I chose to interview my friend Amanda. She has just recently opened up her own handmade bikini business called Blue House Bikinis. You will see in her interview above that she is targeting women between the ages of 16-30 who are comfortable wearing a bikini that has a cheekier or more Brazilian cut. From the customers that I interviewed it sounded like they would be very interested in one of her bikinis. It sounds like Amanda has a pretty good handle on who would buy her bikinis. If I were to interview older women, they would probably not be as interested in a revealing bikini, but Amanda does not expect to sell to them anyways. If you are interested, check her out on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter at @bluehousebikinis!
1)Tenacity
is definitely something I have gained in this class. I have schedule and I do
my absolute best to stick to that schedule. I have learned that even if it
sucks, I will get through it; it’s never as bad as you think it is. Just go at
every assignment with full force and it will get done, and it will get done
well.
2)There
were many times during the first part of the semester that I wanted to give up.
Especially during the customer interviews. There were so many videos, and we
had to approach a lot of strange people, I was scared. I got through it though,
I made the most of my situations, and the interviews became fun! I definitely feel
like I’ve gained tenacity. I’ve never given up, even when I thought I would. It’s
a mindset, just keep telling yourself that you can do it.
3)3
tips I would give to future students are:
a.Make
a schedule and stick to it. Don’t make excuses for yourself.
b.Watch
the deadlines, write them down so you are never caught off guard.
c.Embrace
every assignment. There are many times when I thought an assignment was weird
or unnecessary, but after I finished it, I realized that I gained some invaluable
experience.
1)The
biggest surprise for me in this reading was the sheer amount of options there
are for obtaining money for a startup business. It goes a lot further than the
simple bank loans and debt financing.
2)The
main part of the reading that was confusing to me was the part about the
angels. I don’t really understand how one would find an angel or would become
one. It sounds like they are just really nice people.
3)Two
questions I would ask are:
a.What
is the best way to get money for a startup?
b.Why
would someone choose to become a venture capitalist?
4)I
disagree with the statement: “many new ventures find that debt financing is not
a choice but a necessity”. I believe that it would be a very good idea for some
people to save up money to start a new business if they can. If they can save
money they don’t have to worry about paying it back, they could just focus on
their business. I understand for some people it may be necessary but I don’t think
it should be generalized to “many”.
1)The
biggest surprise for me in reading was the fact that the author was arguing
against market segmentation. I always assumed that researching a market base is
a good idea and the author hints that it might not be in some situations.
2)The
reading as a whole was pretty confusing for me. The reading was very elevated
so it was hard to understand fully.
3)Two
question’s I would ask:
a.In
what situations would you use market segmentation?
b.Why
is market segmentation helpful?
4)I
agree with the author on everything. I feel like it was an opinion backed by
research so there is nothing to really be wrong about.
1)I
happened to be at Lake Wauberg with my roommate so I chose to approach people
who happened to be at the lake at the same time. It was a busy day so it was
not hard to find people.
2)I
approached mostly students who were on their phones or computers so they were
distracted. You will not see much in the videos because I spoke to people who
were mostly sunbathing so I figured they would not appreciate being recorded with
so few clothes on. The two recordings I put up were the two that were most
clear.
3)I
was horrible at getting conversation started. I took the more “Here’s a dollar
to improve your day” approach and would walk away immediately. I did this because I was nervous and very
awkward. I have a tendency to laugh when I’m nervous, so these people probably
think I am clinically insane instead of nice.
4)I
had no plan for the conversation, my nervousness just took over. I was really
not relaxed at all. The interviews were easier to me because I could ask the
people before if they wanted to be recorded and if they would participate in
the interview. I didn’t like this assignment because I felt like I had to
essentially hide my phone and there was no good explanation as to why I was
giving them this dollar.
5)I
was actually able to give away 3 dollar bills. These were the people I walked away
from very quickly so they didn’t get a chance to give me the dollar back. The
other two looked at me very weirdly and said something along the lines of “no
thank you”.
Overall Reflection:
This assignment was incredibly weird for me. I was very
uncomfortable giving people money and secretly recording them. They also really did not like being disturbed. I
did the recordings secretly because I figured that was the only way I would be
able to get a natural reaction. I did not like the experience at all. My plan
did not deviate because I did not have one going into this assignment. My roommate
and I just happened to be at Lake Wauberg and I figured it was as good of a
place as any. I could not think of any real reason to give people the money,
and when I did (“in case you need money to buy sunscreen”) it sounded very rude
to me when I heard it back. The girl was also not very happy with me; she gave
me a very weird look. I completely underestimated this assignment; it was hard,
uncomfortable, and I don’t think I gained anything from it except some embarrassment.
1) The Pitch: See Below!
2) So my peers suggested that I show more passion in my pitch and that I work on my hook. Personally, I wanted to work more on describing my product using numbers and examples that people could understand. I think all of the comments were super helpful. People pointed out stuff that I hadn't thought of on my own and I really appreciate that.
3) As far as implementing these suggestions, I did okay. I tried an example, and I tried to show my passion, but my hook is still pretty weak, so any help on that would be appreciated . I plan to work on the hook more. I also want to try to add some statistics to help pitch my idea. Overall, I tried to be more relaxed and I feel like I achieved that this round.
