RealCV/UK_MARKET_STRATEGY.md

# RealCV UK Market Strategy & Product Roadmap

**Document Date:** January 2026
**Focus:** UK CV verification market positioning
**Horizon:** 12-month growth plan

---

## Market Opportunity

### Problem Statement

**UK CV fraud costs employers £4.2B+ annually** and is accelerating:

- **1 in 5 candidates** claim false university degrees (Cifas, 2025)
- **40% of CV embellishments** relate to qualifications
- **24% of screened CVs** fail verification (Reed Screening, 2025)
- **AI-generated fraud emerging:** Deepfakes, synthetic identities, proxy interviews now feasible
- **Regulatory risk:** Companies failing due diligence face legal liability in regulated sectors

**Traditional Pre-Employment Screening is Broken:**
- Manual background checks take 5-10 days
- Education verification requires contacting universities individually (10 days+)
- Professional registration checks vary by profession with no central access
- No integrated view across employment, education, and professional credentials

---

## Market Size & Addressable Opportunity

### TAM (Total Addressable Market)

**UK Recruitment Market Segment:**
- **190,000 recruitment companies** in UK (2024)
- **~3,500+ recruiting via dedicated screening tools**
- **Estimated £2.8B spent on background screening annually**

### SAM (Serviceable Addressable Market)

**RealCV Target Segment:**
- Mid-market recruitment agencies (50-500 staff): ~800 companies
- Corporate HR departments (100+ employees): ~15,000 companies
- Specialist vertical recruiters (healthcare, finance, legal): ~2,500 companies
- **Total TAM:** ~18,300 potential customers

**Estimated SAM value at £180/customer/year:** ~£3.3M annually

### SOM (Serviceable Obtainable Market) - Year 1

- **Target:** 50-100 customers at £50-200/month (various tiers)
- **Projected revenue:** £30-240K in Year 1
- **Growth trajectory:** Doubling annually if market adoption strong

---

## Competitive Landscape

### Current Competitors

| Competitor | Coverage | Strength | Weakness |
|---|---|---|---|
| **Workable** | ATS + basic screening | Broad platform | No CV verification focus |
| **Deel** | Global hiring + screening | Compliance authority | Not UK-focused; expensive |
| **Checkr** | Background checks + DBS | Scale and integrations | No CV-specific verification |
| **Verifile** | Pre-employment screening | Established relationships | Traditional manual process |
| **Veriff** | Identity verification | Strong deepfake tech | Not employment-focused |

### RealCV Differentiation

| Feature | RealCV | Workable | Deel | Checkr | Verifile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| **Degree Verification (HEDD)** | ✅ Q1 2026 | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
| **Healthcare Register Checks** | ✅ Q1 2026 | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
| **Timeline Fraud Detection** | ✅ Q1 2026 | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
| **Director Verification** | ✅ Q1 2026 | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
| **Companies House API** | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
| **Professional Bodies** | ✅ Q2 2026 | ❌ | ❌ | Partial | Partial |
| **DBS Integration** | ✅ Q3 2026 | ❌ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |

**Key Advantage:** *First-to-market with CV-specific, UK-integrated verification stack*

---

## Product Strategy

### Phase 1 (Q1 2026): MVP Launch - "The Verified CV"

**Positioning:** "Every UK degree verified. Every timeline verified. Every claim validated."

**Core Features (8 weeks):**
1. HEDD degree verification (real-time + manual review tracking)
2. Timeline fraud detection (overlaps, gaps, education-employment sequencing)
3. Companies House director verification
4. GMC/NMC healthcare register checks
5. Enhanced CV parsing (education/employment entity linking)

**Target Customer:** Medium recruitment agencies (50-200 hiring/year)

**Pricing Model:**
- **Freemium:** 3 free CV checks/month (companies house + timeline)
- **Professional:** £49/month - Unlimited checks + HEDD verification
- **Enterprise:** £199/month - Pro features + API access + custom integrations

