🕹 Startup Tycoon Day 2: The Votes Are In! Let's Pick a Solution.

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📅 Startup Tycoon Day 2: Identifying Possible Solutions

If you missed yesterday’s post you can see it here: Startup Tycoon Game, Day 1

Summary: We are playing a game where we guide our character, Pete, through the stages of launching a startup. The group (all of us together) will make decisions for Pete that impact his startup journey. Day 1 introduced us to Pete and we voted on which problem in the sneaker market he should take on.

❎ The votes are in!

Which problem in the sneaker market should Pete pursue?

😲 Surprisingly, our newsletter community wanted to see Pete tackle the problem of bots buying up all the limited release sneakers. I wasn’t expecting that… but this is a cool problem to try to solve!!

Possible Solutions for This Problem

💡 Pete has been brainstorming possible solutions for this problem. He likes all three of them and needs your help to decide which one to dive into. He’s considered his knowledge of the sneaker market and the frustrations of buyers and he’s happy with these three options:

✅ Solution 1: Delayed Payment Verification (Anti-Bot Checkout System)

Concept:
This solution focuses on adding an extra step during the checkout process to filter out bots without frustrating genuine buyers. After a user adds a limited-edition sneaker to their cart, there’s a delayed payment verification process. The system sends a unique verification link to the buyer’s registered email or phone number, which they must confirm within a certain timeframe (e.g., 5 minutes). Bots often can’t handle this extra step, as they rely on instant automated checkout, giving real buyers the chance to secure their purchase.

Pete says:
He likes this idea but he is worried that bots will become smarter and smarter and be able to handle extra steps once AI is integrated. This could be a good place to start, we could build a software and sell it to all retailers and brands… but the big worry is bots adapting.

✅ Solution 2: Community-Powered Sneaker Drops (Social Sneaker Verification)

Concept: Pete could build a social platform specifically for sneakerheads. To buy exclusive sneakers, users must first engage with the sneaker community and build a profile. This platform rewards genuine interaction and contributions to the community (like participating in discussions, attending events, or sharing sneaker collections). Sneaker drops could be limited to active members only, verified through their community contributions and reputation points. Bots and low effort accounts are filtered out.

Pete says:
This sounds like a lot of fun to build. Bots would certainly create accounts and try to game the system - as would sneaker flippers. But perhaps we can implement measures to reduce bot activity and spam. This platform ensures only verified people are entered into drops. Pete is curious how he might convince retailers and brands to sign up.

✅ Solution 3: Lottery-Based Sneaker Drops

Concept: Instead of using a first-come, first-served system that bots exploit, Pete could work with retailers to implement a lottery system for sneaker drops. Real buyers enter the lottery, and winners are randomly selected to purchase the sneakers. The lottery system can include anti-bot measures, such as CAPTCHA or email verification. Each participant could be given one or more entries based on their engagement with the retailer or previous purchases.

Pete says:
This seems like a nice solution, but it appears some brands have gone to this lottery system already. I don’t think buyers like it, but it’s much fairer than bots winning everything. Perhaps there are ways to improve the existing lottery system, but Pete would have to dive deep to see if there is room for improvement.

☑ Let’s Vote on a Path for Pete and Our Startup

Your vote will influence the direction of our startup: 👇👇

😎 Tomorrow, we’ll display the results, and we’ll help Pete move forward.

📖 Reader’s Ventures!

🤩 Ron Vaughn

URL: https://okcjazz.life 

Summary: A website that hosts a calendar of Live local Jazz events—weekly newsletter with more than 1600 subscribers.

Needs: Different ways to monetize the site, already selling merch, and promoting events.

🤩 Dr. Ivan Ezquerra-Romano

URL: https://www.substancy.com/

Summary: We are developing a tool for professionals who interact with people who take drugs (e.g. social workers, police, nurses, etc.). This tool will allow them to access trustworthy information about drugs with ease as well as train how to have difficult conversations about drugs.

Needs: Right now, we need help setting up processes to develop the software, expand our database and reach new customers.

Aron’s Note: Dr. Romano is doing a great job and already has clients!

🤩 Alper Ergune — HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT!

URL: https://www.withskyfallen.com/

Summary: We (2 high-school seniors) created a software where a remote team can create, view, and update tasks in real time. The app uses AI to understand the urgency of tasks and prioritize them for users.

Needs: We need feedback on what to focus on to differentiate from the competition. We also have an MVP ready that people can test and provide feedback on.

Aron’s Note: Reach out if you can help them. How awesome is it that high school seniors are this entrepreneurial!

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Good luck out there.  
Reply to this message and tell me what you’re working on!

📩 Forward this to your friends that like startups so they can play the startup game with us!

👉 Let’s connect on LinkedIn here: Aron Meystedt’s LinkedIn

Aron