Final Reflection - Assignment 30A

Notable ENT 3003 Experiences

• The most formative experience I had in the class was being able to reflect on my elevator pitches and the feedback I received and then make them better. I am now more comfortable in front of the camera because I have addressed the issues I had originally and worked on correcting them. I will always remember how I got myself to reach out to old connections. The fact that I worked on my networking skills as I contacted old tutors and contacts of mine will prove to be beneficial in the future. My most joyous experience was asking my friends and family what they thought about me. Hearing their feedback gave me a better understanding of how people truly view me and it was encouraging because it showed me that I have a lot of potential. I am most proud of my ability to move on from failure. Originally, I came up with a cheeseboard business, but I realized this wasn't sustainable and scalable; therefore, I did extensive research and put a lot of thought into coming up with a new business idea I could believe in.

My Entrepreneurial Mindset

• I now see myself as an entrepreneur because of the work I put forth to develop my business plan throughout the semester. I have moved closer to developing an entrepreneurial mindset as a result of coming up with a business idea and trying to turn it into a business.. I have learned that it is possible for me to develop ideas, such as my app, that I truly believe in. Constantly revising the original business plan by self-reflecting and asking other people their opinions on how they think I can improve my business concept is vital to make progress as an entrepreneur. I have learned very valuable lessons in ENT 3003 that have shaped me into an entrepreneur. 

Personal Recommendation

• The one recommendation I would make to the students that are going to journey down this path in the future is that they should expect failure, but not embrace it. Entrepreneurs are bound to fail at some point, but true entrepreneurs will bounce back better than before. Failure is tough and the only way to get better from it is to learn from it. In order to perform one's best in this course, a student should establish a weekly schedule early on in the semester. Following a strict schedule by setting specific days to get particular assignments done will prove to be beneficial at the end of the class. Students should come into ENT 3003 with the idea that developing their business plan is their main priority. If they dedicate the class to creating a unique, successful business, everything else will fall into place and they will grow as an entrepreneur.

Venture Concept No. 2 - Assignment 29A

1) Venture Concept Description

Opportunity

• The opportunity I have been presented with is unique because the potential group of customers is made up of a group of students at the University of Florida that desire to meet fellow classmates that are willing to help them with schoolwork.
• The forces in the environment that have created this opportunity is the fact that students often don't know other people taking the same classes as them; therefore, it is hard to reach out and ask for help from fellow classmates.
• Geographically, the target customers are located around the city of Gainesville, Florida since they attend the University of Florida. Demographically, the students are males and females between the ages of 18 and 22. Demographics vary other than those factors, and some online students may not actually live in Gainesville.
• Customers currently attend professors' office hours or they will pay for Study Edge which is a local tutoring service. These students swear by Study Edge, but they are looking for more. They are looking to be put in touch with fellow classmates as well.
• The opportunity is huge because the app could appeal to every student at the University of Florida that is looking to expand their academic network.
• The window of opportunity will be open until someone else develops such an app that will connect students who are taking the same classes. The opportunity to develop such an app is unique and has never done before.

Innovation

• The innovation I have come up with is a social media app that will connect users at the University of Florida to one another based on their class schedule for the particular semester. Students will download the app for free and then create an account by inputting their contact information and then their class schedule for the current semester. The app will automatically connect users that are enrolled in at least one of the same classes. The app will serve as a networking platform for students to help each other out with assignments and studying habits. 
• Even though the app will be free, I will generate revenue by placing sponsored ads on the app. Any business that wants to market its products/services to UF students will do so by paying me to post their ads on my app.

