Reflection : Acquisition II, Demos, Burn Rate

This week, team VR3 turned up the heat on our acquisition experiment and presented our preliminary conversion rates to the class. We also shared our storyboard for the demo video, which is subject to change with our ever-shifting concepts ;) Read on and find out how we’re growing and adapting as a team!

Acquisition

Having made plenty of progress since last week, VR3 managed to present a funnel that displayed acquisition numbers from unique pageviews to email sign-ups.

What we did well

• I felt that it was a good move to go forth with our Instagram marketing strategy, given our GenZ demographic being social-media-laden in terms of information intake.
• Additionally, we made significant progress after successfully integrating Google Analytics into our landing page, which allowed us to track unique pageviews, bounce rate, subscription rates — all of which were important in finding out our conversion rates in the funnel.

What we could have done better

• However, I feel that we could have ramped up the marketing aspect by doing more active outreach to community groups (e.g. student athletes in the Bay Area, or specific clubs)
• Additionally, I felt that we could be more intentional in our marketing strategy to emulate successful brands in our copy and graphics.

Next Steps

• We have created a content strategy as a team that’s curating a series of Instagram posts from Sunday to Wednesday this week, which strives to introduce Glo-Up and its features.
• Additionally, we have set hard numbers for acquisition goals, such as “attain 50 Instagram subscribers by the end of the week” through “following 100 famous sports influencers”.

Demo Video

This week, we had a series of 6 storyboards that portrayed a student athlete chatting with his smartwatch after feeling upset. While it was good to understand the key relationship between Glo-Up and our student athlete, I felt that we could have utilized a story arc to highlight the climax of that relationship with Glo-Up, and highlight our key value proposition.

In planning for the demo video shoot, we will be utilizing a story arc to show how crucial Glo-Up is in alleviating stress for the student athlete.

Burn Rate

I learnt about burn rate on Thursday, which means the rate of which money is spent. Additionally, I calculated my own burn rate, and had to balance between what I realistically spend (strewn with miscellaneous purchases like boba, coffee, clothes and makeup) and what information I would include in a burn-rate as part of VR3’s collective. Aside from helping me look at my annual and prorated expenses as a whole, I was reminded of a startup founder’s grit and hustle, and that I would have to forgo many daily luxuries in pursuit of a greater vision. While filling in my individual burn rate, I also reflected on my spending habits, and saw areas that I could cut down spending on (e.g. gifts for friends — I spend way too much on that… though I’m not sorry).

Concerns

Over the last two weeks, our Creative Founder studio work time has started with an honest conversation within VR3 about our major doubts and concerns as a team. I found that to be incredibly effective in ‘opening a can of worms’ before they burst out of the can unexpectedly. With these conversations, we have been able to pivot effectively, and less drastically each time. Right now, my greatest concern is how we can tell the story of Glo-Up’s usefulness in student athletes. While it’s easy to pick students off the streets to help us with guerrilla interviews, I’m considering what means we can use to show the breadth of our impact on these student athletes’ mental health.