Idea... Feedback?

[Tiber]

Background and Problem:

I travel around a lot. In the bigger cities you see buskers, street performers, and the like. Occasionally, I come across someone I'd like to tip, but I tend to not keep cash on me.
I think to myself, I'm sure there's other people who occasionally fall into situation. I personally don't like to keep cash on me unless it's absolutely necessary (but that's beside the point).

Solution:
The solution lies with the street performer. What if I created an website/ app with a membership feature:
1.) Sign up and you get a QR code to print out
2.) The QR code is connected to a personal payment function like Square or PayPal
3.) All the busker has to do is print out the QR code and set it up
4.) To tip the performer all one would need to do is scan the QR code with a smart phone
5.) The scan would send the tipper three options: 1$, 5$ or tip your own amount
6.) Boom the busker is paid
7.) We take a small cut (possibly)

Additional Features:
Paid Monthly membership with features of convenience:
1.) a customized QR code sign that weather proof
2.) Ad free
3.) Social media shareable
4.) Networking with other Membership users for colaboration

Possible Problems:
1.) Will people take the time to scan a QR code?
2.) Is there a market? There's always street performers, and there's always Smart phone users. Not sure how to gaige if there's a "market" for this though.
3.) I think the only part I'd have to rely on an outside source is for the Paid membership weather proof sign creation and fulfillment.


Thoughts? I put this on the INSIDERS because of the detail in which I describe this venture.

 

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[jpn]

The only (solvable) issue I see is that small payments are very expensive you might have to pay 10 cent on a dollar transaction. It’s solvable, but not easy.

it’s common in China where people are used to paying via QR code. In the west my biggest question mark is how many people will go through the trouble of scanning the QR code. Wouldn’t the busker be better off getting a contactless enabled square reader or something like that?

 

[Tiber]

In the west my biggest question mark is how many people will go through the trouble of scanning the QR code. Wouldn’t the busker be better off getting a contactless enabled square reader or something like that?

Yea,
I agree. But how many people are comfortable pulling out their credit cards in public other then a store till? There tends to be a higher amount of pic pockets around were Buskers tend to hang out. It seems like the QR code if big enough will be convenient in the sense that they wont need to get that close to tip. It'll be as easy as recording the Busker.

 

[fluffhead]

Being an analyst that studies payments companies for his day job, I can confirm that the biggest hurdle is going to be the transaction costs for each payment. Both SQ and PYPL charge 2.9% + 30c for every transaction. So on a $5 transaction, the performer would only be earning $4.55. That's before any additional fees you levy for the services.

While some may be happy to get the $4.55, others would rather limit contributions to cash I would assume. Best thing you can do is hit to roads and ask the performers themselves....see if the market actually exists and the product would be valued.

 

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[Tiber]

Best thing you can do is hit to roads and ask the performers themselves....see if the market actually exists and the product would be valued.

Yea,

I've begun to do that, so far everyone I've talked to likes the idea.

 

[Low Chi]

Just a humble opinion from an open innovation point of view: I assume with the market entrance of libra (the facebook currency) the people behind libra will adopt many learnings from C2C-money-transfer of China, especially WeChat. The right stimuli will attract increasing numbers of users and you can be pretty sure that they'll want to scale fast.

Think in terms of "send money home via facebook profile" instead of being ripped of by the charges of Moneygram or Western Union or even your bank (international bank transfer costs). The other feature will be that they will make it pretty easy compared to all the blockchain transfers and hurdles of handling a cryptocoin-wallet of today. I assume you'll be able to upgrade your Facebookaccount to Libra and maybe they are forced (by laws) to install a better access protection than the FB account itself, but it will definitely be an easy setup for the user. In some countries you need a banklicence for money transfer - but as Paypal handled that, Libra will too.

If you are familiar with phone to phone money transfer via WeChat (You just have to friend the other user before and have to have a chinese bank account), you see that Libra could copy these transaction procedures. Countries like sweden (the cashless society) will adopt easy, countries like Germany not - because the germans like their access to their assets non-digital. The only acceptance threats I see is a ban by law (government in a country) or the volatility compared to the national currency.

The result: Even beggars could use a sign with "please donate to my FB/Libra account: BeggarMikeLondonCentral" and there wouldn't be a need for the QR and additional fintech procedures anymore.

BUT: If FB / the Libra consortium will open developer APIs, maybe you could connect your idea to that?
I also want to emphasize: that's only my opinion. If Libra is banned by law in several countries, it won't tangent your idea.

I like the idea to donate instantly a lot. Just wanted to mention "the arising competitor" Keep on originating. Who knows - maybe you create a payment system so easy that Libra would buy or licence it.

 

[Low Chi]

@Tiber check out the news about Facebook Pay. I think that's the same like I wrote above: Implementing a WeChat-payment-equivalent and adopting it to the current user base. As far as I read, it is separated from Libra and the Calibra-Wallet, but it can be used for donations and moneytransfer of small amounts to donate. Payment-links are available for Paypal, Credit- and Debit-Cards. Facebook Pay aims to make it easier to send money across all of its apps

 

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