Week 15- Reading Reflection

Reading Reflection
1) My biggest surprise in the reading was the fact that microfinace company's are thought of as the solution to poverty.

2) One thing I was confused with was microfinace companies. I am not sure what they are and what they do.

3) Two questions I have for the author:
          a. How much extra money does a company save by switching to more technological advanced                 processes?
          b. What is the best way to gain customer loyalty?

4) One thing I disagree with the author with is that a microfinace company must be non profit to be sustainable. I think some companies need profit to survive.

Week 15- Final Reflection

Final Reflection

- My most formative experience this semester was the "What's Next" Interview's. At this point in the semester I was comfortable giving interviews and I loved letting the people just talk. In the previous interviews I was very directive and leading, in this one I was not.  I loved just listening to the people talk. They gave me great advice. I was proud I was able to adapt so well with what they said. It was definitely the most rewarding experience in this class.

- I feel much more like an entrepreneur as the semester finishes  than I did in the beginning. At the beginning of the semester I was very nervous to approach anyone or ask questions. Now I wouldn't think twice. I have become more comfortable asking questions and receiving advice than I ever have before. Am I 100% ready to open a business? Maybe not, but I'm much closer than I was before.

- The best advice I can give to incoming freshman is to keep an open mind. When you first see the assignments it can be overwhelming. The assignments will seem weird. You will think that they are silly busy work assignments. In reality, all the of the assignments will help you in one way or another. If you keep your mind open, you will get everything you can out of every assignment. Just make sure when you start looking at everything, you expect nothing and just be ready for everything!

Week 15- Elevator Pitch No. 4

It's the last one!

Enjoy!

In this Elevator Pitch I made sure I added in the fact that my product is now catered too all people who have a need instead of just athletes. I also made sure I mentioned the fact that there would be multiple mounts for the Snack Pack sold separately. I also tried to make sure that I got even more conversational in this elevator pitch. It's amazing how far it has come! All of the peer comments helped a ton. They are the reason I've been able so positively modify my product and my pitch.

Week 15- Venture Concept No. 2

Venture Concept:

You can use the Snack Pack anywhere!

Opportunity:

I first came up with my “Snack Pack” idea when I had to come home early one day from swim practice simply because I was hungry. The problem I am aiming to solve is mid workout hunger. Often time’s people will become hungry during an intense workout, and this hunger leads them to suffer and for their workout to suffer. My product could also be used in everyday situations. These could include being stuck in a review session for a long time, or out hiking or kayaking. This does not need to be just for athletes. The good part about my product is there is nothing like it, so no one has it, yet there is always a need. The closest thing to my product is a Ziploc bag, but there are chances of your snack getting lost or dirty or broken. Another good thing about my product is that just about any person who is hungry and needs a quick snack would benefit from my Snack Pack.

Innovation:

I have created a product called the “Snack Pack”. The Snack Pack is a small reseal able pouch that is waterproof that holds a small snack. The snack is intended to be eaten mid-way or after a workout or anytime that the customer is hungry and they are not in an ideal place to pick up food. The pouch is easily attached to a water bottle, bike, backpack, or bag and can be easily accessed during the workout or activity. I will be selling the actual packs themselves, the water bottles, and other various mounts. I intend to sell the Snack Pack for about $10 with the water bottle-Snack Pack combination for about $15. All other mounts I expect to be about an extra $5.

Venture Concept:

Right now, the only thing close to my Snack Pack is a Ziploc bag. Ziplocs can be easily lost and/or broken, that is why people will buy my Snack Pack. My product attaches to a water bottle or bike and is therefore easily identified and accessible. It will also be made of extremely durable waterproof plastic, so it will not break. The biggest designing factors of my business are the production areas, packaging, and shipping. My product will most likely be sold on websites like Amazon, with no physical stores. I will have to find some place to produce, package, and ship my products out of. I will then need to set a price based on the cost of making my product. I would start off very small, with only a few employees, then I would grow as demand grew. I would employ people in every segment of the production process and I would also hire people to work customer service so I can make sure people are happy with their purchases.

