The segment that I am focusing on in the market is the demographic of 30-50 year old suburban parents, preferably those with younger children but regardless. I went around my neighborhood and interviewed three people who fit this description.
The first interview went rather straightforward. I interviewed a woman of 44 who was interested in my idea and talked with me about their needs regarding my plan. Their biggest concern for animals on the road was usually around the daytime, when children are outside and playing. This is problematic for me as that is also when traffic is at its highest, but we aren't thinking about that stage yet. Luckily they were also most concerned with neighborhood roadkill, where traffic is significantly less of a problem. When I asked about what they would've done at first when presented with this problem, they said they simply would've picked the animal up with gloves themselves if it was near the area their children were. Fair answer, and one that I got a lot. Specifically with the second interview; a younger man in his early thirties also replied that he would've simply googled how to take care of the animal but his need was more concerned with animals in areas where people aren't walking, such as in traffic. Possums carry their young on them (along with other mammals), and the offspring can survive even if the possum dies. He would want a service to check for the offspring and take care of them, at anytime as long as we can get them out of traffic heavy areas. The final adult I managed to get a hold of in my neighborhood also emphasized daytime, specifically the times when young students are going to and from school, as the primary need for the service I was offering. What they also said was that they usually talk to their neighbor or family member to help clean animals up. They're usually small (squirrels or vole) so they've never thought about needing a service for these things.
In summary I would have to say that the need for this demographic/segment of the market is emphasized at times when young children are more likely to be outside as well as when the potential for young animals to be saved is a possibility. With regards to information search I could potentially find a list of many animal diseases that would make any google search of how to solve the issue independently seem not worth the risk and make my business model more viable.
I find it interesting that they said they would pick the animal up themselves. From my experience, and I consider my neighborhood middle class, I have never seen this happen. To be fair, it could be happening when I am not around to see it, but I believe that cops or city workers are the ones to do this. Also, these people seem concerned only with their neighborhoods and that could possibly involve HOAs.
ReplyDeleteI like your idea overall but I think that the man who was in his early thirties had it right. I think that most people that are found in this position would just google how to handle the situation. The truth is, we live in a time where there's millions of apps and smartphone users are becoming very selective as to which ones will take up space on their phone. I just don't think that a roadkill app will be one that people will see as useful
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