New course on Coursera on Entrepreneurial Ideas and Innovation

Today starts the course "Developing Innovative Ideas for new Companies" on Coursera platform, held by Dr. James V. Green from University of Maryland.

A free and online course that looks quite interesting for those looking to develop new business concepts and which allows you to obtain a certificate of completion.

Yes, you can still sign up.

 Note: the course is fully in English language, although will be surely attended by a large international community.

Taking the Adwords model to Outdoors advertising

This idea for Publimedia or JC Decaux or any other outdoors advertising provider is about:

• Amplifying traditional advertising targets
• Answering SME specific needs
• Applying the Adwords model to offline media

It is getting quite common to see empty advertising signs. It seems that companies tend to move away from traditional advertising media whose efficiency is less measurable and move towards things like the Internet, where impressions, clicks and conversions can be seen almost by the second. But, not all of our targets are on the Internet (or the pages where we advertise) and there is so much competition that is almost impossible to stand out from the crowd.
On the other hand, big advertising signs seem left for big advertisers. Price, acquisition complexity, hidden costs… looks like the Internet has won the battle against media agencies. Today anyone, from bloggers to big companies, can advertise, but it still seems that to access a big street sign you need a big budget.

Companies feel comfortable advertising through the Adwords model so, why not use some of the Internet ideas and use them on traditional advertising?

Si cualquier empresa se atreve a poner su anuncio en Adwords, ¿por qué no tomar prestadas algunas de las ideas de Internet y utilizarlas en la publicidad tradicional?

 

Idea: A Street sign selling model for SME taken from Google Adwords

The idea is by itself quite simple: developing a self-service advertising posts model where small and medium sized companies can select the place/street where their advertising will be displayed and the type of media/mupi/post/etc they want to use, and immediately see the price and availability.

It would be some sort of an online rental model for short periods and economy-wise for companies. The dynamics would be something like:

• You select the type of media, area / street and days it will be displayed
• Upload your ad or use some templates available
• The design gets validated online for printing (like blurb.com does for books)
• Publimedia prints and places the posters on the posts
• The company knows the place, times, traffic data, etc.

On the other side, owners can save some spots for traditional advertising or make them available depending on the season (like hotels do at booking.com)

Of course, because this system would offer the spaces one by one, pricing would still be better for media agencies who sell by volume, and high demand spaces won’t get into this model, so it won’t compete against them. Also, they don’t get to the SME, main target for this idea.

A mini idea: IKEA Catalogue created by its own clients

This is an idea about

• Client fidelity actions
• Involving users on the company’s communication
• Getting immediate feedback on the products and how clients use them in different countries.

It’s quite surprising that IKEA has not developed an idea like this yet. Basically, it would involve active users (through a Social networks or similar) and big buyers (IKEA card) to design their catalogue.

It could be done closing a local shop or taking them to Sweden as a reward, where they could see all the new products and designs before anyone else, and design their own scene. They would count with the help of an expert designer and a photographer who would assist them to set up the scene.

This idea would also be useful for the company to see what are the likes of their clients (by country) and get instant feedback before novelties arrive at the shops.

Movistar SMS at ATMs, an idea I'd love to develop

Movistar: amplifying channels

This is an idea on:

• Broadening the business concept
• Increasing the catalogue
• Differentiating from competitors
• Raising sales on products that are decreasing

Which is Movistar business? A couple of years ago you would say they sell phone services, but today we should better speak of communication or self-expression. It is not about the mean but what we do with them.

If you also think that we are in the generation ME, this becomes more evident. But, how much can Movistar business model be amplified? The sell voice and data, domestic and mobile, home and businesses, national and international,…

In just about 10 years we’ve moved from having a phone as a secondary thing to a continuous connection. But, what happens when you run out of battery, line or money?

You barely can see telephone boothes/boxes in Spain (or they just won’t work) and you can get a feeling of isolation. I’ve seen projects of vending machines where you can charge your cellphone, but when you are in the middle of a street you can’t just wait around for 20 minutes so you get enough battery or autonomy.

 

IDEA: providing messaging services at ATMs

If there is something you don’t leave home without (besides the phone) is your wallet so, why not widening the options of the clients to communicate through ATMs?

When you run out of battery or are in another country without roaming services, you lose the phone or they steal it, it would be great to be able to communicate with your parents, friends, couple, etc so they know you are alright but without cell phone.

The idea is that Movistar provided a service by which  you could connect on an ATM and send a message, a way to access to your phone list (on some sort of virtual SIM) and send a message to any one you want.

Also, this virtual SIM would allow you to keep your phone numbers even when your phone breaks down to pieces, and would simplify the change from your old cell to a new one.