**Launch Strategy:**
- Partner with 3-5 recruitment agencies for beta testing (Week 2-4)
- Launch public beta (Week 5)
- GA release (Week 8)
- Press/analyst outreach highlighting fraud prevention angle

**Success Metrics:**
- 500+ signups in first 4 weeks
- 10%+ weekly active check rate
- 85%+ feature satisfaction (NPS >40)

---

### Phase 2 (Q2 2026): Professional Bodies Expansion

**Positioning:** "Verify degrees. Verify certifications. Verify everything."

**New Features:**
1. ICAEW accountant registration checks
2. SRA solicitor registration checks
3. IET engineer registration checks
4. RIBA architect registration checks
5. GOV.UK regulated profession enrichment (API layer)

**Target Market Expansion:**
- Financial services recruiting
- Legal recruiting
- Engineering recruiting
- Niche vertical specialists

**Business Impact:**
- +40% monthly active users
- +3x engagement (more verifications per customer)
- +2x ARPU (professional tier premium)

**Pricing:** Professional tier → £79/month; Enterprise → £249/month

---

### Phase 3 (Q3 2026): Compliance & Regulatory

**Positioning:** "Full employment verification. Complete compliance confidence."

**New Features:**
1. HMRC payroll verification (partnership model)
2. DBS check integration (partnership + commission)
3. Right-to-Work verification API
4. Audit trail & compliance reporting
5. Batch processing API

**Target Markets:**
- Large corporate HR departments
- Pre-employment screening agencies
- Temp/staffing agencies (compliance-heavy)

**Business Model Evolution:**
- Per-check commission on DBS (£5-15 per check)
- HMRC verification licensing (custom pricing)
- API/platform access (£500-2,000/month)

---

## Go-To-Market Strategy

### Sales Channels

#### Channel 1: Direct Sales (Lead)
- Target recruitment agency owners (LinkedIn outreach)
- HR directors at 100+ employee companies
- Sales pitch: "Reduce hiring risk. Verify every claim. In minutes."
- Expected conversion: 5-8% from qualified leads
- Sales cycle: 2-4 weeks

#### Channel 2: Partnerships
- Integrate with ATS platforms (Workable, Bullhorn, Lever)
- White-label for existing background check providers
- API marketplace (Zapier, Make, etc.)
- Expected impact: +30% user acquisition annually

#### Channel 3: Content & SEO
- Blog: "UK CV Fraud Patterns" (targeting "CV verification UK" search)
- Case studies: "How we caught 18 fake degrees in Q1"
- Thought leadership: Webinars on fraud detection for HR
- Expected impact: +20% organic users

#### Channel 4: Vertical Specialists
- Healthcare recruiter outreach (GMC/NMC checks as entry)
- Financial services (ICAEW verification)
- Legal recruiting (SRA verification)
- Expected impact: +25% high-value customers

### Marketing Messaging

**Tagline:** "Hire with Confidence. Verify with RealCV."

**Core Messages:**
1. **For Recruiters:** "Catch 90% of degree fraud in seconds. One-click HEDD verification."
2. **For HR Teams:** "Complete CV validation pipeline. Reduce hiring risk by 70%."
3. **For Compliance:** "Full audit trail. DBS integration. Regulatory confidence."

**Proof Points:**
- "Trusted by 5+ UK recruitment agencies in first 30 days"
- "1 in 5 candidates have false degrees — we find them"
- "Average savings: £8,000 per bad hire prevented"

---

## Pricing Strategy

### Tier Analysis

| Tier | Users | Monthly | Annual | Features |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| **Free** | Solo recruiters | £0 | £0 | 3 CV checks, Companies House |
| **Professional** | Small agencies | £49 | £490 | Unlimited checks, HEDD, Timeline |
| **Enterprise** | Large orgs | £199 | £1,990 | API access, custom integrations, DBS |
| **API/Platform** | Integration partners | £500-2K | £6-24K | Batch processing, white-label |

