Welcome to my Venture Pitch for Gnu-It, a video platform for short, helpful, high quality how-to videos. Welcome to the power of the internet as a tool, instead of a distraction.
This post is created in a format similar to a Kickstarter campaign- on that platform these slides would be laid out linearly to entice investors like yourselves!
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I would love to hear your questions or comments on this pitch
Enjoy!
Short. Helpful. Gnu-It.
REVIEW
I agree completely that a lot of the platforms we use to find instructional videos have the wrong motivations, thus we end up spending a lot more time than we need to on them (and we don’t always learn what we wanted to either). YouTube, for example, is also so huge that there is a major quantity over quality issue. I think Gnu-It could solve this problem with its vetting system (not in place on YouTube or other platforms as far as I can tell), however, I think this will mean that your instructional designers and quality control will be absolutely crucial to your success. In order to invest, I would definitely want to see a plan that specifies exactly how the vetting process works and who does it. You mentioned that it is done through digital systems, instructional designers, and viewers, however, I think the heavy lifting is probably going to be on the part of the human eyes i.e. the instructional designers. I think this could have some large associated costs as well, since these people will not be cheap. I am also unsure of the pay per view model for content creators, as I feel like this will motivate them to focus on the number of views they get, which in turn could recreate the YouTube problem where creators are not primarily focused on the functionality of their video (they spend more time showing off their personality than showing you how to do the thing). One feature I would consider adding is longer videos but a filter for length. The Peloton workout app, for example, has this feature which I find super useful. This would allow some people to focus on 5-minute videos, but would open up longer ones for more complicated tutorials (although you did mention videos could be strung together). If given an opportunity to iron out some of these details, I would confidently invest in Gnu-It as a shareholder!
Thanks for the ideas, Nathan. I agree about the need for instructional designers at least at the start. I’m thinking that my “advanced AI technology” will eventually be able to learn from these designers and be able to vet videos just as well as a human- it will be just that advanced! That being said, there will have to be a staff of IDs to act as quality control for the AI, and the staff size would depend on how big Gnu-It got. I’m interested at your comment about the pay-per-view, as I would expect viewers to only pay for the higher quality videos, and if they don’t find what they need, they have the option of watching another video on the same topic for free and not paying for the first, which would encourage designers to create material that people were looking for. I man not have explained that well enough- does this solve your question? I like the filter for length idea as well!
Hi Hayley, I kind of have the same thing happening in my venture pitch in terms of the AI. I am basically making assumptions about its ability to do some really crazy stuff without actually knowing for sure that it can do it. We essentially just have to take each other’s word that our AI is super advanced! Regarding the pay-per-view comment, I think you have answered my question. I didn’t realize that a viewer could watch something else if they don’t find what they need on the first one. This is actually a super cool feature! I like it for two reasons. The first is that it makes sure the viewing money goes to the creator that made the most useful video, thereby putting “usefulness of video” at the top of the hierarchy of motivation when creating; this is crucial (and it solves the problem I was referring to). The second cool thing here is that it could really help train your algorithm. If a user is not satisfied with a video, they should have to provide some really quick feedback through a survey or something if they want to transfer their fee to a new video. I think people would be very motivated to do this because they want that next video at no cost. The feedback provided would help your vetting process and algorithm hugely!
REVIEW: Hi Hayley, what a novel idea! It’s about time YouTube had some real competition ????
I appreciate the “anti-entertainment” stance that Gnu-it takes. I too feel frustrated with how most sites are designed to keep you scrolling, especially when you are trying to learn/accomplish something with limited time. While the concept is solid, as an investor my concern is with the AI-enabled filtering system. I’m struggling to understand how Gnu-it will program the AI to “learn” what videos to keep and what will be vetted out. Further describing how the platform will be designed and work may entice additional investors. The “have your say” component is also a great idea; this will help maintain the filtering system for “most helpful” videos. I too am concerned that the pay-per-view model for content creators may be problematic. Instead, maybe a quality or helpfulness payment could be considered? You have a large target market and multiple revenue sources, as well as listed solutions to the risks you outlined. I’d invest! Fantastic slogan!
