When my son went to college I started seeing a $9.99 monthly charge on my credit card for an app called MyBib an online citation generator that follows the guidelines set forth by the Modern Language Association (MLA) for citing sources in academic papers. When ChatGPT came out it occurred to me that he could just ask it to create MLA citations for free. It then occurred to me that I could create a website to compete with MyBib using ChatGPT’s API. I decided to ask ChatGPT to help me create a business plan for the idea. Here it is:
Step 1: Business Overview
The name of the business is "QuickCite". The purpose of QuickCite is to provide a fast and reliable way for students and researchers to generate MLA citations for their academic papers. QuickCite's business model is based on generating affiliate marketing revenue.
Step 2: Market Research
According to industry reports, the global citation generator market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 10.4% from 2021 to 2026. The market is driven by the increasing adoption of online learning platforms and the growing number of academic research activities. The major players in the citation generator market include MyBib, Cite This For Me, and EasyBib.
However, there is still room for new entrants in this market. QuickCite will focus on providing a simple and fast citation generator tool with a streamlined user experience.
Step 3: Product Description
QuickCite will be a web-based citation generator tool that uses ChatGPT to generate MLA citations. The tool will allow users to input the details of a publication or a URL, and the website will call the ChatGPT API to generate a properly formatted MLA citation. The tool will be optimized for speed and ease of use, with no ads or distractions.
Step 4: Revenue Model
QuickCite's revenue model is based on affiliate marketing. When a user clicks on a link to purchase a book or other product through QuickCite's website, QuickCite will receive a commission from the retailer. The website will also display ads from affiliate marketing partners to generate additional revenue.
Step 5: Marketing and Promotion
QuickCite will focus on digital marketing channels to promote its service, including search engine optimization, social media marketing, and email marketing. QuickCite will also partner with academic institutions and libraries to promote its service to students and researchers.
Step 6: Financial Projections
QuickCite's revenue projections are based on a conservative estimate of 100,000 monthly users generating an average of 0.1 affiliate marketing commission per citation generated. This would result in a monthly revenue of $10,000. QuickCite's operating expenses would include website hosting, API usage fees, and marketing costs.
Step 7: Conclusion
QuickCite is a simple and fast citation generator tool that has the potential to generate revenue through affiliate marketing. With a streamlined user experience and a focus on speed and accuracy, QuickCite has the potential to carve out a niche in the growing citation generator market.
While I would likely just use WordPress for the QuickCite website you could just get ChatGPT to write the HTML code for you like this:
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<title>QuickCite - Instant MLA Citations</title>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
<style>
/* Add some basic styles to make the page look better */
body {
font-family: Arial, sans-serif;
margin: 0;
padding: 0;
background-color: #f5f5f5;
}
h1, h2 {
text-align: center;
}
#container {
max-width: 600px;
margin: 0 auto;
padding: 20px;
background-color: white;
border-radius: 10px;
box-shadow: 0 0 10px rgba(0,0,0,0.1);
}
input[type="text"] {
width: 100%;
padding: 10px;
border-radius: 5px;
border: none;
box-shadow: 0 0 5px rgba(0,0,0,0.1);
margin-bottom: 20px;
}
button[type="submit"] {
padding: 10px 20px;
background-color: #0066cc;
color: white;
border: none;
border-radius: 5px;
cursor: pointer;
}
button[type="submit"]:hover {
background-color: #0052a3;
}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<div id="container">
<h1>QuickCite</h1>
<h2>Instant MLA Citations</h2>
<form action="cite.php" method="post">
<label for="input">Enter a URL or citation details:</label>
<input type="text" name="input" id="input" placeholder="e.g. https://www.example.com/article">
<button type="submit">Generate Citation</button>
</form>
</div>
</body>
</html>