Beginning Point: I recently adopted a puppy. As a full-time student with a full time 8-5 job, I am stretching myself very thin in order to take him outside 7-8 times per day until he is house-trained, specifically during the work day. Luckily, I live very close and can go home during my lunch break. I am hesitant to pay a dog-walker because I am concerned about giving someone access to my apartment and trusting a stranger with treating my puppy properly. Some people hire a dog-walker, install a "doggie door", or use training pads in their house. I believe there is an unmet need for new puppy house-training tools and a secure way to hire a dog-walker. I believe this issue affects 90% of working puppy-owners.
Prototypical Customer #1: Working, Single Mom (Supervisor)
How old is your dog?
"I have two dogs. Dennis is 4 years old and Charlie is 4 months old."
Is Charlie fully house-trained?
"She's been doing pretty good lately, but she still has an accident here and there.'
How did you house-train her? Was it difficult during the work week?
"I just tried to take her out as much as possible. Honestly, most days I just knew I was coming home to a mess...or my son was when he got home from school. When we first got her, my son was still on summer break so it was easier having someone at home almost all day."
Would you ever hire a dog-walker?
"Not unless it was a friend or neighbor."
Why not?
"I would be worried they would steal something from my house. I'm not really sure how that even works. Do I give them a key? What is they steal my dog? There's too many risks."
Did you ever use training pads?
"Definitely not...just teaches them to go inside."
Prototypical Customer #2: Married working professional (co-worker)
How old is your dog?
"He is pushing 12 years old."
Do you have any issues with his house-training?
"Now that he's getting older, he is having trouble holding his bladder for long stretches of time. In his prime, he was perfectly behaved."
How do you let your dog outside during the day?
"Well my wife works from home so she is almost always there to let him out. I don't really worry about it too much. If we are going on vacation, I drop him off at my parents' house."
How did you house-train him?
"To be completely up front, he was already house-trained when I adopted him. We never had any issues."
Would you ever hire a dog-walker?
"Maybe if my wife didn't work from home. I would probably sooner just leave the patio door cracked. We live in a really safe neighborhood."
Would you feel less nervous if you had some way to monitor like a camera or tracker?
"I guess...I probably still would not do it."
Prototypical Customer #3: Prospective Puppy-Owner (friend)
How old is your dog?
"Technically...I don't have her yet. I'm going to get her on Sunday..but she's 8 weeks old."
Do you live in a house or an apartment?
"I live in an apartment in Downtown Orlando."
How are you planning on house-training your puppy when you get her?
"I'm sort of nervous about it. My boyfriend and I work almost opposite schedules so there would only be like three days out of the week that one of us isn't home the whole day. Those are the days I'm worried about. I know you go home at lunch, but even without traffic I would only have like 5 minutes at home before having to turn around and come back to work."
Would you ever hire a dog-walker?
"If they had references and were established, yeah, I don't see why not. As long as it wasn't an unreasonable rate."
Are you going to use training pads?
"I am planning to crate train her. I may put one in the bottom of the crate just in case of an accident, but I won't use them for training."
Reflection: I learned that my problem is a little more specific than the average working pet-owner because I also live alone. Prospective Customer #3 was the youngest person I interviewed and also the only one who was immediately open to the idea of a dog-walker right away and was the only one who brought up the price of the service.
Summarize: While I believe the opportunity is still there. I think the affected group I assumed is much smaller than I initially would have expected. While there is definitely still an unmet need, it may be secluded to 90% of working dog-owners who also live alone. I still think a safe and secure way to let your dog outside while you are away from home is an opportunity. Instead of immediately changing a product based on customer feedback, sometimes it may be prudent to consider whether that is truly your customer. Also, while a business must adapt, it is not necessary for every single customer-request but more an adaptation that would benefit the majority of your customers.
Victoria, I think you make a very good point. It is difficult for a lot of dog owners to be able to figure out a way to take of their dogs. Letting them out during the day while at work can be a difficult task. If you live in a house and have a fenced in back yard, you can install a doggie door and your problem is solved. It becomes much more difficult if you live in an apartment. I think if you are able to find a solution to that problem you will have a great business idea.
ReplyDelete1. This is a very true opportunity in our society. New dog owners are always having to schedule themselves around their dogs in order to train them properly but also not miss out on their job. I don’t know if many would be open to the idea of having a stranger go to their home without them there, especially older generations such as those interviewed. I think your summary is right in saying that businesses need to adapt to capture a bigger customer base.
ReplyDeleteFrom reading this blog, I believe there is an opportunity in the making. Dog walking or dog sitting is something I didn't fully understand too because there is always that fear that they might steal something when you give someone the keys to your home. I've searched up dog sitting or dog walking opportunities in Gainesville and it looks like there legitimate businesses that solve this problem such as Aloha Pet Sitting & Dog Walking or Bob's Pet Sitting, where you bring your beloved pet to a dog sitter. I think this is kind of like having a baby and you're looking for a babysitter or daycare that you could trust. Additionally, you're right. This situation mainly occurs when you are living alone or the people within your house are consistently busy. I feel like this opportunity applies to a lot of college students because we are always in school, so it's hard to made time for our dogs.
ReplyDelete