2KK+
USA
FuneralTech
About the client
Being an early-stage entrepreneur in the USA market, our client was ready to bring disruption into a slow-paced conservative market of death care services.
After having personal harming experience and requiring to deal with numerous problems manually, the client decided to create a platform helping to plan and manage all death-related activities. For example, they had to cancel all subscriptions and inform numerous institutions that their user had died. That is painful in both moral and time consuming aspects.
This experience defied the basic functional scope which was enriched by interview instances with the target audience. As far as the goal was not to cut the market of the funeral homes but to offer a complex platform empowering their services, this approach revealed the pain points most critical for potential users without necessity to redraw the market and its existing players.
Challenge
The biggest challenge the customer faced when trying to prove the concept and work with individual freelancers was the absence of vision and competence in solution development. Even after numerous research and problem interviews done by the marketing team, each designer tries to bring something trendy instead of searching for a comfortable solution for the final user. The same was with the coding part – no guarantee or at least argumentation on the decisions was given in the process.
All that led to frustration and time loss due to checking numerous instances and iterations of the concept having the same core flaws over and over again.
We needed to build the MVP platform user-friendly for an audience with specific requirements, strong enough to get funding and scale into a highly conservative market with a total value of $18.4 billion.
Solution
Luckily, as far as the product was in the concept phase, the team did not require a lot to analyse and rebuild within the platform. It allowed us to outline what techniques caused the weak condition of the platform and missed vision with its potential audience.
Based on the analysis, we identified key points to address:
- Core functions. As far as the solution was the startup requiring external funding, we decided to start with the MVP launch and graduate scaling after investment. The list of functions was based on users requests, prioritised and included into a two-year roadmap.
- User experience. The existing tools were not user-friendly, as they contained complicated information on regulations, resulting in a highly challenging and convoluted process. Based on the requirements of the target audience and moral implications, such visuals were unacceptable, even for a concept.
- Data privacy and storage reliability. Handling highly sensitive personal information requires robust security measures and compliance while connecting with banks, subscription providers, and legal services. Laws regarding wills, LPAs, and estate management vary across jurisdictions, requiring careful attention to legal details.
- Investment readiness. The team defined pre-seed and seed funding stages in their roadmap, so they guaranteed the product would be ready and valuable for potential investors and further market growth.
Result
Having no possibility of solving key points with the platform by themselves and willing to refer to the checklist we outlined in the web visibility report, the customer decided to cooperate with us. To win users’ trust with our platform, we had to deliver a seamless experience that would make a complex and painful process as simple as possible. Here’s a brief overview of how we achieved this.
To ensure better reliability and further scalability of the product, the team decided to start with the modular architecture of the platform. Modular development allows teams to work on different components simultaneously. This parallel development significantly reduces the overall development time, enabling faster product launches which was very important for the project owner.
Leveraging this approach, we implemented the following functionality:
MVP-first approach to test the market
The team decided to start by testing the founder’s assumptions and validate the product’s general idea. That would allow getting early investments easier with market proofs and feedback from early adopters and not just vague product features. To achieve this, we took the following steps of the product’s initial discovery:
- Market research: Identify target audience, their needs, and existing solutions.
- Legal review: Consult with legal experts to ensure compliance with relevant regulations in deathtech jurisdictions.
- Feature prioritization: Determine the core features introduced in the first iterations of the product. The team prioritize Will Writing and Service Subscription Cancellation for the initial launch.
- Technology stack selection: Choose appropriate technologies for development, security, and scalability.
All preliminary work led to the creation of a priorities roadmap with the steps on design and development of the platform in parallel modules to speed up the delivery and market approval. After implementing the basic functionality, we had to make sure the solution works as intended in every case. So we conducted a separate phase of testing, both manual and automated.
Security and reliability
As far as the product handles exceptionally sensitive personal data and financial data, the team had to take special measures to ensure its security. Moreover when people interacting with Deathtech are often in a state of emotional vulnerability. Data breaches at this time can cause amplified trauma which was one of the biggest red flags for our client.
As the first step, the team implemented strict access controls to limit who can access sensitive data. For the users of the platform, we applied strong authentication methods, such as multi-factor authentication and several layers of identity checks including Google authorisation, etc. To enhance the effect, we encrypt sensitive data both in transit and at rest to prevent unauthorized access.
As far as the platform deals with numerous data from third-party services, we introduced Data Loss Prevention technologies to prevent sensitive data from leaving the organization’s control. To suit the requirements and legal obligations, we develop a comprehensive incident response plan to address potential data breaches.
First funding to ensure growth
After we completed the platform began to attract customers, our client recognized the advantages of the product and made a strategic decision to start communicating with the investors to receive the first rounds.
As the part of preparation, we refined the business plan of our customer and outlined the business model, market analysis, competitive landscape, financial projections, and team. All was finalised in the pitch deck – a separate document with as much visualising as possible for better perception under limited time restrictions. Regarding the area of the product, it was important to tell a compelling story and focus on the solution for the market, its strong points and opportunities.
The next step was to find a proper investor in the domain interested in such a product. Our team helped with the selection among our partners and other investors around the globe. After selection, we helped to tailor the pitch deck to highlight the aspects of the business that are most relevant to their interests. After initial contact, we communicated with the investor to tackle our valuations, expectations, legal obligations and other terms.
As a result, the client successfully received the pre-seed round and the investor got a growing startup in their portfolio.
Value Delivered
As the result of the development process together with a user-friendly platform, the client received the following benefits:
Funding received
The product successfully passed the seed round and received investment in the amount of 2KK and preparing for more in their roadmap.
Strong security and privacy practices
Prioritizing user data protection was paramount as far as the product deals with personal data, financial subscriptions, etc.
Clear and concise legal information
We aimed to provide accurate and easy-to-understand legal guidance as far as the audience requires clear description of any policies concerning the services offered.
Partnerships with trusted professionals
As far as the platform functions requires numerous collaborations with various institutions, collaborating with reliable legal and financial experts enhanced credibility.
Effective marketing and communication
Reaching the target audience and building trust was placed as goal after receiving funding, so we build the complementary plan with crucial milestones for any marketing activities the platform required to become outstanding. Together with the MVP launch, the client started marketing activities to receive the first users and improve the product. That resulted in smooth client growth and reliable feedback collecting.
Client Testimonial
EVNE Developers can help you build a cost-effective yet scalable MVP that will allow you to meet user needs and grow your business. Tell us about your goals and we’ll gladly discuss possible solutions that align with your vision.
