The document proposes a new idea for a "Universal App for choosing best places nearby with mobile communication platform". The app would aggregate user data from platforms like Yelp and Foursquare to present simplified popularity and review indicators for nearby places. It would also allow businesses to directly communicate personalized offers to users searching on the app. This aims to provide a more efficient search experience than using multiple platforms separately. The team plans to test the value proposition and discuss the idea with mentors before proceeding with further development steps.

1. From «App for searching cheapest
places for lunch»
to «Universal App for choosing best
places nearby with mobile
communication platform»

2. Our initial idea

3. Initial idea description
Our initial idea was an «App for searching cheapest places for lunch».
JUST IMAGINE:
You have an app on your smartphone. After lunch you (and other users) add
to app some details: price for complex «business-lunch» (or separate dishes),
place where it was and personal assessment.
All user-generated information accumulates on server.
On the other side, when you (or other app users) haven’t defined preferences
on place for lunch, you can go to app. It will show what the nearest places are
and which is cheapest / more preferred by others.

4. Initial idea Business Model
Value Propositions
For customers of cafes and restaurants
1. Location based information about nearest cheapest places for lunch
2. Possibility to share own impressions about price and quality of lunch you
have
3. Special occasions from nearest cafes and restaurants
For owners of cafes and restaurants
1. Crowd-sourced references about owned cafe / restaurant
2. Possibility to attract new or previous customers with special offers
Customer Segments
1. Customers of cafes and restaurants (smartphone users)
2. Owners of independent or chained cafes and restaurants

5. Initial idea Business Model
Channels
1. Mobile application (iOS, Android, WM7)
2. Web-service (portal or browser application)
Customer Relationships
1. Through smartphone application or web-service
2. Through social media and friends network
3. Personalized e-mail marketing
Revenue Streams
In-App advertisement of cafes and restaurants (and other businesses with
similar customers)
Key Partnership
Restaurants, cafe's and other similar places

6. Initial idea Business Model
Key Activities
1. Design and development of smartphone app or web-based system
2. Product marketing and PR
3. Sales of In-App advertisement
4. Analytics and curation of user-generated content
Key Resources
1. Engineers / designers and infrastructure to run the service
2. Advertisement to create awareness
3. Sales team 4. Analytics team
Cost Structure
1. Initial cost of development and making the system live
2. Advertisement and PR costs
3. Sales team payment 4. Constant cost to sustain the infrastructure

7. Hypothesys #1

8. We suppose that…
• Project is suitable and needed all over the world
• Project is one of a kind
• Proposed functionality of the project is enough to customers
:))

9. TEST #1

10. What we have done
We have made more than 80 face to face and chat discussions with potential
customers from both sides (customers and owners of cafes / restaurants) in
Russia, Ukraine, India, United States, United Kingdom, Ethiopia, Canada and
Europe.
Also we have start several discussion in social networks and personal blogs.

11. What we have as a results
Our project is suitable and needed all over the world
As a result we understood that service in its current shape is very suitable in
developing coutries (Russia, India, Ukraine, Ethiopia, etc.) and not
competitive / needed in highly developed (United States, United Kingdom,
etc.).
Our project is one of a kind
As mentioned above, our current version of service is not unique. It has many
competitors in highly developed countries, but on the other side is still bad
presented in developing.
Proposed functionality of the project is enough to customers
In face to face discussions we find out that base functionality our service
(nearest and cheapest places for lunch) is good but not enough for customers
of cafes and restaurants.

12. Hypothesys #2

13. We suppose that…
To go further we need to try to gain more information about services (mobile
and web) with the same functionality. We assume that this will help us to
find right way for further project development.
And there would be only two ways:
1. Make service with current idea in base and larger additional functionality
but the same as highly developed countries services (focusing on developing
countries market);
2. Find new idea for base and make something really different (focusing on
highly developed and developing countries market).
Second is far more interesting :)

14. TEST #2

15. What we have done
In several days our team have made a deep research regarding services
(mobile and web) with the same functionality / customers. Both International
and local.
All gained information was submitted to spreadsheet with such boxes as:
•Type (web / app)
•Area (international / local)
•Main idea
•Main functions
•Additional functions
•Interesting details
•Possible ideas for us

16. What we have as a results
We have found numerous excellent projects in the same industry and even in
the same country (Russia). Among them – such international leaders as Yelp,
Urbanspoon, Foursquare and others. All discovered projects were much
better than our initial idea in all possible directions.
Our next step was a closer look to every found service - its value propositions,
customers segments and other parts of Business Model Canvas. Then work
was done we have found several opportunities for the new BIG idea.

