Elevator Pitch is a regular feature on Lifehacker where we profile startups and new companies and pick their brains for entrepreneurial advice. This week, we’re talking with Justin Borg, co-founder at social discovery app Spota.
In 128 words or less, explain your business idea.
Spota is a social discovery app that allows you to connect with people you see in real life with a tap of a button in a safe way. Spota provides users with an avenue to introduce themselves to someone who they can see in their line of sight. It works on the premise that the best way to meet new people is in the present. The app allows you to see who is currently around and meet them in person, rather than figuring out you crossed paths a few hours back or wait days for a response. We’ve also placed a huge emphasis on app design and user experience, so it’s super easy to use and the interface looks great.
What strategies are you using to grow and finance your idea?
Spota is a bootstrapped business to date so we’ve had to be creative about generating awareness. We’ve focused on strategic activations in high density areas of young adults that want to be social, have fun and meet people around them. We’ve recently partnered with schoolies.com to provide a better way for young people to connect on their Schoolies break, as well as a number of activations at some of Australia’s favourite social spots.
What’s the biggest challenge facing your business?
As a geolocation based app, our biggest focus is growing our user base across a wide range of locations. This means we need to take a smart, targeted approach to growth as we look to scale into new cities and countries.
How do you differentiate your business from your competitors?
Current dating/ social discovery apps work in a retrospective way or do not have the granularity to show people in your immediate vicinity. Spota’s focus is to connect users that are in the same venue such as bars, cafes, universities, music festivals and more, bridging the gap between the physical and digital world. Spota allows users to meet and introduce themselves to real users that are in front of them, rather than being a platform for chatting to online personas up to hundreds of kilometres away.
What one phone, tablet or PC application could you not live without?
For business I couldn’t live without Jira as this helps manage our development team with bug tracking, issue tracking, and project management in the most effective way.
What’s the best piece of business advice you’ve ever received?
Only work with people who have a passion for your business or your product. Without passion it’s too easy for people to give up.
Want to see your startup featured in Elevator Pitch? Get in touch using our contact form.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.