Eva Somogyi

FEEDBACK Hi Albert, What a great concept, an academic manager would be something that parents and upper-grade students would be very interested in. I'm thinking especially in terms of those wanting to go on to post-secondary education. There lies the one question/concern I have about the whole huge area of post secondary admission requirements. As a client and even as an investor I would want to know how you would be able to ensure the students have the necessary requirement for the particular institution. I would want really specific information about the academic manager's qualifications and knowledge base. I like how you are starting small with an inaugural location, as this would help manage the amount of information you would need to have. My second question is about your business plan (which s way better thought out than mine was). First, let me say I do not know a lot about K-12 teaching salaries. I your plan you have budgeted $80,000 per employee, is this a good wage to attract the quality of people you need? I think the venture you have outlined has a need for very experienced and knowledgeable people, are there other incentives for them to join and work with Personalized Education Inc. I really liked your analogy between a sports manager and an academic manager, I think you can get a lot of play and marketability out of this. I also think that you could be the answer to a lot of parents that would love the home school option but don't have the time or knowledge to work through all of the details and pitfalls. Once again, a great venture idea, when will it become available for Grad students? Eva

FEEDBACK Ryan, Way to go I am sold. As everyone has said both the elevator pitch and venture pitch pictograph are really well laid out and effective. I think you have a great plan to have this as a non-profit, it would be very hard to justify a for profit venture in the area of OERs. Almost everything I need as an Eva is there. What I would think of including is market trend forecasts information for the investor. I know them as a MET student, but as a pretend EVA I may not. I know you've already done your summary so I'll keep it short. You didn't specify if this was K-12 or post-secondary. One added solution or benefit for the post secondary crowd is the price of textbooks for the student. We spend a lot of time going over our textbook list to try and keep the huge cost down for students. A couple of our faculty just finished on OER nursing textbook through the BC Open Textbook Project. Now there is one less $150+ textbook for our nursing students to buy. I think adding the student centered aspect of keeping post secondary student debt down would also enhance your OER. As an EVA I would definitely invest in this venture, as an educator if you ever need anyone for health sciences/nursing curriculum… Congratulations on a great idea and venture pitch, and congratulations on completing your MET program, you've added so much to the courses I've had with you. Thank you, Eva

FEEDBACK Hi Ghassan, This is a really exciting idea. I liked your elevator pitch in that it was very personable, relatable and inviting. Especially the 'wait a minute…not any more' gets attention and highlights the pain point and a great solution of making the school canteen a big part of the project based teaching in the school. In introducing yourself it really works how you introduce yourself as an educator first…and founder. Your background truly fits with this venture. As I read through your venture pitch I could see so many possibilities of using this as a teaching tool for students. What I found myself wondering about was why this would be a good investment for me as an EVA, how would I benefit from it. I think knowing more about market trends in problem-based learning and technology, market share, and possible competitors would really help. Most of all, you didn't ask me for anything. If I wanted to invest in your venture how would I do that and what would be by return on investment. My final thought was about your future plans for the venture or possible exit plan. Once the schools have invested and used your program for a while what will keep them with you? Will there be further additions to the program for the canteens that have been established, or would you need to keep finding new schools to purchase the program? On that note I did have an idea….would it always be school canteens, or at some point could you expand to other school based business as project based learning? For example, way back in high school, we had a student store that sold stationery, school supplies, items with school logos, and snacks. Could that be part of your future plans? I really like your creative idea to use the canteen as a tool for project based learning, giving the students practical ways to learn core subjects. Good job on your venture! Eva

REVIEW Hi Stephanie, Really well-done pitches, I was drawn in engaged with both of them. I think the video format works really well for you. It highlights exactly what you say in your 'about me' section, you say it and then prove it with professional engaging videos. As a potential investor that catches my attention. I think you have a strong description of your product which seems well tough out and organized. You've covered market trends and marketability. What I would really like to know as an investor is market readiness. It's great you have the beta testing (pilot companies) set up, and I like the part about turning them into champions. However, before I invest I would need to know how much time you need to create the app, test it, and get it out to market. If I gave you the money today, would my 5 year ROI be from today? The one thing that does have me a bit concerned was the competitors, they sound quite strong. That might be the one stumbling block for investors You did well differentiating your product from them. I would really both work hard on the differentiation of your product and then really emphasize that in your pitch. What I really noticed is the great name for the product. It is catchy, memorable, and implies all the things I want in an investment - longevity, stability… Nicely done. I also think that it is a real strength that you and the team are going with what you know well first, then expanding. Let me know when you expand to post secondary institutions and faculty development. :-) As an EVA I would both invest and recommend Learngevity. Eva

