I believe that there is a large business opportunity to establish a notification system for the school's laundry machines.
The unmet need primarily stems from the large disconnect between modern technology systems and the current laundry machines used here at the University of Florida. This need extends to nearly every student at the University of Florida that lives on campus, especially those that live in dorms. This is definitely not a new need as there has always been an antiquated system for performing weekly or biweekly laundry duties. In order to meet this need now, people simply watch their laundry and/or attempt to time the machines. Although this is certainly feasible, this is not ideal as many times an alarm or intended time may not reflect directly to the actual time that the machine is finished, thus costing the user real time that can be better spent on other ventures. By establishing a system that sends direct text notifications to laundry users, students will save themselves time in knowing exactly when to return to their laundry without question. In my perspective, there is a 100% guarantee that this opportunity exists and is plausible to implement given the right circumstances.
Interview 1: Student at Trusler Hall
1) How efficient do you feel the process of doing laundry here on campus is?
A: Honestly it really sucked. Back home I have a decent machine that cleans well and effectively. Hard to say how efficient it is, but I guess its not that efficient.
2) How often do you do laundry and is time a major factor?
A: I try to do laundry every two weeks. I kinda slack off so I usually have a fat load to take care of. And time is a big factor. It takes forever to get my clothes clean and I have no idea when it'll be done.
3) Do you ever incorrectly estimate your time doing laundry?
A: Yeah for sure. Sometimes I'm busy with other work and I forget or I think its going to be done at a certain time and the machine is just wrong.
4) How was your first experience with the current machines?
A: Honestly I had my mom do it for me back home so doing it by myself here is a pain. And the machines just suck in general so I'm not really too happy about it.
5) What is your current process in determining your laundry duration? Is this ideal for you?
A: I just set my alarm on my phone and it might not be ideal like I said because it either goes off and I forget to go or I go on time and the laundry is still wet. Never a good time.
Interview 2: Student at Murphree Hall
1) How efficient do you feel the process of doing laundry here on campus is?
A: I think it works for me. but obviously its not the best!
2) How often do you do laundry and is time a major factor?
A: I try to do laundry every week and yeah I would say time is a major factor for me.
3) Do you ever incorrectly estimate your time doing laundry?
A: All the time! It's the worst.
4) How was your first experience with the current machines?
A: I've always done my own laundry at home, so I can say the machines here aren't that great.
5) What is your current process in determining your laundry duration? Is this ideal for you?
A: I usually wait in the laundry room and study in the mean time. I don't mind it because it gives me time to think and relax and do multiple things at once.
Interview 3: Student in Fraternity House
1) How efficient do you feel the process of doing laundry here on campus is?
A: I live in the fraternity house so the machines are old and some don't work well at all. I've also lived in dorms and they're slightly better but not great.
2) How often do you do laundry and is time a major factor?
A: I try to do laundry once a week. Might seem like a lot but I like to keep a clean house.
3) Do you ever incorrectly estimate your time doing laundry?
A: Always. I never get it right and sometimes I feel like I have the right time and then I get there and the machine is still going.
4) How was your first experience with the current machines?
A: Not a good one. Can say for sure that I wish I was home.
5) What is your current process in determining your laundry duration? Is this ideal for you?
A: I usually set the stop watch on the alarm app on my phone. It's not great, but it sorta works. Can say without a doubt there should be a better method
Reflect: From these interviews I can say that my prior conceptions about the opportunity are well grounded and hold merit. All 3 people I spoke to appeared to have similar issues when the idea was brought up, however the second person did seem to be more accepting of that fact and used it to her advantage in contrast to the other two that did not. Regardless, I believe that adding the system would benefit all parties.
Summary: The original opportunity still exists and is supported by the 3 people that I interviewed. This new opportunity is definitely accurate, but may appear more difficult in application. I know for certain that other schools such as Florida Gulf Coast have systems similar to the one I mentioned, however I propose a more efficient means to find that same resolve. I believe that entrepreneurs should certainly consider customer feedback, however I do believe that if the entrepreneur is certain of the success of their endeavor that they should continue on and capitalize on that as the concept or theoretical implementation may not be as well contrived as the actual implementation in practice.
