Hi Everyone, I have no clue as to why the sound cut out after 3 minutes. I checked my original file and the sound on there is perfect. I have uploaded it again and it seems to be working fine. Sorry for the inconvenience. Venure Pitch: http://youtu.be/i_DfAgmW1Jw
Continue reading MultiBoard Posted in: Venture Forum
Hi, Sorry for being a bit late, I submitted this to David on Saturday, but had problems uploading it to the blog. Hopefully this link works! https://www.dropbox.com/sh/8nu030x2g60lzr7/AhgxDlPBaH Let me know if there are any problems finding my assignment! I have done an educational market venture pitch on Penveu, a new technology similar to that of an […]
Continue reading Assignment #3: Educational Application of Penveu Posted in: General, Venture Forum
Hi Jhodi,
I enjoyed both your short elevator pitch and venture pitch. I really liked the design of your venture pitch – very professional and well laid out. I think you described the pain point, investment potential, current investors, team, and differentiation of the product all very well. As it is not your own original venture, I understand why you didn’t show a “face of the product” in the video, but I do find that I am more drawn to a pitch if there is a face behind the voice. To enhance your pitch, I would also recommend letting potential investors know what to do next – visit the website, contact our team for investment opportunities, etc.
As an EVA I expected to get a good understanding of what the product actually was in your venture pitch. I did reread what you wrote, and understand that it has something to do with pixels on the screen but a demo would have been a selling point for me, although I would agree there is a market for this product, I would not invest without seeing a demo of how well it works.
Thanks Jenny!
I agree that it would have been nice to have my face in the video, but as it is not my own product, I thought that I would assume the position of one of the CEO’s and keep it as if it was coming from one of them. I also wanted to feature the product, and since I do not actually have one, I thought that photos would be better. I do also like seeing a face in the video though.
Jhodi
Hi Jhodi,
Thank you for providing information regarding Penveu, never heard of it before, looks intereting. However, before I complete my rating could answer a question for me. I am just unsure what has been “made over” to quote one of David’s posts or what the new venture/idea is. Would you mind clarifying this for me?
Regardless, I like Jenny enjoyed the presentation, as it was engaging and highly information regarding this product.
Thanks, Tom
Hi Tom,
I wanted to market Penveu to the educational market in a way that would focus on the use by a teacher and students in an interactive, engaging way. I have tried to focus the pitch on marketing Penveu to instructors and schools for the purpose of engaging students and creating efficient hand-on learning in the classroom. By highlighting the educational aspects and benefits of Penveu, I hope to intrigue potential educational investors. I felt as though the original marketing of Penveu was not focused on the education market enough in terms of benefits in the classroom.
Jhodi
Well done Jhodi. I enjoyed your elevator pitch and like Jenny, it would have been more convincing to see your face. This would have given some visual cues and body language indicating your excitement towards the product.
Both your elevator pitch and venture pitch certainly convinced me on the more affordable price and flexibility of use in the classroom as big features of the product. Your venture pitch is very convincing and realistic to the point that at first I was wondering why you were just re-publishing or plagiarizing their marketing material. Once I was part way through, I then realized it was your own material thus I believe you did a fine job of role playing and creating new and unique marketing material.
Doug.
Thanks for the input, I agree that having me in the video would have allowed my body language to show more. If I actually had a Penveu, I would have definitely gone that route.
Jhodi, I like the idea behind Penveu and the approach of positioning it against whiteboards with the idea of cost savings and portability. Though the price is a bit misleading as a whiteboard already includes the projector where this product needs a laptop, projector and pen. Depending on what resources the school already has this might not be that much cheaper. Since it is portability that might be appealing as well to a school over a Whiteboard. As for the product I would really need to use it to determine its effectiveness before I would decide if it is worthwhile. Since it has to go through wireless to a laptop there might be a lag involved that could be annoying to teachers. Overall a good job I would definitely look further into investing into this kind of company.
Hi Jhodi,
I can see that your venture has a solid team from the biographical sketches you have provided and they have put together a solid product.
With the current thrust to get schools up to scratch with information technology you have convinced me that you have a possible game changer for those teachers who are intimidated by the hardware side of some of the products that are available today. As matter of fact our school was provided with two of a similar product but no one uses them because they have to be calibrated and you are ‘pinned’ to the front of the class when using them. I am just stating the fact because you did a great job of identifying the competitive edge of penveu and as such did not need any help from me. So the penveu team certainly did their homework and got their act right in this respect.
There is certainly a lot of room in the education market for penveu but you did not say how potential customers are exposed to the product. Also I would have liked to know the market size in terms of how much money it is estimated to have and how this market is projected to grow in the future. In addition penveu’s parent Interphase Corporation seem to be a solid company with a deep pocket so I do not think they need my money anyway. As long as you can provide me with the answers to these questions I will invest in penveu.
After all is said and done you did a great job.
Cheers
Patason
Hi,
Given that this is such a new technology, it has been grouped with the IWB market. As such, I explored the potential market growth for this market, but I was unable to determine what portion of the market would move to Penveu. This is an area that I would have liked to have found more information about (but with all of my searching, I was unable to). I agree that for a potential investor, this would be very valuable information.
Jhodi
I think the product is sound. I just went to a learning technologies expo last week and the one thing that I saw over and over was interactive whiteboards. Probably a third of the companies that were there were showing something like a Smartboard or something like a Mimeo. And, coincidentally, my wife is helping prepare a bid to a Central American government for the purchase of thousands of these things for schools. And I didn’t see anything like the penveu so I thought it was your own invention until I looked it up. I think you know your stuff. You present a myriad of facts and include a few figures that shows that you did your research.
I watched your elevator pitch a couple of times though and I spaced out each time. I think that the elevator pitch needs a bit more style and a bit less substance. I guess I am being a little picky about technical and performance issues, but I could hear you gasping for breath as you were trying to get everything out. There was a lot of information in there that would have been better in the venture pitch. The elevator pitch just needs to get my attention so that I listen to the venture pitch. It is not about making the sale. It is just about getting in the door. I watched the video that they had on their site (Dr. Yoram Solomin, Vice President of Corporate Strategy and Business Development) here:
http://www.penveu.com/products.html?video
and he was able to sell the idea without nearly so much information.
On the other hand, your venture pitch was beautifully presented and the little touches made it look very professional. You may have wanted to slide yourself in there as a senior level administrator though. It was not clear who you are in the company, unless I missed something.
I was also not clear on what you are asking. It seems that the project already has sound financial backing from Interphase. And from my experience, there is no guarantee that you will make any money investing based on a product that is produced by a huge company. If this is their only product, and it takes off, you can make money. If they are part of a huge conglomerate, then success of one product has little impact on the balance sheet.
So, before investing, I would want to know more.
Thanks for your input! It is funny that you mention too much information in the elevator pitch because I have a tendency to want to put as much as I can into things like this and I know that sometimes less is more. I think that overall, investors with some sort of tie to the education market would be the target market for this product as they would be able to invest capital and help make connections at the same time, which is what I think this device may need.
Jhodi
Hi Jhodi,
Your elevator pitch has a lot of information, so a provision of closed captioning would paint a clearer picture for me as an investor. As an EVA, your pitch would hook my interest more if you provided a description of what the students can do with the product (i.e., write on any surface?) in addition to information about how it is better than the IWB.
Upon reviewing Penveu’s website, I do wonder how your pitch is steering the company from its original direction?
Thanks,
James
Hi,
The only thing that I found when I explored their marketing was that it somewhat lacked emphasis on the impact that it would have on teaching style and student engagement. This is in line with the company’s vision, but my goal was to emphasize how this could make a bigger, stronger impact.
Jhodi
Hi Johdi,
It appears that most of us who were re-pitching for existing companies had the same problem. I wanted the company to focus more on the education market instead of the commercial one, but did not specifically emphasize how in my pitches. There should have been an extra section on both my elevator and venture pitches comparing which direction Knewton is currently going, how it differs from the direction I want the company to move towards and the results this new direction will have in comparison to the results they have now.
In any case, this assignment was a great learning experience for me, and I hope it was the same for you too.
Have a good break!
James
I appreciated the cleanness and succinct message from your elevator pitch. I did find it contained a lot of information to digest in a short period of time. Almost like a very short venture pitch – which isn’t necessarily a bad thing? Just something that I noted personally. Your recording was also very clear and overlaid well with the visuals that you provided. It was quite interesting to see that penvue compared to the smart board technology which many are now questioning the validity of. I hope that wouldn’t detract from the marketability of this neat little device.
Hi Jhodi,
Great job on the elevator and venture pitch. I found that they were both very professional and informative. Like others, my concern is that this is already a well-established company that is not really hurting for money. As such, being an investor, I am having a hard time finding a way that my investment is needed.
It was a good idea, however, to take this product in a new direction in order to fully move into the educational market. You would think that the parent company would have considered this!
Hi Jhodi,
Great work both you pitches were very professional!
From the elevator pitch I was not able to workout exactly what this product does unfortunately (I am a newbie when it comes to white/smart board technologies sorry) and for this reason I needed to look further into it. The pitch clearly states a pain point but I am not sure how this device actually works to meet this pain point from the video. Although the pitch does clearly identify how this provides value by means of a cost reduction compared to other products. My confusion for understanding the product lead me to view the venture pitch, which was professionally presented with most of the investment information I wanted to see as an EVA.
However unfortunately I do not think I would invest in this venture. While not because of anything related to the ventures pitches themselves or their contend purely as I think its something the competitors can reproduce and integrate into their own products or even buy the company if the product is something they find great.
Thanks
Melissa
Hi jhodi,
Sorry for the late post. I have had sleepless nights completing other assignments. I do apologize and mean no disrespect.
I am going to base my feedback on what we saw in week 3 regarding the content of a venture pitch(Perfecting Your Pitch).
1. Pain Point: the market gap or problem the venture is addressing
– Though this is an interesting product, I don’t think it is necessarily a very much needed one. Some people say the IWB is on its way out, and there are only 600,000 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interactive_whiteboard ) out there, so it would appear to be a limited market.(http://eddigitaltribe.blogspot.mx/2012/01/are-interactive-white-boards-dead.html )
2. Solution: the new product or service that resolves the pain
– Yes, the gadget solves the problem
3. Differentiation: the reason someone will buy or use this new product or service, versus the alternatives
– The report does not state if here is anything else similar in the market
4. Marketing: where and how buyers/users will be reached
-It is not clear. Also, though the report states this gadget will enhance the IWB market, I read pages that suggest it may replace this market, so I got a bit confused http://www.smartplanet.com/blog/thinking-tech/penveu-electronic-pen-could-replace-whiteboards/11270
5. Championship: the competency of the venture’s leaders and advisors
– Good
6. Competition: an overview of competitors and partners
-Not mentioned.
7. The Ask: how much money, etc, is required to take the next step
– Not mentioned
8. The Return: how much and how soon will an investor be recompensed
– Not mentioned
9. The Message
-Overall the presentation, especially the PDF, was well presented. Some things to keep in mind: speak more slowly and have less text so investors actually read your proposal. This aside, however, I feel the look was good and if tweaked could work.
Good luck,
Adriana
It’s been interesting and, i have had my share of technical difficulties. I tried about 20 different permutations of technical fixes while recording this pitch, but couldn’t get it to come out both a compressed and, well not an art piece. If anyone has suggestions on tech support, I can repost if it works. […]
Continue reading Assignment 3: Venture Pitch DolFin Posted in: General, Venture Forum
Franc,
I tried to view your video but it looks like the link you sent is for the location within your video. You might have to update the link to show the url for the video outside of your video manager. Also, you can embed the video directly into the blog if you wanted to. Just click on the youtube button and paste the video url into place. Hope this helps.
Ken
Hey Frank,
The youtube link doesnt work as it is linking to your videos you uploaded page rather than anyone in particular. This just brings me to my video upload page so cant see yours at all.
The Prezi is giving me an error as well.
You said that you were having trouble with the export. Lash me off an email with details of what program you are coming from, what OS you have, and what you recorded it using and hopefully I can help.
Cheers
Stuart
Frank, the YouTube link does not work..
Not to sound too redundant, but I can’t view your video or prezi either.
Hi Guys, I did a complete re-install; try this now:
Hi Frank,
I can see your YouTube video, but not your prezi.
Lisa
Hi Frank,
While I too was unable to find your prezi, I did watch your elevator pitch on YouTube. From that I think you have a great concept but it was somewhat unclear to me if the key features or purpose is to teach users about finance, create a budget for them or both? As well, I saw there was mention of users interacting with one another and I would have liked to know more about how that would work.
Julie
I agree with Julie that your concept seems great, as i think there is a need for this type of learning, but it was a little confusing knowing exactly what ‘Dolfin’ does.
I’m sure your venture pitch will add greater depth, but i’m not sure with the limited information gained from the initial pitch that investors could go any further.
Do you explain where the 500K goes as well? I may be off base, but that number just sounds huge for the application you’ve explained.
Thanks,
Kent
Hello,
Thank you for your feedback. The Prezi is embedded in the Youtube video, so I did not post it separately.
DolFin is a LMS/CMS Platform that brings together budgeting tools, financial education content and social applications to make financial learning simple and fun. It can be utilized by teachers and and education providers as an all-in-one reservoir to draw from for tools, content and connectivity, so that they can focus their efforts on facilitating the learning process.
The budget is further laid out in the Venture Pitch; and the $500K covers both the Pilot and Alpha Launch development. Since you have $1 Million to invest on this, Investing in DolFin will allow you to fund something that’ is uniquely different and innovative, while having $500K left to invest in an another venture as well.
Cheers!
The elevator pitch is intriguing, but I don’t think it provides enough information for who would use it and what they would use it for. People are typically private about finances so I’m not sure whether that social media bit would be a good thing (as it would encourage sharing of ideas, etc.), or whether it would just turn people off. Finances are an area that everyone has interest in, but just based on the elevator pitch I would not invest further.
Hi Frank – An interesting venture idea. I think there is a market for people who would enjoy online classes in financial education, based on their needs. For evaluating the brief elevator pitch, I like focusing on these guidelines, realizing that the brief elevator pitch likely won’t touch on all aspects:
* Pain Point: the market gap or problem the venture is addressing;
* Solution: the new product or service that resolves the pain;
* Differentiation: the reason someone will buy or use this new product or service, versus the alternatives;
* Marketing: where and how buyers/users will be reached;
* Championship: the competency of the venture’s leaders and advisors;
* Competition: an overview of competitors and partners;
* The Ask: how much money, etc, is required to take the next step; and
* The Return: how much and how soon will an investor be recompensed
You managed to touch on most of these during the brief pitch which I found impossible to do – well done. However, for me I would have liked to have been drawn into your vision a little more deeply; perhaps spending a bit more time highlighting a few of your more essential or engaging aspects, rather than briefly covering many of them, would have attracted me more towards your venture. With my limited ability to fund ventures, I may have to pass on this particular one. But I wish you success, as I do think there is some potential here.
Hi Frank,
For some odd reason, when I click on your elevator pitch it goes to my videos in my personal video manager for youtube. The prezi also doesn’t seem to work, I get a message of ….
The presentation you wanted to join either did not exist, or it has already ended.
Please check the URL and come back!
Thank you for your patience,
The Prezi team
Hi manny, please see my post: frank 8:48 pm on November 27, 2012
Hi Frank,
I think that you have a very marketable venture here. As a math teacher that teaches finance to high school students, I am always looking for engaging resources such as this that would help students learn in practical situations. I watched your elevator pitch and read what you stated would be in you venture pitch. I would like to invest in this venture, but I would want to know more about it first. I would like to know exactly how it works and what the future plans are for this venture.
Overall, I think that you did a very good job creating your pitch and have caught my attention!
Jhodi
eLT-PD is an online professional development site for English Language Teachers. I wish I could have produced and edited this project with the high quality many of you achieved in this course; unfortunately, I lack the know-how. However, I welcome your honest feedback to help me improve it and to hopefully one day be able to […]
Continue reading eLT-PD online professional development Posted in: Venture Forum
Hello Adriana,
I appreciate your honesty about your skills. I was also impressed by others tech savvy skills. I wished I knew how to impose graphics alongside the video of me speaking in iMovie. I liked your Elevator Pitch. You address the pain point and the fact that your venture is free makes is more accessible than going back to University for a diploma in supporting English Language Learners. I also thought your Venture plan was really good. My only suggestion would be to make your ask and return more clear. Are you asking investors for money or personnel? Great job, Jen
Thanks for the tips Jen. I guess because there are so many people that could invest, e.g. government, private educational institutions, language associations, British Council, ELSA NET, etc., I’m not really sure how to pitch to them all. I guess I could perhaps adjust the pitch depending on the possible investor. However, I also felt very ‘green’ when putting this together; I hope to learn from all the tips I’m given, and from everyone else’s work.
Thanks a million.
Adriana 🙂
I liked the consistent look and feel of your slides. The images against the white background created a very clean look. Unfortunately I could not hear any audio and the clip on the slide that said “2 billion” did not play, it just said “codecs unavailable”. So I was unable to get the full impact had I known what the numbers were representing. Based on the text I believe that your venture has a lot of potential as ESL may be a very global issue which was captured through your use of graphics.
Thank you. I’m sorry to hear you could not hear the audio. I really appreciate you taking the time to view it.
I really liked the venture concept and believe it has lot of potential. It would have been great to know bit more about yourself and your marketing/venture plan…
Thanks Ranvir. I hope to learn from other people’s projects regarding where and how to insert more information on myself and how to best market the venture. I am still a bit confused as to hoe pitch a non-for profit venture and to investors who gain different things from their investment.
Hi Adrianna,
I don’t think that technological savvy played any sort of detrimental role in your pitch. The venture plan was cohesive and made logical sense. Good work.
Thank you very much. I appreciate it.
I’m going to have to concur with my colleagues. Wouldn’t even worry about the tech savvy aspect. I thought the Powerpoint did the trick just well. You had simply slides, spoke clearly and your message was delivered very effectively. I actually quite enjoyed it. It’s really the message that is the most important and I got it from watching your powerpoint (audio worked just fine for me!).
I definitely would have liked to have a bit more detail about how you were going to roll out your plan? How you would attempt to attract users to your site. But I loved the delivery of your message for the need of this product!
Hi Jonathan,
I’m glad you enjoyed it. I felt it was a bit slow, but recording a voice-over using PPT is a bit complicated. I will work on the details regarding the users.
Thanks again 🙂
To facilitate and objectively review the venture pitch you have put forward, I will be utilizing the guidelines provided within our course, Section 2.7 – Deconstructing a Pitch.
CEO & Team:
Throughout this venture pitch, it was clear that the CEO is not only aware of the need for such as service, but is a significant member of the current English Language community. These essential pieces, speaks to the CEO’s confidence in their venture and the passion they have to make it succeed. Furthermore, the venture is further strengthened by the addition of two other members, who also have significant experience within this field. The only concern regarding this team, is the inclusion of individuals who are experienced at taking real world information, and effectively and meaningfully translating it to the online world. A key element, that will not only attract users, but keep them.
Venture Concept:
Online professional development is beginning to be explored in various areas of the educational world, from university courses to webinars. However, at this time, I am unaware of ventures specifically focusing on English Language Learners, therefore, even though the venture may not be original, the concept is. Furthermore, the CEO did provide evidence to create a foundation of knowledge which supports this venture. Even though I have no experience in English Language, I am interested to see if this is a necessary or only perceived service.
Marketability:
The CEO did a good job of providing information regarding the potential market of students who require instructors better trained in this area. However, I am unclear on the actual number of teachers who provide instruction in this area. For without this key piece of information, a determination on market size, share and revenue cannot be made, all of which needs to be within a certain range to make eLT-PD a viable venture. Furthermore, even though the specific idea is relatively unique at this time within the online professional development market, in the long run, if this venture is found successful, any market share will be threatened by competitors do to lack of intellectual or proprietary right.
Venture Plan:
At this time, no specific market readiness timeline has been provided, creating concerns about their ability to enter the market before or after other competitors, especially considering this market is gathering momentum both offline and online. Secondly, seeing that other products are becoming a reality, is it possible for this venture to maintain its viability if it is simply focused on one product, where as larger companies could attract more users by providing multiple opportunities under the same online platform.
At this time, I feel there is a need for better professional development opportunities in English Language, and with more focus, and the inclusion of web training specialists, this venture might prove worthwhile in the near future.
Thank you very much for your very useful and through feedback. You are right about the number of teachers; unfortunately I only managed to get certain statistics per country and still need to do the math and get figures from other places. Your observations regarding the specific market readiness timeline is also very important.
In terms of competition, our product complements rather than complements with the private market. The private market has well structured courses/books designed to teach very specific elements related to teaching and often designed/written by people with little or no classroom experience. The workshops on the site are from conferences where speakers range from being well-known authors and teachers with years of experience, to everyday teachers who want to share what they do in the classroom. Publishing companies and teacher training schools can complement rather than compete with the site, but I need to get this across in the presentation.
Thanks again. All your observations will help me improve the overall project very much. You have pointed out lots of things. Cheers ☺
Thank you for providing more clarity in regards to the overall project, much appreciated. As well, I remember there being mentioned a Journal? Would this be online, offline… follow the peer-editing model. I found this interesting, but forgot to mention it before.
Hello,
I do not think the level of tech used to create a pitch or plan impacts the message being sent.. You did a good job of getting your point across. Your slides very aesthetically pleasing and your facts did a good job of addressing the need for this product. I worked in Africa for a year and I saw the need for training and the lack of teacher education. This product would do great globally.
I did find that there were some missing components in your presentation overall. For example, I would suggest maybe appealing to your investor and directly stated what you would like (i.e. an investment).
Thanks for sharing. Your hard work is evident.
Nureen
Hi Adriana,
I appreciate your honesty and challenges with the technology; for me it did not detract from your pitch. I thought your elevator pitch did a good job at addressing the two of the three key components: problem and solution. Your venture pitch clearly showed the viability of your venture re assessment of your market, your position, your team and business model. I agree with Nureen’s feedback that your pitch could be strengthened by clearly stating your ask. I had no problems with the audio.
Sophia
In short Adriana, I found your pitch well articulated and concise. While it may not have featured all the production ‘sizzle’ you wanted, it delivers a substantial helping of EVA ‘steak’! Thank you for your hard work and for sharing such an original idea.
Hi Adi,
I enjoyed your elevator pitch. It is well organized and well pitched. I wish there was more information on the ask and return because that would’ve allowed me as an investor to get a better picture as to what I need to put in and what I can get in return.
Thanks for the well-presented pitch.
James
Hi Adriana,
I enjoyed both your pitches and found them informative. You identified clearly a market need and the target customers as well as a solution. Also I like your idea for generating revenue via sponsorship and advertising. Before investing as an EVA I would be interested to know more about whether this is feasible as a marketing strategy, i.e. that you can generate enough revenue from these sources to keep up an running.
Thanks,
Melissa
Hi Adriana
No matter how I tried I could could not view your elev
With the popularity of the internet and English being its main language you have a feasible venture.
