Aaron Lam

Review: What a fun idea! As a bad student who has been through all the tumultuous last-minute citation/reference frenzies that erupted during my high school and undergard days, I can see this being an exceptionally useful and successful tool. I have used many tools for citations during university and I have never found one to date that works. Not only does Reference Quest deal with the paint points I experience, it looks like a lot of fun to use and teach with. As a teacher now, teaching my students how to cite is a struggle as it is necessary but rather dull. There isn't any way to sugar-coat it for students and I appreciate your approach, which redefines the learning side of citations altogether. Your Ask page is a bit short as I'd like to know a bit more about your long-term plans as a venture before I invest as an EVA but that wouldn't stop me from investing. I think you've nailed a niche market, done all your homework and have the credibility and skills as the CEO to guarantee Reference Quest's success. Best of luck on the idea, should you continue to pursue it!

Review: Fantastic elevator pitch, Dan! It hooked me and I was compelled to explore your site deeper. I found your content to be well-organized, sensibly designed and informative. I love looking for new ways to connect with parents since I haven't found anything out there that works exactly for my needs and what you've created certainly hits those pain points. As a teacher, making sure my parents are happy is just as important as meeting my students' needs and I can see this type of app flourishing. However, I know you are up against some very stiff competition and, as an EVA, I am not fully convinced you can rise above all the others. You have identified only one competitor but there are so many more out there that I've tried (LMS's and teacher-parent communication apps offer the same features) and I wonder if focusing so tightly on beating one other app may undermine your venture's staying power. Besides that, you have done an excellent job crafting a credible venture and I would be intrigued to see how well you do after your first year before investing as an EVA.

Review: Your pitch is full of solid info, with great hooks and pacing that ensures your credibility. Your website is well-designed and your logo is simple and cool. As a classroom teacher, I've struggled with restricting student use of devices during testing so I can definitely identify with the paint points you've brought up. BOLT comes at an important time in education and I like the environmental aspects of your venture. As an EVA, I especially appreciate your Blueprint page where you break down the numbers and growth plans. I like the idea of a 12-month action plan as that gives you considerable time to prototype BOLT. A K-12 assessment tool is tricky to design as it would have to generate value in both kindergarten and grade 12 and I wonder how BOLT can do that. What ways would BOLT differentiate between two vastly different customers? I am impressed overall with your confidence, design and concept.

Review: I enjoyed your elevator pitch immensely as you've demonstrated great confidence and professionalism. Throughout this experience, I've learned that It isn't easy to speak directly at the camera for even a minute but you kept your cool and delivered what you had to say. Your venture concept is strong and I have experienced exactly the pain points you bring up as a classroom teacher. Assessment is a massive headache and your solutions have come at an apt time in education. I find your use of technology - especially the BYOD-centric and deep learning components, to be strong and would certainly be needed in the OER world. Your website is again professional and clean and your research is convincing. I especially enjoyed the venture info page as you've broken down the numbers in an easy-to-understand way and, as an EVA, I would be interested in investing. Fantastic work, overall. Bonus points for sweet music in the elevator pitch!

Review: Great pitch overall, Mariana. Your elevator pitch is good and I know how frustrating it can be to use PowToon so I applaud your confidence to record yourself. I know very little about the mining industry or the components of education that go with it but you've done an solid job delivering information and research while maintaining my interest. This is different than other pitches since it is already an established app and, appropriately, your pitch is about expansion rather than grabbing initial investment. I wasn't exactly sure how to assess the venture as it is already established but I feel that as an EVA, you bring up some strong pain points in a market quite foreign to me and your statistics and research indicates good growth potential. You indicate that there are no other competitors but I am not sure why. Is it because the mining education market is so small or is it because your venture is truly original and monopolizing a niche market? In any case, your venture targets a very specific audience and I am not quite sure that I, as a general EVA, would be fully convinced. Regardless, I found your tone and presence credible.

