Reavas - A Student-Only Marketplace

Client: Support the Students Foundation Nigeria (STSFN)
Timeline: September 11, 2020 – December 27, 2020 (Launched January 8, 2023)
Role: Development and Technological Consultant, Haskade Agency

Project Overview

Reavas is an innovative marketplace designed exclusively for students to sell products and for anyone to support students by purchasing from them. The platform, created for STSFN, aimed to alleviate the stress of managing a business while studying, providing students with a dedicated space to generate income without the burdens of traditional marketing. Reavas was structured by regions (schools), allowing users to choose the school they wanted to support, fostering a connected marketplace for students and buyers.

Problem/Challenge

Balancing business and academics can be overwhelming for students, especially for those funding their own education. Reavas was conceived to address this by creating a marketplace specifically for students, ensuring they could focus on their studies while earning money on the side. The platform's exclusivity to students differentiated it from other online marketplaces, offering a solution tailored to student entrepreneurs.

Solution

The Reavas web application was developed using Python, Django, Vanilla JavaScript, HTML, CSS, MySQL, Celery, Redis, and Bash. The development team adopted a Waterfall and Lean Development approach, delivering a streamlined, user-friendly marketplace. The key features included:

• Regional Marketplaces: Users could select specific regions (schools) to buy from, promoting localized commerce.
• Student Authentication: Verification processes ensured that only students could sell on the platform.
• Fraud Reduction: The platform focused on authenticity and security, providing a trustworthy environment for buyers.

Additional features included close-by online shopping and measures to detect and transition graduating students into a different marketplace owned by STSFN, reducing the burden of maintaining student authenticity.

Challenges & Resolutions

1. Student Verification

   • Challenge: Ensuring that only verified students can sell on the platform was a key concern, as allowing non-students to sell could undermine the platform’s credibility and purpose.
   • Solution: A thorough verification system was implemented, requiring students to submit documentation (such as student IDs or enrollment letters). These were manually or automatically checked to ensure legitimacy.

2. Handling Graduates

   • Challenge: Once a student graduates, they are no longer eligible to sell on Reavas. However, tracking graduation status and transitioning students off the platform posed a logistical challenge.
   • Solution: By tracking each student’s year of university entry, the system automatically calculated their estimated graduation date. A grace period was added to account for delays in graduation, after which the students were transitioned to a regular marketplace operated by STSFN.

3. Location & IP Tracking

   • Challenge: Ensuring that students are within their respective regions (schools) and preventing fraudulent location-based activities while adhering to privacy regulations.
   • Solution: Google Maps API was integrated to track user locations, and explicit consent was obtained from users during registration to comply with location-tracking regulations. This allowed for precise location validation without violating privacy laws.

4. Scalability of the System

   • Challenge: As more students and schools joined the platform, the system needed to handle increased traffic without affecting performance.
   • Solution: We used Celery and Redis to handle background tasks such as email verification, order processing, and notifications. This ensured the platform could scale efficiently by offloading time-consuming tasks to background workers, keeping the site responsive even during high traffic periods.

5. Ensuring Smooth Payment Processing

   • Challenge: Handling payments securely and seamlessly for both students and buyers was critical to the platform’s success. Issues such as delayed payments, failed transactions, or security vulnerabilities could erode user trust.
   • Solution: The integration of secure payment gateways, such as Paystack or Flutterwave, ensured that payments were processed efficiently and safely. Additionally, a clear user flow for payment confirmation and transaction history was developed to help students and buyers track their orders.

6. Product Quality Assurance

   • Challenge: Ensuring that products sold on the platform met a minimum standard of quality to maintain buyer trust was tricky since the platform primarily catered to student entrepreneurs who might not have professional-grade products.
   • Solution: We implemented a rating and review system that allowed buyers to provide feedback on sellers and products. This self-regulating feature encouraged students to maintain high-quality products and services to receive positive reviews and increase their chances of making more sales.

7. Balancing Workload with Academics

   • Challenge: Since Reavas was built to make entrepreneurial activity easier for students, there was a risk that students might still get overwhelmed by order management during peak academic periods like exams.
   • Solution: An order pause feature was implemented, allowing students to temporarily suspend their store during busy academic times without losing their listings or status. This feature gave students the flexibility to manage their time effectively without the pressure of keeping their stores active during crucial study periods.

8. Platform Security

   • Challenge: Protecting the platform from security threats such as account breaches, fraud, or data theft was a priority, particularly since sensitive student information was involved.
   • Solution: The use of Django’s built-in security features, combined with SSL encryption and regular security audits, ensured the platform remained secure. Two-factor authentication (2FA) was also considered to further protect user accounts from unauthorized access.

9. Maintaining Engagement After Launch

   • Challenge: After the initial launch, maintaining consistent engagement from both students and buyers was crucial for sustaining the platform.
   • Solution: A marketing strategy that involved partnerships with universities, student unions, and campus events helped spread awareness. Additionally, promotional offers and incentives for early adopters kept the platform active. A notification system was integrated to remind students of potential sales and updates, ensuring they stayed engaged without feeling overwhelmed.

Outcome

The outcome was a fully functional marketplace that gained recognition within several schools. Students involved in sales expressed their appreciation for the platform's ability to reduce the workload and costs associated with running their businesses. It allowed them to focus on their studies while earning revenue from a well-structured platform that connected them to buyers.

Feedback

The chief director of STSFN praised the project, saying: “An excellent solution to a tedious issue, making sure our students can earn on the sidelines is always a huge win.”

Role & Contributions

Haskade Agency served as the technological consultant and led the complete development of Reavas. The project was a team effort involving three members from Haskade Agency, working collaboratively from start to launch. My role was central to the development and coordination of the platform’s functionality, ensuring it met the client’s requirements.

Lessons Learned & Insights

Reavas demonstrated the potential for creating more entrepreneurs without significantly affecting their academic commitments. It was designed to operate without taking any profit from students or buyers, relying entirely on donations for sustainability. The success of the project provided valuable insights into the intersection of technology and education, promoting entrepreneurship within the student community.