Hey Ali, I truly enjoyed learning about your venture. I think you have a great idea here in taking something that has been so successful and expanding its market reach with a new program. As it is an expansion of an existing product it was initially tricky to identify the 'pain point' and solution. Here is what I got Babel is a successful personal language learning app but it has its limits and for the next step you want to bring this success into the classroom. I really like your line of 'team that started with a simple mission: to help spread the love of learning languages globally. Babbel 2.0 is an extension of this mission'. As an investor, it works really well as a hook for me because what I hear is 'we are going to extend our success'. I might have even put that in the elevator pitch. I did enjoy your unique approach to the elevator pitch, it was like an announcement and invitation, it was high energy with the music and generated enough excitement for me to look at the website. I think what would really add to your venture pitch would be to really work to emphasize and boldly state the pain point and solution, really focus on we have had incredible success with Babbel in the personal learning market….but it doesn't work for teachers and schools, we want to change that, and bring our success into the schools. I really commend you on taking on a venture that adapts and improves an existing success. It gives an extra twist into thinking through the market, business plan, and investment. I checked out your links to Babbel and one thing I noted that might help is that Babbel's last round of funding (33 million) was way back in 2009. So it would seem reasonable for your pitch to say….now we need new funding, X amount, for our growth and expansion. What do you think? The other thing I was looking for is what the pricing plan would be, and what my return on my investment would be. As an investor, these details would be crucial for me to have before I made any decisions. What I hope you don't lose is your way of writing and engaging the reader. Contrary to others I like the language that you used in describing the teaching theory. I think it makes it more accessible to the investor. As educators we love the theory and research and all the details and jargon, however, think investors just want proof of how effective the learning method is and that it is the future trend for education. For my venture, I really had to work to take as much of the nursing jargon and detail out. The other part of your writing I like is that it was very personable and inviting, for example, the About Us section and the first couple of lines are engaging in a social way. I liked your description of yourself, but feel you may be selling yourself short, list your degrees (including the impending MET) and your accomplishments, and as people have said a photo also helps connect with the investor. I think you have a really good idea here, and a great new market for Babbel. As an EVA with a little more information, I would invest and recommend your venture. Eva

FEEDBACK Hi Scott, I'm really excited for you and it is apparent from you elevator and venture pitches that you have the energy and drive to bring this venture to life. I really liked your tag line ' we are Mijikai Eigo and we will revolutionize how Japanese students study English' I really like a the strong confident statement. As an EVA the pitch really shows me the pain point and why your app is needed. The one thing that came up during the elevator pitch was 'Wow' you talk fast, I had to rewind a couple of times and I couldn't read the text as fast as the slides changed. That being said it was effective as it was succinct and to the point. Your venture pitch was nicely set up and organized to lead the investor through the details of your app. As an EVA what may help me is to understand a bit more about microlearning in terms of market trends and share that will affect the venture's success. As I was going through the website a couple of questions came to mind. In terms of market readiness, you are certainly there with the 3 microlessons for every grammar point in each unit of the book. My question is about how close you are following the curriculum materials, would the publishers of the curriculum and books have an issue with it? Or would they get excited by the idea and incorporate it into their program? Also, some of the wording had me wondering. I am not familiar with the JHS English teaching or culture, so it may be just me, in a couple of places you use 'exploit the market' or 'chances of students actually completing their homework' and also didn't understand the comic 'I don't speak English so just play dead'. As an educator I think I understand what you mean, I just wonder how it would come across to potential investors or buyers who may not have the same background. I also had some questions about the app, as I understand it, it will be a mobile app. You have the microlearning lessons covered and in the works, but from your About Me section it was hard to understand your skill level with building mobile apps. When I researched mobile apps for my venture I was finding that just building the app can take up to 18 weeks (900+) hours to build, and between $150-200,000 to have it built. It would help to have more information on that. The other thing that struck me in your venture pitch was the idea that it was a free app - sign me up- that being free was a huge incentive to join, and that 'because we cost nothing …we have no competitors'. I'm not sure this is always the case, I've noticed with myself and many of my students is that while they may try a free app, they often chose a paid app that works better for them. It sounds as if Japanese parents are willing to pay $100/hr for English lessons, sometimes people even think that if they are paying more they are getting more. Just a few thoughts as you move ahead with your venture. It sounds like a great idea that truly fills a gap in the market and is a solution to a well-identified need. It sounds like an exciting time for you. Eva

