Startup Advis Wallet: wallet of successful recommendations
During the 5 months of staying in the Happy Farm business incubator, the startup Advisе Wallet went offline, expanded the number of its users, attracted partners in Silicon Valley and raised the company's value to $ 2.5 million
Stas Matvienko, a student at the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv Institute of International Relations, founder and CEO of startup Advice Wallet, came up with his project in preparation for a network marketing seminar. He was visited by the idea of creating a service that would allow a person who recommends a particular product, service or establishment to receive certain bonuses. “After all, it’s so obvious: network business sales agents recommend buying goods from their companies to neighbors, acquaintances, and friends. It would be great not to sell, but to recommend and receive a reward for a successful recommendation, - Stas concluded. “The Council is the best advertising, because customers trust the advice of friends, and companies, in turn, reduce the cost of promoting their goods and services.”
Service began its work in 2012. Users registered on the site, entered a phone number and began to recommend interesting places or services to their friends and acquaintances. Those who, using the recommendations, came to the institutions participating in the program, called the recommendation number and received a discount. The adviser, in turn, received a reward - 10% of the order. The money came to the phone bill or bank card immediately after purchasing the service. Advice Wallet always receives 5% of each transaction. The average advice on the site is about 300 hryvnias, the maximum fixed amount is 15,000 UAH.
A few months after the launch, the service had more than 250 customers in various cities of Ukraine, among which the bulk were restaurants, nightclubs, cafes and car services, as well as various courses, trainings, schools and kindergartens. Already at this stage, with the help of the Advice Wallet service, goods and services worth more than $ 100,000 were sold. The company's turnover reached 80,000 UAH, and the earnings of the recommenders amounted to 56,000 UAH. The founder himself, Stas Matvienko, earned more than $ 5,000.
A global reload of the project and its entry to a new level began in the Happy Farm business incubator. At a crucial moment, before the presentation of the project in front of the international Board of the incubator, Stas Matvienko enlisted the support of a classmate - Anna Polishchuk, which later became the COO (Chief Operating Officer) project. This formed the initial Advice Wallet team. Having passed the competitive selection and got into the Happy Farm acceleration program, the project was assigned to Igor Shoifot, chairman of the Happy Farm international Board .
After a week in the incubator, after several skype consultations with mentors, the Advice Wallet project made its first pivot - the transition of the service from offline to online. This brought an expansion of client and partner base. Also, already at the initial stage, thanks to the Happy Farm business incubator, the startup found the missing participant for the team - STO Andrey Khavryuchenko. Also, as part of the acceleration program, the project idea itself was improved - recommendations began to be implemented through social networks and QR codes that can be scanned with a mobile phone for checking in institutions.
At the moment, Stas Matvienko and the team are actively engaged in attracting new customers and partners. Service Advice Wallet has released an application for iOS, a version for Android is under development. The company has another mentor - a member of the Happy Farm Board Paul Asoyanfrom Google. Active work is underway to translate the service into other languages, and the project will soon be launched in Europe. During an internship in the United States, organized by the Happy Farm business incubator, the company attracted many American partners, among which students at the University of Berkeley are particularly active in promoting the product. At the same time, the project aroused interest among international investors.
Recently, Advice Wallet entered the list of the best startups in Europe, and was invited to participate in the LOGIN.LT 2013 conference, which was held on April 18-19, 2013 in Vilnius (Lithuania). In addition, in April of this year, the project entered the top 10 student startups according to Forbes Ukraine.
The plans for the future for the Advice Wallet team are to conquer the CIS market, launch service in the USA and introduce innovative technologies into the product.
Stas Matvienko, a student at the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv Institute of International Relations, founder and CEO of startup Advice Wallet, came up with his project in preparation for a network marketing seminar. He was visited by the idea of creating a service that would allow a person who recommends a particular product, service or establishment to receive certain bonuses. “After all, it’s so obvious: network business sales agents recommend buying goods from their companies to neighbors, acquaintances, and friends. It would be great not to sell, but to recommend and receive a reward for a successful recommendation, - Stas concluded. “The Council is the best advertising, because customers trust the advice of friends, and companies, in turn, reduce the cost of promoting their goods and services.”
Service began its work in 2012. Users registered on the site, entered a phone number and began to recommend interesting places or services to their friends and acquaintances. Those who, using the recommendations, came to the institutions participating in the program, called the recommendation number and received a discount. The adviser, in turn, received a reward - 10% of the order. The money came to the phone bill or bank card immediately after purchasing the service. Advice Wallet always receives 5% of each transaction. The average advice on the site is about 300 hryvnias, the maximum fixed amount is 15,000 UAH.
A few months after the launch, the service had more than 250 customers in various cities of Ukraine, among which the bulk were restaurants, nightclubs, cafes and car services, as well as various courses, trainings, schools and kindergartens. Already at this stage, with the help of the Advice Wallet service, goods and services worth more than $ 100,000 were sold. The company's turnover reached 80,000 UAH, and the earnings of the recommenders amounted to 56,000 UAH. The founder himself, Stas Matvienko, earned more than $ 5,000.
A global reload of the project and its entry to a new level began in the Happy Farm business incubator. At a crucial moment, before the presentation of the project in front of the international Board of the incubator, Stas Matvienko enlisted the support of a classmate - Anna Polishchuk, which later became the COO (Chief Operating Officer) project. This formed the initial Advice Wallet team. Having passed the competitive selection and got into the Happy Farm acceleration program, the project was assigned to Igor Shoifot, chairman of the Happy Farm international Board .
After a week in the incubator, after several skype consultations with mentors, the Advice Wallet project made its first pivot - the transition of the service from offline to online. This brought an expansion of client and partner base. Also, already at the initial stage, thanks to the Happy Farm business incubator, the startup found the missing participant for the team - STO Andrey Khavryuchenko. Also, as part of the acceleration program, the project idea itself was improved - recommendations began to be implemented through social networks and QR codes that can be scanned with a mobile phone for checking in institutions.
At the moment, Stas Matvienko and the team are actively engaged in attracting new customers and partners. Service Advice Wallet has released an application for iOS, a version for Android is under development. The company has another mentor - a member of the Happy Farm Board Paul Asoyanfrom Google. Active work is underway to translate the service into other languages, and the project will soon be launched in Europe. During an internship in the United States, organized by the Happy Farm business incubator, the company attracted many American partners, among which students at the University of Berkeley are particularly active in promoting the product. At the same time, the project aroused interest among international investors.
Recently, Advice Wallet entered the list of the best startups in Europe, and was invited to participate in the LOGIN.LT 2013 conference, which was held on April 18-19, 2013 in Vilnius (Lithuania). In addition, in April of this year, the project entered the top 10 student startups according to Forbes Ukraine.
The plans for the future for the Advice Wallet team are to conquer the CIS market, launch service in the USA and introduce innovative technologies into the product.