Wise Words from Dr. Shamp

Kelly, Lizzie and Lauren talked to Dr. Shamp about our project idea after class on Monday. He seemed very receptive to our project and had some helpful input.

• He liked our idea of helping the world become a better place through environmental (paper) conservation, but encouraged us to think in broader terms as far as paper conservation. Just saving receipt paper may not be quite compelling enough to grab the attention of an investor. We should go beyond receipts elimination, like linking to the user manual of the electronic product you just bought when the receipt is emailed to you. Essentially, we need to rethink the idea of the receipt as a whole. A receipt can be so much more than a proof of purchase. 
• It sounds like our PR/Marketing efforts are a step ahead of the game. Building a brand, including the logo, to market to an audience could be a great advantage of our group. We must make sure we are marketing the right advantages to the right audience though. Telling an electronics store that they should buy our product because it will help their customers stay organized doesn't really give them a reason to shell out the money. Since we are marketing this to companies themselves, we need to think of a number of specific advantages for them.
  
• Going along with target audiences, we should market the program to companies as a data collection service. The more purchasing info companies have about their consumers' trends, the better. To consumers (as a secondary audience), market the program as environmentally friendly, helps with organization, ability to keep track of purchases (electronics model numbers, online owners manuals, ease of returns, etc.)
• When asking how in depth we need to get with creating a program, Dr. Shamp said he does not expect us to get too technical. He did say it would be great to go ahead and create a mock up of the program. We don't have to know all the logistics, but ideally what we would like our Rethink Receipts program to do. Essentially something we could show a software engineer who could make it happen from there. A simple screen capture may work.
• "Keep your eyes on the prize." That was the comment when asked how detailed we need to know about pricing and cost. He wants us to focus on the big picture of this project, what we are supposed to learn/get out of the assignment. That said, we should have a general idea of cost (i.e. approximate cost of making any iPhone app), but don't have to have a huge budget breakdown. It would be helpful is someone in our group steps up to create the price breakdown.
• Brett, as keeper of the blogs, email us about blog content. According to him, the blog should be an update of what our group is doing, in case the project blows up at the end. If that happens (which I am confident it won't, because we are too awesome to let that happen), Brett and Dr. Shamp will turn to the blog to see that the group put in some real effort. So our blog sounds good as is.

So it looks like Group 1 is on the right track. We have a bit more direction, a small change of perspective and a lot of  great ideas. Stay tuned for more progress.

And, Group 1 members, your task is to think of ways we can expand receipts to be "more than a receipt" (i.e. link to owner's manuals). Keep up the great work!