This SMART 100 profile and the information it contains is a duplication of content submitted by the applicant during the entry process. As a function of entry, applicants were required to declare that all details are factually correct, do not infringe on another’s intellectual property and are not unlawful, threatening, defamatory, invasive of privacy, obscene, or otherwise objectionable. Some profiles have been edited for reasons of space and clarity.
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1. THE BEGINNING
This innovation initially came to life when…
During a Startup Weekend in Ubud, Bali. Merv (co-founder) pitched an idea for a messaging app for subway commuters in Singapore. Denton (Founder) always had a similar desire to connect with interesting people in airports during long layovers. As they hashed out the idea they realised that it works for anyone moving to a new city or looking to make new friends. Early on they decided that to prevent it from becoming a dating app they would have to completely remove profile pictures from the matching process.
2. WHAT & HOW
The purpose of this innovation is to…
Help you create meaningful connections with like-minded people nearby. Matches are based on shared interests instead of profile pictures. We encourage deeper interactions through insightful and entertaining conversation-starter questions. It’s not about how you look, it’s about who you are.
It does this by…
Operating like Tinder for friendship. It’s designed for expats, travellers, international students and anyone settling into a new city. Only after you match with someone you will see their profile picture. After matching with someone, you choose from four thought-provoking questions to get the ball rolling. Questions are also always available from the messaging screen to keep the conversation alive.
3. PURPOSE & BENEFITS
This innovation improves on what came before because…
It expedite the ‘getting to know you’ phase, and foster real world friendships. Meeting new people or making new friends as an adult can prove challenging, especially if you’ve recently relocated. Heyo seeks to help with these issues. We discovered that there wasn’t a strong enough non-dating product in the market for helping make friends in a new city.
Its various benefits to the customer/end-user include…
Making friends nearby with shared interests, help establishing friendships in new cities, deeper/more meaningful conversations, faster ‘getting to know you’ phase, fosters real-life friendships, helps overcome feelings of isolation/loneliness in a new city, conversation-starter questions to keep the chat alive.
In the past, this problem was solved by…
Using apps like Meetup and Tinder or similar. However, Meetup can be overwhelming to some people (as it’s a group environment instead of one-on-one mingling). Some people have tried to use Tinder for platonic friendship but have made fewer connections or are met with disinterest from their matches, as their prerogatives may be different.
Its predecessors/competitors include…
Mostly dating-focused apps and competitors including Patook (hard to navigate), Hobspot (limited interests category and very small number of users), Hinge (dating focus but good user discovery). None have specifically targeted people relocating to a new city.
5. TARGET MARKET
It is made for…
International students, expats, travellers or anyone recently relocated or in the process of relating to a new city. Also applicable for people simply wanting to expand their friendship network with like-minded people.
Size of market:
~1.23 billion people travelled abroad in 2016
~50.5 million expats worldwide in 2016 (56.8 million by 2017)
~6 million students studying abroad in 2016 with annual growth rate of 10%
It is available for sale through…
Apple App Store initially – once traction is proven during beta, an Android version will be developed. This strategy means we can build on what works rather than rebuilding on two operating systems if we need to optimise functionality.
Our marketing strategy is to…
Focus on CPI campaigns using Facebook, Adwords, other ad networks, list on startup directories, brand and strategic partnerships (e.g. universities), media and PR, forum engagement, onsite activations, content/blog, social media, affiliate marketing, strong focus on user engagement/retention to stimulate word of mouth, actively promote friend referrals, guerrilla campaigns, actively request user engagement by asking for ‘conversation-starter question suggestions’
FINE PRINT: This SMART 100 profile and the information it contains is a duplication of content submitted by the applicant during the entry process. As a function of entry, applicants were required to declare that all details are factually correct, do not infringe on another’s intellectual property and are not unlawful, threatening, defamatory, invasive of privacy, obscene, or otherwise objectionable. Some profiles have been edited for reasons of space and clarity.
Maven Judge Vote: Heyo – Smart 100 2017
(Please note – This form below is for judging purposes only and is restricted to the public)