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My first Fastlane Idea

Idea threads

botaybry

Contributor
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
150%
Nov 18, 2021
14
21
Hello everyone!

So I've been working on this idea for a while now and - while I believe it follows all of the commandants on building a business system as mentioned in The Millionaire Fastlane - I figured it wouldn't hurt to drop my idea here and get some feedback / insight. And... well, since I'm close to releasing this and taking my first step in building a fastlane business, I figured this thread would be a good place to document my process and journey, and perhaps it can help other entrepreneurs as well!

In any case - here's my first fastlane idea:

I am currently building a Plant (primarily houseplant) Trading application. The idea started when I was browsing my local plant community Facebook group - looking for available plants to trade. The thing is - Facebook is a little clunky. There's a multitude of plant groups, and the one that I'm primarily a part of posts all kinds of plant related things, including memes, advice, show-offy posts, etc. Its the one that is most active and has a dedicated local community. Thing is though, you'd have to scroll and dig through some posts to find a post that is actually offering to trade. The Facebook algorithm likes to place posts that have the most engagement on top too, so a trade post (ie the one I'm looking for) might get lost - and it's up to chance whether or not I scroll further that day to see it. There ARE other Facebook groups that are all about trading plants SPECIFICALLY, but they can be country-wide and may not be tailored to a specific city. In addition, a popular form of plant-trading post is a "master-post" in which a mod/user posts something and actually uses the comments to post all their plants that they want to trade. Other users respond to the comments with replies with their own offers - and sometimes there are cool offers that they are willing to trade but its all hidden in replies. Personally my pet peeve is that you really have to dig and scroll to find cool things so my app aims to combat that by letting everything be clear and visible from the get go. Basically - convenience.

I believe this idea satisfies the 5 FASTLANE COMMANDMENTS

1) Control - I am coding this app and will release this under my name. There are a few parts that are difficult for me so I have hired a freelance developer to help me with some of the more trickier aspects of the app. However, this app / business still belongs to me

2) Entry - I have 3 main competitors which I will go into more detail below, but given that it's only 3 - I think this road is not congested. I can easily distinguish myself and be exceptional at my unique selling point (trading). In addition, writing and creating an app seems like a high barrier of entry (though this is just a guess).

3) Need - I feel as though this is the weakest point. I will admit that the "need" I am addressing is purely personal - it is only my personal hiccups with how plant trading is commonly done, and I am going off on the assumption that because I have these pet peeves, other people must too. However, I did not talk to other people or community members in the group and I am the most worried that the current grievances of trading is not enough for other people to justify moving to another platform. I recognize that people resist change - so why should they move to another platform to trade plants if Facebook works just fine and already has an active userbase? This is my biggest challenge and the way I think I can combat this is simply doing what facebook groups can do - but better. Be tailored SPECIFICALLY to the trading aspect and exploit the clunkiness of facebook group trading. That is the app's value - sell on the convenience. I am still thinking and formulating of a way on how to best release this app and get an initial userbase and activity when facebook groups is the standard. Needs work - but if I think of a good execution idea - I will be sure to add an update to this thread.

4) Time & Scale - I'm working on this app and spending time coding it. Once it releases though - people from all over the world can download and use it. I plan to implement ads and a premium subscription to get rid of said ads in addition to minor quality of life changes. I will only have to work to update, improve and polish the app - but once the app is completed, the app will be working 24/7 for me. And because its on the app store, it will be available worldwide on the internet (though my target audience are millennials who love houseplants).




While creating this app - I thought for a long time that my only competition was basically Facebook Groups and this one obscure site called PlantSwap (https://plantswap.org/). But then I realized that there in fact 2 other plant trading apps that serve as my competition: Blossm, Propa and an app that is also called PlantSwap (but seems unrelated to the website version). But that's ok!! Because as DeMarco mentions, competition is inevitable - I just have to do it better / carve out something unique.

Blossm - My main competitor. Seems more tailored to the buying and selling of plants as opposed to pure trading. There is a shop tab and upon tapping on a plant post - there is only an option to message a user. Presumably to set up buying details.

