Forming an Opportunity Belief

Forming an Opportunity Belief

1. I have a belief that there is potential to make jumper cables (for lack of a better word) for iPhones.  This unique idea would have a cord that could plug into both phones and then transfer battery juice from one phone to the other.  
2. With this idea, the unmet need is the concept of a way to transfer battery power from one phone to the other.  The people who have the need are the people who either have poor phone batteries, or who always forget to charge their phones when they get the chance to.  I believe this need has come from so many people being reliant on their phones to do everything for them.  It's like people's lives depend on the use of their phones.  In order to meet this need, people are now starting to carry portable chargers around where ever they go, but even those are still not very reliable.  I honestly think that there is a 60% chance that this opportunity exists.
3. Prototypical Customers
4. Questions
• #1
• How often do you think you would experience a need for this product?
• "I don't think I would need to use this product very often.  I am not extremely dependent on my phone throughout the day, so I don't find myself really every running low on battery until late at night when I'm home and in bed."
• When did you first realize that this need was something that applied to you?
• "I did not really ever think about it because I don't really like to use my phone too much.  I can imagine I would need it quite a lot if I used my phone more."
• Because you don't have this product, how are you currently dealing with this need right now?
• "The main way that I keep my phone with good battery all the time, aside from not using my phone much, is that I keep it charging the whole time I'm in my car.  I am always in my car for work, so this could be a big way that I am avoiding the need right now.
• How satisfied are you with this idea of a potential solution to your need? 
• "I think this will definitely help many people if it is possible to do.  I know for sure that my roommate would be stealing a bunch of my battery juice if we used this."
• #2
• How often do you think you would experience a need for this product?
• "I can guarantee you that I would use this product 5 out of 7 days of the week.  I am always on my phone for work, and I often end up losing battery by the end of the work day."
• When did you first realize that this need was something that applied to you?
• "I first realized I would need something like this when I discovered that my portable charger at full capacity wasn't even enough to get me through the day."
• Because you don't have this product, how are you currently dealing with this need right now?
• "I use a phone case that also serves as a portable charger.  This case gives me an extra 75% battery everyday, but still I somehow manage to run out."
• How satisfied are you with this idea of a potential solution to your need? 
• "I am very satisfied with this idea, because I know that I would definitely need some extra 'umph' to get through the end of the day.  This potential product would for sure do that."
• #3
• How often do you think you would experience a need for this product?
• "As a college student I definitely think I would use this.  I am a very social person, and I know for sure that many of my friends would need me to jump their phone for them."
• When did you first realize that this need was something that applied to you?
• "I first came to realize this need when I came to college.  As a high school student I never ran out of battery because my phone wasn't being used at school.  Now that I can use it basically all day, I definitely need something to make up for all of the battery usage."
• Because you don't have this product, how are you currently dealing with this need right now?
• "I currently just use my car charger, or I try to bring my wall charger with me wherever I go in case of emergencies.  This new idea would definitely make my life easier considering I'm always around a bunch of people."
• How satisfied are you with this idea of a potential solution to your need? 
• "I am very satisfied with this idea, the only thing I'm worried about is that if I had this cord, whether or not my friends would get annoyed if I constantly asked to take some of their battery."
5. Reflection:  After talking to these people, the main thing I learned from each person was how much of a good idea they thought it was.  I didn't think they were going to appreciate it as much as they did.  The one thing that I didn't think of is that many friends would be reluctant to sacrifice some of their battery life to someone else, especially if they were already low too.  That was the biggest surprise to me, of how much that would be a factor.
6. Summary
• I believe a significant amount of my original opportunity is still present in this case.  After talking to many customers, I think if anything the opportunity could be stronger than I thought.
• I do believe my opportunity is even more true than I originally thought.  The customer conversations definitely gave me some reassurance that people will in fact use this product if it is possible to make.  
• I think it is smart to find a middle ground when it comes to adapting to the customers.  If you are an entrepreneur, your idea is unique.  That means that no matter what, as long as the idea stays its own, it could be smart to trade off some things about it in order to attract more customers.