Week 15 Reading Reflection

1) What was the biggest surprise for you in the reading? In other words, what did you read that stood out the most as different from your expectations? 

The biggest surprise to me in the reading was the way the narrator was able to give such a personal touch to the article with their own perspective on their business. I thought it was interesting to hear about a business from the mind of the person running it. 

2) Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing to you.

I was confused by how influential the fatwa was in the community. I had no idea that sometimes companies are forced to deal with religious/social groups in opposition that had such a strong standing in the community. 

3) If you were able to ask two questions to the author, what would you ask? Why?

1. How have you been able to maintain personal relationships with so many clients?

2. How do you keep the company running when sometimes clients are not profitable?

4) Was there anything you think the author was wrong about? Where do you disagree with what she or he said? How?

There was nothing in this article that I disagreed with the author about. 

Final Reflection

In this class, I was able to develop my entrepreneurial skills, in addition to my interpersonal and organizational skills, throughout the semester because of our various assignments. I believe that the most formative experience was interviewing potential customers throughout the semester. This forced me to step out of my comfort zone and go up to random people and ask them about my product. However, I think the most enjoyable experience was interviewing a local entrepreneur-- Steve Solomon, the owner of Leonardo's Pizza. It was by far my favorite experience in the class because I was able to talk about a real life entrepreneur's experiences in his business, and about his mistakes and successes along the way. I think at the end of the semester, I am much closer to have an entrepreneur's mindset. I have become more resourceful and more willing to do whatever it takes to get things done (in this case, homework assignments). To future ENT students, I recommend that you keep on track with your assignments, and be enthusiastic about the homework assignments, especially interviewing. In order to foster the entrepreneurial mindset, I recommend talking to local entrepreneurs and learning what you can from them!

Venture Concept No. 2

ENT3003 Venture Concept – Lillian Gilmore

All around the world, people use smart phones every day, at all hours. While phones have been developed over time to have a longer sustaining battery power, many people face the struggle of their smart phones running out of charge before the end of the day. This is why many people must carry their chargers with them so they are able to plug in their devices at all times of the day so they can stay connected via smartphone. With all the transporting and usage of chargers to solve the problem of phones running out of battery, a new problem arises. The phone chargers people use, though they are sleek, can rarely withstand the wear and tear. After a short period of time, they fray and break. Many people are forced to buy phone charger every couple of months because theirs simply do not last. Now, who has this need? Nearly everyone with a smartphone faces the problem of phone chargers that simply do not last. While some people are lucky enough to not encounter this dilemma, many smart phones users are not as lucky. This market of customers with the unmet need spans across the nation, and even across the globe, as it affects people of all backgrounds. Currently, most people facing this problem are using two of the following solutions: trying to make their charger last at all costs, or simply buying a new charger. The second solution, which many people choose, can be quite costly over time, especially when combined with the already present expenses of owning a smart phone. Customers are most likely relatively loyal to their current smart phone supplier, which is why they continue to buy chargers from them. However, this is an opportunity that has the potential to meet the need of a lot of customers from all over. This “window of opportunity” will last until someone else creates the same product, or one similar to it.

            My solution to this problem would be to create and successfully distribute phone chargers that resist the wear and tear of everyday life to deliver a consistent charge to a customer’s smart phone/device. This phone charger will have a slinky like design, which will allow it to resist overextension, bending, and fraying which very often leads to a cord breaking. Its design also allows it to stretch over a long distance of 6 feet, but when it is not fully extended it will condense back down to a smaller size. This slinky like design will also keep the charging cord from tangling too badly, which overall will create an easier, more reliable experience for the customer. It will be available in several colors: black, white, pink, blue, and green. I will be selling this charging cord for somewhere between $8-$12 depending on production and distribution costs.

            This product will solve the problem of chargers breaking over time due to wear and tear. The slinky like design allows the cord to be flexible, yet durable so the cord can bend and stretch to accommodate the customer without overextending and breaking. Its design also allows it to resists tangling, which many people struggle with when they are carrying many cords at once. I believe people will buy this product because it is a one time purchase that will allow people to stop buying multiple chargers throughout their time as a smart phone user. People will switch to this product because it is more durable, more flexible, and it is available in different colors which makes it fun—and takes away from an industrial appearance. I think initially it will be difficult to convince people that my product truly works, but over time, with marketing and customer feedback, I believe that other customers will be more willing to switch, and they will buy my product. Competitors in this market are any company/person that is selling other phone chargers with similar capabilities. While they may be more established than I am, I believe that I have more expendable time to donate to my product and the organization of its distribution, because I am a young adult in college. I think because I am in college, the business location, customer service, and distribution will be easier in the onset because at the start I believe that I will most likely be selling to college kids and people in my surrounding area. I think that my price is appealing to consumers because many college students are on a budget and $8-$12 is a normal price for a charger, especially if you won’t need to buy another in the future. In the start of this business, I would like to run a smaller company to keep costs down, that way I would be employing a few people to help me with production and distribution of the product to customers. If the company grows, then I can reevaluate and hire more people to support the growing needs of the company.