Pros:
  1. There's a neat mini database of plants so that users can search for a specific plant and also get bullet point details on how to care for them.
  2. There's an in built community tab system - where users post their plant pics and ask for advice - which behaves very similarly to how the plant Facebook groups currently do things.
  3. There's also a tinder esque swap system LOL - but id doesn't seem to be usable, as every time i try to use it it states that there's "nothing in my area"
  4. Tags to filter through
Cons:
  1. No actual way to look at what others are offering for the said item - which I personally like about Facebook trading
  2. Might be biased, but I think the design is kind of ugly / clunky
  3. Settings and customizability is non-existent. For example, by default, the app forces the user to show their address on a map. What if a user doesn't want that to be seen? There doesn't seem to be a way to change that. The only thing that can be changed in the settings is: 1) whether or not you want push notifications, 2) whether or not you want to be seen online, and 3) changing you distance units from imperial to metric.
In addition, imo this app has a clear focus on other things. The in-built community tab and market tabs, and the fact that you MUST include a price on your post when you create a post - makes it clear that this is for someone who wants to sell plants. While the community tab is cool - it's not something I'm going to bother to include in my app because that is not my focus. My focus is entirely different - trading. Since this is my main competitor, I think I stand out enough.
IMG_7703.PNGIMG_7704.PNG

Propa- Seems like they are trying to be the instagram of Plants? Advertises itself as a "community" of plant people who want to share their plants - and the fact that they modelled their app after instagram seems indicative of this.

Pros:
  1. Familiar-ish layout means users know exactly what this app is for
  2. Seems tailored towards building a community and has the option for giveaways and trades available
  3. Giveaways and freebies seem to be more common on this app
  4. Good place to just show off your plants, and then later down the line if you want to trade or give it away, it seems as though you just need to add a tag to the post you made.
Cons:
  1. While the option for trading and giving plants is available, it is not intuitive to find and does not seem to be the focus - it seems as though you have to search for it yourself and then message the user to propose a trade? You may as well just use facebook! Also, same issue as before - because trading is not the focus, you dont get to see what other people are offering for the plant. It really does just function as an Instagram with a plant gimmick. So again, more community based.
  2. Again, might be bias but I think the design is off
  3. Settings also non-existent
Once again, because has a clear focus of being a community based app - with it using Instagram as a base for their design and features, I think I stick out well enough.
IMG_7706.PNGIMG_7707.PNGIMG_7708.PNGIMG_7709.PNGIMG_7710.PNG


PlantSwap- I won't even bother with this one since it looks ugly and outdated, and it was last updated in 2020.
Screen Shot 2021-12-27 at 9.04.42 AM.pngScreen Shot 2021-12-27 at 9.04.33 AM.png


Now I think it's only appropriate that I show what my app looks like since I talk about how the other apps don't look as nice. Obviously my opinion is biased, so I am eager for other people's opinions!
Screen Shot 2021-12-27 at 9.14.47 AM.png
Turns out I can only attach 10 pics in a single post - so I will offer more images in my next reply!
 
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botaybry

Contributor
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
150%
Nov 18, 2021
14
21
Hello everyone!

So I've been working on this idea for a while now and - while I believe it follows all of the commandants on building a business system as mentioned in The Millionaire Fastlane - I figured it wouldn't hurt to drop my idea here and get some feedback / insight. And... well, since I'm close to releasing this and taking my first step in building a fastlane business, I figured this thread would be a good place to document my process and journey, and perhaps it can help other entrepreneurs as well!

In any case - here's my first fastlane idea:

I am currently building a Plant (primarily houseplant) Trading application. The idea started when I was browsing my local plant community Facebook group - looking for available plants to trade. The thing is - Facebook is a little clunky. There's a multitude of plant groups, and the one that I'm primarily a part of posts all kinds of plant related things, including memes, advice, show-offy posts, etc. Its the one that is most active and has a dedicated local community. Thing is though, you'd have to scroll and dig through some posts to find a post that is actually offering to trade. The Facebook algorithm likes to place posts that have the most engagement on top too, so a trade post (ie the one I'm looking for) might get lost - and it's up to chance whether or not I scroll further that day to see it. There ARE other Facebook groups that are all about trading plants SPECIFICALLY, but they can be country-wide and may not be tailored to a specific city. In addition, a popular form of plant-trading post is a "master-post" in which a mod/user posts something and actually uses the comments to post all their plants that they want to trade. Other users respond to the comments with replies with their own offers - and sometimes there are cool offers that they are willing to trade but its all hidden in replies. Personally my pet peeve is that you really have to dig and scroll to find cool things so my app aims to combat that by letting everything be clear and visible from the get go. Basically - convenience.

I believe this idea satisfies the 5 FASTLANE COMMANDMENTS

1) Control - I am coding this app and will release this under my name. There are a few parts that are difficult for me so I have hired a freelance developer to help me with some of the more trickier aspects of the app. However, this app / business still belongs to me

2) Entry - I have 3 main competitors which I will go into more detail below, but given that it's only 3 - I think this road is not congested. I can easily distinguish myself and be exceptional at my unique selling point (trading). In addition, writing and creating an app seems like a high barrier of entry (though this is just a guess).