Sorry for the previous incomplete pose. It was an accident.
Hi Adriana
No matter how I tried I could could not view your elevator pitch so my opinion is based on your venture pitch. With the popularity of the internet and English being its main language you have a feasible venture that can succeed.
Cheers
Patason
The Pitches Patason’s_Elevator_Pitch.wmv http://youtu.be/y0h7UmugwjM Patason’sVenture_pitch.mp4 http://youtu.be/xbwpeNLPC5E Reflection My idea for the product designed for this course began some years ago with the release of the ipad. It started when my colleague and good friend that sits next to me- a Macappresiendo complained about the new device that Steve Jobs was making and his dissatisfaction with […]
Continue reading The Pitches Patason’s_Elevator_Pitch.wm… Posted in: General, Venture Forum
Patason,
I choose to view your entire pitch because I was intrigued by the tablet notebook folding motion in your elevator pitch. I think you totally hit the mark in terms of using the media to portray your message in the pitches and the images you used were interesting and relevant. I also liked that you used reviews from various sources to increase your credibility.
You mentioned that there are who competitors have the ability to use the portal ability but only for certain types of phones. Is your competition also able to use the notepad/keyboard function? Even though it is patented, does something similar exist?
I am currently not an avid tablet user, although I use my smartphone all the time. To be able seamlessly move all of your information to a bigger screen with more flexibility is a huge advantage.
There was also a lot of information in your pitch regarding the growth of cell phone use. But since your venture is the tablet and its patented features, you may want to consider keeping the focus on how a tablet could be marketed to current smart phone users in the education field.
The only other suggestion I would have is giving more information about yourself and the development team. Your pitch was convincing and knowledgeable but if there were more details regarding your educational background and relevant work experience, you would gain credibility.
If I had a million dollars lying around, I would consider investing. Good job!
Thank you avninder.
Your Comments are valid and would certainly help my venture
Patason
An excellent venture concept considering the mLearning market is booming. I also like the ability of smartphone plugging into a tablet device – very novel ideal indeed.
As an investor, I would like to know more about you, your experience in this market and proposed marketing plan to recoup the investment of $1million.
Thanks Ranvir,
I was going to do some financial projection but left them out when I discovered we did not have to do any ‘money’ since my video was getting big and unwieldy.
Patason
Patason,
I love the idea of being able to turn a smart phone into a tablet. This device could be especially useful for schools wanting to employ a BYOD program, considering that a lot more students have smart phones on them than tablets, the school could purchase something like your product in bulk and have the kids use their smart phones in them.
part of my problem with doing work on my tablet is that I miss my keyboard, and this product would be a solution for me.
I would have liked to hear more about your marketing plan and where you would sell your product, and of course a little more about you and your background.
I felt a little hypnotized by the repetition of the animation of the product, but in a good way. It may have brain washed me into thinking that people would use it! good work,
MIKE
Thank you Mike,
Your point are all valid but rendering took longer than I planned and I had issues that I do not care to mention here that got in the way so I did not do as good a job as I had planned.
My target is education, business and emerging markets that will be serviced by our distributors as I imagined the company to be an O.E.M. Customers can still purchase directly via our website however. We will pay special attention to schools as we want our customers to be ‘hooked for life. So to this end we will have special deals with volume discounts for academic institutions.’
Within the next five years we expect that 40% of tablet owners and 30% of smart phone users will be using our product.
ME:- An educator with 25 years experience, For the last ten I was director of the educational technology unit of the ministry of education.
Tooooo Late 🙁
Hi Pat,
You have a great Idea here!
I think you have good know-how related to the business elements of this venture: the pain point: marketing, the Ask, the Return etc.
If you want to people to invest real money into this idea of yours, I suggest you do 2-things:
1) I would go and study successful spin-off products from popular technologies and study how they worked with OEM’s to develop their Spin-offs. If you can get the even 1 of the Tablet providers on board, this will go a long way for you in getting their support: they will share their design specs with you and you can potentially get exclusive rights to being their supplier if you can earn their trust – if they compete with you like Microsoft did with Netscape, you’ll be dead in the water before you start.
I would not spread myself too thin here; you’re better off creating a solid product for 1-technology platform, then something mediocre that suits several different ones. Even if you work with India’s $20 project, I think this venture will eventually pay off.
The key thing is to build a relationship with the OEM you want to support.
2) If you want to be the next Steve Jobs with this product, you’re going to have to find a couple of Wozniak’s who can design and deliver a solid product for you. I would search high and low for those guys and get them rolling ASAP. If you have a solid product, everything else will follow. To do that, you’ll need some Angel money from family and friends, line of credit etc ($100k) to fund the prototype in the first year. If you have the right guys, I think it’s a risk worth taking.
Great idea and Good Luck!
Thanks for your suggestions Frank.
You make me feel as if am ready for the big times.
Patason
Great presentation and very thorough. I loved the animation with your presentation. There is a children’s toy that let’s you connect a smart phone (I think iPhone) to it to access more information. I thought of it when I saw your presentation. It is similar to your idea, where the resources of the phone are being drawn-upon to make the original device more powerful and provide more features. You can take a look here: http://itikes.com/. It would make sense that this is something that would be useful for adults too. Nice work.
Thank you Ken
Hi Pat,
I agree, great idea! I think your product would be very marketable and you have identified the student target group that would be a very interested in this product. Your elevator pitch and presentation are very impressive. I would invest in your product! BRAVO.
Catherine 🙂
Thank you Catherine
You had me at adapter, Patason! I do think that mobile computing is certainly the wave of the future, especially having gone through my own hardware woes during my travels. I have had to learn about many different ways to communicate, collaborate and work, through necessity over interest. You product has me extremely excited about the future of this technolgy.
Your elevator pitch was very thorough, containing lots of valuable information, including research backup, flaws in currently available devices, and description of your new product. (I think the biggest thing for me was unlimited power supply! Well done there!!) Your venture pitch naturally brought in more specific information, including relevant facts and figures outlining the market share, which I found helpful in evaluating the importance of such a product.
My only question relates to the adapters. Will they indeed be able to accommodate every type of mobile phone, or those that are touch screen technology only. (Only touch screens are shown in the animation, but “all phones” is mentioned several times in the pitch.) Will even the old flip phone work here? I suspect that most mobile owners will have the latest, but undoubtedly there will still be students who cannot afford that level of technology. That is not a primary concern for your product however, but may be a question asked by an administration who is determining whether or not to integrate it into the educational system.
Overall, I was very impressed with the product! It reminds me of the Microsoft Surface they keep advertising here in the UK, but your adapter technology (and unlimited power supply) are what make it unique and pioneering. If I had the money, I would back you tomorrow!
Thank you Jennifer,
The technology is for smartphone because they share the same technology with tablets so it easy to make a portal to convert a smartphone to a tablet. To do this with a feature phone would be a more expensive and less profitable affair.
Cheers
Patason
Indeed, at its core this is an original idea which shows potential.
As a CEO Patason, you seem very knowledgeable and passionate about your product, which is a critical strength. I am also quite impressed by your team as presented in your written reflection – thank you by the way, for sharing a well written summary of your venture.
Where I begin to have reservations about the idea is with its concept and marketability. The concept of a folding ‘dock’ is novel and addresses many of the pain points of mobile technology as you note, however at least two concerns immediately come to my mind:
Firstly, your case, takes away to a certain degree, from the ultra portability and desecrate size of tablets and smartphones. I love my phone because I can take it anywhere and use it with one hand. I love my tablet because I can cozy up with it in my lap to read and type. After Jon Ive struggles with the form factor for a device for years and sources durable materials to construct it with, I’m just not inclined to add an extra case to it.
Secondly, how does the hardware you add, particularly the stylus integrate with existing apps? Can I still use Evernote, GoodReader and the other apps I enjoy, as I always have?
In terms of marketability, you have some solid references to support your products need, however some of the charts in your venture pitch were a bit dated – one from 2010 which notes that RIM’s market share is near what Apple’s is, which of course is no longer the case.
Finally, I am left feeling somewhat uncertain of what I am getting for my 1 million dollar investment – how will the money be used (though numbers were not an explicit component of our projects).
I hope I am not being overly critical here, but in my mind, the concept and plan need some clarification and review before I could consider investing.
Hi Scott,
I love your thoroughness because this approach will bring the best out of any product you look at. As for the case it is valid concern but the main idea here is that you have to weigh the protection factor, creative affordances and unlimited battery life against form factor. Students will overlook the latter because the others will make the difference in their education. Considering that this is all you would need for school it is not an unreasonable assumption. The stylus is compatible with the current crop of drawing software.
Cheers
Patason
Hi Patason,
I appreciated the enthusiasm you showed in your venture and although you attack a pain point regarding the limitations of a smartphone by adding additional affordances, I just felt as though you were adding bulk to a perfectly working device for its function. If I want a tablet, I’ll buy a tablet while as if I want a smartphone, I’ll buy a smartphone. I don’t see much reason for buying a smartphone and then having to carry around the additional bulk that will likely not see much use. I’d rather carry around a VGA adapter, HDMI adapter or make use of an Apple TV along with a bluetooth keyboard when the need for projecting my screen’s content to a larger screen arises. The built-in Airplay functionality of an iPhone tackles much of what you propose and with a charger cable, there is unlimited battery power for using your device in this way. Still, your passion and motivation were evident and although it is an interesting proposition, I would likely look to invest elsewhere as I’m not convinced that it’s a feasible product.
Hi Patrick,
Thank you for your suggestions. It is clear that the creative product line is not for you. However you must remember that students are one of the main target groups of my products and they will have to weigh the tradeoff between added bulk and creative tools with unlimited battery life. From your scenario we have to remember that there will be times in the field when a plug is not available and the creative package is less bulky than an apple TV plus a keyboard. Finally not everyone lives by the all things apple mantra.
Cheers
Patason
Hi all, I chose an existing venture, Knewton, to build my role-playing elevator and venture pitches on. Please have a look and let me know what you think! ETEC 522 Assignment 3 Venture Pitch: Knewton Thanks! James Update: Sorry for not including my elevator pitch here on my initial posting. Here is my elevator […]
Continue reading Assignment 3 Venture Pitch: Knewton Posted in: Venture Forum
Hi James,
Although I think you have a great marketing idea here, suggesting you bring Knewton to BC schools, I don’t see a new venture idea. In my opinion, you are using Knewton’s pre-existing venture but haven’t done a “makeover” to take it in a completely new direction. Perhaps I am missing something but when I went to the Knewton site I couldn’t see any difference between your product and theirs. Your website was well designed and easy to follow. I liked how you set up the sub-headings, addressing the many facets necessary in a pitch. Given that this was a fictional assignment, I might have added some fictional names and beefed up backgrounds to your management team. This would have given your venture more credibility.
Thanks for sharing, Jen
Hi Jen,
Thank you for your evaluation of my pitches. I felt that Knewton was already a well-established company going in the right direction (i.e. partnering with major publishers and doing trials with large universities), so my take on this assignment was to try to help potential investors see that there is a need in the public sector for Knewton’s Adaptive Learning technology and that such an investment will provide investors with a lucrative return.
Thank you for pointing out what I need to be aware of from the pitches I have made. I will keep your suggestions in mind when future pitching opportunities arise.
James
I watched your elevator pitch and think that the “two minutes” comment was a good way to hook the viewer. For me to be excited about the venture, I think it would be helpful if there was more enthusiasm portrayed. I am guilty of not seeming very passionate in my own pitch, but I can see how it would make a big difference to a potential investor.
Hi Avinder,
Thanks for your feedback! I too feel that my lack of enthusiasm would deter potential investors from investing. Perhaps having a red-bull before doing an elevator pitch late at night wouldn’t be such a bad idea after all…
🙂
James
Hi there James,
I agree with Jen in that it’s not clear as to what the new direction is that you’re taking the software in? Also, with regards to return, it’s a little unclear as to how they will see a return on their investment beyond the philanthropic route. Otherwise very thorough and polished.
Hi Joel,
Actually, when I started this assignment I found it a bit of a challenge to think of something that would steer Knewton in a new direction because I felt that they were already doing very well. But then I thought that if Knewton can establish itself in the public sector early as THE platform for personalized online learning then there could be potential to make good profit because currently no other companies can offer what Knewton has to public school students. Public schools need to rely on teachers/IEPs to provide personalized learning content for students, and most teachers are overstressed with the workload they already have.
Regarding the return, I did not write how investors will get their money back in the venture pitch because I do not know the routes that are available for investors to take. I also have no idea about the numbers needed to calculate how long it would take for investors to get their money back. Perhaps another look at how to devise exit strategies would shed some light. From this perspective, “success” for implementing Knewton’s technology in public schools would mean having established Knewton infrastructures for personalized online learning across major cities in Canada. When this happens, Knewton can sell their Canadian public school infrastructure to companies such as BlackBoard or SMART Technology (ones that are already established in the public sector). Hope that makes sense 🙂
And thank you, Joel, for pointing out the points my pitch did not address satisfactorily. I will keep them in mind for future references.
James
Hi James —
Good presentation. You got right to the point. It seems like a solid proposition although as an investor I’m curious as to how your company will differ from the competition. I think it might be beneficial to highlight one or two of the big differences that your take on Knewton would be different. Nice site to complement a good video pitch otherwise!
Hi Jonathan,
The differentiation of my pitch is that Knewton’s technology is the only one I know of on the market that can help teachers in their teaching by recommending content for remediation AND be incorporated into 3rd party learning platforms if one already exists. BlackBoard Analytics for Learn, for example, only analyzes user information. It does not let students know the fundamental concepts they are having trouble with and recommend the content that would address these challenges. I am, however, not sure if BB’s analytic technology can be incorporated into 3rd party platforms and so have assumed that it cannot, so in a real pitch this would need to be addressed by contacting BB directly.
In any case, thanks for letting me know of your concern, Jonathan. Much appreciated!
James
Hi James,
You pain point is outstanding in that it showed that you did your research; you pointed out the relevant percentages of the current learning and teaching situation in BC, so investors can see quite clear why Knewton is needed. However, I agree with the comments above that the return is not clear, (I think this is the most important part that investors want to know) and the credibility of your team is not that convincing.
Too bad that we can’t hear you well in the elevator pitch, However I think I can hear the passion you have for Knewton in your voice 🙂
Hi Paula,
Thanks for your comments! I think you made a very good point about the return being the most important part that investors would want to know before making an investment decision. As I’ve mentioned in my above response to Joel, there is some information I need to gather before I can come up with an acceptable plan regarding the return.
Regarding the credibility of my team, yes, what I have on my venture pitch is not enough to exude credibility of carrying out the plan. My notion is that since my pitch has been based on a role-playing approach, in a real venture pitch the people suitable for those positions will be identified before pitching my idea to investors.
Thanks for letting me know your thoughts!
James
Hey James,
My laptop has bad audio and with the elevator pitch it wasnt a great combo. thanks for the subtitles though. I agree with your pain point and it is one that needs to be addressed, perhaps knewton would be a good alternative to the status quo, but I don’t see the new idea. As a potential venture capitalist, I want something that jumps out from your product that maybe knewton doesn’t do or is lacking in.
thanks for the pitch!
MIKE
Thanks for your comments, Mike!
Hi James,
Your website is very attractive, and very easy to navigate. You have identified the problem and how Knewton could be a viable solution to better teaching and learning in BC schools. I agree you have identified the competition but why is Knewton a better product. You have taken this existing enterprise can you share how you are launching it differently as the new CEO? I am thinking you are improving the marketing and selling of the learning Platform!.
Catherine
Hi Catherine,
I tried to create a situation where the people with a limited budget can save money in the long run by investing in Knewton’s technology. My take is that by using what Knewton (the real company) already has and pitching for investment in the Canadian public school sector, the establishment of the company’s presence there will allow investors to make money from government funding.
If I were to launch the product from scratch, I would not do it differently from what Knewton has already done – by offering free trials of its technology to large universities and then using the user feedback to promote its product to large publishers, because publishers need schools to buy their product in order to make money.
Hope that answers your questions, and thank you for your input!
James
Hi James,
I like how you laid out your site; it’s beautiful 🙂
As others have mentioned, you’ve done a good job talking about the pain point, marketability and the solution.
And, I think for investors to get excited about giving you money, they will want to have a better handle on venture plan and the returns/exist strategy associated with it. Regarding the latter, I’d be careful about pitching your idea as a means to make money from government funding. Any government rep will immediately shut you down if they see that they could be implicated in a scandal in which public money was seen to be funneled into the hands of private investors. In this case, greed is not good.
Hi Frank,
I hadn’t thought about how pitching an idea to make money from government funding would have such negative effects. Thanks for letting me know this important point! I will be sure to frame my pitches so that potential investors know exactly how the money will be used by the company.
Thanks,
James
Hi James,
First off, what a lovely site. It was extremely clean, uncomplicated, and easy to navigate, which for some strange reason is often hard to find nowadays! I applaud your design.
I found two subpages of your site particularly interesting: Pain Point and Competition. It was very clear that you did your research to come up with the numbers and narrative explaining the importance of a product such as Knewton. The Competition page was an EXCELLENT resource that I very well may bookmark for future reference. You can see the effort you put in to express the knowledge you have of the market here.
I understand that Knewton is not a new venture, nor are you taking it in any particularly “new” direction. It is hard to reinvent a well working wheel, isn’t it?! I do applaud your effort to explain the importance and value of the program as it currently exists however. I would have liked to have seen a more well-developed Championship page (even if it meant creating something just for the sake of the project). Championship is often very key to investors; a more well developed page would make the proposal much more effective.
Overall, I think you did a good idea showing us the benefit of Knewton; it would have been interesting to see it taken to a new level, though even I have no idea where to go from here! Good work.
Hi Jennifer,
Thanks for your feedback! I think my pitches did not do a good job of explaining the differences between what Knewton already has and what I will do differently if I were the CEO of the company. Perhaps this explains why I am not the CEO of Knewton… 🙂 In any case, I agree with your point about further developing the Championship page because why would investors invest in a company run by people TBD? I will keep these in mind for future reference.
Thanks again,
James
Hi all, Here is my first attempt at creating my own online hypothetical venture. It was quite the process, but it was well worth the journey. Basically my venture, Mentoring Me, is an online mentorship program that follows the structure of an online dating site. Please have a look and tell me what you think. […]
Continue reading Mentoring Me Posted in: Venture Forum
Hi Rebecca,
I really like your Venture idea. I think you have clearly addressed the pain point and solution. The fact that you present mentees with a real life mentor and do this through a “dating” like format gives you differentiation, or a cutting edge. I felt your marketing ideas were solid. As someone who has been directly involved in setting up mentoring at the district level, I know it can be very costly. When our district releases many beginning teachers for a morning mentoring session, the amount that they pay out to TOC’s to cover is high. I think your idea could save districts a lot of money. On a side note, how might you choose your mentors? Would there be an application process? How would you guarantee quality mentors? Would they be paid or volunteers? Overall, I think both your pitches met the necessary facets required. Great work, Jen
Good questions. I’m not so sure about choice of mentors, but was thinking that those who are active participants (based on data), may be provided with a day in lieu, or some other form of recognition.
Hi Rebecca,
Being a teacher in B.C. and being able to relate directly to your project idea I was quite taken with it. The concept and elevator are logical and comprehensive. I wonder how marketable it would be to either the government or different districts?
Big thumbs up for the idea Rebecca,
Felt like you were speaking to real needs of a new teacher. I’ve always liked the idea of a mentorship program and have felt the need for a service like this. I know that my district offers it on a one year basis to new teachers but it takes many years of mentorship, practice and training for a teacher to be able. To add to Jen’s points about finding qualified and quality mentors how would this company retain a subscription service of a user?
I’m imagining that a match has been made for the user ($50 charged in the first year). Once that connection has been made there is no more use for the site? Does the site get discarded?
Love the idea though.. a lot!
Great work,
Jonathan
Great concept Rebecca. This venture provides opportunities for teachers from K-post secondary to have mentors inside or outside their school or institute. I also see the market beyond education for anyone in any sector needing a mentor.
Doug.
To facilitate and objectively review the venture pitch you have put forward, I will be utilizing the guidelines provided within our course, Section 2.7 – Deconstructing a Pitch.
CEO & Team:
The CEO of Mentoring Me, recognizes their limited experience as a classroom teacher, which in most cases might be a determinant to any venture, actually is a strength. For their experiences as a new teacher, requiring effective mentoring in many aspects of teaching shows the potential for such a service in the field of education. Furthermore, the team is strengthened by the partnership, with an individual who has a Computer Science background, a necessary element to design, and deploy the required infrastructure to make this venture successful. One key member of the team, which was mentioned by the CEO as currently absent, is the involvement of a marketing specialist, which would be able to effectively position this venture for success.
Venture Concept:
Education long ago, discovered the importance of mentoring, not only for new teachers but for the more experienced ones as well, for the sharing of ideas and energy strengthens everyone throughout the process. What Mentoring Me does different, is takes this relationship online, through a dating service like platform, to provide meaningful mentorship opportunities, regardless of time or space. On the surface, this approach does appear to be feasible, and demonstrates an answer to a potential issue. However, further research would need to be conducted, to demonstrate that this platform would enhance current mentorship programs.
Marketability:
Even though the market size for this service is not provided, and right now, are only focusing on new/younger teachers, it is clear that this service can be used by all teachers to enhance their skills and understanding of various topics, thereby creating an effective professional development resource, based upon small groups, and common interests. Furthermore, this venture recognizes that teachers in remote locations, or within small buildings have limited opportunities to receive mentoring, and that this service would alleviate this concerns. At this time, Mentoring Me is an innovative approach on mentoring, as it has taken a dating style format and applied it to matching people for mentor relationships. As well, they hope to enhance this service through communication tools, reduced costs, and training videos. Unfortunately, this service could be easily duplicated, especially by existing dating sites, wishing to expand their into new untapped markets. Therefore, it may be essential to create partnerships with an already existing venture, to ensure continued success.
Venture Plan:
Mentoring Me, has developed a specific plan of rolling out their services, which include periods of reassessment to ensure their approach is meeting the goals they have set forward, clearly demonstrating a strong vision for their product.
At this time though, I am concerned that districts or even individual teachers would “buy” into this service, as many educational institutions have developed their own mentorship programs, which focus on what the district feels is essential. However, by potentially partnering up with an existing dating service (to gain access to their back end software, to create effective matches), and refocus this service to all teachers for potential PLC’s, I feel there is an opportunity here.
Great points Tom and some stuff to consider. A partnership might be a great way to ensure viability and sustainability.
Furthermore, I have been discussing around my school the possibilities of this venture, it has received positive comments from each.
I think yours was an innovative approach at a relevant issue, using already established technology in a new way.
Thanks for sharing your great idea.
Hi,
I think you did a great job of conveying the need of this product. You covered all components of what is needed in a successful market plan and addressed any concerns a potential investor may have. You were confident and clear when you spoke and your enthusiasm made your message stronger.
