Venture Concept No. 1

What is an opportunity?

An opportunity is an occasion or situation that makes it possible to do something that you want or have to do. Simply put it is the possibility to do something.

The opportunity that I chose to pursue are to those who have plants that need to be watered and often forget to water them (All ages). It can also be for those who need a place to put their phone if they lose their phone. I have both of these issues because I have terrible short term memory so I can forget things too easily.
My opportunity allows plants to grow so it will positively affect the natural environment while also easing the social environment by not losing phones or forgetting to water your cherished plant(s).
My marketed idea is for all ages and can be used pretty much anywhere. Even better if in humid environments.
My opportunity is not very large as it's a placeholder for phones and waters plants.
My window of opportunity will almost always be open as long as there are forgetful types of people living who also have plants and need a place for their phone.

What is innovation? 

Innovation is the creation or alteration of a method or from a new idea.

My product is rather incrementally innovative as I do take what is already been created but altering them in a way to incorporate more than one. It's like a swiss army knife but for your phone and indoor plant.

My product is a structure that will be able to hold your phone on the side as you charge it or use it as a placeholder. As your phone vibrates from a text, alarm, call, candy crush invite notification (you name it) the vibrations will travel through the thin metal casing and to a canister that contains water for a plant right below it. The vibrations will cause water to trickle down the dense filter below the canister to water your plant. After a certain set amount of water has past though the filter no more water will pass. If you forget to refill the canister with water there will be a small graham condenser that will take the humidity from the air and condense it into water inside the canister. his product will allow a place for your phone and as you place your phone there it will also water your plant.
As for cost, it hasn't been worked out yet but I would definitely make it less than 50$ an hour for teaching people how to play the piano. Let's say, 20-30$?

Possible problems? You ma not place your phone on this structure so your plant may not get any water if you do not tend to it yourself. I'll work out that kink but in the meantime it's sound.

Here a a few links to help describe the product some more: http://thisisnotawkward.blogspot.com/2016/03/elevator-pitch-no-3.html

http://thisisnotawkward.blogspot.com/2016/03/amazon-whisperer_27.html

Venture Concept

A startup business

Customers won't necessarily 'switch' to my new product but adopt it. Unless, of course, the customer already has a place to put their phone that they like or have some way to remember to water their plants personally whether it be an alarm or by word of mouth.
Th competitors of my product will be everyone who creates a platform to place phones or automatic machines that water their plants for them. One main competitor would be people who make sprinklers for outside plants but my product is more for indoor use rather than outdoor. Their weakness compared to my product will be that their platform for the phone will be jut for a phones while mine will have much more use of the phone than just a place to put it.
The role of my product in packaging, price, distribution won't really define my product (although I would try to make it as cheap as possible and not do it just for the money; reasonably) but the role in customer experience and support will be defining as m product will give a new experience to the customers and the support will be tailored for their product rather than trying to get them to buy my other products in the making.
So far, employee wise, it would just be me but I could have a few friends help me out in the trade to increase production. To organize the startup I would begin by trying to sell to friends of friends, y word of mouth, after I receive my general vendor's license.


Three minor elements

My most important resource? How the idea is put together itself. I would need to create it to know what would be even more important first hand.

What's next? I'm going to try and think of other ideas that include a G.R.E.E.N addition for the natural environment but also incorporates something social or fun.

This venture will help me decide if I'm the right ut for being an entrepreneur.

Amazon Whisperer

Revenue Drivers: My only revenue is the customers who buy my product and the donations I would receive for my business.

Next Product Offering/Description: What my product would offer next would be a water condenser which would take the humid water in the air (great for southern states) and put it into the container in case you forget to refill it. This would improve my product by letting forgetful people not have dying plants.

Amazon Product Similarity:     I found a Graham condenser separate from anything else on Amazon. I could make a smaller one and implement it inside the metal tubes of my plant design.

The link here: http://www.amazon.com/MHB-LB120-1000C-KIT-Graham-Conderser/dp/B005MSHFDU/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1459125664&sr=8-2&keywords=water+condenser#customerReviews

Customer Reviews: The reviews for this product are mostly positive. There are, overall, 23 reviews for this product and most of the 5 stars and the rest not dropping below 4. People enjoy the lowered cost on Amazon and that the product actually worked, even for people who don't work in labs so it'll be great to work with fo the average person.