Venture Concept

• My innovation will solve the opportunity I identified in that students will download the free app in order to connect with fellow classmates at the University of Florida and these connections will produce relationships that will further people's academic efforts.
• Customers will download my app because it is free and easy to use. Students are accustomed to social media apps; therefore, it won't be a huge step for them to learn how to use the social media app I have developed. Also, students that use my app and find it beneficial will naturally tell other people about the app which will bring in more users. Users spreading information to their fellow classmates via word of mouth is another way customers will end up downloading the app which makes it even easier for me to get new students on board with the business idea.
• The current alternatives, Study Edge and office hours, are costly and burdensome. Study Edge charges a hefty monthly subscription fee and most students are on a budget; therefore, students would much rather save this money and spend it on other things throughout college. Attending professors' office hours is inconvenient because it takes a lot of time to commute to the buildings where the tutoring is held.
• I don't have to worry about packaging. The price points only matter to businesses trying to advertise on my app; the app is free to download for users. Distribution is easy because people simply have to download the app right onto their phones. Customer support will be vital because if customers have issues using the app they will be entitled to call a customer service number on the app. Good customer support will make users' experience with the app stand out and these students will keep coming back for more. Everything will be taken care of using computers and phones; therefore, the business location doesn't matter.
• The business concept is self-sustaining because it will require very little upkeep since the nature of the app is simple. Each year, as high school students come to UF, they will be introduced to the app via word of mouth and marketing efforts. We don't have to recruit new students to UF, all we have to do is market the benefits of the app to students. The company will be ran by me and all the marketing efforts will be ran by me as well. The one person I would take on my team is my sister who develops social media pages for a living. I could use her help in making my app appealing to people's eyes. I will also have teachers market the app to students in order to support the ongoing expansion of my app. Teachers would have no issue doing such a thing because they will get better reviews from students at the end of the semester if they inform students of an app that will ultimately help them do better in school.

The three minor elements

• My venture's most important resource will be my sister since she develops social media platforms for a living. Having her on my team will enable me to cater my app to a variety of students because of the simple, yet effective design she will help me come up with. The simplicity of using my app will keep users coming back and it'll help my app stand out over inconvenient alternatives.
• The next venture I would like to pursue is taking my app internationally and also expanding it to big high schools in the United States' biggest cities. There is a great opportunity to exposing my app to users at a younger age. Also, offering my app to users in other countries will only boost the publicity surrounding my app. It's also very easy to use and most countries are used to working with social media platforms already.
• In five years, I would like my app to be a household name in the Gainesville area and I would like to begin expanding the app to colleges and high schools throughout the United States. It would most likely take more time to expand internationally considering I would have to deal with international laws and regulations at that point. As an entrepreneur, I would like to be more aware of international business practices in ten years so that I am able to successfully launch my app internationally.

2) Feedback

• My fellow classmates agreed with my venture concept and believe I am going to be successful with the business idea. They provided me with an overwhelming amount of positive feedback, but they want to make sure that I know I am able to rely more heavily on users marketing the app for me by word of mouth. It is nice to know that my users will most likely market the app for me because I don't have to stress so much about marketing the app myself. Also, my fellow classmates recommended that I market the benefits of the app to teachers at the high school and college level. My peers in ENT 3003 believe professors at UF and other schools will market the app to their students since it will likely result in more positive reviews from students at the end of the class. If teachers look as if they have the students' best interest in mind, they will perceived by students more favorably.

3) Changes to Venture Concept

• Considering what my peers commented on my "What's Next?" and "Venture Concept No. 1" submissions, I decided to make a few adjustments to my venture concept. I decided to rely more on users marketing my app to other students via word of mouth. I will not have to spend as much money on marketing expense if I plan for this. Also, I have decided to inform teachers about the benefits of marketing the app to their students. As a result, teachers will most definitely tell their students to download and use the app because the app will naturally boost students' grades which will reflect well on the teachers.

4) Picture for Illustration: A Teacher Performance Evaluation Form

• Students will likely say better things about their teachers if the teachers go out of their way to market my app to students. Students will be grateful for such an app.

Your Exit Strategy - Assignment 28A

1) Exit Strategy

• I plan to sell the business once I grow the business domestically to its full potential. It would be ideal to be able to expand the app to users throughout the United States in both college and high school and then give up the reigns by selling the business for someone else to grow it internationally. Hopefully the company will be worth a significant amount of money by that time and I'll be able to sell the business for a large sum of money.