I think this is a great idea and after watching your pitches I would definitely invest in this product.
I really liked how you started off by pointing out that you are new teacher who struggled because this shows that you based this product on a need that you yourself have felt. I felt this made your argument more compelling.
Great job. Thank you so much for sharing.
Nureen
Hi Rebecca,
Your elevator pitch has a good flow, and I think your pain point would need more emphasis on the hook to really grab my attention as an investor. A provision of tangible figures for the ask and return here would also increase credibility. I really like the idea of an online mentoring program compared to what the districts currently have for beginning teachers.
Here is my analysis on your venture pitch using the guidelines found in section 2.7 of our course blog – Deconstructing a pitch:
Mentoring Me: The Content
Pain Point: I am unsure if the problem portrayed in the pitch is a problem big enough to yield profitable returns, because my assumption is that these uncertainties would eventually be clarified as the new teacher gets to know more of the fellow staff members and becomes integrated into the existing community at the school where she teaches. Nevertheless, from the perspective of a TOC high anxiety levels are hard to avoid and would therefore create a need for such online mentoring programs.
Solution: The solution you presented will improve with more concrete examples. How will the teachers be paired with more experienced teachers? Exactly what will the mentoring program help new teachers overcome? Addressing these questions would paint a better picture of your product for the investors.
You do provide information about how the solution will be implemented later on in the pitch at the part about teacher training under Marketing as well as the beginning part of Differentiation. Moving those parts here would be more fitting.
Differentiation: In the video, your differentiation explains what is proprietary about your product. Your pitch would improve if it explains how the product differs from the competition. What does your product offer that current mentorship programs do not? To answer this, you would need to explain what is currently available, what your product offers that is unavailable under the current programs, and why customers would choose to pay for your service over the free ones offered by school districts.
Marketing: At the beginning of your venture pitch, you paint a very clear picture about how your product will be marketed. The provision of price tags for the service also adds to this. Later on in the video under Differentiation when you elaborate about marketing, a technical side note here is that the fading in feature of the volume at 4:28 made the topic “Marketing” hard to hear. This caused me to be unsure of what your following explanation is about, because you have combined the marketing aspect of your pitch into differentiation. As an EVA, I would suggest separating these parts so that investors can be clear about how your product is different from its online competitors and the marketing strategy you’ll be using.
Championship: Credentials of the venture’s leader is established, but a provision of positions that are necessary to bring the product into the market is not found.
Competition: This section is combined with Marketing under Differentiation in the pitch.
The Ask: Your ask of $100,000 is realistic, and you also provide information on how your investors can help improve the venture as well as the risks that are involved.
The Return: The return is 2-3 years. Additional information on your exit strategy would add to the credibility of your pitch.
In all, I think your venture pitch was well presented. You put in a lot of thought on how you would market the product which helps make the venture pitch into a viable investment.
Thanks,
James
Great idea piggy backing on the success of the online dating websites! I’m chuckling at how savvy that was. That’s a fantastic proposal! Your presentation was very natural – it didn’t appear overly rehearsed at all. And your personal belief in this idea came through in your vocalizations. I appreciate that your venture contains a balance of gains for everybody involved learning and mentoring… the older teachers with new ideas/ a refresher in research and the youngsters with well established/seasoned professionals. I was instantly attracted to choose your venture for a more detailed analysis because I can relate so well to the pain point. But I am involved in education and in our district’s mentoring programs. I couldn’t help but wonder if other’s outside of our professional body really see the problems? Your venture was well researched but specific numbers would have gone a long way to support some of your details. I loved how you used a pre-existing concept, with massive technical parallels to your venture. And bringing in the usage of pro-d funds to pay for the 60 dollar yearly fee is reasonable. I’m not sure what you think, but maybe there should be a cost differential to attract more mentors. It was also great that you identified the professionals that you would target – those in isolation. And it struck me, that even in large schools a lot of new educators still work in isolation because of the workload they have to shoulder. The market analysis was well done and I would undoubtedly support this venture.
Job well done Rebecca.
PC
Rebecca, in my opinion, this is a solid venture idea and pair of pitches – you had me at ‘dating website’!
Beyond the wealth of suggestions already written here, I might simply add that you should consider expanding on the dating concept of the venture just a bit more in your elevator pitch. With 60sec. of available time, why not spend another 15sec adding in a sentence or two from your venture pitch, to really sell this very original and key feature of your service.
Bravo,
Scott.
Hi Rebecca,
Great elevator pitch. You identify a real pain point and a real solution as well as manage to identify how it differentiates itself from other current offerings. Overall it makes me what to find out more and go listen to your venture pitch.
The venture pitch is also very well though out and researched. You seem an enthusiastic founder and team member who clearly believes in the service/product. A great start for any venture. You use a successful business model already proven in one context in a new and different context as the base of the venture concept. This is interesting and I believe adds to the likelihood of its success and uptake – users can quickly and easily understand what you are trying to do (as can potential investors).
Seeing the responses from others already to your venture proposals this is potentially a highly marketable product at a fair and affordable price. There is a clear market plan and road map and the investment required and expected returns are also clearly stated and seem reasonable.
Overall great work and this is definitely something I would consider investigating further to invest in as an EVA.
Thanks,
Melissa
Hi Rebecca,
Great venture. You were very thorough and convincing.
Cheers
Patason
Hi Rebecca,
Love the idea of piggy backing on the dating site concept. Your pitches clearly outlined the pain points, solution and the ask and return. I believe that this is a worthwhile and viable concept. Well done.
Sophia
The social services is rich and rewarding environment to work in but one that is often slow to adopt technology. The adoption community of families, social workers, and other professionals is no different. Yet, this is a sector that provides a lot of education for its constituents. Adoption education is mandated by law for families […]
Continue reading AEP-Online Posted in: Venture Forum
I am unable to view your pitches as there are “private” in YouTube. thx
Avninder, my apologies. They are now public.
Hi sophiabb,
I viewed your elevator pitch and I think your concept is great. I never knew that there was a educational component to adoption. Potential parents not completing the requirements in a timely manner can have many negative consequences as you pointed out. Good luck if this is something that you will pursue.
Thanks Avninder.
Hi Sophia
I believe your venture is very unique, interesting, and viable. It will help save time and cost for your organization, you will not have to spend money for organizing the workshops. Your buyers will also save time from attending the face to face workshops, just attend it online. Very good idea!
I clicked your venture pitch to find out more details because I am interested in your venture. Basically I got the info I wanted like the marketing, the team, the competitors etc. But I’m wondering how come your venture pitch is only 59 secs long. Did you provide the wrong one? Is it supposed to be 7-8 mins long?
Hi Paula, I did provide the wrong one – without audio. I have provided the link to the correct one but have left the other link up, because that was posted by the due date. Thanks for the interest in my venture and your feedback.
Hi Sophia, I thought your elevator pitch was great and it sounds like there is a real pain point there. Too bad I couldn’t see your full venture pitch though (no audio and only 59 seconds)
MIKE
looking forward to seeing it though
Hi Mike the correct link is now up. Thanks for your feedback.
Hi Sophia,
Your venture pitch is very interesting. I didn’t realize there was such a problem in the adoption process and that there was a mandatory educational component. I was under the impression that adoptive parents were waiting patiently for adoptions to come up but your information is telling us otherwise. Your solution to this problem sounds very viable, your team is credible and your marketing strategy is strong. Being the first online program will give you a competitive edge and create better access for the consumer. Will your revenue be generated through families paying for the course or through companies that will use your services, or both?
Well done.
Catherine
Hi Catherine,
Thanks for your feedback. At this time we are thinking of both. Families paying – cost will match the face-to-face at launch as well as partners paying for our service.
Hi Sophia!
What a unique find in the venture presentations! I think when most people think education, typical classroom lessons come to mind, whether they be K-12 or adult education. To see a project in action which placed it in broader terms of requirements for something so unique and special as adoption was quite refreshing!
The elevator pitch really brought the pain point across about affording more access to the educational piece required for these families to adopt. It is painful to see children waiting for families, especially when something as trivial as access to the education stands in a potential family’s way. I do believe that your product would serve to remedy that issue and bring many more children home to families who desperately want them.
The team all seem to be quite qualified with experience in both the educational and social services fields. I was very impressed and touched that a member of the team is an adoptive parent. There is nothing like first hand knowledge of these situations. I also felt, as a potential investor, somewhat secure knowing that the government guarantees a rate of return if social outcomes are met.
I would also like to know how the revenue would work going forward. Would your service be something included in the general adoption fees? (Would your course be compensated as the face to face courses are now?)
Well done!
Hi Jennifer,
At this time are not thinking of including the price in the general adoption fee – which can range from a few hundred dollars for local adoptions and as much as $60,000 for international. We are seeing this as at the price for the face-to-face is at about $750 per person.
Hi Sophia,
I appreciated the research and presentation of the pain point. I can see how this venture would be beneficial for adopting parents but in terms of an investment, I don’t see how I could get my money back through the limited market that would benefit from its implementation. I get the feeling that this would need to be pitched more towards a government grant than a typical investment venture. Still, I was very captivated by the efforts you are making to attack a very essential pain point felt by people in this situation. Thank you for sharing!!
Thanks for your feedback Patrick.
Hi Sophia,
This is a great niche market opportunity.
You build your pain point out of a legislative demand and a market need that is currently frustrated and not adequately met via traditional methods.
I can see how the accessibility and scalability of your business will give it a competitive advantage over the current alternatives.
I think your venture concept is original and feasible and has credibility to help it gain leverage and support over time.
You have potential partners and sponsors ready to go, great!
I don’t think marketing will be an issue, as long as the users are happy with your product.
In that regard, I recommend you conduct talks with stakeholders and hold focus groups with past participants to really understand their needs pain points.
In terms of the business model and venture plan, I recommend you do not do the NPO thing, and instead vie for a standard business model or a social venture. As far as the impact of the business itself is concerned, I think any model you use will have both an economic and a social impact. This idea saves clients money, while making adoption easier and it can still make money as a business and with its exit strategy, should you ever choose to use that. An NPO will wash out the latter two benefits for you.
I’m ready to Invest.
In fact, I’m ready to work with you if you need an intrepid business analyst/developer.
GL!
Thanks Frank. I will give some thought to your suggestions.
Ken Write is a fictitious bluetooth device that allows multiple users to collaborate in real time with a SMART Board from their desk. It offers Multi-touch and multi-user collaboration which promotes inclusion and engagement. Here you will find my Venture Pitch: Reflection: I must admit that this is one of the assignments that I have […]
Continue reading Ken Write Posted in: Venture Forum
Hi Ken,
I really like your Ken Write venture and thought that you did a great job in putting together a professional elevator pitch. As well, I think the concept behind such a product could have a lot of potential and wonder if this is something you are actually going to (or already are) pursuing?
Julie
Thank you Julie. I think it is a great concept. I am not sure about the technical aspects of it though. I know that there are bluetooth dongles that can support 7 devices, I am not sure if the technology for more users and multi-touch is actually available at this time or not. I could see issues with lag if there were too many people at one time trying to use the problem. I guess that is where someone that is capable of building the product would have to answer.
Ken
Hi Ken,
Great job on your elevator and venture pitch! In your elevator pitch, I got a sense of who you were and what you were pitching. As well, you had an “Ask”. I think that there is a need for this product because of the reasons you have stated. Too many times I have seen only one or two students come to a SMART board to work on a problem or answer a question while the rest of the class sit there watching, not engaged. Good idea to use Bluetooth to connect SMART boards to individual devices. I am assuming that “Ken Write” can be used on other interactive whiteboards as well. Or is this just a SMART board product?
Here is some constructive feedback on your venture pitch:
• I liked that you had a “Ken Write” logo and website (that’s something that I did not do myself).
• The Prezi was easy to follow and included videos.
o Instead of the links to the Inclusion report by McKay or the SMART board information, I think you should have maybe done a summary of these facts.
• You included the pain point – 2 million SMART boards in use with limited abilities for multiple users and network issues (WiFi or restricted WiFi).
• You included the solution – “Ken Write” a Bluetooth device which allows for multi-use, multi-touch, and collaboration.
• You did include the competition, but I think you could have stated why your product was better than these other products. You may have wanted to do a little blurb at the end of your “What are Some Other Options” section to state this.
• Marketing – You did state the market size for SMART boards (2 million boards with 6 million users in 175 countries), but I would have also liked to know how the buyers were going to be reached. PR, ads, commercials, social media, etc…
o As well, who will your major market push be towards?
o Will you target schools or school districts that have established BYOD programs? I know that in my school district we have SMART boards, but I don’t think any of the schools are utilizing mobile devices; therefore, I’m not sure my district would invest in “Ken Write”.
• Will students be able to project any of the work they do on their mobile devices onto the SMART board screen using “Ken Write” or is it just to get whatever is on the SMART board onto their devices?
• I’m not sure if I got a strong sense of the strengths and weaknesses of “Ken Write”. What are some of the issues that may arise?
You did a great job on your elevator and venture pitch. Depending on who you were targeting, I could see a need for this product.
Lisa
Thank you for your feedback. You are right, providing a summary of the reports might have been beneficial for an EVA. I was worried that an EVA might not be in Education but rather an investor and they might not want to hear about the reports but know that they the push was there. As I admit in my reflection, I am not a business person, so when you mention some points and even after I started looking at other venture pitches I do see areas where I could have made my case stronger. Thank you for the feedback. I appreciate the constructive criticism.
Ken
Hi Ken,
After watching other people’s pitches, I also saw where I could have done better. I didn’t do a very good job at the ask and return. Also, like you, many people added a logo or showed their product which I didn’t do. I also found this assignment quite challenging, but after reviewing everyone’s work this week, feel I actually have learned from this experience. Good luck next semester.
Lisa
Love it – great idea, I would definitely engage with you to discuss funding.
One of the best prezis I have seen. I have more questions but all are a positive and exciting reflection of your idea and a want to explore more.
A major question I would ask would be how do you limit the confusion on the smart board if everyone was engaging with it, all at the same time. Also the health implications of having so many bluetooth connections in one room. But these are further exploring questions – you have already gotten my attention for investment.
Nicely done –
Stuart
Thank you Stuart. I am not sure what the health implications would be. I think that the Bluetooth signals being sent are all around us most of the time anyway. In a regular school, mall, or home there is Wi-Fi and bluetooth being used all the time. Maybe it would be an issue in a such a confined space. Great question, because I hadn’t even considered that. Your point about confusion at the board is also valid. One way to do this would be to have a user tag hover above the cursor, such as is done in a Google Doc. At least this way it could be seen by all who has making changes or accessing the screen.
I think having a team working on this would help raise questions such as these before trying to take the idea to investors. I appreciate the feedback.
Ken
Thanks for the interesting pitches Ken. I was quite intrigued and your passion for your product came through – good points for CO credibility. Very nice production values, especially with your venture pitch. It’s clear you’ve worked through the key details of your venture. I liked that your elevator pitch focused on a few key aspects, notably identifying the pain point and the solution. I have some questions about the viability of parts of the solution – how would it work to have a classroom full of children simultaneously collaborating via their personal device on one smart board and the technical realities of that. However I’m willing, during only 12 weeks of development time, to give some leeway to some specifics and actual viability.
I liked your information on marketing and your advantage and distinctions from the competition. You provided the ask but not the return, but David had mentioned some forebearance with money aspects.
So despite some minor reservations about the product, I liked your pitches. I’ve some other pitches to ponder, but I did enjoy your venture.
Hi Ken,
Your pitches were very clear and concise. The Ken write is a product that seem viable in the educational market. My only concern as an investor was the reliance on bluetooth versus Wifi. It seems as though your venture emphasized the advantages of having global collaboration via smart boards but didn’t quite explain what this feature that already exists ties in with your product. I like the fact that all the students are engaged with your device as a student is working on the whiteboard. If students are connected to the whiteboard via bluetooth, can you have multiple users on at the same time? There are a few things that need to be ironed out but overall, I enjoyed the pitch and would consider investing.
I think that this is a great idea and a great product! Both of your pitches are highly engaging and informative. You were able to gain my attention initially through the elevator pitch, which made me want to read the venture pitch.
Your venture pitch does a good job of stating the pain point of inclusive education and how your device will help provide a solution. With current trends in education pushing inclusive education, I think that your device is very marketable. I think that I would have liked to know more about how your device compares with others in the market and what makes yours superior to the others. I also do wonder which part of your CEO team would take care of the marketing aspect of the company. It seems as though you have plenty of experience to cover the educational aspect and the applicability, but the marketing and selling may be a little more difficult. I also appreciated that you provided an ‘ask’ and informed me what you would do with that investment and what your future plans are for the company.
Overall, I really liked the concept and the pitches. I would invest in this device because I think that there is a definite market and demand for such a technology.
Jhodi
Hi All, I am pleased to present my elevator pitch and venture pitch on my fictitious product of Wizard Portfolio. It is a e-portfolio platform that is part of Microsoft Office 265 SharePoint. This is a for-profit venture and I hope you enjoy both the elevator and venture pitch. Thanks for any feedback. I have […]
Continue reading Wizard Portfolio Posted in: Venture Forum
Hi Lisa,
Great work with your Wizard Portfolio venture. Your pitches were visually easy to follow and your script had all the necessary elements. Personally, I like the comfort of knowing that people still use Powerpoint.
In response to a few statements made about e-portfolios and the proper storage of artefacts: I know of many schools with working portfolio programs, that still rely on paper copy portfolios for student work. Especially in the lower grades when many of the skills students need and the work they do is not necessarily done on a computer.
I realize that taking photographs of student work and storing them in an e-portfolio is the way to start that process (Grades 1-3) but to state that there are no organized portfolio systems available could be misleading. Starting your ‘pain point’ requirement with this point may also need revision.
For me, the real pain point with portfolios is the fact that, as an educator, I really don’t know if universities and employers are even looking at these portfolios. In fact, I know many are not. I’m all for storing and organizing a portfolio of work, but i’m just wondering how beneficial a Grade 7 English essay or a piece of artwork from Grade 11 will be in an interview, etc. Perhaps i’m off base with that though.
During the presentation I felt I wanted to see the eportfolio in action. Perhaps a few screen shots or videos of kids actually using the service (or a similar service would add to the presentation as a whole.
As well, while talking about marketing to schools and districts who weren’t using e-portfolio services i was wondering how you would go about doing that? Would it be ‘cold-calling’ individual schools to see if they do in fact need or want an eportfolio service brought in? That had me thinking a bit.
Your ‘weaknesses’ slide was also a little redundant, as you mention that this service would require computers. I would imagine, however, that this is an obvious requirement that could even be left out of the presentation. If a school or company had no access to computers, i’m sure the last thing they would be looking for is an eportfolio service.
Your point about working offline and some other strengths of the service were great. As well, Mr. Great Guy and Ms. Awesome sounded quite generous…can i get their number?
The last little critique i can offer is through your ‘financing’ page, and the point you make about ‘seeking more funding’. It just sounds a little too vague. Is there a number in mind that Wizard would need in order to provide service?
Lisa, you’ve obviously done a great job, and the constructive critiques I have hopefully have been just that, constructive. Your clean, polished presentation offers a great service that definitely fills a need…especially as more and more students begin to go ‘paperless’ in their work at school.
Thanks for your efforts! I enjoyed learning more about Wizard Portfolio.
Kent
Hi Kent,
Thank you for your feedback. If you like PowerPoint, check out Slide Rocket – http://www.sliderocket.com/ (free) or Presenter Media – http://www.presentermedia.com/ (has a fee).
In my school district, we are going towards no final exams for middle school students and instead towards “Presentations of Learning”. I wasn’t quite sure how to spin that very well, but I thought that storing the student’s work and having a way to showcase what they did would be the answer. As well, my district is big into the “Attributes of a Learner” (essentially 21st Century skills) and want students to be able to show these skills. What I was trying to get at was that employers and future schools want students with these skills, but I may be promoted too much that they wanted these as portfolios.
Good point about wanting to possibly see the product or what it does. After reviewing other pitches, I realized how I could have made my pitch better. But I guess that’s how you grow. As well, for the “ask” and “return” I felt that I didn’t have enough background knowledge to put anything there, but I understand what you are getting at.
Thanks again for the comments,
Lisa
Hi Lisa, great elevator pitch and venture pitch. However I did find the elevator pitch a bit too much focused on the consumer rather than the investor. The venture pitch had a better balance and did focus on the investor.
I am of two minds on the purpose of e-portfolios. I agree with Kent above as to why the majority would want to keep their “early work”. There maybe a bigger market in post-secondary programs for students to build up a portfolio for career hunting. We currently have a few programs with an e-portfolio requirement and when we were hunting around for a system we settled on using Word Press as nothing else seemed suitable. So you could be selling yourself short on the post secondary market as some may have a system, but it probably is not that good. If an organization has D2L for example, don’t assume that they have bought the e-portfolio module or if they have that they happy with it.
Doug.
Hi Doug,
Thank you for your comments. Yes, I have to agree that my elevator pitch was geared more towards the consumer than investors. I should have tried to have an “ask” in there somewhere.
Good idea about maybe targeting the post-secondary schools market. In this program, I have only seen portfolios made on WordPress, so there may be a need.
Lisa
Hi Lisa, good job on your presentation but I have to agree that I don’t think there is a real market for Wizard portfolios. I needed to do an e-portfolio when I was completing my education degree at UBC but when I went to an information session for a school district their comment to us was they don’t want to see them. They have very limited time to go through applications and come to a decision. I have to agree that no employer really has a time to look at portfolios. Also the use of Sharepoint is problematic as I know my district is using it but they made so many adaptations to the program that a lot of the options you mentioned might not work. The other problem is that a lot of work isn’t done on computers as many students don’t have access to a computer so only limited documents would even be included. Good pitch and use of graphics but I wouldn’t invest in Wizard Portfolio.
Hi Colin,
Thank you for your comments. Our district is also using SharePoint (that’s why I decided to use them as my main company) and I saw the potential to possibly have something like Wizard Portfolio being used. But I have to agree, there are many glitches in SharePoint and I hope that they can smooth out some of these problems soon. My vision of storing student work that wasn’t done on computers was to finish a unit or chapter and then have students pick out what they wanted to store and take pictures to store. This may seem a little unrealistic, but it could be a solution.
Lisa
I loved the music. I think the elevator pitch looked clean and professional but I would caution against using clipart and images that people have seen a lot of. I’ve seen those first few images a million times. I agree with Doug that this is too focused on the consumer though. As an investor, I didn’t feel that it spoke to my interests. I also didn’t see anything about how your product is different from the other products on the market. Student websites are nothing new and are available for free from some other pretty heavy-hitters in Google and Weebly and more. What makes your product stand out. (Is your company Microsoft? If so, I agree that they have missed some significant opportunities with the education market and this is a glaring hole in their own portfolio.) If on the other hand, your product is separate, but leveraging Sharepoint, then I would have other concerns. Too many schools are shifting away from this sort of self-hosting model and moving to cloud-based solutions. If your idea is that this eportfolio follows the students everywhere and lasts throughout their academic career, then I would again be concerned about a self-hosted solution. What if the next school doesn’t use Sharepoint? What if it’s a Mac school?
