Why ScreenCoach was Created
ScreenCoach was born from the experiences of three Aussie entrepreneurial friends who saw a problem that needed a solution.
Peter and Stephanie Kakris faced the challenge of managing their son’s screen and video game time. Their eldest struggled with anxiety, school refusal, and eventually video game addiction. After trying all the leading solutions, both free and paid, they found none suited their needs.
They wanted something flexible, that worked across multiple devices, that empowers kids to manage their own screen time with rewards.
But most importantly, a system which tied into their philosophy as parents: “You can have whatever you want in life, as long as you earn it”.
And so, ScreenCoach was created, blending screen management with pocket money management to teach kids to self-manage healthy device use and financial literacy.
Before we started this project, we interviewed parents and children as part of our market research:
Children told us:
- They felt guilty because they knew they should not be playing on their screens but they just couldn’t help themselves!
- They hated the conflict that screens caused between them and their parents and wished there was an easier way.
- They wanted to have notice before being kicked off, because they may be playing games with friends that go for a while
- They wanted to have more of a say as to how much screen time they have and when
Parents told us:
- They felt guilty and hated nagging their children all the time and having arguments around screens.
They would like a system that would be easier to manage on an ongoing basis where the kids can be actively involved in the process. - They used sticker charts and reward systems to great effect when their children are young, so why not do it when they’re older?
- However it is too hard to do manually, so we needed a modern tech solution for this modern tech problem.