The document summarizes feedback from focus groups on the Cake end-of-life planning tool. Participants generally reacted positively to the product's features for organizing documents and planning, though some noted it may not benefit those who already have plans. Well-liked features included document storage, personalized checklists, and password management. Pricing preferences included a one-time payment of around $250 and yearly payments of $80 with pausing options. Suggestions focused on improving marketing, security, and adding features for retirement planning, different cultures, and pets.

1. Cake-Brandeis Field Project
Presentation
Mali Zhao, Leiyuxiang Wu, Luhan Shen, Yutian Lai

2. ◉ Project Objectives & Overview
◉ Product Overview & Features
◉ Premium Pricing
◉ Product Suggestions & General Comments
◉ Conclusion
2
Table of Contents

3. Project Objectives & Overview
1 3

4. 4
Project Overview
Understand the motivation of end-of-life planning
Project Objectives
Observe consumers’ general reaction to Cake
Discover end-of-life planning feature preferences
Premium feature pricing strategy
Conduct both in-person & online focus groups
Project Design
Ask a series of motivation, product & pricing questions
Analyze for key findings and provide suggestions

5. 5
Focus Group Overview
2 2
0
1
1
2
2
3
In-person Online
New Parent,
10, 67%
Caregiver, 4,
27%
Future
Planner, 1,
6%

6. 6
Focus Group Questions
End-of-life planning motivation
Product features
Premium pricing
• “For those that have done planning, what prompted you to do it? What did you do?” and
“For those that haven’t done planning, why not? What has prevented you from planning”
• What is your general reaction to our product?
• What do you think are good features to offer, and which features do you think is not
necessary? (like/dislike) What do you think is needed but we are not offering?
• Among all the features/tools that you like, which ones are you willing to pay?
• Could you share some thoughts about the price you are willing to pay with us?
• How much are you willing to pay for comprehensive planning that includes all the
features?
• Are you willing to buy our offering for more than one family member at a discount? How
much discount?
• Do you prefer monthly/annual payment to use our service, or just one-time payment?

7. 7
Focus Group Comments

8. Product Overview & Features
2 8

9. 9
Previous End-of-life Planning Experiences
Have never
done any
EOL planning
before
25%
Only have life
insurances
25%
Have wills
and life
insurances
50%
Caregiver
Have never
done any
EOL planning
before
40%
Only have life
insurances
40%
Have wills
and life
insurances
20%
New
Parent
Have will,
living trust,
and grave
100%
Future
Planner

10. ◉ Most people are still lack of awareness of EOL planning
◉ Educational platform and services are in need
◉ Know more about EOL planning -> Know more about Cake
10
End-of-life Planning Motivation

11. Detailed
User Friendly
Interface
Comprehensive &
helpful
Convenient & Easy to use
Product General Reaction
• “Great and thorough, includes everything”
• “Everything in one place and sharing are
convenient and valuable”
• “User friendly appearance, easy to complete”
• “Fascinated by the idea of personal funeral decisions”
• “Need alerts once a year to make updates to the documents”
• “Easier tool to have things done at finger tip.
User interface of the website is good”
• “Great to store document, it’s easier to
find them when someone passed away”
• “Make life easier”
• “Good idea, convenient platform”
• “More of a repository”
Commonly
agree
Personalized

12. General Impression
Why I dislike?
Why I like?
Well organized to save money and
time by skipping some of the
lawyer parts
Much cheaper than lawyers in
helping them build a framework
Good pipeline: Ideas follow
questions to generate a template,
then approved by lawyers and
notarized
Competition from rocket lawyers
due to business overlap
Purely online stuff might still be a
barrier for some senior people
For those who have done some
end-of-life planning and have
paper documents, do not see
further values

13. Feature Preferences
Like but Barely Talked about DislikeLike
Live expert guide
More control over sharing
Role assignment to key people
Wallet card
Read-receipts
Manage “key people”
E-notary
Triggered profile sharing
Review of legal documents
Personalized planning
checklist
Document storage and
Unlimited file storage
Password manager tool

14. 14
Liked Features
E-notary
-3 is too limited
Triggered profile sharing
-How does it trigger?
Review of legal documents
-Binding with employer
payment
-Much cheaper than lawyer
Password manager tool
-Auto-updated passwords
-Good for senior people
-Important and useful in
emergency
-Safety
-Offline storage seems to be
safer and free
Personalized planning
checklist
-Good and user friendly
-Less overwhelmed
Document storage and
Unlimited file storage
-Security
-Cutoff between basic and
premium
-Update alert
-Annoyed about paying for
extra storage
-Other substitutes

15. 15
Disliked Features
Wallet card
“Stupid”
Not allowed to go
through the wallet
Private information
“If I share with
someone, why would
I need alert?”
Read-receipts
They should have better
ways to contact each
other
Manage “key people”

16. Premium Pricing
316

17. 17
One-time Payment Pricing
One-time Pricing Range Distribution:
Mean: $240, Median: $250
Pricing among different Groups:
Caregivers are willing to pay highest price.
One senior would pay $100
100-200
33%
201-300
50%
301-400
17% 233
325
100
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
New Parent Caregiver Senior

18. 80-90
75%
91-100
25%
With Pausing
Option
18
Yearly Payment Pricing
Pricing among different Groups:
New Parents and Caregivers have similar
willingness
86.7
80
76
78
80
82
84
86
88
New Parent Caregiver
Yearly Pricing Range Distribution:
Mean: $85
Median: $80 > $50 (Data from previous survey)
Different understanding of Cake’s value

19. Yearly payment needs a Pausing/Unpausing option
19
Pricing Suggestions
Personalized features bundle: 20% lower (one-time) for top 5 /
$50(yearly) for top 3
Updating fee: $10 to $20 for each doc (New Mom)
DO NOT charge for simple changes (Caregiver)
20% Discount for family purchase and early birds

20. Product Suggestions &
General Comments
420

21. 21
Product Suggestions
Better Product Description
May include Retirement & Financial Planning
Cheaper but more services than rocket lawyer
Marketing: comparing with lawyer
Different cultures consideration
End-of-life planning for pets or even children
Authentication of user

22. 22
General Comments
◉ Homepage Title
◉ Peer Reviews
◉ Security Information
◉ Cake Slices Blog and Marketplace
◉ Limited Data Usage
◉ Premium tiers

23. Conclusion
523

24. ◉ Educational tutorial
◉ An alternative to some lawyer’s services that can save time & money
◉ An easy resource for people to find good lawyers and get discount
◉ More valuable for those who have no idea of end-of-life planning
◉ Seniors pay more attention to the local referral
◉ Employee benefits: more legitimate and favorable
24
Conclusion: Product & Cake

25. 25
Conclusion: Pricing
Willing to pay for
premium features
Yearly price with
pausing option :
$80 vs One-time
payment: $250
Prefer one-time payment

26. THANKS!
26