Good luck.
Hi Ben,
Thank you for your comments. The song is called “On & On” by Friska Viljor.
Our district is using SharePoint (that’s why I decided to use them as my main company) and I saw the potential for something like Wizard Portfolio to be used. But I have to agree, there are many glitches in SharePoint and I hope that these problems can be smoothed out soon. SharePoint does have the ability for students or teachers to store information using cloud computing; therefor it wouldn’t necessarily be self-hosting for a school district. Students could move school to school within a district and still be able to access their information. If they moved to another district, they would need a Microsoft Office 365 account, but they should still be able to access their information once they had one. One weakness I did miss (as you pointed out) was if a school or district used Mac products.
Lisa
Lisa,
Although I like the idea and could see how well it could be introduced, I know there are other similar programs out there to create portfolios. I think, for your pitch, it might have helped me if you had stated how exactly this product is different. Why is it better, and how could you ensure that it remains better? It is absolutely an attention grabber, as far as the video, but it is perhaps a better commercial than pitch? As an investor I think that other points of your program might need to be shared. I would be interested to learn more as a teacher, but as an investor, I would say no.
Hi Rebecca,
Thank you for your comments. I did try to state how Wizard Portfolio was better than other products on my comparison of companies slide that included the ability of students to work offline, e-portfolio templates, 21st Century skills reflection questions being included with the product led by a school district, archiving student work from grades 1-12, and using familiar tools that are used by a majority of companies in the business world. But I didn’t add how they could have remained better.
My elevator pitch was probably geared too much towards consumers than investors. Reflecting back, I should have probably added an “ask” or what I wanted out of the investors.
Lisa
Hi Lisa,
I enjoyed watching your elevator pitch. From the perspective of an EVA, I think your pitch would improve with information on how your product differentiates itself from its competitors (i.e., blogs, BlackBoard) because potential customers would wonder why they need to pay for something they can get for free. What is proprietary about your product?
I was unable to find information on your credentials in both the elevator and venture pitches. Your venture pitch is thorough and the plan on how to bring your product into the education market seems viable.
Hope that helps, and thanks for a well-presented pitch.
James
Hi James,
As I look at other people’s pitches and read the comments made on my own, I see ways I could have made my presentations better. One area I think I could have put more effort into was showing the product and how it worked. How I envisioned Wizard Portfolio differentiating from other companies in its ability to store work from grades 1-12 in pre-made grade folders, where students could store their artifacts. As well, our school district is big into the “Attributes of a Learner”, so I thought I would add that school districts could create reflection questions students could answer for each grade.
I am unsure what you are asking about when you state that you couldn’t find any credentials in my pitches. Do you mean references? Thanks,
Lisa
Hi LIsa,
Maybe I missed it, but I am referring to the information about the Championship of your company.
James
Hi James,
I had a slide near the end of my venture pitch stating that Bill Gates and another person were involved with the project, as well as myself as the lead designer and another who was the lead IT personnel. Thanks for asking!
Lisa
Hi Lisa,
That was a very professionally made elevator pitch! I felt intrigued by watching it and was drawn to do a further analysis on the wizard venture. I couldn’t concur more that the wizard combined a repository for students work with an innate ability for students to demonstrate their flexibility and comfort with 21st century technology. It was great how you identified some competitors that employers might be more familiar with, but then you showed how wizard was potentially a stronger venture. The cost point wasn’t clear to me, but your projections were easy to understand and bespoke your well thought out target audience and marketing strategies. I did feel that the overly thorough identification with the problems that wizard might encounter actually worked against me wanting to consider investment. I couldn’t imagine how these would be overcome – and it diminished my interest in the product. At this point, I was really struggling to see how the free offerings (mentioned in your slide… with googledrive etc..) wouldn’t be just the same, as well as being more familiar to industry standards. And I’m sorry; even though I looked twice I couldn’t see it clearly mentioned what exactly you were asking for in the way of financing. Nor what the expected return would be. As much as I was impressed with the quality of your research and the suaveness of your presentation I couldn’t see some of what I was looking for with the wizard venture presentation. I would however (I know it’s fictional) be willing to give it a trial in my personal classroom to see what the affordances could be.
Hi PC,
Thank you for your comments. In my school district, we are going towards no final exams for middle school students and instead towards “Presentations of Learning”. I wasn’t quite sure how to spin that very well, but I thought that storing the student’s work and having a way to showcase what they did would be the answer. As well, my district is big into the “Attributes of a Learner” (essentially 21st Century skills) and want students to be able to show these skills. I admit that I may not have added enough to my presentation and that my “ask” and “return” were a little weak. I just felt that I didn’t have enough background information to answer these questions.
Lisa
Hi Lisa,
I’ve found it fascinating to review your elevator and venture pitches as, essentially, you and have proposed the same solution using different software! Needless to say, I think that it’s a great idea and one that is long overdue.
Your venture pitch was very comprehensive. I felt like you had a good understanding of who your market is and how your product will be sold to them .You were honest and forthcoming with the product’s weaknesses, though I wonder to what degree using a Microsoft product will limit what sort of artifacts a student can collect. You comparison of Wizard Portfolio to competitors was very informative and a good selling point. Your plan is detailed and clearly presented. That said, if Bill Gates is part of your team, then you already have the financial backing that you need. You don’t need my help!
On the whole, you’ve done a great job!
Hi Mr. Cunnian,
Thank you for your feedback. I only choose to use Microsoft because our school district is using them instead of FirstClass now. I saw that several people were also doing pitches for portfolios. I haven’t had a chance to check out your pitches, but I will definitely look at it now.
Lisa
Hi Lisa,
Sorry for the late post. I have had sleepless nights completing other assignments. I do apologize and mean no disrespect.
I enjoyed viewing both your pitches. Your elevator pitch was very clear, visually attractive and well put together; however, it did not contain all the elements needed to attract investors. Nevertheless, your detailed pitch did go into depth and shows a very clear knowledge of the buyer and end user and why there is a need for the product. A clear problem is addressed and a solution proposed. Perhaps the one thing lacking is information about the competition. Overall, though, you did a great job!
Adriana
I have provided the links below to my elevator pitch and venture pitch for a proposed display recording app. I have a few things to tweak but hope you enjoy it….. Elevator Pitch https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mqvr7BLGSjI Venture Pitch https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jMSNz9c5YzE Looking forward to feedback, Manny
Continue reading Display Recording App Posted in: Venture Forum
Hey Manny,
Your elevator and venture pitch state that “this video is private”. Just thought I’d let you know.
Lisa
Thanks Lisa,
I will change the settings right away.
Hi Manny:
Great project, you have identified a gap in the market based on the costing structure alone. This type of venture is not in my interest area, however if it was then I would look closer at it.
Good luck.
Doug.
Hi Manny, good job on the presentation and I do agree that the price they are presently charging is too high to be considered by an educational institution. Especially if they have to spend this for every single Ipad that they have. I also agree that the number of downloads would go up as a result of making it free. However, I don’t know if the app would make enough money by just using advertising as this often doesn’t produce much money. I have ran some websites based on advertising revenue but the statistic is one click for 0.09 for every 100 people. I am not familiar with the app advertising market but I don’t think it is that much better. Also you are faced with the problem of making your app annoying to people by placing large ads everywhere or reduce your revenue by only having smaller ads. The idea of a lite and deluxe version is more of a possibility with advertising on the lite version and limited features. I like the idea of the app but I don’t see it as a money maker. In addition I just went on Google and 33% of developers use the advertising model and their average revenue is $1498.00. You would really have to look at selling many different kinds of apps to create a good monthly return.
http://www.fiercedeveloper.com/story/vision-mobile-average-mobile-app-revenue-under-4k/2012-06-25
Cheers, Colin
Hi Colin,
I clearly need to conduct more research within the revenue capabilities of in app advertising. Ultimately, simple supply/demand economics would indicate that revenues are directly proportional to the popularity of an app. If I was to make this app a paid app, the pricing would be tricky to determine because if its too high, then no one will purchase it. Thanks for your feedback, it opened my eyes to both revenue options.
Hi Manny. I enjoyed watching both videos. I applaud you for being ambitious and using the green screen. You showcased your technical skills. The CEO comes off as likeable which should not be underestimated. If you are a fun and friendly guy, put yourself front and center. If I have to work with you and trust you with my money, it’s easier if I can get along with you.
I am always cautious of products that target the education industry but rely on advertising to generate revenue. Many educators are uncomfortable with this and I think in general, would prefer paying for a useful app to ensure that students are not exposed to advertising in the classroom.
While I think it’s important to let people know upfront about the competition, you may have gone over the top a bit. The elevator pitch dedicates almost a third of it’s one minute to discussing the competition. You could have used some of that time to give us a little more. Also, in your venture pitch, you point out that Apple missed an opportunity to include this useful feature into iOS 6. This is dangerous ground for you to tread. For example, with the release of iOS 6, Apple introduced emoticons into the system. Then, they booted all the 3rd party emoticon apps out of the app store. If Apple chooses to include this feature in their next update, they could do the same to you.
You did a lot of useful research about the app markets in general and I enjoyed watching that and learned quite a bit about app development. But I think you needed to be a bit more focused on your specific product, what will differentiate it, the market need, the target user etc…
So, while I would agree that this is a good idea and that there is good reason to consider taking it further, I don’t think I would invest in this venture at the present time.
Incidentally, if you do believe in this idea and want to get it off the ground, you could get it done for you fairly cheaply by checking on odesk and contracting out the job. There are lots of great programmers in less affluent parts of the world that will do your programming for you for under 5 bucks an hour. I bet you could get this to market for a few hundred bucks. Hire one person to do the programming and hire someone else to do the artwork and you are good to go. Apple provides a lot of resources to get your app into the app store and make it very easy to enable in-app advertisements.
Good luck!
Hi Ben,
Thank you for the recommendations that you have made, it is difficult to argue against them. The hardest part of this assignment was the elevator pitch and I was worried that I may have spent too much time on competitors. Your comments have validated that and in retrospect, I should have focused more specifically on my product. The 1 minute limit made this part of the assignment very difficult to portray the main ideas clearly and concisely.
Manny
Hi Manny,
I enjoyed watching your elevator pitch. Your explanation of the differences between paid and ad-based apps is very informative. I had not realized that Jing was not available on the iPad, so there is definitely a need for free screen capturing apps on the iPad. Then I wondered how advertisements would pan out when the images/videos are captured. Would there be ads on the captured images/videos? As an investor, I would be interested to find out more about the product through your venture pitch if there was a product that has already been built (fictional or not), because from an investor’s perspective to invest in something that is still in the development stage is risky since the market has not yet been tested.
Thanks for a good presentation.
James
Hi Manny,
Good job on the elevator pitch. Much of your time was spent explaining how your product is different from others. I think that this was time well spent as it is critical to the success of this pitch. The venture pitch itself elaborated on these differences and nicely informed potential investors of how the different revenue streams work in the app world.
While you’ve made a convincing argument about how in-app advertising would provide revenue, as an investor I am wondering where this advertising would be found. If you are doing screen capturing, clearly the ads will not be on the screen while you are recording. Being that users will be spending most of their time in the app recording, they won’t see the ads.
You speak very confidently and you’ve done your homework on how to make your money, but I think that there’s still work to be done on the product itself.
Thanks for the great pitches!
I was thinking that the ads would be in the actual app when you open it. The way display recording works is that it doesn’t record the actual app but rather what you do on your display. Therefore there would be no ads in your final recording, they would only be seen in the background when editing the video. Now that I think about it, advertising is perhaps a bad way to go about this when pitching to investors because it really depends on the popularity of the app. It is a big risk to take but also can yield big rewards.
You really aimed these pitches at EVAs great work Manny.
Great idea and identification of a market opportunity. You identified the pain point (price) and gave detailed coverage of other apps currently on the market. You clearly describe how you are going to provide a product that has a value proposition (free vs 9.95) and how you are going to achieve this. Definitely an example elevator pitch which made me continue to your venture pitch to learn more.
However, after the research I did for my own venture pitch I discovered how hard it is to market an app in the current online marketplaces. How difficultl it is to get an app featured and the generally huge cost in marketing required to get apps in the top listed. For this reason I probably would not invest in your venture despite your excellent pitches sorry (neither would I invest in my own for similar reasons in the end I think).
Thanks
Melissa
Considering my projects/papers thus far in the MET program, this venture assignment was the most challenging and yet fun activity I have completed. Upon reflecting on both my elevator and pitch proposals, it was evident that they contained many strengths and weaknesses. Upon completing the two pitches, I did have a few reservations in mind; these were then validated through the feedback that was provided by my peers.
Elevator Pitch
The elevator pitch production by far was the most difficult section of this assignment. The one-minute time limit became the enemy and really made me think about what it is that I want to convey. Given the circumstances, one needs to sift out specific details and get to the point in a clear and concise manner. I think a strength within my pitch is that I identified a void within the current marketplace. Unfortunately, I may have spent too much of the allocated time discussing the competitors when I should have regained the focus back to the product. I also had lighting issues when using the green screen function that took up valuable time and numerous takes. Overall, I am happy with the content of my elevator pitch as I felt that I left it all out there and in this scenario, it is the most important thing you can do.
Venture Pitch
This production also required critical thinking in how to best tell a story about your product that makes sense and would convince an investor to part with their money. I think the visuals that I provided throughout the pitch helped in keeping the potential investors engaged with the idea. I tried to come off as confident as possible as I really do believe that such a product could really take off. Upon submission, I was a little skeptical of whether I had explained the revenue structure thoroughly enough. My main focus was on introducing an ad-supported app that would raise revenue through advertising versus one-time user pay apps. I think I should have done more research in this area and presented actual figures rather than trends.
In conclusion, if I were to go back and do it again, I would tweak the weaknesses mentioned above. What I have realized is that regardless of the pitch that is proposed, one will always have regrets. There really is no such thing as the perfect pitch and it is a phenomenon that is dynamic and can easily change with the audience. It was exciting to step into a venture capitalists shoes and this assignment allowed me to gain an appreciation of a world I am not too familiar with.
Sorry for the late post. I have had sleepless nights completing other assignments. I do apologize and mean no disrespect.
I am going to base my feedback on what we saw in week 3 regarding the content of a venture pitch(Perfecting Your Pitch).
1. Pain Point: the market gap or problem the venture is addressing
– There is a market and not many options out there.
2. Solution: the new product or service that resolves the pain
– Offers a free APP and 2 versions (light or Pro), depending on whether the buyer wants advertising or not.
3. Differentiation: the reason someone will buy or use this new product or service, versus the alternatives
– Yes, a difference in price and what the APP can do.
3. Marketing: where and how buyers/users will be reached
– Has very good knowledge of both the Android and IPad market, and how it is changing.
4. Championship: the competency of the venture’s leaders and advisors
Does not mention them, but he comes across as knowing his market and product well
5. Competition: an overview of competitors and partners
– Good overview
6. The Ask: how much money, etc, is required to take the next step
Yes, it’s clear; through advertising
7. The Return: how much and how soon will an investor be recompensed
– Not in detail
8. The Message
– Well presented, with confidence and showing thorough knowledge of the market and product.
This was a very well researched and presented venture that I would invest in. My only worry is the fact that the next generation of phones will no doubt soon offer this as a feature. However, you appear to be ahead of the market, so should that happen, I am sure you will find a new App to offer. Well done Manny! Great work!
Manny,
I apologize for the late post as well.
I agree that this is an awesome idea, and I am very interested in it, but was on the fence about whether or not I would invest. I appreciate that you clearly laid out your position in the elevator pitch, and were explicitly gearing your information towards investors. I decided against investing, purely based on the fact that it seems difficult to create the revenue. I believe that the app would be widely used, however, I’m not sure that there would be much return. Great work on both videos!
Here is my venture and elevator pitch: Personal Reflection: This was definitely a difficult assignment given the lack of knowledge in pitching ventures I had at the beginning of the semester. What I found most challenging was trying to gather sufficient details to present in what I consider a possible venture that I am […]
Continue reading EdTech Services Posted in: Venture Forum
Hi Patrick,
I’m not sure if I’m just missing it, but is your elevator pitch within the venture video? Was there a particular section of time that was meant to represent it? I didn’t want to watch the whole video out of fairness for my evaluation of the top 3 (30-60 second) pitches.
Cheers,
Rebecca
Hi Rebecca,
The elevator pitch is played within the video during the overview section. It is the video that starts playing right after I present the team.
Thanks Patrick, got it 😉
Hi Patrick:
Great presentation and integration of You-Tube, Prezi and Camtasia. This gives me confidence that Ed Tech Services knows their stuff.
A great concept but I am not sure exactly what Ed Tech does or can offer. In the presentation I think you could spend a bit more time explaining what the services are that are offered, with perhaps some examples.Perhaps pick one or two areas that schools or institutes struggle with that you could help them with, maybe for example migrating from one LMS to another..
Doug.
After re-reading your comment, I think I understand what you mean now. You were hoping to see 2 or 3 very specific examples of each service offered to further demonstrate how EdTech Services can help. So for the ‘help you find the right tool’ I could present a scenario with someone looking for a solution that meets their needs and I provide a potential solution based on the criteria established. For the ‘coaching and mentoring’, I could explain how EdTech Services would sit down with you to learn how to use Moodle efficiently or provide video tutorials describing the very specific tasks you’re hoping to accomplish with your LMS. For the ‘migrate your content’ I could show a scenario where EdTech Services could take those wonderful binders full of exciting activities and convert them into interactive lessons using Smart boards or another popular tool that the teacher had available in their environment.
I can see how that could have solidified the presentation without putting me over the 8 min mark. I would have had 2 minutes to present the scenarios and discuss some potential solutions available through EdTech Services. Thanks for the feedback!
Ah.. I thought it was clear when I indicated that I would help them find the right tool that suits their needs, coach or mentor them in using the tool they’ve chosen or migrate content towards their tool of choice. I appreciate your feedback though. Perhaps I need to specify that it is an educational tool or give an example of what educational tools are? Or maybe I could have included the same pictures of tools from the elevator pitch to remind users of some of the tools might be targeted?
Thoughts?
Hi Patrick, I think I understand the premise of your business and I can see the value in it. I know many Pro-d seminars where teachers are overwhelmed with new information and get packets that they shove away in their binders never to be looked at again. Having someone to actually help a teacher choose the right technology and then implement it would be very beneficial. However, I also see this as being very expensive because in a Pro-d seminar you might present to 100 teachers but with a mentor session you are working one on one with a teacher. This teacher may not be very computer literate and as a result takes a large amount of time to set things up and additional support. You might also run into problems with what you can access in the district since you don’t have the computer access that some technology would require. Really you would be limited to web based applications only. Overall I see your business as a service business that would be beneficial for teachers but too expensive and difficult to make a return.
Hi Patrick,
I enjoyed watching your presentation and thought it was well organized, you spoke clearly and did a job of integrating technology. I also appreciated that you took the time to conduct research and included those facts and figures to support the marketing goals. Similarly, including a break down of where the finances being asked for are going towards gave it more strength and clarity.
One thing that I would have liked to see a a greater sense of how Ed Tech Services truly offers something different that what other competitors are already offering. Perhaps giving specific examples would have made this point stronger.
Julie
Ditto Julie,
Great use of technology in your presentation Patrick. It really gives a venture like yours that much more validity when a pitch looks and sounds professional. For me, it is often how an idea is presented, and not even the idea itself that is often the most important aspect.
In terms of you venture pitch, however, I must say I needed to watch it a few times to really grasp the concepts laid out. I also agree with the above comments that some more specifics would have been good, to really see what your service – or similar service – looks like in action.
I appreciated your financial information and the options your presented the investors. I’m not entirely sure I would invest in this venture, as much of what you offer I -as a tech coordinator- do for my school already. However, I realize that not every school has people in place to organize, find, and support tech use in schools.
Good luck with this venture if you take it further!
Kent
HI Patrick. I think the pitch was clear and professional. I decided against using background music in mine but after watching yours, I wish I put it in. In your reflection, you comment on a seeming lack of enthusiasm but I didn’t get that and I think the music helped. It looked and sounded slick. I cracked up with you referring to your wife as Chief Relationship Officer.
You value your company at $1,000,000. That seems a bit high for a start-up. I think the idea would work and I think you got your target market spot on. You talk about “using your time for things that matter” which in my 15 years of teaching is probably the complaint that I hear most from teachers. Your little montage of all of the different edtech products out there was just long enough to reflect the sentiments that many educators have–that there’s way too much out there and it’s all very confusing and intimidating. While many schools will go the route of keeping someone in-house that can help them navigate this course, many will find the simplicity of outsourcing more convenient. As an investor though, I would have to compare this venture with other opportunities I see and you have way more overhead than, for example, many of the other pitches coming from this group. It is certainly possible to make money in something like this, but I would be more likely to put my money into something that afforded a simpler exit strategy. I don’t want to own a company and have to deal with the headaches that come with it. I am an investor. I want to make my money and have a way out.
I like the points you make about the site and I see that it fills a real and big need. My concern with it, is the differentation, how do you ensure that your product remains in the lead? Also, if I understand it right, it woud require a continuous high amount of work and a large team to stay on top of new technologies. I can see some serious benefits (as far as advertising for products), but at this point I would not invest in this venture. Fabulous video though and very compelling.
Hi Patrick,
I really enjoyed your venture pitch! This is an ambitious venture in that it asks a lot from investors and it seeks to offer services in an area where there are already established services. I think that you know how you would differentiate your services from those of your competitors, but I am not sure that came through clearly in your pitch.
Your use of the various media in your venture helps to add credibility to the services that you offer; clearly you are very proficient with using them. Again, good job and best of luck!
Hi Patrick – I enjoyed your pitch. An interesting idea. I know I often tend to focus my reviews on whether the quick elevator pitch presents a pain point and a solution – which yours did quite well – but that’s the world I come from; more of an educational EVA. However I think it might be a tough sell. Teachers needing some educational tech support often don’t even know what to ask, or even that they have a problem, and I’m worried that EdTech Services won’t be able to make that personal connection that a F2F support person could. I don’t doubt that EdTech could provide a valuable service to some, but ‘m worried about the real marketability of the service. I wish EdTech Services well however – best of luck with your venture.
Sorry for the late post. I have had sleepless nights completing other assignments. I do apologize and mean no disrespect.
Hi Patrick,
I liked the way you started your pitch getting to the point by saying how much you need and what the investor will get in return, and then proceeded to do an excellent job of explaining what your venture consist of, what the investment will help do and what the investors return will be. I would invest in your venture because there is a need for this product, you have a strong team, and finally, you have a clear idea of the market and your finances. Excellent work!
