How to Assess Internet Opportunities

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How to Assess Internet Opportunities

• Marc Kramer
• Wharton School of Business
• marc_at_kramercommunications.com

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Instructors Background

• Marc Kramer, author of Web Sites Built to Last
  published by Adams Media and Financing
  Building an E-Commerce Business published by
  Prentice Hall Press, has been president/CEO of
  five e-commerce businesses and has written the
  business plan for 30 e-commerce businesses. Marc
  has a marketing consultancy, www.kramercommunicati
  ons.com, and serves as project faculty at the
  Wharton School of Business. Marc has a masters
  in management from Penn State University and an
  undergraduate degree in journalism from West
  Virginia University.

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Starting Re-Establishing an E-Commerce Business

• Assessing Opportunities
• Developing a Business Plan
• Developing a Marketing Plan

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Global Market Opportunities

• According to the Computer Industry Almanac there
  are 934 million Internet users world wife.

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Spanish Speaking Opportunities

• There are 25 million Spanish speaking Internet
  users outside the United States.

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Spanish Speaking Opportunities by Country
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Spanish Speaking Opportunities by Country
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12 Ways to Assess Opportunities

• Google and Yahoo search for similar companies
• Contacting department of commerce
  (http//www.peru.gob.pe/)
• Contacting the World Bank (www.worldbank.com)
• Contacting the chamber of commerce
• Contacting trade associations (www.asaenet.org)
• Conducting an online survey (www.surveymonkey.com)
  
• Contacting investment banks
• Contacting commercial banks
• Buying research reports (www.buyusa.com)
• Contacting potential customers
• Contact media
• Contact venture capitalist

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Google and Yahoo Search for Similar Companies

• Develop a spread sheet with key words
• Run a key word search
• Make a list of the companies that fit
• Narrow the list down

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Contacting Department of Commerce
(http//www.peru.gob.pe/)

• Contact the office of economic development
• Contact office of foreign trade
• Contact the American Embassy and ask for the
  Commerce Liaison Officer

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Contacting the World Bank (www.worldbank.com)

• Contact the research department
• Contact the Latin American economic development
  desk

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Contacting the Chamber of Commerce
(www.chamberfind.com)

• Look at the web site for the American-Peru
  Chamber of Commerce
• Contact Executive Director
• Contact membership director

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Contacting Trade Associations (www.asaenet.org)

• Look at web site and do key words search
• Contact membership director

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Conducting an Online Survey (www.surveymonkey.com)

• Ask friends and business colleagues what they
  think of the idea
• Ask friends and business colleagues if they are
  familiar with similar business concepts

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Contacting Investment Banks (http//ezinfofind.com
/2004/download.asp)

• Contact investment banks and ask for bankers in
  the industry you are researching
• Contact stock analyst

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Contacting Commercial Banks

• Contact branch managers
• Contact commercial loan departments

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Buying Research Reports (www.buyusa.com)

• Research reports typically cover all of the major
  players and some of the minor players
• Contact the researchers who wrote the reports for
  names of businesses they left out and for their
  insights into the industry

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Contacting Potential Customers

• Speak to potential customers to find out who they
  buy from
• Speak to potential customers to ask them what
  they think of competitors

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Contacting the media

• Contact business editors who receive press
  releases daily
• Contact reporters who speak to companies
• Contact free lance writers

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Web Sites to Find Demographic, Geographic and
Business Climate Information

• Buy USA-http//www.buyusa.gov/peru/en/82.html
• Cyber Atlas-www.cyberatlas.com
• United States Census Bureau-www.census.gov
• Central Intelligence Agencey-www.cia.gov
• Peru Opportunities-http//www.denperu.com/denexe/o
  portuni-e.asp
• Trade Mission-http//www.osec.doc.gov/latinamerica
  trademission/
• Economic Development-http//www.amarillas.com/defa
  ult.asp?country2
• Government Web Sites-http//www.psr.keele.ac.uk/of
  ficial.htmP

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Surveying Potential Buyers

• A minimum of 100 surveys (Conjoint Survey
  http//www.questionpro.com/conjoint/) will
  provide enough feedback to determine if test
  market should be done.
• The survey should be short so respondents will
  take the time to answer.
• One paragraph description of the project.
• Five to 10 questions-preferably five.
• Source for buyers to survey (www.greenfieldonline.
  com)

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Sample Survey Questions

• Do you buy products and services through the
  Internet?
• How much money do you send a year through the
  Internet?
• Would you buy this product or service over the
  Internet?
• Who do you buy from currently?
• What online service do you admire the most?
• What is the best way to market to someone like
  you?
• What would cause you not to buy from us?
• Do you rely on anyone for advice when purchasing?

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Developing a Business Plan

• Executive Summary
• Description of Product or Service
• Marketing Description
• Marketing Strategy
• Sales Strategy
• Revenue Streams
• Client Retention Strategy
• Competition and Competitive Advantage
• Management Bios
• Operations Plan
• Five-Year Financials
• 24-Month Cash Flow