3 minor elements:

·         My most important resources right now is my human capital and my networking. I have lots of experience so I can relate to my customers really well. I also have a lot of connections in the athletic industry such as swim teams, varsity teams, and club teams. I am also a student at UF with access to several areas that are heavily traveled by people. I could start advertising my product using these highly traveled areas.  I will use all of these resources to market and sell my product.

·         The next thing I want to tackle with my product is making the pack usable for older people. I am thinking about making another pack that can be used to store pills safely.

·         In five years I hope to have my business up and running and I hope to have a pretty solid customer base. My first target customer base will be all kinds of UF students. I will probably start advertising in the Plaza of the Americas and Turlington as soon as I can get my product up and running.

A few things I changed from my earlier Venture Concept:

·         I decided to expand which customers I would target. I was initially just targeting athletes, but now I am going to broaden my range to anyone who is at an activity where they need a snack. Many people said in the comments that they could use my Snack Pack and they are just sitting in the library. I was really missing a large section of possible customers.

·         People also said in my “What’s Next” post that I should try to cater to more age groups. That is why the next step I will take is catering my Snack Pack to older people. 

Week 14- Google Gold

1)      To gain SEO I tried my best to use words that relate to my product as much as possible and use the name of my product as much as possible. Then there is a hope that when people Google “Snack Pack” my blog will be one of the first things to pop up in a search.

2)      My keywords include “Snack Pack”, “athlete”, “pouch”, “goals and training”, and “energy chews”. My keywords have stayed fairly consistent throughout the semester.

3)      While I have not used social media just yet to enhance my products, I have plans to. Right now my product is not off the ground so I want to wait until I am ready to launch to advertise on social media. For my product I plan to give some samples to people who are extremely active on social media so they can better market my product. I will reach out to as many people as possible to market my product in a cheap way through social media. That will also bring up which page my blog will come up on a Google search.

4)      My most viral post was “The 20 percent”. I think this was because I interviewed an entrepreneur who already had her business off the ground. She is becoming popular very quickly so people are probably Googling her more, hence looking at my page when it pops up.

5)      I was not able to find my blog in a regular Google search when I typed in “Snack Pack”, but as soon as I added in “ENT 3003”, all of my blog posts showed up on the first page. I was probably many pages back when I first Googled “Snack Pack”. I need to come up with some more distinct keywords so my blog shows up easier. 

This is the first thing that pops up when I type in "Snack Pack" in Google. I might need to make the name of my product more unique so that when people Google it, it will come up first. 

Week 14- Reading Reflection

Week 14 Reading Reflection

Chapter 3 & 4    

       

1)      My biggest surprise in the reading was that there were so many different types and labels for entrepreneurial strategies. It’s amazing to me that they all have a name and a structure for every situation.

2)      One concept I am confused about is intracapital, wouldn’t it be the same as savings? Why does it need to be something different?

3)      Two questions I have for the author:

a.       Does international trade affect entrepreneurship much?

b.      Is it hard to get a license?

4)      There was nothing I disagreed about in this section. It was hard to find something that I was even confused about. The entire semester of reading this book and learning so much in this class is all tied up in these 2 chapters. 

Week 13- Celebrating Failure

1)      One time that I failed this semester was when I failed my first managerial accounting exam. It was a shocker and very humbling. I had studied for 2 days and still failed. The worst part was that I thought I did really well when I came out of the exam.

2)      I learned how to study for managerial accounting. I learned that there is a big difference between just studying and proactively studying. I also purchased study edge to help me with this. I did way more practice problems and in the end I did very well on my second exam.

3)      Failing is definitely hard. It humbles a person and makes them feel defeated. But I think it can also be a huge learning experience. Because of my failure I was able to do 10xs better on my second exam. If I had don’t mediocrely on my first exam, I probably wouldn’t have put in the extra work to do as well on the second exam. Yes, failing is hard, but a person’s character is defined by failure. If someone learns from their mistakes, they are a strong person. I feel like after that exam, I became a stronger person. 