2) Why This Strategy?

• I believe that it is within my power to make my business a success in the United States, however, I would be navigating uncharted territory if I were to try to expand my app internationally. Therefore, it'd be ideal if I'm able to sell the rights to my app to someone who is familiar with international business once I am content with the app's dealings in the US. In this particular exit strategy, I think my app will be able to reach and benefit the most people possible.

3) Influence of Exit Strategy

• My exit strategy has definitely influenced my decision to start off my business on a smaller domestic scale instead of a larger international scale. Rather than cater to people worldwide, I decided to start off at the University of Florida because Gainesville is an area I know well. As the business begins to grow, the next step would be to launch the app throughout all of the high schools in Gainesville and then I would expand throughout FL and then throughout the United States. The opportunity I am seeking is the market in the United States for my app. My growth intentions are limited to the United States at the moment because of my current exit strategy. Things may change in the future regarding this strategy, but I am sticking with this for now.

Reading Reflection No. 3 - Assignment 27A

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

1) General Theme

• The general theme of How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big by Scott Adams is that people can fail an unlimited number of times and then use these failures to succeed. Without failure, people would not be able to grow and learn from their mistakes. The books also focuses on showing people how they can stay level-headed and content while enduring so much failure in life. Scott Adams highlights in the book that patience is also a virtue because people often endure years of failure before they are actually able to become a success in their occupations.

2) Connection With ENT 3003

• The book taught me to stay patient and also learn from my failures just like ENT 3003 did. Patience is key in the business world, especially as an entrepreneur. It takes a long time to build a brand and patience helps entrepreneurs not lose their minds while rolling with the ups and downs that characterize entrepreneurship.

3) Class Exercise Idea

• After reading How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big by Scott Adams, I would have the entire class research entrepreneurs that have written books on the topic of failure and write a short summary of their experiences. Similar to how I learned to cope with failure by reading Adams' book, other students would benefit from doing the same. I think it should be mandatory that all students in ENT 3003 read a book that deals with overcoming failure.

4) Biggest Surprise/'Aha' Moment

• It surprised me that the author said entrepreneurs are better off after they experience failure. I thought to myself that failure often causes people to quit on their hopes and dreams, but then it occurred to me that true entrepreneurs will use their failures to learn and succeed with other business concepts. The 'aha' moment that I had was that entrepreneurs may fail with one business idea, but then they will be better prepared to succeed in their new endeavors.

Celebrating Failure - Assignment 26A

My Failure:

• About four weeks ago, I broke up with my girlfriend of almost two years. Considering she was the biggest part of my life for so long and I also thought she was going to be my wife, I clearly failed in making things work with her. We had a very strong relationship, but my impatience led to me making an impulsive decision to break up.

Learning From My Failure:

• I took it too far in that I should have worked harder to figure things out between us before making the big declaration that we were done. Patience is key in life. I need to work on having more patience so that I can have more successful relationships with friends, family, and loved ones in the future.

Thoughts About Failure:

• Failure is my biggest fear in my relationships, school, and career. Even though failure is inevitable, one cannot always overcome it in certain circumstances; therefore, one should learn to expect it and prepare for it accordingly. Some failures are harder to deal with than others, and terminating my relationship because of my impatient nature was the worst failure of them all for me. I handle failure by trying to move on as fast as possible, but ENT 3003 has taught me that I should reflect on my failures so that I can learn from them. I don't plan on living in the past because this will inhibit growth, but it is necessary to learn from my mistakes before I move on. I am more likely to open up to new people because I feel as if I have taken the necessary steps toward becoming the man I want to be. Also, I feel like the risk of entering into a new relationship is smaller now than it was before because I have taken the time I needed for introspection.

What's Next? - Assignment 25A

Existing market

What I think is next:

• I think the next move in terms of products and services for my venture is to open office buildings on the campuses we serve. For example, it would be ideal to eventually offer UF students the opportunity to meet the people they connected with on the app in person at one of our facilities in Gainesville (preferably on campus).

