Apane

About $30/mo. It cost approx $43,000 to build, looking to recoup at least 50% of that.

Toronto, Ontario | Looking for full-stack ruby-on-rails developer.

Our company is FV, Inc. We're in the process of re-branding, we have a new design underway and have a new domain. We're looking for a full-stack developer that can lead the new launch and help us merge the new front-end with the existing back-end.

We're also looking for someone who can grow into the CTO role.

Please email anthony@fastvenues.com with some recent projects, github etc...

Thanks!

Good point. Need another layer of value to justify thinking of using an app like this when hungry.

But very good feedback none the less.

3. Our business model is that you pre-pay for the recommended meal to get the deal.

5. Right now we're solving something that neither Yelp nor Foursquare solves and that's the Paradox of choice. With them you can see what restaurants are around you, and read some reviews but you still don't know what to eat there. It might get you in the door but you're still taking a shot in the dark. With us, we only create a few set-menu meal deals that you can choose from that are rated best, by local foodies. So you're essentially browsing what's around you by top rated meal, instead of restaurant.

We're different in that we want to ONLY show you the recommended items from each place, so you don't spend time going through the menu, you basically get a snapshot of what we recommend at each restaurant near you. Why do we recommend it? We have professional "foodies" who literally travel to try and review restaurants that make these recommendations then we put them up at a deal for you to try it.

Very good feedback, but do you ever think "I'm tired of the same old places, what else is there around me that's good?, and affordable to try". Looking to solve that problem.

Thanks, yeah it's good for discovery when you're out and about. Any feedback on product?

First thing I noticed by looking at google analytics is that none of you who've visited the site have clicke "view details" why is that? Don't you want to see what the restaurants are offering?

Definitely interested, pls send more info to anthony@fastvenues.com

Great. Please send their emails + your email to anthony@fastvenues.com and I can share more information and see if they would use it. P.s. fastvenues is not the meetup/tickets app, it's another project.

So we're different in a few ways,

1. our users don't need an account on our site to buy tickets, we've basically removed the barrier. You can share the link to your event with your meetup group, and the members can easily purchase the tickets, with no account, they fill in basic info name, email, etc... They're then emailed a digital voucher that they present upon arrival, with a unique reference number that can be tracked verified by the event organizer.

2. You can create re-occuring events, and select which days of the week the event happens, e.g. [X] Mon, Tues, Wed, [X] Thurs, Fri, between 5pm-8pm.

So it's a way for you to generate regular sales on a weekly basis, by hosting weekly work shops etc... as opposed to a one off event. You won't have to keep re-creating them if you are planning on hosting regular workshops, it's sort of a new model in that way. Or you can host a one time event, and create them as you go, you have that flexibility to choose.

3. We take a small transaction fee per booking, only 7% so we only get paid when you get paid.

so the conviencince of booking online, and reserving all in one shot and not having to take out your wallet at the restaurant, isn't enough? we'd need a really compelling discount to make people take action and find real value? What kind of discounts are we talking, 35-50%? Or in other words, what would it have to be, for you to use it? IF you would use it, or maybe you wouldn't, and if so, why?

Thanks, fixed the link.

We have done some marketing via LinkedIn ad's, facebook ad's, even paying for influencial foodies, who have large followings on instagram to try a complimentary meal/booking using fastvenues.com and reviewing it, and even with a really positive review, not one real conversion. What's wrong with the product? Why or why wouldn't you use Fastvenues.com to book/reserve a unique/discounted meal at a great local restaurant?

You can even make a booking WITHOUT an account, by checking out as a guest, still nothing. We need advice. What's wrong with the product? Why would or wouldn't you use it to find and book a unique/discounted meal at a local restaurant. You would use UberEats I'm sure for convienient delivery, or JustEat for take-out orders, why not use Fastvenues.com for the dine-in experience?

The product has been built for 6 months, and we've been pursuing customers, hiring and firing sales reps, it's been a very tough battle. We've signed up 10 real restaurants, that are able to process payments and orders/bookings, but our marketing efforts using Linkedin ads, facebook etc... are un-promising. Out of 1000 targeted visitors not one has converted to a booking. You can even make a booking WITHOUT an account, by checking out as a guest, still nothing. We need advice. What's wrong with the product? Why would or wouldn't you use it to find and book a unique/discounted meal at a local restaurant.

