CUSTOMER DISCOVERY PLAN

Team 1: PELTA
November 29, 2022

Members:
Jay Chang (30046735)
Harsh Shah (30046742)
Christian Aguilar (10135970)
Long Tran (30073950)
Gabriel Vanorio Cilento (3003885)
Rod Babic (30061290)
Part 1: Defining a Hypothesis

The problem that currently exists within the market of portable and insulated water
bottles is that a reliable method of heating or cooling personal drinks does not exist.
Although there have been innovations designed to heat or cool drinks within a
bottle, they are inefficient and impractical, as the drinks are not able to reach
temperatures that are desirable for that specific beverage, or the effect diminishes
over time. Therefore, the market needs a product that can achieve these desirable
temperatures, and can deliver on both efficiency and practicality.

A vast majority of the general population is affected by this issue, as many people
own personal water bottles for a multitude of purposes. In 2021, stats Canada
revealed that “9 in 10 Canadian households had at least one person who used their
own bottle, with 85% of those households doing so always or often (Stats Canada,
2021)”. With this, we can conclude that people of all age groups use a personal water
bottle for numerous functions, such as: school, work, sports, hiking, and leisure. It is
worth noting that these functions are part of everyday life, therefore occurring very
often. Since Canada has extreme climates depending on the season, and with water
bottles being used frequently and in nearly all aspects of life, our product will be
targeting and affecting all Canadians no matter what their lifestyle may be.

Our idea solves the absence of reliable heating and cooling methods in personal
drinks by delivering a bottle that can heat or cool a drink to desirable temperatures
in both a timely and efficient manner. Our product is mainly backed by
implementing Peltier plates and the Peltier effect, defined as “the cooling of one
junction and the heating of the other when electric current is maintained in a circuit
of material consisting of two dissimilar conductors (Britannica, 2022)”. By combining
the thermal workings of the Peltier effect with efficient thermally insulating materials
and lasting energy solutions, we can solve the problem faced by many Canadians.
Part 2: Understanding Customer Base

Target Market
The target market for our temperature-regulated bottle are outdoor enthusiasts who
participate in activities such as sports, camping or fishing. Established and
upcoming professionals such as office workers, college students, and those working
in outdoor or construction jobs are also included. We also target tea/coffee fanatics
who are in tune with new products and social media advertisements. The primary
focus of our efforts are towards these audiences, as they do not have access to any
equipment that can heat or cool their personal drinks while away from home.

● Outdoor Enthusiasts
For customers who are involved in outdoor activities, especially in hot
environments, the maximum voluntary drinking and best hydration state
occurs at 16 degrees Celsius. This allows them to maintain core temperature in
the body and feel energized. According to the following research, even
non-professional athletes enjoy drinking cool water and agree.

Personality Characteristics -

Lifestyle Concerned for health and

appearance; spends a lot of time
outdoors during the weekend

Social Class Middle Class, enough to spend on a

few luxuries

Habits Enjoy taking photos outside to share

with peers or for social media

Beliefs -

Behaviours -

Interests Outdoor equipment

● Young Professionals (College Students/Office Workers)
Millennials are considered the most important generation. They are paying
much attention to smart technologies, and their demand for innovative
products is increasing. Customers who are at the 20 - 35 age range tend to
spend most of their time at the school or office. Although they have access to
a water fountain, the majority of them prefer having their own drinks and the
ability to heat or cool on command.

Personality Characteristics

Lifestyle Concerned for health and

appearance

Social Class Middle Class; enough to spend on a

few luxuries

Habits Drinking water and staying hydrated

throughout the day

Beliefs Focused on work related tasks

Behaviours

Interests

● Tea/Coffee Fanatics
The growing and expanding cafe/tea culture is further expected to positively
impact the growth and adoption of temperature control mugs during the
forecast period. Temperature control mugs with such advanced features are
likely to gain the attention of coffee lovers who pay great attention to detail
when it comes to their personal beverage.
 Personality Characteristics

Lifestyle Concerned for health and

appearance

Social Class Middle Class, enough to spend on a

few luxuries

Habits

Beliefs

Behaviours

Interests I thought they were fanatics!?

Key Stakeholders
Customers: The customer is a primary stakeholder, which is an entity that is directly
linked to our company and our economic success. Their buy-in allows us to continue
conducting the business. Additionally, our company exists primarily to serve the
needs of our customers and benefit directly from their purchases, and allows for
future improvement.

