NightStand, Business Plan Example

NightStand: Innovative Technology 

Taking note of the manner in which social media has become phenomenally popular in today’s culture, it would be wise to take up a business which is solely based on the idea of innovation through social media. Hence, NightStand has been born. Nightstand is characterized as a revolutionary cellular device application which has many capabilities in today’s social media market. The application allows individuals to meet other individuals days, hours, or even minutes before a major event, usually at a club or party. This magnificent idea has been made possible through the ongoing dedication and collaboration in always trying to make today’s society more modern and social. At first glance, NightStand might appear like any other ordinary application (such as Tinder, which allows individuals to meet and go out later on), but once individuals start using NighStand, it goes without question that they will fall in love with the service currently being offered and they will ultimately refuse any other kinds of service at once.

NightStand’s main aim is to enable individuals to virtually mingle before they arrive at the event, therefore allowing these individuals to already know who they will be interacting with before they even arrive to the event. A company, such as a club, would be willing to make use of such a service in order to enhance the kind of customers that it is able to attract.

NightStand has many capabilities; one of these being the fact that a client will be able to chat with 2 diversified group of individuals and ultimately meet a potential mate at a party or a club. The reason as to why this service would prove to be effective in today’s society is because due to the manner in which a large sum of individuals (specifics will be given later on) use social media as a primary medium of communication, there would me a multitude of individuals anxious to use the service at hand. In addition to being able to interact with other individuals through chat, a customer is allowed to book an table online and even order the food he or she may want at the event! She or he may also read the club’s reviews.

The way NightStand works is as follows: a club creates its own page on the NightStand application in order to increase its advertisement potential and ultimately attract more customers. On another note, a company is able to post certain events that will be taking place at said event. If and when customers see that this event will be taking place at the club that is being advertised, they will become interested. Not only that, but through this kind of advertisement, a customer will be able to see everything that will be taking at the club on that specified day. At first, an individual might be a bit hesitant to actually visit the club, as he or she may not have anybody to go to the club with, but through NightStand, the customer will be able to meet a potential mate in order to go to the venue with.

NightStand offers two kinds of memberships: “Business” and “Popular”. The former will apply to those businesses who are interested in the service and are ready to take their business to the next level. The latter, on the other hand, applies to the common, everyday client looking for some fun in his or her city. In addition to having two kinds of memberships, NightStand offers two types of “Business” versions: “Gold” and “Platinum”. If and when business decides to take its advertising to the next level, it will be prompted to choose a kind of “Business” version. The “Gold” business version is able to allow businesses to post only one event per week. This might be beneficial for a company who is seeking to limit the amount of events that it will hold to only one per week. On the other hand, for a business seeking to increase the amount of individuals it hosts in its many events per week, “Gold” would be a wise choice. This is due to the fact that a “Gold” business type will allow the business to post as many events as the owner of the company desires within any given week.

In order for the application to reach the maximum amount of customers within a given area, it has been decided there will be no cost for downloading the NightStand application. However, with the progress of the application, the cost for the application download will be 1.59 euros.

NightStand: Market Potential

Because of the fact that NightStand is completely based on a technology medium, it is able to be used by any individuals and/or businesses that reside in a developed country. The reason for this is because in order for individuals of use to the application, they must be familiar with the use of smartphones. Another factor that would play a role in the kind of market that NightStand would prove to be successful in would be whether a certain environment has clubs, and how often they are open. Initially, NightStand is expected to be diffused primarily throughout the United Kingdom and Italy. However, it is the company’s goal that NightStand is able to reach out all across the world in order to maximize the kind of profit the company can make.

Seeing as how Italy has proved to have a population of approximately 61,070,224 and approximately 36,593,969 individuals use the Internet, it is without a doubt that NightStand holds a lot of potential in the amount of client’s and businesses that it could attract in Italy. What must also be taken into account is the fact that 80% of the individuals who reside in Italy have a smartphone, meaning that 100% of the individuals would be able to make use of NightStand.    Specifically, the amount of individuals who would be able to make use of the product would be approximately 29,275,175 individuals. Hypothetically, if all of the individuals were to become customer of NightStand, the kind of profit that could come from businesses would be enormous. This would be due to the fact that since there would be an exponential increase in the amount of individuals using the application, businesses would start to notice and more and more businesses would start getting either a “Gold” or “Platinum” membership. These businesses would do so because they would come to trust that the NightStand business is an honest, reliable, and profit-making for them. In addition, in time, customers would come to enjoy using the application because they would enjoy meeting all kinds of different individuals hours before a specific event. Not only that, but the moment businesses would notice the social life in their business was enhanced on a certain day after advertising on NightStand, they would keep using the application for future purposes.

