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!
