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PingTag β Allow people to contact you without sharing your information
PingTag is a recovery tag that people can scan to contact you to return a lost item:
π Receive email + SMS alerts
π¬ Reply anonymously via SMS
π¨βπ©βπ§βπ¦ Assign multiple contacts to tags
π Update your phone number anytime
π Your contact info is never shown
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Hi ProductHunters,
The best thing about starting a new company is that you never know where the path will lead you. That journey, despite being unpredictable and stressful at times, is often more rewarding than the comfort and predicability of a steady paycheck.
Here is my journey with PingTag so far...
** π PingTag 1.0 **
The original idea for PingTag was born when my car got towed because I accidentally blocked someone's driveway when I parked it, and I had to $368 in parking tickets and towing fees to get it back.
That incident made me realize that there was no way for someone to contact me if I accidentally blocked them, if my parked car was hit or broken into, or if I ever leave the window open or the lights on.
So I created PingTag to help people reach a car owner in similar situations, without sharing any contact information publicly.
The initial version was a web app that allowed people to create and print QR tags that they place on their windshields or dashboards, and that others can scan to contact them when there is a problem with their parked cars, without revealing their contact information to each other π
After testing that version with more than 5,000 users, it became clear that people wanted to put PingTags on other items they owned and were asking for more features to allow them to recover any lost item, while keeping their contact information private.
And while most users liked the print-at-home direction, others wanted ready-made tags that they can attach directly to their items.
** π PingTag 2.0 **
After iterating over the initial version for about 9 months, the new PingTag is ready for prime time.
Here is what you currently get:
- π Receive unlimited SMS + Email alerts while keeping your contact information private
- π¬ Reply to people directly via SMS without sharing your phone number
- π¨βπ©βπ§βπ¦ Assign multiple contacts to a tag: all of them will receive email + SMS alerts and can also reply anonymously via SMS.
- π Update your phone number without having to print or order new tags, so if you are traveling, you can be reached wherever you are staying. Messaging works anywhere in the world.
- π Customize the message that shows on the page when a tag is scanned to add more information or offer a reward when an item is found.
- π· Create and print tags at home in various shapes and sizes, and attach them to your items using recommended tag holders from Amazon.
- π Order ready-made tags from the members' store, shipped for free anywhere in the U.S.
I also added a Premium memberships for individuals and families, and currently offering a lifetime membership at 75% off the annual membership, and a complimentary tag bundle of 15 unique tags ($30 value).
You can try PingTag for free for 30 days. No credit card or app installation is required. You can just sign up, print your own QR tags, and attach them to whatever items you worry about losing.
Both versions of PingTag were built entirely using NoCode tools.
Feel free to ask me anything in the comments.
@amirkhella This is brilliant. Do users also receive an alert if a QR code is scanned (ideally with IP location), even if the person scanning it chooses to not contact them?
Thank you.
Literally working on that feature right now. I will be pushing it to production this weekend.
@patricksrail @juan_fran_jimenez Yep. We already do that from the IP, but it's always approximate.
Also, one user raised the question of whether or not someone would feel "cheated" by the platform to show the owner the location of their home address if they are trying to do good and return a lost item. Most people who find a lost item will want to meet at a coffee shop or a public location, and would not like the fact that the owner knows where they live if they scanned the QR code on a lost item at their home.
You ever have one of those moments where you're like, "DANG, I wanted to do that!" I have been mulling for years now a way to put contact info on someone's car, so that you could discretely tell them that their alarm is going off or something like that, but I couldn't figure out a way to make it work. This is a great solution! Nice work, and very excited to see this!
Would be cool to know how you built the service. I've been looking at nocode tools for different projects, which ones did you end up using? What would you say is your running cost with nocode tools and how long did it take to set it up?
I will be writing a detailed post on this at medium.com/@amirkhella
Running coat is about 2x-3x what it would be on my own server.
NoCode is great to get 80% of the way with 20% of the effort, but it slows you down for the remaining 20%.
Itβs a great looking product. Congratulations. I would also be wary of getting reached by spammersβ¦ the new flyer-on-windshield era π
Thank you. Iβm keeping a close eye on any spamming attempt. The system logs IPs and use cookies to prevent any spam or mass messaging of any kind.
@yeosblue Yes it can. It works anywhere in the world. And that is the exact scenario I am aiming to solve. Are you currently based in Taiwan? I am looking for distribution partners in Asia. Hit me up if you're interested (amir at mypingtag)
@thea_mark each tag has a unique page that opens when the QR code for that tag is scanned, with a custom message that you add, and a "message me" button. Clicking the message me opens a page where people can type a message to send you. The system takes that message and forwards it to all emails and numbers linked to that tag on the back-end, so you receive those messages as email and SMS. If you reply via SMS, the system receives your message, figures out which tag and thread it is linked to, and shows it to the person who sent you the message on the same page they have open. Your information is never revealed during that process.
Congrats on the launch here , at product hunt. I was looking to understand more insides on how you arranged business model for this one and found 30 days free trial. Just curious - did you guys run some metrics / research to determine on the period or that was more just standard choice for the 30 days? (is that real you can face the use case in 30 days?))
@andrei_fj we have iterated through a few models where we had a free low-tier to a 14-day trial to a 30-day trial. At the end of the day, this is an insurance product, and most people will likely not experience a case where they need to use the product, but it still provides them enough time to print it and try it, order a product or two from our members store, put it on a few things that they own, and then be ready to pay for the membership.
Having said that, most of our paid members signed up for their membership on day 1.
Cool product!
How would you mitigate phishing, hacking, or malware? What is someone prints a malicious QR code that looks similar to the stickers?
@zackhardtoname Thank you. And that's a good question.
There are many measures in place to allow people to report or block any false alerts, and to add an extra layer of protection where they can require anyone who scans their QR code to verify their phone number with an OTP, and we are constantly working on new security layers to prevent any of that further.
As to how to prevent someone from creating a fake QR code that looks similar, there is nothing that would stop them from doing so, but remember: this is a QR code that people place on items they keep with them 99.99% of the time, so I would expect someone who sees a PingTag on a park bench to not scan it.
I also think this is a more general concern with any QR code out there: Anyone can easily create a QR code with a PayPal logo on it and place it on a flyer that says "Get $10 in PayPal credit for free", and routes it to a malicious site.
I expect Apple and Google to take active measures in preventing QR phishing and hacking in the near future, as QR codes have definitely become way more popular over the past 18 months due to the pandemic.
Maybe you can recommend scanning only with your app and implement a checksum check. Phishing is not like putting a code in a random bench but more like on a water bottle on a random bench.
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