30A- Final Reflection

1)    What sticks out to you as the most formative experience? The experience that you'll remember years later? What was your most joyous experience? What experience are you most proud of yourself for accomplishing?

I think that the Venture Concept assignment was the most formative for me. I would say that it was also the most interesting and exciting assignment to write out. When I completed it, I was definitely proud of myself for the total outcome. When I read it over, I was completely fascinated with my results. I thought I went in complete depth and accuracy when it comes to what I believe would make my company the most successful. I didn’t think I would learn so much about my product/service, but when I was writing it out I just kept adding more and more information and learning so much about my overall concept. It’s definitely rewarding to over-read it and see how much effort and knowledge I put into it.

 2)  At the beginning of the semester, I mentioned that I wanted each of you to develop an entrepreneurial mindset. Now, at the end, do you see yourself as an entrepreneur? Do you think you have moved closer to developing an entrepreneurial mindset?

Yes definitely. I learned so much about the real-life actions of an entrepreneur through the assignment requirements. Actually going out and doing first hand research with
people in society and having to get out of my comfort zone and talk to random people really made me feel like an entrepreneur. It was also rewarding to be able to go out in public and work to get first-hand information from people. I didn’t just google something on my sofa, I had to get up and go get results and I did. Also, every assignment truly had me embody the complex mindset of an entrepreneur. The assignments somehow got me to alter my thought process and think in depth and in all different directions.

3) What is the one recommendation you would make to the students who are going to journey down this path in the future? What would you recommend they do to perform best in this course? What would you recommend they do to foster that mindset?

My recommendation to future students would be to really think and put in effort in every assignment. You’ll learn how to think differently than other courses will offer. I think that putting in effort for the assignments also gives a sense of leadership that embodies being an entrepreneur, whether it’s the physical actions of the assignments or just the thinking process, I recommend to do them effectively as they will help you grow as a person. All of the assignments for me were rewarding, plus If you do every assignment you will also get an A in the course.

29A- Venture Concept No.2

1)    Business Name: Micro Chip-Tracker

My selected opportunity is human trafficking in Gainesville, Florida. Human trafficking in Gainesville is now marked as a green zone, which means that it’s on the human trafficking map of locations for Florida. My product/service that I could sell to customers to provide a solution this epidemic is the creation of a navigation chip that could be surgically placed under the skin of an individuals’ body. My product wouldn’t directly stop the existence of human trafficking, this product/service would provide a large solution to where a missing individual is and where other victims of human trafficking are located. This chip would be able to give the exact location of that individual at any given time in the case of an emergency via an online website. Each chip would be given a pin to enter onto the website to track the location according to the chips pin. I could price the procedure at a low cost so that any family could be able to afford it, and also retain a percentage of the profits to donate this procedure to the local homeless community and have online representatives given the information of the homeless populations pin numbers and names in the case that one is reported missing.

My market segment can be defined as both geographical and demographic. Demographically, this problem directly affects woman, children, teenagers, and the homeless population, as well as certain races. My customers all have in common that are they are the normal target of predators due to their sex being female, and age. People under 18 such as teenagers and children are more vulnerable compared to an adult and females are more vulnerable in comparison to a stronger and larger male. I believe that customers will use my product because it can be applied to a widespread of concerns, not only concerning human trafficking. My product will offer the safety and peace of mind of knowing where a person is when needed. For a demographic that is directly affected by human trafficking, my product would be the best option to ensure someone’s safety and direct location if any concern would arise. My product is priceless when it comes to purchasing it. Any family would choose to spend the price of the product to ensure the safety of their loved one or themselves. Geographically, my market segment could target certain locations in the world where human trafficking is known to exist and pose a threat. There are many statistics online that show exactly where human trafficking cases have occurred. I could narrow down my target segment using the statistics and apply my marketing strategy directly to the states and counties that are posed the highest threats. I could also use a percentage of the funds retained to create a separate team of employees to be able to give this product/service to the homeless population because they are a major target of human trafficking as well. My team would responsible for the pins given to each individual, and if any concerns involving their location were to be questioned my team would be able to search their location and coordinate with the proper channels to ensure their safety.

