Week 8 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 in the reading for me was the section mentioning Social Lending/ Peer-to-Peer (P2P) Lending.  I didn't even know this was even a type of lending that was possible.  Usually everyone thinks that the only way to obtain funds for businesses is through banks, but it's really interesting that this type of social network banking has allowed potential entrepreneurs and small businesses gain the funds necessary to fund their ventures.

2) Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing to you.
The part that confused me the most was the section on debt financing, specifically all the different types.  I know the definitions are all there and so are the explanations, but for me the concepts were really detailed and there were so many varieties I felt like I didn't really understand that section well.

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

In your personal opinion what would be more beneficial for a business, Business Angels or Venture Capitalists? Why? Also, I know sometimes business angels approach a business, but how would one go about approaching a business angel ? (since there is a method for how to approach venture capitalists)

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

I don't disagree with the author on anything particular in this chapter, especially because I don't have much knowledge in this particular area.

Half-Way Reflection

Well everyone we are finally at the half way point of the semester!!! (I can't believe this semester is passing by so quickly O.o )

I do have to say that this class has been a very interesting experience for sure.  It has been a new style of teaching that I was not necessarily used to but I definitely embrace it.  Throughout these first 8 weeks I was able to push myself out of my comfort zone and I was to think more creatively, which I thought I couldn't really do.  For those of you considering on taking ENT 3003 next semester, I highly suggest you do.  But I warn you, don't think you don't have to work at it.  It is a class that if you give it the effort it deserves, you will be pleasantly surprised at the things you can accomplish. 

1) Tenaciousness is a skill

At the beginning of the semester, I will admit, I had difficulty keeping track of assignments and due dates.  But I began listing the assignment on my personal calendar and when they were due during the week, that way I was always up to date.  I also tried my best to look into the assignment details BEFORE the due date, so I knew whether the assignment could be done in a short amount of time or if I needed to dedicate a few days to it.  To keep up I also checked Canvas daily and any announcements or emails that were sent, along with watching class lectures.  For me the best way to keep track is to transfer all due dates onto a personal calendar that you use daily, so you have no chance of forgetting or falling behind.  My agenda is my bible haha.

2) Tenaciousness is also about attitude

I definitely had a moment this semester where I just wanted to give on this class in general.  I just felt like my work wasn't good enough compared to some other students and I thought that I just wasn't cut out for the class.  I think I put myself into this little box of what I thought I could do, and my mentality didn't let me go outside that train of thought.  What pulled me out of my slump was the realization that some of the best ideas don't start off that way, and the people who develop these ideas have to work on perfecting and developing them. I realized that I needed more time to really develop in this class, it wasn't just a night and day thing.  I also stopped limiting myself to what I could do or couldn't do; let me try it out and then see if I can or can't.  As I changed my self-perception and way of thinking, I saw that my business venture idea started to come together and as time goes on I get more positive feedback from my classmates on it, so I feel I am heading in the right direction.

3) Three tips

My three tips for futures students would be:

-Put in the effort.  Trust me, when you really put in the effort and push yourself you will realize that you can do things you never thought of doing or thought you could do.

-Keep up with the pace.  Keeping up with the assignments and whats going on in class is key!  If you fall behind you will miss out on a lot of important things.

-Mentality is key.  Your mentality and view of the class can impact what you learn and do.  If you want to get the most out of the class then you need to have an Eager and open minded mentality.  If you have a lazy mentality, you will gain nothing at all.

Looking forward to the next half of this semester, and good luck to my fellow classmates!

Week 7 Reading Relfection

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 most surprising thing about the article was the the whole theme of it. As a marketing major, I have studied marketing strategy and segmentation a lot and it is quite shocking to see that the way it is taught to us is not the way that real world marketers and companies are doing it. It's interesting how now segmentation is more concerned with how to advertise and reach people than actually focusing on developing a product or service that customers would actually buy.

2) Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing to you.
There was nothing really confusing. The only section that I found slightly annoying was the one talking about the shallow, middle, and deep ends. The chart at the beginning was a little too detailed for a chart but it gave a clear idea of the concept; I thought the paragraphs that detailed each section were slightly lengthy that I felt like I was missing the main concept I was supposed to grab, in my opinion.

3) If you were able to ask two questions to the author, what would you ask? Why?
I reference to the section on senior management, do you believe that it might be that sometimes management does not seem to understand the marketers decisions (like the text says) or could it be that they just refuse to accept their decisions? Why? What would be some suggestions to improve the communication of ideas between marketers and senior management when it comes to segmentation?

4) Was there anything you think the author was wrong about? Where do you disagree with what she or he said? How?
I don't think that I necessarily disagree with anything. I think that this opened my eyes to something that I was not really aware of, and it is just one general perspective on the issue.

Free Money

For this exercise I decided to approach students in the Turlington Plaza area who seemed to be distracted and were heading somewhere important.  They were either wearing headphones walking somewhere, carrying things, or sometimes texting/talking on the phone.  To get the conversation going I would start off with something along the lines of "hey I am sorry to bother you but do you have a quick second? won't take long promise!".  After they agreed I would just say "I just wanted to give you this" and then I hand them the dollar.  A lot of the students seemed caught off guard and they ALL asked me "why?".   My reason that I gave was that I was doing a social experiment of sorts for my YouTube channel, and that I am paying it forward and that I would hope that they would do the same; I also mentioned how it's a way to start off the week well for them and hopefully they can do the same for someone else.  Some people would at first reject but because of the reason I was giving it to them they were willing to accept it.  Out of the 5 bills I was able to give away 4 of them.  I liked the exercise and it was not as hard to give away the money because the reason I gave them was something I believed in and I really hoped they would pay it forward.  At first some of the people I approached seemed to look upset or serious, but the minute I talked to them and explained why I gave them the dollar, they walked away with a smile.

Overall I enjoyed the exercise and it showed that people are more open to help others than they seem.

And sorry for some of the audio, in one of the videos Century Tower decided to go off haha.

Elevator Pitch No. 2

Hey guys so here is my second attempt at my elevator pitch!
(so sorry guys for the dark-ish lighting but it was the only place in my room where I could put the camera on the table and stand away from it without holding it haha I tried adding a filter on YouTube to make it look less dark so hopefully it works!)

So I decided to edit my concept slightly because at first I mad the concept of a dog cafe to be an alternative place to study and alleviate stress with dogs, but some students mentioned how studying may not be a selling point because it could be more distracting to play with dogs while studying. So I focused more on helping students find a place to unwind and alleviate some stress from their hectic days; that was the msot helpful commentary I got from my first pitch.  Also some of the feedback on my first elevator pitch, the students mentioned how they loved the concept because they are not allowed to have them in their apartments or dorms in Gainesville and have had to leave their pets behind or are not able to adopt, so I wanted to incorporate that into my pitch as well because I never even thought of that!  Lastly, I wanted to start off with a statistic about stressed college students because it makes it more important and serious; it is also good to mentally visualize data for impact.  Some of the feedback from the previous one was also just possible health and liability concerns about the business, which I thought was beneficial but not really to mention it in my new pitch. If I were to get positive response from an investor on my pitch, then I would go more into detail about all the logistics.  I think I felt more motivated with this pitch than the first one because I was able to get some useful feedback from my classmates, so it motivated me to put more effort into the wording and delivery of my second pitch. Hopefully you guys like it! :)

Week 6 Reading Reflection

Here is the reading reflection for the reading on Michael Porter's Five Forces Strategy:

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?
Nothing really surprised me because while studying abroad, a large portion of my Marketing Strategy class covered Porter's 5 Forces model.   What I did find interesting in the article was the section mentioning the difference between Forces and Factors.  It mentioned how just fast growth rates or highly innovative technology or development were not enough on their own to make an industry attractive.  It's funny because usually those are the things that makes us believe that they are attractive, when in reality they're not.

2) Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing to you.
There was no real confusion on the reading, it stated everything pretty clearly.  I had studied this previous and with HBR articles as well so there was no confusion.

3) If you were able to ask two questions to the author, what would you ask? Why?
Which of the Five Forces would you consider to be the most influential in affecting business? Why?
It would interesting to hear from him which of the 5 he thinks is the most powerful out of all them, because in a realistic world, they do not all have an even amount of power.

4) Was there anything you think the author was wrong about? Where do you disagree with what she or he said? How?
I don't disagree with Porter on anything, I did a lot of work with his model for class assignments and analyses so I can agree with a lot of the points mentioned in his article.

Idea Napkin No. 1

Hey everyone! So here we go....

1.  My name is Camila. I am a third year marketing student here at UF.  I could talk about my marketing skills, networking skills, etc, but you can just look at my resume for that. Aside from marketing, I am someone who loves to travels the world and experience new things.  I love helping people and animals most of all.  You can say I have weakness for those who need help. While I have traveled, I have always come across people and animals in need, and I think nothing fulfills me more than knowing I was somehow able to help them or at least make them feel better, no matter how small or big the situation.  As for aspirations, I hope that whatever I end up doing in the future will have a positive impact on other lives (human or animal), no matter how small that impact may be.  In terms of the concept I have for my dog cafe, my reason for it was to not only help college students in alleviating their everyday pressures but also help shelter animals receive more affection and possibly find their forever homes.  If this concept does come to life, I think it will play a huge role in my life, because I am a firm believer that whatever you do in life with love and dedication will impact someone else in a positive way.  (if you want a look at the initial idea, make sure to check this post! http://lovetravellives.blogspot.com/2016/02/elevator-pitch-no-1.html )

2 & 3.  So the service I am offering is a dog cafe.  So what I have noticed is that many students in college suffer from stress, whether it be a little or a lot.  Even all of the students I interviewed agreed that they suffered from stress.  When asking student if they had an outlet, some did, but others didn't really have a method for easing the stress.  There are several research studies showing that dogs have been known to reduce stress and blood pressure in humans; UF has even brought dogs onto campus during exam weeks to help students unwind from the pressures of their exams.  So I wanted to offer students a place where they can go to study or  unwind from the day with a bite to eat and be able to have some fun playing with some dogs.

4. So why would college students even care? From the feedback of interviews, and even on my elevator pitches, many students actually like the idea of having somewhere to play with some furry friends and have it more accessible to them.  Some students mentioned how Gainesville apartments and UF dorms are very strict about having pets, so many students have to leave their furry friends behind at home or don't even get a chance to adopt one.  I also had students mention how UF does the dogs events but its maybe one time a semester/year, and its inconvenient; they said it would be nice to have somewhere daily and near campus that they can go to have a little retreat from daily stress.  So many students already go to a crowded Starbucks to study or hang out with friends,  imagine having the same atmosphere with the added bonus of having some furry friends to make your day a little brighter!

5. What sets this cafe apart from others like Panera or Starbucks is the dogs.  Theses dogs will not be pure breeds, but rather we will have dogs from the Alachua Humane society and other shelters.  So what makes us unique is that these animals will have the opportunities to be adopted and find loving homes, and students will have a unique environment to de-stress and have more accessibility to these furry friends that Gainesville seems so determined to keep away.

At first you would think that all these elements don't quite exactly fit together, but I while in Korea, this type of business was very successful.  I want to be able to introduce this concept here.  Some definite considerations that other students have pointed out is how would U.S. FDA regulations affect the business, etc.  These are things that I would have to look deeply into, however the animals would be restricted from food prep areas and there would be specific employees for only food service or only dog service to avoid health issues.  I have also had suggestions about liabilities, such as what would happen if a person or dog got hurt.  This was something really interesting that I would have to look into and research more.  The concept fits, but I feel like its tiny moving parts have little glitches that need some alterations.

