21A- Reading Reflection No. 2

Book: The Art of Social Media: Power Tips for Power Users, Guy Kawasaki

#1: What was the general theme or argument of the book?- In the book Guy argues that we should treat our social media accounts as a business rather than a hobby. Specifically, Guy states that if you want to succeed that you should treat it as you are trying to go pro.

#2: How did the book, in your opinion connect with and enhance what you are leaning in ENT3003?- The book is a good way to learn how to manage a professional social media page that could directly benefit entrepreneurs in the form of free advertisement and coverage. By connecting the tips given in the book to the entrepreneur advice from ENT3003 future entrepreneurs can create a very solid starting point from which to promote their products.

#3: If you had to design an exercise for this class, based on the book you read what would that exercise involve?- If I were to create an assignment based on the topics discussed in this book I would assign students to create a professional social media account to practice strategies for managing a social media account for their business.

#4: What was you biggest surprise or "aha" moment when reading the book?- I was surprised when the book suggested that when creating social media accounts to decide on two platforms to use and then cross-promote both accounts. This surprised me because I had imagined that having as much social media coverage as possible would be the most beneficial strategy. However, in the book Guy states that this method becomes far too difficult to manage and recommends selecting on two such as Twitter and Instagram.

20A- Growing your Social Capital

#1- Dan (Market Expert)- My first interview was with Dan, a manager at Sears. Sears sells appliances and accessories such as refrigerators and freezers with which my product would be compatible and could be stocked. I initiated this interview by visiting the Sears in Tampa and asked to briefly speak with the manager about this topic. During the interview I questioned Dan about which appliances and accessories sell well and under what circumstances. This information will help me gauge how well my product would do in an appliance store environment.

#2- Lisa (Industry Expert)- My second interview was performed with Lisa, the manager at Best Buy in Tampa. Best Buy specializes in selling electronic devices such as the type of device my product would fall under. I also conducted this interview by traveling to the nearby Best Buy and asking to speak with the manager about this topic. Lisa provided me which very useful information about how well accessory products sell compared to other devices that I could use to gauge my products viability.

#3- Roger (Supplier)- For my final interview I spoke with Roger a customer service representative for Allied Electronics- an electronics parts supplier. Unlike the other interviews to contact Roger I called the Allied Electronics customer service number and spoke with Roger about the potential cost for the electronics materials such as the keypad to input the password on my device. Roger provided me with valuable information about the price of these materials.

Reflection- While I was unsure how to complete this assignment at first I was pleasantly surprised with the process and the value of the social capital I received at the conclusion of the assignment. This assignment was certainly very different from the previous networking experiences in this class as I have not thought of contacting other industry members in the past. However, the knowledge and experience I have gained during this assignment will certainly help with determining the viability of my product.

19A- Idea Napkin No. 2

You- I am a 21 year old student at the University of Florida. I am currently finishing a degree in Business Administration and have had previous exposure in the business field.

What are you offering to customers?- The ColdCase provides the customer with a climate controlled, customized , password protected storage device that can be placed within refrigerators or freezers to prevent any other individuals in the household or work environment from taking leftovers or other food from the owners without their permission or knowledge.

Why do they care?- Customers who do not wish their food to be taken without their knowledge do not have many other options to satisfy this need. The current option that customers employ is to place sticky notes onto their containers of food to attempt to ward off individuals who would steal their food.

What are your core competencies?- My product is able to satisfy the needs of consumers who tend to eat out often and have leftovers that they want to protect or individuals in the workplace who want to protect their lunch with a password protection system while also offering a customizable case to fit the personalization needs of consumers.

Evaluation- While I do believe the elements of the product do work well together I am still trying to come up with more customization options for the product that can fit the needs of a larger base of consumers who want a more personalized device.

Feedback- Based on the feedback I have received since the last idea napkin assignment I have given my product an official name- the “ColdCase” and have expanded its offering to include more mass customization and size options so that the device can fit in a larger range of refrigerators.

18A- Create a Customer Avatar

My prototypical customer would be a any individual who lives with multiple other relatives or roommates.  The hobbies of these customer could vary greatly as individuals who live at home with their family would have different needs and hobbies as an individual who lives in a dorm with a roommate instead. This person would likely be very sociable as they are living around multiple other people who they would interact with on a daily basis. This customer would likely also be interested in activities that take place outside of the home environment such as eating out at a restaurant to take a break from their home life. This customer would likely also be interested in watching television shows at home with the other members of their household as a fun activity to get together. The customer would likely also regularly exercise to stay fit and healthy. The customer would also likely order food or go to bars or restaurants frequently.

