SeneMarket

Selected Problem

University students often struggle to find affordable academic materials, as new items can be expensive, and second-hand options are disorganized and unreliable. Many materials go to waste after a semester, while students in need face difficulties affording and locating them. Additionally, during high-demand periods like exams, last-minute purchases create stress and delays. Existing platforms lack smart features to efficiently connect buyers and sellers within the university community.

Proposed Solution

To promote a circular economy, reduce environmental impact, and help students manage their academic expenses, we propose a smart university marketplace tailored for buying and selling academic materials within the university community. This mobile app will leverage context-aware smart features to enhance usability and efficiency:

1. The app will detect exam periods and highlight essential materials (e.g., exam sheets, lab supplies) at the top of search results.
2. Users will see materials classified for exam weeks on top of everything during those critical weeks, ensuring they purchase necessary materials easy and in advance.

Core Features & Functionality

• Secure University-Only Access: Ensures trust by requiring a Uniandes email for registration.
• Comprehensive Product Listings: Displays product names, descriptions, images, and seller contact details.
• Efficient Search & Smart Filtering: Filters materials by course, category, or program with AI-driven recommendations.
• Transaction Confirmation & Inventory Management: Removes sold items automatically for accurate availability.
• Context-Aware Urgent Materials Alerts: Detects and promotes essential academic supplies during key periods.

By integrating AI-driven recommendations and context-aware features, this marketplace will go beyond traditional second-hand platforms, offering a smarter, more reliable, and highly efficient solution for academic material exchange within the Uniandes community.

Revenue Model

SeneMarket's revenue model will be based on three main streams: in-app advertisements, voluntary donations, and premium visibility options for sellers. The platform will feature non-intrusive ads from relevant brands, generating steady income while maintaining a smooth user experience. Additionally, users who wish to support the platform can contribute through voluntary donations, helping sustain and improve the service. Lastly, sellers will have the option to pay for enhanced product visibility, such as featuring their listings at the top of search results or highlighting them in special sections, increasing their chances of making a sale. This diversified approach ensures financial sustainability while keeping the core functionality of the marketplace free and accessible to all students.

Value Proposal

SeneMarket is a university-exclusive marketplace designed to support both students and certified campus vendors by providing a structured and reliable platform for buying and selling a wide variety of products, from academic materials to snacks, desserts, phone cases, and more. It promotes a circular economy and waste reduction. Leveraging its context-aware smart features, the platform adapts to the university calendar, prioritizing exam materials during exam weeks and academic supplies. Additionally, it optimizes product visibility based on time-of-day patterns, promoting food vendors during peak meal times and class transitions to maximize convenience for buyers and sellers. By ensuring a secure and trusted environment with verified university-affiliated sellers, SeneMarket enhances accessibility, boosts small student-led businesses, and fosters a dynamic, campus-focused economy tailored to the real-time needs of the community. So SeneMarket offers a trusted environment, cost-effective, sustinable and user-friendly solution tailored to the academic community's needs.

