What We Learned from Our First 6 Weeks of MadaAssist
Launching MadaAssist has been an exciting journey. Six weeks into our service in Madagascar, we’ve already learned a lot—especially when it comes to the real demand behind the services we offer. Some things surprised us, some confirmed our expectations, and others showed us entirely new opportunities.
Food Delivery and Laundry: Less Demand Than Expected
Before launching, we believed food delivery and laundry services would be among the most requested features. They seemed like logical essentials for travelers and locals alike. But in reality, almost nobody is looking for laundry help, and food delivery requests have been extremely rare. This surprised us, considering the popularity of food delivery apps in many countries.
Taxi Requests Are Tricky
Based on Google search volume, we also expected a strong demand for taxis. But while some travelers do look for taxis, we’ve found that most are extremely short on time—they want a ride immediately. Unfortunately, this doesn’t align well with our booking structure, where a 20-minute wait is often necessary. It's an important insight for us as we think about improving or repositioning this service.
Massages: Not as Big as Expected
We had also anticipated massages to be in high demand, but so far, only a few clients have asked for them. It seems this category is more of a "nice-to-have" than a core service. We're keeping it available, but it's clearly not a major driver of interest for now.
Airport Transfers: Low Margin, High Value
The service that has performed the best so far is airport transfers. While these jobs usually have a relatively low price and therefore bring in only small margins, they’ve been consistent. More importantly, they allow us to establish contact with travelers right as they arrive. This early connection builds trust and makes it easier for them to book other services with us later.
Car Rentals: A High-Potential Discovery
One unexpected success was car rentals. We had our first booking recently, and it immediately became clear that this service offers higher profit potential than transfers. Because of that, we added a new car rental section to our website. It’s encouraging to discover demand in areas we hadn’t focused on before.
Private Drivers: The Next Step
As we explored car rentals further, we discovered that many suppliers only offer cars with a driver included. So, our next plan is to list a new service: private drivers. This should give clients more clarity and help us better match supply with demand.
Tours and Guides: A Future Opportunity
We also offer tour guides, but so far there hasn’t been any real demand. What we did see instead were inquiries for full package tours—including transport, hotels, entrance tickets, and a guide. Right now, this is too complex for us to coordinate. We’re focusing on individual services for the moment. Full package tours might be something we explore once we’ve built stronger partnerships and a larger, more reliable supplier network.
Building a Network of Local Suppliers
Behind the scenes, we’ve been hard at work building our local contact list. In just six weeks, we’ve gathered hundreds of supplier contacts—drivers, guides, rental services, and more. Every day, we discover new providers. While in the beginning we had to spend hours researching for each request, now we’re much faster. With each day, our network gets stronger, and that’s key to our long-term success.
Looking Ahead
These first six weeks have shown us that running a flexible, real-time travel support service is full of surprises. Some assumptions didn’t hold up, while others revealed new potential we hadn’t seen coming. What matters most is staying agile, listening to client behavior, and constantly adapting. MadaAssist is still in its early days, but we’re learning fast—and building something that truly fits the unique needs of travelers in Madagascar.