Plus, it would be great if you could by single SMS and charge them to your credit card, or use the ones on your cell phone line. This way, the serviced could be offered to non-clients (though they wouldn’t have their virtual SIM.)

Infojobs, an idea I'd love to develop, did I work with them

Mini-idea to increase the candidate base for Infojobs employment site

The Infojobs model as an employment site is quite simple: there are candidates, there are offers, and candidates sign up for the offers and companies can search for specific candidates. But you don’t have the choice to stand up and become visible for the company you’d love to work for.

On many of the employment sites of big companies there is a chance to promote yourself, to apply for a post in a department or area when there is not an offer. But not at Infojobs. I guess it is so because it is easier to monetize the offer publication and with the current situation of crisis some companies would never feel the need to pay for publishing anything.

But, what if Infojobs allowed companies to receive that curricula and keep it for a certain time? This way, it would become as a very potent Human Resources agent, substituting their online employment sites without having to worry about data base and privacy issues.

Also, there would be a bigger base of candidates that would use the platform, CV would be updated more often and the platform would be used even when there aren’t offers they could be interested on.

On the other hand, the company would increase the traffic to other offers, for example by showing alternative positions when they send a spontaneous application (similar in terms of professional category, experience, department, sector,…)

Idea for Official Pharmacies Online by the Spanish Pharmaceutical Board

This is an idea I’d love to develop, did I work for the Pharmaceutical Board.

It is about:

• Promoting legal pharmacies online
• Increasing service quality at chemist stores
• Easing the “shy” shopping
• Increasing the number of chemists working

I guess there would be some limitation or legal restrictions to a Project like this, but it has caught my attention that no Spanish Pharmacies are online. There are “parafarmacias” (drugstores for items that do not require medical prescription), though.

Todays’ idea is about creating an ecommerce point for all the Spanish Pharmacies, coordinated by the Pharmaceutical Board.

Idea: Spanish Pharmacies’ ecommerce

This idea would work on different levels:

• An starting point would be creating a “reservation”  point for medicines. It would work as an online shop, but picking the items at the selected shop, so prescription documents could be validated.

Most common medicines are commonly stocked at pharmacies, but when you look for a specific vaccine or some specific brands or doses, it can be hard or timely. Basically, the chemist has to place an order or you have to wander around all the pharmacies in your area.

Imagine there was an online search engine where you could look for the exact medicine and make your reservation to pick it up on the same day. It would not only be good for the patient, but also for chemists themselves: the y could tell their clients if other pharmacies in the area have the product, make a reservation for them and finally decide if they place the order themselves.

Plus, for those “shy guys” it would be easier to buy sertain products, as they don’t need to request the name of the medicine, but their “online order” and give the prescription documents to the chemist, if needed.

The system would also help locate and know the real timetable of Pharmacies, showing which are open when you want to pick up your order, which are 24 hours open and which are “open on guard”.

• A second level would be a true online shop with delivery at the buyers’ address, connected with the Social Security prescription system.

Specially designed to answer the requirements of prescribed medicines, it would be about creating a centralized system for online ordering where you would write the prescription official number, order online and a chemist would deliver them to your house or office. Of course, there would be some legal items to check, but since medicines are already paid for there is a limited danger of getting them stolen, and prescription would always be checked.

Besides, the system would work on regions, allowing connection with each Social Security systems depending on the patient’s postal code.

Private Doctors’ prescriptions would require some thinking on the system, like the need of the collegiate number of the doctor prescribing, for example.

Coca-Cola ideas on using employees for branding and advertising

Coca-Cola employees branding 

This is an idea on:

• Employee brand engagement
• Using all the brands’ points of touch

I’ve just written Coke, but it could actually be any big Brand in the world. It is just that this idea popped up when I was driving by the Coca-Cola offices in Madrid.

When you are in the middle of a jam in your way to work and take a look around, what do you see? 

Branded Trucks, vans and motorbikes are around a 30%, but the others are mainly anonymous cars. In them you can find thousands of people heading to a work place that might be stressful, but many will be proud of it, especially at places like Coke, P&G, Kraft, Microsoft, Google,… 

And it’s not only them proud, but their families and friends too. All of them build a network that promotes the brand and sells its products as their own. Why not take advantage of this to promote the brand more openly?

If just anybody is willing to wear a Coca-Cola tee-shirt at the beach, why wouldn’t the company’s employees? This is not about forcing employees to have their private car painted with the logo, but to provide them with tools to support the brand in all the ways they can. Something that distinguishes them from the rest, proves them proud  of working for the brand and helps them show and tell others about their experience. 

The way American Universities use their alumni and students as Brand drivers has always caught my attention. This idea would translate these techniques to the big brands in Spain on a subtle and friendly way.