Have you developed a product that solves problems and need help up scaling it?

Well this is exactly where we’re at with Infinity. And maybe this might help you too…

Background

Infinity is our affordable (subscription) managed print service for families, home business and small organisations (small business, charities & primary schools).

It provides the latest ‘fit for purpose’ printer, unlimited cartridges and guaranteed support (if anything goes wrong). In an affordable (price promise guarantee) monthly or annual subscription. And after surveying our existing customers, we found it solves the following problems:

1. You don’t have certainty of your total printing cost.
2. You need printing equipment fit for your own purpose.
3. You require a level of support specific to your own needs.
4. You are fed up of buying expensive printer cartridges.
5. You are fed up wasting time getting replacement printer cartridges.
6. Your not sure which printer cartridges you need to order.
7. You need support if something goes wrong.
8. You are fed up of having to replace your printer every couple of years.
9. There is no affordable solution providing certainty of total printing cost.

Locally (within a 15 mile radius) we’ve tested the service rigorously for solving problems, value for money, robustness, appeal and profitability. And secured 700 sign ups, split between families (30%), home business (10%) & small organisations (60%). Saving these customers 60% (on average) against their previous printing cost.

We’ve also tested selling online. And although only a small number (mainly families & home business) have signed up (50), they are all over the UK and prove that national online ordering will work for families & home business.

Expansion Strategy

To help us define the right strategy for UK expansion. We enlisted the help of Professor Simon Bolton of Edge Hill University (Associate Dean & Director of their Productivity & Innovation Centre) and his team. Completing their highly acclaimed and global recognised The Sprint Innovation Programme.

Not sure if you know? But Simon is an internationally acclaimed designer and innovation specialist. Who has worked with the world’s top brands on global thought leadership & disruptive innovation to solve their product expansion problems. Organisations such as Proctor & Gamble, BBC, BSkyB, Hyundai & Nokia. And clearly knows what he is talking about.

Currently the programme is funded through Europe and has limited spaces. If you are interested contact them today.

But this is how it is helping us with our UK expansion problems:

• Recommendation to change the name from Infinity to MY Print Service.
• Recommendation to change the website URL.
• Identified we had the wrong messages for UK expansion.
• Identified the right messages.
• Recommendation to build a new e-commerce website.
• Recommendation to change the core message.
• Identified clear UK target markets.
• Identified clear offerings & price points.
• Identified total UK opportunity.
• Concluded that certain customers can be targeted online & driven to the e-commerce website.
• But concluded other customers will need a local presence.
• Built the model.
• Broke the model.
• Re-built the model.
• Clearly detailed the financial opportunity.
• Detailed the UK strategy.
• Detailed a huge USA expansion opportunity.
• Confirmed extra investment may be required to support the expansion.

What Next?

As you can see, Simon & his team are making a real difference and given us lots of homework to get things ready for our re-branding & UK launch.

The next challenge though, may be investment. Do we have enough cash resources available in the business to support the expansion plan? And if we do need to raise investment, what options are available to us?

…watch out for our next post on investment options.