($250-136.79)/(30-16)=$8.08>$7.50... budgeting is too complicated.
Try Simple Budget. It is a budgeting app that simplifies budgeting into simple answers for if you can spend money or not. Based on the spending goals you input, Simple Budget tells you how much money you can spend right now or how long you need to wait until you can spend money again. Unlike any other budget app on the current market, Simple Budget calculates your spending on a rolling monthly average. This allows you to keep consistent spending patterns and avoid over or underspending based on what part of the month it is. It still will send out a monthly report for the user of their spending data. All that is required from the user is inputted goals and occasionally choosing the category of a transaction.
Other than that, the app does all of the work for the user. It analyzes the personal spending data to give you feedback and recommendations. Through automatic bank transactions and AI, it can allocate purchases into each category. Simple Budget will offer a free and a premium version. The free version requires manual transaction input. Additionally, the premium version tracks subscriptions. With this version of Simple Budget, it will allow you to plan for recurring and future expenses. With this feature, a warning will appear if you are on track to overspend in the future, even if you have not overspent already. By helping people be intentional with their money, this will help more people avoid debt, retire earlier, and stop wasting money. The premium version will be accessed by paying a monthly or yearly subscription fee.
This fee will be between $10-$15/month or $100-$150/year. There are several solid budgeting apps currently on the market. This means that (1) there is a current market for budgeting apps and (2) there is ample competition to fight off. However, Simple Budget is different for two primary reasons: the budget is on a rolling basis and it simplifies financial decision making for users to a yes or no. Currently, there is an Excel prototype for the app that works for the free version capabilities. Currently, I am working on a prototype for the premium version. Then, app development is the planned next step. Simple Budget will only be used by people if it is in the form of an app. The biggest expenses currently planned are primarily data-related. Insurance and security will be necessary to protect the user's sensitive financial data. The target market is primarily people who have never budgeted before, especially because the math has been too complicated for them. This will probably be entry-level workers (recent college or high school graduates) who are earning their first substantial paychecks. Also, a possibility is offering student discounts so that, when they graduate and make money, they will naturally continue using our products, rather than the product of a different company. The marketing plan is to focus on the idea that this is very simple and easy to use.
Email: colin.horn@uky.edu
Project Owner
Colin Horn