Thanks Meagan, I agree that the AI would have to be really tested before assuming it was doing a good job at vetting everything. This is where a team of instructional designers would need to be put into place at first to make sure AI was doing it’s job. I should have made it more clear that there will always be some humans involved in quality control, regardless of how good the AI was though!
Feedback: Hey Hayley, I liked the presentation for your pitch, your idea and the breakdown of your problem and stats to back up your idea. A couple of notes for feedback: one-you didn’t champion yourself/background in the elevator pitch, and second-I didn’t find the payment options to be clear. Perhaps tweaking these will help draw more high paying investors! Well done!
FEEDBACK: Hayley, great idea and great elevator pitch, well done! Like others I think that this model has relevance in today’s market. I am reminded a bit of MasterClass with this initiative, it could be an option to imbue some DIY-er style starpower to engage new users. In order for me to invest, I’d want to know a bit more about the types of tutorials and the user interface of the platform, since I think those are the major criteria I’d have as a consumer, but overall well done!
REVIEW: Very cool idea! I often struggle with the problem of using social media for educational purposes but was unable to find a proper video for my intent. While YouTube needs some competition, I find that one of the strengths of the platform is the amount of user input in forms of videos and comments. You did address that you would like to give incentives for content creators to be active on your platform, which is a great plan, however, I’m wondering about how your expenses would cover the cost. From what I know of YouTube, an average YouTuber would have an income of around 60k-100k a year with 90k views a day, which is an incredible amount of money/views. Looking back at your pitch, I’m wondering about how you plan to entice viewers especially with a model that recommends users to not continuously scroll through the app. Other than that, I think it’s a very solid idea and is something that could be used heavily in schools as an alternative to other forms of media learning.
Thanks Wynn! Thinking about YouTube stars and Gnu-It creators, I think the top earners for Gnu-It would be different than the typical YouTube high-earner who are often posting videos solely for entertainment. Arguably this gives serious content creators more of a chance to be found and appreciated, whereas YouTube is rewarding people who produce videos of questionable usefulness. I hope to entice people with the promise of finding what they need though… but based on how many people watch all those questionable YouTube videos, maybe people don’t know what they need!
REVIEW: Hi hayley! What a cool idea, i often search for how-to videos and you are right it can be a challenge sometimes and would be great to have a centralized area to host these video, with more of a focus on the learning experience. I love how you have laid out this pitch, it is very professional looking and I like the format, visuals and how you have set up the structure throughout your presentation. I wonder with the revenue model focused on subscription, do you think users would be willing to pay when there is free content avilable other places on the web? I know you do not want to have ads on the platform, but is there a way to shift the cost less to the viewer and more to the creater or to incorporate ads?
Hi Robyn, you pointed out an area that I definitely struggled with: how to ensure the quality of the videos without bogging the platform down with ads. I am hoping to draw in a dedicated following with the free videos first and then have most viewers be on the subscription service, but you are right, it will be hard to compete with free versions. Perhaps people are willing to pay for their time though? I know my time is worth a few cents in order to not waste an hour looking for worthwhile content on YouTube!
REVIEW: Hi Hayley. Thanks for your engaging and professional venture pitch. You have done an excellent job of identifying the problem and coming up with a viable solution. Who hasn’t gone down that rabbit hole while searching for something specific on YouTube? I appreciate all of the research that has been presented to show why an alternative to the likes of YouTube is needed. I do like the idea of reward levels for investors. I am interested in how this platform could be used in schools. If there were channels with subject-specific content that could be accessed by teachers and students, perhaps school districts could be convinced to subscribe. I would definitely champion this.
Thanks so much, Terri-Lynn! I love the idea of making a version of this specifically for kids and teens. I thought about adding it to the pitch, but held off due to length. I hadn’t thought of a version specific to schools though! I’ll have to add it once Gnu-it becomes wildly successful…