My Exit strategy is one that I am sure that many Entrepreneurs would also follow through with. My plan would be to sell the business for a large return after a certain number of years, for a few reasons. I would want to make sure to sell while I can still get the most amount of money out of it, instead of waiting too long and attempting to sell it for a less desirable price once the brand starts to mature or decline somewhat.
My second line of reasoning is that being an entrepreneur is a passion, but sometimes you are not passionate about your own product enough to continue with that business for the long run. I would sell this business and move on into a new fresh venture and try and build another successful product or service. I would not want to feel stagnated working on the same product my whole career, I would certainly want to move on and put my effort into another project and work on something new that I can be excited about.
I think my exit strategy affected my concept somewhat in how I plan on reaching my audience. If this product becomes successful as I planned, then it would mean that people have become more aware of the issue of drunk driving and now have a great solution to eliminate this problem completely. My main goal of this business was to make profits but I also saw a very serious problem that society is facing in drunk driving, and if I felt like I had put in as much effort as I could into making people aware of this product and I felt like I succeeded in getting as many people as I could aware, then I would feel like I had done my part, and would be ready to move on to a different venture. Which is why I placed so much emphasis on marketing and reaching a target audience.
Friday, April 20, 2018
Friday, April 13, 2018
Assignment 27A: Reading Reflection No.3
I recently finished reading "The Wright Brothers" by David McCullough
1. After reading the biography on the Wright Brothers, a duo I knew almost nothing about, there were lots of pieces of information that surprised me in the text. One that really surprised me was the sheer amount of innovation and improvements of past models they made together that were unheard of at the time that contributed to their achievement of first ever successful human aircraft flight such as their improvements over the Zeppelin Airship and the invention of the wing-warping glider. I admired their dedication to their goal and how willing they were to put themselves in danger to test out their planes. What I least admired was that they refused to donate their famous "flyer" aircraft into the Smithsonian museum. There was much adversity and failure in regards to their goals. Many newspaper outlets published their failures and they were frequently ridiculed by peers, they also suffered many failures attempting to make the plane, even being involved in the first aircraft crash, but not getting seriously injured.
2. The Wright Brothers had many competencies that are worth sharing, but I think that their strongest competency was their innovation and drive. They worked on air crafts for several years before finally building the first successful one in 1900.
3. I was confused when it got a little technical with the building of the airplanes. I am not too familiar with the structure and all of the names of the plane parts they used and those parts were a little confusing to comprehend
4. How confident were you when you tried the airplane out for the first time? I want to know because they are putting their lives in real danger by testing out these new airborne inventions.
Did you think this was going to transform the way humans would travel long distances forever? I want to know if they were aware of the extent of their achievements.
5. I am sure that the Wright brothers believed in hard work as one of the most important things a person can do. Without putting in serious effort, they never would have invented one of the most important inventions of the 20th century.
1. After reading the biography on the Wright Brothers, a duo I knew almost nothing about, there were lots of pieces of information that surprised me in the text. One that really surprised me was the sheer amount of innovation and improvements of past models they made together that were unheard of at the time that contributed to their achievement of first ever successful human aircraft flight such as their improvements over the Zeppelin Airship and the invention of the wing-warping glider. I admired their dedication to their goal and how willing they were to put themselves in danger to test out their planes. What I least admired was that they refused to donate their famous "flyer" aircraft into the Smithsonian museum. There was much adversity and failure in regards to their goals. Many newspaper outlets published their failures and they were frequently ridiculed by peers, they also suffered many failures attempting to make the plane, even being involved in the first aircraft crash, but not getting seriously injured.
2. The Wright Brothers had many competencies that are worth sharing, but I think that their strongest competency was their innovation and drive. They worked on air crafts for several years before finally building the first successful one in 1900.
3. I was confused when it got a little technical with the building of the airplanes. I am not too familiar with the structure and all of the names of the plane parts they used and those parts were a little confusing to comprehend
4. How confident were you when you tried the airplane out for the first time? I want to know because they are putting their lives in real danger by testing out these new airborne inventions.
Did you think this was going to transform the way humans would travel long distances forever? I want to know if they were aware of the extent of their achievements.
5. I am sure that the Wright brothers believed in hard work as one of the most important things a person can do. Without putting in serious effort, they never would have invented one of the most important inventions of the 20th century.