My product would be new to the market. There has never been a tracking chip company that places an electronic chip in people to acquire their location for the assurance of someone’s safety. My potential customers have nothing in the market related to my product/service. The only viable relation that can be somewhat similar is the existence of “sharing your location” on an IPhone. But even this technology fails in location accuracy and can easily be dismissed by turning off the cellular device, which would no longer show that individuals location. My product/service is nothing compared to that technology; it is a new, reliable innovation to the market. Something that cannot be replicated would be that if my electronic chip is patented to be undetectable to any system or scanner. So, when the company becomes more exposed with more users, sex traffickers will also be aware that their victim could have my chip placed and try to scan the body of the victim for it; though, my chip is undetectable and cannot be found on the body through any scanner or electronic system once it is placed. This would give me a further advantage from my future competitors, because I would be the only undetectable chip with my patent.

To first launch my product/service, my distribution channel will consist of manufacturer to my facility, and my facility and team of employees will give the product/service to consumers, the end-users.  I will need to open a facility connected to a main office, where the manufacturer could ship my product directly to the facility and therefore, will be ready to be given to the main office where clients would come in to get the product and procedure done. The total price would be at $799.00 with a life-time warranty. To begin, I would have 3 surgeons on my team, 1 lawyer, 2 cleaning staff members, 4 marketers, and 2 supervisors with 4 employees coordinating and running the main facility and myself as CEO working at the office and facility. Since there are no current competitors in the market, my marketing strategy would be to sell as much of this product/service as I can and rely on word-of-mouth to market itself. As well, have my marketers spread awareness of my product to every geographic and demographic listed on my target segment. I would go full-force into marketing my product/service and hopefully be able to produce more locations once awareness and demand is increased and spread.

2)    My feedback included that I thoroughly explained everything needed for a venture concept. I got feedback that emphasized the importance of marketing and spreading my product/service to consumers quickly. I as well received feedback on the importance of having a lawyer. I definitely think the feedback I received is valuable.

3)     Additions to my venture concept:

First, I found that there’s already a company in the market that’s called “Micro Market” therefore, I’m changing the name of my product/service to “Micro Chip-Tracker”. I think this title gives an idea of what my product/service entails.

Based on my feedback, I definitely would emphasize importance on a direct marketing strategy of market penetration. The strategy would be to get the product out there and known to as many people in my target market as quickly as possible. Also, since my company and my product/service are brand new to the market, I would emphasize in my marketing plan to create/add problem recognition and consumer awareness. This includes a marketing strategy of advertising and promoting my product/service widely of the problem it solves and its benefits; this would inform consumers of my product/service and give them knowledge about it which is the first step in the buyer decision process.

Next, I realized from my feedback the necessity of making sure my company is secure and protected in all aspects. Therefore, I would hire a total of 2 lawyers, 2 IT Specialists, and 2 Security analysts to my workforce. The lawyers would be responsible for the liabilities and protection in a legal aspect of both my customers and the overall company. They would provide the legal documents needed for the procedure and handle any legal issues. The IT Specialists would be involved with keeping all the data of the company extremely secure and private. They would be responsible for protecting the data and network from being accessed or hacked from outside sources.

28A- Your Exit Strategy

1)    Identify the exit strategy you plan to make. Do you intend to sell your business in the next 5 years for a large return? Do you intend to stay with the business for several decades and retire? Do you intend to protect the venture as a family business, and pass it down to your children?

I think that I would keep my business if it grew successful, because my business idea has the potential to disrupt the market entirely and it can be of high value. I think my company has the capability of obtaining high market share in the new industry from the beginning and holding that market share through the maturity stage. I would go through the entire product life cycle until it reaches the decline stage, though I don’t know when that would be. Once it reaches the decline stage, I would then sell my business for a decent value.

2)    Why have you selected this particular exit strategy?

I chose this exit strategy because I think my product would be very successful in all stages of a product life cycle. I believe that the only time there will be a decline in revenue is once it hits the decline stage. Instead of selling my company in the beginning of the process for an extremely high value, I believe that I would make the most revenue if I kept the company until the end, and then sold it during the decline stage for a lower total cost.

Example) If I sold my company at the end of the growth stage for 100M, I believe that by the end of the maturity stage it will be worth 800M. Though, if I kept the company throughout the entire product life cycle, it would reach revenue way beyond 800M. 

