Half-way Reflection

Everyday I am thankful for my organizational skills. I can specifically thank my mother for instilling this skill on me at a very young age. However, since I am a millennial, technology is very much so my "thing." Thankfully I've been able to combine my organizational skills with my technological skills to keep up with the requirements of this course. My iCal is my life. Literally. I'm not exaggerating. If I need to do something, it's scheduled in my iCal. The secret to my success in this course thus far is scheduling when all of the assignments are due into my iCal. They're coded a green-blue color and when I submit an assignment, I change it to a grey color to signify that it's completed. 

Elevator Pitch No. 2 is when I felt like giving up. It had completely slipped my mind that for that assignment I had to record a video of myself. I had a pretty bad day the day this assignment was due and I was in no mood to be cheerful in front of a camera. I reluctantly put a chair on my bed and my laptop on top of it and looked at this ridiculous rig of a "tripod" I made. However, once I read over what we had to actually say/do in the video, my attitude changed. I was excited to talk about my topic. Thankfully I'm no stranger to public speaking and I was able to get the video knocked out in two takes. Sometimes you just have to make a makeshift tripod and talk about something you love and you'll forget about the bad day you had. 

Three tips for next semester's ENT3003 students about fostering the skills that support tenacity and developing the 'tenacious mindset:

1. MAKE NOTE OF ALL ASSIGNMENT DUE DATES AND TIMES -- Whether you write it down in your iCal, real agenda, or on a post-it note on your desk, write them down SOMEWHERE. 
2. Now that you've written down the due dates and times, plan time to actually do them. However, read the assignments while you plan for when you'll do them. Some assignments will take longer than expected and it's better to know that before you try to knock it out the hour before you have to submit it. 
3. Take pride in your blog. It's your own unique space on the Internet so fun with it! 

P.S. I still can't spell entrepreneurship without spell check... 

The Twenty Percent

1) Find a business owner and talk to them about their customers. Who do they think their target customers are? What are their customers' unmet needs?Where do they find their customers? What are their customer's demographics? What kinds of media do their customers consume? Etc.

2) Next, go and talk to 3 'target customers' -- using the demographics/psychographics the entrepreneur described. As these 'target customers' the questions in the paragraph directly above.

3) Reflect. Does the entrepreneur adequately understand their customers' problems? Where are the differences? Why might these differences exist.

Important. Do not tell the entrepreneur about the second part of the exercise -- it can put them on the defensive and either shut down the interview or prevent them from providing you with the fullest information. Also, please video record your customer interactions and the entrepreneur interview. If the entrepreneur declines to be recorded, that's OK. But if they approve, be sure to include the videos in your post. Do be sure to include video recordings of your customer interactions, however.

Week 8 Reading Reflection

What I found surprising in this week's reading was how "crowd funding" is a factor in weakening the economy. At the rate of how many start-ups are being created and how they typically use crowd funding as a source of funding the start of their business ventures, it's alarming to know that all of that effort and money raised is actually hurting our economy. 

What was confusing to me was how an enterprise facing company in a niche industry, for example, would create excitement and/or get highly interested investors for an IPO. It's confusing to be because I simply don't understand how such information gets out/is released or how a company goes about doing that specifically -- it can't just be solely reliant on public relations. 

The following are two questions I would ask the author: 

• Please elaborate on how crowd funding is dangerous to the economy and visa versa. 
• How do truly know what source of capital is best to start your business?

I'm pretty adamant on disagreeing with the fact that crowd funding is a result of a weak economy. A smarter hypothesis as to why crowd funding exists and is so popular is because of the Internet and its social media platforms -- not because the economy is poor. 

Free Money

Strategy: 

• I am going to enter a meeting room before the start of a meeting 
• I will approach the first 5 people I see in that meeting room 
• I will say: "Hi, would you like a dollar? You can use it to get a snack later from the vending machine!"
• My plan is to give them an incentive for attending the meeting. After the meeting (or during a break they are given) they can treat themselves to a snack from the vending machine. 
• I don't think I'll be able to give away any of the dollar bills -- or maybe just one! 

Reflections: 

• To be honest, I was dreading this assignment. I did not want to walk up to random people and try to give them money. It was just as hard as I thought it would be to give away the dollars. What I found were that people are actually really nice and don't want to take your money but they will be a good sport for you when you're trying to complete an assignment! 

Videos: 

• Click here for Video #1
• Click here for Video #2 

Week 7 Reading Reflection

What stood out the most to me is how the use of traditional demographics no longer serves as a basis for marketing strategy. It was surprising to read because I assumed that such demographics (age, sex, income and education) would be a definite influence on purchasing decisions made by a consumer. I thought that information would be extremely useful for businesses to factor in when developing a marketing strategy for a specific product and its potential consumers. 

The "Drift into Nebulousness" I found to be confusing. However, I found an interesting Prezi presentation about it online, which can be found here:
https://prezi.com/lcpvqlbzrer1/rediscovering-market-segmentation/

The two questions I would ask the author are:

• In your opinion, are traditional demographics influential in developing a unique market strategy? 
• What is the relationship between the Drift into Nebulousness and Market Segmentation? 

I was very interested in this week's reading. There wasn't really much I didn't agree with. I look forward to the readings more and more each week! 

Elevator Pitch No. 2

I'll be honest, I felt a little silly doing this assignment. I had to put a chair on my bed just to get this shot -- balancing it was the best part. However, after a few warm-up takes, I found my groove. Thankfully I've never been one to be shy about public speaking, especially when it's about something I love. 