Describe/Usability: As I said in the description of the new product, I would use the tubes inside the meal casing so the consumer would not see weird tubes and make the product look less appealing.

Good Addition?:  This will be a great addition because people, including me, often forget to refill things or simply watering my plant.

Week 11 Reading Reflection

You Need an Innovation Strategy

Week 11

1.  What surprised me was that they made four different quadrants of innovation called disruptive, routine, radical, and architectural innovation.  

2. What was confusing to me was that there are different systems of innovation. I thought innovation was just making something better for a better price or making something better for everyone's social life or maybe even the environmental life.

3. What is the best type of innovation to go buy, in general? I'm curious.

What other kind of troubles have you gone through including innovation?

4. I did not think the author was wrong about anything. 

My Unfair Advantage

My Resources: 

1. Open-Mindedness  -  Human Capital

2. Connections to family businesses  -  Social Capital

3. Engineering Knowledge  -  Human Capital

4. Plant Knowledge  -  Human Capital

5. Persistence  -  Human Capital

6. Leadership Skills  -  Human Capital

7. Nurtured/Planted several gardens  -  Human Capital

8. Appreciation of Beauty and Merit  -  Human Capital

9. Prudence  -  Human Capital

10. Ability to regulate time  -  Human Capital



VRIN

1. Open-Mindedness

Valuable?- Open to new ideas to help/fix/change my idea
Rare?- Not a lot of people willingly accept negative criticism
Inimitable?- Hard to copy as it is hard to change a personality trait
Non-Substitutable?-  I can be replaced

2. Connections to family business

Valuable?- I can ask about what I should do, where I should do it, and how I should do it
Rare?- Not all families have family business that they built up or run themselves
Inimitable?- I mean, sure, a family can create a business but it'll take time
Non-Substitutable?-  I could go to friend's families connections, I guess

3. Engineering Knowledge

Valuable?- I know how to build my idea and where to go with it for effectiveness
Rare?- I've had personal experience in building robots and vehicles. Rare to have early on
Inimitable?- Sure but it will take time and perseverance
Non-Substitutable?- Replacing me with someone else with this knowledge

4. Plant Knowledge

Valuable?- I know how specific plants work so I know what to use and how to use it
Rare?- I guess so? Not a lot of people care about plants enough to learn about them
Inimitable?- Not hard to copy. All you really need is google
Non-Substitutable?- Replacing me with someone else with this knowledge

5. Persistence

Valuable?- I'll continue to work on something no matter what is thrown at me. Usually
Rare?- A lot of people will stop something if one little thing goes wrong
Inimitable?- You'll need to make a habit of continuing your work without stopping
Non-Substitutable?- Being replaced

6. Leadership Skills

Valuable?- I'll know when to research and how to lead my project along
Rare?- It is rare to not be a sheep and lead yourself, yes
Inimitable?- It is easy to fake but hard to make a reality
Non-Substitutable?- There are more skilled, more confident leaders, yes

7. Nurtured/Planted several gardens

Valuable?- I have hands on experience to tending to plants and keeping them alive
Rare?- A green thumb can have it's rarity as a lot of people will forget to water, change soil, or plant it in the worst area for the type of plant
Inimitable?- Easily able to be copied but it'll take some sweat
Non-Substitutable?- Reading a google "How to do <insert something here>"  question

8. Appreciation of Beauty of Merit

Valuable?- I'll know when to recognize the good qualities of my venture and when to use in it
Rare?- It's pretty rare as people don't tend to just appreciate something but use it or effectiveness without realizing why it's special
Inimitable?- Easily to feel like your appreciating something but few now what appreciating something actually means to feel or recognize
Non-Substitutable?- Appreciation can vary between people so I am unique in this

9. Prudence

Valuable?- Cautiousness will prevent me from buying, using, or doing something just because it sounds or looks good so I'l be able to research to find it it's really the right fit for me
Rare?- It's rare because a lot of people don't second guess themselves and deal with the consequences later thinking it's no big deal
Inimitable?- Easily copyable
Non-Substitutable?- Instead of being personally prudent I could have something tell me when what I am doing or thinking of doing or what has already been done is ill-advised

10. Ability to regulate time

Valuable?- I'll be able to finish on or before my scheduled time to give customers what they would want at a reasonable time so they will come back
Rare?- Procrastination is a harsh habit to a lot of people
Inimitable?- Hard habit to get used to
Non-Substitutable?- Calendar. People are hired to regulate time for them


Top Resource:

     My experience in engineering is my most valuable resource. If I did not have this experience then creating my idea would be much harder and probably more expensive. With my experience I'll will actually be able to build the structure for my plant/phone product. It beats the others because my idea can go on easier with my engineering knowledge than the disappearance of my appreciation of beauty and merit.

