Week 12 Reading Reflection

This week's reading was something that really made me look at the process from going to an entrepreneurial based business to a manger based business. The different things that you have to keep in consideration like control and responsibility throughout the company can hugely affect the success of a business. Something that I also found really interesting is how crucial the transition stage is for an entrepreneur. You are no longer able to make decisions based on what you want for the company but you have to make sure that you are taking everyone's wants and needs and vision for the company into consideration also. The author did a good job explaining how a business is supposed to create an atmosphere of constant innovation. I would ask the author how do you sustain a sense of innovation if your business is not financially stable to do so and what are the hardest parts about making innovation possible?

Venture Concept No. 1

Opportunity: The main people that this service is going to be catering to would be college students. In particular college students that are very busy during the day and the night. In college every student is busy trying to differentiate themselves by going above and beyond what is expected, plus dealing with the time constraint that University of Florida has does not allow many students enough time in the day. Many students are not able to get more than one meal a day so my service is going to cater to the typical busy college student. Snacks and light meals are becoming more and more common for college students but the problem is actually obtaining these snacks which can break concentration, study time and be a hassle for those who do not have a vehicle. The snacks that are easily available on campus do not have many options and students are usually forced to compromise. Snack machines and places like the HUB and the POD also do not stay open for extended periods of time. The market is concentrated around the University of Florida and appeals to males and females age 17-25 who are young professionals or full-time students. I think that this opportunity has a pretty big chance of succeeding but I think that the opportunity will not be open for long as delivery services are starting to become more and more diverse with their food options. Innovation is constantly happening and this opportunity can be an extension of an already existing business.

Innovation: Tap&Snack is the name of the app that I am going to develop for the snack delivery service. Tap&Snack will work essentially as an Uber for snacks while having students or employees that are not busy deliver snacks to and from locations in the surrounding area. Essentially a customer would choose a snack that they want from a local convenience store and pay for that snack plus a one dollar delivery fee. The driver would receive a cut of the money and essentially that is how the business would work. The service would be open until 3am way past when most other stores are open. The best thing about this business is that the customer would not have to leave from the spot that they are currently at. The real revenue generator from this business would come from ad space form local business and or other companies that would want to advertise through the app. Tailoring to the needs and specific wants of the customers are something that I a lot of other service companies are not doing for such a small need.

Venture Concept: My service is going to be able to make the life of every college student easier for a very simple price. My service also offers customization and the ability to save time and add convenience to snacking and small meals.  I do not think that it will take that long for customers to switch to my business because as word spreads I think the business will grow and there is a big platform for that service to spread. Since this service is unique there are not many competitors but people that cold offer the same service would be services such as 2 Dollar Delivery and Doorstep Delivery.  Something that could cause this business to fail is the fact that this business is a service business so demand and revenue rely solely on the need for my service which could make things a lot harder when demand may not be as other times such as finals week when a lot of customers are stuck in the library all night. The packaging is not a big factor for my business since my service will be mostly business to business products. That being said, that is also an advantage because customers will already know what to expect when they’re product arrives. My business is going to be organized in a way that the flow of products from one location to another will be easy. Also, since delivery will be location based speed is something that is going to be emphasized because most people who want to snack want that snack within 5-10 minutes of the initial thought. Employees will be voluntary and to begin most of the initial deliveries will be made by people within the company but soon expand to those that are outside of the company.

Three Minor Elements

1. One thing that I think is really makes the business special and give me an advantage is the simple fact that I am a college student and one of the main ways this business is going to spread is word of mouth. It is nothing to have a good idea that no one is aware of so I am going to use the fact that I am a college student to help gain leverage within the college market. I also think that since many of the employees will also be college students it will also help in spreading awareness about the service.

2. The next opportunity that I am looking for is expanding beyond snacks and becoming the place to go for all college needs. For example, as I stated in the last exercise chargers, headphones and other things that college students just do not have enough time to go and get for themselves. The main goal of this service is to make college easier for everyone and I want to be able to offer anything that a college student may need away from home.

3. I want this service to be something that I can implement and have as a side business while pursuing my career. College students are a never ending market and as education becomes more intensive and time consuming the more people are going to need and appreciate this service. This service can also essentially run it’s self so not much will be needed on my part to make sure that 5 year later that this service is something that can still thrive.