3) Need - I feel as though this is the weakest point. I will admit that the "need" I am addressing is purely personal - it is only my personal hiccups with how plant trading is commonly done, and I am going off on the assumption that because I have these pet peeves, other people must too. However, I did not talk to other people or community members in the group and I am the most worried that the current grievances of trading is not enough for other people to justify moving to another platform. I recognize that people resist change - so why should they move to another platform to trade plants if Facebook works just fine and already has an active userbase? This is my biggest challenge and the way I think I can combat this is simply doing what facebook groups can do - but better. Be tailored SPECIFICALLY to the trading aspect and exploit the clunkiness of facebook group trading. That is the app's value - sell on the convenience. I am still thinking and formulating of a way on how to best release this app and get an initial userbase and activity when facebook groups is the standard. Needs work - but if I think of a good execution idea - I will be sure to add an update to this thread.

4) Time & Scale - I'm working on this app and spending time coding it. Once it releases though - people from all over the world can download and use it. I plan to implement ads and a premium subscription to get rid of said ads in addition to minor quality of life changes. I will only have to work to update, improve and polish the app - but once the app is completed, the app will be working 24/7 for me. And because its on the app store, it will be available worldwide on the internet (though my target audience are millennials who love houseplants).




While creating this app - I thought for a long time that my only competition was basically Facebook Groups and this one obscure site called PlantSwap (https://plantswap.org/). But then I realized that there in fact 2 other plant trading apps that serve as my competition: Blossm, Propa and an app that is also called PlantSwap (but seems unrelated to the website version). But that's ok!! Because as DeMarco mentions, competition is inevitable - I just have to do it better / carve out something unique.

Blossm - My main competitor. Seems more tailored to the buying and selling of plants as opposed to pure trading. There is a shop tab and upon tapping on a plant post - there is only an option to message a user. Presumably to set up buying details.

Pros:
  1. There's a neat mini database of plants so that users can search for a specific plant and also get bullet point details on how to care for them.
  2. There's an in built community tab system - where users post their plant pics and ask for advice - which behaves very similarly to how the plant Facebook groups currently do things.
  3. There's also a tinder esque swap system LOL - but id doesn't seem to be usable, as every time i try to use it it states that there's "nothing in my area"
  4. Tags to filter through
Cons:
  1. No actual way to look at what others are offering for the said item - which I personally like about Facebook trading
  2. Might be biased, but I think the design is kind of ugly / clunky
  3. Settings and customizability is non-existent. For example, by default, the app forces the user to show their address on a map. What if a user doesn't want that to be seen? There doesn't seem to be a way to change that. The only thing that can be changed in the settings is: 1) whether or not you want push notifications, 2) whether or not you want to be seen online, and 3) changing you distance units from imperial to metric.
In addition, imo this app has a clear focus on other things. The in-built community tab and market tabs, and the fact that you MUST include a price on your post when you create a post - makes it clear that this is for someone who wants to sell plants. While the community tab is cool - it's not something I'm going to bother to include in my app because that is not my focus. My focus is entirely different - trading. Since this is my main competitor, I think I stand out enough.
View attachment 41267View attachment 41268

Propa- Seems like they are trying to be the instagram of Plants? Advertises itself as a "community" of plant people who want to share their plants - and the fact that they modelled their app after instagram seems indicative of this.

Pros:
  1. Familiar-ish layout means users know exactly what this app is for
  2. Seems tailored towards building a community and has the option for giveaways and trades available
  3. Giveaways and freebies seem to be more common on this app
  4. Good place to just show off your plants, and then later down the line if you want to trade or give it away, it seems as though you just need to add a tag to the post you made.
Cons:
  1. While the option for trading and giving plants is available, it is not intuitive to find and does not seem to be the focus - it seems as though you have to search for it yourself and then message the user to propose a trade? You may as well just use facebook! Also, same issue as before - because trading is not the focus, you dont get to see what other people are offering for the plant. It really does just function as an Instagram with a plant gimmick. So again, more community based.
  2. Again, might be bias but I think the design is off
  3. Settings also non-existent
Once again, because has a clear focus of being a community based app - with it using Instagram as a base for their design and features, I think I stick out well enough.
View attachment 41269View attachment 41270View attachment 41271View attachment 41272View attachment 41273


PlantSwap- I won't even bother with this one since it looks ugly and outdated, and it was last updated in 2020.
View attachment 41265View attachment 41266


Now I think it's only appropriate that I show what my app looks like since I talk about how the other apps don't look as nice. Obviously my opinion is biased, so I am eager for other people's opinions!
View attachment 41275
Turns out I can only attach 10 pics in a single post - so I will offer more images in my next reply!
Screen Shot 2021-12-27 at 9.13.55 AM.png
Screen Shot 2021-12-27 at 9.14.16 AM.png
Screen Shot 2021-12-27 at 9.14.27 AM.png
So here are a few screens on my app currently! Please let me know if I should show more for a more accurate assessment.