The target audience for NightStand would include, but would certainly not be limited to, individuals who range from eighteen years of age up to forty-five years of age. Despite these numbers, probably the most interested group of individuals who would engage in using NightStand regularly would include those individuals between the age range of twenty-five years old to forty-five years old. Specifically, individuals who are more than likely to take up an interest in this kind of business would include individuals who are not married, and may be in the likelihood of wanting to find a mate.

Specifically, the target members who would most be interested in NightStand would be teenagers. This is due to the fact that it has been proven that teenagers nowadays engage in social media activities more than any other other age group worldwide. Therefore, it is imperative to take note of the fact that Italy contains a teenage percentage rate represented by 22%. From this 22% of individuals who are teenagers in Italy, 93% of those individuals contain a smartphone. This means that the potential for teenagers in Italy to start using Nightstand as a primary means of meeting and interacting with new individuals every is phenomenal. Just as integrating Nightstand into Italy would prove to be a great option for individuals who are seeking to expand their social boundaries, the business would invariably prove to be just as successful in any other city, state, or country.

All of these statistics lead to the conclusion that NightStand would prove to be successful in Italy. Why? The aforementioned statement holds true due to the fact that from the statistics, it can be drawn that there are 13,420,000 million teenagers in Italy at the moment. From this number, 12,480,600 possess a smartphone, according to the statistics. When referring to teenagers, it must be noted that citizens from the ages of eighteen to twenty-four years of age are also included. Aside from these statistics, however, it must be considered that the greatest percentage of the population is portrayed and represented by the adults. Once this is put into consideration, it must be understood that adults make up a vastly good percentage of the individuals who will be making use of the application.

Stepping away from Italy for a moment or so, the United Kingdom population statistics must also be discussed. The United Kingdom overall population is currently known to be approximately 57,075,826. This number might be huge, but only about 70% of these population contains a smartphone. This reduces the 57,075,826 individuals in the United Kingdom to a number of 39, 953, 275. Despite the fact that this number is a great one, it holds true that there are a variety of individuals who would not be interested in the application. Regardless, the amount of individuals who would be interested in such a product is still prevalent in the United Kingdom, and chances are that NightStand would prove to be most effective in the region. Despite the fact that this is being predicted, there is no real, accurate way to figure out if NightStand would be popular in this place other than figuring it out the normal way and actually introducing NightStand into the United Kingdom. Because of the manner in which not every single individual will prove to be intrigued by the application, is it vital to subtract the amount of individuals who are underage. This is due to the fact that these individuals will not be allowed to enter certain clubs until they reach the minimum age of eighteen.

Despite these many statistics, it is indeed fortunate to say that underage individuals represent only a minority of the total internet users whom are available in both Italy and the United Kingdom. For example, in regards to the United Kingdom, the amount of individuals in the country is represented by a percentage rate of about 26%. Considering all of the population, this leaves room for approximately 29, 721, 424 million individuals who would be able to both make use of NightStand and purchase the product/service. In addition to these statistics, the United Kingdom has been proven to be the second country in the world that downloads the most application. When this is put in consideration, then one can imagine the vast amount of profitable potential that would be taking place if and when Nightstand was to be introduced into the United Kingdom. It goes without saying that such a successful application would be able to be integrated into every individual’s life who became interested in the product. Considering the fact that United Kingdom has so many individuals who are wiling to download applications on a daily basis, this could certainly be used as a pivotal point in the company.