Week 10 Reading Reflection

Entrepreneurship: Theory, Process, Practice

Chapter 11

1.  What was surprising to me was when one of the five tips for making sure that you are paid what is coming to you said that once you have provided a product or service, you are entitled to get paid. So even if the idea was not well done or the service was half fasted people are 'entitled' to get paid?

2. What confused me was that a commonly used technique for the preparation of a sales forecast was to estimate that sales will increase. The product might not get hat far a lot. 

3.  When would you consider kicking someone off of the team to save money? I'm curious.

When will you know if the customer is trying to stretch out their payments? Maybe they would not pay in time but barely so you won't notice it?

4.  There was nothing that I could find wrong with the writing. What can be controversial like disconnecting a relationship with the customer or discounts for early payment I find to accept easily.

Elevator Pitch No. 3

The Pitch: 

G.R.E.E.N.

(Green Research in Ecologically Enhancing Networks) 

 My idea is to create a company in which produces green products that can combine your everyday necessities with green concepts hence the name G.R.E.E.N. meaning Green Research in Ecologically Enhancing Networks.  We would use environmentally friendly resources that are both cheap and easily recyclable or biodegradable such as Aluminum for metal and biodegradable polymers for filters, packaging, you name it. For our first concept we would like to introduce the Potter Spotter (name in pending) which will make use of your phone and any type of plant you may have. The phone would be placed on an adjustable platform that would connect to an aluminum container with enclosed water and the plant placed right under it. Now instead of forgetting where you place your phone and having no place to put your phone when your studying or going to sleep you can place it on the Potter Spotter (name in pending). When your phone vibrates for whatever alarms you set, the vibrations will navigate through the aluminum bars and shake the canister full of water which will cause the water inside to drip through the biodegradable filter and water your plant. This is just a beginning design an will surely improve as will others green concepts.  

The container with the water will have a device that limits he water output to prevent the plant from drowning. I was also given the idea so that the phone can have a speaker on the device so it will have more uses and more people would consider using it.

~Need to know that your phone will not be close enough to the water so get wet and the water will not be touching the phone unless you put your phone directly where the plant should be. Which is on the consumer.

Here's the original design template:

Feedback reflection from last pitch:

Feedback that I was given from the last pitch was to talk slower, to not sound as choppy, and to explain more about the product. Ideas were also given such as a place to charge the phone or to play music. I also talked about how the phone would be safe from the water and the phone will not be harmed unless the consumer does the harm themselves. I also explained how the water would be prevented from being used too much by talking about a device in pending that would prevent a certain output of water.

What did you change, based on feedback?

I was able to talk slower and sound a little less choppy. I also explained how the phone would be safe and the simplicity of my product in the pitch and left the explaining in-depth on the blog so I wouldn't be making a 5 minute pitch.

A link to my previous pitch (very nice description of my pitch): http://thisisnotawkward.blogspot.com/2016/02/elevator-pitch-no-2.html#comment-form 

A link to my idea napkin to help explain the idea: http://thisisnotawkward.blogspot.com/2016/03/idea-napkin-no-2.html#comment-form

My Secret Sauce

1. Describe five ways in which you think you have human capital that is truly unique

     Five ways in which my human capital is truly unique is a tough one. I suppose that I or I am:

• Think outside the box
• Have more than one perspective
• Friendly (for the most part)
• Supportive of others ventures as in that I like to help others get ahead
• I'm very direct (Which can be both good and bad)

2. Interview the five people who know you the best

    Most of the people that I interviewed I already knew very well and another was one who I got to know later on after another interview

He hit one of  my points right on about thinking outside of the box. Very Creative. He as looking at his phone for most of the interview to partially be funny but that was kind of rude. :/

What shocked me with this interview that being an introvert was a positive unique personality of mine. I'm glad I'm an interesting an not a boring introvert too, I can cross that off of my list.