3)    How do you think your exit strategy has influenced the other decisions you've made in your concept? For instance, has it influenced how you have identified an opportunity? Has it influenced your growth intentions or how you plan to acquire and use resources?

I think that my exit strategy influences how committed I am to my company. I plan on growing and keeping my business until the very end and with doing so, that requires me to be fully invested in my company. This influences everything I do in terms of acquiring resources. I would get the most efficient long-lasting resources possible. Every investment in my company would be done so with the intent of long-lasting growth and stability. This would also affect my marketing plan, I would continuously devise a plan that was meant for long-term stability such as for 5-year projections.

27A- Reading Reflection No.3

Mindset: A New Psychology of Success by Carol Dweck

1.     What was the general theme or argument of the book?

The general theme of this book was based on the two different mindsets that humans encounter- a growth mindset and a fixed mindset. A fixed mindset focuses on fixed traits, such as believing in their basic qualities, like intelligence and talent. People with fixed mindsets believe their qualities are fixed and cannot be changed or improved; that they are natural born. A growth mindset is the belief that one’s abilities can be developed and improved through hard work and practicing on improving them. People with a growth mindset believe that anyone can be good at anything as long as they work for it.

2.     How did the book, in your opinion connect with and enhance what you are learning in ENT3003?

How I can relate this book to what I’m learning in ENT3003, is both applications of fixed and growth mindsets. Within the entrepreneurial process, one must have a concept of a growth mindset to be able to learn about a specific market they’re targeting and to able to study and master the economics/demographics of that market. Though, I can apply the market itself to having a fixed mindset. Certain markets have certain values and traits that aren’t changed and no matter the marketing effort within an organization, the market will only be interested if the marketing effort correlates to their fixed mindset.

3.     If you had to design an exercise for this class, based on the book you read, what would that exercise involve?

I would have the instructor state out loud certain traits, and have each student write down whether they believe that trait is fixed or if it can be improved. I think this would give students the clarity in knowing what characteristics they can improve upon, but also give them the positive enforcement that they do have natural born talents if they choose that option.

4.     What was your biggest surprise or “aha” moment when reading the book? In other words, what did you learn that differed most from your expectations?

My biggest “aha” moment is how much I use both a fixed mindset and a growth mindset approach. I’ve always believed that I was born with a natural talent in sports, but I also believe that one can be born with natural talents, yet with a growth-mindset, those talents can always be improved upon. And I think that’s my view when it comes to both perspectives. I don’t think that I believe in much of a fixed-mindset, that those traits and characteristics can’t be improved upon. I think any trait can be altered with work and dedication, even if it’s only altered by a small percentage.

26A- Celebrating Failure

A time that I failed during this last semester was during my professional speaking course. I completely failed to organize and deliver my speech on the due date, and ultimately had to drop the course. I personally have so much anxiety when it comes to public speaking and I took the course to help with that fear. I don’t have a fear of speaking in front of an audience but rather a fear of remembering every detail and point in my speech. When I dropped the class, I was extremely hard on myself emotionally. I contemplated that I didn’t work hard enough to prepare for it and execute it, and that I could’ve done a better job at practicing my speech so I would be readily prepared. It took me a few weeks to get over the guilt from having to drop the course.

What I learned from this, is that first of all, I did the best that I could at the time. Second, I think that the fact that I’m graded on my speech and it has certain guidelines creates a lot of pressure for myself as a student and that I am not bad at public speaking, but rather bad at being held accountable for it; which is still something I need to work on because accountability is important. Third, that it’s okay to fail. Maybe dropping the course gives me an opportunity to take another course where I can actually learn more and grow from. Fourth, at least I gave the course a try and took a risk at failing, instead of shying away from the opportunity in the beginning. And Fifth, I learned that I’m better at other aspects of public speaking rather than a formatted version that was given in the class.

This class has given me the perspective that taking a risk if worth it; though not everyone is fit for certain things, and to instead, take a risk that’s more fitting to who you are and what your interests are in. Some risks I think are completely irrational decisions, and from this course, I learned that even with the entrepreneurial process every source of information is essential to succeed in the business. I think that’s relatable to taking risks in life. I need to have as much information as possible to then be able to perform a rational risk.