Aside from showing great promise of success in the United Kingdom in regards to the kind of downloads the application would have, the United Kingdom is also known for having one of the best series of night clubs in the world. If NightStand would be able to become a partner of these clubs and work together, then an win-win atmosphere would inevitably be created. This is said because NightStand would be able to provide the social interaction months before a given event while the club would serve as the ultimate venue where everyone would interact. What is great about this is that in order for a company to increase its business and profitability, all it would have to do is advertise is advertise its event through NightStand! NightStand’s goal is for it to reach a point in which it is so popular that individual’s go on the application in order to figure out not only how to spend their weekend, but who to spend their weekend with. The United Kingdom night clubs have been known to have interactions with the clubs in the United States of America, so that could certainly serve as a potential way into the market system of the United States. The kind of opportunities that are possible through NightStand are limitless because of the manner in which there will always be individuals looking for a good time, and due to the manner in which NightStand can be the medium through which these individuals can be shown a great time.

Continuing from previous points, statistics have shown that the average United Kingdom smartphone user downloads an approximate 3.5 applications per week while an average Italian smartphone user downloads 3.1 apps per week. Considering this, incorporating NightStand into customer’s everyday life could prove to be most effective in the long run. This holds true because of the manner in which since there are so many downloads per week, individuals are bound to come across NightStand on any given day of the week and completely love its service, purpose, and functionality. Once this happens, businesses will come to realize the true potential in NightStand. In regards to the United Kingdom, the total download per market share yields 585,000,000 million per year. It is easy to acknowledge that this is an immense number, considering the fact that South Korea comes before the United Kingdom with exactly 600,000,000 million application downloads per year. Meanwhile, Italy is in the 9th position for worldwide downloads, with approximately 150,000,000 million application downloads per market share every year. There is no doubt in mind that if and when NightStand is put on the market, individuals will come rushing in and start downloading the application at once.

An important aspect that must also be kept in mind is that which Forbes has stated before: messaging and social application have a continuous growth rate of 203% worldwide. Anyone who knows anything about growth rates very well knows that this number is exponentially increasing. This means that the market for applications is growing bigger and bigger every day. This idea ensures that NightStand has the potential to be an application that is used years from now. It is also extremely fortunate that NightStand is both a messaging application and a social application.

So what does all of this mean for us? Profit, of course. With an increased amount of individuals using the application, NightStand would be maximizing the amount of profit that it is able to make. The reason as to why it would prove beneficial to start integrating the use of the application in various places around the world is due to the fact that if the application is being used in different places, then with that, there comes an enhanced amount of profit that can be brought into the business. Of course, all investors in NightStand would gain a set amount of profit from the services.

Figure 1 above indicates the exponential growth that smartphones have brought about between 2011 and 2012. From this data, it can easily be concluded that the market for developing smartphone applications at the moment is very open and receptive towards the product that is being offered here. Secondly, considering the fact that the majority of customers and users of the application will be students (who may not necessarily have the monetary means to be constantly spending on application), the application will be 100% free at first. This will make the download of the application much easier, and increase profitability later on in the course of the application when actual businesses, such as clubs, initiate to show an interest in posting their events on the application.

What is unique about NightStand is the fact that it is accessible to individuals belonging to every social class and that it is not affiliated with any social, political, and/or religious aspects that could serve as barriers in the long run. Considering the kind of environment that an individual might want to have in order to make an effective use from NightStand, the customer will most likely come form an urban area as opposed to coming from a rural area. This is due to the fact that in order for an individual to be able to make the most out of the application, he or she must be able to attend clubs. These clubs, for example, are in Italian urban areas as well as medium-big cities in the United Kingdom. Figure 2 below portrays the kind of individuals and their social status who have smartphones in the based on information from the United States.

Identifying Dimensions of our Potential market.

In the first place, it is important to say that the first version will be free, and therefore the aim of the project is to have the greatest amount of downloads possible between the day of the release of the product and 12 months after the product has been released. At the very beginning, it would be possible that the app will include just a structure similar to the “TripAdisor” but in terms of Night Clubs. Therefore, this means that the clubs will make their own official page, using it as a real proper innovative method of advertisement. This will be done by the clubs who will directly post all the information relevant to the vent, along with prices, the menu, statistics regarding the affluence, statistics relevant to the percentage of men and females attending the event and different pictures of the interested cub. In addition, the page might also include several comments from the club in order to help them to advertise their club and event. After we have a moderately big amount of users, the app will be transformed into a proper social network helping people to meet. However, the innovative thing is that the meeting will only be relative to the events attended. In other words, when someone virtually participates online at an event, the name of the participants will be seen by the other participants, and from there on, people of different sexes are allowed to vote each other. Thus, by voting, people can also post a precise vote with a scale from 1.0 up to 10.0. If two people vote each other in a positive way (6 or more) they will be able to enter in chat. Through this method, an individual is able to tell who voted for you and how he or she voted you, so that when you attend the event, you already know who has preferences for you and who does not.