### Unit Economics (Target - Year 2)

- **Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC):** £150-300 (organic/partner-led)
- **Average Revenue Per User (ARPU):** £60-120/month (mix of tiers)
- **Payback Period:** 2-4 months
- **Gross Margin:** 75-80% (SaaS model)
- **LTV:CAC Ratio:** 4:1+ (healthy SaaS)

---

## Organizational Requirements

### Team Structure (12-month horizon)

**Now (Q1):**
- 2 Backend Engineers (full-time on Phase 1)
- 1 QA Engineer
- 1 Product Manager
- 1 Marketing/Growth Lead

**Q2 Addition:**
- +1 Full-stack Engineer (vertical expansion)
- +1 Sales/BD Lead (partnership development)

**Q3 Addition:**
- +1 Customer Success Manager (onboarding)
- +1 Part-time Data Analyst (metrics/LTV)

---

## Key Risks & Mitigations

| Risk | Probability | Impact | Mitigation |
|---|---|---|---|
| **HEDD API access delayed** | Medium | High | Use web portal integration; request API access in parallel |
| **NHS/GMC scraping blocked** | Low | Medium | Request official API access proactively; provide value-add |
| **Regulatory gatekeeping** | Medium | Medium | Build partnerships early; engage with regulators directly |
| **DBS/HMRC integration delays** | Medium | Medium | Partner with established vendors (Verifile, DDC) handling compliance |
| **Market adoption slower than expected** | Medium | Medium | Focus on high-value verticals first (healthcare, finance); expand TAM gradually |
| **Competitor response** | Medium | Medium | Maintain first-mover advantage; deepen integrations; expand internationally (Ireland, Australia next) |

---

## Success Metrics (12-Month Goals)

### Business Metrics
- **Revenue:** £250K+ annualized (Mix of Professional/Enterprise)
- **Customers:** 50-75 paying customers
- **Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR):** £20K+
- **CAC Payback:** <4 months
- **NPS:** >50 (positive)

### Product Metrics
- **HEDD Verification Accuracy:** >98% match rate
- **Timeline Detection Rate:** 85%+ of actual gaps/overlaps caught
- **Directorship Verification:** 95%+ accuracy (vs. Companies House records)
- **Feature Adoption:** 80%+ of Professional tier customers using HEDD
- **API Uptime:** 99.9%

### Market Metrics
- **Brand Awareness:** 15%+ of recruitment agencies aware of RealCV
- **Market Share:** 0.5-1% of addressable recruitment screening market
- **Vertical Penetration:** 3%+ of healthcare recruiters, 2%+ financial recruiters

---

## Financial Projections

### Conservative Scenario (50 customers by end-of-year)

**Revenue Breakdown:**
- 30 × Professional tier at £49/mo: £1,470/mo
- 15 × Enterprise tier at £199/mo: £2,985/mo
- 5 × API/Platform at £1,000/mo: £5,000/mo
- **Total MRR (Dec 2026):** £9,455
- **Annualized:** £113,460

**Costs:**
- Engineering (2 FTE): £150K/year
- Infrastructure/APIs: £20K/year
- Sales/Marketing: £30K/year
- Operations: £20K/year
- **Total Cost:** £220K/year

**Result:** Break-even at ~24 customers; profitable at 50+ customers

### Growth Scenario (100 customers by end-of-year)

- **MRR (Dec 2026):** £18,910
- **Annualized Revenue:** £226,920
- **Gross Margin:** 75% = £170K+ operational profit

---

## Next 30 Days Action Plan

### Week 1-2: Preparation
- [ ] Contact HEDD for API access / partner discussions
- [ ] Reach out to GMC/NMC about verification APIs
- [ ] Identify 5 recruitment agency beta partners
- [ ] Finalize HEDD compliance & consent workflows

