You: I am a 21
year old college student at the University of Florida. I am extroverted and can
easily market to people. In the past 3 years, I have had 3 internships across
different sectors and a retail position. I am inspired to work in the non-profit
industry. I specifically would like to work in cleaning the oceans and
waterways up. My passion for non-profits is what brought me to my business
idea: a smartphone app that allows sexual violence survivors to freely speak
about their experiences, feelings, and healing journeys. I want those who
cannot afford therapy or do not want to go to therapy to still heal. I would
like to be the face of the company and advocate for these survivors. I am a
survivor myself, so I believe I can play a good representative.
What are you offering
to customers: A community where they can openly speak about being survivors
of sexual violence. Currently there is no community where these victims can
speak about their feelings, experiences, and healing journeys as I stated
above. Besides going to therapy, there is no real safe space for survivors to
discuss.
Who are you offering
it to: My demographic will first target college students. I would like to
be inclusive as possible because males and females can both be attacked. At the
University of Florida alone, 1 in 5 students are violated. As the company
progresses, I would like to expand it to the whole world. Every 92 seconds
someone is violated in the United States. The market is there, and the need is
not being met. All my customers share some form of sexual violence occurring to
them.
Why do they care:
Originally I planned on generating revenue based off of advertisements like
FaceBook does. However, after reading comments from my previous blog posts, I
believe it’s best to remain a non-profit app. People can donate if they choose.
Additionally, the company can receive grants for funding. I know this is not
the conventional company for this class, but I think being different is
special.
What are your core
competencies: There really is no app like this one on the market. While
someone can post about their assault on FaceBook or Instagram, there is no
community dedicated to sexual violence survivors. This community is dedicated
to open feelings, many social media outlets often is fake.
In conclusion:
These elements absolutely fit together. It is so clear there is a market for
this app. While I will admit it is unconventional not to charge and to rely on
donations and grants, it feels morally right to me. Everyone deserves a right
to good mental health. My company stands on its values over profit.
Meg,
ReplyDeleteI really love this idea because not only is it an idea that you believe is a good business/ organizational opportunity, but it is something you feel strongly about as well and something that can make a difference for peoples lives. Many times i've seen on social media people try to share their stories and talk about it but unfortunately other people will put them down and have the accessibility to do so. Do create an actual "gated community" so to speak for people to be able to feel safe and feel listened to in sharing their stories and talking is a very good business opportunity, but more importantly a good thing to do.
Hi Megan,
ReplyDeleteI like your idea because it is unique. There are no competencies in the market and because of that, I think that you already have an advantage. Your demographics are also looking good. You used statistics to find your segment. Overall you did a very good job. The only thing that worries me is one of your revenue drivers. Earning revenue through advertisements can be hard because of the purpose of your app. Advertising a person that has been sexually abused can bring a bad reputation to the company that pays for advertising in your app. At least that is my opinion. Apart from that, everything else looks good. Thank you for sharing!
I stated in my blog that was my original plan, but from previous comments on another post realized it would be best not to and therefore will be funded by grants and donations :)
DeleteHey Megan,
ReplyDeleteWhat I love about this idea is that the reasons behind it are pure, as you said on your aspirations, the fact that you want to work on non-profit organizations says a lot. Of course as you are a survivor of a traumatic experience, you want to help people like you and that is definitely an important factor on building a business, that your are passionate about it. Once you determine how to develop this idea, it may be vastly used across universities, there are always more people affected by this that needs help unfortunately. Also, I like that you decided to be a non-profit app, the idea behind it is to help not to profit, which is amazing.
Hey Meg! Your idea is am amazing as I stated before. The fact that it mostly gears towards college students and its an app that is not on the markets shows how your service is set up for success. Everyone does deserve good mental health and this will be a platform that will help them. I also like that you mentioned how hugh profits are not a priority, only values and support.
ReplyDelete