30A - Final Reflection

 What sticks out to you as the most formative experience? 

The most formative experience for me was when I had to make a list of bugs. It made me realize that their are little bugs in  our daily lives. Some of these bugs are leads to great ideas and can potentially start a business. 

The experience that you'll remember years later?

I will always remember reading about Phil Knight , the creator of Nike. It is one of the best books I have read and was very insightful. I was able to relate to him in many ways. I liked learning about the life of a successful entrepreneur. Reading the book I was able to see his early failure and struggles. The booked had many examples of adversity and working around obstacles.   

 What was your most joyous experience? 

My most joyous experience would be networking with people who are more advanced in my field of business. I learned a lot in these conversations and formed great relationships. It was good to form relationships with people have a good understanding of the industry I want to get involved in. Knowledge is everywhere and it is not expensive to get, It just takes reaching out and getting to know people. 

What experience are you most proud of yourself for accomplishing?

I am most proud of meeting potential clients. Pitching my idea to a business owner and getting interest is a great feeling. I now understand the love for entrepreneurship and why people find it satisfying.  

3) At the beginning of the semester, I mentioned that I wanted each of you to develop an entrepreneurial mindset. Now, at the end, do you see yourself as an entrepreneur? Do you think you have moved closer to developing an entrepreneurial mindset?

I see myself as an entrepreneur. This class allowed me to see how setting goals and reaching them is a great feeling. I was always optimistic about entrepreneurship because I was worried about making money. I learned that money is not the priority for entrepreneurship, it is just a bonus sometimes. Doing something you love is a lot more rewarding than a generic job.  

4) What is the one recommendation you would make to the students who are going to journey down this path in the future? What would you recommend they do to perform best in this course? What would you recommend they do to foster that mindset?

Making connections is key. Having communication skills will get you far in this journey. Also be okay with failing and learn from your mistakes. Not everything is going to go as planned. As an entrepreneur your mind should be ready to adjust and always look at new perspectives. Do not take feedback as an attack on you but as suggestions that will better your ideas for the future.

29A - Venture Concept NO.2

Opportunity

• Social media marketing to small businesses 
• Local Restaurants
• Local Farms
• Small insurance companies

Having a good product is important, but will not sell your audience. Businesses need to maintain strong relationships and convey their message with customers to survive. Marketing assists firms to sell their product and convey their message to customers. I understand the importance of companies having brand awareness and how if a business markets itself well it will portray itself as more credible. 

Many small businesses or start up companies have a good product. However, they do not know how to market their product or service well. I have seen great ideas and businesses fail to succeed and meet expectations all because of bad marketing. It is difficult for small businesses to market themselves, it takes a lot of time. The market is always changing and peoples preferences are never the same. Running a business and keeping up with marketing trends is to much work for a small business.

Marketing business' on social media is a new trend that has gained a lot of success. While, it does help businesses succeed not all companies know how to use it or at least use it professionally. Millions of people are on social media today. Being able to engage with customers on platforms that have millions of people is a great opportunity.

Social media marketing is relatively new and is always changing with new trends. The opportunity to market for small business' is a big opportunity and will last for a good amount of time I believe. My customers may be on social media platforms but are not using it to their best benefit.

Running ads on social media platforms can be costly and if not used right is like throwing money away. Businesses such as Facebook do not care if your ad does well or not. They just want your money.

Innovation 

• Creating and Curating Social Media Post 
• Selling Social Media Weekly Plan to Small Businesses
• Cost friendly ads

Small business' that I see to have great opportunity on social media are restaurants. My service would have a local restaurant plan. Food is visual and Instagram is a great social platform for customers to visualize your product. I would set up a daily Instagram post for restaurants. An Instagram plan for a restaurant or related business cost $35 a week. This come out to be $5 a post. I would also use Facebook and possibly Twitter depending on the circumstances. Facebook is a great way to promote an event taking place or a special deal a restaurant is having. It is also a good place to tell a story. Facebook post also bring traffic to the restaurants website where customers will be to engage even more with your product. These Facebook post will cost $8 per post. 

As a food and resource economics major I would also market for small farms. Small farms are very important but are over looked. For local farms I will communicate to customers on how they can purchase products that are produced my local farms. Shoppers today may not know how to buy food that is local. On social media I will be able to better communicate what products are local. I can also point out why people should maybe buy local rather than big over produced food companies a farms. I will talk about things such as health and prices. Marketing on social media will allow people to know what they are putting in their body. 