Adriana
I have created a venture pitch as an fictitious initiative for developing mobile apps for oral health care screening and prevention, the idea was to investigate a topic that would be meaningful to my profession and identifying an area that is under developed. Venture pitch and presentation 2 f nov 2012 from cranson16 Reflection Creating […]
Continue reading Elevator Pitch & Persausive Presentation for Mobile Apps Posted in: Venture Forum
Hi Catherine,
Nice idea and you definitely have a strong team to lead the idea. I did wonder when you said that there are many apps out there already, but then you went ahead and explained the unique selling point of your app so that was excellent.
I was not exactly clear how the app revenue would be structured – would it be a paid for app or a free download and pay for some of the content? and what price point would it come in at?
Marketing through the Primary Health Care Providers is a great idea and if successful would be a powerful advertising medium, but thought that the social media strategy was very vague.
Your video was great to see and as a result it added validity to your delivery. The sound quality was not great and there were edit jumps but the information being delivered was excellent.
It was a great idea to use slide share as it could bring in some different media types. There was some clipping of content on the slides and one was blocked by the picture but the overall experience was positive.
I would not invest in this app as I believe I would not download it and dont think that enough people would for it to be successful. I would however invest in you and your team as it was a genuine and positive delivery.
Stuart
Hi Stuart,
Thank you for the kind and gentle review. I had some technical difficulty with Slideshare and importing my presentation. In the past it has been a great tool and very user friendly. I have re-posted my presentation and hopefully addressed some of your feedback.
Generating revenue, yes very important for a new venture. I was thinking that a partnership with an existing company that develops and sells apps might be interested in our oral health and health promotion ideas (an area of the market that had not been developed) – the apps would actually promote health and address a societal needs, not just track what I eat or track how often I go to the gym, something more meaningful. The apps would cost money to download, private healthcare industry could buy at a discounted rate as an educational tool they give to clients, or a way for private healthcare to attract and keep customers. There would be some creative selling and billing involved. The idea behind the apps are to promote self screening, early detection of disease and improved prognosis. Oral cancer and oral disease, skin cancer, breast cancer can all be self detected. The apps could educate the person on how to, detect possible abnormal tissue, in turn prompting a visit to a healthcare specialists for a diagnosis.
In terms of social media marketing I was thinking sending it viral, tweeting about the product, Facebook groups.
Catherine
I, also, am impressed by the team, but would not invest in this particular venture. I don’t think that there is enough of a market for this, as I think most people who would be concerned enough with oral health to purchase an app would be getting regular dental/doctor check-ups and may not see the need for this particular service. I also wasn’t sure if the new app quarterly was meant to be an oral health app or just a health and wellness app. I would certainly be interested in hearing more about the other services/apps that your company may provide.
Hi Rebecca, you would be surprised how many Canadians have no or limited access to dental care. Dentistry is private industry and the consumer has to pay for this service, unlike our publicly funded healthcare. The idea is to develop and create apps that will actually help people and promote health and oral health. Every family has some member that has been touched by some type of cancer, they all have a story and in many cases the prognosis would be better if early detection occurred. There are so many health conditions that can be detected by the individual and be prevented if society was aware and educated, such as skin cancer, breast cancer, oral cancer, periodontal disease & HBP. Mobile apps could screen for the symptoms and identify risk factors for these conditions.
Thanks
Catherine
Hi Catherine, I think you might scare some people into downloading the app but I am not sure how many would be willing to put their Iphone in their mouth to scan for this. I don’t assume that it can take an accurate reading of all the areas from outside. I can also see inexperience on the part of the consumer on how to use the app properly which could mean that certain cancers are not detected. I would hate to think of the lawsuit that would happen if someone using it has oral cancer and the app didn’t pick it up. You would need a very tight terms and conditions to avoid litigation. I believe you would be making money on this app by selling a subscription. If this was the case I don’t see many people signing up unless they really don’t have any access to dental services in which case they would have real problems with their teeth. Overall I see this as a worthwhile cause trying to create awareness about the issue and I have learned more about it from your presentation but as a venture I don’t believe it would provide much of a return.
Hi Colin,
The idea is not to put your iPhone in your mouth, it is just to open your mouth or stick out your tongue, the scanner will then scan your oral tissues. The apps is not intended to detect or diagnose cancer, this can only be achieved by a surgical biopsy, There are current tools on the market to scan the oral environment for the presence of abnormal tissue, used in a clinical setting, these are screening tools to alert the person to seek medical attention for early detection. The app would provide the user with instructions on use and an educational component. The best diagnostic testing is not full proof, there are thousand of women who have had mammograms and ultrasounds and their breast cancer was not detected. This is only a preventive screening tool for possible early detection to perhaps save lives. An additional option to generate revenue could be to sell the app to Health Canada and the Cancer Society. I think you will see such apps in the future, not created by me of course but I do think we will see it, think of the innovative glucose measuring devices that are used by individuals with diabetes. Thanks for your feedback.
Catherine 🙂
Hi Catherine,
Unfortunately I had a hard time loading and playing the YouTube videos embedded in Slideshare. From what I was able to see though, I think that you are very knowledgeable on the subject and have a strong team, which gave a lot of confidence in the individuals behind the app. As for the app itself, I too am unsure that I would invest in such a venture because I don’t know how well people would respond to its use and how widespread the interest in downloading it would be.
With that said, like others have mentioned i do appreciate and support the cause you are trying to promote.
Julie
Hi Julie,
Sorry you could not open my links. Thank you for the feedback and confidence in what you did review. I agree the venture idea needs some further work, but I think that was the focus of this learning activity. I do think there is a market out there for healthcare apps. 🙂
Catherine
Thank you Catherine for reminding me to book my next dental appointment.
Your information and expertise were quite apparent, yet your delivery seemed a little choppy and somewhat vague in parts. As a potential investor my focus is on the idea – which seems quite original and in most cases needed by the populous – but also how the idea is presented, which didn’t really hit the mark for me.
I, like some others who have commented, was wondering what the new apps coming out every quarter would look like? What would they do? I must admit I found myself wondering what the original app would do as well. Your information seemed to mainly focus on oral cancer, and not on how your product would actually detect it. Your explanation of the apps features were helpful, but I couldn’t understand your ‘scanning’ technology embedded into the video camera. Perhaps explaining how the ‘science’ behind the app would work could have helped solidify my investment.
Your team seems quite knowledgeable and poised to achieve success, but my recommendation is to demonstrate more clearly the science behind your app, and perhaps provide a few examples/videos/pictures of your service in action.
Kent
Hi Kent,
LOL – glad you will schedule your dental appointment. Thanks for the feedback, explaining the science behind the scanner would be a good idea. The additional apps would also focus on health prevention and have a screening tool component for conditions such as gum disease, bleeding rates, recession detection and monitoring of the condition, self-screening of skin conditions, a very diverse app capturing health risk factors to alert individuals and then education to reduce those who have risk factors, creating a healthier being. There is a large population that is very much into health and disease prevention. Think about the thousands of consumers that visit health food stores, shop on line for health products, use the internet to self diagnose, these apps would provide more reliable health information. Just the beginning of an idea. 🙂
Catherine
Hi Catherine,
I like the fact that you took a different route in your presentation and applied your venture not to a learning technology, but rather the medical sciences. I feel that this sector has a lot of growth potential and similar to education, apps have yet to unleash their full potential. You did an excellent job of displaying other health science apps and relaying their success. Although this venture is undertaking an important issue, I would not invest in it for the following reasons.
1) Very specialized – This is a highly specialized app for oral health care. Most citizens understand that they need to brush their teeth, floss, and mouthwash to promote good oral hygiene. These are preventative methods that people fail to always comply to and I doubt they would add another application to what most already feel takes time out of their day.
2) Lack of awareness – There is simply not enough awareness about this type of cancer and as such, its number of downloads and usage will be limited. In order to get the word out there, you would have to invest a substantial amount in marketing which is difficult as other cancers (breast/lung, etc.) are usually at the forefront of this campaign.
3) Frequency of cases – I have not done my research on this but I would think that the number of deaths related to oral cancer worldwide would be higher in developing nations. The citizens of these countries usually do not or have limited access to mobile devices and the Internet and therefore this product would be of no use where it is needed the most.
I do still like the idea and I think if the technology was available to change it into a breast cancer screening device, it would not only reap amazing revenues, but further our fight with cancer.
Manny
Hi Manny,
Thanks for the feedback, sorry you won’t invest :(.
Oral cancer is raising in prevalence in developed countries and the prognosis is less than that of breast cancer. There is just less awareness but with gaining rates people will begin to see/hear about this type of cancer.
Catherine
Hi Catherine –
It was nice to see a very different use of technology than the other pitches. I think there is a real need for such self-diagnostic tools, and I loved how your idea was very distinct than anything else I’ve ever heard of. I can actually see, with the proper promotion, how this could be a big opportunity. If major dental organizations were to get on board and give a recommendation, I think your product could do very well. Your credibility as a CEO is high – you clearly believe in your product. Technical and production issues aside, one suggestion I’d offer regarding the pitch itself would be to offer your solution much earlier in the pitch – you didn’t really do that, I felt, until very close to the 1 minute mark, near the very end of the pitch. Like you, I didn’t provide enough information about market readiness and marketing, or money aspects – lessons we would have to learn. So thanks for an interesting venture idea. I can’t say as I’d be ready to jump into investing in it, but it did have me intrigued about its possibilities.
Hi Peggy,
Thanks for reviewing my pitch. Yes, I agree it is a unique idea that maybe someone will develop in the future. It needs work I do agree but I think there is a market for as you said self-screening tools, just have to capture it. 🙂
Catherine
Hi Catherine,
Sorry for the late post. I have had sleepless nights completing other assignments. I do apologize and mean no disrespect.
Your venture certainly addresses a real problem and need, but I wonder how many people would buy it. I do, however, feel health authorities would and should be interested, as this is preventive medicine. I would wish your average person were interested and took an APP like this seriously; it’s a shame they don’t. Oral cancer is indeed a problem and a very aggressive form of cancer.
I felt your pitch was somewhat fragmented, but feel you do have a strong team and thorough knowledge of what’s needed. I would probably invest if you could polish this up a bit and consider defining your buyer more, e.g. the health services.
It was interesting to watch and informative.
Adriana
Hi Adriana,
Thank you for reviewing my pitch. I agree it needs some work, especially after reviewing many others but have some good ideas. I am pleased you understand the need and market for preventive awareness and health. I was also thinking that Health Canada and the Cancer Society would be prospective buyers of this venture. 🙂
Catherine
Hi,
I think that you have an interesting idea here. You have done a very good job with your pitches and have included several important details. One of your strongest points is the strong team that you have created to help form and run the app. You appear very professional in your video and come across as very passionate and confident.
However, I do not think that I would invest in this venture simply because I am not convinced that there is a moarket for it. I feel as though anyone that is concerned enough about oral hygiene to purchase this app already sees a dentist regularly and would rather have the opinion and advice of a professional than an app.
Jhodi
I am pleased to share my pitch idea for the Virtual online opened learning platform. A full list of video credits and references are available on my ubc blog. A complete transcript of the pitch is also on the blog. I hope you enjoy, and I certainly appreciate any constructive feedback. Elevator Pitch: Full Venture:
Continue reading I am pleased to share my pitch idea for … Posted in: Venture Forum
Hello,
I really liked your Elevator Pitch. The music and graphic visuals caught my attention. The text went a bit fast at the beginning and I had to read quite quickly. Generally though you shared enough information that I wanted to know more. Your venture pitch was outstanding. It covered ALL of the critical tenets needed in pitches. I think your venture is original and addresses a pain point. Your venture plan is well thought out and sound. You clearly demonstrated what you were asking for from investors and stated the sequence of your plan clearly. I liked your idea of a free trial too! I thought you did a terrific job. Thanks for sharing, Jen
I appreciate the supportive feedback Jen. Its great to know that the research that I had done actually managed to come through in my presentaton. I tried my best to generate any of the potential negatives and then address them pro-actively. It would be a neat venture to see fully realized.
PC
I think the elevator pitch was great. Although you may want to consider changing some of the colors so that the white text against the white moving images in the background doesn’t become difficult to read for some viewers.
I do not know much about home schooling but this seems like a venture that is very worthwhile. Good explanation of what v.ool is and what it is not. It made me think about all of the other online technology that home schooled students could take advantage of.
You discussed how this process will enhance the students’ experience, which was great. To gain more interest you could also touch on how the students’ currently work to emphasize what this new concept means for those who otherwise have limited interaction. Although you did mention the research of online courses having a high attrition rate which was a great tie-in to the venture.
You touched on many success factors for an online learning environment including participation, 21st century learning principles and collaboration. Plus your detailed plan for presentations, researched statistics and financial information contributed to a solid pitch.
A demo although I know would not be easy to create, would have been great to see for potential investors to see. Thanks for sharing.
Oh my goodness having access to someone who knows game programming would be amazing. When I first started the project, I thought that I might actually have to come up with something tangible to demonstrate – which would certainly have helped. Albeit fffffaaarrrr outside of my realm of expertise.
Thanks for the feedback.
PC
The elevator was great and the venture was informative. I do wish that some of the pizzaz you applied to the elevator would have been applied to the venture although I don’t think that affects the marketability.
I couldn’t agree more Joel,
Actually – I really toned it down for the venture pitch…. as I tend to be quite a twitchy and loud kinda girl. I wanted to play it subdued and well researched – but maybe I erred on the side of being boring!
Not something I am usually accused of in real life but certainly I can see it when I rewatch the presentation.
PC
Awesome job Patricia. When I was watching your venture pitch, there were a lot of things that I liked. You had good enthusiasm in your voice and you conveyed that this is a good idea that could make money. Your projections seemed reasonable, and you clearly did your homework (or at least sounded like you did) on statistics. If the BC ministry did sign off on it, of course it would be a hit. I guess the I would have liked to hear more about how you were planning to do that part. Overall though, real strong pitch.
Thanks kindly Mike,
I did try my best… even though this was a fictional project…. to include realistic and well researched projections. I’m glad it came through to the objective viewer.
PC
Hi,
I think you did a great job on your pitch. It was informative and engaging.You did a great job of catching my attention and interesting me in your product with your pitch.
I found that your venture analysis covered all the parameters needed in an analysis. You showed excitement in your product which was evident from your facial expressions and your tone of voice. It was apparent that you are knowledgeable about your product and that you have belief in it, which makes viewers feel more drawn to it. Overall, I think you did a great job. The only thing that I would suggest is maybe making the analysis a little bit more interactive or engaging. Although you did a good job of covering all angles related to your project it was hard to stay focused because there were not many visuals. It is hard to concentrate when someone is talking for a longer period of time without some sort of visual component.
Thank for sharing. This is definitely a very good idea and I personally think there is a market for your product. .
Great work
Nureen
Much appreciated Visramn,
I couldn’t help but notice that myself – that there needed to be something a tad more visually stimulating. Not “glitzy” as Dave had pointed out but eye catching. At first I thought about eliminating myself from the equation all together and having a production that was, well… more polished. And then my concern was it would detract from the product and it’s potential rather then add to it. Perhaps a misjudgement on my part?
PC
I think your presence was powerful because of your expressions and body language. Hence, you were right in your decision. After veiwing some more pitches I am think maybe I was wrong in my initial opinion. Sometimes it better to keep it simple because then you are not detracting from the essence of what you are trying to say. Sorry, I am new at this and needed seem more exposure.
Nureen
Hi,
Great elevator pitch. The music and graphic did an excellent job in capturing and holding my attention.
Your venture pitch came across as well researched and this added to the credibility of your venture proposition. You clearly addressed the pain point and your solution in both pitches. The venture pitch did a great job in addressing the marketability and financial feasibility aspects. I would have loved to see more graphical representation of your points but all major points were covered in your presentation. Well done on both pitches.
Sophia
Hi Sophia,
I am really quite aware of the pain point that exists because I work with home schoolers on a regular basis and have seen first hand how they would benefit from something similar to V.ooL. And yes, now that I am looking back on my venture, I can’t help but agree it was a bit dry. I have been told that I tend to be a bit too academic in my productions for the courses, and this would definitely be an area that I should work on.
Research I can do! The marketing is an area that needs to be addressed – if this was the real world I’d probably have to invest big bucks to get a company to do the appropriate polish for me. Ha!
PC
Hi Patricia,
Well done, the elevator pitch was a little busy but cool and in keeping with your theme of gaming and learning. I agree with above, the white text was difficult to read at times but still intrigued me to continue to watch on. Your venture analysis presentation was very comprehensive identifying your target group, the investment details and return on investment. The 30-day free trial is a great idea and your revenue projections seem reasonable. What is the age of your target group, I know you mentioned that it wasn’t age specific but would the older learner be attracted to this platform? Very interesting idea.
Catherine
Nice job on the elevator pitch, PC! 🙂 I know that it can be tough piecing all of that together, especially getting everything you need across in text on a moving video. It was a lot of material for that amount of time (and did go by a bit quickly), but I always say that it’s better to have more info than not enough. After all, that’s what pause is for! You engaged me quickly and left me wanting more, which is the whole point of an elevator, so mission accomplished.
I also agree with Catherine as to the value of a 30 day free trial. It is often hard to get new users on board anything these days without at least some small concession. This is a very fair one which provides just enough of a glimpse into the value of the program to “hook” your users. Great idea.
I would have liked to have seen more graphics in your venture pitch, but I know how hard it can be to incorporate your ideas, yourself and also accommodate for illustrative elements. You presented a wealth of information very well, addressing all of the points of a successful venture pitch. Very well done!
Patricia,
I think you have a potentially great idea.
Because of its novelty, I see your idea more as a R & D project in education tech, require several experiments/iterations.
As such, what you might want to pitch how this idea can create great value for already existing education tech providers and ministries. And present a 1-year plan on how you would go about developing and testing the effectiveness of your program in the next year.
Ideally, you’d have a big sponsor with already established programs that is willing to take a bet on this project in the hope that it might pay off with some direct/indirect results. The advantage of working with them is you’d have access to greater resources and funding for R&D work. The trade-off is the ownership of your project; though if you were instrumental in developing it, you’ll always have status associated with its outcomes and you could earn a good living off of it as long as it is successful. Something to think about it perhaps.
My fictitious venture is for a specially designed educational tablet that is customized for use in schools. This tablet will be geared towards pre-school and elementary school students, as well as for students with special needs. This tablet will have all the capabilities needed to ensure students have access to multiple educational tools that are […]
Continue reading My fictitious venture is for a specially… Posted in: General, Venture Forum
Hi Nureen, your elevator pitch is private so I can’t watch it. I also tried to click the link above the video, still no luck 🙁
Sorry about that. . I am surprised the download didn’t work. That is odd. I have changed the settings. I think it should be ok now.
Nureen
Hi Nureen,
You did such a wonderful job for both of your pitches. You managed to get a lot of info into the 1 minute pitch, good job! Your voice is enthusiastic and very professional too. The graphic and music are also perfect.
Your venture pitch is thorough. Even though you didn’t give much detail about the CEO and the team, somehow I still feel your venture is credible; it could be because you provided a lot of backup research and statistics. I think you covered many important points investors want to know like marketing, future growth plan, and competitors. Especially the detail in how Nabi 2 differs from other tablets which is one of my biggest concern whether to invest or not. You did answered that question. “Nabi 2 tablet school edition is better than the rest because it has the same capabilities as other and also has the best processing speed”
It is a good venture concept and I am very interested in it but because there are so many tablets out there already so I wouldn’t feel confident to invest at this point, sorry. Otherwise a very well presented pitches and I really enjoy watching and reading it.
Thanks Paula. I appreciate the feedback. You are right there are a lot of tablets on the market. That is why I wanted to gear this to the educational market and make this product specifically for educational institutions by equipping it with a build in LMS system and master and slave capabilities.
I was actually drawn to this idea because I see my nephews and other kids around me wanting to play with digital devices and I can’t help but think these kids are going to grow up surrounded by these devices so why not make these devices conducive to their learning. It will be interesting to see what the future has in store for these kids.
Thank you so much for reviewing my work and for your helpful feedback.
Nureen
Hey Nureen, after the elevator pitch I was feeling many things. Due to its speed I was a little bamboozled and panicked, but not really in a bad way, more in a way that I wanted to look for you and just find out more and I felt I needed to do it immediately!!! I think your passion came through on the delivery very much.
With the venture pitch I found it difficult as there was so much information. For me I would not invest in your venture as the market is over saturated already with device offerings but also because it represents a massive investment into one device for school districts. So I don’t think the device route is the way to go.
Saying that I think that your concept is excellent and that there is a gap in the market for a classroom based facility such as the one you describe. I would be more inclined to invest if this was the main focus and you concentrated on the delivery of that by providing the software apps for all the other devices. This means that students could bring their own if the app was on them but also the school board could get a cheaper version of the physical device and purchase your software to fill the gap the market. If it was possible to have different brands of devices talking to each other and the teacher through the one app it would, for me, be a winner.
Just my two cents –
Cheers
Stuart
Hi Stuart,
Thanks for the feedback. I too think there is a gap in the market for devices/software such as these that can be used in the classroom.
Your idea would be ideal. It would be very beneficial for BYOD supporting school districts.
Nureen
Hi Nureen,
Good job on your elevator and venture pitch. You are obviously passionate about your idea. During your elevator pitch, I found the speed of your delivery too fast. When I was just grasping one idea, you had already moved three points ahead. I liked the idea that you wanted to make a product that would be interactive and provide individualized instruction for pre-school and elementary school students, as well as for students with cognitive and developmental disabilities. Differentiation is a very important aspect in teaching so you had a good idea and solution for that pain point.
In saying that, I have to agree with Stuart. For schools or school districts to buy these devices would be very costly, but if you could produce the software that could be used on many different types of devices, your product could potentially be a marketable item.
Good job!
Lisa
Thanks for your feedback Lisa.
Nureen
Hi Nureen,
Your venture proposal for a personalized tablet specific for children has good intentions but may be too little too late. Your elevator pitch was very fast and it was difficult to discern what the product you are proposing is. The one-minute time limit was definitely the hardest part of this assignment. It seemed as though you attempted to fit everything in within this time frame but you may have been better off just sticking to a few key points and slowing down your narration. For the elevator pitch, we need to remember that less is more. Although I think your product is something moms would buy for their children, I do not see school districts adopting it and would not invest for the following reasons.
1) Production costs – To produce a whole new tablet specific for child use would require an astronomical amount of money.
2) Competitors – The tablet market is highly competitive and there really isn’t much room for newcomers. If this device offered something different than other products it could have a chance. However, it does not offer anything specific that other tablets can’t do already and also restricts other features that mom or dad may want to use.
3) Users – I understand that this product attempts to fill a specific niche within the tablet market. I feel that this niche is very specific and way too small to justify the huge startup costs it would take to get it to market. I do not see high school or post secondary students using this device so it becomes restricted to early childhood years.
On a positive note, it is durable and half the cost of the competitors ($250 price range). I would purchase it for my 3 year old to play with but can’t see it as an investment that would yield substantial returns.