Week 13- Reading Reflection

Reading Reflection

1) The biggest surprise for me in the reading was how detailed the value of a company can get. I always expected it to be a face value, but instead there was half a page of things that define a company's worth.

2) The most confusing part of the reading to me was the adjusted tangible book value section.
How can you put a monetary value on something that is intangible.

3) Two questions I would ask the author are:
         a. How effective is the price/ earnings ratio?
         b. In what specific scenario would a antidilution protection be used?

4) I didn't disagree with the author at all this week. Honestly I was very confused on some parts, but it all sounded like pretty solid facts to me.
       

Week 13- Your Exit Strategy

1)      I have decided that for my “Snack Pack” my exit strategy will be this: when I leave UF I will find a suitor that I deem worthy and pass them my business to them upon my graduation date. I would love if my Snack Pack business could help college kids get through school for years to come.

2)      I have selected this exit strategy because I think it will benefit students beyond myself and my colleagues. The business will continue be passed on and growing as UF grows and the needs change.  I’m hoping my business can benefit people beyond just selling a product. My business can be a money maker, and a learning experience to other students besides myself.

3)      My exit strategy has influenced my opportunity slightly, but not in any major way. I’ve definitely always known this would be a temporary thing, and that has resulted in me not being set on one design or way of making my product. I think this mindset helps my business and I though. I think my business will last longer if it is passed between owners and I think my product will grow for the better with each owner. 

Week 12- What's Next?

What's Next

Current Market:

The current market I am targeting is young athletes that train very hard for long periods of time. I believe what is next for my company is a snack pack that is also a hot and cold pack so that fresh snacks can also be stored in the Snack Pack. This new feature will help me cater to a market that is much older than my current market. Older people might not necessarily need energy chews during a workout, but some fruit or veggies would be perfect for them.

I asked 3 people how they thought I could cater to an older market, and they had great ideas!

** I need to add that for the last 6 days I have been home in Tampa with the flu, so I could not go out and interview random people for fear of getting them sick. Instead I texted my friends on a local swim team, told them the question, and asked them to record their responses. This is what I got!

                                         

                                         

New Market:

The new market I am targeting is older people! I believe that older people could still use my snack pack, even if they aren’t athletes or training hard. I think they could use them when going to Disney World, or even when they are doing some light exercising.

**Once again I had to adjust my interviewing, one of my three people is one of my friends who is in his late twenties I simply asked him to give me a hypothetical. The other two are my parents.  Here is what I got!

                                          

-Interview 5: My dad declined to be on camera, and I couldn't do much to argue. I don't have many options here. When I explained to him my product he immediately said that he would never need my product because he does not exercise for long periods of time. When I explained to him that it doesn't have to be just for exercising he thought for a little longer. He then decided again that he would not need my product because he already has Ziploc bags and pockets. I am not surprised my dad said this or declined to be interviewed, he is always the practical one, and is not a person for formalities or luxuries.

Reflection:

          This assignment was super tough for me, simply due to the fact that I have been suffering from the flu. I had some major roadblocks getting the interviews, but I tried to do what I could. So I believe the next market I should cater my Snack Pack to is older individuals that may just need a quick access snack. I suggested that they could use them at places like Disney and for family gatherings, but I got some different responses.
           All of the younger people I interviewed were part of my current market, in fact all of them were at a swim meet this weekend. The first person I interviewed suggested that I change the types of of snacks that I put in my snack pack. I believe this is a great idea, and that is why I believe I will definitely add the hot/cold feature to my Snack Pack. Older people do not need high sugar energy chews, they need fruits and veggies. This new feature will allow this to happen. The second person I interviewed added that no matter what, people need food when they have low energy, so any age person will find a need for my Snack Pack. And lastly, the third person said that I should try to cater the Snack Pack to runners since that is a very common activity among older adults. I think this is a great idea. Maybe the next next idea for my Snack Pack with be a small water bottle/ Snack Pack combo with an easy grip that can be easily carried while running. I think all of the interviews were extremely helpful.
          The older people I interviewed were just as helpful. My mom said that she could really use the Snack Pack when she is in a place that won't have healthy food such as on a boat or shopping. While she may not have known it, my mom helped me a lot. Another way I could market my product is a healthy alternative. If you know you are going that wont have great food, bring your Snack Pack! My dad, while always the cynical one, also helped me a lot. He said that he would not need my Snack Pack because he has plastic bags and pockets. He made it clear that when marketing my product to older men, I have to come about it a different way. I need to find a way to differentiate my product so I can cater to older men as well as older women. Lastly my friend told me I should advertise the pack to elderly people as a way for them to easily carry prescriptions with them. Overall I think all these ideas are great and that I have a pretty good idea as to how I should continue on with my business!

