Goal

[NigelW]

Hello,

 

I am seriously considering becoming an entrepreur. I have no particular idea what that looks like other than being paid for performance, investing long hours, and having ownership.

My business education is amatuer. I have theoretical knowledge, but little practical.

I would love to start a bitcoin business that provides a service or education.I am looking for people who have made a similar transition to give me a little direction.

 

Thank you,

Nigel

[Sven--starFury_flames--]

My partner (of the romantic/life kind) and I started our business just over a year ago. Don't let your lack of "business education" discourage you, neither of us had any..... We just created the best product(s) that we could, we absolutely believe in them and they're so easy to sell for that reason (because we know they're the best available). I think the most important factor in our success is that we found a niche and that we're totally staunch on our principals.

 

I was terrified when we begun the journey but wow, the amount of personal growth I've had this past year, even if the whole enterprise failed tomorrow and all the money was lost, it would still have been worth it in terms of experience points and levels gained! =P

 

Do it, brother !!

[NigelW]

You say do it, but I don't know where to start. Lol

[DFPercush]

Are you wanting to create a website that brokers bitcoins? Or some kind of mobile app or what? Nail down the specific plan and business model. What's your part in it - what skills do you possess that would apply to your venture? You may be able to learn the business and regulatory requirements from the internet and a couple of consulting sessions. But you sound unsure of the exact nature of what you want to do, and you gotta figure that out first. "a bitcoin business that provides a service or education" What's that going to look like? Who are your customers going to be, and why should they choose your service? Not saying they wouldn't, but you need to figure out your angle of what makes you competitive. How are you going to sell it? Let me warn you right now, the financial industry is an ever-shifting quicksand desert of regulation, you have to stay on top of all the bullshit that federal and state legislatures pass. That's the main reason I had a job there for a while, as a programmer making changes to meet new legal requirements. You may only be able to operate in certain states. It might not be quite that bad, though, because you're not making loans, just trading a commodity, but it's basically currency trading, and the slimy tentacles of zealous bureaucrats will reach it soon enough. Beware of regime uncertainty, and run-on sentences. Don't let that scare you though. Have confidence, but not false confidence. As Sven said, focus on making the best product possible, and watch the bottom line. As far as the business-y type stuff and accounting goes, I'm sure as long as you keep records of all transactions you'll be fine. Save receipts. The nice people at the IRS will let you know if you're doing it wrong. Might want to keep aside a little buffer for "oops I owe more taxes than I thought," never hurts. Put it in a CD and earn some interest while it sits there. A lot of the accounting can be handled by out-of-the-box software. If you're going to tie it in to a website, though, make sure the software supports some kind of import function. At my previous workplace we had a script that would scan our internal databases and generate a .csv file (I think that was the format anyway) to import into quickbooks, which the bookkeepers would then review and sign. Unless there were discrepancies (like people stealing from the drawer) it's pretty much automatic. The work was in the setup. Hope some of that helps.

[VolT]

Hello Nigel,

 

I am going through a similar decision making process for whether I want to start my own company or work for another. 

 

I would be interested in knowing what your motivation is to consider starting your own =). 

[NigelW]

@DFPercush, @VolT

 

I would like to get involved precisely because there is bureaucracy. I know little of bitcoin itself, but I’ve used it at a local coffee shop and used it online but I have not done any major transactions. Hell, I don’t even know what it means to be an entrepreneur; I work a 9-5 job culture.

 

I think making bitcoins even easier to get into your hands would be a goal for the reason above.

 

What that looks like? Well I have no idea, exactly. The goal is to get bitcoin into people’s hands, not necessarily to make money. I don’t know that most people would find it comfortable to research a new type of currency so leading by example might be the best approach.

 

It could even be a cause. Why not give away bitcoin just to get it into people’s hands?

 

Let me know what you think.

[NigelW]

It may sound lame, but if it is true that bitcoin is as revolutionary as it has been claimed to be then why would I not invest time and money into promoting bitcoin in that way. I’m a single bachelor with no kids, so I think I can afford to invest in something I believe in. I know bitcoin is easy to use and even easier to control. (Phone app and no bank account) I think I may start a relationship with a broker, buy and give bitcoins away. Enough for a coffee? It gets the app into their hands and incentivizes them to try it out. I know that I said that I wanted to start a business and I am not sure how I got to giving stuff away, haha. It doesn’t make any sense from a money making standpoint, but I would love to promote bitcoin in my own way. I don’t know if there is any possibility to make money from increasing bitcoin volume here in town.