Thanks,
Manny
Hi Nureen,
I found your elevator pitch to be packed full of information! I did however have a hard time collecting all of the information the first time through. Perhaps limiting the amount of information and focusing on the key points in your elevator pitch would have allowed me to retain more information as I was a little bit overwhelmed. That said, this is a good learning experience for me as I have had similar issues in the past as well and sometimes have a hard time with the less is more approach. Overall, this seems like a very good idea and something that I would want to use in my own classroom. I was just having a discussion with my students today about the tablet that I use to teach with and how I would like to be able to have a tablet for each one of them to use that is linked to mine. WIth that said, the tablet market is saturated with devices. I would not invest in you venture because there are too many large company competitors that could easily (and I think probably will shortly) create education-specific tablets. Additionally, although $250 is mid-range, this is a device that I think a lot of schools would hesitate purchasing due to the high quantity that they would need, which would be very expensive.
Overall, I thought that you did a great job of your pitches and that they were both very informative and hit the major points.
Jhodi
Hi Nureen,
Although I can tell you are very enthusiastic about your pitch, I found it impossible to understand what you were saying as it is just too fast for my mind to process. I would need to download your pitch, put it in VLC and then slow down the playback speed to a more human speed. 🙂 I understand that you were trying to maximize your elevator pitch but sometimes less is more and that would be my only real recommendation at this point. I have faith in you but I’m just not sure what you’re pitching.
Hi Nureen,
I thought you did a really good job on your pitches. Especially your elevator pitch. There was a lot of information packed into that minute and although some may find that it is too much to take in a such a great in such in a short time, I thought it was a great idea to make it a fast pitch. People are busy and can’t afford to spend extra time in listening to a pitch that they might not be intersted in, thus wasting a couple of minutes. I think the way you did your quick elevator pitch, really got the information across without wasting time. It was straight business!
Good work
Hi Nureen,
You have a good idea but I too think a little late given the market is saturated with tablets and the implementation of BYOD might also impact the success of this venture. I do appreciate how your tablet with be tailored better to the educational environment but I wonder with all the software programs and learning management platforms can this be addressed. Your elevator pitch address all the components of a pitch but was difficult to follow because you spoke so fast, I am confident a slower version would be exceptional. The prezi presentation was also well done but I believe you could have made your pitch with less information.
Catherine
The following links are to each component of my Venture Pitch. I have included both the video and transcript version, to provide options depending on your personal or learning preference. Elevator Pitch – Video – Transcript Venture Pitch – Video – Transcript Self Evaluation – Document References – Document Thank you for taking the time […]
Continue reading PD Bridge Posted in: Venture Forum
Kick a** job Tom!
excellent delivery of both pitches, clarity, hand gestures and inclination all worked really well together. Your idea is a very good one. In my experience professional development has been unfocused and in general, a waste of time. Considering that teachers in BC must meet a PD requirement, it seems inevitable that this time will be better allocated to improving teaching in meaningful ways. Just the idea of changing the current system, which I agree with you, is very outdated, should be enough to get districts listening.
I liked your presentation style with embedded video on the page with buzz words popping up as you say them. Very effective.
Great job!
MIKE
Thanks for the review, it is greatly appreciated.
And like you, I feel that current PD is not as effective as it should be or even could be. I hear many teachers grumble before and after these “events”, not really seeing the worth of these opportunities, not because they are not passionate, but because the opportunities themselves leave something lacking…
Do I think I solved the problem, nope, but took a good swing at it…
Thoughts?
You took an excellent swing!!
Great elevator pitch Tom. Really engaging. I did feel that I didn’t quite know anything about what it was that you were really offering but was excited to go to the venture pitch to find out.
Your elevator pitch was incredibility detailed and very much leveraged at the educational profession audience. You certainly covered all the buzz words in completing the delivery.
For me this is an excellent idea. It is delivered well and has a clear gap in the market. I would not invest on the back of this pitch unfortunately. I would imagine that teachers could find themselves accessed/judged on how much they do within the PD Bridge environment – particularly because their account is with them throughout their career. Secondly I would not see districts allowing a fully online system take over from their traditional professional developments (despite them really needing it).
But these reasons didn’t loose me entirely. I would happily discuss further with you your initial strategy for getting the teachers and districts on board. The concept is a necessary development within the teaching environment and I would be interested in not missing the opportunity to get in early with you and your concept.
On a side note – how did you get your elevator pitch to be full HD and then have your elevator in 4:3 360p. Not that it made any difference to your delivery but just curious.
You are a natural at delivering content too so fair play.
First off, thank you for taking the time to review both my Elevator and Venture Pitch, even though they were a lot of fun to complete, it was a challenging and educational experience.
Upon reflection, I see your points regarding potential implications of online professional development. I myself believe, that it would be possible to have both, in the perfect world. Do I think, the world of education is ready, maybe not yet. However, in the next ten years, more of our teachers will be those that are currently and constantly connected to screens. So maybe one day, this format may exist.
Yet, I agree, how to get people on board? See the value? It was my hopes to approach it similar to the Khan Academy, yet added the pay for element to ensure the continued existence of the service. Yet, I am curious to your thoughts, on how to best approach individuals/institutions?
As for the HD issue – both Elevator and Venture were filmed at 60 frames a second. The elevator was edited entirely in iMovie, so no loss in quality. However, I decided for some reason to use Keynote for the Venture Pitch, to do the bullet points, etc… However had a difficult time getting the exported version to work like I wanted it to. So I manually did each slide, while using Camtasia to record the events. Which lowered the overall quality of my project… so was disappointed there…
Hi Tom,
You have put a lot of thought into your product. You did a very good job on your elevator and venture pitch. As noted in another post, you certainly used educational buzz words in your elevator pitch. You mentioned in your video that “PD Bridge” was going to capitalize on using Web 2.0 and social media. I wanted to know how “PD Bridge” was going to do this and I thought you might have expanded on this a bit more throughout the venture pitch. Did I miss that?
Here is some constructive feedback on your venture pitch:
• I liked that you had a “PD Bridge” logo.
• You were very relaxed in front of the camera and spoke at a good pace.
• You included the pain point – professional development is time consuming, expensive, and one shot activities which is very true.
• You included the solution – “PD Bridge” – an online professional development site which will also provide resources.
• You did include the competition, or lack of competition, but you could have stated some challenges for you product. What are some of the issues that may arise?
• Marketing – You did state the market size (5.4 million teachers, with an increasing amount of them being younger aged teachers that are more comfortable with web-based technologies), but I would have also liked to know how the buyers were going to be reached. PR, ads, commercials, social media, etc…
o As well, would you target individual teachers or school districts?
• The ask – just in case I got this wrong, you were asking for initial funding for the designing, development, and deployment of “PD Bridge”. Is that correct? What return did you want investors to have?
You did a great job on your elevator and venture pitch. Depending on who you were targeting, I could see a need for this product. I don’t think I would personally invest in this company for a couple of reasons. First, although some professional development days can be tedious, there is also some good networking that can occur during these sessions. I have met people that I still keep in contact with. As well, although travel is expensive at times, if you go with other teachers from your school, it can bring staff closer together and allow them to talk and work on goals together. And finally, although I think the professional development aspect of “PD Bridge” has potential, you lost me when you brought in M.O.O.C, accreditation courses, and other training programs. I think your focus should be on the K-12 schools professional development. Those are just a few of my thoughts.
Lisa
First off, thank you for taking the time to review both my Elevator and Venture Pitch, even though they were a lot of fun to complete, it was a challenging and educational experience.
I appreciate and totally agree with the comments/suggestions you made, for many of them ran through my head while reviewing over pitches… Thoughts like… “Should have added that” … “Marketing approach… great idea…”…
But more specifically, the Web 2.0 apps, currently could include YouTube for video delivery, an Edmodo like environment for small group discussions, wiki/blog like formats for content delivery and resource allocations. Things that enhance communication, co-operation, and most importantly collaboration. Again a detail, that could and should have been more flushed out…
Also, I totally agree that I missed adding in Marketing, and what that would look like. A key point to ensure that both teachers and institutions to can access, and would access this venture.
As well, the money, and potential return on investment – which would allow investors to see a potential return, was something I noticed in other pitches I reviewed, and again, wished I had thought to include it as well.
As for the final points you made in regards to traditional PD and all that it provides. I totally agree, my vision was not to replace those activities, but to supplement them. For example, phase one of the project would be entirely free, and expose teachers to new ideas and approaches easily, and effectively, and with enough teachers, a monthly fee of 10 dollars could be applied to access phase two of the program – the professional development focussed on certificates, etc… using Massive Open Online Courses.
Overall, I appreciate the feedback yourself and others have given, for it makes me reflect on the product I put forth, and the changes I would make to enhance the presentation.
Hi Tom,
I totally agree with your comment about missing items and wishing I would have added them in also. I found this assignment fairly challenging, and while I tried to hit all the points, ended up falling short in some areas (ie. the ask and return). It was good working with you and good luck next semester.
Lisa
Hi Tom,
This venture really spoke to me! I got very frustrated teaching the public school system in the States. 9 times out of 10, our professional development consisted of a talking head (usually administrative with little to no teaching background) coming in to our department and either clicking through endless PowerPoint slides or delivering a non-media enhanced lecture about the newest rules and regulations adopted by the district. It was painful, not exactly helpful, and often a waste of time.
What software did you use to create your venture pitch? It is making me weep for my Mac. Seriously though, both pitches looked fantastic. I was impressed by the integrations of text and graphics in a way that was not overwhelming or daunting in any way. The addition of the graphs specifically outlining the market demographics (age, specific technology use, etc.) was particularly helpful in determining the importance and value of the venture. Great addition.
Overall this was a very well put-together presentation. You hit all the key points, including outlining the competition and the job specifications of the team. It would be interesting to see how willing districts would be to move beyond what they are used to and move into the future.
Thank you for your thoughts on my project, they are greatly appreciated. I believe, just like in many areas of educator, technology will create large disruptions in the consumption and creation of educational opportunities, such as Professional Development.
As for the software – iMovie entirely for the Elevator Pitch. As for the Venture Pitch – iMovie for the video’s, but Keynote for the entire presentation (which was a pain to get into YouTube – so I had to use Camtasia to do a screencast… – next time I will know the solution… instead of banging my head repeatedly against the wall).
Have a great day, and again thanks for taking the time to view my pitches.
Tom
Hi Tom,
Although your elevator pitch confused me the first time through, your venture pitch definitely helped clarify exactly where it was you were heading with the pitch. My biggest recommendation in terms of the elevator pitch would be to potentially show a group of teachers in a traditional PD environment followed by what they would like in your environment (following PD on a device).
Despite this minor setback, I think your pitch is very engaging and shows great potential. Having experience this point point as recently as yesterday, I know that this approach would be extremely beneficial for me. I would much prefer go through content at my own pace than that of the presenter. I would also appreciate the ability to skip or rewind through content as I attempt to grab every useful bit of information that would help me in my teaching practice. The proposed team appears sound and shows a well thought-out approach to implementing this venture. Although I do feel there is likely a fair bit of competition in the market, I think your determination and passion give you an edge in securing funds for your venture. The only thing really missing in your pitch is the investment amount you’re seeking, what you plan to do with the investment funds as well as the exit strategy for investors. These are definitely major points however, so you are asking EVAs to do a bit of legwork in getting this info rather than providing it right from the start. Still, I would likely take the effort to seek out additional info as you do show a promising venture.
Hi Tom,
Sorry, little late here but all the pitches are so interesting and take time to watch and digest.
Your pitch and presentation are excellent, well researched and I think you have a sound venture idea, especially if there is non or little competition. Your delivery is very clear and professional, you have identified a problem and a viable solution to the problem, your team is impressive. The video is a bit choppy, I had this issue as well and couldn’t seem to address it in my pitch. I wasn’t sure how the revenue would be generated but maybe I missed this. Well done.
Catherine
Up2date Learning is a high school e-Textbook company that produces customizable resources designed to align with individual course curriculum that receives annual updates every year, and sends email alerts to teachers giving them options for updating their course throughout the year when events and breakthroughs occur. Here is my elevator pitch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AiVXcnQAfn8 Here is my […]
Continue reading Up2date Learning is a high school e-Text… Posted in: Venture Forum
Hi Mike,
After watching your presentation, I think venture concept addresses a real need in education and offers a good and viable solution. In particular, I really liked the updates feature and especially the up to the minute updates as I believe it would be a valuable resource to many educators.
One thing I was curious about (and don’t recall being specified in the presentation) is what subjects the e-textbooks would be designed for?
As well, in terms of the presentation itself I felt that it was somewhat difficult to hear you at times in addition to clearly seeing the power point. Thus, I think had the quality and design been given a little more attention it would have made the overall presentation and sell of the venture that much stronger.
Julie
Thanks for the feedback Julie, I agree with you that it didn’t turn out as well as I had hoped, and I definitely could have done a little more with the presentation. My idea was trying to mimic doing a pitch in front of people, and then tape that. But when it gets taped and is viewed electronically, it definitely loses some of the effect. After watching some of the other venture pitches, i found myself saying “damn, I wish I had done that” a bunch of times…you live you learn though right?
I may have had to cut the subjects from the presentation, but my main focus was on Social Studies, Business, and Science. Subjects where breakthroughs and events tend to happen that updates would improve the course.
Hello Mike,
Great elevator pitch. It made me want to watch your venture presentation. You have a natural ability to sell.
Your information was good, and had many of the aspects that the assignment was looking for. I like that you demonstrated how your etext would work, and the updates idea is great. I also agree with textbooks being outdated and that this idea can satisfy a need and has validity.
In saying that, however, I found that your venture pitch seemed a little stagnant. The motionless camera fixed on a slideshow made me feel like I was back in highschool trying to stay awake during a lesson. I also found myself wondering about the way we teach – or at least the way we ‘should’ be teaching – these days, and worried that your lecturing style of presenting your textbook based venture didn’t seem very ‘up to date’…even though your final message to us all was that you’re behind the times if youre not ‘being up2date’. Just a thought.
Finally, I’m a bit worried about competition you mentioned. They are huge companies. It seems as though many of these competitors would offer ‘updates’ that link to curricular needs?
Overall, i like the pitch, but it didn’t quite allow me to open up my cheque book.
Kent
Thanks Kent,
Yeah the stand and deliver in hindsight may not have been the best approach. If I could go back, I would have broken that up with graphics, slides from the powerpoint, etc. instead of doing it all at once.
Those big companies are the scary part of the venture idea, might be a better option to patten the update feature and then sell that idea to the big guys.
thanks for your thoughts
MIKE
Mike, I liked the way you prepared the venture pitch – posing in front of the camera and explaining your venture concept, I wish I could have done that too…
I like your venture concept and agree that e-textbooks have lot of potential in terms of making education more affordable and up-to date as you mentioned. This is the reason Amazon, McGraw Hill and other publishers are offering online versions of their books that can easily be accessed on smartphones and tablets. I myself have stopped buying paper copies since I bought my iPad earlier this year.
I however have some questions for you –
1. As an investor, one would like to know who your competition is in this market? Are you planning to compete with Amazon and the likes?
2. How to you plan to market your product?
3. How and when can an investor expect to get a break even and start making profits on the investment? Typically schools have shallow pockets and have faculty have limited PD budget. Is that a correct assumption?
Ranvir
On second thoughts, please disregard question 1 and 2 as you have sufficiently answered them in the venture pitch.
I buy supplemental text for my kids from Amazon although I would appreciate if a company could offer variety of content focused on K-12. I think the market is there and I wish you luck with your venture.
I agree Ranvir, the shallow pockets is a hurdle to overcome. It is hard to say when investors would start to see a return, because the e-textbook market in high schools is in such a early stage. So it might take a year or two to see some return. The idea is that a start up company like this one builds up and then eventually sells out to one of the bigger dogs in the ring, making profit for the investors.
Hi Mike, I agree that having up to date textbooks is a good idea as I still have some textbooks that refer to 2004 as in the future. Though I am trying to understand if you will be writing all the textbooks yourself or whether you will be taking existing textbooks and then just updating the information as needed. I believe right now when you get an e-textbook subscription that you always do get the newest version but a new version could be coming out every few years. My only concern would be having to have textbooks continuously updated and republished could be costly. Also writing a textbook that teachers want to purchase would be an issue as it is a very competitive market. My last issue would have to do with the fact that right now most classrooms don’t have access to laptops or computers to read the e-textbooks. Otherwise good presentation and idea.
Hi Mike,
I quite liked both your elevator and venture pitch. This is a new angle on this emerging market and it addresses a clear need in the educational system. I appreciated the detail with which you explained the product, clearly differentiated it from what is currently out there, identified your market and specifically laid out what you need from your investors and what you plan to do with it.
While this is an innovative product and one that I think warrants further development, my concern as an investor is that you are going against the giants of the publishing industry. If this is an idea that truly revolutionizes this industry, I would be concerned that the ‘big dogs’ will quickly catch up and run you out of the market. While you might have a head start, they have large client bases and very deep pockets for development. As such, you would need to somehow patent this idea.
Another concern is how you will create your ‘base content’ for your e-textbooks. The idea of having up-to-date information that a teacher can customize is awesome, don’t get me wrong, but you still have to provide some sort of ‘base material’. As such, is your team going to write e-texts from scratch? Is that part of the development costs?
Again, I think that you did a great job. Well done!
Hi Mike,
You have a brilliant idea and I could easily see it being used in education. Your pitch reminds me of textbooks we have in our library, some of these books such as “challenge of the west” are the same books I used back in highschool. There are big competitors in this market (Mcgraw-Hill) and I think your ultimate goal would be a buy out from one of the giants mentioned rather than competing with them. Another competitor is the free RSS feed feature that teachers in courses such as social studies can use to stay up to date on current events by creating their own news feeds. Great wrap up and catchy final logo “If you’re not up2date, you’re behind the times!”
Hi Mike,
As said by others, I really like the idea, especiallly with respect to the up2date current content. I am also concerned, just by watching the elevator pitch, about the competition, as I have been using online textbooks for course content already. How is this different? That might be the most important point for me because I think the rest of the idea is an easy sell. Good pitch!
Hi Mike,
I think that you have a great idea here and one that does address a common concern in schools. However, my worry with such a technology is how it would compete with major publishing companies that could use already made textbooks, put them in e-text form, and continuously add to them. I also wonder about the practicality of keeping information ‘up-to-date’. I wonder how many people you would need to employ, how much legislation would need to be passed for each piece of information to be added, and how quickly all of this could be done to give the information to students. It seems like a very large task to keep say a Social Studies textbook up-to-date, whereas a Math textbook may be much easier. I also wonder which classes this would be intended for.
All said, I think that you did a great job. I really like how you presented this information and I liked that you made it personal by putting yourself in front of the camera. I did read your reflection as well and it is too bad that you had to cut part of your video out because maybe that would have answered my questions. I think that with a little more work, this would be a venture that I would be very interested in.
Jhodi
Hi Mike,
Sorry for the late post. I have had sleepless nights completing other assignments. I do apologize and mean no disrespect.
I loved your pitch. You spoke well, with good stress and intonation, and touched upon just enough detail to create curiosity. I also enjoyed your longer pitch, though I would perhaps make the deck (slides) more graphic and with less text.
I think your idea is great and there is a market; however, as a textbook author myself, I know the competition is fierce because there is a lot at stake; the textbook market is huge and profitable. You would also need a large team of editors and writers making these updates, and there would be issues regarding who gets royalties for what. Nevertheless, you raise a valid point and there is a need, what I don’t know if going it alone without the backing of one of the textbook publishing monsters would be feasible.
Adriana
Hi Mike –
Of all of the pitches I’ve viewed, yours is focused on one of the greatest needs I think, and you’re elevator pitch sold that very well. Loved your enthusiasm – you held my attention as you did a great job of covering the pain point. It was unclear to me, however, in the evevator pitch, if the updates were meant for eTextbooks produced by other publishers (and I had no idea how you would manage that) or if your company would create the textbooks. So I followed up with your venture pitch. While this question was answered, and if I needed to be sold any more on eTexts you continued to do a great job, what conerned me was the potential quality of writing for the eTexts – quality curriculum writers come with a cost, which must be passed along to the consumer. This will make it very difficult to compete with the Big Dogs; I’m concerned about your competitive edge. This will be a huge challenge I think. Other than that, I thought the pitch was well done – you’ve thought out the marketing plan. I had faith in your credibility (but may have omitted your mention of your failure in securities sales).
I am pitching a new software, Instant One-Sheet, which is a cloud-based software that allows the user (film producer or student) to create a high quality and aesthetically polished one-sheet and extended web-based proposal. To learn more, please see my Elevator Pitch Venture Pitch (password: etec522) Thanks and looking forward to your feedback, Eva
Continue reading I am pitching a new software, Instant On… Posted in: Venture Forum
Hi Eva,
Both of your pitches are so well done to the point that it felt like I was looking at a real, professional venture pitch instead of a fictional one that was made for an assignment. The CEO is so credible and that definitely helps assure potential investors that there is a real need for this kind of product.
Your venture pitch is very thorough, especially with the details of the Revenue Projections, market strategies and the Ask and Return. It is a good idea that you emphasized these areas because I believe most people — when looking at Instant One Sheet – will be concerned of the narrow market Instant One Sheet has.
Even with your well presented pitches, I’m still not convinced and I still think that the market of Instant One Sheet is quite limited. How often will one user use the product? It takes a while to produce one film so I will say the average client may use Instant One Sheet once or twice a year. In that case, is it worth buying?
I really enjoyed watching and reading your venture! I’m treating it as a real one because it seems extremely realistic and viable.
Hi Eva,
Well, you certainly can tell that you are in the industry! What a well-created elevator pitch. It provided just enough information to hook my interest and make me look forward to navigating the venture.
It is highly evident that you have done your research here. Such a thorough breakdown of investment allocation would put any potential investor’s mind at ease. I thought the use of conservative numbers in your projections only worked to your advantage, not diminishing your ask with a smaller market share, but enhancing it by reiterating the confidence that you believe you will reach more. That section was so very well-worded and presented, which spoke again to the confidence and belief in the product and venture.
Thank you so much for providing thorough descriptions at the very beginning of the pitch in terms that anyone, including those outside the industry, could understand. It seems a simple thing, but many people forget that their potential investors may not be knowledgeable in lingo of a particular industry. This can turn potential interest away.
I also applaud your efforts to provide both student and professional pricing! Students have so many fees and expenses to worry about. Affording them a little extra cushioning can really help. (A little goes a long way…) I think this would also perk up interest from institutes of higher education. Kudos.
I would definitely invest in this venture. Fantastic job.
Hi Eva,
I was truly captivated by your pitch. I honestly feel as though if I had $200,000 sitting around, this would likely be one of the only pitches I would invest in without any hesitation whatsoever. You show a clear path of entry into the market and your plan looks quite sound. There’s a definite potential for entry for a reasonable sized market and your pricing structure shows promise. My only question is in how likely it is that you could secure and keep this market. As has often been the case with online ventures, the first to market is likely not the one to succeed as others will imitate and improve on the existing models. Still, with everything appearing quite ironed out I think it leads to a very plausible venture. Are there any competitive advantages that you can secure to ensure a longer window of opportunity to secure this market segment?