            I believe that because I am in college, my proximity to the market (of college students) and my expendable free time will be my most valuable resources that will allow me to compete with other companies. Once I have a stable footing in this market, I would like to expand my business and offer a new product: a set of headphones that are retractable (to avoid tangling) but that also a good sound quality. Assuming this venture launched, in five years, I would like to run this business with the help of fellow employees. I would like to have this as a side business, that way I can also pursue my career as an accountant, or potentially a corporate lawyer. This venture will allow me to develop my entrepreneurial skills, so that in the future I can pursue other venture and maybe run my own business full time.

Feedback: 

What I learned from people's feedback on my previous venture concept and my post about "What's Next?" is that people liked that I was able to take a product and evolve it into something more useful. They liked that the product would be offered in several colors and that I would be able to market within Gainesville. They look forward to this product idea becoming a real thing.

To fit this feedback, I just have to keep evolving my plan and work on marketing and distribution to get my product out there!

Week 14 Reading Reflection

1) What was the biggest surprise for you in the reading? In other words, what did you read that stood out the most as different from your expectations? 

I was surprised that the EU, WTO, and NAFTA are some of the greatest forces in creating opportunities for global entrepreneurs. In hindsight, it makes a lot of sense. 

2) Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing to you.

I was confused by the terms intrapreneurship and entrepreneurship. 

3) If you were able to ask two questions to the author, what would you ask? Why?

1. Why has the desire to develop corporate entrepreneurs arise so recently?

2. What is the most important advantage of developing a corporate entrepreneurial philosophy? 

4) Was there anything you think the author was wrong about? Where do you disagree with what she or he said? How?

There was nothing in this section that I disagreed with the author about. 

Google Gold

This semester, in order to attain Search Engine Optimization (SEO) I focused my writing in my blogs and used a set of key words to promote my ideas. In most posts, I would give a brief summary of my product and explain how it's useful so that if someone happened upon my post, they would know that I was selling phone charging cables that were built like a slinky, with the ability to stretch up to 6 feet without fraying or breaking (also available in 5 colors).

I used a variety of keywords throughout the semester and I do believe that my terminology somewhat evolved throughout the semester, especially over time as my product became more specific (in design and concept). I have yet to make it to the first page in Google with my keywords.
Some of my keywords include:

• Elastichord (name of product)
• Slinky
• Charging Cord 
• Tech Accessories

I think that social media did not really play a factor in my blog. I think this class was most helpful in spreading awareness of my blog, as random students were assigned to comment on my posts each week. I believe this was effective in distributing my blog (and my product) across the internet. 

My most viral post was my "What's next?" post. I think this post obtained the most traffic because students are more likely the explore the blog directory now (later in the semester).

Week 13 Reading Reflection

1) What was the biggest surprise for you in the reading? In other words, what did you read that stood out the most as different from your expectations? 

I was most surprised by how in depth the due diligence outline was. I had no idea that these deals were so tedious. 

2) Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing to you.

I was confused by how much goes into buying an entrepreneurial venture and all the different costs that feed into a total cost needed to buy a business. 

3) If you were able to ask two questions to the author, what would you ask? Why?

1. Which method is the most thorough for valuing a business?

2. Which method is most accurate for valuing a business?

4) Was there anything you think the author was wrong about? Where do you disagree with what she or he said? How?

I did not disagree with the author in this chapter.

Celebrating Failure

This year I applied for like 5 different programs. Coming into freshman year, I was used to being super involved in my school (like I had been during junior and senior year in high school). However, I did not really anticipate that despite all of the options available to get involved, it's actually a lot harder to get involved than it may seem. I applied for FLC, Warrington Welcome Peer Leader, Cicerone, and the list goes on. I did not get accepted into any of these, but I learned about failure through these experiences. I have learned to practice more for interviews, and proofread essays and the email addresses that I am sending them too. I also learned to take a breath, and realize that it is not the end of the world to not be involved in every club, like I was in high school. It was a learning curve, but everything happens for a reason. I am now very happy because I am involved in several organizations and I love them. From these failures, I have learned to learn from them and try my best to improve my efforts before applying for the next thing. 

