7A – Testing the Hypothesis, Part 1


  1. I am pursuing an opportunity through a problem I have experienced as well as many of my friends and peers.  The issue I have had is I've lost my apartment key several times throughout my time at college and know many of my friends who have experienced the same problem.
  2. Students at University of Florida and campuses nationwide often lose their apartment and important keys when on the go during the day and at night in college.
    1. The who: Students 
    2. The what: Losing apartment/important key when on the go
    3. The why: It is easy to lose keys when they are just in your pocket or purse and they can easily fall out/be lost
  3. There are others who have the need.  I interviewed several of my friends, their roommates and their boyfriends (to try to branch out from my friend group) and every single person either said they do have that problem or know someone that has that problem.  I believe all students have this issue because I believe every person has a key of some sort to get into their home whether it's a dorm, apartment or house.  All keys a bit different, but have the same purpose.
  4. The why could vary from person to person because everyone would describe themselves to have different levels of responsibility which could affect whether they lose their keys or not.  Also, people carry their keys differently.  Most guys carry their keys in their pocket, while girls I spoke to either had their key on a ponytail on their wrist or in a purse.
  5. I interviewed more than five people.  At first, I only spoke to girls because I was thinking of the situation where they hold their key with a ponytail on their wrist, but after thinking about it more, I realized anyone could have this problem.  I asked my friend's boyfriend if he had ever lost his keys and he said he hadn't but his friend did, and he thinks it could potentially happen to anyone, including himself.  Most girls I spoke to said they haven't lost their keys, but that they keep it on a hair tie on their wrist.  This is the only way that has ever worked for me not to lose my key.  When I go out and even in some of my classes, I always see girls doing this.  They might not see it as a huge problem, but I think if they were given a better alternative to a ponytail on their wrist that isn't completely reliable, they would take it.  I also asked the people I interviewed if they would be more or less inclined to purchase a product if it included a symbol of an organization they were a part of/something they loved/personalized to them, and they all said yes because that is usually what makes you want to buy a lot of products.

Comments

  1. UnknownSeptember 21, 2018 at 2:11 PM

    Sydney,

    Excellent work on this assignment! I love that you were able to expand so widely upon such a simple need. I lose my keys at least once every couple of days! Needless to say, I was very excited to read about your findings on this unmet need. I'm glad your interviews were so informative, and I'm sure this feedback will help you tremendously when it comes time to refine your understanding of the need. Awesome post!

    Zach

    ReplyDelete
  2. UnknownSeptember 23, 2018 at 7:45 PM

    Good work on the assignment! I think they are already have products that help you find your keys when they are lost, but none that actually prevent them from becoming lost. You did a good job in getting responses from a lot of different people, you received good responses in this unmet need.

    ReplyDelete
  3. UnknownSeptember 23, 2018 at 8:46 PM

    Hi Sydney,

    My friend lost her keys last semester and the replacement value on the set was over $200 because of the car key. After this accident, we got tiles on our wallets and keys, and have not lost them since. However, tiles do not prevent them from becoming lost so there is room for improvement in the industry. I look forward to reading about how you will solve this problem.

    Best,
    Grant

    ReplyDelete
  4. UnknownSeptember 24, 2018 at 3:08 PM

    Hi Sydney,

    I completely agree with losing keys being a huge issue. When I was staying in a dorm, I locked my keys inside of my room numerous times. I would have to wait until the RA goes to the office to get keys to unlock the door. Although there are key locators on the market, I think this is a great opportunity to exploit. I would love to see how your idea plays out.


    Regards,
    Ramar

    ReplyDelete
  5. Emily HusakSeptember 24, 2018 at 9:22 PM

    Hi Sydney,
    I can relate to this problem. I've lost my keys more than once. I finally attached one of those "Tile" bluetooth trackers on mine so I can locate them with an "app." It would be an added bonus if this "tile" would notify me when I start getting too far away from my keys. That way, I would know that I've left my keys behind at the time that this happens, and I wouldn't have to go back for them later. I thought that this is along the lines of what you mean by preventing lost keys, verses having to lose them and then go fetch them. This is a useful idea.

    Best, Emily

    ReplyDelete

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