PAS

No.	Problem	Alternative	Solution
1	Many students cannot afford to buy all the materials they need to carry out their academic activities.	They can go to stationery stores that are cheaper, although this is difficult, or buy materials among several students to divide the bill.	A platform/application that allows access to the purchase of second-hand products at a lower price that can be used for their academic activities.
2	Many students want to sell products at the university but do not have time to be in a physical stand.	Being able to sell your products without having to be physically present at a stand, by sending the catalog of products you sell through social networks.	A platform/application where students can create their virtual store, upload their product catalog and manage orders without having to be present.
3	Many students purchase course materials that they only use for one semester and then store them without further use, wasting resources and taking up unnecessary space.	Look for groups or forums on social media where students can exchange/sell materials informally, although this can be disorganized and unreliable.	A platform/application for the exchange and sale of academic materials that includes filters and notifications of new products.
4	Students struggle to coordinate safe and effective deliveries when selling or purchasing products within the university, leading to cancellations, wasted time and mistrust.	Meeting points can be arranged on campus, but this depends on the availability of both parties and may cause inconveniences if one person does not arrive on time.	A platform/application with a secure delivery system, where students can schedule the delivery of products at established points within the university. The seller leaves the product and the buyer picks it up, for example, by scanning a QR code. The app will send real-time notifications and allow users to rate the product to generate confidence in the transactions.
5	Sellers students often face difficulty reaching potential buyers efficiently.	They can post on social media or message people directly, but these methods lack visibility and structure.	A centralized platform/application where sellers can list items with descriptions, images, and direct communication options.
6	Students effort to compare prices and quality when buying second-hand materials.	They can ask multiple sellers individually, but this is time-consuming and inefficient.	A platform/application where users can compare multiple listings of the same material, including prices, seller ratings, and product conditions.
7	Buyers worry about the condition of second-hand materials before purchasing.	They can ask sellers for more pictures or details, but this is inconvenient and may still be unreliable.	The platform/application will include standardized condition tags (e.g., "Like New," "Used with Notes") and allow buyers to leave reviews.
8	Many students want to sell their products but do not know how to do it or where they can offer them.	Some student profiles on social networks such as Instagram and Facebook give the opportunity to offer products for sale, but it is difficult for them to find a buyer at the time the publication lasts.	A platform where sellers can find buyers in an easier way, without worrying about the information on the sale of their products disappearing after 24 hours or remaining after many publications.
9	Many students do not have enough resources to cover their expenses.	They can have a space to sell their products on the tables set up by the university, but they cannot be present all the time, causing their sales to be lower and not being able to obtain the money they need.	An application that allows them to have a catalog of their products and sell them without having to be in a physical place 100% of the time, so they can get the money to solve their needs.
10	During exam weeks, students may forget to buy essential materials like exam sheets, leading to last-minute stress.	They can check stationery stores nearby or ask classmates, but this is unreliable and time-consuming.	A platform that prioritizes and highlights products tagged as “Exam Materials” during exam weeks, making them more visible and accessible.
11	Some students sell perishable products (e.g., food), and it is difficult for them to advertise their availability at the right time.	They can post on social media or send messages, but potential buyers might not see them in time.	A platform that dynamically promotes food sellers during peak hours (e.g., lunchtime) to increase visibility and sales.
12	Students often need temporary access to specialized academic tools (e.g., graphing calculators, lab equipment, art supplies) but cannot justify buying them for short-term use.	Borrowing from friends, renting from off-campus stores (if available), or skipping the task entirely—all of which are unreliable, costly, or limit academic performance.	A rental system within the app for short-term borrowing of specialized tools (e.g., lab equipment) with reservation features and campus pickup/drop-off points.

Context Canvas

Personas

Prospective

Analytics

Empathy Maps

Bussines Questions

Type 1

No.	Question	Purpose	Type justification
1	How many users download the application per week?	Tracks app growth and marketing effectiveness	This is pure telemetry data, as it tracks app installations over time. It helps measure marketing reach and adoption trends without direct user feedback or behavior analysis.
2	What are the busy hours for the marketplace usage?	Informs server scaling, customer support staffing, and potentially targeted promotions	This relies on system logs and usage analytics to determine peak activity. It helps optimize server performance, staffing, and scheduling of promotions based on actual usage patterns.

Type 2

No.	Question	Purpose	Type justification
1	Which filters should be suggested to the user based on their past searches?	Improves search efficiency by dynamically suggesting relevant filters based on the user’s previous interactions. This makes it easier for users to find what they need quickly.	This question enhances the individual user’s experience by providing personalized filter recommendations directly within the app, making searches more efficient and user-friendly.
2	Does this product have a high return rate, and should we warn the buyer before purchase?	Helps prevent dissatisfaction by alerting users if a product has a history of frequent returns. This allows users to make more informed purchasing decisions.	The information is shown directly to the user at the moment of purchase, improving transparency and reducing frustration, which enhances the overall user experience.
3	Has a saved item’s price dropped or has a new listing appeared for a saved search?	To notify users when an item they’re interested in becomes more affordable or available, increasing engagement and likelihood of purchase.	It provides real-time, personalized updates, improving the shopping experience by making it easier for users to act on desired deals.
4	Are there new messages or updates on an active listing?	To notify users when a potential buyer or seller has responded, ensuring timely communication and faster transactions.	It improves the user experience by keeping them informed about interactions that require their attention, reducing delays in transactions.

