My Hypothesis Pt.1
1. My opportunity is something I discussed in my bug list, and that is the issue of bathroom floors being constantly wet.
2. People are constantly having to walk around the puddles of water whenever they use a bathroom because others do not clean up the water that they track or something's off with the plumbing or some other reason, which leads to other problems like mold and mud.
3. a. My "who" was broad, but I'd say it could apply to anyone who has more than one person regularly using the bathroom, like college students with community bathrooms or large families or even hotels with a pool which guests track water from into the building.
b. The boundaries would be the size of the bathroom, and the draining and cleaning systems implemented int hat particular bathroom. It also is a specialized need so there might not be a big enough market for it.
c. There would be different ways, ranging from a long, wide towel with handles on it to a special fan that would dry off the floors quickly and efficiently. Some people might just ignore it and move on with their days.
4. I tried to get a good sampling of students to start with because they are easily accessible to me. My first interview was with a freshman who lives on-campus, but she didn't really take issue with this because their building has janitorial staff that clean up for the students. My second interview was with a freshman boy who didn't value the cleanliness of his community bathroom because that wasn't something that mattered to him in the first place. After that, I focused on girls who used community bathrooms and I got better feedback. One guy did express interest in a product to solve this problem because he views the water on the floor as a safety hazard. This isn't a problem that plagues most people, possibly because they aren't immersed in the problem in the moment or because it truly doesn't matter to them. Perhaps something instead needs to be done with the water sources instead of cleaning up the aftermath of the water spillage.
5. I know that the market is very, very small. I should've focused instead on families with small children who don't clean up after themselves. I also learned that, of those I interviewed, a lot of people simply don't care about the dryness of their bathroom.
2. People are constantly having to walk around the puddles of water whenever they use a bathroom because others do not clean up the water that they track or something's off with the plumbing or some other reason, which leads to other problems like mold and mud.
3. a. My "who" was broad, but I'd say it could apply to anyone who has more than one person regularly using the bathroom, like college students with community bathrooms or large families or even hotels with a pool which guests track water from into the building.
b. The boundaries would be the size of the bathroom, and the draining and cleaning systems implemented int hat particular bathroom. It also is a specialized need so there might not be a big enough market for it.
c. There would be different ways, ranging from a long, wide towel with handles on it to a special fan that would dry off the floors quickly and efficiently. Some people might just ignore it and move on with their days.
4. I tried to get a good sampling of students to start with because they are easily accessible to me. My first interview was with a freshman who lives on-campus, but she didn't really take issue with this because their building has janitorial staff that clean up for the students. My second interview was with a freshman boy who didn't value the cleanliness of his community bathroom because that wasn't something that mattered to him in the first place. After that, I focused on girls who used community bathrooms and I got better feedback. One guy did express interest in a product to solve this problem because he views the water on the floor as a safety hazard. This isn't a problem that plagues most people, possibly because they aren't immersed in the problem in the moment or because it truly doesn't matter to them. Perhaps something instead needs to be done with the water sources instead of cleaning up the aftermath of the water spillage.
5. I know that the market is very, very small. I should've focused instead on families with small children who don't clean up after themselves. I also learned that, of those I interviewed, a lot of people simply don't care about the dryness of their bathroom.
I like where you are going with his Julia. As a guy who has to handle business in a fraternity communal bathroom I can tell you that this is a real problem. At home, I would walk around my bathrooms barefooted but here I wouldnt do that in a million years. You never know what can be on those bathroom floors and the water just feels gross. I hope you find a cool solution that can solve this issue.
ReplyDeleteHey Julia,
ReplyDeleteThis is actually a great idea. I like that you have found a problem that affects everybody multiple times a day. Since this is a problem that is so common there is more of a chance for you to find opportunities to bring value into the everyday lives of consumers. I wouldn't focus on only bathrooms but possibly flooring for restaurants and maybe even boats. The problem isn't only for bathrooms covered in pee but any surface that gets wet when it is inconvenient for it to be.
Hey Julia, I really like your idea! You brought an issue that impacts most people. I really hope you can find a solution to this, because we would really appreciate it! I feel like situation would be less of an issue if more people cared! I understand that floors are cleaned daily by the janitors, but I still feel grossed out when it’s just water on the floor. In addition, I can’t help but feel extremely paranoid of slipping and falling when the floor is wet. Regarding your post, I think your explanations were very well thought out and very thorough. You were able to excellently relay your ideas to us. Really great post!
ReplyDelete