Assignment 26A: Celebrating Failure
This past semester, after spending the first semester just trying to get acclimated to having moved away from home and just trying to focus on my classes, I decided to try and get more involved in order to keep me busy and build up my resume, and it turned out to be a lot harder than I initially thought.
My first attempt at getting involved was when I applied and was rejected in becoming a BUMP mentee. I had heard it was a great program for freshman business students to learn from upperclassmen and meet new peers. I had worked hard on my application and felt good about it only to have my hopes dashed when an email was sent to me a few days later telling me I did not get in.
Then I heard about FLA, the Florida Leadership Academy in which only the top 100 sophomores in the business school are selected, and I was quick to start working on building a great application, which was a grueling process, an essay, a resume, and a letter of recommendation was required. I worked for hours making sure my essay was perfect, and my resume was updated and I turned my application in confidently. The rejection letter naturally invaded my inbox just a few short days later and even though they let me down gently, they might as well have told me I was ugly and stupid because that is how I felt following another disappointing let down.
I knew I had to make money this semester so I decided that I had to get a job somewhere, and so I applied for server jobs at a few local restaurants, hoping to score some solid tips to balance out my unsparing spending habits of this past semester. I was not called back for an interview for any server jobs but I guess you can say it worked out for me because I landed a job spending 8 hours a day making Pitas at Pita Pit at minimum wage, and it doesn't ALWAYS suck.
What I Learned:
I learned not to give up when things are not going my way and that rejection is always a prerequisite for success. I am only a freshmen right now and so I have a lot of time to get involved and add resume builders to look more appealing to employers and prestigious clubs.
Reflection:
Handling rejection hasn't always been easy for me, I tend to obsess over my failures and not focus on the great successes i have had. My goal is to turn the excess energy I have obsessing over my failures into motivation for my next objectives and learn to move past the failures. Sometimes you just have to remember that even the most successful people have faced countless rejections and failures in their lives. This class changed my perspective on failure because I learned that it is not such a bad thing, often times rejection leads to lessons learned and so I would take more risks now, knowing this information.
Friday, April 6, 2018
Assignment 25A: What's Next?
Existing Market:
If I am able to successfully grow my product enough so that I can start working on the next innovation for it, I would consider working with companies attempting to make the first breathalyzers for THC, a chemical in Marijuana, that works in the same way as the alcohol breathalyzer. Marijuana use is only going to become more common the more it becomes legal and so this seems to be the right step to take this business.
I talked to a few people that fit into my market segment of concerned parents of teenage kids in high school or college and told them of my future ideas and asked what else I should be focusing on with this product. I was told that instead of focusing on the grand picture of stopping drunk driving completely, I first need to make sure that my product is developed in a way that will get people to buy it, size and compatibility with vehicles were brought up. I would have to make sure that my product is completely ready before I market it out to everyone. When I brought up the idea of testing for THC, I found that all of the parents were supportive of the idea and felt it was a good direction to follow up in, but one felt a little skeptical about how accurate that product could be and mentioned how it could affect the brand's credibility if I made a faulty product.
What makes the most sense in growing my business is to take it slow and make sure I have done every step completely and thoroughly before I move on with future ambitions. This means making sure my alcohol breathalyzer is effective, consistent, and accurate and market tested to see which size, color, etc that would be most effective in selling to customers. This has potential to be a very big business but if i rush production and get too ahead of myself in regard to trying to work on new things without perfecting my original product, i can cause this business to fail. I need to make sure my product is marketed extensively to raise awareness of its existence. Drunk driving is such a common and widespread issue that investing in advertising would surely pay off because I do not need to convince people why this product is useful or needed, i just need to let them know it exists.
New Market:
My radically different product would be a change to the manufacturing of food store and other retail store aisles where instead of the shelves having items on the bottom, middle and high up permanently, have it so the shelves can rotate with each other effectively solving two problems that retailers have. One of which being the issue of customers not being tall enough to reach the high shelves and the low shelves being too inconvenient for customers and also this would also make stocking shelves easier for employees. This would be a good business to business idea instead of the business to consumer idea for my other product.
It would create value for the retailer because the unique and innovative shelf system would be easy to use for both its employees and the customers and therefore more people will buy at this store and increase sales and profits for the retailer.