On the other hand, there are also few competing products in our market. There are two major social app’s that might represent a threat to our product, and an informative app on the other face of the medal. However, none of these apps can compete and steal customers from us because our app is different from all of these and because of the manner in which it offer more capabilities than the other apps. The app’s interested are, Hot Or Not, Tinder, and Night Clubs. Tinder is an app that after 2 years of activity is worth $6,225,000, counting more than 50 millions worldwide. On the other hand, Hot or Not is worth $20,000,000, but was born in 2000 and is a bigger company. Tinder has a growth rate of 39,9%, and potentially, in the next 10 years it might near Hot or Not’s terms of profit value. There is also an app called NightClubs. This is a network in which privates post information regarding events (Ex: place and time), but the difference with our app is that we seek out to concede the night clubs themselves to have a private page, in which they can post a vast array of information about their clubs, along with important statistics. Just to cite something, in our app, the clubs will be able to upload the affluence of their events during the night. Moreover, there will be detailed statistics explaining the percentage of men and women participating at the events and the average vote per men and average vote per women participating in the event. Not only this, but the app offers clubs the opportunity to let customers book online tables and menus for users, so that they are able to purchase the ticket before the event as well as order whatever the user will want to eat at the event.

In addition, the difference between Tinder and Hot or Not, is that these two applications only offer the possibility to vote positively or negatively on the users and to let them chat. However, NightStand allows users to vote from 1.1 to 10.0, but even if a men votes positively for a women, and the women votes negatively for the men, a push notification will arrive to both of them, showing the actual vote they were given by the person. Lastly, NightStand offers a concrete possibility to encounter your match, as you are able to vote for people only who participate at your same event. On the other hand, Tinder and Hot or Not let users vote for people randomly just from the criteria of geographic belonging.

Furthermore, Hot or Not is a confirmed product in the market, while Tinder is growing at fast and high rates, however, it is very likely that our app will increase at a higher rate than Tinder because NightStand offers a unique and exclusive advertisement opportunity that no other app or social network has to offer.

In conclusion, it is worth saying that it is unlikely that our app is in a real competition with the applications cited above, as our product offers possibilities to users than that of any other application can offer in the whole Apple Store. For this reason, NightStand will mark the beginning of a new époque in terms of social life;it will be drastically easier to meet people being able to know if and how they voted you.

Why is NightStand More Efficient than Facebook?

NightStand is more efficient than Facebook in terms of advertising clubs; NightStand is made exclusively for the purpose of advertising clubs. Therefore, when people talk about night life, they will consult NightStand in order to read reviews about clubs, learn about event’s prices and book their place and menu at the disco even before the event has started.

Why should I download NightStand?

NightStand is an tool that could really be useful to people from eighteen up to forty-five years. The younger the age, more likely will the user be keen to download NightStand, because the younger you are, the more difficult will it be that the person interested is engaged or married. Moreover, people should download NightStand because it is a free product, and it will therefore cost 0 to them, in other words, they have only to gain if they download it.

Funds Needed for the Start-Up.

Below is the indicated usage of customers that have been available in previous years. This can be expected approximately in the usage of NightStand.

Calculations of Potential Costs of the Activity:

• 1-2 computer programmers who are able to come up with a Demo version of the app, so that my business partner and I can present it to an Investment Fund. Calculated average cost for the operation: from 10,000 euros up to 25,000 euros.
• 1-2 people who will add information and develop the app once the project is in way of development. 2,000-6,000 euros.
• Advertisement materials. Example: Internet advertising, street poster advertisement, newspaper advertisement, ecc. 3,000-6,000 euros. (Dependent on location advertisement prices)

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