The people I interviewed in terms of their need for hurricane relief lives in the same area as many others that were affected by the storm but didn't need the aid. Upon further questioning some of them were not interested in my middle man aid relief due to the fact that they were prepared for the storms and had no need for further resources. Three of the five lived within two hours of the affected storm areas and were able to go out to their houses in order to prepare them for the impending storms. The other two lived father away but their properties were not of concern to them as far as preparation for the storm. In the specific area I have seen first hand some residents use this as their second house and live local while others live hours away and struggled to get their properties ready for the storm. The basic need for my services would be the people unable to reach the outside relief or are too far away to get it.
Another idea I have come across while conducting the interviews would be remote services for the people who are too far away from their homes to make the trip to prepare for a storm. Simple tasks as moving chair and such to shelter and tying up boat lifts are easy tasks to be done that can save a person thousands in damages post hurricane. Another could be a boat pickup and haul away service such as pulling them to higher ground or a different location in the canals.
The big definer in my customer base would be the distance from their main residence to the area affected by the storms. People farther away are more likely to contract me for services as they are unable to reach their homes in times of chaos. But the closer residents can still be served by my ideas by bringing supplies and relief to those while working on storm cleanup and repairs.
So I have learned through my interviews that there is a boundary to my original ideas. The storm aid and information relations is really only valuable to people close to and directly affected by any storms. The people that live further away with secondary houses that are affected by the storms can be reached by my other ideas such as the house prep or boat services.
Inside the boundary. Outside the boundary.
Local and peoples whose main houses are affected. People who live further from the storm.
Delivery of aid and resources. Not as much the aids but supplies could still be . useful.
In times of post storm chaos every bit of help and They can bring aid from the outside and wouldn't . need me.
relief does in fact make a difference, it is a rough
time for everyone.
Hey Emory, your customer need here is very interesting. I never thought about the unmet need for people affected by hurricanes. It seems like a great idea to provide some middle-man services to help those people who were affected most by a hurricane. I would be further interested to see how close someone would need to be to the effected area to hire you for services. Great post!
ReplyDeleteI think the idea you have is pretty interesting. Living in Florida all my life, my family and I have experienced the damage of multiple hurricanes. My dad's business experienced damage during last year's hurricane as well, so I think you could use this idea with companies as well as residences. I also have a lot of friends who have houses in the Keys but don't live there, and I think this idea is one people would consider, especially for properties like that.
ReplyDeleteHey Emory! I enjoyed reading about your opportunity for people who need help with towing or moving services during severe disasters/storms, and as a fellow Floridian I have to say it is definitely necessary. It seems as though weather patterns are only going to get more erratic with time too so this is a service that people will begin regularly seeking. Another idea that could add to that is perhaps renting out underground bunkers so that people can stay with their friends and family knowing they are safe during the storm, and also having a space of their own since not everyone wants to be in a crowded shelter.
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