BestFit

BestFit, Inc. operates a digital intake and referral platform used by education and training programs, nonprofits, health clinics, and social service agencies to connect their clients to wraparound supports and services. The core product is an Eligibility Screening Tool that consolidates questions drawn from multiple federal assistance program applications into a single screening, described on the company site as taking about five minutes and covering six federal benefits: SNAP, CAPS, TANF, WIC, Medicaid, and LIHEAP. In a July 2023 interview the CEO described the screening as completable in under 10 minutes and covering programs spanning food, housing, and utilities.

An algorithm assesses risks and needs and returns personalized results that indicate which benefits a user is likely and not likely eligible for, a monetary estimate of eligible federal benefits, and additional resources and immediate assistance. Users can manage their resources and receive automated next steps, including guided application workflows and automated email and text notifications, while staff-side back-office tools provide client information management, service coordination from intake through follow-up, messaging, and real-time analytics on enrollment, engagement, demographics, available resource types, and number of participants screened. The company positions the platform as a way to extend staff capacity, and notes that screening results are viewable by staff only if the user opts in to share them.

The company frames the problem it addresses around unclaimed assistance, citing more than $12 billion in benefits going unclaimed each year by eligible students, and around the complexity and cognitive burden of benefit applications, which it seeks to reduce through equity-centered design, elimination of redundant eligibility questions, and rephrasing of complex questions into user-friendly language.

Founding story

BestFit began as a research project started by Asha Owens and Rebecca Kwee in Fall 2017. It was initially designed to help students select a college and subsequently evolved into a platform that helps users meet basic needs while pursuing degrees or credentials. Owens, the CEO and co-founder, studied neuroscience, computer science, and education at Brown and instructional technology and media at Columbia, and has described the team's own difficulties with the non-academic aspects of college, along with a co-design approach based on listening to students rather than prescribing solutions, as shaping the product.

Business model

BestFit sells its screening, referral, and care-coordination platform to organizations that serve clients, including education and training programs, nonprofits, health clinics, and social service agencies; the site directs prospective customers to request a demo. End users complete the screening while partner staff use back-office analytics and coordination tools.

Traction

Since launching a 2021 pilot program for college students in Georgia, BestFit reports referring more than 150 students to more than $500,000 worth of resources. The company also reports that 75% of screened users were not receiving SNAP despite being determined likely eligible at the time of screening.

Latest developments

As of July 2023, BestFit was participating in the Future Finder Challenge's six-month virtual accelerator, working on product architecture improvements and expanding the universe of benefits screened for, including integrating community-based programs and on-campus resources such as laptop and textbook programs. Stated near-term goals included working with more adult education and workforce development programs, and longer-term expansion of the user base beyond postsecondary education toward family-centered use.