Type 3

No.	Question	Purpose	Type justification
1	Which features are used less than twice a month on average?	Identifies underused features to determine if they should be improved, redesigned, or removed to optimize the app’s usability and focus on what users find valuable.	Helps the business decide whether to remove or update low-usage features, ensuring the app remains relevant and user-friendly.
2	Which product categories receive the highest user engagement in terms of searches, listings, and transactions?	Identify which categories drive the most activity to optimize browsing experiences and inform potential category expansions.	Guides improvements to navigation, potential specialization of marketplaces, or the introduction of new categories based on user demand.
3	What percentage of users enable push notifications, and do they interact with them?	Assesses the effectiveness of notifications in engaging users and driving app activity.	If notifications have low interaction rates, the business may need to adjust their frequency, content, or opt-in strategy to make them more useful.
4	How frequently do users use the in-app messaging feature, and does it impact transaction completion rates?	Evaluate if direct communication between buyers and sellers improves transaction success.	Helps decide if the feature should be optimized, redesigned, or integrated differently.

Type 4

No.	Question	Purpose	Type justification
1	What product categories have the highest search-to-purchase drop-off rates?	Identify gaps between user interest and actual purchases to determine valuable insights for external retailers or manufacturers.	The marketplace can sell insights to brands or suppliers, helping them adjust pricing, marketing, or inventory.
2	Which times of the semester see the highest demand for second-hand academic materials?	Understand seasonal buying trends to help publishers, bookstores, or educational institutions optimize their sales strategies.	This data could be sold to publishers or educational institutions to inform better product launches, promotions, or book buyback programs.

Type 5

No.	Question	Purpose	Type justification
1	What app sections have the highest user engagement, and do these align with high-value ad placements?	Identify the most visited parts of the app to optimize ad placements while ensuring they don’t disrupt the user experience.	Combines app telemetry (Type 1) to track engagement and data monetization (Type 4) to sell premium ad spaces to advertisers.
2	What are the top 3 points in the user journey where users drop-off, and what factors contribute to disengagement?	Identify key pain points where users abandon the app or tasks, allowing for targeted UI/UX improvements to increase retention and conversion rates.	Combines app telemetry (Type 1) to track drop-off locations and user experience improvement (Type 2) to refine navigation, reduce friction, and improve usability.

VD Map

• VD- map link

Functional Scenarios

1. As a new student at the university, I want to register on SeneMarket using my university email so that I can access the marketplace and buy or sell items. It's the first week of classes, and I just heard about SeneMarket from a friend. I download the app, enter my university email, and receive a verification code. After confirming my account, I complete my profile by selecting my interests, like academic materials, food, and accessories. Now, I'm ready to start browsing and selling items.

2. As a student preparing for finals, I want to quickly find study materials, so that I can focus on preparing for my exams. It's the week before finals, and I need past exams and exam sheets for my calculus class. When I open SeneMarket, I immediately see highlighted listings for notes, textbooks, and exam materials because the app prioritizes academic materials during exam periods. I find a set of notes from a senior student, message them, and arrange a pickup for tomorrow.

3. As a hungry student between classes, I want to find food vendors as fast as possible, so that I can quickly buy a snack or lunch. It's 12:30 p.m., and I have a short break before my next lecture. I open SeneMarket, and the app prioritizes food-related listings since it's lunchtime. I see that a student vendor is selling homemade sandwiches. I message them to confirm availability, walk over to their location, and pick up my order within minutes.

4. As a student looking to sell my used books, I want to list them on SeneMarket, so that I can quickly find a buyer. It's the end of the semester, and I no longer need my economics textbook. I open SeneMarket, take a few photos, set a price, and select "Academic Materials" as the category. Within an hour, I get a message from a student interested in buying it. We arrange to meet at the library to complete the sale.