REVIEW Hi Ryan, I know it's been said before, but that was an awesome elevator pitch. I think you really worked hard to streamlined your message to increase the impact. Also how you focussed on teachers in describing the problem -growing up in a non-maker era, not having the skills, and not having the time. I also really appreciated your choices with the background music; not just that it was energetic and happy, but by having the problem stated without the 'mood' music and then having the music start when the solution was presented. It was really effective in setting the mood and making me want to know more. Plus your tone and voice really set a good tone also. The Piktochart was also a great choice for your presentation. It presents as quick, to the point, with all the information I would want as an EVA. Your pain point and solution are really clear and well presented, I clearly understood what the product was. As an EVA what I would have liked to know more about the market share/size and trends are in relation to your venture. I know from the OER how great the market is but your EVAs may not. The other question I had as an EVA was what my return on my investment would be. You've done a good job in differentiating yourself from other maker kit ventures on the market; in fact, I would really stress the training, professional development, and support as it relates back to your pain point so well. Linking The Learning Box to passion projects about global issues and then creating a community with a yearly issue challenge is also such a great way to differentiate yourself in the market. So I would really stress that point about your venture. I think that's your hook. I thought your about me section was fun and so in tune with the rest of your presentation especially the part about taking apart your parent's toaster. A great sense of humour always works well in presentations. An EVA may want to know more about your credentials; your so accomplished with those degrees that a few lines with each may add to your presentation. Plus I want to hear about the 30 robots you've built, now that's a qualification :-) Overall great elevator pitch and venture pitch, as an EVA I would definitely invest in your venture. Eva

Thanks, Justin, That's some great feedback, especially about the institutional/organizational fee. I had a lot of indecision about that part. As I don't want to create a huge LMS package, just an uncomplicated easy to use app, institutions may not be that interested in purchasing MyCLinical. They've already invested in a big LMS platform so it would have to be a big jump for them to invest more. I can see instructors jumping on an app that makes their work easier, and they can easily purchase through their PD funds. The only area of an institution that may purchase would be the something like the BCIT Learning and Teaching Center that often purchases teaching aides and programs. I definitely have to give this aspect more thought for my summary. Thanks so much for the feedback and making me think it through some more. Eva

FEEDBACK Wow, Kevin ! What a huge amount of work, It shows how strongly you feel about your topic. I especially really liked your first elevator pitch and how you seemed to start off with a bang. You were clear and direct right from the start 'we are a new start-up…we want to offer investors …" The right to the point approach really worked for me as an EVA, and I knew right away what you wanted and were offering ' a robust professional training program' As an EVA I did have a couple of questions? The first was about the funding in the elevator pitch it is a new start up, but on the website, you are already in series D funding with 75 million invested, and 8,000 teachers in 14 countries with a profit of 5 million. So it could be me but I was confused as to why you would need my top pledge of $10,000. Sound like you're already a great success and as an investor, I might want to have more invested in your venture. As a MET student, I really appreciate all the information about VTS, I'm actually looking for ways I could use it for my teaching. However, as an EVA I'm not sure I would require all that information versus a succinct run down on the venture facts and why I would want to invest in such a successful venture. It took my quite a bit of back and forth to put together the business/venture information. When I did I decided that as an EVA I would definitely invest in this Venture, especially if I could get more than the $10,000 piece of the pie. My worry would be that some EVA's would not put as much time into looking at a venture. I think you've got it all in there and perhaps just narrow the focus a bit. You've definitely got the approach and wording that would get people excited about CADE. I was really impressed with all the wording/messaging you embedded in your video and website. 'dedicated and innovative educators' 'robust' 'professional', and how you presented yourself in such a confident, relaxed professional manner. Something for me to work towards. The best part was how you neutralized the competition a 'decisive inroad to a well-established market' sounds good to me. Eva

FEEDBACK Hi Jakin, I really like the venture concept you have presented. You have outlined the pain point well, and I love the ideas you have for new makerspaces and using the sharing economy. As an EVA I do have a couple of questions about your venture before I invest. I see you are using AIG insurance to safeguard tools and investments. My worry would be about people injuring themselves on equipment they may not know how to operate or may not be old enough to operate without supervision. I think this issue may lead to hesitation from corporate or institutional makerspaces. My second thought is about the target market K-12. I think you may be missing out some market share in not including adults. It could be me, but I have just watched some friends and colleagues enter retirement, and all were looking for new activities and projects for retirement. Many were combing the internet looking for new hobbies, and as I understand it your venture will put together a resource to find and engage with makerspaces in the community and around the world. In terms of the pitch, I would want to know more about any potential competition ( i.e.. meetup groups) and also more about you. A photo of the CEO helps EVA's connect and engage with the pitch. I think you have a really solid idea and great timing with the market, it's just those few things I would need to know before I invested in the venture.