[Shark Pup Tank] #105 - From Jerks To Drones

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Am I late? Yes, I am pretty far behind on many of my planned reviews, but I thought I would take some downtime from analyzing storytelling, but trying to look deep into my business side once again by looking at the last Shark Tank episode from ABC. I confess that the reason I am behind on reviews is mainly due to the amount of work that was stockpiling from my studies and with a course on Mobile Marketing behind me, it almost seemed too perfect to start taking a deeper look into the fifth episode of the currently running season that aired on

Three Jerks Jerky
So, it seems that we have another person trying to sell a specific food project. While I do agree that Beef Jerky does consists of mainly chemical products, but one created from Filet Mignon sounds extremely expensive to me personally, but I am certainly nowhere near an expert in the field. Speaking of my problem with strange branding, this kind of works almost too well, as the Jerky connected with Jerks is a fitting combination and I do like the fact that it is an interpretation of Beef Jerky, but 11.99 for a packet of Beef Jerky is just way too much, something I had a gut feeling before is actually going to be a problem. Trying to set them apart as a premium product makes sense, but beef jerky doesn’t truly have a “premium” concept behind it. The brand also doesn’t quite make sense in connection with the jerky effect, but brands can always be pushed. I also agree that you can’t truly paten the fact that they use Filet Mignon, something that anyone can actually take up. I personally wouldn’t invest in this project, but I wouldn’t truly invest, as I have a hard time seeing a product to sell as truly “premium” with a project that simply has that natural cheaper effect. While trying to push the “gluten-free” market and trying to set itself apart with the organic element, I simply don’t have the feeling that this product truly can compete in the market and that it’s product can truly establish itself outside of an exclusive market that believe it is worth paying that much money, as they also seem to be looking for someone who will hold their hands throughout the business, at least from my subjective view of what had happened.

The Skinny Mirror
While trying to figure out what exactly her product was during the introduction, the brand name already gives it away and actually gives me a large alarm. It is a mirror that slims your reflection, but while that is an interesting concept, I believe that this is actually can have a lot of problems. Constantly feeling “thin” can also affect one’s health and perspective of their everyday life. That the mirror slims a person down seems almost too manipulating of how a person perceives himself or herself, something Mr. Wonderful states as well, as it creates a false imagination. Someone wouldn’t quite understand what the difference is between this mirror and a regular mirror is could become quite an issue. The further problem is that her market study was conducted in Sweden, a country that is commonly known for people that are much healthier. Selling this to stores to showcase it, could also have many legal issues, as people are being lied to during their shopping and it leads to them purchasing more products. A psychological boost is only short-term and it being used within a store could lead to an issue that truly will destroy a brand representation. Companies wanting to use the mirror without a brand will also add to the issue even more, so I would not invest into this company or product. In concept, it is a nice concept, but a mirror adding 10 pounds should be something we take into consideration when we look into a mirror. Those that try to justify an unhealthy lifestyle will see this product as the perfect way to let them into a false reality, which will just add to the body imagery the difference between the mirror at home and the mirror in a store.

Switch Witch
Trying to create the next big “seasonal” thing just doesn’t make a lot of sense to me. Holidays have existed for many years and collecting candy has been something they have done for eons. Those kids that have to give up on their candy due to their parents possessing the Switch Witch will only make problems with other kids. Even if they get a present in return for the candy, why would they want to give something away that they had collected themselves. Giving up even just some part of their candies and switching in some for presents, or a Switch Witch doll, it just doesn’t seem like a product that could truly push itself forward. In addition, being completely dependant on a product those only functions once a year, you will have the problem that you can only sell for a limited time and at a limited duration. The project has a massive issue in general and that is ignoring the fact that it is quite pricey. I don’t quite understand why anyone would sacrifice anything to push such a project forward, as the brand is quite forgetful and could only sell shortly around Halloween. It just simply doesn’t really seem like a product that can easily push itself forward and will be forgotten quickly before the next Halloween season passes by, as even if it would go viral, I just can’t see it living longer than for one Halloween season. Mensch on the Bench works for example well due to the length of Jewish holidays, so at least it works more effectively for a rather unique market, as Halloween is also such an established market with the focus on selling candy, it just doesn’t seem like a smart idea to take away kids candy.

XCraft
Oh boy, here comes another incarnation of a drone, which is a market that is already so overfilled, I can’t quite see it selling from a first glance. While it seems quite fast and it is an interesting design to switch between flying and hovering, but that alone can only truly sell towards a market that is already informed on how it works and the fact that it can go fast. What made drones quite popular was due to the fact that one can take videos from a higher standpoint, but when it drives way too fast then the footage might be too muffled or shaken to truly say that it can share the same GoPro functions. In addition, the rules are already quite dangerous, as they are limited to how high they fly and it costing $400 dollars just to make is already quite a scary thought to me. While I think they should actually further develop the production behind the ability to make a flight plan quite smart and the mini-drone for Smartphones seems actually the smarter product. With it being development and costing around $300 it is still a bit too expensive to buy, but if they find a way to save costs for the project, the Smartphone drone will be the most successful product they can potentially sell. The main drone’s ability to shift from hover to flight is quite unique and creative, but I personally just think that we have too many drones that the one featuring the Smartphone is the smartest concept behind it. I personally would tell them to actually try to achieve a success with the other product and making the main drone a premium product due to its high costs. An investment would be quite profitable, but in this sense the project should truly be in the hands of someone, who can make this project push forward, but I see a high competitive market here, which could take a strong twist and turn. Also, that last evaluation was just going to kill them if they can’t push the project forward as they want to, but trying to get all the sharks involved it seemed like a step too far.

What did you think of these projects? Leave a comment below!

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