How does iFarm Technology work?

iFarm technology aims at being a trusted venture that farmers recognise as a unique and reliable way of hearing and seeing where the animals are and what they are doing in real time within the farm environment.

The founder of iFarm is known as Bob Robinson. He conceived the idea after working with different farm managers who always gave conflicting reports aboutthe animals and the output or where they were. He has had two fire and hire a lot of farm managers with integrity issues and therefore decided to invent a farm application tool that monitors his herd. As one of the biggest ranchers in Northern Australia, Bob keeps both beef and dairy cows in his expansive estate with more than 50 workers. He wished there was a way to keep in touch with the business managers while giving instructions on what should be done if a decision need to be done. For example if a cow falls sick and collapses, as a certified veterinary officer he can instruct the farm managers on what to do while viewing the proceedings live on the camera(Abrams, n.d.).Bob knew it wasn’t as good as being there in person, however his invention was the next big thing. Being able to see his farm animals and see the progress in the day to day running of the business was an actual possibility. It would just require a camera to be placed somewhere above the ground overlooking all the farm. It turns on a 360 degrees rotational basis and can be zoomed in and out focusing on a particular point on the phone.The camera can be located at every corner of the firm and at the central position on a need be basis(How to Prepare a Business Plan, 2011). The shift in perceptions will share information via a created technological database. It is limited to a farm of minimum 10 cows and can also be used in monitoring tens of thousands of cattle’s on real time basis.

iFarm works in three steps:

1. Attach a camera on the focal point or the central point of the farm where it will rotate on a 360 degrees.
2. Upload the iFarm application on your smartphone and enable the use of encrypted data in transmission and visual/animal identification technology.
3. See and watch what any particular animal after zooming on a particular focus and give instructions to the farm managers via the application or just a telephone call in real time.

We get the value of animal farm management which is very important in product yield of a farm. It is extremely important to have an information or a data sharing policy that prohibits the farm managers to give erroneous information on a particular animal. Animal identification application is the cutting edge of animal farm technologies and it immediately blurs defining the features for animals on the farm. The farm owner can control the activities of the animals eg regulations on feeding and participate in the consent of the service(Pinson, n.d.).

Market Feasibility

Data streaming will also enable data retention which is good for the yield production and farm management and control. As pioneers of the new market, we can contribute to the moral, ethical and social contribution by the pace created of animal focused technology(Young, 2007).

You have a business idea that seems irresistible to you. You plan to launch a new product and you think that customers will fall at your feet. You have found a great place for your new establishment and you want it, yes or yes.

For the elaboration of a market study, quantitative, qualitative, observation and documentary analysis techniques are used. From surveys to trends research in social networks or focus groups.

If we have one or several business ideas, the business study will help us to choose, discard and correct. Maybe your idea is good, but give your product a spin to help better meet the needs of your target. Maybe the place you have chosen is a wonder, but your target is not in that area. Or maybe your business is not viable. And, in that case, it is better to know it as soon as possible and dedicate our resources to something else(Barrow, 2016).

A well-conducted market study will provide us with important information to refine our business idea in a specific context and adapt our wishes to reality.

If in the past marketing focused on creating demand for a product, this is a thing of the past. We must define our product or service according to our target audience, and for that we must know it. Do not forget that in the current marketing the consumer does not resign himself to being a mere receiver, he also wants to participate in the creative process and from there arise tools such as design thinking.

If we sell a product, we must know to whom. Both quantitatively and qualitatively. Not only to adapt it to your needs. Also to know where that target is, how to reach it and through what marketing messages or actions.

Within our target we can also find different customer profiles. A correct segmentation of the market (dividing our target audience into segments) will also help us find niches of consumers who may be interested in our product(Step-by-step business plan, 2007).

The analysis of the competition continues to be an essential part of any market study, despite the fact that in very innovative businesses, various business experts recommend forgetting about the competition and focusing above all on the validation of the product by the client(Stutely, 2012).

Objectives of a Competitive Analysis

The market studies prepare the company to know what they will find in the market. Launching it without knowing it previously increases the chances of failing due to lack of structure, preparation or the set of guidelines that affect the success of a startup(DeThomas, Fox and Derammelaere, n.d.).

These studies investigate the market, potential customers, the product and its substitutes in the most analytical way possible. In this way, we obtain what is known as the SWOT, that is, the Strengths, Opportunities, Weaknesses and Threats, with a very clear purpose: to take advantage of the potential of the market and the company and to prepare for the weaknesses of this one against the competition and the threats presented by the real market(Creating a business plan, 2007).