25A- What's Next?

Existing Market:

What makes the most sense for my venture in terms of growing my existing market, would be a strategy of market penetration. This would involve me targeting it’s market segment in specific geographical locations, and individually targeting specific demographics. As a small company with no competitors in the market, it is important for me to grow my market with my existing product/service, therefore the more people that purchase it, the higher rate of success. The goal would be to ultimately increase market share before competitors enter the market. Once I am able to attain a large market share, this will give any future competitor little avenues to market their company as we would have similar initial marketing segments already targeted and covered.

Also, relating to the purchasing-decision of consumers, considering my product is a once in a life-time purchase,that will leave competitors with no room to sway consumers to do an alternative search, repurchase from a competitor, or switch services. And with my company attaining most of the market share, my product/service will hold high credibility in the perception of future customers due to current customers post-evaluation of the product. Being that my product/service is the only one in the market consumers will have little regret about the purchasing decision considering there is no other company in the market with the same service.

My product is a prestige product due to it’s high technology and specialties, therefore lowering the price for it during future penetration would harm the credibility of it. I want to keep it as a specialty product in the eyes of consumers to create more value of the product/service.

As well as another approach for my current target market- when I attain profits I could target towards the homeless community. This would be a non-profit approach, and ultimately increase brand awareness and social responsibility for my company. This strategy would overall contribute to the safety of the homeless population and help my company build its’ brand perception of being an ethical and socially responsible product/service.

New Market:

My product/service has a direct geographic and demographic market segment in which I target. When it comes to targeting a new market, I would use the strategy of market expansion. This strategy would entail of finding consumers in separate geo-graphics and demographics than my current target segment.

From a completely opposite approach of my original strategy I could target consumers that have other needs for my product/service. This would entail of me switching the use of my product in the eyes of consumers and I could market to those specific demographics all over the nation that don’t feel human-trafficking is a threat to them. Such as, considering other threats of abduction of kids I could create a whole new marketing segment of just demographics; targeting a market segment of mothers and fathers. This would eliminate my geographic boundary as there are families all over the world, introducing a whole new avenue for my product/service. My product/service can be used for anything or any threat when it comes to ultimately finding the location of a person, and I could market value in that to the eyes of consumers.

Instead of going to a manufacturer to create the microchip, I could eventually with enough capital, be able to build a team of engineers and be able to make the microchip in my own facility. This would ultimately lower costs of B2B purchasing and would give me the ability to go directly B2C. I don’t know if this would be the most efficient way of attaining profits as I may have more overall expenses in the beginning, but it is something to be considered in terms of new strategies.

24A- Venture Concept No.1

Business Name: Micro Market.

My selected opportunity is human trafficking in Gainesville, Florida. Human trafficking in Gainesville is now marked as a green zone, which means that it’s on the human trafficking map of locations for Florida. My product/service that I could sell to customers to provide a solution this epidemic is the creation of a navigation chip that could be surgically placed under the skin of an individuals’ body. My product wouldn’t directly stop the existence of human trafficking, this  product/service would provide a large solution to where a missing individual is and where other victims of human trafficking are located. This chip would be able to give the exact location of that individual at any given time in the case of an emergency via an online website. Each chip would be given a pin to enter onto the website to track the location according to the chips pin. I could price the procedure at a low cost so that any family could be able to afford it, and also retain a percentage of the profits to donate this procedure to the local homeless community and have online representatives given the information of the homeless populations pin numbers and names in the case that one is reported missing.

My market segment can be defined as both geographical and demographic. Demographically, this problem directly affects woman, children, teenagers, and the homeless population, as well as certain races. My customers all have in common that are they are the normal target of predators due to their sex being female, and age. People under 18 such as teenagers and children are more vulnerable compared to an adult and females are more vulnerable in comparison to a stronger and larger male. I believe that customers will use my product because it can be applied to a widespread of concerns, not only concerning human trafficking. My product will offer the safety and peace of mind of knowing where a person is when needed. For a demographic that is directly affected by human trafficking, my product would be the best option to ensure someone’s safety and direct location if any concern would arise. My product is priceless when it comes to purchasing it. Any family would choose to spend the price of the product to ensure the safety of their loved one or themselves. Geographically, my market segment could target certain locations in the world where human trafficking is known to exist and pose a threat. There are many statistics online that show exactly where human trafficking cases have occurred. I could narrow down my target segment using the statistics and apply my marketing strategy directly to the states and counties that are posed the highest threats. I could also use a percentage of the funds retained to create a separate team of employees to be able to give this product/service to the homeless population because they are a major target of human trafficking as well. My team would responsible for the pins given to each individual, and if any concerns involving their location were to be questioned my team would be able to search their location and coordinate with the proper channels to ensure their safety.

