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== Industry Description == | == Industry Description == | ||
Latest revision as of 03:05, 29 October 2013
Contents |
Industry Description
Our product is applicable to two industries: eduction and small-scale research. The biotechnology education market is steadily increasing as new discoveries come to light and equipment costs decrease. As biotechnology becomes more relevant to daily life, interest in biotechnology eduction has surged, from [http://www.bio-rad.com/en-uk/category/pglo-plasmid-gfp-kits GFP transformation kits] to participating in iGEM Highschool. There is also a growing applicability of biotechnology in a variety of contexts, from textile restoration to citizen science.
Target Markets
We have identified three markets: Education, Citizen Science and Field Research.
Education: Our primary market is science education in UK secondary schools. At present, schools are reported to have [http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-22369573 too little equipment] for effective practical work and [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews/10030738/Schools-wasting-science-lab-budget-on-photocopying.html unable to offer] a full range of practical lessons. Better science laboratory facilities in schools should be a [http://www.rsc.org/AboutUs/News/PressReleases/2010/BetterLabs.asp top priority]. New facilities enable the pupils to gain a better understanding of the subject through more ‘hands on’ experience.
Field Research: A range of fields, from textile conservation to evolutionary biology, require the use of biotechnology, in particular PCR.
Citizen Science: [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citizen_science Citizen scientists] is a term used to described amateur or nonprofessional scientists that has gained popularity in recent years, including in [http://www.nature.com/naturejobs/science/articles/10.1038/nj7444-259a research], [http://www.scientificamerican.com/citizen-science/ science magazines] and the [http://makezine.com/2010/09/01/citizen-science-month/ maker community]. As it is is difficult to estimate an accurate figure of molecular biology citizen scientists, we choose to approximate the size of a group by using the example of the DIYBio network. [http://diybio.org DIYBio] presents a growing citizen science community of molecular biologists, biotechnologists and bioartists. Projects range from microbe mapping to [http://pavillon35.polycinease.com/recipe-1-yeast-printing/ yeast printing]. DIY Science can be considered as an [http://www.nature.com/spoton/2012/12/spoton-nyc-diy-science-an-alternate-approach-to-scientific-experimentation/ alternative approach to scientific experimentation]. One common barrier is access to the technology, where cost and skills are both problems.
Market Analysis
As of January 2013 there are [http://www.education.gov.uk/researchandstatistics/stats/schoolcensus/a00208045/school-census-2013 3,281 state-funded secondary schools] in the UK with approximately 3.2 million pupils. Science departments receive [http://www.rsc.org/images/2004Laboratories_tcm18-12553.pdf £9.89 per pupil]. Schools submit yearly budgets on the [http://www.education.gov.uk/aboutdfe/executiveagencies/efa/efafundingfinance/b00212647/external-assurance/budget-forecast-return July 31]. This results in approximately 32 million pounds allocated yearly towards secondary school science education.
We choose to approximate the citizen science group by examining the DIYBio network. As of October 2013, there are [http://diybio.org/local/ 42 groups] DIYBio groups declared worldwide and 3353 members on DIYbio Google group mailing list. Disposable income for biotechnology pursuits vary, and we approximate expenditure between £500 and £1000, therefore we used £750 to estimate the DIYBio budget, placing it at 2.25 million. At present, only the UK market is accessible to us, which is approximately 0.67 million pounds.
Initially we predict to sell our products to secondary schools and citizen science early adopters. In the mid-term we want to increase our sales to the citizen science market, which we expect to become our main market in the long-term future. Currently citizen science in biotechnology is still a very niche field. However, as stated our aim is to increase biotechnology visibility in society and create a personal synthetic biology market.
Competitor Analysis
Market reaction
We considered 3 different groups that could be possible affected by our product's entry into market: DIY Biology companies, Global Biotechnology companies and Specialised companies. For each, we choose one example and evaluated the impact of our product.
- DIY Biology Companies
Example: IO rodeo Most likely group to be affected initially by the Darwin Toolbox entry into the market, and also the most important group with regards supporting and growing our target market. Like our start-up, small companies typically struggle to compete with regards resources and reach. However they may also be sources of collaboration instead of competition.
- Global Biotechnology Companies
Example: Bio-rad This group is unlikely to be affected in the first couple years. As their products are currently sold in mass quantities and with restricted accessibility to individuals, they don't currently reach Darwin Toolbox's target market. They may react to youGEM's entry by making their products better towards individuals.
- Specialised Companies (e.g. forensics)
Example: Sirchie Similar to global companies, this group is unlikely to be immediately affected initially as it is well established. However as this group target a niche market, they may later be challenged by Darwin Toolbox's broader scope.
Competitor Analysis
There are no direct competitors who provide an alternative to our product. Our competition is more indirect and falls into three broad categories: companies offering laboratory equipment hardware kits, laboratory equipment supply and educational biotechnology kits. We assessed our product in comparison to other companies by the following criteria, and the results can been seen in the table below.
Competitor Analysis Criteria
- Affordability
- How cheap is the technology? How much does shipping cost?
- User-friendly
- How easy is the technology to use?
- Completeness
- Is it an all-in-one solution?
- Convenience
- Does the company ship internationally? Is it pre-manufactured or does it require assembly?
- Brand strength
- How easy is the product to find? How much does it push the market forwards? How reliable is the reputation?
Marketing Plan
When evaluating stakeholder outreach and product promotion routes, we identified two different groups - existing market groups and new markets - and separate strategies for each.
- Existing market groups
- Schools: science education networks (STEM and PsiComm), educational funding bodies (BBSRC)
- University Students: university representatives, advertise via iGEM teams, word of mouth
- DIYbio: existing DIYbio spaces, mailing lists, Makerfaires, social media
- iGEM HS: directly via iGEM HQ, including discount or promotion for registered iGEM teams
- Field Researchers: targeted via specific case studies, academic journal advertising
- New markets: mainstream citizen scientists
Initially, we aim to target technophilic people, e.g. parents who want to do science with their children.- Kickstarter
- Media, e.g. Wired
- Sponsored citizen science projects
- TV advertisement (e.g. during BBC Horizon, New Cosmos, etc.)
- Distribution
Darwin Toolbox would be sold directly via the company’s online platform, and could also be distributed to online merchants (Amazon, Ebay, etc.)