Strengths	Weaknesses
Competitiveness of the company Positive brand relationship with farmers Ability to produce as per the farmers requirement	Can be easily replicated by people since it’s not patented Expensive for small scale farmers Sometimes the application may not be in sync with the camera

Opportunities	Threats
Brand loyalty with the farmers Easily identifiable with all ranches especially in Northern Australia. Great customer relationship with the farmers. Farmers easily recognise the need for this application in managing of the farm	It will face stiff competition as it’s a new market Sometimes intrusive to the need of the farmer. Some are too private in their farms It will be hard unless legislated and implemented by the farmuman resource feasibility

This company is founded by Bob Robinson, he serves as the chairman and also a non executive director. Lee Mason is the company’s Chief executive officer whose main role is to oversee the company’s day to day operations and ensure that the company’s goals are met. Ben Williamson is the company’s technical director and is responsible for the development and monitoring of the device(Vijg, 2011).

Human resource will be vital if the company and the idea will succeed.  Therefore, the board led by Bob Robinson plans to bring on board the best people in various fields.  It is critical that we have the technical expertise that will be the driving force for developing the ifarm app to ensure that farmers subscribe to the idea. As business grows, the number of employees will be increased to keep up with the demand of the devise and also the maintenance part of it(Wei, 2012).

Job Title	Quantity	Expected staff turnover	Skills necessary
App technician	3	3-4 years	Relevant qualifications in App design. At least 2 year’s experience.
Customer relationship managers	2	3-4 years	Relevant experience in sales and customer care. At least 5 year’s experience.
Technical operations manager	1	3-4 years	Relevant technical Apps and device experience. At least 5 year’s experience.
Accounts payable/receivable	2	3 years	Relevant qualifications in accounting. At least 2 year’s experience.
Human resources/ general office manager	1	2-3 years	Relevant qualifications and experience in HR and office management.

We intend to use recruitment agencies to get our employees because this is where there is a wide pool of personnel who have experience that we need.

Training is a key functweintenion of the human resource department. We expect to provide both internal and external training to provide professional development to our employees on what the customer needs. Regular evaluation will be carried out to know the needs of the customers and this is also part of the strategic plan.

As we seek to give our customers the highest quality manufacture of the devices, we plan to do the development in house and also the monitoring devices will be produced locally. The resources required for updating and maintaining of the technology will be sourced from partners and financial institutions.

The government has always aimed to support farmers by formulating legislations that support this industry. Therefore, we shall be lobbying different stakeholders in the country including parliamentarians to formulate laws that support our business. We are commited to providing the best quality gadgets to our farmers(Creating a business plan, 2007).

We seek to create a good relationship with all major stores in the country when we roll out this device in the market. We estimate that by the second year we will be breaking even. Assuming that we sell 1000 devices to farmers and also proceeds from downloading the app in to the smart phone, we shall do the following projections(Creating a business plan, 2007).

	No. Of devices *cost/unit	Total
Cost of production	1000* $20000	$20,000,000
Expected Revenue	1000* $35,000	$35,000,000

To get this company running, the developmental fees will be funded by private equity and also external sources financing such as banks and venture capitalist. I farm is considering a combination of both equity and debt in its capital structure.

Profit and Loss Forecast	Year 1	Year 2	Year 3
Sales	$35,000,000	$42,000,000	$52,000,000
Less: cost of goods sold	$20,000,000	$24,000,000	$30,000,000
Gross Profit	$,15,000,000	$18,000,000	$22,000,000
Expenses
Advertising and marketing	$1,000,000	$1,500,000	$1,750,000
Bank charges	$25,000	$45,000	$60,000
Salaries	$1,250,000	$2,050,000	$3,200,000
Distribution cost	$ 800,000	$900,000	$1,100,000
Insurance	$500,000	$750,000	$1,200,000
Rent and rates	$150,000	$200,000	$250,000
Telephone	$35,000	$35,000	$35,000
Total expenses	$3,760,000	$5,480,000	$7,595,000
Net profit	$11,240,000	$12,540,000	$14,405,000

References

Abrams, R. (n.d.). Successful business plan secrets & strategies.

Barrow, C. (2016). Business plan workbook. [Place of publication not identified]: Kogan Page Stylus.

Creating a business plan. (2007). Boston, Mass.: Harvard Business School Press.

DeThomas, A., Fox, S. and Derammelaere, S. (n.d.). Writing a convincing business plan.

How to Prepare a Business Plan. (2011). Kogan Page.

Kelly, K. (2016). The inevitable. New York, N.Y.: Viking.

Pinson, L. (n.d.). Anatomy of a business plan.

Step-by-step business plan. (2007). Perth: Small Business Development Corporation.

Stutely, R. (2012). The definitive business plan. Harlow, England: Pearson.

Vijg, J. (2011). The American technology challenge. New York: Algora Pub.

Wei, J. (2012). Great inventions that changed the world. Hoboken: Wiley.

Young, P. (2007). Business plan. ChandniChowk, Delhi: Global Media.