A key point is that I have a 'higher' viewpoint on things (was half a joke since I'm also very tall) which was slightly confusing but I think he means that I see things from more than one view as he said that I offer a different perspective. It's being reiterated that I am also innovative.

It's very noticeable that I am tall. What he said that the others kind of said that I provide him with joy and happiness which is great because I'll be living with this kind gentlemen for a few months.

https://soundcloud.com/sitiovita/friendly-interview-five 

The last interview is on soundcloud since he lives four hours away and wasn't on his computer at any reasonable time but on his phone. I'm unsure how to put it on here yet but I'll update this whenever I do for ease of access. What my friend Stephen says that spoke louder than everyone else was that I am "compassionate yet bold" which is very true and I do notice it as I o say that I am very direct and friendly.

3.  Reflect on the differences

The way that I see myself is very similar to the way others see me. I see myself as innovative, direct and friendly and so do they. There isn't much of a difference other than the way my friends see me I'm kinder  and more straightforward than I thought I was before. I do think that these interviews are fairly accurate. The only correction that I would make from my list would be adding compassion for other friends as that is not one of the characteristics that come to mind but it i definitely true.

Week 9 Reading Reflection

Entrepreneurship: Theory, Process, Practice

Chapter 10

1.  The biggest surprise in the reading for me was that many entrepreneurs don't do marketing research because of it's irrelevancy. Sure it may give the entrepreneur information that supported them already but they may come across some research that can help them out so they'll never know if it's irrelevant or not if they don't try. 

2. When the author talks about the five types of consumer behavior (innovators, early adopters, early majority, late majority, and laggards) he doesn't explain what each of those mean.

3.  Would you consider doing guerilla marketing before orthodox research? Why or why not? I'd like to know what you think would be most efficient during certain situations.

What if what the entrepreneur is trying to study is not producing patterns over time? What would you do in this situation? Change what you're looking for? I'm curious.

4. Throughout the reading I have found noting that the author was incorrect about, just that some parts were a little confusing because they were not clarified to the best of their ability.

Idea Napkin No. 2

Second Shot

You:  As I said before,  I'm a sophomore in college who has built working robots, solar-powered go-kart, volunteered for an agricultural business and various other places. I have a knack for finding a new way around something if the old or original way doesn't work out for me. As for aspirations, I'm still thinking about those. I see my product being useful in my life as I often don't have a place to put my phone when I sleep or sometimes don't know where it is plus I have terrible short term memory so I will forget to water my plant.

What are you offering to customers:  What I am now offering is a product that will make use of your small plants (for now) and to have a place to put your phone. You'll be able to place your phone on an adjustable metal tray so that when your phone vibrates from an alarm, notification, or text the vibrations from you phone will travel through the metal and shake the small canister of water to allow water to trickle down the dense polymer filter.

This product will provide a place to put your phone when you decide to sleep for the night so you won't lose it while also watering your plant. With this you'll have a spot for your phone while also growing a beautiful plant.
This blog post could help clarify if still unsure:


 http://thisisnotawkward.blogspot.com/2016/02/elevator-pitch-no-2.html

Who are you offering it to:  I'm offering this to every individual who may have trouble locating their phones, want a place to put their phone, forgets to water their plant from time to time, or maybe just want something that can look cool and be a conversation piece for your guests. 

Why do they care:  More and more people feel the need to be environmentally friendly or find something in their daily life that they can change to give back. With this "Potter Spotter" (name in pending) you will be able to grow that plant you never have time to tender while also having a reliable placeholder for your phone or other devices.

What are our core competencies: I'm putting together what you already may have to provide a convenience for you. Doesn't set me much apart but it's also not creating something entirely new like what a lot of people try to do. As others may have experience with this, I am inexperienced.


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     I do believe that this idea fits together and makes more sense than my previous napkin idea as I now provide an explanation of what my product is as well as a video. A weak point may include the overall use of something like this in this day and age.

With the feedback from my last idea napkin, the main issue was describing what my product actually was and not just he concept of it.
A few point I took from the feedback include:
1. Unclear product idea - I provided a blog post describing said product
2. Past experience - I restated my past experiences with engineering and technology
3. Overall usefulness of my idea - Described the products use, fundamentally
4. Passion - The blog post and drawn idea in the video
5. Presentation - Clearer or more direct