Need a feedback on business Idea (side Project)

As a Czech I usually look on gov website where we have everything listed + possible warnings. Then I go and check the visa information of the country itself to "be sure". Other countries have that as well. I doubt you can provide more accurate information than that. And even then, would someone pay for it?

Sounds nice. You can also send them details like current activities there, what to see etc.

I think the most difficult task for you is making people recall your domain when they really need it.

Another idea to add to this is recent news and safety level. As this will be of high value to the consumers. Think of natural disasters like the volcano erupting in Guatemala or political disruptions. You could even provide weather and historical patterns for major storms that are frequent or infrequent at that time of year. You could also have people from the destination country provide tips for the best clothes to bring, places to visit and culture differences / navigating the environment which could differentiate your site from others. But more importantly, I would think about creating your service as a service not (just) a website. Allow other platforms like airbnb, expedia, and trivago use your api or web app / widget to provide your services to their members. Then charge those companies by the amount of views your app receives. This will allow you to get in front of your customers much faster, raise capital quickly, and become a leader. You can then go back to the government websites and have the governments pay for your services. You can also use your platform to promote local businesses at the destination or along the flight plan: ie: identify restaurants inside the airports for your customers to frequent too.

I think the trick will be to position yourself as an authority on the information. Ultimately, you are going to be competing with Google on this. The answers are likely already out there, it is just a matter looking for them and trusting the info is correct.

Have you thought about maybe doing it wiki style? Allow your community to make updates as regulations change/etc. It also makes the data realtime which I suspect will do much better than entering an email address and then waiting on the data.

As for a business model, I would be very concerned. Advertising/Affiliate travel is not something I would ever recommend and I imagine most of your customers have already booked their travel.

This feels more like a hobby and maybe opens other doors in the future.

Try https://www.thebasetrip.com

What I like about this is that you're focussing on a concrete problem. That already puts you in the ~5% of indie hackers who are most likely to succeed.

What I don't particularly like is that there isn't an obvious business model - I really doubt users (who you are providing value to) are likely to pay for this information.

That said, you will probably be one of the first to know when your users are planning expensive trips, so you can definitely monetise this information with affiliate links etc (eg for travel sites, stuff they need to take with them on their trip, flights etc).

Might also be some other options, but nothing springs to mind immediately.

Good luck!

It is a very cool idea!
However, I believe it is going to be tough to monetize on a B2C fashion.

Do you know how travel agencies check for the documentation needed? You may consider offering your system as a B2B perhaps

Sounds really useful! I don't travel too often, but I remember being frustrated at how scattered information like that was while flying out to different continents. Just curious if you have any plans to monetize it and how?

I will never use it, because my home country (in EU) has a website managed directly from Foreign Affair ministry where I can find all those information updated in real time by the government, plus more info on current security situation, areas to avoid, alert for health/environmental threats... moreover you can inform them that you are going in that country so in case of emergency/important info they will contact you.. The service is very good, free and more trust-able because they get info directly via embassies/diplomatic network/foreign country government .. that makes no brain to use any other alternatives. I guess many other countries in EU have the same service.. did you check that before?

Take a look at https://flyright.co/

This is a very useful idea. I can think of many people who would find this handy while travelling.

How would you source the information? And how would you store it?

This comment was deleted 7 years ago