5. As a buyer, I want to pay securely through the app, so that I can complete my purchase with confidence. I found a law textbook I need for next semester. I select the in-app payment option, enter my payment details, and complete the purchase. SeneMarket immediately confirms my order and the seller also receives a notification. We arrange a meeting to complete the transaction.

6. As a seller, I want to set a pickup location on campus, so that buyers can easily find me. I just sold a mechanical pencil to another student. To make the exchange simple, I can message the seller from the app and setup a meeting point. I walk to the arrange location and we complete the transaction.

7. As a student selling homemade brownies, I want to promote my listings, so that more people see my products. It's the beginning of the week, and I want to attract more customers for my brownie business. I pay to use the "Boost" feature on SeneMarket, which makes my listing appear at the top of the food section. Within minutes, I recieve multiple messages from students interested in placing orders.

8. As a buyer, I want to leave a review after a purchase, so that I can help other students decide who to buy from. I just bought a second-hand backpack from another student, and I'm really happy with my purchase. After the exchange, SeneMarket prompts me to leave a review. I rate the seller five stars and write a short comment about their reliability. This helps build trust in the marketplace.

9. As a seller, I want my sold items to be automatically removed from the marketplace, so that I don't receive unnecessary messages. I just sold my Bluetooth headphones through SeneMarket. After the buyer confirms the transactions, my listing is automatically marked as "Sold", so other users no longer see it in search results. This saves me from having to manually remove it.

10. As a student looking for study materials, I want to search by course code, so that I can easily find what I need. I need a lab manual for my biology class. Instead of scrolling through all academic materials, I type "MBIO1100" into the search bar. SeneMarket filters the results and shows me listings tagged for the course. I quickly find what I need and contact the seller to arrange pickup.

11. As a student looking for a used laptop, I want to receive notifications when a new listing matches my search, so that I don't miss a good deal. I've been searching for a second-hand MacBook on SeneMarket, but haven't found one in my price range. I enable notifications for "MacBook" in the electronics category. A few days later, I get a notifications: "New MackBook listed for COP 1'900.000". I immediately check the listing, message the sellet, and arrange a meeting to buy it before someone else does.

12. As a student on a budget, I want to save interesting listings, so that I can decide later whether to buy them. While browsing SeneMarket, I see a high-quality backpack listed for COP 100.000. I don't have the money right now, so I tap "Save for Later". A few days later, I checl my saved items, see the backpack is still available, and buy it before someone else does.

Quality Scenarios

QS 1

Scenario Name	Connection loss during purchase
Quality attributes	Eventual connectivity, resilience, availability
App status and context	A student is finalizing the purchase of a product within the app. The device has a stable Internet connection at that moment
Changes in the context	Before completing the payment, the student moves to an area with poor network coverage and loses the connection
System reaction	The application detects the network interruption and puts the transaction on hold. Displays a message to the user indicating that the purchase has not been completed

QS 2

Scenario Name	Lack of memory on the device
Quality attributes	Performance, resource management, resilience
App status and context	The user is uploading several high-resolution photos to post a product and their phone's memory is almost full
Changes in the context	While the app processes and compresses the images, the operating system issues low memory alerts
System reaction	The application saves the post as a draft and the user is notified that it needs to free up space before retrying

QS 3

Scenario Name	Server overload in high season
Quality attributes	Scalability, availability, performance
App status and context	The end of the semester is approaching and many students are buying and selling books and notes. The server experiences a spike in requests
Changes in the context	Traffic volume doubles or triples compared to normal usage
System reaction	Real-time updates are temporarily limited, as well a “high demand” message and an estimated response time are displayed if the system is at its limit

QS 4

Scenario Name	Low battery during a transaction
Quality attributes	Availability, resilience, usability
App status and context	The user is in the middle of a purchase and must complete the process. The phone shows 5% battery remaining
Changes in the context	The user receives a notification that the battery is about to run out right when they are in the shopping cart
System reaction	If the battery runs out before finishing the process, the app saves the status of the transaction to continue automatically when the device turns on and regains connection

