Tax Titan
An app that is geared towards helping small business owners make filing taxes and organising business expenses more efficient.
Problem Space
Problem Statement
I think we can all agree that tax time is the most stressful time of the year, especially for small business owners. So, how can we make filing taxes and organizing business expenses easier for small business owners?
Problem Background
As a small business owner myself, every year filing taxes becomes more and more chaotic, and anxiety-driven. It can get overwhelming to keep up with everything, especially if you have little to no help, which most small business owners don’t.
Tax related issues rank high among small business problems. In fact, 77% of small business owners reported that federal business income taxes were very or moderately burdensome according to NFIB’s 2021 Tax Survey (William Dunkelberg, 2021). Which in result means that about 20% fail in their first year, and about 50% fail in their fifth year. If there was a way to provide resources for small business owners, we could possibly decrease that percentage.
Our target audience is any small business owner- nail techs, photographers, videographers, creatives, car detail service providers, personal trainers, wedding planners, private chefs, lash techs, etc.
Research Insights
User Pain Points
After collecting feedback from 10 small business owners on their experience with filing taxes, there was a mix of challenges that they faced. Some wrote that they wished they understood the nuances of taxes and how to avoid the government screwing them over by taking more money from them. Others wanted to keep better track of their expenses.
Supporting Data
50% of people surveyed file their own taxes and 50% use an accountant.
50% of people use an app to help with taxes and 50% don’t.
Feedback
Our preliminary user research to validate this problem found that most small business owners do not understand how taxes can work to their advantage and how to track their business expenses.
Landing on the Solution
Based on our target users’ pain points, we knew we wanted to work on the following features:
- Provide resources for small business owners to better understand taxes
- Help them connect with local tax professionals
- Add in ways to help them budget business expenses
- Include an expense tracker & organizer
- Have a dashboard/summary report of their expenses
Future Steps
Possible additional problems to address is helping small business owners kick start their education on taxes while also helping them maximize their profits over loss.
Learnings
Product Manager Learnings:
Veronica Mossed
Co. Lab has really helped me focus on the problems of users instead of jumping right into the solution. When I started to survey users, more pain points arised than I expected, which led me to create more solutions that I didn’t know were possible.
Designer Learnings:
Designer Learnings:
Jo Sturdivant
- Adapting to an Established Team: Joining the team in week 6 of 8 was challenging, as I had to quickly adapt to existing workflows, dynamics, and goals. This mirrors real-world situations where you often integrate into teams mid-project, and flexibility is essential.
- Work-Blocking for Efficiency: With only two weeks to complete the project, I learned the importance of a structured work-blocking system. This approach allowed me to manage my time effectively and meet deadlines under pressure.
- Making Data-Driven Design Decisions: Unlike my past projects, I had to rely on research conducted by others. This was a valuable experience in using pre-existing data to guide design decisions, helping me focus on the core insights without starting from scratch.
Developer Learnings:
Developer Learnings:
Vanady Beard
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As the back-end developer, I learned how important it is to create efficient and reliable systems that support the entire application. This experience also taught me the importance of optimising the database and ensuring the backend is scalable and easy to maintain.
Developer Learnings:
Stephen Asiedu
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As a back-end developer, I've come to understand the importance of being familiar with various database systems and modules. This knowledge enables me to build diverse applications and maintain versatility in my work. I've also learned that the responsibility for making the right choices rests on my shoulders, guided by my best judgement.
Developer Learnings:
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Developer Learnings:
Maurquise Williams
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- Process of Creating an MVP: Developing a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) taught me how to focus on delivering core functionalities balancing between essential features and avoiding scope creep.
- Collaboration in a Real-World Tech Setting: This experience taught me how to collaborate efficiently in a fast-paced tech environment, keeping the team aligned and productive, even while working remotely across time zones.
- Sharpening Critical Thinking and Problem-Solving Skills: This experience honed my ability to think critically and solve problems efficiently. By tackling challenges and finding quick solutions, I sharpened my decision-making and troubleshooting skills in a dynamic, real-world setting.
Developer Learnings:
Jeremiah Williams
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All in all this experience was very awesome I learned that in coding with others being transparent is key
Developers Learnings:
Justin Farley
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I learned how important communication is when working with a team. Communication provides understanding, advice, ideas, and much more. While working with the product team, I’ve found that communication keeps everything flowing smoothly. Working with a team also showed me that every member brings something different to the table and we all have to work together in order to align and meet our end goal.