The operational side of CompareMe will be kept simple in its initial phases in order to allow flexibility as well as facilitate changes as deemed necessary. Given it is a technology
company, the following will discuss the sourcing of information for the platform as well as the Human Resource needs.
10.1. Sourcing Information
CompareMe will employ two main approaches for sourcing product information:
• Commercial arrangements: the service provider is listed on the CompareMe because it has entered into a listing agreement with the website operator whereby it allows the operator to list its products, and in return agrees to pay commission or a fee per lead generated.
• Web scraping: CompareMe uses computer software to extract pricing information
from other websites, including the service provider’s own website. This can be done without any commercial arrangement being set in place by CompareMe or the service provider.
Most comparative platform operators use a combination of both approaches so that they can compare across a product market but will only actively sell products directly to the consumer where they have a relationship with the service provider in order to generate revenue.
10.2. Human Resources:
Given that CompareMe is a start-up in Taiwan, it will adopt lean operational practices in its first year in order to establish its growth potential and set the guidelines for future operational structures in the coming years. CompareMe will rely on a small team based in Taipei and work with contractors and freelancers for its requests regarding more complex tasks which are outside the boundaries of the current team.
DOI:10.6814/THE.NCCU.IMBA.031.2018.F08
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It is imperative to have a CEO who’s overlooking the entire CompareMe project from the outset whilst also setting strategic goals, monitoring subordinates as well as involving
themselves in the day to day activities required in the running of the organization if and when required. The CEO for CompareMe will have to be a hands-on type who has the ability to solve problems and think long-term.
10.2.2. Business Development & Partnerships Manager
This role is highly critical to CompareMe’s success, as the Business Development and Partnerships manager will collaborate with all the brands in each industry that CompareMe will enter and forge partnerships, determine deals, commission levels and influence the growth of the CompareMe platform to a wide spectrum of partners.
10.2.3. Customer Service Manager
The whole CompareMe platform wishes to empower consumers, therefore strategic
decisions, remedies and leading of the Customer Service Associates requires a powerful and uplifting individual to drive the internal and external change with a driving force. This is the role of the Customer Service Manager at CompareMe.
10.2.4. Customer Service Contractors
In order to maintain our lower cost structure, we hope to use contractors from Philippines as customer service associates whom can speak fluent English and assist our foreign users with their queries, concerns and requests. Furthermore, we will also have local Taiwanese staff whom are native in Chinese and can also speak English in our team to assist with the local portion of our user base. Online support can be set up through LiveChat and help desk functions.
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Figure 10.1 Source: http://www.magellan-solutions.com/studies/philippine-contact-center-industry/
10.2.5. IT Development Contractors
CompareMe is ultimately a technology company, it doesn’t have finished goods, nor does it have high levels of fixed assets, but it has a lot of intangibles and a digital product. This requires maintenance, we will have an in-house IT developer as well as using contractors for special projects and updates. For our App, we will use creators of iOS and Android
applications and remunerate them based on their work, rather than maintain a team of in-house developers. In the future, as the growth of the company continues, we hope to include a development team which can foster both a cohesive work environment as well as continual improvement in our final product for end-users.
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Revenue streams will need to be diversified in order to sustain the longevity of the platform over extensive periods of time. In order to attain profitability, CompareMe cannot rely solely on commissions from click through
11.1. Commission Revenue
This includes up-front commission revenue for some products (One-time purchases) as well as Trail Commission for ongoing products (Insurance products, life insurance etc).
Furthermore, CompareMe will get “click-through revenue” for any leads it generates to the providers website which will be at a much lower rate than that of a confirmed sale.
11.2. Advertisement Revenue
CompareMe will run on Ads, both the online platform and mobile application will have advertisements in carefully selected areas in order to generation revenue. The website will have ad banners, strategically placed in order to generate revenue on a per click basis. The mobile application will have push notification ads as well as sponsor messages laced through the application, these will not be too high of an interference as the aim is not to disturb the end-user experience.
11.3. Preferential positioning
Companies can have their listings pinned so they are shown in each search for that category, however CompareMe aims to be transparent about this and will annotate the listing as
“Sponsored” so users know that this particular product had given funds to CompareMe for its high listing positioning. Furthermore, the mobile phone application as well as online web platform can publish new and exciting deals that partners wish to promote, through ad banners as well as push notifications. These can be activated for further charges paid to CompareMe.