Who: There are many people who fall outside of the opportunity I found. Some people make hourly pay, salary, commission, or tips. It is pointless for employees that are strictly salary because they know what to budget for every month.
What: Depending on how you get paid for your job would determine each need. This application could be designed for people with hourly, commission, and tips
Why: The needs are completely different. Even people in the service industry would vary on their needs. Depending on how many hours they work would be a huge factor. The price of the food or service they're entertaining would depend a lot as well.
Inside the boundary
- Service industry employees
- Hourly pay
- Commission based job
- To budget efficiently
- Jobs in these categories are hard to budget for.
Outside the boundary
- Salary paid employees
- To know what you're budgeting with
- The need isn't there because employees who get paid salary know what they're making every month.
Summary: The interviews I conducted were with employees on both sides. I asked questions regarding how they budget and save in their industries. It seems as if some people would recommend the app to help with budgeting on the service industry side. There are also people on the service industry side that wouldn't use it.
https://soundcloud.com/user410414950/testing-the-hypothesis-part-2
https://soundcloud.com/user410414950/chelsea-peters
Melanie,
ReplyDeleteI think your idea is practical and a great way to adapt technology to every day life to make things easier for people. I'm assuming by service industry you mean employees along the lines of waiters/waitresses, but I'm not sure who else that would include. That could be simply because I've never had a job that relies on tips for a salary, so I would probably fall outside the boundary too. Overall a good idea though!
Melanie,
ReplyDeleteI agree with Danielle from your first interview as I think it would be more apropos to have the app monitor for several months to get an average as one month could be an outlier. Also if it could provide a mean, median and mode would also be very intuitive. I think helping people to understand the true amount they actually make is a good thing especially in the service industry which would allow them to budget and plan better. That would decrease their debt and provide with them with a realistic lifestyle expectancy they can grow from. Keep pushing forward as I like this idea and the positive impact it can potentially have on people.
P.S. A good target group would be exotic dancers.
Melanie,
ReplyDeleteAs I have said before your idea is great, helping people regulate, budget, and prepare is always something that can be profitable and helpful to those in need. You did a great job on this assignment! There will always be people who think they do not need your innovation and then maybe one day realize they should have given it a try or who are on salary as you mentioned...unfortunately as I have told you before in previous comments, I have never had a service industry job so I would fall outside of your boundary :( Sorry!
Cheers,
Margaret
Hi Melanie, first of all, wow. I absolutely love this idea! As a former waitress I would have loved an application like this! It's really hard to create a budget when the majority of your wages are tips. I think this would be very helpful and it would apply to so many people. The service industry is the biggest industry in the country!
ReplyDeleteMelanie,
ReplyDeleteI have never had a need for this but I know many friends who would use it. It sounds like Chelsea has the right idea by using her hourly to pay her bills and saving the tips as extra. It sounds like she does not really have a need for this because she already has her own system, is saving before she spends, and is very organized with it. However there are many (some of my friends included) people who are not good at budgeting and planning and I think there is still a need for this to make it one step easier.
Melanie,
ReplyDeleteI feel that this is a good idea. It enables those who serve for a living to get the same ideal salary as their colleagues. This could also increase employee moral. When a worker knows that their hard work and efforts show in their pay they will perform better. Great job.
Hi Melanie!
ReplyDeleteI think this is a great idea. I feel that many people would benefit from this, especially in the 21st century where everyone uses technology. People in the service industry would be able to visualize their income and I think that is very important. I enjoyed the interviews you conducted. Great job!!!
Hey Melanie,
ReplyDeleteAs I am currently working a job that highly relies on tips, I can definitely see the practical application of the app that you have described. Often times, I find it hard to calculate exactly how much I am making because it fluctuates on a nightly basis. That being said, I am not sure how many people would really fall inside your boundary. I thought your interview process went great and you received high quality feedback. Great job!
Hey Melanie,
ReplyDeleteAlthough I get paid an hourly salary, I don't need to budget per month because my parents still pay for most of my expenses; however, in the next few years I might use an app like this. This proves, at least from my standpoint, that people can easily develop a need for your opportunity. I like how unique this is and how it does cater to a large portion of working Americans. I think it would be effective especially with how integrated technology is in daily life.
I think this is a great idea, especially for college towns! I understand salaried employees would not be your target market, but is there any way to alter the product to include this market? Just a thought. I enjoyed the interviews and can't wait to see where you go with this idea.
ReplyDeleteHi Melanie!
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading your post and listening to your interviews! As a host/server at a restaurant, the money I make is combined tips and wage. But on the nights I host, I get paid more than a server would because I would receive less tips. That being said, I do find it hard to budget my money (especially being a college student) each month. This app, in my opinion, would be very effective.
Hey Melanie,
ReplyDeleteI think that sometimes it is okay to know that not everyone would have the need to use a certain product. I think that it allows you to focus more on your target market segment without wasting your time on people that wouldn't use it. This app is very specific, but there's nothing wrong with that!
Hi Melanie,
ReplyDeleteI have a lot a friends who work in the restaurant business and now that you bring it up, I wonder how do they keep track of all their bills. I think budgeting is essential for everyone but when cash flows in and out, it must be hard to keep good track of it. I think your market is pretty focused and it would be really successful pitch to the restaurant industry.
Hi Melanie,
ReplyDeleteI thought that you had a brilliant idea! There are probably some difficulties that your app will encounter however, which you identified. Even if you develop a good algorithm, different people may just have different priorities and beliefs and how to handle and spend their money.