Venture Concept. 

• Better Communication
• Customer Engagement
• Allowing a better understanding of the target market
• Competing with bigger marketing corporations 
• Having a personal B2B partnership 
• lowering marketing expenses 

Businesses will buy my product so that that they will be able to better communicate with their customers and have a better understanding of who their target market is. Many small businesses go out and close because they spend to much money on advertisements that do not work. My marketing business will not lose money for companies but allow them to gain more. 

Investing in my service will also give businesses more time to spend on things they are good at. For example, if you are good at making pizza you should be focusing on making pizza and posting an social media. Not knowing how to use social media properly can actually hurt your business and can potentially convey the wrong message. People who want the right message to be out will buy my service. 

It will not be hard for me to get people to switch. In my interviews I have received great feedback. It is a service that people are interested in and need. The only concern some have is price. I will have to prove that their money spent in me will actually grow their revenue.
My business will have close relationships with the businesses we are working with and get to know the owners on a personal level. My company will have a few employees in the being. To start off I have a photographer, editor and a market planner.
There will be competition but it is not impossible to enter the market. Big marketing agencies do not work with more local companies. Instead they work with other big corporations. Also, I will be competing with companies who might have a marketing employee. My service will be cheaper than having a full time employee.
My goal is to make a business money not lose money. Ads should be spent to make money. I will make sure a business invest the right amount of money in marketing. My business will be cost effective and have good short and long term effects. Spending to much money in advertisements is a major reason why firms do not survive. My service will be more organic and get customers to engage more with the business.
The Tree Minor elements

• Unfair advantage is the experience of working social media internships. I also have good connections with people in the restaurant business and agriculture. 
• Next is not just B2B but B2C
• I expect myself to have more business knowledge in the next 5 years. I will have stronger business connections and have a a better understanding of how the market works

2.) Summary of  feedback: My structure was good and well organized. Cost is very important. Customers want to know what a product or service is going to cost. Social media has a lot of assumptions and some people do not know the business side of it.

3.) What I did: I made sure I highlighted the cost more. In my venture concept I made it more clear that my business was going to be more cost effective than other media businesses. Running ads on social media can be expensive. I explained how there are cheap ways to market that are more organic  and effective.   

28A - Exit Strategy

1.) I intend to stay with the business for several decades and then retire. However, I am not opposed to starting other businesses.

2.) I am choosing this path because I love marketing and creating content. I don't think I will get board with my job because my field is always growing and developing. While I will be owning the same business I will constantly have to be changing and molding the business around the market and how consumers behave. Since my business is a marketing service and not an actual physical product I do not have to worry about a big company buying me out. I eventually see myself retiring and giving away the business to whoever wants it and has the same passion as me. If it turns out to be a younger generation in my family than I would not have a problem extending it.

3.) Knowing that I want to stay with this concept for a long period of time has gotten me to understand how to see short term and long terms  goal. My long terms goals will be just as important as my short term. My long term goals will be more subjected to change because I can not predict everything, but having an understanding an trying stay on top of things will be important for the success of this concept. I know I should stay up to date on technology changes and trends. Marketing on social platforms now might be popular but 5 years from now my company might have to adapt and learn new business strategies.

27A - Reading Reflection 3

I read the book Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future by Ashlee Vance

What surprised you the most: I was most surprised by his childhood. He had a difficult family life in South Africa and was bullied a lot in school. He had a hard social life life as kid and resorted to his early learning by being self taught.

What did you most admire: Elon Musk work effort impressed me the most. He is an extremely hard worker and is very dedicated to his work. He is working on two big projects, SpaceX and Tesla, and is constantly flying back and fourth to work on them. I also admire his entrepreneurship mind that started at such a young age. He had big ideas and did not let his dreams go away. He always had an interest about renewable energy and colonizing planets. 

What about the entrepreneur  did you least admire: Elon is so focused and determined on his business goals and dreams that he doesn't leave himself any free time. He also expects this type of work ethic on his employees and can be seen as inconsiderate.

