Business Studies HSC HSC Practice Question 1b – New product and service design

PulseForge is a mid-sized sports technology business that currently manufactures a wrist-worn fitness tracker. It competes on reliability and mid-range price.

PulseForge is considering a new service called CoachLite, a subscription-based AI coaching feature that sits inside its existing mobile app. CoachLite would provide personalised training plans and recovery advice. The service will use:

• customer data already collected by the tracker (heart rate, sleep, steps)
• a new feature: users can optionally upload a short weekly “readiness” survey

PulseForge has set these constraints and targets for the first 6 months after launch:

• launch deadline: 12 weeks
• maximum development budget: \$420,000
• customer support team can handle up to 1,200 additional tickets per month without hiring
• the brand promise is “simple, accurate, and private”

Initial market research suggests two customer segments:

• Segment A (newer exercisers): wants simple guidance; more price-sensitive; likely to contact support if confused.
• Segment B (experienced athletes): wants advanced metrics; less price-sensitive; expects frequent updates.

Operations staff warn that adding CoachLite could increase app update frequency and create peaks in server usage on Sunday evenings when many users plan their week.