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Apart from monetising social media posts, users can now go to Gaption for any service

Malaysian social networking platform Gaption today launched Accelerated Connectivity Engine (ACE), an integrated online marketplace for on-demand service.

As a new feature on the platform that allows users to monetise their posts, ACE allows businesses and individuals to sell services from food delivery, laundry to even small research, giving users a wide array of services in just one platform.

Gaption’s integrated payment gateway service also allows user to pay easily.

The feature is now available in Singapore and Malaysia, with plans for expansion in the upcoming weeks.

“Our vision for this is very simple: We want to help people make extra income … by coming in as a service provider. After we evaluate them, and if they are legitimate, we can put them in our system, and set a location-targeted system,” explained Kenneth Ho, Founder of Gaption.

“If working in a fast food chain gives me about SG$5 (US$3.5) per hour, and I can complete a task [given via ACE] for the same price at less than an hour, wouldn’t that be great?” he compared.

To perform its on-demand service, Gaption is fostering partnership with 500 Startups-backed virtual concierge service Helpr.

“They help to fulfill the remainder of services that are not yet fulfilled by our team,” Ho explained.

Gaption was launched in June for iPhone, with a desktop version only recently launched. They have gathered about 40,000 users, mainly from Malaysia and Singapore.

The startup has secured an undisclosed amount of funding from Cradle Fund. Apart from expanding its team, Gaption announced that it is also looking for partners and investors.

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Preventing saturation

In an interview with e27, Ho stated that one of the reasons why Gaption launched ACE is because the market for on-demand services have begun to get saturated.

“The trend for venture capitals is to invest in on-demand services. A lot of new companies are also going to this space as well … The problem is that these companies tend to serve a very big market like the whole Malaysia or Indonesia by themselves,” he said.

“They end up having to partner with each other to be able to reach this whole market. Another challenge is that they are using text messages, Facebook … All sort of platforms. So why don’t we create an integrated platform where people can find these services easily, so users don’t have to download an app for each of them?” he concluded.

Integration with social media, as one of Gaption’s main features, is also chosen for users’ tendency to spend a lot of time in it.

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Everyone is welcomed

To encourage businesses and individuals to set up a business page in Gaption, the startup stresses that they are basically open to accept anybody to their site.

“Every user is different, but one thing that appeals to them is that they want to have some fun while also making some money. We got them through bloggers, Facebook posts, and our own marketing efforts,” Ho explained.

The post Gaption launches online marketplace for on-demand service appeared first on e27.

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