I interviewed three people who I thought would be interested in this concept. I was greeted with a lot of support when it came to making the shelves easier to reach, but there was some skepticism in regards to how the rotating system would work, such as if two people wanted it rotated in different ways at the same time, and of course the possibility of injuries or the system breaking down. A possible adaptation to the product suggested to me was instead of rotating each row, the only real problem people face is with the top row so just have that one able to move down and forward somewhat, making it easier to make and eliminating the issue of items falling off in the rotating process.
This new market idea seems plausible, but not as attractive to me as my other product. It is certainly true that more people shop for groceries than drive under the influence, but in regards to what product seems more practical and would actually make more money and sell, I think the breathalyzer is the winner.
If I am able to successfully grow my product enough so that I can start working on the next innovation for it, I would consider working with companies attempting to make the first breathalyzers for THC, a chemical in Marijuana, that works in the same way as the alcohol breathalyzer. Marijuana use is only going to become more common the more it becomes legal and so this seems to be the right step to take this business.
I talked to a few people that fit into my market segment of concerned parents of teenage kids in high school or college and told them of my future ideas and asked what else I should be focusing on with this product. I was told that instead of focusing on the grand picture of stopping drunk driving completely, I first need to make sure that my product is developed in a way that will get people to buy it, size and compatibility with vehicles were brought up. I would have to make sure that my product is completely ready before I market it out to everyone. When I brought up the idea of testing for THC, I found that all of the parents were supportive of the idea and felt it was a good direction to follow up in, but one felt a little skeptical about how accurate that product could be and mentioned how it could affect the brand's credibility if I made a faulty product.
What makes the most sense in growing my business is to take it slow and make sure I have done every step completely and thoroughly before I move on with future ambitions. This means making sure my alcohol breathalyzer is effective, consistent, and accurate and market tested to see which size, color, etc that would be most effective in selling to customers. This has potential to be a very big business but if i rush production and get too ahead of myself in regard to trying to work on new things without perfecting my original product, i can cause this business to fail. I need to make sure my product is marketed extensively to raise awareness of its existence. Drunk driving is such a common and widespread issue that investing in advertising would surely pay off because I do not need to convince people why this product is useful or needed, i just need to let them know it exists.
New Market:
My radically different product would be a change to the manufacturing of food store and other retail store aisles where instead of the shelves having items on the bottom, middle and high up permanently, have it so the shelves can rotate with each other effectively solving two problems that retailers have. One of which being the issue of customers not being tall enough to reach the high shelves and the low shelves being too inconvenient for customers and also this would also make stocking shelves easier for employees. This would be a good business to business idea instead of the business to consumer idea for my other product.
It would create value for the retailer because the unique and innovative shelf system would be easy to use for both its employees and the customers and therefore more people will buy at this store and increase sales and profits for the retailer.
I interviewed three people who I thought would be interested in this concept. I was greeted with a lot of support when it came to making the shelves easier to reach, but there was some skepticism in regards to how the rotating system would work, such as if two people wanted it rotated in different ways at the same time, and of course the possibility of injuries or the system breaking down. A possible adaptation to the product suggested to me was instead of rotating each row, the only real problem people face is with the top row so just have that one able to move down and forward somewhat, making it easier to make and eliminating the issue of items falling off in the rotating process.
This new market idea seems plausible, but not as attractive to me as my other product. It is certainly true that more people shop for groceries than drive under the influence, but in regards to what product seems more practical and would actually make more money and sell, I think the breathalyzer is the winner.
Assignment 24A: Venture Concept No. 1
Opportunity:
My product consists of a breathalyzer attachment that can be permanently placed into any type of vehicle and be required to successfully use between the hours of 10 PM and 4 AM to start the car, the times of the night when most drunk driving incidents occur.
I have identified two market segments of people who would buy this product. One group of people would be those that go out often, are young and relatively new to driving, and may consider themselves a risk to drunk drive, or have driven under the influence before. My other target segment, and the one I feel is more prominent, includes concerned parents of high school or college aged kids that are just learning to drive and are afraid of their children making a poor decision.
The forces in the environment creating this opportunity would be the growing amount of drunk driving related deaths and occurrences happening today. Drunk driving related deaths are one of the most common killers of teens and young adults and it is a growing problem that needs to be seriously dealt with.