My product would be new to the market. There has never been a tracking chip company that places an electronic chip in people to acquire their location for the assurance of someone’s safety. My potential customers have nothing in the market related to my product/service. The only viable relation that can be somewhat similar is the existence of “sharing your location” on an IPhone. But even this technology fails in location accuracy and can easily be dismissed by turning off the cellular device, which would no longer show that individuals location. My product/service is nothing compared to that technology; it is a new, reliable innovation to the market. Something that cannot be replicated would be that if my electronic chip is patented to be undetectable to any system or scanner. So, when the company becomes more exposed with more users, sex traffickers will also be aware that their victim could have my chip placed and try to scan the body of the victim for it; though, my chip is undetectable and cannot be found on the body through any scanner or electronic system once it is placed. This would give me a further advantage from my future competitors, because I would be the only undetectable chip with my patent.

To first launch my product/service, my distribution channel will consist of manufacturer to my facility, and my facility and team of employees will give the product/service to consumers, the end-users.  I will need to open a facility connected to a main office, where the manufacturer could ship my product directly to the facility and therefore, will be ready to be given to the main office where clients would come in to get the product and procedure done. The total price would be at $799.00 with a life-time warranty. To begin, I would have 3 surgeons on my team, 1 lawyer, 2 cleaning staff members, 4 marketers, and 2 supervisors with 4 employees coordinating and running the main facility and myself as CEO working at the office and facility. Since there are no current competitors in the market, my marketing strategy would be to sell as much of this product/service as I can and rely on word-of-mouth to market itself. As well, have my marketers spread awareness of my product to every geographic and demographic listed on my target segment. I would go full-force into marketing my product/service and hopefully be able to produce more locations once awareness and demand is increased and spread.

23A- Your Venture's Unfair Advantage

1.     No competitors in market

A.    Valuable- Allows me to penetrate the market and build a credible brand.

B.    Rare- There is usually always something in the market similar to a product/service.

C.     Inimitable- Depending on my patents, it can be imitable to an extent.

D.    Non-substitutable- There is nothing in the market of high technology relating to my service that can be substitutable.

2.     Media exposure on human trafficking

A.    Valuable- This can increase awareness for a need of my product

B.    Rare- Not really, it is increasing in exposure.

C.     Inimitable- Media can’t be imitated

D.    Non-substitutable- There can be other ways to expose human trafficking other than media based.

3.     Emotional Resource

A.    Valuable- gives me a passion for my business venture, and an emotional bond to it’s success gives me determination.

B.    Rare- It is rare to find a business venture that you’re extremely passionate about

C.     Inimitable- My emotional connection in relation to my concept cannot be imitated

D.    Non-substitutable- My other passions can be substituted for this one if they were deemed more viable

4.     Academic Resource

A.    Valuable- I am in the process of obtaining a degree in General Business with a minor in statistics. I have the proper education needed to pursue my venture.

B.    Rare- No, there are many Business majors.

C.     Inimitable- No, there are others that can imitate my academic resources.

D.    Non-substitutable- Academic education can’t be substituted, other than gaining a degree from other universities.

5.     Awareness/ Knowledge on the cause

A.    Valuable- This is extremely valuable when it comes to marketing and creating a business plan.

B.    Rare- Yes

C.     Inimitable- There are others who may have similar knowledge on the subject of human trafficking as I do.

D.    Non-substitutable- I think to be successful in my business venture, awareness and knowledge on the cause is essential so no it isn’t substitutable.