In relation to my competition, I think I stick out enough - and I think my focus and goal with the app stands uniquely amongst my other plant-app competitors. I admit that I am probably biased, but I do think my app has a sleeker and more modern design. I designed it myself though - and because I am not a designer by trade I would greatly appreciate some honest feedback. No matter how harsh >"<




In any case - there is my first fastlane idea!! I've been working on it non-stop for the past few months and I think I am nearing the point of completion. I will most likely be releasing it next month. Here's to hoping my first Fastlane idea goes well! I will continue to post on this thread (if it's allowed) and will also use this thread as a diary of sorts to plan my execution and approach, and also to reflect.

Hope everything goes well, and if you have any critique or feedback for me, I would love to hear it! :'D
 

BD64

Silver Contributor
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Jul 26, 2017
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Denver, CO
A promising start to an interesting thread. Good luck on the venture and thanks for sharing.

Considering you are building it and seem to be nearing MVP launch I'd start to consider marketing. Can you start building validation and an early userbase via email capture or such? How are you going to attract these users? App marketing, blogging, social media? What does monetization look like?
 

ClarkeLDN

New Contributor
Read Fastlane!
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
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Dec 23, 2021
6
8
Hello everyone!

So I've been working on this idea for a while now and - while I believe it follows all of the commandants on building a business system as mentioned in The Millionaire Fastlane - I figured it wouldn't hurt to drop my idea here and get some feedback / insight. And... well, since I'm close to releasing this and taking my first step in building a fastlane business, I figured this thread would be a good place to document my process and journey, and perhaps it can help other entrepreneurs as well!

In any case - here's my first fastlane idea:

I am currently building a Plant (primarily houseplant) Trading application. The idea started when I was browsing my local plant community Facebook group - looking for available plants to trade. The thing is - Facebook is a little clunky. There's a multitude of plant groups, and the one that I'm primarily a part of posts all kinds of plant related things, including memes, advice, show-offy posts, etc. Its the one that is most active and has a dedicated local community. Thing is though, you'd have to scroll and dig through some posts to find a post that is actually offering to trade. The Facebook algorithm likes to place posts that have the most engagement on top too, so a trade post (ie the one I'm looking for) might get lost - and it's up to chance whether or not I scroll further that day to see it. There ARE other Facebook groups that are all about trading plants SPECIFICALLY, but they can be country-wide and may not be tailored to a specific city. In addition, a popular form of plant-trading post is a "master-post" in which a mod/user posts something and actually uses the comments to post all their plants that they want to trade. Other users respond to the comments with replies with their own offers - and sometimes there are cool offers that they are willing to trade but its all hidden in replies. Personally my pet peeve is that you really have to dig and scroll to find cool things so my app aims to combat that by letting everything be clear and visible from the get go. Basically - convenience.

I believe this idea satisfies the 5 FASTLANE COMMANDMENTS

1) Control - I am coding this app and will release this under my name. There are a few parts that are difficult for me so I have hired a freelance developer to help me with some of the more trickier aspects of the app. However, this app / business still belongs to me

2) Entry - I have 3 main competitors which I will go into more detail below, but given that it's only 3 - I think this road is not congested. I can easily distinguish myself and be exceptional at my unique selling point (trading). In addition, writing and creating an app seems like a high barrier of entry (though this is just a guess).

3) Need - I feel as though this is the weakest point. I will admit that the "need" I am addressing is purely personal - it is only my personal hiccups with how plant trading is commonly done, and I am going off on the assumption that because I have these pet peeves, other people must too. However, I did not talk to other people or community members in the group and I am the most worried that the current grievances of trading is not enough for other people to justify moving to another platform. I recognize that people resist change - so why should they move to another platform to trade plants if Facebook works just fine and already has an active userbase? This is my biggest challenge and the way I think I can combat this is simply doing what facebook groups can do - but better. Be tailored SPECIFICALLY to the trading aspect and exploit the clunkiness of facebook group trading. That is the app's value - sell on the convenience. I am still thinking and formulating of a way on how to best release this app and get an initial userbase and activity when facebook groups is the standard. Needs work - but if I think of a good execution idea - I will be sure to add an update to this thread.

4) Time & Scale - I'm working on this app and spending time coding it. Once it releases though - people from all over the world can download and use it. I plan to implement ads and a premium subscription to get rid of said ads in addition to minor quality of life changes. I will only have to work to update, improve and polish the app - but once the app is completed, the app will be working 24/7 for me. And because its on the app store, it will be available worldwide on the internet (though my target audience are millennials who love houseplants).




While creating this app - I thought for a long time that my only competition was basically Facebook Groups and this one obscure site called PlantSwap (https://plantswap.org/). But then I realized that there in fact 2 other plant trading apps that serve as my competition: Blossm, Propa and an app that is also called PlantSwap (but seems unrelated to the website version). But that's ok!! Because as DeMarco mentions, competition is inevitable - I just have to do it better / carve out something unique.

