 |
| Credit: Gifta.com |
Our Bright Ideas series asks successful entrepreneurs how they came up with their great business idea, and what advice they'd offer other entrepreneurs. Today we hear from Marc Liniado, owner of Gifta.com — a year-old site combining reminders and gift ideas into a gifting service.
Business News Daily: What does your business do?
Marc Liniado: Gifta.com is the first recommendation and reminder engine that brings gifting to you. Tell Gifta whom you're looking to get a gift for, what their interests and likes are, and when you usually get them a gift throughout the year. Two weeks before every giftee's occasions, Gifta runs its unique recommendation engine to get personalized gift options hand-curated specifically for that giftee. Gifta will then combine those personalized products to your Gift Reminder so that you never forget an occasion and always get the perfect gift in one place.
Gifta also allows you to add as many giftees as you would like to your account and manage everyone's likes and occasions. Add a giftee once, and you never have to do it again.
You can also track how much you spend, and budget your gifting throughout the year. Gifta makes gift-giving a struggle of the past.
BND: Where did you get the idea for your business?
M.L.: Growing up in New York, I was raised to always try to find an answer to every problem. So when my then-girlfriend's birthday was coming up and I had no idea what to get her, I turned it into a business. I realized that too many people don't remember their loved ones' occasions, and when they do, they have no idea what to get them. This is where Gifta is the solution.
BND: How did you go about figuring out if your business idea was viable?
M.L.: After a lot of online research and a few polls, I realized that a free service that made gifting easy was an idea that people will warm up to fast.
BND: Did you test your business idea? If so, how?
M.L.: After the idea was viable, we used several polls and research tools to realize that the business would work and people would respond with enthusiasm.
BND: What advice would you give to someone who thinks they have a great business idea?
M.L.: I would tell them that they should have a well-thought-out plan in place and should do the proper research to make sure their business is viable. I would tell them to talk to a lot of people but keep a strong mind. Be careful whom you ask for help, and be more careful whom you decide to listen to.
BND: Where do you look for inspiration when you are trying to find new ideas or ways to grow your business?
M.L.: Whenever I need inspiration, I go to friends and family. They always give me the foundation to clear my head and take a step back so I can think clearly on how to grow my business and always have a few laughs while I do it.
No comments:
Post a Comment