Geographically, this product can be sold anywhere, drunk driving is not just a problem in some areas and not in others. It is a widespread issue that can be a problem in any location. Demographically, it is more common for young adults and teens to be involved in drunk driving related incidents, therefore it is best to market this product in stores where many people who are around the age of a parent with a teenager or young adult would shop at in order to maximize revenue and profits.
There is no current way customers are satisfying this need right now. The only thing stopping peoploe from driving drunk is their own discipline and awareness for their own safety, the safety of others and the fairly strict laws we have in place right now.
This opportunity has the potential to be huge. Driving under the influence is one of the biggest killers of teens and young adults today and currently there is nothing concrete stopping these incidents from happening. If I had a sensible and practical product that worked how I described it too and those in my target markets were aware of this product, it would be a huge success financially, and save countless of lives as well.
The window of opportunity will be open as long as people are still driving cars and alcohol is still legal. The window will not be closing anytime soon, This is a growing issue, and this solution would be useful and popular among people for a very long time to come because drunk driving will always be something that is going to happen unfortunately, but this can be a great way to slash those death numbers severely.
Innovation:
If I were able to sell my product exactly how I wanted it to be, it would be a surefire financial success and make my business very profitable. The goal for my breathalyzer would be to have a few key features that would make it stand out from others and be a practical solution to the problem I am trying to solve: drunk driving.
My product would be small and not take up that much room, so it does not seem like a hindrance to the driver or look unappealing in anyway.
I would like the breathalyzer to be able to function accurately and consistently and make it so after you breathe in it, it displays a clear number that shows the blood-alcohol level currently being tested, and function in a way so that a successful use would start the car and a failing use would make it so the car cannot be started until a successful use is drawn or until the time is out of the zone of use, (10 Pm - 4 AM)
My last feature of the product I would like to see is ability to be attached to any type of vehicle, this would probably require some sort of Bluetooth or wireless connection in order to work for any type of vehicle, but once its connected, cannot be disconnected unless through a way that can only be accomplished away from the car, therefore someone cannot drive home drunk by bypassing the system.
Venture Concept:
This product will solve the problem of drunk driving because it makes driving the car physically impossible if you are drunk in the time period listed. It would guarantee safety for the would be driver and other innocent people out there on the road.
I am unsure if anyone would buy this for themselves because they feel like they are a risk to drunk driving but I think if the government got involved and made it so offenders have to get one for a lowered charge, then this would very much sell to this group. Also, I know that concerned parents of their kids would buy this because this guarantees safety of their kids and to most parents, there is nothing more important or a bigger priority.
There does not seem to be any actual competitors that have an established brand selling this product right now so if I market this correctly, I can be the only brand that does this that people will know about.
The packaging should be small to stress the fact that this product is practical and not a hindrance to safe drivers and the distribution needs to be in stores where middle aged parents commonly shop, such as retail stores like Home Depot, Walmart, and auto shop stores preferably.
I would need manufacturers for me and to rent warehouse space in order to make this product, I would market extensively through advertisement because awareness is key for this business and then I would meet with retailers to convince them that they need this product in their stores.
1. My unfair advantage I have over others is that this problem is a very big one and there is no current solution out there that can also work as a profitable business. If people knew about my product, it would be a huge success since the problem is so widespread.
2. My next venture regarding this product would be to possibly work with companies trying to develop a breathalyzer for THC, since marijuana is legal in many places now and can also hinder someones ability to drive.
3. I want to be successful enough with this business to be able to grow other businesses and maybe try and continue attempting to solve large scale problems with products that can serve to make me money too.
My product consists of a breathalyzer attachment that can be permanently placed into any type of vehicle and be required to successfully use between the hours of 10 PM and 4 AM to start the car, the times of the night when most drunk driving incidents occur.
I have identified two market segments of people who would buy this product. One group of people would be those that go out often, are young and relatively new to driving, and may consider themselves a risk to drunk drive, or have driven under the influence before. My other target segment, and the one I feel is more prominent, includes concerned parents of high school or college aged kids that are just learning to drive and are afraid of their children making a poor decision.
The forces in the environment creating this opportunity would be the growing amount of drunk driving related deaths and occurrences happening today. Drunk driving related deaths are one of the most common killers of teens and young adults and it is a growing problem that needs to be seriously dealt with.
