E-Business Project - Online Music Store - Essay Example

E-BUSINESS PROJECT PROPOSAL Nature of Business Online Music Store (Products & Services) Site's Domain musicteachersonline.net Products / Services Offer online instrumental lessons by using a high-quality video web cam. The student would require a media player installed on their computer. (Instruments include guitar, drums, flute, cello, violin, viola, piano, saxophone, etc.) Sell and/or trade musical instruments online. Provide photos and prices for various used or new instruments. Provide music sheets and books students can purchase online. Have an online bulletin board where people (both performing groups and music enthusiasts) can post their musical events (who they are, what they play, where they perform, how they can be contacted etc.) so that customers constantly get notified of these events. A distinctive Search Engine that gives out musical groups in alphabetical order and the links to their websites to give enthusiasts ease with downloading their favorite musical hits. Sell tickets to various musical events. Target Market / Who will Benefit - All musicians, music aficionados, music professionals (composers, musical scorers, orchestra conductors, singers, animators), students, researchers, producers, and concert directors will benefit from the various postings, lessons, events and products. Viability - To date, no site offers online musical instrument lessons. This means that this will be a "one-of-a-kind" musical site. It will address many problems besetting people who want to take lessons on playing musical instruments but either they don't have the time to physically go to places where these lessons are held or they don't have in their possession the necessary instruments. Likewise, this online experience can answer the needs of physically handicapped people who are musically-inclined and who would like to learn to play an instrument but could not due to commuting problems posed by the individual's physical disability. Since the site serves as a ticketing office, this will address the needs of people who want to go to concerts and need to buy their tickets ahead of time. Further, this site would offer people a networking outlet to either post the dates of their performances and information about their band, or contact a favorite singing group. E-Business Model - The business model for Music Teachers Online is produced to offer a premium site with products and services with minimum overhead. This model offers a simplified site that eliminates avoidable costs and focuses on the basics of an e-business. Financial Aspects - This kind of business doesn't require much capital. Purchasing the domain name and finding a server to host the site costs less than $100. Designing the website could cost quite a bit, depending on the experience of the business owner. If the owner were able to design the site it would decrease costs significantly, because the design will be the main cost incurred. In this case, the business owner will need the assistance of a professional web designer. A professional designer can implement the necessary formats for adding a shopping cart, setting up bulletin boards and other complicated design issues. Depending on the experience of the designer, this could cost upwards of a $1,000. The site owner needs to have or maintain a credit card (of good standing) or any of the legitimate online pay schemes available where customers can channel their purchase payments. However, once the site is up and running, there are few maintenance fees. Revenue Model - Revenue from this site will come from various sources: online lessons as well sales of musical instruments and sheet music, plus ticket sales. Other Details - This is an efficient musical e-commerce site with exponential business expansion possibilities. It is a site that will be informative and easy to use for both the customers and musical groups. It is also an aesthetically pleasing site that considers the fact that many of its prospective customers/viewers are on dial-up and quick load time, so that is a priority. Usability is an important feature of the site, as well. Since the business owner is aware that many users may have little experience with technology, the site was envisioned to be one that is easily navigable. The site name was verified available on whois.net, a domain research service. As the domain name musicteachersonline.com is taken, the site would be musicteachersonline.net. Musicteachersonline.com is not a competing, or similar company to the one proposed. It is a software design company for musical educators. Success Potential - It has been said that treading on a path where nobody yet has walked on will always make the first one who made that ambitious stride "the original," "the one who started things," "the pioneer." Music Teachers Online will surely create a niche in people's mind with the pioneering service it offers to everyone, whether a music buff or not. Business Plan for Music Teachers Online OWNERS Music Teachers Online www.musicteachersonline.net Street Address Address 2 City, ST ZIP Code Telephone Fax E-Mail Executive Summary Music Teachers Online will offer premium online services and products for the music enthusiast. The company's main objective is to offer music lessons via web cam and sell sheet music, instruments and tickets online. The online music store is being developed to provide a valuable service that can be learned from home. Students no longer need to travel to a music