This class has taught me that it's okay to take a chance and interview a stranger, even though it might be awkward. Although that isn't exactly failure, it is what I have learned from this class. Because without getting the courage to interview people, you will fail to complete the assignment, and potentially the course- so I suppose that is where failure comes into play in this class.

My Exit Strategy

I hope that my exit strategy will be to sell my business venture in the next 5 years.  I have chosen this course of action because I believe that selling phone chargers and headphones will not be enough to support me until retirement, but it will give me a nice (yet small) source of revenue over the next 5 years. 

This decision has influenced the way in which I sign contracts with producers and distributors-because now I know that I only have to acquire enough resources to last me for the next 5 years, as opposed to the next 20 or 30.

What's Next?

Existing Market: 

I learned from doing interview that I should expand my color options and my advertising strategies. I should flyer and maybe expand a color to gold to offer a sense of luxury to customers. Cool ideas from customers!

Personally, I believe that expanding my market, including a new product, will be somewhat difficult. Once you have already branded your company to sell a certain product--in my case, phone chargers, it would be hard to rebrand to include headphones. However, if you have a loyal customer base, it will make selling a new product easier because these customers will be more likely to try out your new product.

New Market:

My new market will switch focus from iPhone users to Samsung/Windows users. I will stay in keeping with my original business venture: focusing on technology. However, I will broaden my market to capture all smart phone users. 

I learned from interviewing people that I should make my product easily accessible and understandable to people of an older demographic. They think it will expand my market to parents and adults. I also should advertise using a celebrity or someone that people know. So, at UF I could use Mr. Two Bits! I think this new market will be useful because my product will apply to all smartphone users.

I think a good market to expand to would be adults/parents, and then I would fully capture the smart phone users in my area. 

Week 12 Reading Reflection

1) What was the biggest surprise for you in the reading? In other words, what did you read that stood out the most as different from your expectations? 

I was surprised to find out that very often the most attractive markets (those that are seen as the fastest growing), are actually not the best to join. It is best to join a market with high barriers to entry. 

2) Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing to you.

I was confused by the concept of a growth wall.

3) If you were able to ask two questions to the author, what would you ask? Why?

1. What is the best way to overcome the growth wall?

2. What is the best way to overcome the one person-band syndrome?

4) Was there anything you think the author was wrong about? Where do you disagree with what she or he said? How?

There was nothing in this reading that I disagreed with the author about. 

Venture Concept No. 1

ENT3003 Venture Concept – Lillian Gilmore

All around the world, people use smart phones every day, at all hours. While phones have been developed over time to have a longer sustaining battery power, many people face the struggle of their smart phones running out of charge before the end of the day. This is why many people must carry their chargers with them so they are able to plug in their devices at all times of the day so they can stay connected via smartphone. With all the transporting and usage of chargers to solve the problem of phones running out of battery, a new problem arises. The phone chargers people use, though they are sleek, can rarely withstand the wear and tear. After a short period of time, they fray and break. Many people are forced to buy phone charger every couple of months because theirs simply do not last. Now, who has this need? Nearly everyone with a smartphone faces the problem of phone chargers that simply do not last. While some people are lucky enough to not encounter this dilemma, many smart phones users are not as lucky. This market of customers with the unmet need spans across the nation, and even across the globe, as it affects people of all backgrounds. Currently, most people facing this problem are using two of the following solutions: trying to make their charger last at all costs, or simply buying a new charger. The second solution, which many people choose, can be quite costly over time, especially when combined with the already present expenses of owning a smart phone. Customers are most likely relatively loyal to their current smart phone supplier, which is why they continue to buy chargers from them. However, this is an opportunity that has the potential to meet the need of a lot of customers from all over. This “window of opportunity” will last until someone else creates the same product, or one similar to it.

            My solution to this problem would be to create and successfully distribute phone chargers that resist the wear and tear of everyday life to deliver a consistent charge to a customer’s smart phone/device. This phone charger will have a slinky like design, which will allow it to resist overextension, bending, and fraying which very often leads to a cord breaking. Its design also allows it to stretch over a long distance of 6 feet, but when it is not fully extended it will condense back down to a smaller size. This slinky like design will also keep the charging cord from tangling too badly, which overall will create an easier, more reliable experience for the customer. It will be available in several colors: black, white, pink, blue, and green. I will be selling this charging cord for somewhere between $8-$12 depending on production and distribution costs.