6.     Social Capital

A.    Valuable- Extremely, having the right connections to my venture is necessary.

B.    Rare- Partially, depending on who those connections are with.

C.     Inimitable- Social capital can be copied.

D.    Non-substitutable- No, social capital is essential.

7.     Human Capital

A.    Valuable- Extremely, I have the education, intelligence, health, and skills to create this venture.

B.    Rare- I think a lot of people have similar skills, but there is no one in the world that is exactly like me.

C.     Inimitable- Everyone is different, but overall in a general form it can be imitated.

D.    Non-substitutable- No. The appropriate human capital is essential to the growth of my business.

8.     Support Network

A.    Valuable- I have a ton of friends and family to be there for support when pursuing this venture.

B.    Rare- Not entirely, many people may have a great support network as well

C.     Inimitable- Anyone can have a support network, the only thing that is inimitable is if they’re not a student at UF and don’t have UF’s business schools resources.

D.    Non-substitutable- I think a support network is 100% needed to have a successful business so yes it can be substituted with other resources.

9.     Access to UF’s College of Warrington Academic Advisors/ Clubs

A.    Valuable- Definitely, the resources provided by the university could give me essential advice when creating my business plan and pursuing my business.

B.    Rare- If you don’t go to UF it is very rare

C.     Inimitable- You can use other advisory resources, but none can be exactly like UF’s.

D.    Non-substitutable- It can be substituted with other advising resources.

10.  Club Member of Woman in Business

A.    Valuable- Extremely, I have learned so much from this club and the overall organization could join me in my pursuit towards this venture.

B.    Rare- Yes, there’s only so many clubs of only Woman passionate about Business

C.     Inimitable- I don’t know how this could imitated other than creating a different club and a different name with the same focus.

D.    Non-substitutable- Yes there are other resources that can provide similar benefits.

Analysis:

After conducting my VRIN analysis, my top resource would be my first one; that there are no competitors in the market. It checked all the boxes for being valuable, rare, inimitable, and non-substitutable. This resource creates the most benefits to my company once my product goes out to market. It would give me the opportunity to penetrate the market with a product/service that has never been seen before. This would immediately produce word-of-mouth by being a new innovation to the market. This directly will affect consumers buying behavior process, they only have one option and nothing to compare it to leading consumers to skip the alternative search step and lead to a purchase decision. This high penetration will allow my company to receive recognition and creditability so that once competitors do come to market, my company will have already penetrated most of it and received credibility as a proof of concept by current customers.

22A- Elevator Pitch No. 3

21A- Reading Reflection No. 2

How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big by Scott Adams

1)    What was the general theme or argument of the book?

The general theme of the book is correlated between making mistakes and learning from them. The book argues that making mistakes is inevitable when it comes to the path of becoming successful, and that these mistakes can be used as a stepping stone to learn from your decisions and grow as an individual. Overall, the book emphasized to not be afraid of making mistakes and failing at times, because they are necessary to inhibit growth and future success.

2)    How did the book, in your opinion, connect with and enhance what you are learning in ENT 3003?

I can relate this book to ENT 3003, by relating it to attempting to complete these assignments. For some of the assignments listed they were pretty difficult to understand how to actually complete them and there were no assignment examples, so in the beginning of the course I just had to do my best to complete the assignment according to how I interpreted its tasks. Also, relating to a specific assignment the elevator pitch, we are given 3 separate assignments for each elevator pitch and the purpose of the assignments are to learn from our 1^st pitch, and that helped me do better for the 2^nd second pitch, and then I can apply the mistakes and critiques I got for my first two pitches, and apply that to my 3^rd elevator pitch to create the most successful elevator pitch possible.

3)    If you had to design an exercise for this class, based on the book you read, what would that exercise involve?

For my exercise, I would have each individual write their top 3 mistakes/failures in their lifetime. And under each one, I would have them describe what they learned from that mistake and how that mistake/failure could be used to benefit their future.

4)    What was your biggest surprise or 'aha' moment when reading the book? In other words, what did you learn that differed most from your expectations?

The most I can relate reading this book to an “aha” moment, is the fact that I spend a lot of time feeling dissatisfied when making a mistake, and even work overly hard on myself to prevent a mistake from happening. But as this book explains, mistakes are inevitable and they are the key stones to growth, so I realized that I shouldn’t be so hard on myself if I do make a mistake because that’s the only way I’m going to learn and grow as an individual.