SWOT’s this?
SWOT – Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunies and Threats. There is just a definition of what SWOT means if the post title slightly confuzzles you. To further develop my previous idea and create a more strong business plan, it is a good idea to SWOT and rejig ideas around from the initial plan; leading to a more solid and concrete idea.
| Strengths | Weaknesses |
|---|---|
| Great Design | Update Frequency |
| Fresh Idea | Unsupportive Collaborators |
| Useful Tool | Poor Profit |
| Supports Local Business Networks | Lack of Interest |
| Free to Run | One Man Team |
| Opportunities | Threats |
| Gap in App Market | Competitive App Market |
| Word of Mouth | Website Alternatives |
| Collaborators Interest | |
| Developer Recognition | |
| Steady flow of Students |
Strengths
Great Design: As a designer it should be easy to style the app up and make it more appealing to new customers. This will draw away from the information listings portal which many apps fall into the trap of.
Fresh Idea: No Apps out there which does this in the Plymouth area, or for Plymouth Students.
Useful Tool: In Plymouth,events have always been badly advertised. I feel as if this would be a step towards centralising events information, and a one stop shop for students to look towards.
Supports Local Business Networks: This would be a great way for local businesses to network and raises awareness of events and locations in Plymouth. There is potential for free advertisements in the collaborators establishments too rather than asking for a fee to be advertised a poster could be deployed.
Free to run: It will not cost anything to create or run this platform. It will be hosted on the App store and retrieve data from my website, so any costs are already paid for.
Weaknesses
Update Frequency: Due to the frequency of events and the way this system is planned to work, constant maintenance will have to be carried out to keep the content up to date; which is essential to the success of the App.
Unsupportive Collaborators: the idea of this project all revolves around local businesses. If the businesses are unwilling to take part in this App then there will be no content! This is something that will need to be sorted out earlier in the development to secure the future of the App.
Poor Profit: I need to conduct more research into the success of iAd services. There will always be profit as it doesn’t cost anything to create or run the service, but it might not generate any steady money flow.
Lack of Interest: I believe that this is a great idea and would use it myself, but the success thrives upon other students to use the service. There is a large amount of students with smartphones in Plymouth but whether they regularly use the service will be the make or break point. This makes me think there needs to be a better incentive for people to keep coming back. (in-app purchasable vouchers?)
One man Team: As an individual developer it will be hard to pull this project off as a one man team.
Opportunities
Gap in App Market: currently typing Plymouth into the iOS App Store returns 31 iPhone Apps and 10 iPad Apps. Adding the Student keyword brings to a grand total of 1, so typing Plymouth student into the search will automatically bring the App as the second search result.
Word of Mouth: As this idea is to increase sociability in students, sharing events from this service will inform others of the service and hopefully increase usage.
Collaborators Interest: Local businesses seem willing to take part with new projects. Because of my location I am in a prime spot to meet up with potential businesses and get a good head start with things.
Developer Recognition: As a new aspiring developer I feel as if this project would get me a foot in the door to the App industry. If this App succeeds I could use it as an advertisement base for future products!
Steady flow of Students: In this location, Plymouth is centred around the university. Every September a new wave of students come in who are all potential new customers, so targeting these students at an early point in the academic year would benefit me greatly.
Threats
Competitive App Market: With apps, when one idea succeeds, clones pop up momentarily later on. If the App isn’t constantly updated with fresh and new ideas somebody will come up with an improved version of my service.
Website Alternatives: There are currently lots of similar services but are all presented in a database listing method and aren’t easily accessible on mobile devices. These websites already have a stake in the ground in terms of links to businesses and already have the infrastructure in place; which is full of related content.