Standing up to give this pitch is definitely a game-changer. I even fixed the lighting in my room a bit to make sure everything looked just right in the video. I wish these pitches could be done in person because I'm definitely less awkward in person compared to in a video! 

Customer Interviews No. 3

Business idea: Hand-Lettered Art (framed or on a canvas) 

The questions I plan on asking are:

1. Do you know what hand lettering is?
2. Do you enjoy simple home decor?
3. What is your favorite quote?
4. Would you be interested in a customized art print of your favorite quote?
5. Would you be interested in purchasing an art print as a gift?

My interview strategy is casual. I would ask only females in the 15-30 year old age range these questions. 

Week 6 Reading Reflection

What surprised me most in this week's reading is the power of buyers. It's apparent that if no one buys a product, it will fail but that seldom occurs. However, what isn't apparent is how much consumers have the power in the business/entrepreneurial world. It's more common to think people like you and I buy things here and there and it doesn't make that much of a difference. 

What I found to be confusing is the part about how fast-growing industries are not always attractive. It's odd how products that are trending quickly tend to have higher prices because the consumer demand is competitive -- everyone wants it -- so how is a product like that sometimes considered to be not doing well? 

I would ask the author: 

• To differentiate more clearly between factors and forces 
• and more about exploiting industry change 

Compared to what I've learned thus far and what I've learned in previous classes, I don't disagree with what the author was explaining in this chapter nor do I think any of the information was incorrect. 

Idea Napkin No. 1

I am Erica Rego: small girl, big personality. I have a knack for video editing, graphic design, conceptual branding, and consistent, cohesive social media presences. During my first year at the University of Florida, I developed a unique talent: hand lettering. I like to call it knock-off calligraphy because I don't use calligraphy pens or nibs to do it. I use any common writing utensil; from paint pens and pencils, to fine-tip felt pens and thin-line markers. I hand letter quotes and simple illustrations on either canvases or card stock. I hand letter to make something beautiful. Something that makes people stop and say, "Wow! You really made this?" Something that people would love to have framed on their walls or give as a gift to someone they love. I find joy in people's positive reactions to my hand lettered art and I want to spread that joy. Although at the moment hand lettering is just a hobby, I find myself doing it as often as I can because that's how much I enjoy it. 

I am offering my customers art and joy. Since my hand lettered art comes in two forms (canvas or card stock) my customers have options to fulfill their unmet needs. My product can serve as art for personal appreciation or as a gift to a loved one. Canvases can be hung onto walls and the card stock prints can be framed and hung onto walls as well. 

My potential customers all have one thing in common: they love quotes and simple art. My potential typical customer is female, ages 18-55, and appreciates a beautifully decorated home (or dorm) space. I believe my potential customer age rage is so large because I personally have made canvases and prints for women as young as 18 and as gracefully older as 50. I would also add the occasional male purchasing a print or canvas for his loved one as a gift. 

Potential customers would pay for this because it will bring them great joy in seeing their favorite quote in a new light, on a wall of a space they love. People want to be happy and I believe my product will make my anticipated customer demographic happy. 

My core competencies are the fact that I can tailor my product to the customer's wishes. I can make the canvas the color of their preference, they can choose between a canvas and a print, and they can select their favorite quote of choice. This sets me apart from everyone else: the ability to get exactly what you want. Also, while the hand lettering community is growing each day, it's still a fairly new concept that is making its way through the event planning business -- especially for weddings! 

I believe these elements definitely fit together. Success is when passion collides with talent and hard work. Those three ideas come together to achieve the ultimate goal: to make my potential customers happy. However, there is one weakness to my "idea:" it is very time consuming. Cranking out canvases and prints takes longer than you think. In contrast, I believe all great things are worth the wait and that's why I feel so strongly about my hand lettering art business idea. 

Week 5 Reading Reflection

The fact that at least 600,000 new companies have emerged in the United States every year since the mid 1990s was what surprised me the most in this reading. If you do the math, that's over 12 million new businesses since I was born! What comes as no surprise to me is how the emerging of those businesses helps make the U.S. the greatest nation in the world.  We can credit this success to the resources and opportunities we have that allow these businesses to start.

The "Evaluation Process" confused me the most in this reading section. I understand the profile analysis, but the feasibility criteria approach and the comprehensive feasibility approach are very confusing to me. These different approaches to evaluate the viability of a new venture need to be better explained. In my opinion, the more you understand about what's going into a new venture, the more you are prepared to handle any unexpected challenges that you may face early on in the development process. The goal is to reduce as many obstacles as possible! 

Two questions I'd ask the author are: 

• What are the common key characteristics among the most successful entrepreneurs? Learning this would allow me to gain insight about what I would need to change about my tactics if I were to pursue my own entrepreneurial venture. 
• On average, how much time time do successful entrepreneurs spend planning/researching, evaluating, and validating their ventures before they actually get the ball rolling and begin? Learning this would give me an idea of how long this process would take if I were to pursue my own entrepreneurial venture. 

I agreed with everything I read!

Elevator Pitch No. 1

Business Opportunity and Solution: "ParkIt"
ParkIt is an app that shows maps of parking lots in your areas.  The maps indicate which parking spots are vacant and which ones are not. A technology system powered by satellites and WI-FI gathers data on vacant and occupied parking spots to inform the consumer where they can and cannot park. The perfect solution to having to drive around everywhere to find the perfect parking spot -- ParkIt will bring you right to it!