1RomanceEB Chapter 11 was beyond the scope of the curriculum.
Chapter 11 was beyond the scope of the curriculum.
Zhu Xiaohu admitted that the "Jiaotong University Matchmaker" model has an advantage in user experience.
Offline scenarios can effectively solve trust and matching problems, and may bring higher user satisfaction and matching success rates than purely online platforms like Baihe.com.
But from an investor's perspective, he sees more limitations and ceilings:
The model is too cumbersome. Relying on offline event organization means slow expansion, high management costs, strong regionality, and difficulty in rapid scaling.
It's more like a small, niche offline event management company than an internet platform with network effects.
Lacking a strong competitive advantage, the growth ceiling is clearly visible, and the potential for return on investment is limited.
"In the eyes of investors, if it can't achieve large-scale, winner-takes-all, it's not worth making a big bet." Zhu Xiaohu, who had originally held high hopes, sighed inwardly.
But he quickly realized that Geng Zhi was just a college student, and it was already commendable that he could point out the problems so sharply. Asking him to come up with disruptive solutions would be too demanding.
How could he possibly solve such a major problem that even the three giants of the dating and marriage industry couldn't handle?
However, he still keenly noticed the project's highlights:
It cleverly blurred the boundaries between "serious dating" and "casual socializing," instantly broadening its user base; the concept of "interest-based social networking" hit the preferences of the younger generation.
However, these highlights require a stronger business model to support their value, which is probably far beyond what this college student could create.
Unlike Zhu Xiaohu's professional critique, the students in the audience were very interested in Geng Zhi's straightforward introduction and began to discuss it in hushed tones.
"I think it's quite interesting. Although I'm not in a hurry to find a partner right now, it's good to participate in offline activities like this and meet more friends of the opposite sex!" said a boy behind Niu Baoguo, with a hint of anticipation on his face.
"I love cycling and playing billiards, and this platform can help me find more cycling and billiards buddies," a fashionably dressed girl in the sixth row excitedly whispered to her companion.
While the audience was whispering amongst themselves, Geng Zhi turned to the fourth page—the product showcase page.
This page not only showcases the specific process of the offline event, but also presents two product prototype images: the application interface for PC and mobile devices, covering basic functions such as identity authentication, daily recommendations, event registration, and personality assessment.
Due to time constraints, Geng Zhi summarized the past in just over thirty seconds, but when he showed the prototype of the mobile app, a glimmer of light flashed in the eyes of Zhu Xiaohu, Qi Chuqin, and others.
Zhu Xiaohu, in particular, instantly realized that he had misunderstood Geng Zhi before—this kid never intended to make a purely offline product!
Immediately afterwards, Geng Zhi quickly turned to the fifth page and entered the market analysis section.
Title: A Vast Blue Ocean from Campuses to Urban White-Collar Workers.
This page directly cites data from 2008, including data on the marriageable population, internet penetration rate, and urban residents' income growth, estimating the market size to be in the tens of billions.
The next page is page six, which introduces the business model.
Title: A Light-Asset, Fast-Circulation, Scalable Profit Flywheel.
"Initially, our 'Jiaotong University Matchmaker' mainly relies on event registration fees for profit. In the future, we will expand to include various profit models such as C-end VIP services, B-end enterprise services, and platform value-added services."
"Once we have established a large user base and brand trust, we will shift to a lighter, more profitable online paid innovation model, with matching efficiency far exceeding that of traditional dating giants."
However, Geng Zhi did not elaborate on the business model part, because most of it was made up by him.
After all, it's impossible for him to come up with a mature business model in just three hours; he's just making empty promises.
The reason he dared to make up such a story was because the business model involved the company's trade secrets. In these kinds of roadshows, it is usually enough to just touch on it briefly, so it is not a big problem to talk about it simply.
Geng Zhi was earnestly making things up, but to judges Zhu Xiaohu and Gou Youqian, it automatically conjured up a clear strategic path for the "Jiaotong University matchmaker":
First, build a reputation and accumulate seed users through high-quality offline activities, and then launch a counterattack from offline to online, taking the route of surrounding the cities from the countryside and integrating online and offline.
Combined with the two professional-looking product prototype images mentioned earlier, this strategic approach appears even more logically consistent.
On pages seven and eight, Geng Zhi briefly introduced the project's competitive advantages and operational plans for the next six months.
Page nine is an introduction to the founding team.
"We plan to set up a company to officially operate the 'Jiaotong University Matchmaker' project. Founder Ma Chunmei will serve as CEO, as she is particularly good at marketing; Hao Pengxiang will serve as COO, and he..." Geng Zhi introduced the virtual advantages of the main partners one by one, "I will serve as CTO, responsible for technology products and R&D."
The "subscribed capital system" has not yet been implemented, and companies must have paid-in capital to register. Geng Zhi didn't have any money on hand, so he needed to have a "win-win" situation with Ma Chunmei, using her funds to register a company and then using the company's shell to do big things.
However, he had not discussed the idea of starting a company with Ma Chunmei beforehand.
When Ma Chunmei, who was sitting in the audience, heard that a company was to be established, she was taken aback at first, and then a satisfied smile appeared on her face.
Even though she was a layman, she could see that Geng Zhi's performance far surpassed the previous eight groups, making this roadshow a perfect success.
She's respectfully addressed as the founder and CEO, and her marketing skills are highlighted, maximizing her emotional value. What's a little money to register a company?
Not to mention that it will give me an extra point in the interview, if this company really succeeds, wouldn't I be winning without lifting a finger?
Thinking of this, Ma Chunmei's heart beat faster.
However, Niu Baoguo and Huang Lijuan felt a fleeting sense of loss.
They weren't envious of the "COO" title; they were simply indignant: how could Hao Pengxiang, who had never even shown his face, be appointed COO?
Even though they didn't help at all, they were still members of the atmosphere-building team, which is better than that nominal member, right? What makes Hao Pengxiang so special?!
With only 40 seconds left in the countdown, Geng Zhi quickly switched to page nine—the financing plan.
Funding target: 100 million (for the sale of 15% equity)
Use of funds: 50% for market expansion, 30% for product research and development, and 20% for team building and operations.
Milestone: Within 6 months, the number of paying users reached...
When Geng Zhi clearly and directly stated his financing plan, both the student audience and the judges showed varying degrees of surprise.
The audience was surprised because it was the first time they had heard such a "high-end" financing plan in a campus competition, and they felt both unfamiliar and curious about the concepts of "equity" and "financing".
The judges were surprised because this was just an on-campus entrepreneurship competition, not a pure business financing roadshow.
Award-winning projects typically receive startup funding that requires no repayment or equity transfer. Geng Zhi's detailed financing plan seems a bit "too professional" and "beyond the scope".
Geng Zhi was unaware of this subtle anomaly.
Due to his past professional habits, he regarded the financing plan as an essential part of the business plan, and he explained it with great ease.