1) Interview Strategy: I am going to ask questions to get to the root of my product. I am going to see if people would want a snack part way through a workout and if so, why? My product is called a "snack pack". It is a small waterproof pouch that would attach to a water bottle that would hold a small snack for when one gets hungry during a workout. I chose to interview athletes with a focus on swimmers. I interviewed people outside my apartment gym and at the O'Connell center.
2) 5 Interviews: See below!
3) Reflection: Once again I realized how hard interviewing is. I am still not very good at asking the right questions to get the information I need. I also learned that there is not a huge demand for a snack during a workout. A little than less than half of the people I interviewed over the 3 rounds said that a snack would not help them during a workout. This product may not be something I should pursue.
1)The
biggest surprise for me in the reading was the fact that they made business
sound so scientific. They talked about a process about how competition changes
a business and I feel like that is a little much for describing a business.
Anything can happen, it is not a set process.
2)Every
part of the reading was confusing to me, it was very elevated vocab for a
pretty simple concept.
3)Two
questions I have are:
a.Where
did you get this information?
b.How
do we know if this information is reliable?
4)I
think the author was wrong in making his work so scientific. Businesses all
react differently to competition, there is a no set “if this happens…then this
will be the result…” I don’t believe the author should have made his work so
definitive.
1)My name is Courtney
Meyer. I am 20 years old and I am a club swimmer at the University of Florida.
I have swam for over 11 years and have been a swim coach for 3 years. I hope to
someday become involved in a local pool as a coach or a volunteer. I love the
sport of swimming. I think it is a great way to guide children (and adults) and
keep them in shape. I could see my business idea benefitting my friends who are
still active swimmers and any swimmers at the local pool. I could definitely
see this business becoming a part of my life as a part time job.
2)Swimmers often become
hungry part way through a workout and this can hinder their workout. I have
developed something called a “snack pack”. This “snack pack” would hold a small
light snack that could be eaten part way through a workout. The pack would
attach to a water bottle and would be waterproof so it can sit next to the
pool.
3)I am offering this
product to swimmers and any other athlete who will benefit from them.
4)Athletes will want my
product because they will benefit in the long run from having a “snack pack”. The
snack pack will help them train longer and harder allowing them to be able to
make improvements faster and greater than they would have before. When athletes
get hungry they get tired and unmotivated, this will help them combat this
hunger.
5)What sets me apart
from everyone else is that I have so many years of experience so I have a first-hand
idea about what athletes need. I can apply my own experiences to my product and
my business to help my customers with their training needs.
I believe that all
elements of my idea napkin fit together quite nicely. I am experienced with the
problems athletes have, and I have chosen to invent something that plays off of
these experiences. I am offering a product that can really help some swimmers
and athletes further their training allowing them to further reach their goals.
The weakest part of my product is that there are a group of athletes and
swimmers who do not want a snack part way through a workout. Some of the people
I interviewed said that a snack would actually hurt their workout instead of
help their workout. That is totally understandable. The problem is I need to
find out how many people proportionally feel this way. If the majority of athletes
are under the opinion that a snack would hinder their workout, my product will
fail.
Chapter 9 1)My
biggest surprise in the reading was how highly liable sole proprietorships were.
If anything goes wrong in a sole proprietorship the CEO of the business is
directly responsible and the courts can seize their personal assets. I now
understand why business choose to incorporate; if something goes wrong the
CEO/other higher ups will not be personally liable, and their assets cannot be
taken away.
2)The
one part of the reading that confused me was the part about bankruptcy and the
Bankruptcy Act. Going bankrupt does not mean the business is actually out of money,
and some businesses actually declare bankruptcy in order to help their business
(aka Donald Trump). The business definition of bankruptcy is very different
from the typical definition of bankruptcy so that is confusing.
3)Two
questions I would ask the author are:
a.What
are some examples of businesses that have benefited from declaring bankruptcy?
b.Why
are LLC’s needed?
4)There
was nothing I thought the author was wrong about in this section. This section
was very factual and informative, therefore, there is very little that can be
argued for being wrong.
1)I
think that my idea of a Snack Pack is something I am going to pursue. Most of
the people that I interviewed thought it would be a good idea.
2)I
am specifically targeting swimmers because they tend to train for the longest periods
of time. It also worked well that I was at a swim meet this weekend so it was
easy to wander the hotel and interview swimmers.
3)I
tried to ask more open ended questions in the beginning and then narrow in my focus
during my interview.
4)The
interviews are below!
5)I
have learned that some people think a snack will hinder their workout, but the
majority do not. Most people do agree that a snack at the right time during a
workout will help them improve their workout.
6)I
am definitely way more confident now and I am way more comfortable with asking
people if they want to be interviewed. I am also way more confident when it
comes to asking the questions. I rarely stuttered this round! I still don’t think
I have the question technique down yet, but I’m hoping to get there. Since we
are getting more product specific instead on opportunity I decided to ask some
close ended questions. For example, I asked if they would use something like a
Snack Pack.
Elevator Pitch= 60 Seconds of hell
I'm just kidding, the elevator pitch was not too hard, and I actually found it pretty fun!
My Opportunity:
When athletes train for long periods of time they can sometimes become hungry and in turn fatigued. This fatigued can sometimes cause an athletes workout to be compromised.
My Solution:
Create something called a "Snack Pack". The Snack Pack will be a small pouch that can be easily attached to a water bottle that contains a small, mid-workout snack. The Snack Pack will be waterproof and dirt proof to accommodate all athletes.