Week 12 Reading Reflection

Week 12 Reading

1) The biggest surprise for me in the reading was the fact that the author placed so little emphasis on the strategic planning session. I feel like business owners need a well thought out plan to succeed.
2) The most confusing part of the reading was the Entrepreneurial Strategy Matrix Model. The whole section in the reading just really lost me. It did not seem like the two opposites would work.
3) Two questions I have for the author are:
a. What do you believe is the most effective strategy model?
b. What are some real life examples of strategic planning?
4) The only thing I disagree with is the Matrix, but that is probably because I was so confused.

Week 12- Venture Concept No. 1

Venture Concept:

Opportunity:

I first came up with my “Snack Pack” idea when I had to come home early one day from swim practice simply because I was hungry. The problem I am aiming to solve is mid workout hunger. Often time’s people will become hungry during an intense workout, and this hunger leads them to suffer and for their workout to suffer. When an athlete is hungry they cannot perform at the same level as when they are not hungry and satisfied. I want swimmers to be able to fuel up during a workout so they can keep pushing through and reach their goals faster than they would have before. The good part about my product is there is nothing like it, so no one has it, yet there is always a need. The closest thing to my product is a Ziploc bag, but there are chances of your snack getting lost or dirty or broken. Another good thing about my product is that just about any athlete that trains for long periods of time would benefit from a snack.

Innovation:

I have created a product called the “Snack Pack”. The Snack Pack is a small reseal able pouch that is waterproof that holds a small snack. The snack is intended to be eaten mid-way or after a workout. The pouch is easily attached to a water bottle, bike, or bag and can be easily accessed during the workout. I will be selling the actual packs themselves, the water bottles, and other various mounts. I intend to sell the Snack Pack for about $10 with the water bottle-Snack Pack combination for about $15. All other mounts I expect to be about an extra $5.

Venture Concept:

Right now, the only thing close to my Snack Pack is a Ziploc bag. Ziplocs can be easily lost and/or broken, that is why people will buy my Snack Pack. My product attaches to a water bottle or bike and is therefore easily identified. It will also be made of extremely durable waterproof plastic, so it will not break. The biggest designing factors of my business are the production areas, packaging, and shipping. My product will most likely be sold on websites like Amazon, with no physical stores. I will have to find some place to produce, package, and ship my products out of. I will then need to set a price based on the cost of making my product. I would start off very small, with only a few employees, then I would grow as demand grew. I would employ people in every segment of the production process and I would also hire people to work customer service so I can make sure people are happy with their purchases.

3 minor elements:

·         My most important resources right now is my human capital and my networking. I have lots of experience so I can relate to my customers really well. I also have a lot of connections in the athletic industry such as swim teams, varsity teams, and club teams. I will use both of these resources to market and sell my product.

·         The next thing I want to tackle with my product is the problem of snacks not being warm or cold when you get to them. If my Snack Pack is successful I want to add a feature that keeps warm food, warm, and cold food, cold. It would be like a lunch pack, but on a smaller scale. It allows the athlete to pack fresh or frozen food in their Snack Pack without the worry of it going rotten during the day.

·         In five years I hope to have my business up and running and I hope to have a pretty solid customer base. If I could be in a position where I have a small area for production and I am selling my product to most of the athletes at UF, I will be satisfied. After that, I can take things to a bigger scale. 