Geographically, this product can be sold anywhere, drunk driving is not just a problem in some areas and not in others. It is a widespread issue that can be a problem in any location. Demographically, it is more common for young adults and teens to be involved in drunk driving related incidents, therefore it is best to market this product in stores where many people who are around the age of a parent with a teenager or young adult would shop at in order to maximize revenue and profits.
There is no current way customers are satisfying this need right now. The only thing stopping peoploe from driving drunk is their own discipline and awareness for their own safety, the safety of others and the fairly strict laws we have in place right now.
This opportunity has the potential to be huge. Driving under the influence is one of the biggest killers of teens and young adults today and currently there is nothing concrete stopping these incidents from happening. If I had a sensible and practical product that worked how I described it too and those in my target markets were aware of this product, it would be a huge success financially, and save countless of lives as well.
The window of opportunity will be open as long as people are still driving cars and alcohol is still legal. The window will not be closing anytime soon, This is a growing issue, and this solution would be useful and popular among people for a very long time to come because drunk driving will always be something that is going to happen unfortunately, but this can be a great way to slash those death numbers severely.
Innovation:
If I were able to sell my product exactly how I wanted it to be, it would be a surefire financial success and make my business very profitable. The goal for my breathalyzer would be to have a few key features that would make it stand out from others and be a practical solution to the problem I am trying to solve: drunk driving.
My product would be small and not take up that much room, so it does not seem like a hindrance to the driver or look unappealing in anyway.
I would like the breathalyzer to be able to function accurately and consistently and make it so after you breathe in it, it displays a clear number that shows the blood-alcohol level currently being tested, and function in a way so that a successful use would start the car and a failing use would make it so the car cannot be started until a successful use is drawn or until the time is out of the zone of use, (10 Pm - 4 AM)
My last feature of the product I would like to see is ability to be attached to any type of vehicle, this would probably require some sort of Bluetooth or wireless connection in order to work for any type of vehicle, but once its connected, cannot be disconnected unless through a way that can only be accomplished away from the car, therefore someone cannot drive home drunk by bypassing the system.
Venture Concept:
This product will solve the problem of drunk driving because it makes driving the car physically impossible if you are drunk in the time period listed. It would guarantee safety for the would be driver and other innocent people out there on the road.
I am unsure if anyone would buy this for themselves because they feel like they are a risk to drunk driving but I think if the government got involved and made it so offenders have to get one for a lowered charge, then this would very much sell to this group. Also, I know that concerned parents of their kids would buy this because this guarantees safety of their kids and to most parents, there is nothing more important or a bigger priority.
There does not seem to be any actual competitors that have an established brand selling this product right now so if I market this correctly, I can be the only brand that does this that people will know about.
The packaging should be small to stress the fact that this product is practical and not a hindrance to safe drivers and the distribution needs to be in stores where middle aged parents commonly shop, such as retail stores like Home Depot, Walmart, and auto shop stores preferably.
I would need manufacturers for me and to rent warehouse space in order to make this product, I would market extensively through advertisement because awareness is key for this business and then I would meet with retailers to convince them that they need this product in their stores.
1. My unfair advantage I have over others is that this problem is a very big one and there is no current solution out there that can also work as a profitable business. If people knew about my product, it would be a huge success since the problem is so widespread.
2. My next venture regarding this product would be to possibly work with companies trying to develop a breathalyzer for THC, since marijuana is legal in many places now and can also hinder someones ability to drive.
3. I want to be successful enough with this business to be able to grow other businesses and maybe try and continue attempting to solve large scale problems with products that can serve to make me money too.
Friday, March 30, 2018
Assignment 22A: Elevator Pitch 3
Youtube Link ------> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5yvYyqnioCo&feature=youtu.be
The feedback I received was very helpful. What surprised me the most was that I did not make enough eye contact with the camera last time so I made sure to try and fix that, along with more facial expressions in this video.
Based on the feedback, I Made more eye contact and I cut down my pitch a lot, down from 90 to 60 seconds.
The feedback I received was very helpful. What surprised me the most was that I did not make enough eye contact with the camera last time so I made sure to try and fix that, along with more facial expressions in this video.
Based on the feedback, I Made more eye contact and I cut down my pitch a lot, down from 90 to 60 seconds.
