Our technology is not only code, but also an actual wearable device! For your convenience, a copy of our technical concept report is located with the screenshots. Our inspiration comes from trying to solve a problem we and people around us face, as well as our collective goal, which is to make a positive impact through entrepreneurship and innovation on America.
Business Plan Summary: BaggageTrack is highly appealing to the average consumer. Millions of bags are lost every year by airlines everywhere. By having a simple, reasonable priced tracking device, this product would save problems for any air traveler. Any flyer does not want to have the hassles of lost baggage, considering many already have paid a hefty baggage fee for their personal possessions. A large majority of our consumer market travels relatively frequently by air and this product would be beneficial in increasing their efficiency and comfort. Additionally, there is not much legitimate competition similar products all seem to have bad reputations and many reviews claim that they do not work in airport. In comparison to other tracking systems, BaggageTrack will be the most relevant using the best technology, as well as cheaper for the average consumer. BaggageTrack is the only device in its field that allows customers to see where their luggage is, while complying with FAA regulations. Utilizing the ubiquity of smartphones, BaggageTrack will be a userfriendly device that customers can access and customize to their needs through a smartphone application. The product can surely appeal to the almost 200 million frequent flyers, just in the United States. This is something that is easy to use, as well as highly marketable to millions of potential customer. We also will test materials until we can give BaggageTrack a battery life of a week, ample time to locate luggage with our product. Finally, BaggageTrack will be able to generate a continuous source of revenue. Customers will continually have to pay a small operating fee every month or year to cover the costs of connecting the device to the network and airport systems. Additionally, the price is extremely reasonable for the technology and quality provided; it outranks the competitors in all possible categories. With a long lifecycle for the device and continuous incoming revenue, BaggageTrack is the best tracking device in its field.
Market: The proposed product will become a crucial utility for any airplane traveler. For every regular traveler, itwill become a staple in what they pack. On average, an average American loses $20-$40 a year in bags and other items while traveling. In just 3 years, BaggageTrack would pay for itself. Furthermore, many travelers can’t afford travelers insurance which costs an average of $65 for every $1000 spent on the trip. The cost of insurance for just one trip could pay for up to two trackers which can be used for hundreds of trips. Every traveler is interested in saving their personal effects and will be interested in having BaggageTrack save them from the troubles caused by lost baggage, a problem that is far too common among America’s airports. We plan on marketing our product through magazines like SkyMall and selling them online. Because we need our product to work within the airport system, we made sure that our product and materials fit specifications by the T.S.A.for what can be on or inside a bag. Last but not least, there is an incentive for airlines to carry our product. An airline is responsible for up to $3,300 per bag lost in the United States. This ends up costing companies millions in the long run. Large airlines could buy our products and include them in their rewards programs for frequent fliers.
Cost: There will be a minimal cost needed to produce the actual item with quality materials. The materials necessary are plastic for the frame of the product, a processing chip, a lithiumion polymer battery, and copper wire and a plastic sheath for the antenna. We will be using materials of high caliber and with the most efficiency. According to our calculations it will take around $60 to produce each unit. We estimated these prices be researching how much material cost from different sources online as well as calling manufacturers and seeing their prices for certain materials. Then, we assumed a 2 times markup and calculated a cost per item accordingly. However, as the popularity of this product increases, so will the demand. In the future, we will be able to buy many of these items wholesale and the cost will be drop. Additionally, we will have a small labor cost of $14/hr for the workers physically creating the product. As we start to gain more returns on our investment, we will be able to mass produce BaggageTrack and will therefore be able to cover our labor cost easily. Some of the revenue we earned will go toward buying onetime machinery to produce our costs that we only have to sustain with small continual maintenance fees. We will be selling each item at $85 per device, which is minimal cost to pay to protect the hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars of personal effects stored in luggage. This small fee promises to save its users from the tiring hassle of having to deal with locating lost luggage. Additionally, users will have to pay a continual fee to cover operating charges, and this will continually bring in revenue.
Funding Mechanisms:
Initially, we plan to utilize crowdfunding to start off our campaign through the online portal of Kickstarter. As a team, we will share our story and the details behind BaggageTrack to raise public interest in a product that could prevent any drastic hindrances to their traveling experience. Our design process and progress will be available on our Kickstarter page so everyone can see our work towards a finished product. Once we achieve our goal set for funding, we will then use the money we earned to go back and produce BaggageTracks in larger amounts. After awareness and demand for BaggageTrack increases even more, we will then be able to purchase the necessary materials wholesale and at a cheaper cost per unit. This way, we will earn more revenue that can be used to experiment and improve our technology. At this point, we will be able to research and test on how to further elongate battery life and signal efficiency.The cost it will take to produce a single BaggageTrack will decrease significantly.
Competitive Reference:
Currently, there are a couple of tracking devices available for travelers. Our main competitor is a company called GlobaTrac which has a product that tries to attack the same problem. However, the tracking system they use includes inefficient and inaccurate technology; they still rely on GPS or local radio signals. Often times, these technologies cannot accurately determine the precise location in a crowded airports specially ones with multiple floors and those made with concrete. The devices will work only when the operator is a within a certain radius of their luggage. GlobaTrac’s main tracker has an extremely short battery span because it doesn’t use the same textbased cellular system BaggaeTrack offers. Additionally, many of these trackers are extremely expensive for the poor quality that they offer to the customers. GlobaTrac’s tracker cost almost $120- $140 with all service costs. This is almost double what the selling price for Baggage track will be. However, BaggageTrack utilizes the existing cell phone network to pinpoint the exact location, offering a quality alternative to the existing products. The operator will be able to locate their baggage across airports and keep track of where their own possessions are. Many of these products have been available on the market for a while and have not generated any serious public awareness. This indicates that our competitors lack proper marketing. With the enough publicity, we can generate public interest by showing consumers a way to make their airport trips easier and more efficient. BaggageTrack differs from our competitors as it is superior in technology and price.
Built With
- 3d-printing
- google-maps
- hardware
- ios
- mac
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