Review: I loved your elevator pitch as it addressed some serious pain points while generating interest for me as a tech teacher. The possibility of travelling and teaching everywhere is the dream of any classroom teacher and your confidence and credibility carries that dream into reality. Your concept is very attractive from a pedagogical point of view and I can see why, as a teacher, this woud succeed. You've achieved a strong story-telling narrative in both your pitches through your pacing, green-screen and video editing skills. That narrative led you from pain point to concept to business venture and all the way back again in a seamless way that felt fluid and confident. I know it isn't easy to stare at a camera for long periods of time and I can impressed by how well you maintained a persuasive and knowledgable tone. I get a sense that you know exactly what you're talking about and as an EVA, I would be interested in investing in you. I wonder to what extent competitors like Google's Expeditions and other VR travel-based ideas would affect your venture. Would that be something worth capitalizing on or would it be a competitor? Overall, thanks for the a strong pitch that demonstrates your originality, confidence and knowledge. Also, bonus points for a definitively awesome name.

Review: Wow, Esther! I forgot I was listening to an ETEC assignment pitch and thought the TV was on. Your voice, pacing, visuals and rhetoric is incredibly persuasive. I have little knowledge about corporate learning but you broke the idea down so easily and I was able to understand your concept, the market plan and projections without any difficulty. If I was entering a company from the bottom, I like that your venture seeks to include and educate me - an overall feeling that few companies try to achieve. I see the value as a corporate EVA and I would certainly be interested in investing. Your research, content, graphics, web design and video design skills are top notch and I applaud how seemlessly you pieced it all together. As a pitch, everything felt like it should and I would be interested to invest. My big question though as an EVA is where does my money go? What is the future of the venture and what is the ROI? If these questions were answered, I would certainly be interested to invest. Additionally, there were a few terms I was confused with like "onboarding" but I'm not sure if that is my own fault or if it wasn't made completely clear. In any case, thanks for the great pitch - I enjoyed it thoroughly!

Review: Fantastic elevator pitch! You grabbed my attention immediately with your visuals, statistics and confident tone. It is clear that you understand the market potential, pain points and both the pedagogical and business side of your concept. I believe that your venture sits directly at the cusp of an explosive market and you are tackling it from the right position. By the end of the pitch, I was ready to sign up! As I proceeded to your full pitch, your market readiness, research and understanding of AR potential felt credible and promising. There is a plethora of AR apps and training programs out there but I haven't come across such an ambitious idea of combining all of it together into a simple, honest and necessary platform. This degree of ambition, to tackle such an evolving and flourishing market, would worry me as an EVA but I found myself assured as soon as I felt any reasonable doubt. Besides the strong weight of your research, business model and venture concept, your presentation skills are spot on with great pacing and beautiful visuals. I felt like you have truly achieved the narrative feel of a pitch, which I have yet to come across. As an EVA, I would certainly be interested in investing and if you don't intend to pursue this venture, I would certainly invest in you and any venture you should choose to pursue. Great work overall and thanks for the wonderful pitches!

Review: I applaud your creative and ambitious approach in your elevator pitch - it isn't easy to use conversation to generate interest. However, from the pitch alone, I learned very little about the venture. You have recognized some pain points but I don't know how you are addressing them. Your full venture pitch is packed with valuable information and well-researched links and helpful visuals and videos. I especially love the Jimmy Kimmel video as that hooked me quickly. However, as I explored further, I found myself left with many questions: who exactly is the target audience? What is the ROI? What is the original value of the app itself? It seems like you have adapted EdTech ideas like MOOCs and personalized learning but I'm not sure that you have considerable staying power in the EdTech market. You've identified many serious competitors who have already been established in the field for years but, as an EVA, I just don't feel fully convinced that Biz School can compete. Discussing what your venture brings beyond what your competitors do is a vital aspect of your pitch that I feel you may have missed. Despite that, your original content, business plan and pitch are intriguing and credible.

Review: As mentioned by everyone else, the product name really nails exactly what you're going for. Your elevator pitch does well to capture my attention as you have clearly identified an important pain point in education: the lack of 3D printing training. I like your use of visuals and it is clear you have done your research as well on your full venture pitch. I wonder how compatible this concept would be with existing software like SketchUp - something that I use in the classroom regularly. As an investor, you have caught my attention but I would have liked to learn a bit more about where my money would go, the pricing plan and also the future of your venture. As a tech teacher, I identify with the pains of teaching and learning 3D printing and I hope that you continue this concept as I'm sure some refining will guarantee a quality venture.