Case Studies

RemixGalaxy

The Idea

We were the first to hear the idea behind RemixGalaxy. The client, who had previously built and sold his own company, was an avid computer remixer. Over the course of 2 weeks, we bounced around ideas about social networking, online remixing, mobile music apps, music database API’s, corporate partnerships, and brand concepts.

1. Are we focusing our application on the amateur remixer or the professional DJ?
2. What other companies are developing online remixing tools, and how do they monetize their applications?
3. Apple computers come with GarageBand, why isn’t computer remixing more mainstream?

Rhythmic Development

midVentures rapidly developed RemixGalaxy from a few design mockups to a permanent architecture and framework. Each week, our meetings lead to new ideas about the ecommerce, social networking, and flash remixer functionality.

1. Should we develop our own online remixing tool, or should we try to integrate an open-source solution?
2. How can we scale our servers to handle thousands of gigabytes of remixable WAV files?
3. How can new technologies such as Flash Media Server and Adobe Alchemy be integrated in later phases?

Launch

midVentures and the RemixGalaxy team are still actively planning out some rather innovative launch strategies. We want to combine guerrilla social marketing and blogging with nightlife promotion and web venture partnerships.

1. Where do DJ fans go to hear new remixes- clubs, venues, websites, itunes, or apartment parties?
2. Which markets are most receptive of computer remixing culture- Chicago, NYC, California, or Europe?

Mouthpiece Sports

The Idea

Mouthpiece Sports had a great idea: Instead of letting ESPN and the newscasters deliver the news, why not get the sports news right from athletes themselves? Mouthpiece Sports developed a system that allowed athletes to tweet their messages directly to fans, and allowed fans to keep up with their favorite teams and athletes.

Shooting for the Goal

The Mouthpiece Sports system was built on an underdeveloped user interface that relied too heavily on technical know-how and web familiarity. We worked with Mouthpiece Sports to re-work their UI and guide their mobile and web development. In the process, we came up with some brand new ideas of how Mouthpiece Sports could reach more users and communicate directly to the fans in an efficient way.

Common Grants

The Idea

Common Grants’ common application technology enables nonprofits to submit one application for consideration to multiple foundations. Not only does this process save nonprofits a significant amount of time and money it also pairs nonprofits and foundations together more effectively than has previously been possible. Using Common Grants’ patented outcome-based technology we can ensure that nonprofits are only applying to foundations who are likely to fund them and can ensure that foundations only receive applications that match the outcomes they are looking to fund.

Applying a Solution

The Common Grants system was built and the staff was extremely dissatisfied with the product that previous developers had built.  midVentures was able to address the issues that the old system couldn’t and built a system that exceeded Common Grants’ staff expectations.

1. How could we leverage web 2.0 technology to enhance the system?
2. Why was the matching process on version 1 so slow? How can we reduce a 30-second matching process down to 2 seconds?
3. How could we improve the users experiences so potential customers with who weren’t comfortable with technology could use the system with ease?

T1Track

The Idea

midVentures met up with a developer who had already programmed a vendor work order management application. Because of our experiences in corporate property management, we imagined launching T1Track as a crowd-sourced vendor selection tool.

1. How to property managers choose their service vendor lists?
2. How to property managers communicate with service vendors during the work order process?

Staying on Track

Our midVentures partners entered T1Track into the University of Chicago Booth School New Venture Challenge. Once we qualified for the second round, we presented to 2 panels of venture capital and angel investor firms. The process gave us connections to some of Chicago’s largest real estate firms.

1. What competitors and analog businesses have business models closest to T1Track? What is their valuation?
2. To what degree does T1Track have to integrate into other property management software applications?

G2.fm

Performance Enhancement for Artists

G2.fm was the winner of the first annual midVentures25 event, winning over $16,000 in cash and prizes, including consulting services from midVentures.  We took their site and transformed it into a sleek, Web 2.0 portal for artists and venues to connect.

For G2.fm, we focused on the short-term strategy of improving UI and design, and the long-term content strategy of streamlining the information architecture to make the site more efficient.  We also integrated G2.fm with social media to improve exposure and deal flow.

Landmark Finder

Finding the way from Idea to Company

Landmark Finder is a great example of taking an idea all the way from idea to profitability. For midVentures’ first iPhone endeavor, we built the development team and cleared Apple’s application processes to launch an app that educates users on historic landmarks surrounding them. Landmark Finder has inspired an array of new map-based iPhone projects.

1. How can the Landmark Finder application talk to the website, and help showcase our historic landmark database?
2. Should we develop Landmark Finder for the Blackberry, Palm, or Android?
3. What other companies would like their own custom-branded Landmark Finder?