QS 5

Scenario Name	Network slowness when uploading multiple images
Quality attributes	Performance, eventual connectivity
App status and context	A student wants to publish a product with several photos. The data network is saturated or very slow
Changes in the context	The upload speed drops drastically and the process of uploading images becomes very slow
System reaction	If the upload fails, the app automatically retries and notifies the user if the task cannot be completed

QS 6

Scenario Name	Blocking third party API to process payments
Quality attributes	Availability, resilience, security
App status and context	The app depends on a third-party service (payment gateway) to process transactions. Several students are making purchases simultaneously
Changes in the context	The external payments API crashes or is temporarily blocked due to unscheduled maintenance
System reaction	The application detects the error and displays a message to the user indicating that the payment service is temporarily offline

QS 7

Scenario Name	Data synchronization failure with the cloud
Quality attributes	Eventual connectivity, resilience, data integrity
App status and context	A buyer entered the app to see the products that are for sale and the app must synchronize with the database in the cloud. The device has an unstable Wi-Fi connection
Changes in the context	During synchronization, the connection is disconnected and the products are not displayed
System reaction	When the connection is reestablished, the app automatically retries to sync. If the sync fails repeatedly, a message is displayed to the user to retry or verify the connection

QS 8

Scenario Name	Simultaneous users during peak hours
Quality attributes	Scalability, availability, performance
App status and context	Final exam dates are coming and many students are looking for notes, guides and materials in the app at the same time. The number of simultaneous active users multiples
Changes in the context	The load on the servers and database increases exponentially during a specific time slot
System reaction	Queues or caching mechanisms are implemented to avoid service outages. The application continues to respond in a reasonable time, even if the load is high

QS 9

Scenario Name	Forced App Update
Quality attributes	Maintainability, availability, security
App status and context	The user tries to make a purchase, but is running an outdated version of the app. The marketplace has critical updates that must be installed to ensure secure transactions
Changes in the context	The user attempts to proceed with the older version that is no longer compatible or secure. The system detects the outdated version when the user accesses certain features
System reaction	The application displays a prompt indicating that an update is required to continue, the user is redirected to the app store to download the latest version. Until the update is completed, the user cannot finalize the transaction or access core features

QS 10

Scenario Name	Cloud Storage Constraints
Quality attributes	Scalability, availability, performance
App status and context	The app stores images and listing data in a cloud-based service. End-of-semester surge leads to a significant increase in uploaded photos (notes, books, etc.)
Changes in the context	The allocated cloud storage reaches its limit due to the high volume of images and data. New uploads begin to fail or slow down significantly
System reaction	The system notifies the app that storage capacity is nearly full. Administrators receive an alert to increase the cloud storage quota or optimize existing data

QS 11

Scenario Name	Data Conflict Across Multiple Devices
Quality attributes	Data integrity, consistency, resilience
App status and context	A student is logged into the marketplace on both an iPad and a smartphone. They edit or create listings simultaneously on each device
Changes in the context	The user updates a product price on the iPad while, at the same time, changing the product description on the smartphone. Conflicting information is sent to the server from different sessions
System reaction	The system detects the conflict and prompts the user to resolve the discrepancies. The user is notified about the conflict and both sessions are closed

QS 12

Scenario Name	Scheduled Server Maintenance
Quality attributes	Availability, reliability, maintainability
App status and context	The marketplace server is scheduled for maintenance during low-traffic hours, users are notified beforehand about the downtime window
Changes in the context	As the maintenance window starts, the server goes into an offline mode to apply updates. Any ongoing transactions or uploads must be paused or finalized before the downtime
System reaction	The app displays a maintenance message and prevents new transactions from being initiated. Users trying to access the marketplace see a scheduled maintenance notification and estimated time of service restoration. Once maintenance is completed, the system resumes normal operations

Ethics Video

Ethics Video S1 G22