The platform collective : the new local startup community

• Main Authors: Wong, Yan Ting, Tan, Isaac Jen Wei, Ng, Olivia Li Wen, Teoh, Caster Wee Yang
• Other Authors: Wong Pei Wen
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: 2015
• Subjects: DRNTU::Business::Information technology::Business enterprises; DRNTU::Social sciences::Economic development::Singapore; DRNTU::Business::Advertising::Product; DRNTU::Social sciences::Communication::Promotional communication; DRNTU::Social sciences::Communication; DRNTU::Social sciences::Communication::Promotional communication::Communication campaigns; DRNTU::Social sciences::Communication::Promotional communication::Integrated marketing communications
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10356/63362
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

This paper presents The Platform Collective, the first student campaign that encourages startups to develop their businesses by connecting with one another to barter and collaborate. Introduced by four final-year students from the Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information, the aim was to help startups to become sustainable by finding solutions to the challenges they face (ie. cash flow problems) through bartering with other startups. This option could help lead to collaborations propelling them to find innovative ways to grow and sustain their businesses. The Platform Collective does this by being an online intermediary that curates the community of startups (mostly started by young people under the age of 30) and matches individual startups’ barters (‘I need’ and ‘I can give’). This paper summarises the primary and secondary research that honed the key promotional strategies and tactics, documenting the whole process from conception to execution and examines the overall effectiveness of The Platform Collective. Evaluation includes various challenges faced as well as triumphs throughout the extent of this final year project. Future recommendations for improvement and plans for the sustainability of this online intermediary are also included.