Week 11- The Amazon Whisperer

• -    Revenue drivers I currently have in my business is the actual Snack Pack, a water bottle that the Snack Pack will attach to, and optional energy chews that can be included in the package.  My customers will have the option to buy any of all of the package.
• -          The next thing my customers will want is a Snack Pack that can attach to other things such as bikes and your arm.
• -          This “next step” will allow my customers to have options as to what mounts will work best for their own Snack Packs. Options will always sell.
• -        
  
     
• -          This was the closest thing I could find to my snack pack. This is a sandwich pack that is resalable and water proof. The biggest marketing aspect is that the pack is supposed to keep the product inside hot or cold. The biggest difference between that product and my Snack Pack is that it does not attach to any water bottles or anything else.
• -          The customer reviews were very mixed. Some people did not like that product did not keep the food warm or cold. But they did really like that it re-sealed easily and was compact.
• -          I would make this product attachable to bike or water bottles so that this pack can be used mid workout.
• -          This product would be a good addition in that I think it would be awesome to make my Snack Pack in a way that it will keep food hot or cold depending on the food that is put in. 

Week 11 Reading Reflection

Week 11 Reading Reflection

1)      The biggest surprise to me in the reading was that there was such a thing as an innovation strategy in the first place. I always just kind of thought inventions were just kind of a spur of the moment thing that just came to people.

2)      One part of the reading that was confusing to me was the trade-offs section. How is one supposed to trade stuff if all the capital is ideas? Do they just trade ideas?

3)      Two questions I would ask the author:

a.       How does a company chose which innovation strategy they should use?

b.      Do companies ever come up with their own strategy?

I do not disagree with the author about anything in this reading, I was just very interested. It was a concept I had never read about before.

Week 11- My Venture's Unfair Advantage

1)   I am experienced when it comes to training hard. I can relate well with my customer base.

a.    I have been swimming for 11 years, I know what it is like to train hard. This experience will help me relate to my customer base. This is very rare because there is only one of me!

2)   I have good contacts with UF’s Varsity Swim Team.

a.    I have 2 close friends that are managers of UF’s varsity swim team. They will be able to help me try out my product with the varsity team. This is somewhat rare, but it is a very helpful connection.

3)   I have good contacts with local club swim team

a.    I have worked on several swim teams before so I could get my product out to younger kids to see what they think. This will be valuable in developing my product further.

4)   I have good contact with several club sports at UF

a.    I am active in several club sports and through these I know people in almost every club sport at UF. This will help me market my product to many different sports.

5)   I am very active on social media

a.    Social media is a very popular way to advertise new products now, so it is good that I will have a starting point for marketing my product.

6)   I know several people who are “famous” on social media

a.    “Famous” on social media means a person has many people who frequently check their pages and keep up with what they are saying. I know a couple people who have thousands of followers and that means I will be able to market my product to all of those people through my friends.

7)   I have good contacts with a company named “Phlex”

a.    Phlex is targeting the same customer base that I am so they can help me get into different events where I could sell my product. This is an exceptionally beneficial and rare connection.

8)   I am a good people person

a.    I am very good at talking to people, so this will help me sell my product in every situation.

9)   I am a business major

a.    I understand the basics of how businesses work and this will help me develop my business without having to pay for as much help.

10)  I have some money to start a business

a.    This small amount of money will at least help me get my business off to a start.

My most valuable asset I believe I have is myself. Several of these resources are based off my skills, so I think as a whole I am the greatest and most rare advantage I possess. I am a good people person, with lots of experience in my field, and with business knowledge. My skills are what are going to allow me to develop and market my product for the least amount of money. 

Week 10 Reading Reflection

Week 10 Reading Reflection

1)      The biggest surprise for my in the reading was that there are so many different kinds of budgets. I always kind f figured every business either big or small kind of operated under the same principles/ budgeting process.

2)      One part of the reading that was confusing to me was how operating budget was projected only by advertising, seems like it should be based on other factors too.

3)      2 questions I would ask the author are:

a.       If you were to start a business what kind of cost structure would you use?

b.      What is the bare minimum an entrepreneur must know in this field to be successful?