It is a work in progress but I hope to receive more feedback to see if this can come to life!

Interviewing Customers No. 2 (technically No. 1)

Hey guys so after doing my elevator pitch for the last post, I went out to interview students on the University of Florida Campus to see if I would be able to get useful information.

To understand the idea behind my business venture, please go to the blog post and read it briefly BEFORE listening to the interviews: http://lovetravellives.blogspot.com/2016/02/elevator-pitch-no-1.html

Unfortunately my video was not working so the audio is only available for the interviews :'(

Here are the list of questions asked for reference:

1. Do you prefer studying in cafes (such as Panera or Starbucks) or on campus/ libraries? Why?
2. Do you suffer from stress often? Do you have a way of alleviating it?
3. UF has brought dogs and puppies on campus during exams to alleviate stress, what is your opinion on that?
4. If there was a dog cafe, where you could study, eat, and play with dogs, near campus, would you go?

I did not interview customers the first time around, so this is my first time and I would appreciate the feedback

So as for my opportunity I had some people say they were interested in the cafes but maybe not for studying. Still it does offer an opportunity for students to wind down.  I ask UF students in general, but I feel like I would have better luck if I interview students who actually studied at cafes to get a better response since it seems like they are the ones I am trying to reach out to.  Since this is my first interview I am open to suggestions on better questions or maybe rephrasing the ones I asked.  What I realized is that lots of students are actually willing to help out, and its not that scary to approach them for an interview; a lot of my interviewees enjoyed it.

Thanks guys and comment below for feedback!

Week 5 Reading Reflection

Here is this weeks reading reflection based off of Chapter 9 of the textbook:

1. The thing that surprised me the most about the reading was the concept of importing someone else's ideas; everyone thinks that entrepreneurship is just whatever you come up with on your own.  It was interesting to find that it can also be bringing someone else's venture somewhere else in the world and making it profitable.

2.  What slightly confused me was the difference between the Feasibility Criteria Approach and the
Comprehensive Feasibility approach; I know the latter takes into account external factors to the previous one, I guess it was very detailed and it took me a couple of times to read through.

3.  My questions to the author would be: Do you also agree with Suzanne Mulvehill on Emotional Endurance?  How much of entrepreneurship is emotional endurance ( in terms of percentage)?

4. I do not necessarily disagree with the author on any of the subject matter.  I think when it comes to the new section on why new ventures fail, a lot of the points seem logical, but when an entrepreneur is basing their decisions on forecasting or reports from the previous year, you won't really know whether the decision will lead to success or failure.

Elevator Pitch No. 1

Hey guys so just to give you a preview of what I am thinking for a business venture!:

• Opportunity:
• Many college students suffer from stress; as students we put more pressure on ourselves than our parents did when they were in college because the world is becoming much more competitive.  I've noticed that, especially during exams, students can't seem to find a way to relieve stress.  High levels of stress can lead to health issues or even depression.  I have also noticed that aside from the libraries and academic buildings, many students like studying in cafe/cafeteria environments, like Starbucks, Panera, or even the Reitz Union food court.  However I have noticed that these locales can get pretty packed, so students have to go elsewhere.
• Solutions:
• Combine both haha! In all seriousness, I want to start a business of dog cafes.  While abroad in Korea, I realized that these types of cafes were really popular among Korean students to study.  These cafes would give the opportunity for students to have an additional place to study, or just hang out and have some food/coffee, while playing with some dogs. Dogs, or pets in general, have been known to reduce stress levels; UF brings in dogs during exam week for students to calm down.  With these dog cafes, students can de-stress and study at the same time.
• an additional benefit is that the dogs would come from the Alachua Humane Society and other animal shelters, so it would give these animals an opportunity to get adopted or just have more human affection/interaction than what they get in the shelters.

Names are a work in progress and they are not that great yet lol.  Feel free tto comment or if you have any suggestions!:

Tail Waggin' Cafe
Canine Cappuccino
Mutts & Macchiatos