Did the entrepreneur encounter adversity and failure? If so, what did they do about it?: When Elon was fresh out of college he had many failures but his failure helped him grow. He was into physics and the internet. He got into the internet when it was brand new and many businesses saw it as a fad. In the beginning Elons websites would crash. He eventually grew his companies and sold them to make millions. with his money he started spaceX. With spaceX he has had many failures. His goals for SpaceX are very ambitious and has launch dates scheduled that have never happened.

 What competencies did you notice that the entrepreneur exhibited?: Elon rarely took no for an answer. He is good at looking way into the future and seeing what is good and necessary for humanity. When he started making electric cars people thought it was a waste of time. Now scientist are coming out warning people about climate change. Elon is also heavily involved with solar energy.

 Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing to you. I find SpaceX to be the most confusing. Some of his ideas are way out there and almost seem like a crazy person is coming up with them. However Elon is extremely successful and worth billions.

If you were able to ask two questions to the entrepreneur, what would you ask? Why? I would ask him how much of success came from luck. I would ask this because there are many people who are ambitious and have crazy dreams but they never come true. I want to know if he has something different in him, than just ambition or if luck had something to do with his success. I would also ask him,  if you ended up living in South Africa longer would you be where you are today, or is living in America a significant factor.


What is hard work: Elon and I have some disagreements on hard work. I believe in hard work but I also think their should be some time for leisure. Elon has a very hard work ethic and it has made him billions. However, it might effect his social and family life. He has been divorced twice and their are numerous complaints from employees about him. I do like how his work comes from ambition and passion. He would say to work hard on things you love to do. I agree that if I do not enjoy something I should not waste my time working hard on it.  

26A - Celebrating Failure

About A Time I failed this past semester

This semester I am taking quantitative methods. This class has lots of work and can be easy to get behind. There are 4 exams for the class and the first one was meant to be the easiest. However I received an 88. This worried me because I knew that future exams were going to be a lot more difficult.

What I learned 

I learned I should not assume things are easy and see everything I do as important. Part of taking exams is mental. There is a difference of being confidence and having ignorance. I also realized that I need to take more advantage of professor office hours and TA office hours. I found time in my schedule to meet up with my TA weekly and go over problems. Going to the TA helped me a lot and I was retaining information much better. I was a lot more prepared for the second exam and surprised myself with a 100.

What I think about Failure

Failing can be embarrassing and sometimes hard to overcome. In school and by peers it is common to hear "you learn from failing". While, I agree you can learn from failing I would much rather to get it right first. Through my experience of failing I have learned many things and have grown a lot. Realizing successful people have failed many times gives me more hope. The caveat to failing is that their has to be effort and hard work in failure. If I failed because of laziness then I am probably not learning anything. But as long as I have a goal and living a driven life, failing is okay! The most important thing I have gotten out of this class is to take risks. I will never know if something works, such as a business, unless I take a risk. I understand failure comes along with risk but have learned it is nothing I can not overcome. 

25A - What's Next

Existing Market

Interview #1

I talked to the owner of the Columbia Restaurant in Tampa, Florida. We talked about the importance of social media for local restaurants. I then told him my idea of a social media marketing business for local businesses. He liked the idea and gave me some more insight of what would help restaurants. He said online reviews are very important. People like to go on Google reviews a Yelp when finding a place to eat. He said online reviews can really hurt a business if they are negative. He explained having someone respond to negative reviews in a professional manner would benefit a lot. I asked him what do you think customers might want next. He responded by saying by businesses getting more personal. Mr. Gonzmart said that social media platforms are growing and making things more personal. This will allow places like a restaurant to show customers a more personal side. 

Interview #2

For this interview I talked to my uncle who owns a sports bar in Tampa called Ducky's. He started this sports bar with the MLB player Evan Longoria. He told me social media is growing he has been seeing the role it plays. He told me that people love following celebrities or athletes like Evan Longoria on social platforms. He told me it would be a good idea to contact people outside the business but who are related to it to post about it. He said focusing on contacting micro influences or people with a sustained social media presence can help grow the business more organically than in your face ads. He sees advertising and marketing in the future to be more subtle.


Interview #3

Through my internship I was able to get in contact with a manager at Cigar City, a craft beer brewery in Tampa. I told him my idea and asked what else should we be doing. He said really understanding the business you are working with. Doing research, reading about the product and understanding the customers in great detail. He also said that competition is going to grow because of social media. I have to make sure I stand out and the post do not blend in with everyone else.

