4A: Forming An Opportunity Belief

1. My beginning point lies in my belief that an opportunity exists in creating a way for pet owners to be sure that their pets are safe while they’re away on vacation through adaptive technology. If I could help formulate a type of harness/collar that’s connected to the owner’s phone to notify whether it's been properly fed, walked, or even in danger, I believe many pet owners’ stress would be relieved. Similar to many webcams that allow individuals to video chat their pets at home, this harness would be physically on the pet at all times so that it doesn’t have to walk up to the webcam in order to be seen. Further, the animal’s health would be depicted through colors that show up on the owner’s phone--green marking it being adequately fed, blue marking adequate water intake and red marking distress or physical harm. This wouldn’t replace an actual person interacting with and taking care of the pet, but it would allow owners to detect whether that person was doing a sufficient job.

2. The unmet need is the uncertainty felt by all pet owners that their loved ones are completely cared for while they’re away. My family and I have personally had negative experiences with dog hotels, paid pet sitting services and even close friends looking after our dog during our trips, and I’m sure that many other owners share similar concerns. This need hasn’t always existed for me but began the first vacation I took after getting my puppy. To meet this need, people are currently choosing from a limited set of options: pet hotels, hired pet care or asking a friend/family member to pet sit. At this point, I’m about 60% sure this opportunity exists.

3. Because of social distancing and quarantining, my first prototypical customer interview took place via FaceTime with a close family friend. With him being a lawyer and his wife being an event planner, both of them are rarely in their own homes. Hours are extremely long and flights are all too common, but their pug Bailey is still a part of their family. They need a way for Bailey to be taken care of inside their own homes, because sometimes their schedules become too unexpected for them to schedule a drop off and pick up. 

4. Steve and his wife experience this need quite frequently, and first became aware of it 2 years ago when they bought their new puppy. As of right now, any time they’re away they call in a pet sitter who also has a dog of her own, but anxiety still lies in the fact that the possibility of the two dogs fighting exists. The pet sitter’s dog is much bigger than their own, so they’re worried that in a flash of aggression the two could attack each other. Upon introducing my idea to them, they were supportive and enthusiastic, but skeptical as to how long this invention would take to be properly produced. They argued that by the time it was ready for the public, Bailey would be gone. 

5. My next interview took place with a close friend and long-time cat owner, Juliette. She has two cats, Gracie and Spot, but is also a study abroad student.

6. When I asked her how she felt about leaving her two cats behind for months, she said she was lucky her mom took up the job of looking after them, but nothing quite replaces the bond that the owner shares with their pet. There are intangible things that can’t be written down in instructions, such as how a pet’s mood can be identified through the slightest of motions. Juliette was excited about the idea of an innovative harness that allows her to access all of her pet’s needs, but didn’t know how welcoming Gracie and Spot would be towards wearing something and also expressed concerns about the cost. By the sounds of it, this would be an expensive invention that might not fit all budget types.

7. Finally, I talked to my mom, who I’ve witnessed express the most concern for our dog, Mickey, when trying to find a good place for him to stay. She scoured the internet for hours looking for dog hotels and inspecting their ratings, pictures and video walkthroughs. They had just moved to Texas and didn’t have close friends to leave Mickey with, so they opted for paid sitters.

8. After coming home from a reputable pet hotel that was picky with accepting dogs and required several forms of paperwork and vaccine documents, Mickey got sick and had bloody stool. After coming back from a family friend’s house for a week during our vacation, Mickey wasn’t acting like himself and showed some physical signs of distress. The food that we packed for him came back nearly untouched as well. All of this led my mom to be extremely picky and worried with where we left our dog, and I showed her my idea. She liked the idea of having a harness, that my dog wears anyways, detect any signs of distress from him and display his eating habits. Since walking up to a webcam and video chatting us is impossible for Mickey (he’s not the most trained and intelligent dog), this harness would be a great alternative for seeing what’s going on with him.

9. I learned from this activity that although my opportunity may be attractive and desirable, it lacks in plausibility. While everyone seemed interested in the idea of the product, the actual execution is a whole different conversation. I was most surprised to learn how every pet owner shares a common thread of anxiety when leaving their pets with someone else--no matter how close the relationship. It seems like no one truly rests when they’re away from their pets. This just solidifies the need for an innovative way to keep in touch while physically apart.

10. Much of my original opportunity has been diminished because of the intangibility of the product at the moment. If the product were actually developed and prototyped, the situation may look different. Since most of the hesitance with the idea came from the fact that it wasn’t yet produced, a new tangent I went on was to possibly attach a webcam to a harness. That way, dogs that are untrained can still be accessible by their owners at any time. Judging from this experience, it’s critical that entrepreneurs adapt to their customer’s needs and wants. While it’s impossible to put into practice every piece of feedback received, if the main motive of the entrepreneur is to satisfy a need, then the voice of the customer must be heard in order to fully satisfy them.