Hi everyone,
I joined this forum today after finishing the book. MJ, if you're reading this, thanks for writing a book that got me off my butt.
As Mark Cuban puts it, I don’t want to be a “wantrepreneur,†I want to be an “entrepreneur.â€
The other day, I got an idea for a business that could work, I would love to hear all of your feedback:
Overview: A website where users can a practice and prepare for interviews. Each user will be given a pre-recorded video of an interviewer asking a set of interview questions (both standard and industry specific questions). The user’s responses will be recorded using the computer’s webcam and mic. Afterward, the user will be able to replay the recording and review their responses. They will also have the option to send the recording for someone else to review and provide feedback.
This site isn’t just a place to practice for an interview. I see it as a way for people to evaluate the way they communicate - both verbally and nonverbally. Often we think we’re communicating one message but the recipient hears or sees something totally different.
Analyzing it using the CENTS model:
Need: Obviously, everyone should practice before an interview. The one thing I’m unsure about is how many people prepare using mock interviews, and of those that do, how many of would be willing do it online (and pay for such a service).
I’ve used Survey Monkey to create a survey to help find the answer to this question. If you would like to complete it, you’re welcome to. It’s only 10 questions long. You can find the survey here: Interview Practice Website Survey
Entry: Anyone would be able to enter the market as long as they have the money to find a web developer and market the site. But so far, I haven’t found a direct competitor yet (more on that later).
Control: As I would be the (co?)founder of this business, I’d have control over it.
Scale: People all over the world interview for jobs. The reach potential (the number of people this site can serve) is certainly higher than the magnitude potential (how much I’d be able to charge).
But again, we need to go back to need. Despite the fact that there are about 1.7 million college grads in the US every year, it won’t matter if they don’t perceive the need to use such a service.
Competition:
There is one company, Interview Stream, that has something similar. They have other online-interview related products. But so far their model is to license the service to organizations such as universities for the students to use. Visit desales.interviewstream.com to see what I mean. I want my site to be open for all to use regardless of whether my school is affiliated with Interview Stream or not.
Revenue model:
I’ve thought of a few possibilities:
- Freemium model - standard interview questions are free (maybe ad supported) and users can subscribe to industry specific questions (one time fee)
- Licensing - following the Interview Stream model
- Lead generation - have career counselors/consultants provide feedback for the recorded interviews. And if the person they provide feedback to hires them as a counselor, the company would get a cut. Problem: I don’t think many people hire career counselors
- Sell career courses (in my opinion, not a great/preferred option)
- Combination of all of the above
Marketing plan: The initial target market will be college students/young professionals since they have the least amount of interview experience. Some cheap ways to market this include college newspapers/email lists and Google/Facebook ads.
Potential problems: People don’t perceive the need for such a service or see it as a glorified video recording product. A video can’t ask follow up questions the way a real person can.
I would love to hear from all of you about the viability of such a business, the need for such a service, any changes you would make, or anything else you want to say.
Thanks in advance for your help!
I joined this forum today after finishing the book. MJ, if you're reading this, thanks for writing a book that got me off my butt.
As Mark Cuban puts it, I don’t want to be a “wantrepreneur,†I want to be an “entrepreneur.†The other day, I got an idea for a business that could work, I would love to hear all of your feedback:
Overview: A website where users can a practice and prepare for interviews. Each user will be given a pre-recorded video of an interviewer asking a set of interview questions (both standard and industry specific questions). The user’s responses will be recorded using the computer’s webcam and mic. Afterward, the user will be able to replay the recording and review their responses. They will also have the option to send the recording for someone else to review and provide feedback.
This site isn’t just a place to practice for an interview. I see it as a way for people to evaluate the way they communicate - both verbally and nonverbally. Often we think we’re communicating one message but the recipient hears or sees something totally different.
Analyzing it using the CENTS model:
Need: Obviously, everyone should practice before an interview. The one thing I’m unsure about is how many people prepare using mock interviews, and of those that do, how many of would be willing do it online (and pay for such a service).
I’ve used Survey Monkey to create a survey to help find the answer to this question. If you would like to complete it, you’re welcome to. It’s only 10 questions long. You can find the survey here: Interview Practice Website Survey
Entry: Anyone would be able to enter the market as long as they have the money to find a web developer and market the site. But so far, I haven’t found a direct competitor yet (more on that later).
Control: As I would be the (co?)founder of this business, I’d have control over it.
Scale: People all over the world interview for jobs. The reach potential (the number of people this site can serve) is certainly higher than the magnitude potential (how much I’d be able to charge).
But again, we need to go back to need. Despite the fact that there are about 1.7 million college grads in the US every year, it won’t matter if they don’t perceive the need to use such a service.
Competition:
There is one company, Interview Stream, that has something similar. They have other online-interview related products. But so far their model is to license the service to organizations such as universities for the students to use. Visit desales.interviewstream.com to see what I mean. I want my site to be open for all to use regardless of whether my school is affiliated with Interview Stream or not.
Revenue model:
I’ve thought of a few possibilities:
- Freemium model - standard interview questions are free (maybe ad supported) and users can subscribe to industry specific questions (one time fee)
- Licensing - following the Interview Stream model
- Lead generation - have career counselors/consultants provide feedback for the recorded interviews. And if the person they provide feedback to hires them as a counselor, the company would get a cut. Problem: I don’t think many people hire career counselors
- Sell career courses (in my opinion, not a great/preferred option)
- Combination of all of the above
Marketing plan: The initial target market will be college students/young professionals since they have the least amount of interview experience. Some cheap ways to market this include college newspapers/email lists and Google/Facebook ads.
Potential problems: People don’t perceive the need for such a service or see it as a glorified video recording product. A video can’t ask follow up questions the way a real person can.
I would love to hear from all of you about the viability of such a business, the need for such a service, any changes you would make, or anything else you want to say.
Thanks in advance for your help!
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