 

I think it would be marketing, but I mean all I would be doing is talking with people and adding value by exposing alternatives to people. Personally, bitcoin blows my mind.

[VolT]

I dont think that the motivation is lame.

But this is a thought process that you have to go through. I can give you a few hints what that might look like,

 

So your motivation is the same as the success of bitcoin, some initial thoughts can be:

 

How do I increase uptake, in a secure fashion?

 

---- How do I motivate a 20 year old to use bitcoins safely? 

---- How do I motivate a 40 year old to use bitcoins safely?

---- what is the best method of communicating the idea?

---- can i use birthdays as opportunities? 

-------- I can prepare a package that walks people through in a easy to read, and motivating fashion, with a gift of 100$ of bitcoin. (example)

 

How do I increase daily bitcoin usage?

 

When you have gone through these type of questions then you really do have direct value to add and sell, I am sure other people would like a few click solution to increase bitcoin uptake, securely(hint hint). 

 

Let me know what you think

 

-- EDIT -- 

 

Once you have a clear thought on what this might look like, you should also check to see what is available and how they compare with your vision

[NigelW]

The goal is to expose people to bitcoin, it will sell itself. I’m trying to focus on what I can control and I think if the goal is to promote bitcoin in a way that gets people to a coffee shop, restaurant or shop online, then I should practice what I preach more so.

 

If I don’t even spend $20 in bitcoins a day, how can I expect others to?

 

I think educating myself in depth on what bitcoin is capable of will be important. Does anyone have an idea of how to approach it?

 

Can you tell me more about what you mean when you say click solution?

 

In terms of a vision, I want to be able to get into a conversation with anyone in my city and they know what bitcoin is and how to use it. I also want to hear about how they bought a gift or went for coffee with friends paying in bitcoin. I want them to know why they use it and why others would benefit from using it in the long run.

 

Not a hyper intellectualized description, but a convicted reason.

[VolT]

When I said a "few click solution" I was imagining something along the lines of, 

 

*A user wishes to buy a gift of a bitcoin starter package for a friend. (The whole purpose of this package is to motivate the receiver and get them to use bitcoins, the sender can have similar motivations to you)

*They log on to a web site and enter some information that will allow you to configure a packet to be delivered to this user.

---- Male/Female(I dont know how this can effect motivating the user currently)

---- Age (I dont know how this can effect motivating a user)

---- Possible interests (so that the package can suggests possible areas where they can use the bitcoins)

---- Location (Local interests)

 

* A packet is prepared

---- That shows users with clear readability

-------- How to set up

-------- How to use basics

-------- How to secure basics

-------- What they can do with these bit coins

-------- How much of a bitcoin has been gifted to them in this package

 

The flow of the actual bitcoins is a bit more tricky where will they come from? if its from the person that wants to send the gift, you could say, well why dont I send it to the other person directly, but then you might be able to defend the motivational value and secure uptake from the information you provide.

 

All of this can be automated to the point where you only handle filling up a package and posting,

 

I have no idea if this will actually work out it was just a lunch time vision

 

--EDIT--

 

If you wish to converse with people localy regarding bitcoin, you can checkout meetup.com and there may well be a local bitcoint group,

[NigelW]

I like the idea, but I wonder if there would be a way of testing whether it could gain any traction.

 

Do you know of anyone who has been successful in doing this and are they contactable?

[VolT]

Im afraid I dont know anyone, I think I got the idea from experience day packages that exists in europe, example http://www.smartbox.com/fr/

 

A successful outcome is (since this is more so to spread bitcoin then to make a profit),

* Will the cost of all the processes be met by demand.

---- procedure Identification/research

---- procedure implementation (technical)

---- labour

---- marketing

 

The demand for people who want to spread bitcoin is really set by people who are pushing bitcoin and motivating people such as Stefand and Andreas Antonopoulos, I am sure they will not stop any time soon, I am also sure they get to a lot of people but who knows if it will be enough, and this is also only usefull in this introduction phase of bitcoin so this may not be necessery in a couple of years?

 

Maybe folks in this forums can say if they would like to spread bitcoin to friends and family through a company that will convey the information to this person clearly, motivate them and teach them how to be secure.