30A: Final Reflection

1. Recall experiences along the way: some highs that I had were creating my business idea. I was happy creating it and interviewing my friends and family and getting their support for my idea. Even though this was a class project, people saw that this business idea would work. I also enjoyed doing the elevator pitches because it helped me with my memorization skills and it was great practice for job interviews. I also enjoyed the reading reflection assignments. I enjoy reading and being able to choose 3 books from a list was nice. I didn't really have that many lows. The assignments were varied and fun to do. The only thing I can think of some of the assignments were time consuming but planning out when you're going to do them really helped.

2. What sticks out to you the most: What stuck out to me the most and what I would remember for years down the line is the interviews. The interviews allowed me to explore my idea even more and get great feedback from people. Some people gave me great ideas and others supported my decision. This is very important when planning a business, especially when your friends and family support your idea.

3. Do you see yourself as an entrepreneur: I do see myself as an entrepreneur after taking this class even more because I've always wanted to be an entrepreneur. After creating a business plan in this class, I feel like I can create any business plan that I am passionate about. I even helped my boyfriend create his business plan outside of this class. The assignments and lectures gave me a lot of insight in what needs to be done in a business plan and how to be successful.

4. Recommendation for next years students: For next years students I recommend creating a business plan that you are passionate about. You will actually be interested in this class more because it could actually jumpstart your business. I also recommend making a schedule for this class and getting the assignments and lectures completed early so you don't have to rush. There are interviews that are required and those take time and planning.

Photo taken by me

29A: Venture Concept No. 2

Opportunity:

Everyone has an unmet need for alternatives to plastic. Out of all of the people I interviewed, everyone said they had an unmet need for alternatives to plastic. Most grocery stores use plastic, but do have the option of paper bags. If you do research on plastic, you'll find that it can take over a thousand years to decompose. My target audience is mainly college students but I am expanding it to college alumni as well. College alumni enjoy buying products with college logos on them and they do have more discretionary income to spend on nonessential items. College students are on a budget and I want to sell reusable products that are reasonably priced. College students are a great target market for my product because they show their school spirit being decked out in college gear.  

The environment is harmed by the effects of plastic and is damaging our Earth. There is so much plastic in the ocean that animals are mistaking it for food. Plastic also cause health problems for humans because there are toxic chemicals in the plastic that leaches into our bodies which can cause serious health problems. I know a few people who are using alternatives to plastic and they are loyal customers. This is a huge opportunity because plastic is being banned in some states now and soon there won't be any more plastic (hopefully). I believe the "window of opportunity" will be open for years down the line. Plastic has harmed our Earth and oceans for a long time and I believe we can eventually get rid of plastic to save our planet. 

Innovation:
The products that I am going to sell are reusable products such as reusable water bottles, reusable grocery bags, and metal straws with college logos on them. Each product will be priced differently based on what the product is. Reusable water bottles will run for $7, reusable grocery bags for $5 and metal straws for $3. I believe these are reasonable prices and since they are reusable they will last a long time. They will also have the universities logo on them so that is a way I can have college students promote for me. Of course, I will also have my company's logo on each product. If these three products are successful, I will create new products with college logos on them. I will sell my product bookstores as well on college campuses so that when families come to visit or alumni they can buy it.

Venture Concept:
My idea is creating an organization on college campuses that will sell reusable products instead of plastic with college logos on them. I believe customers will buy my product because it is priced reasonably and it is in an easily accessible location for my target audience. I believe customers would switch from plastic to my products because they are unique and they are eye-catching. I don't think it will be too hard to get them to switch after I tell them the negative effects of using plastic. I don't believe there are any competitors right now on campus. There are competitors who sell reusable water bottles and reusable grocery bags with college logos on them, but I have the advantage of selling on college campuses. I am planning on expanding my market to college alumni and selling on campus bookstores as well.

I plan on advertising on social media on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Social media is a great way to advertise since most people have social media. It is a quick way to get the message out there. The key is being consistent with your posts and letting people know what the deal is.

Regarding packaging, my products will be packaged in cardboard boxes in bulk. I will not individually package these products because I don't think there is a need. My products will be displayed at booths on all college campuses and will be sold to college students. Once I get a hang of that, I will expand my target market to college alumni and families. My target audience would expand, and I would be able to raise my prices because I would be targeting older people with higher income and discretionary income to spend on nonessential things.

If I were to start this business, I would travel to different college campuses to promote my product. Then, I would start hiring and training people so that they could promote and sell my product for me. I would also need someone in charge of inventory and storage. Eventually, I would want to open up my own office and start a marketing and training program that would prepare people for success in the field. Employees would have the role of selling, marketing, and attending meetings.

