What EventVue Learned the Hard Way About Making Assumptions 

Eventvue was a product that was intended to improve the experience of people who attend conferences. It started as a private social network that helped conference attendees network more effectively. It pivoted twice, once to rollout a widget that would bring more people to specific conferences, and then to an app that promised to be the best way for conference attendees to disscuss what was taking place in real time. Eventvue launched with promise but failed in early 2010. What went wrong? Several things, all of which have to do with incorrect assumptions. The first assumption was that conference organizers would see Eventvue as an invaluable asset. They didn’t. While Eventvue saw itself as essential, conference organizers saw it more as “a vitamin rather than a pain pill.” It was something that event organizers said they liked, but none of them saw it as essential. It didn’t make their lives easier, make them more money, reduce their costs, or boost the profile of an event. It was simply nice to have. Although Eventvue’s platform made it easier for conference attendees to network with one another, it wasn’t clear what was in it for the organizers, who were the ones being asked to pay for it. What the founders of Eventvue found was that conference organizers care first and foremost about one thing—selling tickets. Anthing that doesn’t sell tickets is a secondary consideration. After disappointing initial results, Eventvue pivoted to offer a widget that would help bring more people to conferences. This, the company founders assumed, would get the attention of conference organizers. The widget would let people know who was registered for an event. The idea was that if a prospective attendee saw that a friend or someone they admired was registered for a conference, they would be more likely to register for the event conference as well. Incredibly, the widget had the opposite effect. A rule of thumb for conferences is that the majority of sales come in the last two weeks before the conference is scheduled to take place. As a result, when people looked at the registration list—particularly if they looked at it more than two weeks out from the event—and saw that none of their friends or people that they admired were registered, they were less likely to register themselves. Therefore, rather than making conference organizers money, the Eventvue widget actually cost them money. Eventvue tried out several other ideas, but eventually ran out of ideas, persistence, and money. There are two key takeaways from the Eventvue story for business plan writers. first, a business should test its assumptions prior to launching. This lesson illustrates the need to complete a comprehesive feasibility analysis prior to writing a business plan and moving forward with a business idea. Second, it’s essential that a business understand its customers’ needs. Eventvue never found a way to help conference organizers sell more tickets. It found a way to help conference attendees better network with others, but conference attendees were not Eventvue’s customers. 

Questions for Critical Thinking 

3. Do some Internet research to see if there are companies that are providing social networks for conference attendees. If so, what are they doing differently than what Eventvue tried to do? Try to discern why they have been able to stay in business while Eventvue failed. 

4. The You Be the vC 3.1 feature focuses on August Smart Locks, a company that will enable users to control the locks on their homes or apartments via a smartphone. What are some of the main assumptions that August’s business plan is based on?