3M Vital Patch

An app to bridge the gap between pet owners and the vet

The consumer department at 3M was recently taking a look at the pet owner market. While searching they were able to propose a user journey map in which pet owners who recently adopted a pet were left feeling uncertain of that pet once it became ill. Furthermore, even after the owner brought their pet in to the veterinarian, and paid to have them treat their pet, they were left with a feeling of unease as to whether this treatment would work.

This issue is actually very near and dear to me as I currently have two pets at home, both of which I have suffered similar situations with. Taking your pet into the vet is no small matter. First it’s a time commitment which, in this day in age time is becoming more and more valuable. Second, the vet is incredibly expensive, and when you are taking your pet in to have them checked out you can expect to be shelling out at least a hundred bucks if not way more. I have had to shell out over two thousand dollars just to run my pup through a series of tests, only to find it out that they all came back inconclusive. Finally, and certainly the worst issue is the emotional and mental strain that puts on your pet and you.

So what is it that 3M can do for this dilemma that seems to be plaguing new pet owners? Well first things first, I had to set some parameters. If 3M was going to attempt to improve upon this area, it had to start small, which meant that tackling all pets at once seemed too large. Since dogs are among the top three owned pets in the world, I thought it best we start there and with any luck this project could expand beyond that limitation in time.

The Problem

1. First time dog owners who juggle a work-life balance were experiencing anxiety when shorty after they purchased their pet, it became ill.

2. Veterinarians and pet owners have a disconnect due to communication, financial, and schedule convenience inconsistencies.

The Proposal

1. Gain a better understanding of what the communication gap space looks like, and why it has come to exist between pet owners, and veterinarians.

2. Consider what 3M, and current technology can offer as possible solutions.

The Solution

1. Design a Patch/Pill/Mobile app, that allows pet owners to diagnose common issues with their dog at home, while still communicating that information with their local vet, thus creating a bridge for the existing gap between the two users.

Research

To find any solution, we must always start with research. With the help of some fellow UXers, we were able to come up with some supporting data that actually opened my eyes a bit to being a pet owner. Our findings showed that there is a very large amount of dog owners that, given their circumstances are either unable or unwilling to bring their pets into the vet at first signs of illness. These illnesses ranged from the dog being sick, injured, or in some cases having ingested food that was potentially toxic.

On the flip side, veterinarians were feeling frustrated that these dog owners weren’t seeking out their help when their pets needed them the most, and were instead looking up home care on places like reddit.com or simply scouring the internet for answer. There seemed to be a pattern that had formed over time, a pattern of disconnect between owners, and vet’s.

Competitive Analysis

Well I knew that in order to bridge this disconnect, there needed to be something that can facilitate the cost, time, and trust gap that dog owners (our users) had with vet’s, as well as allowing for the veterinarian world to become a part of the the home pet remedy solution. This meant that 3M would need to have some kind of device or app that could help pets in need when their ill, and open the users up to vet’s all while remaining in the home. Hmmmm…

I had an idea, but as always I need to base it on research. So back to the internet I went, trying to see if the tech of today could support this idea. Much to my delight I was able to find that there was an applicator already being manufactured for humans. The application process was such that the person would ingest a pill that had a nano chip inside, which would then be digested in the body. An external patch is applied to this human and the vitals are sent to an app for the doctor or patient to monitor how they are doing.

Ideate

It was like lightning in a bottle. 3M being known as a materials company, already has a similar patch on the market. This patch also applies to the skin and with chip technology is able to read biometrics on a human. I thought, what better way for 3M to pivot that research, and use it towards pet health by making a pill/patch applicator with an app read-out. Not only will the app be read by the dog owner, but it could also be read by their veterinarian to help diagnose, and instruct the user on how to treat their dog at home.

Connected Experience Journey Map

With this prototype our user journey map, was transformed into a connected experience map, connecting the dots between our pet owners, and their vet’s to increase pet health.

Prototype

I also needed to make sure I knew where all the touchpoint were going to happen along our journey. In order to properly walk 3M through our users process a storyboard was created to demonstrate the vital patch path.

It starts with our user adopting their new dog and bringing him to the vet to get his initial vitals taken at the vet. While there, our vet introduces the K-9 Vital Patch to our user, and explains how it works as well as the annual fee. Our user signs up for the patch and heads home. A few days later the new dog becomes ill, but not to worry our user has K-9 Vital Patch to the rescue. Following a few simple steps, and using the mobile app, our users vet is able to diagnose, and instruct the user how to care for the dog at home.

This makes for a happy pup, a happy owner, and a happy vet. It all came at minimal cost to anyone, but till makes a profit in the long term for both the clinic, and 3M (the manufacturer).

Metrics Proposal

With this prototype becoming a realization the applications could be vast. Nano technology is just coming into its own, but along with 3M’s help, the Vial Patch could be used for all kinds of animals (not just pets) including farm animals! Imagine a farmer whose livelihood depends on their livestock, who better to benefit from something that can help bridge that financial, emotional, and time gap then them?

In order to fully realize just what kind of future the Vital Patch may have, a metrics proposal needed to be drawn, and with that information at hand will hopefully one day be realized.