Week 8: Half-Way Reflection

1). Keeping up with assignments and working ahead when I know that I have a busy upcoming schedule have been the most important for me to succeed. We are all college students and by now we all know how to effectively budget time for work, so I would just say time management skills of keeping up with lectures and assignments. One skill I have developed further would definitely be stepping out of my comfort zone. By no means are many of these assignments typical weekly reading quizzes or assessments. I have learned to just go with the flow and know that even if I feel out of my element, I know that I am growing as a person by accomplishing everything thrown my way.

2). I am currently studying abroad, so I am taking this course in Rome, Italy. I believe it is much harder taking this class abroad because for starters, I don’t speak the same language as the people around me. I have wanted to give up on multiple occasions when assignments have required us to interact with our outside environment such as the customer interviews and free money exercises. It is hard enough going out and immersing yourself in a community you are comfortable with and live in, but for me, I can’t even walk into a café and have a conversation with a stranger because of the linguistic barrier. Another challenge to taking this class overseas is that I am always traveling. I only have class in person on Tuesday and Thursday morning, so I travel about 5 days a week, almost every week. Thankfully, we have the option to work ahead in this course, but feeling as if I am always on vacation, it is difficult to get work done and remember that I am a student first. I have definitely developed a tenacious attitude throughout these past few weeks. One thing that sticks out the most was staying up very late and going to a coffee shop with wifi in Milan just to turn in an assignment. I had to be persistent in knowing that I would find a way to make it work even with the jet lag and time difference. Being persistent and prioritizing have been extremely important.

3). My three tips would be be to 1: Work ahead! I know I mentioned this above as one of the ways I have succeeded in this course, but it is an invaluable tool that the assignments are open for us to complete at our own pace. Take advantage of that and never let yourself get behind. 2: Do the extra credit. Not many upper level courses offer extra credit, especially not an entire letter grade, so go ahead and complete the extra credit because you never know when an emergency or something might arise and you won’t be able to complete assignments. 3: Go with the flow. There will be a few assignments descriptions that you will read and not be thrilled about, but I promise it’s better than cramming for an exam. It could be much worse, so I promise stepping out of your comfort zone a few times won’t kill you.

Week 8: Reading Reflection (Chapter 8)

1). The most surprising thing to me was how easy the financing continuum broke down typical funding of start-ups for me. When I first read the title of the chapter, I sort of cringed because I don’t like finance and often have to study in-depth to really understand detailed concepts. By the first diagram, I actually understood the direction of the chapter and an overview of funding. It provided an outline from the beginning that laid a foundation for terms and concepts to follow.

2). There are many different terms in this chapter that are important to differentiate from one another. Although the book does a good job defining each one, I found myself having to go back and look many of them up again just because there are so many of them that they all ran together at certain points. It is just confusing to have all of these financial terms introduced at once because I found myself having to pause and look up the definition again which slowed down the reading.

3). My first question would be where he came up with the five myths about venture capitalists? Although I understand the larger purpose was to explain that that these are not the case, I was unfamiliar with the majority of the myths he had listed. I am by no means a finance expert, but I found it interesting that those were the five he decided to list when I would have never even thought of most of them. My second question would be how he determines the essential elements for a successful presentation to a venture capitalist? Many of them are common sense such as know the competition, be able to adapt, and have a unique product. My question would just be how he specifically assembled his list in particular and what made those factors be of extra importance than others.

4). There was nothing that I disagreed with in this chapter. This was one of the most detailed chapters in my opinion in terms of systematically explaining a new concept that many people are extremely unfamiliar with. Explaining finance and capital can be very complicated, but I thought the author did a good job going into just enough detail to make it thorough, yet understandable to someone potentially reading it in-depth for the first time.

Week 7: Reading Reflection (Rediscovering Market Segmentation)

1). The most surprising thing to me was addressing the importance of a product or service to reveal customer expectations about price sensitivity, brand loyalty, and social status. When examining expectations in this way, decisions can be ranked on a spectrum as they did to from usage behavior to core beliefs such as switching brands to deciding where to live.

2). The most confusing part to me was why certain demographic initiatives have failed. Although I understand that many of these work well in theory and that not all of this can be perfectly applied in the real world, extensive research has been done on the subject and three main areas have been identified. With these failures known, I would think it would be easier to learn from past mistakes and continuing research to continuously improve demographic initiatives.