Blossm - My main competitor. Seems more tailored to the buying and selling of plants as opposed to pure trading. There is a shop tab and upon tapping on a plant post - there is only an option to message a user. Presumably to set up buying details.

Pros:
  1. There's a neat mini database of plants so that users can search for a specific plant and also get bullet point details on how to care for them.
  2. There's an in built community tab system - where users post their plant pics and ask for advice - which behaves very similarly to how the plant Facebook groups currently do things.
  3. There's also a tinder esque swap system LOL - but id doesn't seem to be usable, as every time i try to use it it states that there's "nothing in my area"
  4. Tags to filter through
Cons:
  1. No actual way to look at what others are offering for the said item - which I personally like about Facebook trading
  2. Might be biased, but I think the design is kind of ugly / clunky
  3. Settings and customizability is non-existent. For example, by default, the app forces the user to show their address on a map. What if a user doesn't want that to be seen? There doesn't seem to be a way to change that. The only thing that can be changed in the settings is: 1) whether or not you want push notifications, 2) whether or not you want to be seen online, and 3) changing you distance units from imperial to metric.
In addition, imo this app has a clear focus on other things. The in-built community tab and market tabs, and the fact that you MUST include a price on your post when you create a post - makes it clear that this is for someone who wants to sell plants. While the community tab is cool - it's not something I'm going to bother to include in my app because that is not my focus. My focus is entirely different - trading. Since this is my main competitor, I think I stand out enough.
View attachment 41267View attachment 41268

Propa- Seems like they are trying to be the instagram of Plants? Advertises itself as a "community" of plant people who want to share their plants - and the fact that they modelled their app after instagram seems indicative of this.

Pros:
  1. Familiar-ish layout means users know exactly what this app is for
  2. Seems tailored towards building a community and has the option for giveaways and trades available
  3. Giveaways and freebies seem to be more common on this app
  4. Good place to just show off your plants, and then later down the line if you want to trade or give it away, it seems as though you just need to add a tag to the post you made.
Cons:
  1. While the option for trading and giving plants is available, it is not intuitive to find and does not seem to be the focus - it seems as though you have to search for it yourself and then message the user to propose a trade? You may as well just use facebook! Also, same issue as before - because trading is not the focus, you dont get to see what other people are offering for the plant. It really does just function as an Instagram with a plant gimmick. So again, more community based.
  2. Again, might be bias but I think the design is off
  3. Settings also non-existent
Once again, because has a clear focus of being a community based app - with it using Instagram as a base for their design and features, I think I stick out well enough.
View attachment 41269View attachment 41270View attachment 41271View attachment 41272View attachment 41273


PlantSwap- I won't even bother with this one since it looks ugly and outdated, and it was last updated in 2020.
View attachment 41265View attachment 41266


Now I think it's only appropriate that I show what my app looks like since I talk about how the other apps don't look as nice. Obviously my opinion is biased, so I am eager for other people's opinions!
View attachment 41275
Turns out I can only attach 10 pics in a single post - so I will offer more images in my next reply!
Hey there,

Really exciting start and great idea - but as we both know, it's all about the execution!

Sounds like there is a market out there, here a few thoughts I had whilst reading if useful:

- The most important thing to do is get started, is there a prototype app you could launch in 1 single location so that you can start small, work through bugs and get feedback?
- It sounds as if the most successful group also enjoys the memes, the questions, in addition to trading. There's 2 thoughts on this:
  • Building brand awareness will be a key part of driving app downloads - potentially it's worth opening a instagram / tiktok and publishing regularly to build up an audience?
  • If people enjoy the memes, articles etc - maybe this could form part of your app in the future? If you have them on seperate tabs / channels, you'll tackle the inconvenience with searching whilst retaining the things people may enjoy / like
I've never traded a plant myself, but keen to hear how it all goes :)

Cheers,

Clarke

 
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botaybry

Contributor
User Power
Value/Post Ratio
150%
Nov 18, 2021
14
21
A promising start to an interesting thread. Good luck on the venture and thanks for sharing.

Considering you are building it and seem to be nearing MVP launch I'd start to consider marketing. Can you start building validation and an early userbase via email capture or such? How are you going to attract these users? App marketing, blogging, social media? What does monetization look like?

Hello there - thanks for the reply and good luck!

