Videocall Shop

Challenge.   I work in a company of a phone application dedicated to selling items via internet,  specifically by videocalls. The main objective is that potential buyers can communicate  in a permanent and instantaneous way with the sellers. Every question buyers want to  ask, can be answered by the seller during a videocall, which is the best way to  communicate online, to avoid misunderstandings and be clear and precise about the  product’s characteristics. Although it is an interesting service, there were few shops  using this method. Videocall shop consumers’ needed to pay fifty (50) dollars per  month in order to sell their products. My idea was to change this method of payment  into a method based on commissions per sell.      Selection.   I decided to go for the Learning Launch Tool. This tool consists on testing a prototype  in several small and cheap experiments. In this way, it is possible to test which aspects  of an idea are correct, and which ones are not but can be modified. In addition, it is  possible to collect information from different places so as to reach a conclusion.      Application.  Firstly, I decided to contact some of the shops that were once users of the app, but  were not anymore. One of their principal causes for them to stop using it was its cost.  They explained that paying 50 dollars per month was no longer a reasonable cost.  Most app users are dedicated to selling small and cheap products. They did not want  to pay a cost they were not sure it would be profitable. So they decided not to take  that risk.  When I proposed to them to pay a fee only for each product they sold, many changed  their minds about Videocall Shop. Paying a commission per sale allowed them to have  some flexibility, as they were not forced to cover the cost. They could prioritize other  commercial areas, and use our app only when they found it convenient.    Secondly, I contacted new shops, that have never used Videocall Shop. I presented and  explained the app, and exposed the two different ways of payment. To a group of  shops, I told them the application costed 50 dollars per month. To the other group, I  explained the commission per sale method. In the first group, none of the shops were  interested in using our service. In the second one, many of them were interested in  trying it, and started using the app.   Their main thought was that paying a price in order to begin to use the app felt like a  barrier. Companies were not interested in paying a cost before they even knew they  would have profit. But paying a commission for each sale presented a different view.       Insight.  By applying the Learning Launch Tool, we discovered that the problem of not having  many customers was not the service provided, but the method of payment. The results

of this investigation showed majority of shops found more preferable paying a  commission for each sale, instead of paying an amount of money every month.  The application of this tool show opinions from different people, and from different  points of view. However, it resulted in a successful result. Videocall Shop’ downloads  increased in a 200% in one month.       Approach.  This is the first time our company used a design thinking tool and it was a success. It  allowed us to understand better an aspect of the customers’ needs. If we had applied  it earlier, we would definitely have not lost so much money and customers. We are  looking forward to using other design thinking tools in the future, as this one was a  success.