Assignment 23A: Your Venture's Unfair Advantage
Human Capital: Leadership Experience
I have sufficient experience being in leadership roles, being the captain of my high school tennis team junior and senior year, and being the vice president of one of my high school's only community service clubs.
Valuable: These experiences are very valuable, they teach you lessons and develop skills that you cannot learn in a classroom setting
Rarity: For an entrepreneur as young as I am it is uncommon to have plenty of leadership experience
Inimitable: My unique experiences are not possible to be imitated, but the skills strengthened by being in a leadership position can be learned easily by others.
Non - Substitutable: There are many opportunities available for people to learn leadership skills and have the chance to be a leader in some organization
Human Capital: Fundraiser Experience
As captain of the tennis team, I was in charge of running the fundraisers for the team and we raised over $1000 both my junior and senior year
Valuable: These experiences were valuable, it taught me effective ways to organize events to gain funding and how to manage the money we gained
Rarity: Experience running fundraisers is not all that common at my age
Inimitable: Anyone can start their own fundraiser but its hard to imitate the success of one unless you have the skills to know how to do it right
Non - Substitutable: There are many types of fundraiser activities available and other ways you can fund money for a business such as investors
Organizational: Lack of Competitors
There are barely any competing firms making breathalyzer attachments for vehicles to prevent driving under the influence
Valuable: This is extremely valuable, to have a needed solution to a problem with a lack of competitors can be very profitable
Rarity: It is rare to have a business that solves such a large problem and not have anyone else competing against you for your customers
Inimitable: The product can be imitated unless I try and patent it which would be one of my first steps
Non substitutable: You can still get a majority share of the market buying your product even with competitors if you have something proprietary and different in your product to make it stand out.
Human Capital: Relate to Target Market
One of my target markets are college students who go out frequently, and although I do not go out a lot, many of my friends do and i am familiar with numerous amounts of people in this market segment
Valuable: This is valuable in my opinion, being able to relate to the target market and understand their thought process is important in being able to effectively reach your market
Rarity: This is not too rare, most people who start a business have a good relation or have many contacts with those in their target market
Inimitable: This can be imitated by reaching out to your own target market or conducting surveys to figure out what your buyers like, and learn more about them.
Non - Substitutable: You can get this benefit by hiring employees that can better relate to your target market
Social Capital: Publicity
The issue of drunk driving is a very hot issue today as it causes thousands of fatalities a year. News channels and papers always report incidents like this and awareness of the issue is at an all time high
Valuable: This is an extremely valuable resource because it makes people become more and more aware of this problem and will force people to look for ways to solve the problem which is where my product comes in
Rarity: This is very rare to have a product that answers a problem that has this much publicity. Drunk driver awareness is very high and and is a problem that has high awareness as well
Inimitable: It is hard to imitate having this level of publicity, but there are awareness raising advertising campaigns that you can do to get some publicity
Non - Substitutable: The benefit you get from publicity is hard to get in other ways, you cannot get a product to be very successful without ways for people to learn about it
Social Capital: Heavener Student
Being in the Heavener School of Business, I have the opportunity to meet and talk to many ambitious business students and get recommendations on how to better my product and hear other good advice
Valuable: This is somewhat valuable to me, those in Heavener like me are also inexperienced and may not be able to offer the best advice in going forward
Rarity: This is not very rare, it is easy to find people with a business background who can atleast give you advice and help in other ways
Inimitable: It can be pretty easy to imitate this, you can join business clubs anywhere or reach out to people you know and get help
Non - Substitutable: You can get the benefit of good social connections in many places and in all types of organizations
Financial Capital: Funds Saved From Work
Having worked in a food store junior and senior year and over the summer, as well as currently having a job here at UF, I have a lot of money saved up that I can use toward building my business
Valuable: This is very valuable, you cannot start a business without spending some of your own money and so having money to spend makes building the business a possibility
Rarity: This is not rare at all, every business that starts up has money to use towards it and if you do not have any of your own, then people find investors or get loans
Inimitable: This is easy to imitate, anyone can spend their own money to start a business or get a job to help you get money
Non - Substitutable: There are many ways to get money without using your own, you can raise funds, or you can get a loan or seek out an investor
Human Capital: Marketing Knowledge
