Business Design

Prologue

As the frosty tendrils of winter melted into the vibrant renewal of spring in 2020, I embarked on an exciting journey to breathe life into a startup named Hyperloyal. This venture was born within the creative incubator of the Antler start-up generator. The mission was clear yet ambitious: to empower local service outlets with the tools to forge unique customer journeys and loyalty, a luxury that had primarily been the domain of large corporations. The essence of Hyperloyal was to craft personalized experiences, each as unique as a fingerprint, resonating deeply with the local community.

The Challenge

The landscape of commerce is a tumultuous one, with local businesses and tradespeople increasingly battling the Goliath of e-commerce and monolithic service providers. Without the might of big budgets or the whispering winds of vast data pools to craft compelling offers, these local Davids often find themselves overshadowed in the competitive arena.

The Innovative Solution

Rising to this challenge, I set about weaving a toolkit that would enable local service outlets to sculpt customer journeys as riveting and personalized as their larger competitors. This was no ordinary toolkit. It was a beacon of technological innovation, harnessing the power of newly matured technologies such as Apple’s Wallet, QR codes, and Progressive Web Apps. With this, local businesses could offer a full app functionality and interactive experience at a fraction of the usual cost. The cherry on top? A low user threshold, as customers were spared from downloading a new app for each shop or office they frequented.

The Fruitful Outcome

The prototype was embraced warmly by consumers, a beacon of hope amidst the pandemic that had forced traders and shops to reassess their operations. The feedback was not only limited to consumers; it echoed within the halls of Apple itself. They saw the potential in Hyperloyal, recognizing that the timing was perfect and the technology had matured to a point where this could be a revolutionary way to utilize it. The affirmation from such a tech giant solidified the belief that Hyperloyal was a game-changer, set to redefine the narrative for local service outlets in the battleground of customer loyalty.

This project serves as a testament to the potential of technology in leveling the playing field, enabling local service outlets to carve out their own unique customer journeys and foster deep-rooted loyalty, despite the towering presence of their larger counterparts.

Introduction

In the fall of 2020, I became intrigued by the agency industry for actors. I perceived the existing business model as unfavorable for actors, who were required to give away between 10-20% of their salary without clear effort from the agent. Additionally, the services provided by these agents were of subpar quality. This situation sparked an idea to design a new business model and create a service that would be welcomed by actors, directors, and producers alike.

Problem Statement

The issue was twofold: actors received low and unclear value in return for the significant portion of their earnings they had to surrender to their agents. Moreover, the existing services weren’t user-friendly, providing a low level of service for industry players. This opened up an opportunity to develop a new kind of service and a website that could serve as a reliable tool for the industry when scouting for new talent.

Methodology

The initial step was an industry review to understand the current landscape of services. I then identified the most significant shortcomings based on Jakob Nielsen’s “10 heuristics for user interface design”. These insights formed the basis for the initial sketches, which were tested against the target group. After making necessary adjustments and onboarding a few actors, I launched the service.

The goal was to get the first version running as quickly as possible to gather live insights, crucial since I was new to the industry and needed to establish new contacts. I believed it was easier to demonstrate how a new version of an agency could function, rather than just talk about it. Upon going live, I actively sought feedback from the industry, which I rapidly incorporated into the website to improve its functionality.

Results

The response to swedishactors.se has surpassed all expectations. New actors get in touch daily, wanting to join the agency and utilize the new service – all without any marketing efforts, relying solely on word-of-mouth, organic growth, and social media posts by our actors.

The industry appreciates the clarity of the service and its user-friendly nature. The revised business model, where actors have the freedom to determine how they want to set aside funds for their career development, has received positive feedback.

Furthermore, the SEO efforts have been a significant success. After only two months, the brand search term ”Swedish actors” made it to the first page of search results, competing against established sites like IMDb, Pinterest, and Wikipedia.

Impact

The new service has not only provided a more equitable business model for actors but also improved the overall user experience for all industry players. By focusing on user needs and continuously improving the service based on feedback, the website has quickly established itself as a reliable tool for the industry and a platform for actors to take control of their careers.