Where’s all the software for undertakers?
Do we really need another MP3 converter? Or another Windows registry cleaner? What about a new time management program that’s just like all the other time management programs only with one extra feature?
When it comes to developing new software, originality is in short supply. So many companies seem to take the safe route and build a product that has been built before. They convince themselves that their product is going to be different, and that their interpretation is so much better than the competitions. The field they choose to work in is almost always flooded with more established versions of their new product. PageFour, my first project, falls into this category.
So who are we designing software for? Or more importantly, who are we not designing software for? A quick search on Google throws up the following:
- “software for project management,” yields 69,500 results
- “software for schools,” 146,000
- “software for accounting,” 106,000
- “software for writers,” 93,400
- “software for restaurants,” 11,800
- “software for undertakers ,” 6
- “software for morticians ,” 0
Why is no one designing software for undertakers? They’re a business just like any other. Well, maybe not just like any other - but they keep records, make sales, and have a product range and stock to manage. They must be keeping tabs on all those different coloured coffins and bottles of formaldehyde somewhere.
It’s not only undertakers who are suffering from a lack of quality software to help them do their jobs. Software for nuns returns only two results, one of which is a link to a porn site. Pet shops, preachers, magicians… all suffer from a similar lack of attention.
Why are new software startups not taking advantage of this gap in the market? Granted, sourcing the product requirements may involve some hanging out in morgues and cemeteries, but surely a shot at becoming a market leader in an area that is guaranteed never to run short of business more than makes up for working in a socially embarrassing field.
So here’s a call to all you morticians, pet shop owners, preachers and magicians out there. How happy are you with your current software solutions? Are they drab, grey and barely functional? Do you dream of better days to come, when software with pretty icons will be designed just for you?
This is more than idle curiosity. I’m researching new product ideas, and would genuinely like to hear from anyone working in slightly unusual fields where dedicated software solutions are in short supply. if this sounds like you, and we’ll talk.