3). My first question would be to explain in further detail the section differentiating segmentations to develop advertising and new products. I understand that there are some differences, but it seems that they are almost unrelated based on the charts and explanations, so I think further clarification would be helpful to someone new to the subject. My second question would be why there was a shift from demographic traits to nondemographic traits when developing marketing strategies? It goes into some sights research from a 1964 study, but it doesn’t go into detail as to why this shift occurred.

4). There is nothing that I disagree with from this article. He seems to back up all of his research and even provides additional readings at the end. By breaking the information down into informational subheadings and charts, he also does a good job of chunking the information so it is easy to grasp the concepts.

Week 7: Elevator Pitch No. 2

1). YouTube link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-k53ZebqzI

2). Almost all of my feedback seemed pretty similar. Everyone seemed to like my idea overall and the majority of comments said how unique it was. The thing that surprised me the most was how many people said how much they enjoyed my passion. Since I struggle with a dietary restriction myself, I do understand many of the everyday struggles, and I’m glad that the personal element translated in some way. No feedback was outright wrong in my opinion. All very positive and encouraging comments.

3). I changed my introduction/attention grabber to be more relatable. Everyone likes to eat, so I highlighted the importance of taste, somewhat healthy options, and price to make it more applicable to everyone. One person also commented to potentially add a fresh food or produce section which I really liked, so I incorporated that as well.

Week 6: Idea Napkin No. 1

1). As a marketing major, I definitely have a larger focus and the most experience with public relations, marketing, and advertising. I am also a communications minor and believe that people skills are at the top, if not the most important skill to have. I was diagnosed with Interstitial Cystitis recently and believe that struggling with a dietary restriction first hand makes me even more passionate about this business venture because I live with making these decisions every day.

2). My idea is an on campus grocery sore, similar to the POD, specializing in groceries in others foods specifically for those people with dietary restrictions. I believe there is an unmet need because there are not many options available for those with dietary restrictions.

3). My larger demographic is all college students because anyone would like an on campus grocery store with cheaper and healthier options. Specifically, my target segment of that larger population is those college students with dietary restrictions such as being gluten free, diabetic, vegetarian, or Kosher. For example, you may not know Oreos are vegan. These can be enjoyed by all college students, but specifically meet the need of many particular segments.

4). When your body cannot physically process certain foods, it is invaluable to have the right foods available. Many people who have these restrictions have to go with whatever fits their needs even though it is often not the most appetizing of choices. You may crave the chocolate cake, but if your body can’t process it, than you can’t eat it. This is unique because it would help provide more options to people who are used to such a limited selection.

5). This is an original business concept. This sets me apart because there is no grocery store that does this, let alone one on campus that provides such a selection. It is a new idea and with the introduction of so many new dietary trends, I think it is long overdue.

I think all of these elements fit together in one way or another. Although some are slightly stronger than others, I believe it is an invaluable concept to people with dietary restrictions. I obviously want to continue to improve upon the idea in any way possible, but I am very satisfied with it overall.

Week 6: Reading Reflection (The Five Forces that Shape Competitive Strategy)

1). The biggest surprise for me was the realization that a fast growing industry is not always a profitable one. As Porter points out, it is important to note the differences between growth and profitability, and it was something that I had never really separated the two qualities. Understanding these factors then become part of strategy to use as a toll to improve performance.

2). Nothing in particular was confusing, but I think the most challenging concept is trying to consider substitutes because it can vary from person to person and it is outside of the company’s control. Although they meet the same basic need, they aren’t always obvious rivals, so it can be difficult to anticipate.

3). My first question would be where a new business should begin when trying to incorporate the five strategies? It is obviously more complex and challenging, otherwise everyone would be successful, so how would someone who is new to the market begin utilizing these strategies. My second question would be which of the five, if any, would he consider to be the most important? Often it is hard to please everyone or compete at the highest level in each of the categories, so is there one area in particular that a business should focus on?

4). There was nothing that I disagreed with. I thought the author did a good job backing up his theories and explanations. Each of the five forces is closely linked, and it is apparent that he did extensive research on the subject.