Having taken almost a full semester of Principles of Marketing, I have sufficient knowledge on the types of marketing and what could work best for a product like this
Valuable: This is somewhat valuable to a business. I am by no means a marketing expert but I have learned sufficient knowledge that can save me the trouble later of learning how to market my product
Rare: Knowledge in how to sell your product is not something that is rare, it is pretty common, it is almost a necessity to make a product successful
Inimitable: It is fairly easy to imitate this skill, you would just need to learn and research the art of marketing to be able to expand your knowledge on the subject
Non - Substitutable: You can just hire an employee who has expertise in marketing knowledge to help you in this situation
Human Capital: Sufficient Writing Skills
Being able to write with a nice flow to it as well as constructing elevator pitches that best get your point across can be a helpful tool in acquiring investors and selling to consumers
Valuable: This is very valuable, being able to effectively write speeches that allows you to get a clear point across will allow you to gain many more customers and acquire investors
Rare: Solid writing skills are not that uncommon, people have access to many opportunities online and through classes and experience to strengthen writing skills
Inimitable: Writing comes easier to some and not to others. You can imitate good writing skills but it can take more work than someone who is naturally talented
Non - Substitutable: You can always hire people to write for you to gain the same benefit or just rely on being a good orator to get the same results
Human Capital: Comfortable Speaking Publicly
I have had many experiences public speaking in small groups and to large audiences, and have grown accustomed to the pressures of public speaking
Valuable: This is a valuable trait, being the owner or creator of the company, you are often a public figure and will have to give many speeches to investors or to consumers and so being comfortable is essential
Rare: Pubic speaking skills are becoming more common and not as rare. It is not so uncommon to be a good orator and speak well
Inimitable: You can learn to be a good speaker with practice, but it may not come as easy to some as others, making it difficult to imitate
Non - Substitutable: Being the face of the company, being able to public speak effectively and persuasively is critical and difficult to find a way to get this benefit in another way
Top Resource: I believe my top resource and best advantage I have is the sheer level of publicity this problem already has. Many people create products for a niche market or for a need that not many people have, but drunk driving is a widely known problem that many people are in need of a solution for, and so by having a product answer to a problem that already so many people face is my biggest advantage thus far.
I have sufficient experience being in leadership roles, being the captain of my high school tennis team junior and senior year, and being the vice president of one of my high school's only community service clubs.
Valuable: These experiences are very valuable, they teach you lessons and develop skills that you cannot learn in a classroom setting
Rarity: For an entrepreneur as young as I am it is uncommon to have plenty of leadership experience
Inimitable: My unique experiences are not possible to be imitated, but the skills strengthened by being in a leadership position can be learned easily by others.
Non - Substitutable: There are many opportunities available for people to learn leadership skills and have the chance to be a leader in some organization
Human Capital: Fundraiser Experience
As captain of the tennis team, I was in charge of running the fundraisers for the team and we raised over $1000 both my junior and senior year
Valuable: These experiences were valuable, it taught me effective ways to organize events to gain funding and how to manage the money we gained
Rarity: Experience running fundraisers is not all that common at my age
Inimitable: Anyone can start their own fundraiser but its hard to imitate the success of one unless you have the skills to know how to do it right
Non - Substitutable: There are many types of fundraiser activities available and other ways you can fund money for a business such as investors
Organizational: Lack of Competitors
There are barely any competing firms making breathalyzer attachments for vehicles to prevent driving under the influence
Valuable: This is extremely valuable, to have a needed solution to a problem with a lack of competitors can be very profitable
Rarity: It is rare to have a business that solves such a large problem and not have anyone else competing against you for your customers
Inimitable: The product can be imitated unless I try and patent it which would be one of my first steps
Non substitutable: You can still get a majority share of the market buying your product even with competitors if you have something proprietary and different in your product to make it stand out.
Human Capital: Relate to Target Market
One of my target markets are college students who go out frequently, and although I do not go out a lot, many of my friends do and i am familiar with numerous amounts of people in this market segment
Valuable: This is valuable in my opinion, being able to relate to the target market and understand their thought process is important in being able to effectively reach your market
Rarity: This is not too rare, most people who start a business have a good relation or have many contacts with those in their target market
Inimitable: This can be imitated by reaching out to your own target market or conducting surveys to figure out what your buyers like, and learn more about them.
