Today, 6-1-16, we have submitted Virtual Halo to the Apple App Store for review. Today is Day 1. On such a momentous day, we want to share our motto with you: "To see things thousands of miles away..."
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Virtual Halo
It's a hard question; one in which I'm working on right now. One has to consider how they want their app to look. Does it resemble the company as a whole, or is it merely a product of the company? Should it connotate fun, or professionalism? Should it be descriptive or oblique? It's tough to decide when the canvas starts white, with a world of possibilities from which to choose from. From a user experience standpoint, it's a really important decision. It sets the tone.
In the life of a startup, there are a lot of decisions that need to be made; some big and some small, but the icon of your flagship product needs to hit the mark. It tells a story. Even though the adage says to not judge a book by its cover, we all do. If the icon isn't compelling, what else will a person use to make the determination that they want the app?
This is the point I'm at. Right now, I'm leaning towards this type of a look. What do you think? What kind of emotions or thoughts does it evoke in you? Does it show what you think Virtual Halo is as a company? Yes, the icon can be changed in the future, but we're really trying hard so that we won't have to do that.
The question I now ask: "Does this icon set the tone for an app dedicated to personal safety?"
Comments are great, please leave them below. We take all of the feedback given to try to give our customers what they want. Thanks!
Every two months, StartupPeoria hosts an entrepreneurial pitch contest for local startups called KeyStart! This past Thursday, was the third KeyStart and Virtual Halo was chosen to be a finalist amongst the applicants. Three companies are chosen and then a fourth is chosen by the community. Each of the four presenters are given three minutes to give their pitch. JUST THREE! And that's followed by a 10-15 minute question and answer session where the judges ask the presenter questions about their startup.
Four start the process, but only one goes home with a giant 4-foot check worth $5,000 in investment funding.
Contestants were told to be at LDVM in the Warehouse District for a tech check in preparation for the pitches that begin at 7pm. HDMI dongle in hand, I made my way into expanse of the exposed brick structure, which sits the the left of The Nest, Peoria's Coworking space. After meeting the rest of the contestants and putting on my duly-issued lanyard, I checked my tech and was relieved that it worked as expected.
Randon, our MC for the evening, pulled our names out of a hat for the order we would go in, and low and behold, I was chosen to go first. They say to go first or last, so I wasn't disappointed, but I was secretly hoping to get a comfort level of how the judges were going to work the process.
Before long, family and friends arrived, along with the judges, crowd, pizza and beverages.
- 7:10pm Randon started speaking
- 7:20pm I started my three minute presentation
- 7:23pm I finished my three minute presentation. Questions from the judges started flying
- 7:35pm My time on stage concluded. Now the waiting game begins...
- 9:00pm The judges adjourned to discuss the startups and decide who would win
- 9:10pm Randon emerges with the giant 4-foot check. Shrouded in secrecy.
- 9:15pm Without further adieu, Randon announces Virtual Halo the winner of KeyStart!
I'd like to thank the StartupPeoria, judges and the sponsors of KeyStart! This type of a program brings excitement, youth, and fun to entrepreneurship and to Peoria. Without the help of Attollo, OneFire, DJ4U, First Mid-Illinois Bank & Trust, this event would not happen. Thank You!
What a ride! 31 days and tons of feedback; thank you, backers and other interested parties! We made it about 23% of the way. Not bad when I consider the fact that I hadn't done a Kickstarter campaign before and went into it without a marketing campaign (and budget) associated with reaching our $30,000 goal.
To everyone that backed us - thank you. And, since we didn't make our goal, your cards will not be charged and your'e not out anything.
Stay tuned! We've got some fun things coming your (and our) way in the next few weeks that we're sure you'll be interested in. Oh, and beta testing will be commencing in October. Interested in applying to be a beta tester? Sign up here!
I was reading the USA Today on Wednesday and came across an article that proves the point that Virtual Halo is a necessity. The news article was about a Tennessee woman that had been kidnapped by an ex-con with history of domestic violence; he smuggled the victim across state lines to a hotel near New Orleans and then raped, strangled and abused her. It was through her shear determination to survive that she's still alive - by texting her sister from the abuser's phone while he briefly stepped out of the room.
When in a compromising situation, time matters. You can't always pull out a cell phone to make a call or send a text; it's obvious and if you're in a bad situation, the perpetrator is not going to let the communication go through. By integrating notifications and location data into a subtle app that resides on a person's wearable device, such as an Apple Watch, had the victim described above been wearing one, two taps of the watch could have sent out a distress SOS to loved ones, letting them know that she was in trouble and where her last known location was.
The victim in this case was able to summon help. She was determined and that determination probably saved her life. She's lucky.
To stay up to date on Virtual Halo and to have an opportunity to be a beta tester, give us your info here. Don't worry, we won't spam you.