            This product will solve the problem of chargers breaking over time due to wear and tear. The slinky like design allows the cord to be flexible, yet durable so the cord can bend and stretch to accommodate the customer without overextending and breaking. Its design also allows it to resists tangling, which many people struggle with when they are carrying many cords at once. I believe people will buy this product because it is a one time purchase that will allow people to stop buying multiple chargers throughout their time as a smart phone user. People will switch to this product because it is more durable, more flexible, and it is available in different colors which makes it fun—and takes away from an industrial appearance. I think initially it will be difficult to convince people that my product truly works, but over time, with marketing and customer feedback, I believe that other customers will be more willing to switch, and they will buy my product. Competitors in this market are any company/person that is selling other phone chargers with similar capabilities. While they may be more established than I am, I believe that I have more expendable time to donate to my product and the organization of its distribution, because I am a young adult in college. I think because I am in college, the business location, customer service, and distribution will be easier in the onset because at the start I believe that I will most likely be selling to college kids and people in my surrounding area. I think that my price is appealing to consumers because many college students are on a budget and $8-$12 is a normal price for a charger, especially if you won’t need to buy another in the future. In the start of this business, I would like to run a smaller company to keep costs down, that way I would be employing a few people to help me with production and distribution of the product to customers. If the company grows, then I can reevaluate and hire more people to support the growing needs of the company.

            I believe that because I am in college, my proximity to the market (of college students) and my expendable free time will be my most valuable resources that will allow me to compete with other companies. Once I have a stable footing in this market, I would like to expand my business and offer a new product: a set of headphones that are retractable (to avoid tangling) but that also a good sound quality. Assuming this venture launched, in five years, I would like to run this business with the help of fellow employees. I would like to have this as a side business, that way I can also pursue my career as an accountant, or potentially a corporate lawyer. This venture will allow me to develop my entrepreneurial skills, so that in the future I can pursue other venture and maybe run my own business full time.

Week 11 Reading Reflection

1) What was the biggest surprise for you in the reading? In other words, what did you read that stood out the most as different from your expectations? 

My biggest surprise in this reading was finding out that innovative ideas do not fail usually due to execution. I had always assumed that execution (or the lack thereof) was the reason that new innovative ideas at companies failed. 

2) Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing to you.

I thought it was odd that without a business strategy, the different factions within a business, such as: marketing, sales, R&D, and finance, can all try to make the innovation suit their specific field, rather than it suiting the company as a whole. 

3) If you were able to ask two questions to the author, what would you ask? Why?

1. Although not every strategy will work for every business, is it acceptable to use another company's strategy to model yours after?

2. How do you gear your innovation strategy towards maintaining customer loyalty and attracting new customers? 

4) Was there anything you think the author was wrong about? Where do you disagree with what she or he said? How?

There was nothing in this article that I disagreed with the author about. I thought it was an interesting read. 

The Amazon Whisperer

So far in my business, the main way I have been making money is by selling my product: a phone charging cord that has a design like a slinky, that resists tangling and breaking. I believe the next step is to create headphone that avoid tangling (if I am to stay on the path of tech products that do not tangle). I believe that the best way to have headphones that avoid tangling, which is a near impossible feat, is to have a retractable feature. Many people complain about their headphones tangling (and in some cases, breaking over time), and I believe that selling retractable headphones would increase customer loyalty and maybe even bring in more customers. I went on Amazon and found headphones that had a retractable feature: 

I like that this product has many color options available, and I could even incorporate that idea into my other product (the phone charger) to expand my customer base. The customer reviews on Amazon said that the customers loved the price and the retractable feature, yet it had terrible sound quality- which I think it crazy because don't you buy headphones to hear sound?? 

If I were to create a product similar to this, I would make retractable headphones with higher quality sound even if it meant raising the price a little. After all, selling headphones with high quality sound will increase customer loyalty. 

My Unfair Advantage

Human Capital:

1. Patience

• V: This is a valuable resource in any setting. 
• R: I do not think patience is a rare resource. 
• I: I think that patience can be hard to teach/copied. 
• N: No. 

2. Organizational Skills

• V: Yes. It is very important to be organized. 
• R: Organizational skills are not rare. 
• I: Potentially. People who do not already have organizational skills can learn them/develop them. 
• N: No. There is no way to get around not being organized in one way or another. 

3. Interpersonal Skills

• V: Yes. It's very important to have strong interpersonal skills. 
• R: In some cases. Not everyone has the exact same conversation skills or personality. 
• I: Some people may develop their interpersonal skills (in a sense copying).
• N: It is hard to succeed in a people oriented industry without interpersonal skills. 

