justin bolivar

Thank-you for the feedback Kevin. The pitch was something that I really had a hard time cutting down. After the feedback that you and Scott gave, I did another pitch that is now much shorter, and I feel, is much better. Appreciate it!

Thanks for the feedback Scott. I created a new elevator pitch based on your feedback.

Ryan– I find the “do it for me” era is passed down from teachers to a certain extent. Think about how many times a teacher may go online to find a tool rather than just making it themselves (and even when making it themselves is probably faster!) The Learning Box takes away the pain point of how do you start your makerspace. By removing this first (and important) obstacle, the space can then begin to grow. It is also important that you include the larger global issue tie in for international mindedness within the classroom. Also, your marketing of having box gurus and LB bloggers promote the product is very similar to what sports companies are doing with Instagram members to support their brands, and it works really well. I also find that you have isolated yourself from the competition, and that you will have online community supports to help those implementing maker spaces. As in investor, I would be curious to know how much these initial boxes would sell for, and how you would upsell and add on to customers as they begin to expand their makerspaces? Would you have a further marketplace to retain your customers so that they would continue to buy products through you? Great pitch, and with the answers to the previous questions, I would definitely invest in your venture.

Agnieszka– having crashed a car in a foreign country, I can relate to your venture! Looking at the cost of the product, I wonder if this is something that would be offered as part of a rental car or car share model, or is something that could be integrated directly into the car. Overall, the vision for your product is great, as vehicle safety is something we really shouldn’t put a price on. The pitch seems well researched, as you cite several statistics about the amount of crashes caused by drivers who are not familiar with the area they are driving in. I just have a few key questions as an investor. Reading through the pitch, I’m having a bit of a hard time understanding exactly what the driver does with the product. Is it something they wear for VR? Do they put it in the car? Is it a simulation? I think an overview of what a person does when they get into their car, drive to where they need to go, and then get out of the car, would help to clarify my investment.

Madeleine– your pitch looks professional, however, I’m not quite sure what your product is and what you are pitching. There is a large amount of background information, for example with the essential skills of the dentist. Specifically, how should this influence the EVA? I’m just wondering how this affects the product, as I don’t see the explicit connection between these. I think it might be getting too technical. The same happens with the levels under products and services. As well, under products and services, it is very vague as to what is provided, and seems to be more targeted towards a customer than an investor. Breaking down exactly what a student would be doing specifically in these levels in VR would help to demonstrate what the target is, and how it affects its users. It takes a while to actually get to what you are offering in your venture pitch. To invest in this venture, what products would you use, which markets would you target, what is your growth plan, and a simple explanation of what gets in the hands (or heads) of the consumer would be valuable.

Eva– great pitch that clearly outlines what the problem is and how MyClinical can fix it. With the nominal fee for the offerings, it seems like something that would easily help with all the logistics of practicum. I’m thinking the attractive low price allows for widespread implementation. I think it also works well that it is a per instructor fee rather than an organizational fee. Also, the social value added in the app also makes it an attractive investment as an EVA, since it moves towards a social change, not just a revenue generating organization. It’s been mentioned already, but data privacy could be a concern, as well as data encryption. However, if it is tracking student data versus patient data, then it may be a lot easier. I think the premise as well lends itself to further development into other organizations as a training-tracker tool. Well done, and as an EVA, I would definitely fund this endeavour.

Mackenzie– this is definitely an area that could use an easier entry point for teachers who do not have a huge comfort level with technology, Your venture pitch is concise to what needs to happen for you to get to market, and evaluates the tools that are already out there. In your differentiation between you and your competitors, the content you wish to develop is immersive and has several benefits even outside of the traditional classroom. This scalability makes it attractive for investment. The prototypes your present are a strong case for the influence of personalized online learning, and speak to how students of any age, organization, or background can benefit from the product. Further, the information you provide for the eLearning market place indicates that this is an area we should be addressing. As an investor, I would consider funding your initial $200k ask, but would challenge you to get your seven year timeline down to 2 or 3 due to the rapid movements in technology.

Shayla– you’ve touched on an incredibly time-consuming aspect of a teacher’s day-to-day life– assessment. Also, the business of crowdsourcing teaching materials is large with sites like Teachers Pay Teachers. Looking at the competition for WeGrade, the differentiating factor is the ability to pull assessments that are already in the WeGrade database. I’m just wondering what else differentiates WeGrade from competitors like Fresh Grade and Showbie who are already established? Would you target a specific area demographically, or specific disciplines to have an initial offering of assessments (ie, new BC Curriculum?) With student information, the pilot projects of the My Ed BC Parent portal, I would need some differentiation in WeGrade before moving forward with investment.

Charmalee- love the name Cannew. The pain point that you address is very real and ends up manifesting itself. Language classes can be inaccessible and may not fit into someone’s lifestyle. Further, mobile learning, especially language learning, is a hot market, and this format could be scaled to other areas as well. For me to donate, I would be interested in seeing what the long-term plan for Cannew would be, as it is focused on those first 75 iPads. Where would it expand to next? What cities or communities would have the greatest need? Also, what is the criteria to qualify for one of these devices? Is it first-come-first-serve? As a donor, I would be interested in seeing what exactly a one of these iPads would be loaded up with in terms of applications for language learning. As well, would there be an online component for those who might not be near a Cannew center? This is definitely an important venture, and would consider donating with additional information and an action plan.

Amanda– fantastic elevator pitch. It clearly shows your passion for Prodigy, but also for growing it as you are a promoter of the product. I like how you outline the pros and cons of the competitors in the market. I appreciate that you recognized that a product was doing something well and expanded on it versus creating a new product. The importance of dashboards for both students and teachers is essential for learning analytics. I also like how it is shared with other teachers to identify strengths and weaknesses. Outlining the funding that Prodigy has received, and the investment opportunities, as well as the comprehensive timeline, this would be something that I could soundly invest in. My biggest question I have from your pitch is what competitors are out there for The World of Prodigy? Are there other game platforms that do something similar, and are they free or paid? Also, is this program something that is mobile and desktop enabled?