Customer interviews:

• UF undergraduate business student- He thinks I should be offering my app to high schoolers in the Gainesville area now and not later. I already planned on doing this in the future, but this student pointed out the market for such an app among local high schools. He thinks the idea to open up office buildings so that students can have a standardized place to meet up is worthless. He pointed out that students wouldn't mind meeting at locations they agree upon for themselves.
• UF graduate business student- He thinks I shouldn't limit myself to the United States and suggested that I launch the app internationally as soon as possible. He believes there is a huge market for this app in other countries as well and told me to scale my business faster than I had originally planned. He also thinks that my idea to eventually acquire a building so that students can have a set place to meet is smart. He pointed out that it isn't a necessity, but that it is a luxury that could provide convenience to customers on the UF campus.
• UF undergraduate telecommunications major- She thinks I should offer my app to professionals at large corporations with standardized work schedules. She said that having professionals input their work schedules (instead of class schedules for students) into the app so that they can reach out to co-workers who are working at the same time could be very beneficial. She thinks my idea to expand into a building in the future is vital. She doesn't think students will want figure out where to meet up with each other because this will be an inconvenience.

Reflection:

• Based on the feedback I received from the students at the University of Florida, it is now clear to me that I am eventually going to want to build an office building on campus where students can meet their classmates. In this case, students won't have to figure out a place to meet on their own. Students will have a set location to meet on campus once they meet fellow classmates. I received mixed feedback from the students, but the argument for a building outweighed the argument against one.
• After listening to what the students thought would be good opportunities to pursue, I've decided that expanding into high schools as soon as possible is the most viable option for my venture in terms of growing in my existing market. I would start off in the local area with the high schools in the Gainesville community. On top of launching my app at the University of Florida, I am going to launch it with local high schools at the same time. I will be able to scale my business faster and cater to more individuals than I had originally planned immediately after launching my app. Serving an international audience seems too complicated for the time being; therefore, I don't plan on pursuing that business endeavor until later down the road.

New market

Radically different market:

• Instead of targeting the ideal target audience of students at the University of Florida, I've come up with a radically different market to serve. The new market consists of professors at the University of Florida. I wouldn't change the business plan, but I would have teachers market the app for me in class. Teachers would love to tell their students about the app, considering the app simply connects students to help one another out with how to attack assignments and give studying advice to one another. It is a collaborative platform that helps students facilitate extra help to each other; therefore, professors on campus would have no problem telling the students who are enrolled in their classes to download the app. Marketing my app to students would create value for teachers because more questions would be directed to students and not them. It would take some of the burden of teaching thousands of students off the teachers' shoulders. Students would also perform better in classes which looks good for teachers' reputations.

New market interviews:

• Professor in the business school- He thinks the app would help professors in that it would encourage students to ask each other for help before going to the teacher with questions. In this case, a lot of the questions that can be answered by fellow students will never make it to professors which will help teachers out. He thinks I should add more information to users' homepages so that people can get to know them on a more personal level before contacting them. He suggested that students might feel uncomfortable reaching out to complete strangers.
• Professor in the law school- She thinks the app will alleviate stress for teachers because more questions will be directed to students and not them. She also pointed out that students will likely perform better on homework, quizzes, and exams which looks good on professors' resumes. She suggested that I treat the app almost like a standard social media page, while having students input their schedules as well. Students would be able to connect with fellow classmates, but they will also be able to view the homepages of other users and see who they are and what they are like before contacting them to meet up for help.

Reflection:

• I learned that the market for teachers to market this app to students is greater than originally expected. Both teachers I spoke to were very supportive of my business plan. They conveyed to me that there is a great market for this among teachers at the University of Florida since it will take some stress off their shoulders and students grades would naturally improve.
• I assumed the teachers would like the idea, but it surprised me that they conveyed a need for it as things stand today. Even though this market is attractive, I still think marketing to students is a better idea. Students have a direct need for it because it is their grades that will naturally improve. Teachers have a more indirect need since they will reap benefits indirectly; therefore, I feel as if teachers would possibly bail on the idea of marketing the app to students if they decided it wasn't worth their time to introduce the app in their classes.

