Week 8 Reading Reflection

This chapter was really informative about a lot of the things that we do not learn about before and sometimes even after attending college. Everything in this chapter was pretty interesting to me since I do not know much about the financial side of starting a business. Some of the things the author talked about was debit vs equity financing and also he discussed some of the five steps involved when trying to take out a loan from the bank. How you receive capital from a business is really an issue you have to think a lot about because it could make or break your business. In the text the author also discussed how some financing requires you to give up part of your ownership as well over a company. There are a lot of logistics involved when it comes to financing a business and the author was really clear about the differences and options that business owners have.

Half-way Reflection

This course has been very influential on my thoughts and theories about entrepreneurship and has changed the ways I look at this practice. In order to keep up with this course I had to develop organizational skills and time management. In order to be successful you have to be able to develop the mindset of an entrepreneur which involves being able to handle multiple things at one time and being able to get things done in tough situations. This course had a lot of assignments and at one point I missed three assignments in a row and I was falling behind and was about to give up on the course all together. I realized that I couldn't give up and that I needed to keep going and to complete this course or I was not going to be satisfied with myself. I would advise student who take this class to one, do the assignments early. Assignments that do not require a lot of time like the comments and certain blog posts you should go ahead and get out the way early. The assignments can start to build up if you do not keep up with them so it is a good thing to stay ahead and be on time. Also, you have to know that you have to get things done no matter what you have to be able to persevere no matter how much the assignment asks. Stay up to date with your assignments and do the extra credit and the class will go smoothly. The mos important thing to remember is to not stress out when things get tough be calm and do what you can and if you miss an assignment or too make up for it when you can.

Free Money

The place that I am going to go and give out the money will be the Walmart on Archer with a purpose of trying to give out money to those who are currently grocery shopping. My goal is to find people that are paying close attention or browsing for a specific item at the time. I think that out of the five attempts I should be able to give away all my dollars especially because of the place that I chose being a bargain store. What I am going to say to get the conversation started will be, " Hello, my name is Markemia and I am giving out random dollars on behalf of the Make-A-Smile Foundation." From there I expect all of the customers to take the dollar but we will have to see. My reaction was very interesting I gave out 4 of the 5 dollars in which one person was not willing to take the the money. Giving away money would be something that I think that would be easy but it was very awkward or people just didn't really trust it at first. I think maybe if consumers had more information about a product then they would be more willing to accept the product,

Week 7 Reading Reflection

This week's reading about market segmentation was a reading that I could really understand and relate to because it is currently what we are also discussing in my marketing class. I think that market segmentation is very beneficial to some companies in helping them to understand their target customer and exactly what they are looking for in a product. Being able to understand the lifestyle and values of your potential market can really help when you are trying to reach them directly. I also agree with the author though that all these things are essential in market segmentation but they are not always successful and they are not the only thing that you should focus on. I feel like this is where the 80/20 rule will come in and that is focusing on the consumer that are continually consuming your product and research their values and lifestyles. If I could ask the author two questions I would ask "How is it that corporations successfully sell a product made for one specific market and reach multiple segments and also what is the most effective way to learn your market?

Elevator Pitch No. 2

The feedback that I received was very helpful when it came to constructing my second elevator pitch. The feedback that I received helped me identify the strengths and the weaknesses of my first elevator pitch and I was able to try to modify what I said in the second one to cater to the weaknesses. I included how the business was going to wok specifically mentioning how the snack would be delivered in my second elevator pitch to clear up confusion. I thought all the feedback I received was very helpful and insightful and made me think deeper about my business.

Week 6 Reading Reflection

I thought that this week's reading was very interesting in a sense that it gave me a chance to look at entrepreneurship in a different form and fashion. In this week's article it focused on competition and the importance it plays in starting a business. One of the most surprising and interesting things that I learned when reading this article is about all the barriers to entry and what they entail. One barrier in particular that I did not know about was economies of scale which is a barrier based on the industry that you decide to enter. If I could ask the author two question I would ask him how he feels about collaboration with the competition and what is the best way to position your business ahead of the competition because these are questions that a person entering an industry might also have. I think that this article really helped show he importance that competitors make when entering into an industry that is weak versus one that is strong and competition as stated in the article ultimately affects profitability. I think that the author made very good points and was very detailed about the subject in general.

Idea Napkin No. 1

1. Something that I love is learning about people and what makes them do what they do. I think that is one reason why I went into marketing because in addition to that I like to know what certain things that people see that cause them to take actions. I'm experienced with marketing. promotion and lastly just being personable. I strive to satisfy the needs of others that rely on me or certain things. I see this business plan being something that I can manage while still pursuing my career I want to be able to give back to the University of Florida.

2. What I am offering to the customers is a way to solve the problem of low diversity with snacks and other snacking items that are not offered on campus by bringing the good to them . When you ask many if the students what their favorite snack is most of the time that item is not available on campus or if it is the item is not within reach. I am offering the customer time, form and possession utility.

3. The main people that this service is being offered to is college students. But just not any type of college students students that are up during snacking hours studying, students that study at home or at the library most around campus. College students that also do no town vehicles and or do not like driving and whom are far away from convenience stores. Lastly, diverse snackers whom product is not commonly available in snack machines.

4.My customers care because time is money in the college world. With 24 hours not being enough time in the day for most college students this will help them save an average of 30 mins and also keeps them from having to physically drive and break the activity that they were currently doing.

5. Something that sets this apart is that this is an idea that is catered to the busy college student with not enough hours in the day. This will also offer a large variety which many others do not. Another thing that sets this apart is the fact that there is no contemplation on whether the snack is worth buying or not because they are snacks that the customer has already had. Working as a 3rd party in the business makes it easier for the business to effectively deliver what the customer expects.

Week 5 Reading Reflection

1. Something that surprised me during the reading is the different external and internal problems that are experienced by entrepreneurs when they are trying to pursue a new venture. The main two external problems that are experienced are market knowledge and customer contact, while the main two for internal problems are cash flow and adequate capital. Realizing that these are some the main problems experienced gave me a different outlook on the whole process.

2.  A part of the reading that was a little confusing to me was the area in the text that talked about the financial roles that inhibit a business from succeeding. The different terms that they use when it comes to initial start up and the logistics.

3.If I could ask the author two questions I would ask the author what the personal factors also inhibit  venture from succeeding and also another question I would ask the author are the best steps to take from failure. I would ask these questions because I think if companies implement and use some of these strategies it could help with future problems.

4. There is really not anything in the text that I disagree with.

Elevator Pitch No. 1

The name of my product is the Snack &Tap app. This app is basically solving the problems of students wanting to snack and have a more diverse range of snacks with the simple touch of a finger. The app is going to be geared towards young college student and professionals that like to snack but don't have many options to get those snacks and do not like the choices available in machines.