Investors: Investors or stockholders are all types of primary stakeholders that keep
our company financially viable and make projects possible by providing funds. Along
with providing funds, they can also directly impact our company’s outlook when they
are dissatisfied with its business plan.

Suppliers: Although suppliers exist outside of the company, we still consider them as
primary stakeholders because they can benefit directly from the revenue generated
from sales. Their resources, materials, and, in many cases, expertise can directly
impact our business’ operations, and a healthy partnership is beneficial.
Distributors: Distributors also play an important role in diversifying our channel to
deliver our final products to customers. They act as intermediaries between the
manufacturer and the customer and they also participate in the marketing process.

Figure 1: Outdoor Enthusiast Ruben Hassen

Part 3: Planning the Customer Discovery Interview

Interviewed Stakeholder
Type 1: Customers (Outdoor enthusiasts, Young Professionals)
Type 2: Investors (Launchpad Advisors, Startup Owners)
Key Assumption Problem: These should directed at your "problem statement", as in "no waterbottle that can heat
and cool your drink", not problems your team may run into
1. Our product’s price is too high
2. Customers already have a properly functioning personal insulating water
bottle and may not be inclined to buy a new one
3. The product poses safety concerns
4. Customers are not willing to bring a spacious item in their bags
5. Customers may be satisfied with present established products that are similar
6. Customers do not trust a small start-up company

Key Assumption Solution:

1. People are willing to spend money on a product as long as they deem that it is
worth it or of enough value to them
2. Although customers may already own a similar product, they can still be
motivated to buy a newer one that provides newer technology or innovations
3. An instruction manual and proper safety passing and inspection by the
appropriate regulators will help to ease any concerns of product safety
4. People may need to cut out other items or purchase a bigger bag in order to
properly use the product as a daily necessity
5. Although there may be nothing wrong with currently owned similar products,
the differences and conveniences that our product provides may motivate
purchases regardless
6. Since we have not built any reputation upon selling this product to the market,
a partnership or proper advertising and testimonies would be useful to
generate more confidence and support among customers

Questions:
1. What qualities would differentiate a special water bottle from a normal one?
2. What is your biggest concern about the product?
3. What improvements would you make to your current water bottle?
4. What safety factors would concern you the most when using the bottle?
5. Why haven’t you tried similar heating mugs that are already on the market?
6. What qualities push you to buy a product that is already similar to many
others?
 7. To what extent does a partnership or sponsorship from a reputable source
influence your decision to buy a product?
You have 12 assumptions, do these 6 questions answer all 12 assumptions?

Verification:
Since we are young upcoming professionals ourselves, and all of us participate in
outdoor activities and leisure, it is not difficult to place ourselves in the perspective of
the customer base. The diversity and broad market of water bottles allows for us to
view questions and concerns about our product more objectively and without bias,
since our thoughts could be extrapolated to the possibility that our product could be
offered to us in the real world.

1. If it had other capabilities other than simply holding beverages or maintaining

temperatures, that would set it apart from others
2. Aside from price, I am concerned about efficiency and practicality. If I need to
wait a long time to heat or cool my drink, I may as well purchase something
3. I would like a way for the internal temperature of my beverage to be lower in
hot weather, and higher in colder times.
4. Since the water bottle requires cleaning and washing, I would like to ensure
that myself and the product will not be harmed after basic cleaning and
external water exposure
5. I never saw them as worth it, and coffee or tea at a nearby establishment is
pretty cheap and quickly made
6. Uniqueness in design and excellent efficiency make certain products stand
out to me, and motivate myself to purchase it over competitors
7. Support or partnership from an established company or brand name that has
a reputation of being reliable and of good quality definitely positively impacts
my decision. For example, I would be more inclined to buy a new car model if I
heard it had ties to Honda or Toyota, two very established and reliable names.
References
[1] Statistics Canada. (2022, July 18). Households and the Environment Survey, 2021.
Retrieved November 29, 2022, from
https:https://www.britannica.com/science/thermoelectricity//www150.statcan.gc.ca
/n1/daily-quotidien/220718/dq220718c-eng.htm

[2] Augustyn, A. (n.d.). Peltier effect. Britannica. Retrieved November 29, 2022, from
https://www.britannica.com/science/thermoelectricity