kaZING, Inc., a rising alternative to leading on-demand service platforms, recently announced that it will enable off-app payments, allowing customers (people that request services) greater flexibility in regards to choosing their favorite payment method. This, with the elimination of the 20% platform fee, will completely disrupt the on-demand market place in various ways.
We live In a world with thousands of payment options, such as cash, credit cards, checks, venmo, etc., Consumers are looking for a platform for on-demand services with the flexibility of gig listing sites, but with the addition of mutual ratings, reviews, profiles, identity verification, background checks, and more.
After gathering market feedback, kaZING discovered that there is an enormous market of people that are not likely to use an app like TaskRabbit. Many people are not willing to pay such a high fee for services; many others do not wish to link their bank accounts to yet another app, while some others do not even have bank accounts. People may use the app at first, but are then enticed to eliminate the app out of their process when they find workers they like. Some neighbors wish to keep track of hours of help, but do not wish to trade dollars every time, while some people wish for an instant payment via Venmo, Paypal, or Bitcoin.
As competitors require that users pay through their app with an added ~35% fee, kaZING is taking a different approach. Though kaZING plans to take a small fee for in-app transactions (only 5%), the company is offering free off-app transactions.
kaZING’s mission is to connect neighbors, offering a flexible, hyperlocal solution to finding help within a wide range of services. When someone needs tech help, elderly assistance, tutoring, or cleaning services, they simply follow the steps on the kaZING app to submit a request. Local service providers are alerted when a request matches their skill set and express interest in the job. Customers and Service Providers can view each other’s profiles, chat through the app, and if the profiles look good, schedule and complete the job.
