The iQ Prize: 10 questions

– posted March 26th, 2009 by Laurence Veale No comments

We officially launched the iQ Prize yesterday. Below, 10 questions and answers on what it’s all about.

1. What is it?
€10,000 to help turn a good idea into a great internet business.

2. Why are we doing it?
The iQ Prize is our small contribution to creating a better Ireland: a catalyst to tap into Ireland’s talent, to spark innovation, and to help create the great businesses of the future.

3. Who’s the prize for?
Anyone - an individual or company - based permanently in Ireland.

4. What’s the prize for?
We’ll award the prize for the best business plan for an internet start-up.

5. Can it be an existing idea or web app?
Certainly. With this prize, iQ Content wants to help exploit a good idea and turn it into a viable business. It doesn’t matter if the idea is already out there - quality and business case come first.

6. What’s the catch?
We’re not investors. We’re not venture capitalists. We’re not looking for equity and we don’t want any intellectual property rights. So you could say there’s no catch. What we’ll get is goodwill, hopefully. But ultimately, we’re doing this because we can. We think it’s worthwhile.

7. What does the winner do with the money?
That’s up to them.

8. How do you win it?

Step 1: Submit a 5-page plan answering the questions below (see judging criteria).
Step 2: We’ll then whittle down the entries to a shortlist of 10.
Step 3: The shortlisted candidates will then present their ideas to a panel of external judges

9. What are the judging criteria?
We’ll measure the 5-page plans on the following criteria:

Problem: What’s the problem you’re trying to solve?
Solution: How are you going to solve it?
Business Model: The business bit - how will you make money from this idea?
Technology: How will you build this?
Sales & marketing: How will you market and sell your solution?
Competition: What’s the market like - who are your competition and how will you better them?
Team: Who’s behind this and why do you think you’ll be successful?

In addition, we’ll score entries on three broader criteria:

Credibility: Is this plan and team credible? Will they be able to do what they say they’ll do?
Feasibility: Can this plan be implemented? Is it achievable, workable or possible?
Viability: Can this idea become a sustainable business? Will it make money in the short or medium term? Can it survive in the long haul?

10. Who are the judges?
The names are still to be confirmed, but they will be an external panel of judges selected by iQ Content.

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