Three Minor Elements:
1. My most important resource will be my expertise in sales. I have expertise in sales that will help me kickstart this company. I know how to sell to people successfully and I believe that is key in this business plan.
2. What's next for my venture is actually implementing my plan and getting in one of the college campuses to start my business. Once I do that, I want to start hiring and training.
3. In five years, I want to have my own office and have expanded to at least 20 college campuses. In 10 years, I want to have expanded to 50 college campuses. I want to be the CEO of my company and train other people to be successful like me. I will eventually retire and pass on the business to someone else.

Feedback from What's Next: Someone said I'm going to need to advertise a lot to reach college students so I added that to my venture concept and talked about the social media that I would use. Someone else said I should market to alumni and college fans because they would be a good target market so I added that. Someone said the target market of older people would be good because they could spread the word to their kids and I also agree with that. Someone said I should expand my product line, which I also will do.

Feedback from Venture Concept No. 2: I received mostly positive feedback of my business idea and someone said they could see my business expand to recycling but I haven't thought into that yet.

What I changed: I changed a few things. I added alumni and families to my target market, which would allow me to expand my product line and sell more. I also got rid of selling at sports bars because I think that is a totally different concept. I added where I would be selling, such as at bookstores. I would still sell on college campuses to college students.

Photo taken by me

28A: Your Exit Strategy

1. This is a difficult decision to make based on the fact that I haven't started this business. I would have to base it on profit. But, if I had to choose, I would sell it in the next 5 years or so.

2. The reason why I would probably sell it in the next 5 years is because I want to eventually start a family and this business would require me to travel to different college campuses around the United States. I would want to start another business locally. Not sure what yet, but I do want it to be another type of business than what I created for this class. There is a lot of potential with selling plastic alternatives, but I would want to sell another product.

3. My exit strategy has influenced me to think about the future of my business idea. If I'm planning on selling it, I have to make sure it succeeds so the next person will want to invest in it. My exit strategy has also influenced me to expand my product line and potentially target a new segment of people.

27A: Reading Reflection No. 3

1. The last book I read for this class is called "How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big" by Scott Adams. The general theme of this book was how to be successful even after failing many times. Adam gave some great advice based on his experiences. His main thing was using systems and not setting goals. A system is how you get to your goal and if you don't have a system, you will not achieve your goals. Having good habits such as eating right and exercising and having energy were his main focus.

2. The book connected with me and enhanced my learning in this class because I one day want to be an entrepreneur. There will be plenty of times when I fail, and I just have to keep going and gain skills from each job and use it to my advantage. Adam was also big on affirmations. He believed if he told himself he would do something or achieve something, that it would happen. He also was big on luck. He thinks everything happens at the right moment. I believe if the moment is right, something good will happen.

3. If I had to design an exercise for this class, the exercise would be to write down all of your skills and how each one has helped you in something. Adam talks a lot about skills and which ones are important. Some of the skills he mentioned were speaking skills, design skills, accounting skills, and conversation skills. Being good at many skills is better than being great at one according to Adam. I agree with him.

4. My biggest surprise was when Adam said he couldn't speak for three years. In the beginning when I was reading the book, I would have never guessed that because he seemed like a social person. He was, but one day he couldn't speak and he didn't know why. He saw a lot of doctors and eventually found a cure for his spasmodic dysphonia. He went through a long recovery that was not guaranteed and recovered well and was able to speak again.

26A: Celebrating Failure

1. A time I failed this semester was when I applied for a job at a big company and did not get an interview. I put a lot of effort in my application and my referral. I got an informational interview before the job application was open but after I applied, I did not get a call back.

2. I learned from this experience that being prepared for anything is key. I also learned that there will be times when I won't be the best candidate for a job and that I should not give up looking. I actually applied for a job while I was applying for this one and got the job. You never know what opportunities will show up until you try.

3. I think failure is something that everyone experiences and learns from. Failure means you didn't try your best or you weren't the best fit. Failing should teach someone that they need to work on something in order to be successful next time. I handle failure by thinking about the bright side and knowing that it's not the end of the world. I like to go on a run and release any anger and move on. I am more likely to take more risks now. This was my first "real job" that applied for and I will keep trying.

25A: What's Next?

Existing Market: 

1. What's Next: I want to expand my product line to five products instead of three.
2. I interviewed three customers who are already part of the market for alternatives to plastic. I told all three customers about my business plan and what they think I should do next. The first person I interviewed told me to stick with three products first and have a test run and in a couple months expand my product line. She told me to do this so that I don't get to overwhelmed in the beginning. The second person I interviewed liked my idea and told me to expand my market even more. She thinks there is another target audience out there such as families. She said children should grow up learning about saving the environment. The third person I interviewed also liked my idea and told me to get my products in stores. He said that would help with brand awareness and really getting my product out there.
3. Based on the feedback I got from these interviews, what makes the most sense to me is sticking with my idea of marketing on college campuses but I would also consider getting my product in stores. 