store to take lessons. In addition, products can be purchased from the comfort of home. The variety of event listings and profiles of bands gives the consumer a free resource that keep them coming back. The interactive bulletin board will offer a way to keep in contact and know what is going on in the music industry. This will be the only online music store of its kind. No other sites combine the enrichment of musical lessons with product sales and event listings. Company Overview This is an efficient musical e-commerce site with exponential business expansion possibilities. It is a site that will be informative and easy to use for both the customers and musical groups. It is also an aesthetically pleasing site that considers the fact that many of its prospective customers/viewers are on dial-up and quick load time, so that is a priority. Usability is an important feature of the site, as well. Since the business owner is aware that many users may have little experience with technology, the site was envisioned to be one that is easily navigable. Objectives The main objective of Music Teachers Online is to provide music students the opportunity to take lessons at home, online. It is a convenience never before offered. In addition, the company plans to offer various products and services to keep the music enthusiast educated and up-to-date on upcoming events. Revenue Model - Revenue from this site will come from various sources: online lessons as well sales of musical instruments and sheet music, plus ticket sales. E-Business Model - The business model for Music Teachers Online is produced to offer a premium site with products and services with minimum overhead. This model offers a simplified site that eliminates avoidable costs and focuses on the basics of an e-business. Domain Name - the domain name www.musicteachersonline.net was chosen because it explains the main objective of the business: to provide online music lessons. The alternative, www.musicteachersonlin.com was already taken by a non-competing company. Musicteachersonline.com is not a similar company to the one proposed. It is a software design company for musical educators. Marketing Marketing would consist of various methods including: press releases, link trading, advertising both online and in print music publications, and e-newsletters to keep students informed. In addition, Music Teachers Online will establish ongoing relationships with retail music stores to network services/products. For example, music store A will ship the musical instruments in exchange for referring students. Other marketing options include traditional measures such as getting media exposure. As this is a never-before tried business model, the media should have interest. Also, feature articles will be written and placed on various websites. Web Hosting Online domain hosting services range in price from $4.95 to $6.95 per month (one year payable in advance). The three top choices for this venture include: 1. Inmotion Hosting - This company provides ongoing technical support as well as site hosting. A small business can launch a site for $6.95 a month. They also offer custom solutions for future growth. 2. Host Monster - They offer an unlimited number of email accounts with their service. The $4.95 a month price includes 300 gigabytes of space and the domain name is retained forever. 3. AN Hosting - This domain server provides free domain, file and name transfer for companies already in existence. Music Teachers Online will use Host Monster because they have a competitive price, free domain name and unlimited email addresses. Also, the amount of space they offer is impressive for the price. Products/Services Online music lessons by using a high-quality video web cam. The student would require a media player installed on their computer. (Instruments include guitar, drums, flute, cello, violin, viola, piano, saxophone, etc.) Sell and/or trade musical instruments online. Provide photos and prices for various used or new instruments. Provide music sheets and books students can purchase online. Have an online bulletin board where people (both performing groups and music enthusiasts) can post their musical events (who they are, what they play, where they perform, how they can be contacted etc.) so that customers constantly get notified of these events. A distinctive Search Engine that gives out musical groups in alphabetical order and the links to their websites to give enthusiasts ease with downloading their favorite musical hits. Sell tickets to various musical events. Finances This type of business doesn't require much capital. Purchasing the domain name and finding a server to host the site costs less than $100. Designing the website could cost quite a bit, depending on the experience of the business owner. If the owner were able to design the site it would decrease costs significantly, because the design will be the main cost incurred. In this case, the business owner will need the assistance of a professional web designer. A professional designer can implement the necessary formats for adding a shopping cart, setting up bulletin boards and other complicated design issues. Depending on the experience of the designer, this could cost upwards of a $1,000. The site owner needs to have or maintain a credit card (of good standing) or any of the legitimate online pay schemes available where customers can channel their purchase payments. However, once the site is up and running, there are few maintenance fees. Read More