4. Oriented towards developing and maintaining relationships 

• V: Yes. It is very important to be able to maintain relationships with people, especially in business. 
• R: No.
• I: People can practice developing their interpersonal skills and maintaining relationships.
• N: It can't be substituted as many people do not have a strong ability to maintain strong relationships with many people at once. 

5. Unifier

• V: Yes. It is very valuable to be able to create harmony in a group/team setting. 
• R: No.
• I: No. Many people if they lack this skill will have a hard time developing it. 
• N: Yes. Some people choose to work in a group without creating harmony among its members. 

6. Creativity

• V: Yes. It is important to be creative in business, for finding solutions to problems or in marketing and expanding the customer base.
• R: Yes. Not all people are creative. (There are varying levels of creativity) 
• I: Depends on the situation if someone can copy being creative (potentially hiring more creative people and using their ideas?)
• N: Yes. Someone who is not very creative can get around this obstacle by working with other more creative people to help them along. 

Social Capital:

7. Connection to a Supplier

• V: It is very valuable to have someone in my network who is experienced with creating and distributing a product in a market similar to mine.
• R: Depends. Not all people are able to network with suppliers. 
• I: Yes. Other people can network with other suppliers. 
• N: Yes. People can use their network with other types of people to develop their business. 

8. Connection to a Market Expert 

• V: Yes. It is valuable to know someone who is an expert in my market.
• R: Depends. It all depends on who people network with.
• I: Yes. People can simply expand their network to meet more people in their market. 
• N: Yes. People can use their network with other experts to develop their business. 

9. Connection to a Domain Expert 

• V: Yes. It is valuable to know someone who is an expert in my domain. 
• R: Depends. It all depends on who people network with.
• I: Yes. People can simply expand their network to meet more people in their domain. 
• N: Yes. People can use their network with other experts to expand their business. 

Miscellaneous:

10. Time

• V: Time is an extremely valuable resource. 
• R: Yes. Because I am in college, I have a lot of free time, which not all people have access to. 
• I: No. People who do not have the time to work on their business cannot copy my use of time. 
• N: It is hard for people to get around the obstacle of not having the time to do things. 

I believe that time is my most valuable resource. As a college student, I have the most expendable free time that I will ever have access to, so now would be the best time to develop a business. 

Week 10 Reading Reflection

1) What was the biggest surprise for you in the reading? In other words, what did you read that stood out the most as different from your expectations? 

I have always liked math and I was surprised to see the sales forecast represented by a line in the format of: y= a + bx. It makes sense now to use this formula given the purpose of the sales forecast and the information available.

2) Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing to you.

I was confused slightly by the cash-flow statement. I thought it was odd how cash flows do not always reflect the balance sheet. 

3) If you were able to ask two questions to the author, what would you ask? Why?

1.What is the best way to measure how much of a mixed cost is fixed or variable?

2. How should a break even analysis be set up if an entrepreneur doe not have any sales yet?

4) Was there anything you think the author was wrong about? Where do you disagree with what she or he said? How?

There was nothing in this reading that I thought the author was wrong about. 

Growing My Social Capital

In this exercise, I tried to use personal relationships of mine to find people who are involved in the industry related to my business venture. 

Here I found a friend of a friend or a relative of a friend to expand my network. 

1. Domain Expert

• Felipe Gomes, Sales Associate at Best Buy
• Felipe worked at the Best Buy store in Orlando, FL, where I am from. I have shopped there a few times and I was able to use his insight into the market to help with my business venture.
• I contacted him via Facebook, as we have many mutual friends. We simply discussed the potential of my product selling in a store like Best Buy. 
• Including Felipe in my network will give me access to an insider's opinion in the market for tech devices and their accessories.  

2. Market Expert

• Nicole Hebel, UF Marketing Major
• Nicole is a fellow student in the business school and she is currently studying marketing. 
• I contacted her via Facebook, as she and I also have many mutual friends. We discusses the ways in which to market my product, especially to younger people (like college students) 
• Including Nicole in my network will allow me access to the perspective of a college student studying marketing techniques which will aid me in my venture and my marketing strategies.

3. Supplier

• Hank Goradesky, owner of a phone case company
• Hank is a relative of one of my friends from high school
• I contacted him via email and we discussed the potential of my product and the ways in which he has been able to grow his business
• Having Hank in my network will allow me to expand my knowledge about producing and distributing a (tech device/accessory) product to customers 

This networking experience has made me more comfortable in reaching out to people and discussing my product with them as a business venture. I hope that over time networking will become easier and easier.