Hello Eva,
I don’t know enough about your industry yet, but this idea seems pragmatic enough.
A few suggestions:
I would not use IOS as an acronym for this venture. Apple will come to your house and they will take everything you have .. they will burn, pillage and destroy all that is precious and meaningful – did you see what they did to the house of the guy who found one of their phones pre-release?
That aside, your main issue is the weaknesses you mentioned: namely, replication is easy, but the price is high.
This is a show stopper. You can have one or the other, but not both.
If you think your product cannot be replicated, then you can charge prices.
My preference would be the other way around, to get this product into people’s hands as much as you (free 3-month trials etc), and explore other ways to make revenues from your software: getting content providers to pay you for advertising them etc.. I would look into different ways software is making money now, most people just don’t like paying for software, and there are different options to explore.
GL!
Hi All,
Thank you so very much for your comments and feedback. I truly appreciate your words of encouragement, first and foremost. As I am sure you agree, this assignment was very challenging and since I am not a business type (at least I realized I was not after doing this assignment), I am so very pleased that my idea and pitch came across. I found all of your suggests very valid and interesting. I am going to put these comments into my revision for another version. I will follow up on your comments individually.
Thank you again,
Eva
Hi Eva,
Very good job on your elevator pitch. You were very comfortable in front of the camera and you had a good pace when you spoke. As well, your venture pitch was very organized. Your background spoke lots to your interest in “Instant 1 Sheet” and as a competent CEO. Although you seemed very knowledge about your product, I wasn’t quite sure what pitch material was (until I looked at your venture pitch) or why “Instant 1 Sheet” was better (while watching your elevator pitch). Additionally, I don’t know how big the market would be for “Instant 1 Sheet”. For those reasons, I wouldn’t invest in this product.
Lisa
Hi Eva,
Sorry for writing Instant 1 Sheet instead of Instant One-Sheet. That was my mistake.
Lisa
Hi Eva,
Your elevator pitch was well done and your presentation was exceptional. I don’t have very much knowledge in the film and media industry but your presentation provided an excellent introduction, it was very much real life, well researched and presented. Your have demonstrated your experience in the industry and your venture idea sounds like it would be successful as you presented a very comprehensive revenue plan and marketing strategy. My only thought, not really having a high level of understanding this industry is would this be a sustainable market and will it be limited?
Catherine
Fantastic job Eva, I wish I had contracted you out to direct and film my pitches. Great Work!
I thought that instant 1 sheet is a solid idea that many people within the industry would be smart to take advantage of. You had a reasonable pricing structure and well thought out marketing strategy. Also, the confidence you display gives faith for a potential investor. Excellent work
MIKE
Elevator Pitch Venture Pitch Personal Reflections: I was surprised by how much fun I had thinking creatively as an entrepreneur. Initially I had a lot of ideas and then I narrowed them done by products I would like to see in the market. E-Portfolio programs are something I believe we need more of […]
Continue reading Evernote FOLIO Posted in: Venture Forum
I enjoyed watching your elevator pitch. It reminded me of the pitches that we watched at the beginning of the course. Sometimes a face talking into the camera can have the most impact. Very interesting that you had the same concept as another student. You guys must be on to something.
Great work Jen!
I thought your elevator pitch was great, you were enthusiastic and camera friendly. I liked the idea you had of launching off an existing company, I felt lame in that respect when I was pitching me, myself and I…gives your idea more credibility. I think maybe a little more explanation in the venture pitch of what an e-portfolio is could have been helpful to someone who is hearing that word for the first time. I loved the upbeat music and images you used to compliment the presentation. good work!
Hi Jen,
A very well presented pitches (both), it is natural and very professionally done. I didn’t realize that you went through so much problems filming your elevator pitch until I read your behind the scene. I enjoy reading you reflection and it made me want to go back and revise mine a bit.
I think you pitches covered all of the important points that investors want to know and I found that by emphasizing the team early on, it highlight the expertise and knowledge of the product. Well done.
However, as an investor I don’t think I will invest in your venture 🙁 It is a good idea that Evernote’s clients will not have to pay more to have this add on folio feature. But I also think that there’re probably not many new clients who want to pay for Evernote just to get the folio feature since there are many websites with excellent folio platforms available for free of charge. So I think the folio feature won’t attract more clients to Evernote.
Otherwise, this is a very strong presentation, congratulations 🙂
Hi Jen,
Beautiful presentations.
The material was well laid out and well organized. I could see how your team and Evernote could champion the product.
I was not sure exactly what amount of investment you wanted and what the percentage return might be.
It seems to me that the Pain Point is more of an internal one in your case: Folio could make Evernote a more complete and comprehensive product that is less likely to be dropped by its customers as a result.
Also, the competitive economic forces that you talked about seem to apply more to Evernote’s long-term sustainability than the client’s need to be competitive per se.
I would suggest that you further discuss the competitive market Evernote finds itself in, who its key competitors are and how Folio would allow Evernote to expand its suite and maintain its competitive advantage in that regard – that competitive advantage being the network externality gains clients make by being able to rely on Evernote on a set of related needs (note taking, store documents, record a document, capture a photograph etc.) and bring these all together, while being able to connect and share them with others on a common platform.
PS. Most investors would be fine to see their money also go into marketing that gets their investment increased sales/profits. And there are many target markets in which I could see Evernote expanding and solidifying its hold. In this case, first mover advantage is an important one, and I would not overlook this.
Just sayin. Good Luck 🙂
Beautifully done Jen! You are a very confident and informative presenter. Your clean graphics and smooth transitions make me cry for my Mac! You created a visually pleasing (never jarring) and excellently produced and edited final product for both your elevator and venture pitches. They could both be rolled out tomorrow, they appear so professional.
One thing that stuck out to me in your presentation was the importance of retaining existing clients. I think a lot of companies/products forget that in the initial excitement of starting a new venture. Pitches often become very new user driver. The fact that you have considered existing users and their importance in the venture speaks volumes to your pitch.
I also found it impressive that you covered such a breadth of user. You moved beyond the educational field into the professional world, broadening your scope ten fold. By adding a personal element to it, such as the digital scrapbook lure, you have hit almost every target market out there.
By adding info graphics such as registered users, both though graph and photo analogies, you have placed a better visualization into the audience’s head. Specifics on the team behind the project as well as a projected launch date really took this to a new level. Well done.
Hi Jen,
This is another great venture pitch that I had the pleasure to view. Your presentation was captivating and oozed confidence and passion lending credibility to the venture. The venture concept is interesting and appears feasible and in line with a product feature I would expect from Evernote. It would even likely increase their number of premium users are more users would have the potential to reach the quota limit encouraging them to upgrade to premium status. My only qualms with the pitch are with regards to the competitive edge as well as the exit strategy. Although with the pre-established user base from Evernote, this alone may be sufficient to counter any comparable product that could launch to market. So realistically, there’s just a question of how and when do I make my money back? Perhaps I missed this point?
Hi Jen,
Well done, an excellent elevator pitch and the venture presentation was clear, concise, interesting, high quality and very comprehensive. Your audio, graphics and theme was very professional. I think you have a very viable venture, you have identified the current users, growth, marketing strategy, revenue capabilities and your company has a proven track record. E-portfolios are up and coming in both education and industry as you have mentioned, we already know that the mobile device market is exploding and that millions are downloading apps hourly.
I would invest in your venture. 🙂
Catherine
CommonSense Media is an online resource teaching the importance of digital citizenship. The market is blossoming and the need is great for trustworthy, relevant and interactive resources that educate students, parents and teachers about digital literacy and citizenship. Please click on the links below to learn more about Common Sense. Elevator Pitch Venture Pitch Thank you, […]
Continue reading Common Sense – Venture Pitch Posted in: Venture Forum
Hi there Kent,
This is super slick. Good work with the visuals and marketing. Is it an original idea or are you taking and adapting another venture? Good use of the Ken Burns effect as well.
CommonSense media has been around for a while now. In fact, I believe Lisa spoke about it during the ‘apps’ OER. I recently found this resource, as my school is undergoing a ‘tech revolution’. Digital literacy and citizenship has been at the forefront of our conversations so I thought I would blend my working world with my student life and learn more about this great company. So NO, not original. I now wish I had implanted my ‘reflection’ page onto this blog page.
Thanks for the comment,
Kent
I wonder if the plugged in nature of contemporary students makes them more aware of their online presence as opposed to digital immigrants?
Hi Kent,
Before I do my rating could answer a question for me. I have used CommonSense videos/lessons in my class. I specifically use their program Passport to the Internet and I was just a bit unclear about what you ‘new’ direction you are taking the company in. The already have extensive resources supporting digital citizenship. I am just unsure what has been “made over” to quote one of David’s posts or what the new venture/idea is. Would you mind clarifying this for me. So far I was highly impressed with your marketing abilities to sell CommonSense. Your combination of visuals, text, and voice over was done so well that it seems professional. Thanks, Jen
Thanks for that question Jen, without adding my ‘reflection’ that piece of information does tend to get lost, especially with a great resource like Common Sense. When first investigating this resource, however, I quickly realized that offering a monthly fee onto this enterprise would immediately add revenue. As well, with certain aspects like lessons, videos and K-12 units teaching digital citizenship, a fee for each of these resources could also be added on. Furthermore, although Commonsense does have an application for the iPhone, it is quite limited. Adding features like game scenarios for children to navigate through in the app would add value to this resource.
I honestly couldn’t believe I could sign up ‘for free’ and gain acces to all of what CommonSense had to offer. With expectations from parents, and now the government, to protect and educate youth about digital citizenship, attaching a monetary value onto this resource could really be quite lucrative.
So, in answer to your question, I am making the app better and have added a price tag to this service. Nothing monumental, but I hope that answers your question.
Thanks Jen,
Kent
Thanks Kent,
To facilitate and objectively review the venture pitch you have put forward, I will be utilizing the guidelines provided within our course, Section 2.7 – Deconstructing a Pitch.
CEO & Team:
After having watched the elevator and venture pitch, I feel the CEO of this venture not only appears credible, but through all aspects of the Common Sense presentation, it was apparent that they were not only knowledgeable but passionate as well, a good start for any venture. However, no specific mention was made in regards to the overall team that this venture has assembled to either develop or take this product to the next stage. Therefore, an appropriate determination of this teams abilities to manage and promote this venture cannot be made at this time.
Venture Concept:
Even though there is a continual growing need for effective and quality professional development, this venture does not provide anything unique or innovative to the market at this time. Regardless, of this fact, Common Sense does provide potential clients with multiple and what appears to be, high quality services for parents, students, and even teachers. Furthermore, the foundation of this approach is based upon the Good Play research conducted at Harvard, which further strengthens this opportunity. As well, this venture recognizes that significant funds are spent yearly on technology around the world, yet no specific benefits are usually noticed. It is in this gap between implementation and results, where Common Sense has decided focus, a gap that may prove profitable. Lastly, Common Sense’s ability to allow schools to utilize their Government Funding may be an essential component of this venture, to ensure its initial success.
Marketability:
Common Sense, recognized that this is a growing market, that includes students, parent and teachers, however no specific information was provided on the market size, either within North America, or Globally (which they plan on exploring in the near future). Without this data, it is difficult to determine true market size, the portion of the market they can expect to hold, and any potential revenue to ensure the success of this venture. Furthermore, it is important to point out, that many resources dealing with digital citizenship are found freely around the Internet, making paid services difficult to maintain, and potential investors wary of providing funds.
Venture Plan:
At this time, Common Sense appears to be near, or even ready to enter this market. However, at this time, more investigation into the need of this service, ability to differentiate themselves from existing services, and convince people to use their paid for service instead of free resources would have to be conducted before investing. Lastly, it may benefit this venture to include a marketing specialist on their team, who may easily provide the guidance to overcome some of these issues.
Hi Kent,
I felt that you delivered very professional elevator and venture pitches. In your elevator pitch you were very credible but I felt that you were more selling the pitch to the consumer than to the investor.
There was no face to the longer venture pitch, which I thought would have been a good addition. The only aspect that I personally felt was distracting was the music in the venture pitch as I had to try to hear your voice over it. In this pitch you did venture a bit further into investment opportunities but it still seemed a bit vague to me and the pitch still geared towards the consumer. Saying this though, your comments about the pitch did highlight the investment potential.
I thought both pitches were well developed, you addressed the pain point well and talked of the immense prospect of the venture (that digital citizenship really has no boundaries) and tried to appeal to potential purchasers’ emotions. You addressed how your product was different than the competition’s and how it works smoothly with the systems found within school systems such as Moodle.
As an EVA, I would be interested in knowing the growth of the company, and more about the direction it is going, to have an understanding if the product is and could be enhanced to be much more cash flow positive.
Overall, I thought you did an excellent and very professional job on the pitches.
Kent —
Energy was really clear in both videos. I think your presence on the camera is very evident and a strength. You have a natural way of communicating with the camera and I think would make an even stronger proposal had you been present in your second video as well (I should clarify, your second video was great — but I think with your presence there it would’ve made it even stronger!)
It’s interesting to see what is out there and sometimes you have wonder how people monetize on it. I think what is amazing is that companies are often pretty clever about monetizing on a seemingly “free” product. A closer look at the original product shows that they are getting a lot of donations. It looks like they have a lot of big name organizations involved and I wonder if they get clever product placement within the resource?
Would you be worried about alienating the current user base that has used this as a free resource for so long? I like the idea of adding an app as a premium service. I think if you did charge it would have to be for additional value added features as opposed to limiting service. Great idea otherwise!
— Jonathan
I am in agreement with a number of comments above. I was initially a bit concerned that your pitch didn’t seem to do much over and above what Common Sense Media already offers. They have a pretty extensive collection of videos and lesson plans already so I didn’t see what you were doing that was new. They are, in fact, a not-for-profit and are not affiliated with any company, organization or political body (according to their FAQ) and rely entirely on donations and sponsorship. So the idea of revamping their app and charging a subscription for some services is not unreasonable and could provide some badly-needed funding. (Again, on their own website, they say, “It takes an enormous amount of money to create and maintain this website.”)
I thought that the elevator pitch was good. It was brief and to the point, but I got a pretty clear idea what the project was about. The venture pitch on the other hand was a little short on a few things. I didn’t know who was behind it. I didn’t get a clear idea how the funding worked within the company. I didn’t see how you might promote this to extend beyond those who already know about it. And, regarding current users (depending on how we role-play this activity, should we assume that this is a new product or a new direction for the current one?) who have had free access to this content up until now?
So there was a lot to like about this, but there remain a number of unanswered questions.
Hi Kent:
I am not sure if there is much I can add here. I liked your elevator pitch, it caught my attention wanting to know more and to move to the venture pitch. I also agree with several before me that the pitch seemed to be more for the consumer than the investor. I think it is harder to develop a true venture pitch for the investor when you are working with an existing product as most of the reference material available is focused on the consumer.
Doug.
Hi Ken
Your elevator pitch was convincing enough to have me look at Common Sense Media.
That Common Sense Media is based on Howard Gardner’s GoodPlay Project at the Harvard Graduate School of Education speaks volumes about its heritage. Also you have a product that occupies a niche does not have much competition as you stated and that makes it a viable product for years to come. As a matter of fact I will be recommending it to our school based on your salesmanship.
You are a very good sales man you as and it goes without that you have convinced me that this is an excellent product. As far as am concerned you have covered all the bases that you should in order to sell this product. However you have not made your ‘spin’ on it as to what you are bringing to Common Sense Media that you want me to invest in. As such I am afraid to say I cannot invest in it.
Nevertheless you did such a spectacular job at selling this product that I will gladly employ you at Cognisys to sell our creative product line. ;-).
Cheers
Patason
I knew I should have gone into Marketing! Thanks for your comments Patason…I will make sure to review Cognisys a little more in depth very soon!
In regards to your comments about not investing, I realize that my ‘ask’ was basically non-existent. It was – and has been throughout this course – my achilles heel. For some reason, I couldn’t put a price tag on this service.
Again, thanks for your comments and i’m glad you liked the pitch. CommonSense is a wonderful resource.
Kent
Hi,
I think you did a great job of putting together a very engaging pitch. I believe you have a natural ability to sell a product. Your tone of voice, confined, and general presence was a valuable feature of your videos.
Visually this pith was very compelling. However, I did find the elevator pitch to be more like a commercial than a pitch. Your venture analysis started out well. I was drawn in immediately. You addressed a lot of point but there were some components that you could have expanded on. I think the aesthetics of this presentation would definitely draw in an investor but they may ask for some additional information before investing.
Thank for sharing such an engaging pitch and analysis. I wish I had such great skill.
Nureen
Hi Kent,
Your elevator pitch is well presented. As an EVA, I am definitely hooked and my interests would be furthered with information on the differentiation, ask and return.
Upon reviewing the Common Sense website, I do wonder how your pitch is stirring the venture in a different direction?
As a fellow classmate, I am, however, not sure if it is a good idea for us to use images from the original venture website because of copyright concerns outlined in section 4.1 of our course blog.
Thanks,
James
Hi Kent
Great work and as others have pointed out – very slick and professional presentations, I am sure you must have some marketing experience behind you!
Good identification of a pain point that presents itself clearly as a venture opportunity. However, from the elevator pitch I am not sure if or what CommonSense really is as a solution. I was not convinced from the video that the venture was either a good or bad investment but it had a great hook that make me dive further an look at your venture pitch.
From the venture pitch personally I not able understand clearly how this is proprietary, or how you can stop other competitors from easily offering similar products (this could be just a reflection of my ignorance in this domain however sorry).
My gut feeling as an EVA is that I am not sure if this is going to be a financially viable venture and I would not invest. In saying that, I am not sure from you presentation if you need financial backing? or how it will be used or how it will make money? or if this is in fact a goal or not (perhaps it is not)?
Thanks
Melissa
Hi Kent,
Great use of video making technology. Your elevator pitch was an excellent teaser and made me want to learn more from the venture pitch. I agree with the others – a very professional presentation that seems geared more to consumers than investors.
Sophia
Please click on the following links to view my Elevator Pitch and Venture Proposal for the first international extension of US based company Play-Well TEKnologies! (Play-Well TEKnologies is an existing company that currently only has branches within the United States. I am proposing London as a first location for an international branch.) (Links removed at […]
Continue reading Play-Well TEKnologies – London! Posted in: Venture Forum
Hello Jennifer, thank you for your venture! I have always been a big fan of Lego, and its educational value. I’m glad that you added these learing features into your Prezi – gears/pulleys, engineering, math skills, etc.
I couldn’t see you elevator pitch, but i could hear what seemed like an introduction. Powerpoint kept loading forever, so eventually i just gave up on it. I also tried to import it into my Dropbox, but unfortunately i’ve lost that login information…urrgghhh. I’ll track it down soon enough and review your pitch then.
Back to your venture pitch, the Prezi was quite organized and flowed well. It was good to see the program in action through your pictures, as i’m a big fan of seeing the service working.
Your price range seems quite reasonable, but with so many ‘special pieces’ that you mention the kids having the opportunity in using i’m curious as to how you are less expensive then your competitors.
As well, your asking price of $25,000 seems low to me. Although this amount will be matched, i still don’t see $50,000 going very far in terms of starting a brand new venture in a place like England, where our dollar – or the States’ – doesn’t count for very much.
I did appreciate knowing when my money would be returning to me, however.
Another point I noticed was that much of your presentation seemed like an advertisement for potential employees looking for jobs. Information about ‘team buidling and training’ might be more geared towards potential employees, rather than investors in the venture.
I’m also wondering that with so much red tape involved in trying to get Play-Well in Canada, there must be the same issues regarding a European branch. Perhaps adding this fact to your ‘pain point’ would be helpful.
Although you have a terrific brand name, that many would recognize, I still think I would need a bit more information in regards to the legalities and financials with moving a brand into not only a new country, but a new continent. Your overview of your competition also seemed to be based in North America, and i’m wondering if England has any similar products. Is Mad Science in London?
Just a few things i’m still trying to figure out. However, a nicely polished presentation and venture pitch. Well done!
Kent
Thanks Kent! I can see where maybe some of my points weren’t made in the clearest way by some of your questions…
The special pieces that we use in the kit are used only by the instructor. Students do not take home the projects we create. (That would get WAY too expensive.) Our employees successfully impart that the take away from our courses is the knowledge and experience over material things. We provide links to where parents can purchase materials online if their children would like to continue exploration on their own at home, but the only charge they incur from us is the class rate.
As far as the team building aspect goes, that was meant as a way of expanding our business (and not referring to anything internal). Instead of solely running after school enrichment, camps and experiences for children, why not branch out into the corporate world, providing interactive team building experiences for corporations at large? I am based near Boulder, CO in the States… home to many computer tech companies, including Google, who have expressed interest in this type of experience. It would obviously be more of a special event type of occurrance, but a new source of revenue regardless.
Thank you for your comments regarding red tape and other issues. I hear you! I have been trying to figure this out for a while. As I understand it, England does have a “loophole” of sorts which allows a single representative of a foreign operation to come in and do business under a standard VISA. Fingers crossed because I hope to push this to headquarters upon my return!
Hi Jennifer,
I really liked the learn by play with Lego concept presented in your venture pitch and also thought the presentation itself was very well organized. One thing I would suggest is to give the venture pitch an equal focus on how the programs actually work with the students and even perhaps some actual examples instead of focusing more on the marketing and future goals of the company.
Julie
Thank you for the suggestion Julie! Obviously as an instructor, I am super passionate about what I have seen this program do in the lives of my students. Unfortunately, I was so afraid to overload my presentation with too much sentimentality that I neglected to really express what the individual programs do accomplish! I agree with you that perhaps I shouldn’t have played it so safe here. (We really do great things!)
I do hope that people visit our YouTube page to see the projects in action though! Prezi could never do that justice (though perhaps I should have included one or two in my presentation). Food for thought going forward! Thanks!
Hi Jennifer, I had problems with your elevator pitch so I wasn’t able to listen to it. Your Prezi was very well organized and personally I have always loved playing with Lego. I think your idea does sound interesting but I am not that familiar with the market in England so I don’t believe I can comment on how effective you would be. It sounds like you are doing the necessary networking and research gathering that you need to be successful so I wish you all the best.
Thank you Colin. I was having quite a bit of trouble with my pitch as well. It seemed to end up working fine on my end in the end, but I am quite bummed that so many of you seem to be having trouble with it. Those that know me from other classes know my obsession with creating video, so being without a computer here has been murder. I weep for my Mac back at home!
I am currently staying in a part of England inundated with children and families. I have put out feelers with mummy groups and local enrichment sources and have actually garnered quite a bit of interest. It is all very exciting; I can’t wait to bring the news home with me in a few weeks.
