This opportunity exists because of the amount of textbooks students have to buy each semester. Students could be saving a lot of money of they were able to find used cheap textbooks from others that need to sell their old textbook. My market audience is UF students and because of the feature that lets you buy and sell old textbooks my business will most likely be limited geographically to the students living in business. I could later expand it to online students and include shipping on the app but for now, that is not the case. Customers now are going through endless amounts of Facebook pages and group me to satisfy this need or they are paying a lot more than they need to with buying new textbooks. This is a huge opportunity as many students would be benefitted from this idea. I think the window of opportunity is small as it easy for someone else to have the same idea and develop the same app.
Innovation
Although this idea is not complicated or creative it can be considered innovative as nothing like this app exists at UF right now. Having an app solely for UF students where they can find the cheapest textbooks to buy and are able to sell and buy used textbooks would be a game-changer for the student body. The app would include a page where you can post about textbooks that you are looking to sell and buy. For safety reasons you would need to use your gator link to log in on the app so students feel safe and it is only used by UF students. There would also be another page where you could search for the textbooks that you need for classes and it would tell you where the cheapest place to get it from. Many times there are multiple bookstores and websites selling the same exact textbook but with different prices and students do not have time to go looking for the best price. This app would do that for them. This business will bring in revenue by both a small subscription fee that students will have to pay and also placing advertisements for publishing companies.
Venture Concept
I think students will start using this app because it is safe, easy to use and it would save them a lot of money. I think the hardest part would be getting students to know about this product as it would only be successful if a lot of students are using it. It would need to be established as the best place to go to buy and sell textbooks.
I have not really gotten any critiquing feedback. However, many of my classmates said that I should think about expanding my business eventually to include other universities which I am thinking about doing.
It has been very interesting seeing your idea grow. It is good that you continuously improved your idea, including thinking of different aspects such as the importance of personalizing it to UF students, and security of the app. It is good you are starting off only at one school so that you can improve and innovate your idea, so that if you eventually do expand to other schools you will have the experience.
ReplyDeleteDear Maria,
ReplyDeleteI really Like the progress you have made in designing this business. I personally have thought it was a sound idea since the beginning with great potential. I believe you have a good venture concept. I think the strongest section of your project is the opportunity. This is because I think there is a really big target market with many students who have this need.
Hey Maria!
ReplyDeleteI have really enjoyed watching your progress over the semester. I think it would be a great idea to expand to other universities but that can take time. I would recommend focusing on your app and business with one university and then when you're comfortable with that, expand. Overall I think your business venture is clear and in depth. Great job!