What I think is next:  I believe social media is going to be a lot different then what it is now. It is going to be business catered eventually. So getting brand out as soon as possible is important now, because it a business waits to long it could get buried. Social media is going to make marketing more subtle than ever before. Ads will not look like ads we see today. They will blend in like a normal post. Getting people to talk about your brand and bringing awareness to your products with out directly posting it from the official business account could escalate engagements.


New Market

  my new market would be marketing for direct consumers and not limited to B2B. I could help build personal brands for people. Personal brand is more important than ever. Jeff Bezos the founder of Amazon says your brand is what people say about you when you are not around. My business will assist people to make their online personal brand visually appealing.


Interview #2

I talked to a senior at UF who is about to graduate. He told me that when looking for jobs, in some of his interviews they ask for social media accounts. Having a business assisting him in creating  professional social accounts that highlight a personal brand would help. To be successful in this market he said time would be key. In the digital area things may seem fast pace. However, slowing things time and making sure quality is the number one priority would be best.


Interview #2

For this interview I talked to a PR major. He suggested that having a personal website and domain would help express his personal brand. He said he likes the idea of personal brand and thinks it is important for his personal and career life. For success in this market he said he would like if a business such as mine would gear towards his future goals.


Reflection: I was not surprised to see how building a personal brand is important. However, I was surprised to see it have a significant role in getting a job. It use to be employers would just want to see a resume but not a resume is not simply enough to showcase yourself. Having a personal brand takes a lot of work but it is sometimes hard to show. Using social media platforms professionally or building a personal website will really help showcase a persons personal brand.
I think this market is attractive and is similar to my first market in someways. There are differences but the main goal is the same. A business has a brand they are trying to sell and a individual person is trying to brand themselves.   

24A - Venture Concept NO. 1

Opportunity

• Social media marketing to small businesses 
• Local Restaurants
• Local Farms
• Small insurance companies

Having a good product is important, but will not sell your audience. Businesses need to maintain strong relationships and convey their message with customers to survive. Marketing assists firms to sell their product and convey their message to customers. I understand the importance of companies having brand awareness and how if a business markets itself well it will portray itself as more credible. 

Many small businesses or start up companies have a good product. However, they do not know how to market their product or service well. I have seen great ideas and businesses fail to succeed and meet expectations all because of bad marketing. It is difficult for small businesses to market themselves, it takes a lot of time. The market is always changing and peoples preferences are never the same. Running a business and keeping up with marketing trends is to much work for a small business.

Marketing business' on social media is a new trend that has gained a lot of success. While, it does help businesses succeed not all companies know how to use it or at least use it professionally. Millions of people are on social media today. Being able to engage with customers on platforms that have millions of people is a great opportunity.

Social media marketing is relatively new and is always changing with new trends. The opportunity to market for small business' is a big opportunity and will last for a good amount of time I believe. My customers may be on social media platforms but are not using it to their best benefit.

Innovation 

• Creating and Curating Social Media Post 
• Selling Social Media Weekly Plan to Small Businesses

Small business' that I see to have great opportunity on social media are restaurants. My service would have a local restaurant plan. Food is visual and Instagram is a great social platform for customers to visualize your product. I would set up a daily Instagram post for restaurants. An Instagram plan for a restaurant or related business cost $35 a week. This come out to be $5 a post. I would also use Facebook and possibly Twitter depending on the circumstances. Facebook is a great way to promote an event taking place or a special deal a restaurant is having. It is also a good place to tell a story. Facebook post also bring traffic to the restaurants website where customers will be to engage even more with your product. These Facebook post will cost $8 per post. 

As a food and resource economics major I would also market for small farms. Small farms are very important but are over looked. For local farms I will communicate to customers on how they can purchase products that are produced my local farms. Shoppers today may not know how to buy food that is local. On social media I will be able to better communicate what products are local. I can also point out why people should maybe buy local rather than big over produced food companies a farms. I will talk about things such as health and prices. Marketing on social media will allow people to know what they are putting in their body. 

Venture Concept. 

• Better Communication
• Customer Engagement
• Allowing a better understanding of the target market
• Competing with bigger marketing corporations 
• Having a personal B2B partnership 

Businesses will buy my product so that that they will be able to better communicate with their customers and have a better understanding of who their target market is. Many small businesses go out and close because they spend to much money on advertisements that do not work. My marketing business will not lose money for companies but allow them to gain more. 