HI Jennifer,
I like the concept of integrating play with education and what better way to do so than lego. I am having a little bit of trouble understanding how the business model would work for such a setup. I read it as an franchise in which you build partnerships with individual entrepreneurs who would buy the kit for $10000 and then receive training on how to go into schools and work with students. My wife had a similar activity in her class in which the school paid $300 for a third person to come into the school and work with students on building projects using lego-like materials. My only question is why someone would want to fork out the initial $10,000 for that specific kit and membership to this group. Unless this organization already has orders from schools that need to be filled, wouldn’t one do better on their own?
Our company currently is not interested in providing franchise opportunities. This venture would be in-house only. I am basically tasked with making the case for bringing it abroad. With the interest I have garned in one very small borough of London, I feel that I have more than enough ammo to back up my request. I am looking for additional funding as my company is slow to compensate any new territory, whether within the US or outside.
Hi,
Overall, I think that you have an interesting concept here. Learning with LEGO can be very engaging for students. However, I would have liked have been able to view and hear your elevator pitch for more engagement from myself to get interested in the concept. For me, this format was not very engaging and did not spark my interest. I would have also liked to have seen a stronger focus on the student in the venture pitch.
Overall, I think that you did a good job on both pitches. They were both informative and developed a positive view of your company and marketability.
Jhodi
Hi Jen –
I thought you did a great job with your pitches. I’m a fan of educational uses of Lego (never used them for that, but think they are great for that purpose). I liked that your elevator pitch, early on, distinguished Play-Well Tek from similar competitors, with the curriculum being the main difference. You provided more detail in your venture pitch. The vertical structure of your prezi (What is..; Why; Marketing; Who is behind…, etc.) took me clearly and logically through your venture. Your Ask – clearly mentioned in the elevator pitch but no mention there of what it was for, but you answered this in the longer venture pitch. Even matched by the company this seems low for what the funds were to provide, but the money aspect is something I am admittedly weak about myself. You say my investment will be returned in a year; with a tidy profit I hope? The team has plenty of credibility – I love the title VP of Marketing and Fun.
Well thought-out marketing plan.
I thought you did a great job. The product seems expensive to me, but you put it into perspective. I’d be interested in further discussions, but the competition would be one of my main concerns.
This service is an extension or alternative form of teaching, so it may be a more difficult sell based on that point. However, this service comes at a good time. There is a massive movement in education towards play. This is a great example of using play to teach and learn. I didn’t get a clear idea of how this is different from the robotics and lego options already out there? Why is this particular program special? The championship in this venture is clear and this is a definite point of strength. I also think that it would be easy to market this. Expos, schools, etc. would be great avenues, however, your “difference” from other similar types of services would be important to include in any advertising or marketing that you do. Your ask and return are very clearly laid out and seem more than reasonable. Would it be possible to do online instruction as well? Could this be another area of growth for your company? I would definitely invest in this venture.
Hi Jennifer,
Great job on your elevator and venture pitch! In your elevator pitch, I got a sense of who you were and what you were pitching. As well, you had an “Ask”. Depending on who you were targeting, I could see a need for this product. The idea about kids learning through play (especially LEGOS) is great.
Here is some constructive feedback on your venture pitch:
• Your elevator and venture pitch were well put together.
o The Prezi was easy to follow
• I was unsure as to what market problem Play-Well TEKnologies was a solution for.
• You did include the competition, but I think you could have stated why your product was better than these other products. You mentioned it in your elevator pitch, but I think you should have re-stated it again in your “Competition” section.
• Marketing – you do state where you will go to promote this product such as expos, community events/fairs, trial classes, promotional flyers but…
o Who will your major market push be towards? I am unclear as to who runs the programs and where they are held.
o Will you target schools or school districts? Do you target organizations that run after school programs like a YMCA?
• You included information about the cost of the “Play-Well TEKnologies” kit, as well as attendance fees and how much instructors would get paid. I thought this would be good from an investor’s point of view since it would give me an idea of where this product would make money. The amount of money for the kit did make me wonder if this was too high of a price for an organization to buy into.
• You did state an “ask” and “return”
• I’m not sure if I got a strong sense of the strengths and weaknesses of “Play-Well TEKnologies”. What are some of the issues that may arise?
Since I had quite a few questions as I went through your venture pitch, I would not invest in this product. But in saying that, good job on both pitches.
Lisa
My Elevator and Venture pitch are based on interactive technology that enable student/teacher manipulation on any surface. Unlike the traditional smartboard and white board that server pretty much one purpose, a glorified mouse and projector that a teacher uses from the front of the baord, my idea revolved it around multiple purposes in education and […]
Continue reading My Elevator and Venture pitch are based … Posted in: Venture Forum
Hi Suhayl:
Unfortunately your Venture pitch looses sound at 3:14 and it does not seem to recover so I can’t really do an evaluation unless it is complete. Your delivery is great in the first three minutes of the venture pitch, however you talk very fast in the elevator pitch, I think trying to get too much in, so it is hard to follow.
Doug.
Hi Suhayl,
From what I was able to learn from the elevator pitch and first few minutes of the venture pitch (as the sound cut off for me as well), I think you have a really great idea; one that I would very much like to learn more about. In particular, I like that it is pre-set for you with all the programs, doesn’t require wall mounting and is made more portable. However, besides those features, I wonder how it really differs from the SMART Board because in my experience with SMART Board, it already offers a wide range of interactive and engaging lessons and can automatically link to the internet. As well, I would like to know more about the financial plan that enables the MultiBoard to be sold at a lower cost.
Finally, one other tip is that I found you spoke way to fast in the elevator pitch and I had to listen to it a few times just to catch what was said. I think the ideas are there and the product is great but would have been better sold in that pitch if the script was kept more brief.
Julie
I concur with Doug and Julie, in that your elevator pitch was quite fast and didn’t really seem to offer a clear message. Upon reviewing your venture pitch I was intrigued with quite a few facets of your presentation. It was too bad the sound went out when it did, as your pitch was really gaining momentum.
I also wanted to know more about ‘Multi-learn’. what is that?
I will say that i disagreed with your critique of Smartboard technology. I use mine almost daily and have never even used the programs installed therein and still find it quite engaging because of it’s connectivity to the internet. You really are only limited by your own imagination.
Because your presentation cut out I don’t think I can go any further with comments or a possible investment.
If you do fix the bug I would be interested in seeing the rest!
Kent
I like the elevator. Nice touch.
Like the others, I think it went too fast. And the elevator pitch should really be a slick product in itself. This wasn’t particularly slick. For example, you stumbled on a few lines in there and probably should have cleaned that up. So while I am always attracted to ideas that involve combining cool gadgets, you didn’t sell me on this one. Good luck.
I liked the idea of your product and it definitely would be something I would be interested in seeing and assessing whether to use it in the classroom. Though you had enthusiasm in your presentation you stumbled a few times and made mistakes like forgetting the “e” in Venture. These mistakes can hurt a presentation even if the product is good. As for the rest the sound cut out so I wouldn’t be able to evaluate. Overall I liked the product idea.
I like the idea as a teacher, but your pitch, although interesting, was difficult to understand. Additionally I have seen some similar technologies, so perhaps including some information on how exactly this product is different would have bolstered it for me, and perhaps changed my opinion. Despite the great idea, I would not invest in this venture.
Job well done in the beginning Suhayl.
I could here the belief and support for your product coming through with your voice annotations in the elevator pitch. The multiboard is an interesting idea and worth of investment investigation. I did my best to piece together what the offerings/askings were for this product but the sound cuts and doesn’t return.
PC
Hi Suhayl,
I liked your elevator pitch as it did a good job of explaining your product. As others have identified, it wasn’t terribly polished, but it did do the job. I think that the product is innovative and does address a relevant problem. It is unfortunate that the audio cuts out in your venture pitch as I would have liked to have known what the expected retail price would be so that I could determine if such a product could compare with others, like SMART boards.
I do have to pass on this one mainly because too much is unknown. However, if you are able to post a transcript of what you would have said in the rest of your venture pitch, I would be interested to read it.
I have an assignment three venture pitch for a new photo app that I’m rather excited about, but I’m not quite interested in sharing a public link to my pitch at the moment! If you are seriously interested in hearing about my idea, please send an email message to scott underscore tammik at mac dot […]
Continue reading Photo App Elevator and Venture Pitch Posted in: Venture Forum
Hi Scott,
Your elevator and venture pitch and product were awesome!!! You looked very comfortable in front of a camera and you did a good job with the background setting (including pictures as your backdrop – very strategic). Your presentation was very polished and I think you hit most or all the criteria for a venture pitch. You included a pain point and solution, you did a great job differentiating between your product and the others you compared it to, and you included the challenges for your product. You even stated how your app was going to make money. It was a nice touch to add quotes to the presentation.
One area that you could have touched upon a little more was what you wanted from the investors. I know in your elevator pitch you stated that you were looking for investors to fund your initial development of your photo app and to market it worldwide, but then never mentioned it again. As well, what was the return the investors would receive? You did a good job stating how much you could sell this product as an app or per/month, but what would the investors get out of this?
All in all, great job! I would invest in the venture.
Lisa
Thanks for your positive feedback Lisa.
Indeed, beyond speculating on the cost of the app and service, I don’t have much expertise on the finance side of app development, so I steered clear of the numbers aspect to my pitch and just concentrated on the concept – which I’m glad you enjoyed!
Hi Scott,
Loved the comprehensive delivery method of your venture. I definitely enjoy your passion and enthusiasm for the idea.
As an idea itself I think you are onto something that is great and would be loved by the niche market that you are going after.
Would I invest – unfortunately not.
But this is not because of the concept but I see the biggest flaw is that it is only using the phones camera and the screen. I dont think this will satisfy the market that you are going after. I think that for them having increased on screen functionality is not enough, they want to go back to the tradition of having something physical to adjust to have some control and to give them options.
If you were to include something like http://digitalmarketinginstitute.ie/blog/iphone/photojojo-produce-specialised-camera-lenses-for-iphone#.ULief-OTsVg or http://www.olloclip.com/ in the offering I would have no problem investing in you and your venture as I feel this would satisfy your potential clients rather than just the app itself.
But nicely put together and extremely well delivered – very impressed overall.
Thanks
Stuart
Hi Stuart,
Thank you for all your well informed comments.
I quite agree with you, that what I and many others are really after, is really something like the new Fuji X-E1 or as you suggest, physical manual controls including those iPhone extensions you noted.
However, these cost more money and in some ways take away from the pocket-ability of smartphone cameras. In my school for example, we never seem to have enough money for more cameras, or darkroom supplies, but I think we could scrap together $100 per class each semester, to provide an app for the smartphones the kids already have. Phone accessories also need to be designed to fit to each phone design, which could be an issue.
In any event, thanks again for making me stop to reconsider a very important aspect of my pitch.
Cheers,
Scott.
Hi Scott,
Your Slowography venture proposal is very well done and sounds like something that is ready for design. Your elevator pitch was excellent in communicating the void in the market place when comparing point and shoot digital photography to traditional manual methods. You have clearly conducted a lot of research in this area and presented statistics on app purchases relevant to your pitch. The website is very nicely laid out and you come through as an honest, reputable, entrepreneur who knows what he’s talking about. I would give you an A+ on your presentation and my concerns as an investor are listed below.
1) Name – Slowography comes off as something that consumers may not want to look into in further detail.
2) Competitors – There are a lot of them! You have done a good job of dissecting the differences between them and the features that your app will integrate. However, this is a market that is saturated with photography apps and a simple update to one of the more popular apps could easily put you out of business.
3) Users – This app is great for the typical point and shoot users who have limited experience with photography. The true enthusiasts will probably still be skeptical and stick to traditional methods of photography.
These reservations are very minor and do not take away from what a great idea this is. I am currently teaching a visual and media arts class and try to teach students the practical skills that they can do on their own after graduation. Not all of them can afford an SLR camera and this app is definitely something I would not invest in, but also use in my classroom. Great work Scott!
Hi Manny,
I’ve always respected and appreciated your thoughts in our discussions.
The name is not something I’m 100% on either, it just seemed like a novel take on ‘photography’ and the .com domain was available, so I took it. You are quite right, that an update could threaten the apps relevance, which is why I thought about creating a whole ‘ecosystem’ and community around the idea, to give it value beyond the app – especially for classroom teachers and students. As I mentioned to Stuart, true enthusiasts will likely still opt for expensive cameras from Leica or a Fuji, but what about those times when all you have is your camera or you can’t afford a Leica. I think the old saying goes something like, “the best camera to have, is the one you’ve got”!
Thanks for your comments and nod of support.
Scott.
I made a typo in my last line, I meant to say this app is something I would not only invest in, but also use in my classroom.
Hi Scott,
I found your elevator pitch and venture pitch to be very informative and professionally driven. In terms of the team’s qualifications, there is no doubt in my mind that you demonstrate passion and commitment to drive this venture forward. It is unclear in your pitch whether there are other members to your team so I’ll assume it is just you. As for the venture concept, I consider it quite original and you do appear to have done a fair bit of research in the area to demonstrate some feasibility. I’m unclear as to what portion of the market would be looking for apps that slow them down when tackling photography but there does appear to be growth in the market segment. My only real qualm with the proposal is with regards to the investment dollars. There isn’t really any indication as to what you’ll do with the investment nor is there any indication on how I could make money or get my money back. All in all, I would like some of these questions answered before I chose to invest but your credibility and professionalism does lend itself to a positive experience and hope for a successful venture. I wish you best of luck in launching this venture if you do go forward with it!
I’m pleased to know my enthusiasm for the idea came through clearly – thanks for that positive feedback Patrick.
Indeed as I mentioned to Lisa as well, beyond speculating on the cost of the app and service, I don’t have much expertise on the finance side of app development, so I steered clear of the numbers aspect to my pitch and just concentrated on the concept.
Hi Scott –
Great work! As soon as I started watching the elevator pitch I was hooked. You exuded credibility by your passion and quality of work and that drew me in, despite my initial reluctance as to why anyone would want to go back to the pre-instant-results days of photography. So the venture concept was foreign to me, but was further addressed in your venture concept. For me there is also a disconnect between what I think of as a traditional SLR camera – simply the heft & feel & shape of the camera vs a slim smartphone. But that’s maybe just me.
The opportunity space – competition – may be a problem in this market. You’ve given some good though to your marketing plan as well as to additional revenue sources.If you can assemble the team you’re looking for – I think you’ve got a shot.
All great points for me to consider Peggy, thank you.
I am realizing now, from your feedback and from others, that I need to make clearer the idea that I don’t intend for the app to replace traditional cameras, but rather to provide an alternative to the way we use camera phones, for both photographers and students/educators alike.
The entire experience of this assignment and the feedback its generated, have been very helpful to me 🙂
Here is my elevator pitch describing forEvernote (please click beside the yellow arrows for audio!) and my forEvernote venture pitch. forEvernote is a new vision for and extension of the popular Evernote program to allow teachers to create portfolios that follow students though their education from kindergarten to grade 12. I hope that you enjoy! […]
Continue reading forEvernote perpetual portfolios Posted in: Venture Forum
John ~ Not sure if you saw my fictional venture but it is very similar. Maybe this speaks to the market need, eh?
Hi Jen,
I just saw yours and, yes, I do think that the market is speaking! There are a few others who are also pitching portfolio-related ventures as well. Funny how that happened!
John
Hi John,
I liked your Elevator Pitch. I felt it caught my attention and I was interested to hear more. I might suggest taking out the statement “Who cares?’ and instead write something more positive like “the key to best assessment”. You Venture pitch covered most of the crucial tenets of a pitch. I felt you could have expanded on the credibility and championship of the CEO and team. In terms of Marketing I don’t think you would need “buy-in” from every teacher. I think each teacher, school or district could choose to use the program and then their thoughts would spread whether or not it was worthy to use. I was unsure of your plan. What were you specifically asking of the investors? Money or ? I liked how you said why they should invest but what would they get in return. Overall, a great venture concept. Thanks for sharing, Jen
cunnian,
Your elevator pitch did a great job of suggesting that we leverage existing technology for an educationally sound reason. I think there is a lot of potential in your proposal.
I really like the presentation that you used in Prezi. In fact, some of my students use it for their portfolio’s because of the unique way the visuals are presented.
The venture was complete and informative as well. It felt well thought out. Good work.
John –
Love the idea of extending an existing idea and turning it into something more. You hit the nail on the head in your “Why Invest In Us” section by mentioning that Evernote already has a large user base and could benefit from this idea moving forward. Great venture concept — and well presented in both your Prezi and your webpage. You should bring this one forward. I’m starting to like the idea of portfolios more and more…
— Jonathan
To facilitate and objectively review the venture pitch you have put forward, I will be utilizing the guidelines provided within our course, Section 2.7 – Deconstructing a Pitch.
CEO & Team:
After having gone through the elevator pitch, including the formal venture pitch used to introduce forEvernote, I am confident of the CEO, based upon his ability to effectively and efficiently convey the overall and specific ideas of this venture. As for the rest of the management team, there is not specific information regarding individuals or positions tied to this venture. Without this information, it is hard to determine, beyond the CEO, if this product will be successfully launched, or if key elements/positions have been overlooked, dooming this interesting product to failure.
Venture Concept:
The overall concept of forEvernote is not an original idea, but a natural extension of educational theories and Internet applications, a product that attempts to positively merge each to create a meaningful assessment tool for todays modern classroom. Furthermore, it is clear that the CEO for this venture, clearly researched and understands the need of this product. Especially considering the fact that this tool, like all other tools, are only as effective as the person who wields it. As evidenced in recent research focusing on ePortfolios:
If students do not accept the e-portfolio as a holistic means with which to document their learning in different contexts and more importantly, agree or wish to use the e-portfolio as an integral part of their educational experience, then the potential impact the e-portfolio will have on learning will not be realised. (http://www.cjlt.ca/index.php/cjlt/article/view/97)
An issue that forEvernote overcomes with the recognition that professional development is necessary for this tool to become successful. Overall, I find this venture interesting and would pursue further research into this area.
Marketability:
The actual marketability of this venture was not provided, leaving potential investors wondering about this ventures true market size, potential share, and overall need within the K-12 educational system. Secondly, from the information provided, forEvernote will be applying an innovative approach to the market, which if found successful, they will have a momentary lead on their competitors, however over the long run, these innovations will be easily duplicated, reducing their market share and revenue. Especially considering the fact that Evernote themselves are exploring this reality themselves, as evidenced here: http://evernotefolios.wordpress.com/
Venture Plan:
At this time, no specific market readiness timeline has been provided, creating concerns about their ability to enter the market before or after other competitors, which will influence greatly their overall market share. Secondly, it is important to note that Evernote follows a freemium model to generate revenue to keep the company running, however, at this time, forEvernote has not provided any information regarding their companies economic model, a key piece of information that would need to be looked into at a later date.
Overall though, this venture shows promise, and should be further reviewed.
Hello,
Great idea. There is definitely a Market for this product. I think you made good use of the means you used for presenting your ideas. They were both visually and aesthetic. I also really like the titles you used in your Prezi. this product is to be used with kids. Hence, the terminology you used was reflective of your market.. Good strategy.
I have used Evernote and am a fan. I felt that your extension to this product was portrayed well and that it is a good idea. I thought you could have expanded a but on the actual market and how you envision this product being introduced into the marker. Other than that, you did well.
Thank you for sharing.
Nureen
Hi John,
Great idea to expand on a current product. Your problem and solution were clearly outlined. I would have liked to see more/some information on marketing, the specific ask in monetary terms and investor returns. Overall a good presentation of your idea.
Sophia
Your pitches were quite an eye opener for me. I wish I had an extended portfolio of my years at school from k-12 to the tertiary level.
Great idea.
Patason
Interesting idea. I feel that there is a market for this in some format. I have found that the e-portfolios that many MET courses have been much more meaningful for me than the boring hard version I have on my shelf. I am interested to know how teachers would respond to this format. I know that at the high school level we groan when the middle school portfolios make their way to our school. As you mentioned, this is not necessarily the best method to monitor growth and view the collection of work a student has accomplished.
Your prezis was well laid out. You moved the viewer along nicely. The audio was a little low, but was a good addition over the basic text. The website, was informative and easy to navigate. I might not be ready to invest, but know Evernote and the need for a portfolio solution I would want to sit and have another meeting with you.
Hi John,
Overall I think it’s a great idea, professional presentation and I love evernote as a tool. I agree and echo like many others in the courses that student portfolio’s can easily add authenticity to education for students.
However as an EVA I am not sure I would invest in this venture for the following reasons. I do not get an idea of how this is different to other products on the market (if they exist?). Nor do I understand who or how this solution is going to be implemented/created. And finally as an investor I am not sure what you are not asking for nor what returns I might expect to receive for it.
Thanks
Melissa
Hi John,
I liked your Prezi, ominous clouds notwithstanding 😉
I think where as Jen’s presentation focused on Evernote’s competitive needs, yours did a good job at showing how a portfolio would be a good and natural need of students in today and in the future. Good paper link by TomWhyte1 about the perception and network externality dimensions of this venture idea. I think you have a good target market with students and if they become too difficult to reach (school /provincial resistance etc), you can market it to other groups still and be successful. I think you have something good here, merge with Jen et al. and more importantly, go for it!
John your pitch is fine work. As I reviewed your website, which is among the preferred mediums I find for venture pitches, each of the questions I had in mind, such as the all important issue of privacy, were all answered. I even found myself filling in other concerns you noted, for example in many cases the camera phones most students have in their pocket would lessen the need for in school scanners.
Your choice of Prezi for the elevator was sound in my opinion, though from a purely design point of view, I found some of the colored type challenging to read and I felt the background did not serve the topic well – in the end these are minor tweaks which could be accomplished in minutes.
As we move to ever technology infused classrooms and schools with BYOD programs, I think you have a very valid concept here which is certainly worth perusing.
Please find below my elevator pitch and attached supporting venture pitch document for my fictional new business venture – Learn2Read that proposes to develop a range of digital books with voice recognition support for early readers. Elevator Pitch Venture Pitch Venture Pitch – Learn2Read
Continue reading Need2Read – Enhanced Digital Books Posted in: Venture Forum
Before you publish your posting, please make sure that you select a category (eg. Introductions) as well as assign some meaningful tags (keywords).
| joeltremblay on Week 11: Voice |
| joeltremblay on A3 Elevator and Venture |
| manny on Photo App Elevator and Venture… |
| adi on My last participation :-( |
| adi on My last participation :-( |
adi 11:28 pm on November 30, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Sorry for the late post. I have had sleepless nights completing other assignments. I do apologize and mean no disrespect.
Hi Suhayl,
The problem you address is not very clear. Your product is clearly better than the others out there, but you need to highlight what problem is being solved. That aside, your product does sound interesting and you have clearly though of how to market it. The fact it is portable makes it very attractive. I would just be weary of how certain existing tools are also portable and have the option to be used in a similar way. This is also part of your competition.
Well done,
Adriana