Where is my shop? app – Search. Find. Shop.

We took a closer look at the situation: shopping in a place with which the customer is unfamiliar. Individuals have problems with finding the desired shops, particularly because they have no clue where the shops are situated. They are possibly not even aware of the existence of locally known shops. Therefore we created the Where is my shop? app.

This app offers the customers the opportunity to search for the desired stores by searching by name, by a particular category or by shop in the neighborhood. So, the app includes extensive search options. If the customer has found the right stores, the application navigates the customer to the shop via Google Maps. The app offers the opportunity of reviewing stores. Customers can evaluate the stores by giving stars and textual explanation. Also the reviews that the customers give can be assessed. If a user of the app is very active and gives useful information this user will be rewarded and receive a special offering or discount code. Customers can add photos and stores. Additional recommendations will be given by the Where is my shop? app to recommend shops that may interest them. Also very important, the needed investment and effort of the customer to make use of the Where is my shop? app is minimal. They just have to download the app in the app store.

Before we developed this idea, we checked the current options. Currently there are a few options to find the appropriate shops: store apps, Google maps, Internet, store finders in specific categories, store finders in general and city maps. However, these options are first of all less efficient than our developed solution. It can be time consuming to find what you are looking for with the consisting apps. With this solution you just need one application. Furthermore most of the given existing options do not have multiple search options to find the desired store(s). Lastly, it helps the customer in the whole process. It starts with the search process and ends by guiding the customer to the preferred stores. Current solutions only help the customers in the searching process or navigate the customer. In short, the user friendly Where is my shop? app would offer the customers the perfect solution to find the best shops through multiple search options, navigate them to the shops and is free of charge.

This leads to an increased utility for the consumer. This is due to practical benefits (the reduced time-effort, increased search options, increased showcased stores, better route-map and recommendation system) and personal benefits (the integrated valuation and reward system). The above can be summarized as follows:

Utility level users (↑) = Practical benefits (↑) + Personal benefits (↑) – costs

Consumers have to download the app to their phones. By agreeing with the ‘terms of use’ a contract is established and users give the app access to several dimensions of their phones, such as their photo gallery and location. Within the app there is an abstract form of ownership, as their ‘reputation’ depends on their contributions and valuations. The amount of special offerings and discounts in turn depends on this ‘reputation’. Therefore, the users feel a sense of responsibility and engagement towards their ‘reputation’ within the app. To ensure a certain kind of behavior there is a ‘code of conduct’, which consists of information about among others desired behavior in general.

Below you can see an impression of the app through some screenshots.