least twice a year and keep notes of what they recommend.

Milestones Narrative

Year 1: complete state registrations, sign four retainer clients by month 6 and eight by month 12, revenue about $186,400. Year 2: hire an associate lobbyist and policy analyst and reach 12 clients, revenue about $394,600. Year 3: add a regulatory practice for agency rulemaking and reach 16 clients, revenue about $568,200.

What the plan's numbers say. Year 1: sales about $186,400, profit about $18,000; Year 2: sales about $394,600, profit about $112,100; Year 3: sales about $568,200, profit about $180,400; Year 4: sales about $677,800, profit about $201,000; Year 5: sales about $765,600, profit about $204,900. The lowest year-end cash is about $79,300.

How we will keep score. Every month we compare real sales to the plan, check the cash in the bank, review the direct cost of each job or product, and look at what customers say. If sales are behind plan for two months in a row, we slow spending and delay hiring until the numbers catch up.

Funding Request

How much we need and how we will use it. Total needed: $96,500. This number comes from the Funding Need Calculator in this plan. It adds up:
- Startup costs of $60,500, listed item by item in the Startup Costs section (the largest are Working capital reserve $40,000; Laptops and office setup $5,500; Website, policy briefs and branding $5,500).
- A cash cushion of about $36,000. That is the deepest cash dip in the early months plus about three months of bills, so slow weeks do not put the business at risk. Lenders call this "working capital."
- Together that comes to about $96,500 (rounded up to the nearest $500), which is the total we are planning for.
Where the money comes from:
- Owner money: $30,000.
- SBA 7(a) loan: $66,500.
Kind of funding we are looking for: SBA 7(a) loan: $66,500 at 12.75% interest over 10 years, about $983 a month. A loan is money we pay back with interest, and the monthly payments are already included in our cash flow.
How we will pay it back. We expect sales of about $186,400 in Year 1, growing to about $765,600 by Year 5. We expect a profit of about $18,000 in Year 1, $112,100 in Year 2, $180,400 in Year 3, $201,000 in Year 4 and $204,900 in Year 5. Year 1 is lower than a full year because registrations come first and clients sign over several months. The lowest year-end cash balance is about $79,300 (Year 1), so with this funding the business has money in the bank every year of the plan.
What we are offering the lender: the equipment we buy as collateral and a personal guarantee from the owner.
A smaller first step, if needed. If we cannot raise the full amount right away, we can start with two or three retainer clients from a coworking desk, delay the associate hire and add clients as retainers cover costs. Duplicate this plan and lower the loan to match.
What if sales are slower? We also tested a cautious case where sales come in 20 percent lower every year. In that case the plan shows a loss of about $13,400 in Year 1, a profit of about $95,800 in Year 3 and the lowest year-end cash is about $79,300, so the business still has money in the bank every year.
All numbers in this plan are estimates. We will update them as real results come in.

Appendix Notes

Documents to attach before you send this plan:

- LLC operating agreement.
- State lobbying firm and lobbyist registration.
- Client agreement template with scope, fees and conflicts.
- Insurance certificates for professional liability.
- Ethics and gift rules summary reviewed by an attorney.
- Sample weekly report and policy brief.
- Conflict check procedure.
- Activity and expense log template.
If you don't have any of this yet, no worries - let's continue.

The assumptions behind our numbers (change them in the Financials section to match your own):
- Monthly Retainers (per client per month): about 47 units in Year 1 at about $3,200 each, costing about $250.00 each to deliver.
- Project and Rulemaking Fees: about 4 units in Year 1 at about $9,000 each, costing about $1200.00 each to deliver.
- Pay: principal $90,000 a year (the same number all five years); associate lobbyist and policy analyst $64,000 a year (people in Years 1 to 5: 0, 1, 2, 3, 4).
- Other yearly costs in Year 1: registration, filing and legislative tracking about $9,000, office or coworking about $12,000, travel and meetings about $8,000, professional liability insurance about $4,500, marketing and website about $5,000, accounting and legal about $9,000.
- Tax rate: 21%.
- Every dollar amount is an estimate. Replace them with your own quotes and research.

Plain words used in this plan:
- Lobbying: communicating with lawmakers or officials to influence a decision, as defined by state law.
- Retainer: a monthly fee for a set list of services.
- Registration: filing required by the state before lobbying for a client.
- Rulemaking: the process by which an agency writes the rules that carry out a law.
- Coalition: a group of organizations working together on an issue.

Startup Costs