Hello all!
My venture pitch is a website that helps teachers/trainers create and manage group activities during video-meetings.
A3: Venture Pitch | Talk A-Bout
9 responses to “A3: Venture Pitch | Talk A-Bout”
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Hi Sally,
I think this is great idea as I agree that students (especially in larger classes) tend to have no idea how to navigate the breakout rooms. You are absolutely right that online and blended learning has definitely expanded rapidly in the past 18 months, and I agree that it is here to stay. That said I find that universities and schools are slow to accept that they need to invest in a variety of tools in order to foster a truly interactive online or blended experience for students. They invest in one, for example Zoom, and then expect to do it all. It would be great to hear from you how you might really convince educational institutions that Talk A-Bout is necessary? I hear you on the ‘sales’ part of ventures in your reflections – I really struggled with how to frame my sales part of my venture. Overall I would happily invest in your venture, but I would definitely want to know more on how to ‘sell’ it to educational institutions.
Hi Siobhán,
Yep, I totally agree. (and you are SO right about investing in one tool and expecting it to do it all! It’s a constant struggle!) Hmmm… I wasn’t really thinking of marketing it (initially) to institutions but eventually, likely, that is where the money would be and I did sort of envision department level purchases. I would definitely have to consider that pricing model, but also how to market to those departments. Probably Adrian’s suggestion (below) would be ideal; partnering with an existing technology or suite of technologies. Definitely needs more thought. Thanks again!
Hi Sally,
“Talk-A-Bout”is a great (and very relevant right now) solution. Your venture pitch covers what an investor would want to know. I particularily enjoyed the programs screens you showcased and the extensive look into the competition even though the competition is a different product. One suggestion I would offer is if “Talk-A-Bout” could integrate with Zoom (or whichever video program the class uses) so it automatically launches when the instuctor says it’s time for breakoutrooms. From my experience working as faculty support staff, instructors do not want to learn yet another app and it is extra difficult to jump between services during a lecture.
Hi Adrian,
Thank you. Yes, I definitely thought about integrating it with something like Zoom. Ideally I’d like to see a function like this bundled with something. The drawback for me was as soon as you tie it to one video conferencing platform it can’t be used with any other, which limits the market and (more importantly to me) limits how useful it might be to more educators using a variety of meeting solutions. I recognize what you’re saying though, about the difficulty of introducing new technology, it is tricky. I don’t know what the answer is, but you are absolutely right.
Hi Sally,
Great thoughts – I didn’t even cross my mind that video conferencing platforms would want exclusive rights. That is indeed a serious drawback.
Hi Sally, congratulations on a great idea and excellent delivery! I have been at both ends of the problem you have presented, as the difficult confused student and as the teacher just trying her best but struggling to make online group work happen. Your pitch video grasped my attention immediately and your message was loud and clear. I loved the graphics that you made for your platform as well, it really helped me visualize how simple it is meant to be. I love using Padlet because of how easy it is to for everyone use (without login) but you are right, it really only serves one function and it isn’t really group work if not everyone is involved in writing it together. I can see myself using Talk-a-bout when I just want to do a quick activity but I KNOW the instructions will be too lengthy or overwhelming to remember. It kind of reminds me of group mode Kahoot. This function alone makes it also appealing to the k-12 sector, where a main concern is dependency. Being able to give students bite sized instruction and offering a step by step guide for group work/ discussion is a huge bonus in my books!
For the product at its current stage, I think it would be perfect as a plug-in, made available to download on all educational video conferencing platforms. However I can also see Talk-A-Bout expanding to offering more functions such as quick grading and offering participation tracking to ensure everyone is contributing equally. As for your research, you provided very thorough information about the market and got me excited about the investment opportunity. Great job!
Thanks Tiffany. I didn’t know Kahoot has a group mode; I’ll have to check that out! 🙂
Great ideas about plugin and quick grading! It definitely ‘takes a village’ to get these ideas finessed/formalized. The more I reflect on everyone’s feedback the more I realize that integration would enhance the appeal of this product. It will take some careful consideration to determine how integrations might work though; I assume it requires a relationship with the meeting solution provider but that’s not clear to me. hmmm.
Thanks again!
Sally, this was a great pitch. Your elevator pitch was engaging and created interest. Your full pitch website was well laid out and easy to follow. You definitely delivered and interesting idea. I appreciate that you have updated your reflection section based on the feedback you have received. The point of connecting with other LMS systems is legitimate and probably does complicate things. I was left wondering about participation tracking and activity reporting. If the teacher is providing a link to the activity how is level of engagement tracked if the user accessed the platform with a general link? Maybe some sort of account would need to exist but with automated creation systems? This could be a Google or Microsoft authentication, maybe even the ability to create accounts with an email contact extract. This point would most likely be solved in the beta test anyways 😉
I like the idea and your presentation was organized and thorough. If I was an investor I would invest because of the quality of your idea and the current limitations of other solutions that you have addressed. Great work!
Hi Sally, I think you did an excellent job on your venture pitch. The problem, solution, competition were clearly stated. I appreciate the fact that you made sure you outline how much you are seeking from a venture capitalist and what you will do with the funds. However, I find most venture capitalist want to know what is in it for them. If I was to invest in your venture, I would like to know how much stake I will be getting when the product is successful. Overall, talk-a-bout is a great idea and all the best in your venture.