In an urban environment, our perceptions of how to manage our time are changing. Days and nights blur into one another, and many feel the need to fill any ‘in transit’ moments with activity. As our desire to remain ‘switched on’ intensifies, our brains and fingers remain ever active and this accelerates our life’s speed. This perpetuates our need to rely on services, apps and products to help us cope with the stresses and strains of time poverty and demanding lifestyles. The ‘space’ around convenience is more critical than ever but the delivery of convenience is changing with the onset of innovation and seamless platforms of technology. This blog looks at smart technology and services that are emerging as important life props for the hyper active.
Maximising Time
Talking to a fellow Facer this week, I recommended she get an au pair. “It makes life so much easier” I said. The only thing is she doesn’t have kids. Time wastage solutions is an emerging sector set to grow this year. For the time poor, waiting in for a delivery, or holding on for an hour to a Customer Service line for an hour is not only frustrating but often impossible. The little chores that are a nuisance for one person are being swapped with others who have more time on their hands.
An increasingly popular US website offers a unique service to busy urban executives and has been gathering momentum since it was launched in 2008. Users post their tasks on the Taskrabbit website, along with what they’re willing to pay, and a ‘runner’ picks it up and does it for them. The tasks range from snow clearing (currently very popular) through to waiting in for home deliveries. According to Gawker last week, Google employees are now being offered free credits on Taskrabbit to take away the strain of ‘the little stuff’ so they can concentrate on being really clever. Runners tend to be Stay at home parents, students and retirees.
On a similar theme, various home services have also been spotted in the US (Du Monde and A Step Above) and UK (wewaitforyou), where reliable house sitters are on hand to help tradesman and take deliveries during work hours. More luxury services provide temporary relief to the stressed out with a portfolio of staff to cater for every need: chefs, butlers, personal assistants and even in home spa therapists.
For those looking forward to the home comforts upon their arrival, A Step Above will light the fire, put away the shopping or run you a piping hot bath for when you get back home.
Robotic vacuum cleaners have been around for a while, but boffins at Dundee University have taken the idea of convenience one step further by patenting a process using nanotechnology, for self cleaning carpets. Put the kettle on, and kick back, as one chore can be crossed off the list.
Immediate Solutions
For Gen i, life is about information, interactions and immediacy. This has implications for any company, in terms of ensuring Customer service delivers against users’ increasing demands as well as a rethink for brands’ distribution channels.
If you live in the States, then Uber cabs is a neat concept. 1. Download an app to your smart phone. 2. Next time you need a cab within in 5 minutes, send a text with your pick up address. 3. No need to pay – the fee is automatically deducted from your credit card. PayPal have linked up with various technology platforms to enable wireless, automated transactions for everyday purchases. The idea of mobile phones becoming a kind of “digital wallet”, used for payments and identity purposes, has been around for a while but will benefit Londoners later this year when an Oyster card app on smartphones will enable users to pay and use their phone for carefree access across London’s transport system.
Expect to see V-Commerce rise in 2011. Vending machines have always focused on convenience but normally at a compromise. As technology has improved, and stock is more in tune with trends, we have spotted some brilliant examples of well placed machines offering high quality, well needed products. From freshly baked canned bread and umbrellas in Tokyo, Diaper Bag Basics in Buffalo, US to healthy, nutritious meals in the Netherlands and Spain.
Life Made Simple
Just Cook It! meal ranges have proved popular across Europe for the last few years but in Oz, a franchise retail concept has popped up in key cities, offering fresh, quality and easy to prepare meals sold in well located outlets.
2010 saw more retailers offer the click and collect service, where shoppers bought online and pick-uped in store. Collaborations and partnerships will mean that this year, you will be able to buy from John Lewis but pick up in Waitrose, or purchase a surfboard online and pick it up when visiting Devon.
This weekend, supermarket giant Tesco announced the opening of the UK’s first drive-thru store in Baldock, Hertfordshire, as a pilot. The service is aimed at customers who do not want to carry out their weekly shop themselves, but who also do not have time to wait at home for an internet delivery. For a flat fee of £2, they will be able to drive to a dedicated area in a Tesco store at a set time and pick up their shopping without having to leave their car. Laura Wade-Gery, chief executive of Tesco dotcom and Tesco Direct, said:
‘This will be especially popular with busy mums who have the school run and children’s activities to manage. It also offers a solution to parents who want to avoid the challenge of shopping in a busy store with children in tow but can’t afford the time to stay in for the shop to arrive to their door. We also expect it to help young professionals.”
More than one million UK households regularly order goods from Tesco’s website.
Tesco invested heavily in dotcom technology last year and Jan 6th saw the first ever TV ad where the retail giant plugged their smartphone grocery apps. Launched last October the barcode scanner allows customers to add out-of-stock and other items to their online shopping basket by scanning the barcodes of their empty items at home.
Laura Wade-Gery, CEO of Tesco.com, explained the new feature: “We’re always looking for ways to make life easier for customers and for busy mums in particular. The barcode scanner will make online ordering much quicker for those that have an iPhone. This is the perfect solution for iPhone lovers that are always forgetting to add items to their shopping list or haven’t the time to even write one!”
The app is free to download from the App Store, and requires a Tesco online shopping account.
Implications for Brands:
- Be ever accessible and available both virtually and in real time
- View time as currency – how can you extend the amount of ‘free’ time dedicated to pleasure and entertainment?
- Look at apps and other technology platforms to deliver Convenience based upon immediacy, interactions and simplicity
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