Non - Substitutable: You can get this benefit by hiring employees that can better relate to your target market
Social Capital: Publicity
The issue of drunk driving is a very hot issue today as it causes thousands of fatalities a year. News channels and papers always report incidents like this and awareness of the issue is at an all time high
Valuable: This is an extremely valuable resource because it makes people become more and more aware of this problem and will force people to look for ways to solve the problem which is where my product comes in
Rarity: This is very rare to have a product that answers a problem that has this much publicity. Drunk driver awareness is very high and and is a problem that has high awareness as well
Inimitable: It is hard to imitate having this level of publicity, but there are awareness raising advertising campaigns that you can do to get some publicity
Non - Substitutable: The benefit you get from publicity is hard to get in other ways, you cannot get a product to be very successful without ways for people to learn about it
Social Capital: Heavener Student
Being in the Heavener School of Business, I have the opportunity to meet and talk to many ambitious business students and get recommendations on how to better my product and hear other good advice
Valuable: This is somewhat valuable to me, those in Heavener like me are also inexperienced and may not be able to offer the best advice in going forward
Rarity: This is not very rare, it is easy to find people with a business background who can atleast give you advice and help in other ways
Inimitable: It can be pretty easy to imitate this, you can join business clubs anywhere or reach out to people you know and get help
Non - Substitutable: You can get the benefit of good social connections in many places and in all types of organizations
Financial Capital: Funds Saved From Work
Having worked in a food store junior and senior year and over the summer, as well as currently having a job here at UF, I have a lot of money saved up that I can use toward building my business
Valuable: This is very valuable, you cannot start a business without spending some of your own money and so having money to spend makes building the business a possibility
Rarity: This is not rare at all, every business that starts up has money to use towards it and if you do not have any of your own, then people find investors or get loans
Inimitable: This is easy to imitate, anyone can spend their own money to start a business or get a job to help you get money
Non - Substitutable: There are many ways to get money without using your own, you can raise funds, or you can get a loan or seek out an investor
Human Capital: Marketing Knowledge
Having taken almost a full semester of Principles of Marketing, I have sufficient knowledge on the types of marketing and what could work best for a product like this
Valuable: This is somewhat valuable to a business. I am by no means a marketing expert but I have learned sufficient knowledge that can save me the trouble later of learning how to market my product
Rare: Knowledge in how to sell your product is not something that is rare, it is pretty common, it is almost a necessity to make a product successful
Inimitable: It is fairly easy to imitate this skill, you would just need to learn and research the art of marketing to be able to expand your knowledge on the subject
Non - Substitutable: You can just hire an employee who has expertise in marketing knowledge to help you in this situation
Human Capital: Sufficient Writing Skills
Being able to write with a nice flow to it as well as constructing elevator pitches that best get your point across can be a helpful tool in acquiring investors and selling to consumers
Valuable: This is very valuable, being able to effectively write speeches that allows you to get a clear point across will allow you to gain many more customers and acquire investors
Rare: Solid writing skills are not that uncommon, people have access to many opportunities online and through classes and experience to strengthen writing skills
Inimitable: Writing comes easier to some and not to others. You can imitate good writing skills but it can take more work than someone who is naturally talented
Non - Substitutable: You can always hire people to write for you to gain the same benefit or just rely on being a good orator to get the same results
Human Capital: Comfortable Speaking Publicly
I have had many experiences public speaking in small groups and to large audiences, and have grown accustomed to the pressures of public speaking
Valuable: This is a valuable trait, being the owner or creator of the company, you are often a public figure and will have to give many speeches to investors or to consumers and so being comfortable is essential
Rare: Pubic speaking skills are becoming more common and not as rare. It is not so uncommon to be a good orator and speak well
Inimitable: You can learn to be a good speaker with practice, but it may not come as easy to some as others, making it difficult to imitate
Non - Substitutable: Being the face of the company, being able to public speak effectively and persuasively is critical and difficult to find a way to get this benefit in another way
Top Resource: I believe my top resource and best advantage I have is the sheer level of publicity this problem already has. Many people create products for a niche market or for a need that not many people have, but drunk driving is a widely known problem that many people are in need of a solution for, and so by having a product answer to a problem that already so many people face is my biggest advantage thus far.
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