Haven by NoNameAd
“We will speak for the books.”
…
“Like the Lorax?”
“The Lorax speaks for the trees,” I remind her.
“Books are made out of paper. Paper is made out of trees.”
“What about e-books?”
“We can speak for them too.”
“Audiobooks?”
“Audiobooks speak for themselves.” She grins. “Get it?”
― Paul Acampora, I Kill the Mockingbird
Unlike popular belief, there are still people out there who enjoy reading a good book! Lately, the book community has been growing due to the number of social networking sites that are dedicated to readers. But just as the community grows so does the need for more diversity. Likely today our technology allows us to experience the magic of audiobooks.
We, in NoNameAd, as reading (and listening!) lovers have found gaps in the book business. With our creative start-up idea, we hope to create the bridge that connects the audiobook community with accessibility and inclusivity.
But what is our idea and how did it come to be?
We started our process with a mapping of the audio business. The following step was to decide the specific section of the audio business we wanted to focus on. For us it was audiobooks. Everyone knows that for a business to succeed it has to meet the public’s specific needs. With that in mind, we pinpointed what was missing, and what we wished we had access to.
If you can’t find it, create it!
Our creation is called Haven. We describe it as an app that provides access to countless audiobooks, but with a twist! It’s not just a place to listen to books but an active community where you can interact with other book lovers.
If you are into reading you have heard of an app called Goodreads. If you haven’t, here is how they describe themselves:
“Goodreads is the world’s largest site for readers and book recommendations. Our mission is to help people find and share books they love.”
Even though the site has accomplished its mission something is missing. One day while searching for a book recommendation I stumbled upon Goodreads and while everything was fine I had one complaint. I can’t read the book there! I had to find it elsewhere. I was annoyed. Now additionally I had to search the web to find a platform to listen to my book. After telling my friends I realized that they had a similar experience.
Our start-up aims to be a hybrid, namely a community and a personal digital library.
In today’s “microwave society”, there is a huge need to have everything in one place that we can access with the click of a button. People short of time or people that are unfamiliar with the internet will benefit from our product.
Another benefit of our start-up that we want to highlight is the social initiative behind it. As a team, we stand for diversity and inclusivity, two things that we want to shine through our creation.
The name “Haven” is an indication of this social initiative.
haven (noun): a place of safety or refuge.
There’re two reasons we chose this name. Firstly, the actual meaning of the word “haven” is a place of safety. As a team, we hope to create a community in which its members will feel accepted, appreciated, and respected. It’s a given that a community should be a safe place! Secondly, the word “haven” is sometimes confused with the similar-sounding word “heaven”. We decided to play with the words since we saw they fit our concept. Our platform will include every genre of books. Imagine having all your favorite books in one place. Heaven!
Lastly, we will describe lightly the services our platform will provide, how these services play a role in the concept of inclusivity and how they set us apart from competitors.
Since the start-up is a part of the audio business, every service in it will be in audio form. We will give our audience the chance to create a profile where they will be able to have their library. Unlike on other platforms, where the reviews and discussions are happening through text, we aim to create chat rooms where members will communicate verbally. This is going to allow for better, more interactive discussions. Everyone knows that having a conversation through texting can be tough for obvious reasons. This is the problem we hope to eliminate.
In addition, in recent years there’s been a demand for book clubs and podcasts. These are two services we desire to include in our platform. To be more inclusive and create a conversation around social topics every month we will recommend books that talk about something we celebrate. For example, February is dedicated to Black History, March to Women’s History, and June to Pride. The book clubs and the podcasts will dedicate their conversations to these topics in hopes to make more people feel seen and respected.
Our aspiration as a team is to be set apart from our competitors due to our social impact. Everyone can provide books but can everyone create a haven?
Follow our start-up’s journey to find out if it’ll hold true to its name!
This project was inspired by ADandPRLAB of Panteion University in collaboration with Antenna Music.
Our team members: MariliaKatsivelaki, Nefelipapa, Κατερίνα Παρ., Kelly Spyropoulou, Λαλιώτης Γιώργος, Γερούλης Κλέαρχος