To be honest - I haven’t formulated a detailed plan on how I am going to market and execute its release yet. My focus is still trying to finish and make the app the best as it can be; but here are some initial ideas for marketing that I have:

  1. Once my app reaches a state where it can actually be used - I will post on the Facebook group that I am primarily a part of (A Houseplant community based in Vancouver BC, Canada). I will present the app as a personal project and request feedback - both in hopes of generating some initial interest and getting feedback. This is not a full release - merely a betatest and to generate interest from a smaller pool of people.
  2. Once this initial post is made on the Facebook Group - I will start posting updates on a Twitter account I made for this app. I will also spend time on that Twitter account following and mass liking tweets from plant loving users and hopefully start generating minor interest there. I will also make an Instagram - though I havent thought about what kind of content I would post there.
  3. At that point I will have also made a website (On Wix). Though I will primarily use this website to host the Terms of Service and Privacy Policy for the app and to solidify its branding.
    • Speaking of Branding: Here is the Mission Statement and About page that I've been working on. The Branding is still in the works but this is what I have so far:
    • OUR MISSION:
    • We exist to encourage a deep affection for our planet by promoting the exchange and spread of plants amongst all peoples.

      By creating the best and the most convenient platform for users to exchange plants locally with each other, we want to help impassion people with a love for plants and nature! By encouraging plant owners to openly trade, perhaps with people who never would have imagined housing a plant themselves, we hope that even the most urban of concrete urban city folk can find joy in nurturing a piece of nature - and in turn, feel invigorated in helping our Earth.
    • ABOUT PAGE: Who made this? And Why?
    • PlantTrader was created in order to improve the online plant trading experience.

      Developed by a straggled 26 year old living with his mom, the idea initially came to fruition after scrolling through several Plant-Centric Facebook Groups. While loving the community he was a part of - he found it difficult to find the posts he was actually interested in. Plant trades! Non-Monetary trades that were purely for the fun of sharing houseplants with other like-minded locals. And thus... PlantTrader was born!
    • Our Commitment to the Earth
    • As our straggled 26 year old developer (who has never developed or programmed anything in his life before) continued to code and build this app - An idea struck him!

      Being the overwhelmed millennial that he is, our developer is keenly aware of all the global, environmental issues that plague our planet. But what can a minimum wage earning millennial do against such a monumental issue other than "retweet activism" in the hopes that someone else can do something?

      And then he realized. After a quick break from coding - he realized that there was something he can do. In fact - it was right in front of him! What better way to combat deforestation and climate change, than creating an app that is all about promoting the giving and sharing of plants?

      And that's why PlantTrader will forever be affiliated with #TeamTrees, a lifelong campaign started by Mr. Beast from youtube. For as long as this app remains active - 20% of all revenue from this app will go into the reforestation of the world. More trees people! And more plants!
  4. I also am considering creating a blog - though... the idea of consistent content that also strikes SEO intimidates me
Probably not the best plan atm >"< But what do you think?


As for monetization - it will be monetized two ways.
First of all, the app is free to use for all with ads. The ads appear in banners on the bottom of the screen right above the tab bar - so not too intrusive I think (I also plan on them being dismissable). There will be minor limitations on the app for the free version as well (things like: maximum amount of offers that can be made, maximum amount of posts that can appear on the user's dashboard) - though this will take careful planning and feedback as to strike the perfect balance. I dont want to be too egregious and greedy with the limitations.

There will be a monthly Premium subscription - further incentivized by the fact that the app will be affiliated with #TeamTrees - a lifelong campaign dedicated to reforestation, which goes hand in hand with the App's mission to encourage the spread and sharing of plants - so a portion money made from the app will go back to the environment.

Probably a much longer response than you wanted sorry! >"< And thank you for the questions! It really helped me think about what my next plans are - and it honestly made me realize that I've been neglecting thinking about marketing... Definitely seems like a weak point atm.


Hey there,

Really exciting start and great idea - but as we both know, it's all about the execution!

Sounds like there is a market out there, here a few thoughts I had whilst reading if useful:

- The most important thing to do is get started, is there a prototype app you could launch in 1 single location so that you can start small, work through bugs and get feedback?
- It sounds as if the most successful group also enjoys the memes, the questions, in addition to trading. There's 2 thoughts on this:
  • Building brand awareness will be a key part of driving app downloads - potentially it's worth opening a instagram / tiktok and publishing regularly to build up an audience?
  • If people enjoy the memes, articles etc - maybe this could form part of your app in the future? If you have them on seperate tabs / channels, you'll tackle the inconvenience with searching whilst retaining the things people may enjoy / like
I've never traded a plant myself, but keen to hear how it all goes :)

Cheers,

Clarke

Hey Clarke!

Thanks a bunch! :D I'm glad you think its a good idea - its nice hearing it and not trying to convince myself that it is.

Yes, I plan on betatesting the app to the Facebook Plant Group that I am primarily a part of. It has a 6.3k members, and I think thats a sizeable enough pool to get started with to get some feedback.