New Market:
1. Currently I am targeting college students on college campuses. The new market that I would target is older adults between the ages of 25-50 at sports bars. I think this would be a good idea because I would be selling products with college logos on them.
2. I would create a value for this new market because usually people who go to sports bars watch college football and I think they would be interested in buying my product with their college logo on them.
3. I interviewed two people from this new market. I recently went to a sports bar and interviewed two people there. The first person was in his late 20s and told me that selling products at sports bars is a great idea. He said he's seen people do that before and people were buying them. The second person I interviewed was in her 40s. She loved my idea and said men who bring their wives to watch football would love the distraction and would definitely want to buy my products.
4. Overall, I knew about this potential market, and I like the idea. I want to continue working on my current target market and see where that goes. If I do not see the results I want, I will consider trying a new market. 

24A: Venture Concept No. 1

Opportunity:

Everyone has an unmet need for alternatives to plastic. Out of all of the people I interviewed, everyone said they had an unmet need for alternatives to plastic. Most grocery stores use plastic, but do have the option of paper bags. If you do research on plastic, you'll find that it can take over a thousand years to decompose. I feel like a lot of people are either uneducated about the negative effects of plastic or just don't care about the environment. College students are on a budget and I want to sell reusable products that are reasonably priced. Plastic is so cheap, but it harms our environment. College students are always thinking of new ways to help our environment that's why I believe this is a great opportunity. My market is defined geographically all over the United States on college campuses. College students are between the ages of 18-25, male or female, some discretionary income, and enjoy socializing, exercising, and binging on Netflix. 

The environment is harmed by the effects of plastic and is damaging our Earth. There is so much plastic in the ocean that animals are mistaking it for food. Plastic also cause health problems for humans because there are toxic chemicals in the plastic that leaches into our bodies which can cause serious health problems. I know a few people who are using alternatives to plastic and they are loyal customers. This is a huge opportunity because plastic is being banned in some states now and soon there won't be any more plastic (hopefully). I believe the "window of opportunity" will be open for years down the line. Plastic has harmed our Earth and oceans for a long time and I believe we can eventually get rid of plastic to save our planet. 

Innovation:
The products that I am going to sell are reusable products such as reusable water bottles, reusable grocery bags, and metal straws with college logos on them. Each product will be priced differently based on what the product is. Reusable water bottles will run for $7, reusable grocery bags for $5 and metal straws for $3. I believe these are reasonable prices and since they are reusable they will last a long time. They will also have the universities logo on them so that is a way I can have college students promote for me. Of course, I will also have my company's logo on each product. If these three products are successful, I will create new products with college logos on them.

Venture Concept:
My idea of an organization on college campuses that will promote alternatives to plastic and sell them too with college logos on them addresses the opportunity of decreasing the use of plastic and increasing the use of alternatives to plastic. I believe customers will buy my product because it is priced reasonably and it is in an easily accessible location for my target audience. I believe customers would switch from plastic to my products because they are unique and they are eye-catching. I don't think it will be too hard to get them to switch after I tell them the negative effects of using plastic. Some people are uneducated about the negative effects on plastic on human health and our environment, that once they know, they will be interested in buying. I don't believe there are any competitors right now on campus. There are competitors who sell reusable water bottles and reusable grocery bags with college logos on them, but I have the advantage of selling on college campuses. If I do decide to expand outside of college campuses, then I will have more competition, but I will have more expertise in the market.

Regarding packaging, my products will be packaged in cardboard boxes in bulk. I will not individually package these products because I don't think there is a need. My products will be displayed at booths on all college campuses and will be sold to college students. If I see an opportunity to expand outside of college campuses, I will begin selling them to sports bars. I was recently at a sports bar and someone came in and sold reusable bottles with college logos on them and the customers were ecstatic and were buying them up. If I were to sell to sports bars, I would raise my prices to $10 for a reusable water bottle, $7 for reusable grocery bags, and metal straws I would keep the same at $3. My target audience would expand, and I would be able to raise my prices because I would be targeting older people with higher income and discretionary income to spend on nonessential things.

If I were to start this business, I would travel to different college campuses to promote my product. Then, I would start hiring and training people so that they could promote and sell my product for me. I would also need someone in charge of inventory and storage. Eventually, I would want to open up my own office and start a marketing and training program that would prepare people for success in the field. Employees would have the role of selling, marketing, and attending meetings.

Three Minor Elements:
1. My most important resource will be my expertise in sales. I have expertise in sales that will help me kickstart this company. I know how to sell to people successfully and I believe that is key in this business plan.
2. What's next for my venture is actually implementing my plan and getting in one of the college campuses to start my business. Once I do that, I want to start hiring and training.
3. In five years, I want to have my own office and have expanded to at least 20 college campuses. In 10 years, I want to have expanded to 50 college campuses. I want to be the CEO of my company and train other people to be successful like me.