17. The new BIG idea

18. Opportunities for new BIG idea
Taking a closer look to our competitors we have found several general
observations:
1. All great services like Yelp or Urbanspoon are working only with their own
separate audiences (users can never see the «full picture»)
2. Foursquare is great, but it is best for returning customers and building their
loyalty, and not so good in attracting them
3. Photos of food, detailed reviews, stars, proposed coupons and special
deals are very interesting, but you need to waste a lot of time to watch or
read them before making final decision
4. Different reviews and proposed special deals are not always suitable for
understanding that one place is better than others inside nearby area
5. Today’s customers have too much apps for searching and choosing nearby
cafes and restaurants, but all of them are great only in one or two directions
(some - in special deals, some in reviews, some in photos)
In summary we have an opportunity to make something like «universal» app
for searching best places nearby.

19. New BIG idea description
Our new idea is a «Universal App for choosing best places nearby with mobile
communication platform».
JUST IMAGINE:
Now you have no need to select one best service (web or app) for searching
cafes and restaurants nearby (Yelp, Urbanspoon and others) from hundreds
with the same functionality. Whatever service you have preferred, you have
no need to read plenty of customers reviews to make well-founded decision.
And you have no need to compare different places on unspecific indicators
by oneself and waste valuable time.
All you need is to tap button «I want to eat», and choose the best nearby
place using simple (but versatile in depth) indicators of popularity and
summarized user-generated opinion. Also you still will have a possibility to
place your own review to Urbanspoon / Yelp (or check-in in Foursquare)
through the one app.

20. New BIG idea description
And that’s is not all..
If after looking on presented simple indicators your decision on preliminary
preferred place is not clear, you could communicate with café / restaurant
spokesman through the app. And receive personal offer not only with the
same coupon as now in other apps, but special dish for today, dish most
preferred by you, his favorite drink and so on (based on user history). Or ask
some questions and receive quick answer.
We think this idea would be great not only for searching places to eat, but
also for places to drink, dance, watch, etc.

21. New BIG idea mechanics
We can aggregate user-generated information of our best competitors
(Urbanspoon, Yelp, Foursquare, etc.), analyze it, compare and present to
users in useful and simple way. For example, it could be done with two or
three different diameter coloured rings / dots on map for every place. First
would indicate popularity (more Foursquare check-ins – more diameter),
second – user-generated opinion, summarized through Urbanspoon, Yelp,
and other services.
Also we intend to give cafes and restaurants possibility to communicate with
users of our app at the moment they search, and try to make personal offers
to them (as now on web-sites). It could be shown as blinking on map ring /
dot of café / restaurant that would mean “Hey! I have to say you something
interesting!”. Inside the message user will find details of offer and make
additional questions.

22. New BIG idea mechanics
As a result we could make something like real dialog on the street then café
owner invites walking around potential customers and persuade them to
choose this place instead of another ones. For the first time we can
implement simple programmed dialogs. Later it could be real communication
between our app user and spokesman of café / restaurant, connected by
Twitter or somehow else.
In this case our service could be expanded to platform. And it would be the
next step in apps for searching best places nearby.

23. New BIG idea Business Model
New Value Propositions
For customers of cafes and restaurants
1. Location based information about best nearby place to eat / drink / dance /
watch, etc. All data is and aggregated from popular services (Urbanspoon, Yelp,
Foursquare, etc.), summarized and presented in very simple way
2. Possibility to share own impressions to different services through one app
3. Possibility to communicate with café / restaurant spokesman before making
final decision
For owners of cafes and restaurants
1. Possibility to have aggregated and summarized information about their own
position against nearby competitors
2. Possibility to communicate with potential nearby customers at the moment
they make a final decision
3. Possibility to promote special offers and make personalized recommendations /
offers on dishes, drinks and other

24. New BIG idea Business Model
New Revenue Streams
Access to communication platform and in-App advertisement of cafes and
restaurants (and other businesses with similar customers)
Other parts of Business Model Canvas have not any revisions.

25. Next steps to new BIG idea
Our next moves are:
•make new value proposition test on potential customers
•discuss idea with potential mentors
•go through others steps of Venture Class
Any assistance on this way would be very appreciated! :)

26. Great RED team
Oleg Chumakov
Archit Pandey
Behailu Shiferaw
Sachin Ramje
Anton Zakharov
Alexander Pukhov
Yana Bilynets
Yaroslav Aleksandrov
Sergey Smirnov
Bushra Alqarout
Vadim Novitskiy
Alexandr Bajenov
Mikhail Firsanov – team lead
http://venture-lab.org/teams/5214