I... will consider it. If that's the case - could I not build brand awareness using those same Facebook groups? Thats what I was planning to do at first. This is because the focus of my app is just to trade - and to the best at it. My designs work around that idea. Facebook Groups still reign supreme when it comes to community building - a quick look at my competitor's attempts to generate a community with their own community tabs makes me feel as though their endeavours and not super successful. Not sure I can compete with Facebook on that endeavor.

I will wait and see if a Community Tab is actually what people want when it comes time to beta-test. If the Feedback requests as such, then I will consider it more heavily - but for now I will focus merely on the trading aspect as that was the initial gripe I had about Facebook Trading.

But thanks for the feedback! Food for thought ahaha
 

botaybry

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UPDATE:

Hello everyone!
It's been nearly two weeks since my last posting so I'd thought I'd post a little update.

Development of the app is going well. I am aiming for a Mid-February release now. I ended up having to outsource some development to a freelancer as I'm reaching the limits of my capabilities. The Frontend of development came pretty easily to me, but I'm finding the back-end and business logic to be quite difficult. I'm still reading and taking courses on though to better improve my knowledge, but in order for this app to release in Spring (which is my goal) I need development to go faster. Hence the outsourcing. Can't say I'm super proud of that, but whatever it takes... At least I'm not giving up I suppose!

In the meantime - I started to shift my focus on marketing. I created a Twitter and have began interacting with other users who have an interest in Gardening and Houseplants. My goal in two weeks time is to reach 100 followers. I created a website to host a landing page so that I can get the emails of whoever is interested in the release of the app.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/_PlantTrader_
Website: Landing Page | planttrader

It's a start, though I admit my website is not the prettiest. I may have to start learning how to do website design or, once again, outsource and pay an expert to do a better job for me. I'll see though. I'll focus on getting 100 followers on Twitter and then check the analytics of both the website and Twitter to see if my Twitter is doing a good job sending traffic to the website. And if the website is doing it's job in converting leads.
 

woken

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@mdot This made me think of you.

Interesting thread. Love to see progress. Keep going !
 
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Mathuin

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What do you have to do to remove the "Created by Wix" from your landing page? I would do this before starting to market. Looks unprofessional.
 

botaybry

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I totally agree!! It's on my list of To-Dos, but its frustrating that it's there since I have already paid for the premium plan for the site's service and IT'S STILL THERE D: I also plan on revamping the design - I kinda threw everything together quickly just so I can host a landing page and start collecting emails.

However, is the current website that much of a turn off? I'd rather remove it if it's detracting from my upcoming brand and wait until I can actually have the time to make the website presentable.
 

Gabriel Brasil

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Awesome study case man, thanks to bring it here.

I think that you've done a great job understanding what your possible clients would like, analyzing the market and so.

What are you thinking and doing to make people come through your site/APP and stay in there? Like paid traffic, mail list and others.

Have you thought in get started with a simple site as an MVP (to validate the idea) and later creating an APP? Or do you just started with the APP thing in mind?
 
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botaybry

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Awesome study case man, thanks to bring it here.

I think that you've done a great job understanding what your possible clients would like, analyzing the market and so.

What are you thinking and doing to make people come through your site/APP and stay in there? Like paid traffic, mail list and others.

Have you thought in get started with a simple site as an MVP (to validate the idea) and later creating an APP? Or do you just started with the APP thing in mind?
Thanks a bunch!! I'm glad to post my idea and progress on a public forum - I hope it can help other fellow entrepreneurs as well.

Can you clarify what you mean by: "What are you thinking and doing to make people come through your site/APP and stay in there? Like paid traffic, mail list and others."?

My goal is not to have people stay on the website - I am simply using it as a way to get a list of emails from people who I have generated interest from on social media. It will eventually hold my terms of service and privacy policy too. Having people stay on the app, however, is definitely a must. Other than providing a great, convenient way to allow users to trade plants (something that is more convenient and user friendly than my competition) I don't have any other ideas. Well... I have one idea. I do plan to "gamify" the app in that the more the user uses the app, the more "prizes" they can earn in the form of discounts for plant stores/ gardening stores / plant nurseries. I'm still molding this idea though. It probably will not be in the initial release, but will be an update.

I'm already creating the app LOL. So I'm just running with it. It may be wiser to start with a skinnier, MVP app that has just the base functions to see if there really is interest, but honestly I'm too impatient and I wanna get rolling. I have a good feeling there is a demand for this so I'm taking a definite risk. We'll see in time.
 

Gabriel Brasil

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Thanks a bunch!! I'm glad to post my idea and progress on a public forum - I hope it can help other fellow entrepreneurs as well.

Can you clarify what you mean by: "What are you thinking and doing to make people come through your site/APP and stay in there? Like paid traffic, mail list and others."?