Very cool.

Thanks, agree!

Open to feedback!

There's a bunch of gurus that have done this and have been tremendously successful. To name a few: Gary Vaynerchuk, Grant Cardone, Tai Lopez, James Altucher. I'm sure there are cases that haven't been as successful, but show me one business that doesn't have failures? The point she was making was with the internet you can become a successful personality because with great content you can build up an audience without a middle man.

I'm a friend of Jennifer's, I would say that she's on the money with the attention part. The vehicle that you choose to get that attention will depend on your strengths. If you have a cool voice then go the Podcast route, if you are full of energy and theatrical start a YouTube channel. The reality is, the people who are succeeding in the new age are using all of these tools to some degree. In addition to that, building an audience by being unique and creative is a grind but a worthy one. Out of curiosity, where do you find an issue with this?

I've spoken with several event planning pros in person, and quickly learned that they're not our target. We built this because we wanted to making finding the perfect venue for your event simple as possible, with software that is easy to use and nice to look at. The users that we're targeting are non-event planning pros - or average joes/janes who are looking for a venue for their bridal shower, baby shower, wedding etc... and would like to consider and reach out to several venues at once to find the right one for them. With venuevortex.com we are accomplishing that. Albeit, because the market is so broad it's difficult to work out a marketing strategy. Perhaps we can target each segment e.g. people who are looking for venues for their bridal shower, then wedding etc... but where do we find these people?

The pricing is minimum price per person. In addition, I've spoken with and met folks who plan events often in the city and they love the product, albeit, the more higher end ones already have their networks and contacts at venues. So they suggested that I market this to the non-pro event planner that needs a venue for their bridal shower, baby shower, wedding, etc... Struggling with finding a marketing solution to target this group because it's particularly broad market segment.

Thanks - great feedback, I agree. I'll put it this way for clarity sake, in essence venuevortex.com is a marketplace. The supply-side are the venues and the demand side are people looking for event space for their birthday, baby shower, bridal shower, wedding, corporate retreat, board meeting etc....

Rather than targeting event planning pros, we're seeking general consumers, ultimately anyone that is looking for an event space. Think AirBNB for Event Spaces.

I'm not quite sure if it's a product issue that's causing the dis-traction/lack of use OR marketing? That's the real question/problem that we're actively seeking a solution for! If you have any additional ideas on this it would be greatly appreciated.

Yes, I'm targeting only folks in those cities. Since we've initially launched in Ontario. We're only targeting Ontarians at the moment. The issue is really with the demand side, is there a real use-case here? Perhaps a pivot may be necessary.

Thanks Jeff, appreciate the feedback! Please hit the upvote button if you like the idea :)

Cheers, right the idea would be to market it to YouTube stars - those who want a bigger piece of the pie. Apparently Youtubers aren't getting as much as they could considering the enormous view counts. Of course, the platform is hot which is why the view counts are large, but even if we can convert 5-10 stars to this platform it has a better chance of growing quickly, and bringing the fan-base with it. Additionally, we can target enterprise clients that have internal video tutorials/programs etc... just brainstorming as I type this, but I appreicate your message because it encourages fresh perspective.

Lead generation feels much more viable, imho (and likely far more lucrative). You are venturing into a very crowded space, but I would suggest taking a long, hard look at Thumbtack.com - they have done an outstanding job.

taprun, thanks - I like the idea of offering premium features i.e. allowing the venues to become "sponsored", or "preferred" etc.. I suppose the metric I have to track and optimize atm is getting venues to sign-up as you mentioned. Cheers!

Fair question, I appreciate it. Ultimately, our portfolio speaks for itself, but here's some history, I've been developing rails apps for several years as a sole full-stack developer. I founded the Agency in 2011 and built out a fantastic team, perhaps world-class, and have been taking on projects through referrals I've gained as a sole-developer. I've decided to open this up to the public in 2015, and work with outsiders. A web presence is in order, however, for the time being I'd be happy to chat via Skype or phone-call and provide more details including our portfolio, and learn more about your project!!