4)      One thing I disagree with the author about was the all the “required” different statements. It seems as a small business owner you wouldn’t necessarily need every different kind of statement that a big business uses that presents just about the same information. 

Week 10- Growing your Social Captial

Growing Your Social Capital 

For those who want more information on my product here is my idea napkin: http://ckm-ent3003.blogspot.com/2016/03/week-9-idea-napkin-no-2.html

Ryan Rosenbaum: The domain expert in my industry

1)    Ryan Rosenbaum is the owner of a company named Phlex. Phlex is a company that provides quantitative data regarding specific athlete’s performance.  Phlex takes a scientific approach to improve a swimmer’s strength, efficiency, and training so that these athletes can improve in ways they have never seen before.

2)    I am filling the domain expert in my industry with Ryan and his company. While we are not in the exact same industry, we both have the same end goal: we want to help athletes better their training. Phlex was formed from UF varsity swimmers and coaches.

3)    I had heard about Phlex through the Florida Club Swim and Dive. I contacted Phlex through Facebook due to the fact that I thought it would be easiest and quickest.

4)    I messaged Phlex telling them about my product and asked for advice as far how to continue with my product, and how I would market my product in the future. Ryan was the person who responded to me, and it was fantastic. He gave me advice as far as making my product. He told me I should calculate how much it would cost to make, being an individual with no factory, and if this product would be financially profitable. He also suggested that I expand my customer base to open water swimmers and cyclists; two kinds of athletes that can’t just get out of the pool and get some food. Overall, he was extremely helpful. In return I will be putting his information below in case anyone is interested in Phlex’s services.

5)    Knowing Ryan and the entire Phlex team will help me break out into the college swimming customer base. While this does not cover every athlete I would like to reach out to, it is a start.

Lacey Daunt: The expert in my market

1)    Lacey is a traveling yoga instructor based in New York who offers personal counseling in health and wellness.

2)    I am putting Lacey in “expert in my market” because a large part of her market are young athletes. Lacey’s ultimate goal is to help athlete’s improve as people both physically and mentally. This aligns perfectly with my ultimate goal with the Snack Pack. Lacey also does a majority of her marketing online through social media, so I was curious about how well this tactic worked for her.

3)    I contacted Lacey through Facebook once again because of the ease and swiftness of the contact.

4)    When I contacted Lacey with my product and the questions about social media marketing she was ecstatic to help. Lacey told me about the best ways she thought I could get my product out to my customer base. She suggested becoming very active on social media and “following” pages that relate to young athletes health and fitness. She also suggested to just get out there and start talking to people at different athletic events. In return I will also be sharing her page.

5)    Knowing Lacey will help me further my business in that she can help me with my marketing and appealing to the younger population. She is an expert in social media and that will help me tremendously with my product.

Athletic Foodie: The supplier for my market

1)    Athletic Foodie is a company that produces energy chews meant for athlete’s midway through or after a workout.

2)    I am filling the supplier for my market with Athletic Foodie because they make the kind of snack I would want to put in my Snack Pack.

3)    I contacted Athletic Foodie through Facebook message, once again because it is easy and quick.

4)    When I contacted them they gave me an interesting answer. They asked me if my product was needed. Their energy chews already come in waterproof pouches. This was really helpful in that it helped me realize I need to do more in differentiating my product.

5)    Athletic Foodie has helped me rethink my product, and that is awesome. I wouldn’t want to make a product that was already in production. I offered nothing in return except that they will receive minimal advertising through this assignment.

For anyone interested in help with any form of aquatic training you should check out Phlex on Facebook and online. For anyone interested in living a vegan lifestyle, yoga, or a personal wellness coach check out “Ideal Living” on Facebook, Instagram, and online.

Reflect: This connecting assignment was super helpful in that it helped me realize more setbacks to my product that I will need to overcome. It also helped in marketing my product if I were to make my Snack Pack. Without the business advice my product would have completely failed and I will forever be appreciative of this! These entrepreneurs also taught me that the best way to market my product was to just get out there and start talking to people!