Venture Concept No. 1 - Assignment 24A

Opportunity

• The opportunity I have been presented with is unique because the potential group of customers is made up of a group of students at the University of Florida that desire to meet fellow classmates that are willing to help them with schoolwork.
• The forces in the environment that have created this opportunity is the fact that students often don't know other people taking the same classes as them; therefore, it is hard to reach out and ask for help from fellow classmates.
• Geographically, the target customers are located around the city of Gainesville, Florida since they attend the University of Florida. Demographically, the students are males and females between the ages of 18 and 22. Demographics vary other than those factors, and some online students may not actually live in Gainesville.
• Customers currently attend professors' office hours or they will pay for Study Edge which is a local tutoring service. These students swear by Study Edge, but they are looking for more. They are looking to be put in touch with fellow classmates as well.
• The opportunity is huge because the app could appeal to every student at the University of Florida that is looking to expand their academic network.
• The window of opportunity will be open until someone else develops such an app that will connect students who are taking the same classes. The opportunity to develop such an app is unique and has never done before.

Innovation

• The innovation I have come up with is a social media app that will connect users at the University of Florida to one another based on their class schedule for the particular semester. Students will download the app for free and then create an account by inputting their contact information and then their class schedule for the current semester. The app will automatically connect users that are enrolled in at least one of the same classes. The app will serve as a networking platform for students to help each other out with assignments and studying habits. 
• Even though the app will be free, I will generate revenue by placing sponsored ads on the app. Any business that wants to market its products/services to UF students will do so by paying me to post their ads on my app.

Venture Concept

• My innovation will solve the opportunity I identified in that students will download the free app in order to connect with fellow classmates at the University of Florida and these connections will produce relationships that will further people's academic efforts.
• Customers will download my app because it is free and easy to use. Students are accustomed to social media apps; therefore, it won't be a huge step for them to learn how to use the social media app I have developed.
• The current alternatives, Study Edge and office hours, are costly and burdensome. Study Edge charges a hefty monthly subscription fee and most students are on a budget; therefore, students would much rather save this money and spend it on other things throughout college. Attending professors' office hours is inconvenient because it takes a lot of time to commute to the buildings where the tutoring is held.
• I don't have to worry about packaging. The price points only matter to businesses trying to advertise on my app; the app is free to download for users. Distribution is easy because people simply have to download the app right onto their phones. Customer support will be vital because if customers have issues using the app they will be entitled to call a customer service number on the app. Good customer support will make users' experience with the app stand out and these students will keep coming back for more. Everything will be taken care of using computers and phones; therefore, the business location doesn't matter.
• The business concept is self-sustaining because it will require very little upkeep since the nature of the app is simple. Each year, as high school students come to UF, they will be introduced to the app via word of mouth and marketing efforts. We don't have to recruit new students to UF, all we have to do is market the benefits of the app to students. The company will be ran by me and all the marketing efforts will be ran by me as well. The one person I would take on my team is my sister who develops social media pages for a living. I could use her help in making my app appealing to people's eyes.

The three minor elements

• My venture's most important resource will be my sister since she develops social media platforms for a living. Having her on my team will enable me to cater my app to a variety of students because of the simple, yet effective design she will help me come up with. The simplicity of using my app will keep users coming back and it'll help my app stand out over inconvenient alternatives.
• The next venture I would like to pursue is taking my app internationally and also expanding it to big high schools in the United States' biggest cities. There is a great opportunity to exposing my app to users at a younger age. Also, offering my app to users in other countries will only boost the publicity surrounding my app. It's also very easy to use and most countries are used to working with social media platforms already.
• In five years, I would like my app to be a household name in the Gainesville area and I would like to begin expanding the app to colleges and high schools throughout the United States. It would most likely take more time to expand internationally considering I would have to deal with international laws and regulations at that point. As an entrepreneur, I would like to be more aware of international business practices in ten years so that I am able to successfully launch my app internationally.