I would relate to this customer as I also enjoy to go out to restaurants occasionally and I do enjoy exercising at least a few times a week. I do not think that this is a coincidence as I developed the idea for the ColdCase due to the leftovers from the restaurants I visit being eaten by my roommate.

17A- Elevator Pitch No. 2

Pitch: https://youtu.be/09Z7X3LlcyA

Reflection: The feedback for my last posts was very insightful and allowed me to ensure that this product could move forward with new features and purchasing options for customers. The feedback for the product so far during interviews has been met with support as many interviewees stated they have the problem of roommates or relatives eating their food and that this device could solve this issue.

Feedback: Based on feedback during the previous assignments I have given the product a proper name: The "ColdCase." I have also noted the recommendation to provide more customization options and have such implemented many new mass customization options  such as sport logos that could be available for the "ColdCase."  I have also taken this opportunity to introduce options to either purchase a ColdCase with either a clear or solid exterior as I have had a few people either recommend that the ColdCase have a solid color exterior to prevent others from seeing the food inside as well as customers who recommended that the ColdCase be clear so they could see what food was actually inside. The implementation of two versions of the ColdCase should appease both sides of the argument.

16A- What's Your Secret Sauce?

#1- Describe five ways in which you think you have human capital that is truly unique:

      #1: I believe I have a good work ethic and am always pushing myself to complete my assignments in a timely manner.

      #2: I believe I am very tech-savvy and am able to adapt and troubleshoot issues with technology.

      #3: I have very good communication skills and I am able to receive and project messages clearly.

      #4: I am a very energetic person, I like to be active and perform my tasks with a good outlook.

      #5: I like to motivate other and ensure that everyone around me is feeling happy.

#2- Interviews:   (Note: I was unable to perform physical interviews due to the Corona virus being present in my town and was forced to contact my interviewees via phone and thus was unable to provide audio recordings of the interviews. I have provided brief summaries of the interviews I performed below.)

      #1 Cody- My first interview was with my close friend Cody, who stated that he values my optimism and enjoys speaking with me.

     #2 Charles- For my second interview I contacted my friend Charles who said that my positive outlook on life is very inspiring.

     #3 Diana- For my third interview I spoke to my mother Diana and she stated that my knowledge of computers is very helpful as I usually help her through any issues she has with her computer or other technology.

      #4 Jaycea- For my third interview I spoke with my friend Jaycea who said that positive outlook on life makes me a very easy person to talk to.

    #5 David- For my final interview I contacted my friend David who stated he admires how I tend not to procrastinate on my work assignments.

#3- Reflection:

  After performing these interviews it seems that the beliefs of my peers line up with my own beliefs of my human capital. Most of my interviewees stated that they value my positive outlook on life and how I always seem full of energy. These interviews have been very valuable to me as they validate my own beliefs that these are unique traits that are worth noting in my human capital.

15A- Figuring Out Buyer Behavior No. 2

Three Interviews: For this assignment, I interviewed three potential customers to determine their buying behavior in response to three different products: A $300 pair of Beats headphones, A $20 pair of JLab headphones, and a $10 pair of generic earbuds.

            Interview #1- Craig: Craig preferred the $20 pair of JLab headphones as they meet his minimum buying criteria – on-ear design – while not being too expensive. When asked if the style and/or quality of the product influenced his decision, Craig responded with indifference toward style and indicated that the quality seemed acceptable relative to the price. However, he was not particularly enthusiastic about the JLab headphones style nor quality.

Interview #2- Julie: Julie also preferred the $20 set of JLab headphones as a “middle ground” between the premium Beats and the low-cost generic headphones. According to Julie, “Beats are a bit pricy, and the JLab headphones would probably have the same function.” Julie also reported that she would probably buy the headphones in a retail store so she could physically evaluate the product before purchasing.

Interview #3 – Mike: Mike indicated that he would buy the generic earbuds. In his words, “I don’t use headphones very often, so if I needed a pair, I would probably buy the cheapest option.” Mike also voiced surprise that anyone would spend $300 on the Beats headphones; in his view, such a purchase would be extremely frivolous.

Conclusions: This segment appears to be very sensitive to price and moderately sensitive to quality. Based on Mike’s response, it seems that buyer behavior in this market is directly related to the frequency of the product’s use by the buyer. A buyer who uses his/her headphones daily may be more willing to pay slightly more for a better fit to their needs. However, while buyers may appreciate premium features and quality, they are generally not willing to pay a premium price for them.