From driving Pokemon Go players short distances to helping people move across North America, Melih Bal talks about his entrepreneurial journey
In 2016, when the craze for Pokémon Go was at its peak, Melih Bal posted an ad on Craiglist, offering to drive the Pokemon Go players for $20 an hour. He received a great response and had an exciting experience while driving around various places to find ‘Pokémon’ and meet new people, all of whom were Pokémon GO players. A few years later, he created ImMoving, a digital services web app that caters towards individuals/corporations who are interested in relocation services within or throughout North America. What makes his app stand apart is that, it offers free ‘digital in-home estimates’ by filling out a simple form, eliminating the hassle of planning and scheduling for the user, as well as lead acquisition and overhead costs for logistics companies, caused in case of in-person estimated quotes.
We got in touch with Bal to talk about his journey as an entrepreneur and his latest venture ImMoving web-app.
Interviewer: Give us a brief about your background?
Melih Bal: I’ve been in the industry ever since I first came to Canada and fast forward 7 years now, I’ve had the opportunity to work in every position you can think of within a moving company. I’ve always been a generally stubborn and inherently lazy person to be honest, but I feel like, something about that changed my outlook on work tasks and processes overall. I realized that through my time in the industry not much had changed in regards to the very basic and essential parts of planning a move: the estimate. I set out with the goal of not only making it easier and simpler to have a platform to receive information but also increase the quality of that information that was being distributed.
Interviewer: What inspired you to become an entrepreneur?
Melih Bal: As I said, I’ve always been inherently lazy when it comes to completing menial day-to-day tasks, so my goals have always revolved around “how can I make this quicker” and with emerging technology that evolved into “how can I automate this.” With a lot of jobs I’ve worked in the past, my autonomy was something I always valued. Where I would see unnecessary positions or unnecessary tasks in place, I felt like I couldn’t do much just as an employee. From that first time I felt I could do things better my own way, I decided I was going to take things on as an entrepreneur.
Interviewer: How was your experience driving around the Pokemon players?
Melih Bal: That was a really fun and experiential endeavor for me. I learned a lot about what could and could not be done (legally speaking), and also about the fundamentals of business. Even with something as simple as driving people relatively short distances around the city, there were so many moving parts and it was a logistical nightmare. I soon realized the importance of taking things on in a very organized and planned fashion.
Interviewer: Tell us something about your latest web-app, ImMoving?
Melih Bal: I like to think of it as the only stop someone who is looking to move has to make. With a very clean and minimalist approach, I feel we’ve encompassed every aspect of what would be required to be known by the movers and moving company. On top of that, our digital in-home estimate service is completely free and I believe it will open up a lot of options for people comparing moving quotes because not everyone has a good grasp of the size of their move let alone the impact that the size can have!
Interviewer: What are your plans and projects for the near future?
Melih Bal: I created ImMoving with the goal of having 1 hub that anyone/everyone can go to find movers. Granted literally no one is an exception to moving, there are a lot of first-time movers and even older tenured individuals who can benefit from the new offerings that ImMoving provides. Ideally, ImMoving becomes a known name for individuals across the continent for when they are planning their next move. All they have to do is just say the word.
Interviewer: Any message for those who want to be an entrepreneur?
Melih Bal: I honestly love what I do and would never want to change my day-to-day even though it has to be the most hectic and straining thing. My first advise, a little bit of extra effort early goes a long way later. If you are planning to take on an entrepreneurial venture, plan EVERYTHING you possibly can out. It’s always easier to adjust to the changing nature of business when you have a rough road map that you’re following.
Media Contact
Company Name: ImMoving Services Inc.
Contact Person: Melih Bal – Founder
Email: Send Email
Country: Canada
Website: immoving.ca
