In-restaurant mobile ordering system.
I started spending my nights crafting the product, finding edge cases and many other potential issues as early as possible.
I quickly arrived at the prototyping stage. I needed to validate this concept with real people in a real restaurant atmosphere. The brightness of a white screen became problematic in a dimly lit restaurant, so the dark theme is a result. Prototyping was important and ultimately proved the value proposition for the customer.
My first experience with Figma was magic. I wanted to ensure a concrete design system for the MVP could be handed off and not incur further cost in the future. It also needed to adapt to multiple devices and browsers as a web application.
The completed MVP allows customers to scan or enter a unique code located on the restaurant table. This shows them the menu created by the restaurant in their management system. Customers can see more details and make modifications by selecting items.
Order For Me
While working at the World Surf League, I had an idea for a new product. Like most people, I enjoy going out to eat with friends and family, but it's time consuming to request, split and pay the bill. While other products seek to make bill splitting easier (itemizing, or sending payments through Venmo or PayPal), they don't solve the underlying pain-point of how much each person owes.
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I ideated a concept that would allow customers to sit down at a restaurant and order and pay from their phone. They can order what they want, when they want it and leave at any time (since they are paying as they go and there is no bill at the end). It would drive sales for restaurants and increase table turnover.
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I loved this concept, but realized there was no incentive for restaurants to adopt it (if I were to seek a percentage of sales, which is how I planned generate revenue). I sat idle on the idea for a few years until 2017, when I read an article about increasing non-tipped minimum wage for restaurant servers in California starting in 2019. It outlined the problems this would cause for restaurants and highlighted cases where owners would be forced to convert to counter-service or go out of business. It was time to go for it and build Order For Me.
Ideation
I started spending my nights working on the concept. I tried to flush out all the nuance and edge cases as early as possible. I interviewed restaurant customers to understand user stories other than my own and gained valuable insights into their needs.
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Early interviews also allowed me to trim my target market into a precise group. Aligning on this was important so that I could deliver a beneficial product without diluting the experience.
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I also built a financial model and validated that the business could be successful if I hit attainable sales goals.
Prototyping
By the time I entered design and prototype phase, I felt the momentum of all the experience I had accumulated behind me. I no longer needed a month to figure out what to do next or how to do it. Things flowed more easily, and while there were still bumps in the road, I hit fewer walls. This was the result of better planning from the beginning, and knowing the full roadmap for success.
MVP design and development
Previous experience taught me hard lessons about overseas employees. I made mistakes and cost myself time by interviewing and hiring unqualified people, and not firing fast enough. This time I felt like I had super abilities: I quickly found qualified talent at a cost I could afford and the result was a great process.
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Over the next 6 months the MVP was delivered. I decided to launch as a web application only (mobile-web for customers) to save costs on native apps. Since Progressive Web Apps can save an icon on Android and deliver push notifications, there was no technical necessity for apps.
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I worked with a very talented team in India called Octalogic. I highly recommend them as perfect communicators and quality developers. If you are thinking about launching an idea, don't hesitate to reach out to them.
Launching
I finally launched Order For Me at a few test restaurants in Summer of 2019. It has been an amazing journey so far and I am excited to see where it goes.
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This side project allowed me to combine all the skills I have earned over the course of ten years. It is amazing to think about my early days of Fantasurf and compare myself now. I am confident in building digital businesses, managing products and growing a company intelligently - all learned in a trial-by-fire setting.
Order For Me has the potential to be a success, but If it doesn't make it for lack of my continued availability, I can hang my hat knowing that it's an important chapter in my development.
I will always be looking to build a digital solution that solves someone's needs.