My goal is not to have people stay on the website - I am simply using it as a way to get a list of emails from people who I have generated interest from on social media. It will eventually hold my terms of service and privacy policy too. Having people stay on the app, however, is definitely a must. Other than providing a great, convenient way to allow users to trade plants (something that is more convenient and user friendly than my competition) I don't have any other ideas. Well... I have one idea. I do plan to "gamify" the app in that the more the user uses the app, the more "prizes" they can earn in the form of discounts for plant stores/ gardening stores / plant nurseries. I'm still molding this idea though. It probably will not be in the initial release, but will be an update.

I'm already creating the app LOL. So I'm just running with it. It may be wiser to start with a skinnier, MVP app that has just the base functions to see if there really is interest, but honestly I'm too impatient and I wanna get rolling. I have a good feeling there is a demand for this so I'm taking a definite risk. We'll see in time.
Hey botaybry, thanks for answering me.

About the first question, I was thinking about how you "put people" in your app. If you advertise or just get organic traffic.

And second, I was asking if you thought at the first time to create a simple MVP site to then create an APP, but I got your idea. I've asked this because maybe someone with no APP building experience (like me) should better start with a simple site.

How difficult was to you to build (program) your APP?

Again, thanks for sharing your journey, and good luck with the process.
 

botaybry

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Hey botaybry, thanks for answering me.

About the first question, I was thinking about how you "put people" in your app. If you advertise or just get organic traffic.

And second, I was asking if you thought at the first time to create a simple MVP site to then create an APP, but I got your idea. I've asked this because maybe someone with no APP building experience (like me) should better start with a simple site.

How difficult was to you to build (program) your APP?

Again, thanks for sharing your journey, and good luck with the process.
Ah I see!
To answer your first question:
Social Media.
Currently I am regularly using twitter and responding and liking to many people in the Plant community. I have gained 44 followers on Twitter in the past month so far, and will be on Instagram soon once I create posts that I deem are aesthetically attractive. I also plan on posting on the original local plant community facebook group that I am in (6.3 thousand users) asking for volunteers for beta testers. While I do genuinely need testing, this also doubles as a way to generate interest and get users talking and using the app.

It is difficult, but it is not impossible. There is a lot of resources out there, and I found that the coding community is very helpful and are quick to help out new beginners. There are a lot of courses online too that can help out. That said, it does take consistency. I admittedly have done a bad job of keeping myself in check and in my rush to learn as much as possible as fast as possible, I ended up caving and looking at the answers for coding exercises for the courses that I did take instead of trying to anchoring myself down to really try to figure it out myself. In essence, because I caved too easily, I feel as though I am lacking coding problem solving skills. I am able to get by - but I am no where near the level I should be given where I am in the courses I've taken. Or maybe I'm better than I think and it's just major imposter syndrome! So if you are looking to start building an app, I would highly recommend taking building the foundational knowledge seriously. Don't rush like me. Because at this point, I find myself having to go back and try to relearn in my rush to just get started on the app.

And thank you very much! Sorry my reply took a while. I've been trying to revamp my website and stay on top of social media, as well as coding the app as well as LEARN how to code better hahaha!!
 
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Gabriel Brasil

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Ah I see!
To answer your first question:
Social Media.
Currently I am regularly using twitter and responding and liking to many people in the Plant community. I have gained 44 followers on Twitter in the past month so far, and will be on Instagram soon once I create posts that I deem are aesthetically attractive. I also plan on posting on the original local plant community facebook group that I am in (6.3 thousand users) asking for volunteers for beta testers. While I do genuinely need testing, this also doubles as a way to generate interest and get users talking and using the app.

It is difficult, but it is not impossible. There is a lot of resources out there, and I found that the coding community is very helpful and are quick to help out new beginners. There are a lot of courses online too that can help out. That said, it does take consistency. I admittedly have done a bad job of keeping myself in check and in my rush to learn as much as possible as fast as possible, I ended up caving and looking at the answers for coding exercises for the courses that I did take instead of trying to anchoring myself down to really try to figure it out myself. In essence, because I caved too easily, I feel as though I am lacking coding problem solving skills. I am able to get by - but I am no where near the level I should be given where I am in the courses I've taken. Or maybe I'm better than I think and it's just major imposter syndrome! So if you are looking to start building an app, I would highly recommend taking building the foundational knowledge seriously. Don't rush like me. Because at this point, I find myself having to go back and try to relearn in my rush to just get started on the app.

And thank you very much! Sorry my reply took a while. I've been trying to revamp my website and stay on top of social media, as well as coding the app as well as LEARN how to code better hahaha!!
Hey botaybry,

Thanks again for your reply.

Nice to know that you are keeping up your project.

I've found the no-code/low-code alternative (like Bubble) and i'am sure that is what I gonna use in my project.

Please keep posting your journey.
 

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