Hello friends of Qinnect!
We’re taking a quick poll and would really love your feedback!
Do you find the small map in a business description on apps useful or would you prefer a photo of the business and click on address or directions if you want to view a larger map on your phone’s map service?
Space is limited so we can only have one or the other… Life is full of tough choices… 🙂
Our goal was to develop with minimal risk and at minimal cost which includes not raising more funds than we need.
Each round of funding for Qinnect is tied to a particular phase of development with clear objectives that need to be met before moving into the next phase.
Our first round of funding was to build the mobile component of our product, gauge initial interest in the concept from potential investors, and gain hands-on experience with our development partner.
By planning out stages in funding and development, we allow for adjustments and learnings as well as minimizing initial investment need and risk for all investors.
With a successful first round including raising $28,000 in investment in just over 1 month, continued investment interest, positive responses from potential investors, clients, users, and developers on the product and a productive 2 months of development, we are confident in moving to the next round of funding and planning the next stage in development.
We would like to start scheduling the next phase of development and we want to give interested parties enough time to review documents, ask questions, and make appropriate arrangements before we start phase 2 of development so we are starting 2nd round funding, with a goal of raising an additional $35,000 by December 31st, 2013.
If you would like more information about Qinnect, our plans, and/or a copy of the investment overview please contact us at info@qinnectnow.com.
The amount of funding allocated to each round is a best case scenario for Qinnect but will not determine whether or not we go ahead with the project.
In fact, we already started the project based on the positive response so far and will have our first deliverable by Tuesday, September 3rd, 2013.
Knowing that in business, as in life, things may not always go according to plan, the Qinnect team has quite a few contingency plans and will exercise them based on need and timing.
Most likely, since we are already fairly close to our target and the payment schedule with the development team is split into 4 payments over the next 12 weeks, we will roll any remaining amount from Round 1 into Round 2 and be able to provide potential investors that wanted more information before deciding a more detailed project scope as the product develops over the next few weeks.
To be fair to Round 1 investors, we will not be extending Round 1 terms after August 31st, 2013 regardless of the amount of funds raised.
If you would like more information about Qinnect, our plans, or a copy of the investment overview please contact us at info@qinnectnow.com.
Great infographic on today’s social and mobile activity that reaffirm the Qinnect mobile application.
If you would like more information about Qinnect, our platform, or a copy of the investment overview please contact us at info@qinnectnow.com.
Qinnect is looking to launch as soon as possible and while we are fortunate to have investors with a lot of industry expertise, the main concern is it would take too long to update, coordinate feedback, and provide an appropriate voting mechanism for all investors to participate in this early stage. The concern is really one of logistics in an industry where timing is a major factor.
We look to keep investors informed throughout the process and have many communication tools including this website, email, Facebook and twitter. We will also be launching a password protected investors section of the website once we commence development. And we are always available directly should questions or concerns arise.
If you would like more information about Qinnect, our plans, or a copy of the investment overview please contact us at info@qinnectnow.com.
Qinnect is excited to announce SPiN Toronto‘s Marketing Director, Shawn Topp as our first client advisor.
Shawn has been familiar with the concept since it’s infancy and with both digital and mobile marketing experience, was a natural fit to help our team understand the needs of location-based marketers.
“Anything that makes a location more interactive and fun is a natural fit for our brand. I look forward to working with the Qinnect team to build something versatile and fun for users and marketers.” – Shawn
As Qinnect builds out our platform, we will be pulling from a pool of industry professionals to ensure the highest user and client satisfaction.
For more information on our developments, follow us on Facebook, twitter or sign up for our email updates.
For information on investment opportunities with Qinnect email us at info@qinnectnow.com.
At this stage our website is really a tool to communicate information to interested parties in the most efficient and cost-effective way possible.
With so many updates and new releases, it made sense to use a tool designed for regular posting like a blog service.
WordPress provides posting, editing, social media, and other options all accessible from a smartphone with their easy to use app. A bonus when we are managing so many tasks on the go.
They are also designed to handle large volumes of traffic, and have many security, search optimization, and expansion features built-in to grow with our business.
Cost-wise, they are extremely cost effective. We were able to setup our site for under $100 and in under 6 hours without spending too much time fussing with design and back-end configurations, which all fits in well with our lean development approach.
At this time our priorities are raising funding and building Qinnect. During that process we will be looking at design and branding, as well as building out a web service for the project and at that time we plan to revisit our website as needed.
If you would like more information about Qinnect, our plans, or a copy of the investment overview please contact us at info@qinnectnow.com.
No, at this time we are first looking to our existing networks.
Sharing the idea with those looking for great ideas and that have the means to fund them can sometimes be tricky.
At this time we would prefer to work with individuals we know and trust and we are confident in our existing network.
Our goal is to raise enough funds to build a prototype so we have something to work with and then potentially shop the idea around down the road if needed.
However, we also have a strong revenue model and believe in sustainable growth. We do not want to go through multiple rounds of funding before earning revenue and have developed a lean business model to help mitigate costs and reduce the need for excessive funding.
If you would like more information or a copy of the investment overview please contact us at info@qinnectnow.com.
Kickstarter is a great idea, and our investment strategy is similar to Kickstarter in that we’d rather get smaller funds from a larger group of investors than one lump sum from an angel investor or venture capitalist.
The concern with Kickstarter is having to share enough of the idea to attract investment, without sharing so much that someone else can copy it during this time sensitive prototyping phase.
Once we have a prototype, we may look to Kickstarter for later rounds of investment but hopefully we won’t need to.
If you would like more information or a copy of the investment overview please contact us at info@qinnectnow.com.
A non-disclosure agreement (NDA) is not required if you are comfortable with investing based on the investment overview. The investment overview is designed to provide enough information for investors to make an informed decision without requiring a NDA.
If you require additional information, such as a business plan, wireframes, project scope, statement of work, or would like more detailed updates on the project beyond what is posted on the website, twitter, Facebook, and email, then a NDA will be required.
If you would like a copy of the investment overview or a copy of the NDA for review please contact us at info@qinnectnow.com.
* In the interest of protecting all investors, we reserve the right to withhold information in cases where there may be a conflict of interest even if there is a NDA.
