Got a leaky tap?
There’s an app for that.
In fact Joblink, which has been available on Apple’s app store since Aug. 16, could help users tackle a much broader range of tasks.
“It aids them in finding skilled people to do the jobs and solve that common question, ‘I don’t know who to call,’” said Braden Pruss, the 19-year-old creator of Joblink.
He uses the example of a dripping faucet to describe how the mobile computer program works.
The owner of that tap can post a request for repair services on Joblink. Respondents would then bid on the job, with their profiles — including reviews and photos from previous customers — provided.
“You kind of know who you’re hiring to do the job,” said Pruss, who wanted to give consumers an alternative to telephone and online directories.
“It’s to provide a new kind of marketplace for people to exchange, in a way.”
The Hunting Hills High School graduate, who moved to New York City last month to study cinematic arts at the New York Film Academy, spent about three months developing Joblink.
He contracted a programmer from Philadelphia to write the code. “I’m extremely happy with it,” he said of the free app. “It’s a very simple interface.”
Jobs can be posted locally, or opened up to bidders everywhere for tasks where proximity isn’t important — such as software design.
The payback for Pruss comes from a nominal fee he charges to bid on jobs.
“That’s the revenue-maker right there,” he said.
“People are definitely purchasing.”
As of late last week, Joblink had been downloaded about a thousand times. It had a couple of favourable reviews in Canada and about a half-dozen more in the United States.
“Within a year, I hope to have over 100,000 people using it,” said Pruss.
In fact, he thinks Joblink could grow into areas that even he can’t foresee.
“It’s really interesting to kind of sit back and see what people do with it.”
The challenge right now, said Pruss, is to raise public awareness.
“That’s definitely the hard part,” he said, noting that there are hundreds of thousands of apps on the market, and strategies like social media marketing are too expensive for a young student.
But Pruss is prepared to be patient and wait for Joblink grow and evolve.
“I am extremely optimistic.”
hrichards@www.reddeeradvocate.com