### Week 2-4: Development
- [ ] Complete HEDD integration (see Phase 1 technical doc)
- [ ] GMC/NMC scraper development
- [ ] Enhanced timeline analysis
- [ ] Companies House director verification

### Week 3-4: Beta & Validation
- [ ] Beta launch with 3-5 agencies
- [ ] Collect feedback on UX/value
- [ ] Measure fraud detection accuracy
- [ ] Iterate on flag messaging/severity

### Week 4+: Go-to-Market
- [ ] Public launch announcement
- [ ] Initial outreach to 20-30 qualified prospects
- [ ] Content marketing (first blog post live)
- [ ] Track signup rate & activation

---

## Long-Term Vision (2-3 Years)

**Expansion Opportunities Beyond UK:**

### Ireland (Natural Extension)
- Similar legal framework to UK
- HEDD equivalent exists (HEA)
- Revenue opportunity: +£50-100K annually

### Australia/New Zealand
- English-speaking markets
- Similar professional regulation frameworks
- Revenue opportunity: +£150-300K annually

### EU Markets (Longer-term)
- Different regulatory landscape (more complex)
- ENIC-NARIC degree verification network
- Professional body registration varies by country

### Vertical Integrations
- HR software integrations (Workday, SAP SuccessFactors)
- Talent acquisition platforms (multi-tool suites)
- Compliance software (audit logging, reporting)

---

## Conclusion

RealCV addresses a massive UK market problem (£4.2B+ annual cost from CV fraud) with a focused, integrated solution. By launching with HEDD degree verification + timeline fraud detection in Q1 2026, we capture first-mover advantage in a gap no competitor fills.

**The opportunity:** Become the UK's trusted CV verification layer for recruitment, reducing fraud while accelerating hiring processes.

**The path:** Start with core features, expand vertically into professional bodies, then horizontally into compliance/regulatory, then internationally.

**The outcome:** Build a defensible, recurring revenue business with 10-15% of the UK recruitment market within 3 years.

---

## Appendix: Customer Personas

### Persona 1: Agency Owner (Mid-Market)
- **Name:** Sarah, 48, runs recruitment agency (80 staff)
- **Problem:** Wasting 2-3 hours per hire verifying degrees manually
- **Budget:** £3K-8K/year on screening tools
- **Decision-making:** Speed & cost focus; wants manual verification eliminated
- **Buying signal:** "Can you reduce our verification time from 5 days to 5 minutes?"

### Persona 2: Corporate HR Manager
- **Name:** James, 35, Head of HR at financial services firm (200 employees)
- **Problem:** Regulatory liability; reputational risk from bad hires
- **Budget:** £20K-50K/year on compliance & screening
- **Decision-making:** Compliance & audit trail critical; automation secondary
- **Buying signal:** "We need proof every hire has verified credentials for audits."

### Persona 3: Specialist Vertical Recruiter
- **Name:** Dr. Lisa, 42, healthcare recruitment founder (20 staff)
- **Problem:** Need to verify GMC/NMC registration quickly; manual checks break hiring velocity
- **Budget:** £2K-5K/year (cost-sensitive)
- **Decision-making:** Speed & accuracy for regulated professions
- **Buying signal:** "If you verify healthcare pros instantly, we're in."

---

## References & Data Sources

- [CIFAS CV Fraud Report](https://www.cifas.org.uk/newsroom/1-in-5-lie-about-uni-degree-cv-fraud)
- [Reed Screening CV Verification Data](https://www.reed.com/)
- [UK Employment Gap Report 2025](https://www.livecareer.co.uk/career-advice/uk-employment-gap-report)
- [Companies House API Documentation](https://developer.companieshouse.gov.uk/)
- [HEDD (Higher Education Degree Datacheck)](https://hedd.ac.uk/)
- [GMC Register](https://www.gmc-uk.org/registration-and-licensing/our-registers)
- [NMC Register](https://www.nmc.org.uk/registration/search-the-register/)