STARTUP STAGE: Dondoo helps travelers navigate sensitive cultural interactions

What’s your 30-second pitch to traders?

Dondoo tells you what to not do in your journey vacation spot. An online platform stopping awkward moments and selling native traditions, Dondoo helps you stand out together with your fame and win the respect of locals. 

Describe each the enterprise and expertise facets of your startup.

Dondoo is a web-based platform permitting individuals to share native taboos and unwritten guidelines from all over the world. Optimized for all units, the platform options hand-picked content material related to any vacation spot with a extremely delicate deal with locality on a number of ranges – area, nation, state, metropolis and airport.

Customers can use the platform as a search engine in addition to an interactive, user-friendly map. In contrast to many different journey platforms, Dondoo cuts by the muddle with simple, easy-to-access data. Our companions and journey companies degree up their companies with us. Holding smiles on each vacationers’ and locals’ faces supplies a lift to the complete business.

Give us your SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Alternatives, Threats) evaluation of the corporate.

Strengths: Product operating reside and being acknowledged; our personal engine with interconnected geographical knowledge; distinctive idea, unique design and id; increased added worth 

Weaknesses: Lack of sources to completely execute a advertising and marketing technique; at the moment out there solely as net/on-line service with out integration to third-parties

Alternatives: Integrations with third events to enhance their prospects’ expertise; international and native alternatives with distinctive assist commercial; product growth (built-in app, books/movies, interactive video games for youngsters); rising neighborhood and constructing social sustainability

Threats: Social final result not welcome by massive journey corporations; troublesome to maintain evolving and increase out there with out exterior assist (proceed self-funded)

What are the journey ache factors you are attempting to alleviate from each the client and the business perspective?

Individuals are touring greater than ever and more and more coping with numerous nations. This may result in conditions wherein vacationers disrespect cultures as a consequence of a lack of understanding about native customs. They fail at worldwide enterprise as a consequence of poor manners and breaking of norms. They’re embarrassed by fake pas and awkward conditions, and in the end they aren’t welcome by their native hosts.

Dondoo resolves these ache factors by advising individuals on totally different customs and norms, serving to them to impress counterparts in enterprise, whereas growing enjoyment, avoiding embarrassment and treating locals like they need to be handled.

So that you’ve received the product, now how will you get plenty of prospects?

We are going to increase viewers adoption and acquire market place by strengthening model recognition, growing content material and added worth on social networks, getting assist from ambassadors with acknowledged attain, and sharing instructional movies, infographics and different materials. Relying on funds, we are going to run focused promotions and campaigns to extend word-of-mouth suggestions and make the most of gamification in enriching content material. Finally, nice search engine marketing construction with priceless content material is the important thing, and we’ve that.

Inform us what course of you’ve gone by to ascertain a real want to your firm and the scale of the addressable market.

Now we have all skilled awkward conditions on our journeys the place we’ve unintentionally disrespected different cultures. We consider that no traveler desires to disrespect others or lose out on multinational enterprise contracts as a consequence of a ignorance of native customs. Journey guides and blogs don’t cowl important wants of vacationers; they typically lack data on cultural norms. 

How and when will you generate income?

We’ll generate income from integrations with third events (airways, bookings, companies) that present our content material as a complement to journey paperwork despatched to their prospects (commissions). As soon as we get higher traction, we will pursue distinctive native commercials and promotions, premium books and printed materials and branded merchandise.

What are the backgrounds and former achievements of the founding crew?

Till now, we’ve funded every little thing from our personal pockets and financial savings. Regardless of having full-time IT jobs, minimal sources and restricted time, having a transparent imaginative and prescient has enabled us to create a worldwide product that’s repeatedly gaining traction.

How have you ever addressed variety and inclusion inside your small business?

That’s the essence of our enterprise. In an age when human interplay is fading in significance, Dondoo goals to revive in-person encounters. We assist individuals to work together with one another with out worry of unintentionally committing cultural fake pas. We aren’t solely encouraging the range and values of all of the totally different nations, however we additionally nourish them for future generations. We name it social and cultural sustainability.

What’s been probably the most troublesome a part of founding the enterprise to date?

Other than self-funding every little thing and dealing throughout our spare time, the troublesome half began after launching the product. To achieve the sphere of journey market, making your service stand out and getting found require unicorn-like efforts and sources.

Typically, journey startups face a reasonably powerful time making an affect – so why are you going to be one in all fortunate ones?

The affect and added worth we offer is priceless and never materialistic. We set off constructive feelings, reward human values and foster respect. Vacationers search minimal, sensible details about their vacation spot to expertise genuine wandering. That is the place Dondoo unites this evolving mentality with a easy but genius idea: what NOT to do in your vacation spot.

A 12 months from now, what state do you assume your startup will probably be in?

We will probably be an alternate and acknowledged supply of cultural data, equipping vacationers with cultural information so they’re prepared to point out respect and pay homage to all the various nations all over the world. We will probably be built-in in journey companies to extend their prospects’ expertise.

What’s your end-game? (Going public, acquisition, rising and staying personal, and so forth)

Something can occur. Whereas rising and staying personal could be fulfilling, an acquisition that permits Dondoo to increase would even be possibility.