Investing in my service will also give businesses more time to spend on things they are good at. For example, if you are good at making pizza you should be focusing on making pizza and posting an social media. Not knowing how to use social media properly can actually hurt your business and can potentially convey the wrong message. People who want the right message to be out will buy my service. 

It will not be hard for me to get people to switch. In my interviews I have received great feedback. It is a service that people are interested in and need. The only concern some have is price. I will have to prove that their money spent in me will actually grow their revenue.
My business will have close relationships with the businesses we are working with and get to know the owners on a personal level. My company will have a few employees in the being. To start off I have a photographer, editor and a market planner.
There will be competition but it is not impossible to enter the market. Big marketing agencies do not work with more local companies. Instead they work with other big corporations. Also, I will be competing with companies who might have a marketing employee. My service will be cheaper than having a full time employee.

The Tree Minor elements

• Unfair advantage is the experience of working social media internships
• Next is not just B2B but B2C
• I expect myself to have more business knowledge in the next 5 years. I will have stronger business connections and have a a better understanding of how the market works

  

    

23A - Your Venture's Unfair Advantage

1.) Marketing Experience: I have worked several marketing internships where I have been able to put my skills into the real world.

• V - This is valuable because my business is revolved around marketing
• R - This is not rare. Many college students get internships
• I - Internships are not all the same and people do have different experiences 
• N - There are other ways to get marketing experience such as upper division school or an MBA

2.) Uniqueness of Venture is working with smaller businesses

• V - This is valuable because I can benefit local communities 
• R - Many well established marketing businesses focus on big corporate marketing campaigns 
• I - This is an idea that can be copied 
• N - There are other ways to help smaller businesses grow but i believe marketing is in the core of business growth

3.) Social Media Experience and expertise: I have professional certifications in running social media data and content production platforms. I have also run businesses social media accounts

• V - This is valuable because being able to get a message across social media platforms is important because there are millions of people on social platforms. 
• R - Being on social media is not rare but being able to use it professionally and well is more rare
• I - This can be inimitable in the future because technology is always changing  
• N - It is hard to substitute communication  

4.) Relationships with small business owners: I have come in contact with my small business' and they help me with my ideas and encourage me.

• V - Having strong connections is extremely valuable 
• R - connections are not rare but good strong connections can be difficult, and once you get one you should do your best to keep it. 
• I - These relationships can not be inimitable 
• N - There are other small business owners I can find to give me good advice

5.) Good Contacts with social media experts: For example I am good friends with the Alligators social media engagement manager.

• V - these contacts are valuable to have because they relate to my life paths 
• R - Finding people with can be somewhat rare but everyone can find people who they can relate with.
• I - It can be inimitable but can be difficult 
• N - Other people who have a better understanding of social media 

6.) More people are joining social platforms: This includes the older populations. Older people have been known to not use social media as much as the younger generation. However this gap is changing

• V - this is very valuable 
• R - This is a different time in history where age groups are becoming more in contact with each other and not as distant 
• I - this is not that inimitable 
• N - Their can be other ways to connect people but not in such a large scale

7.) Organization Involvement: involved with American Marketing Association and Food and Resource economics

• V - this is valuable and gives me an opportunity to  network and work on marketing projects
• R - There are a variety of organizations in college that have networking in college. Outside of college this might be more rare 
• I - this is inimitable 
• N -Variety of clubs that give good opportunity. Not every organization is the same and allows different opportunities and networks

8.) Social Capital: My cousin is a media lawyer.

• V - this is a good connection to have
• R - Lawyers can be found anywhere
• I - The law is strict and does not really changed
• N - I can always find myself a lawyer but not one that gives me free lawyer knowledge 

9.) Access to high technology devices and equipment

• V - it is crucial for a marking business to have good equipment 
• R - expensive sometimes but is not hard to find
• I - technology is always being copied and getting improvements 
• N - Variety of styles and preferences in the technology department  

10.) Relationship with a radio station and podcast

• V - third part business connections are beneficial 
• R - not rare. Businesses always collaborate 
• I - this in not really imitable 
• N - Not all businesses can help me out in the same way

My social media experience is the most important to my venture. This is because my company would be involved around social media marketing. Without a background in social media in my idea would not work. 

22A - Elevator Pitch 3

1.) https://youtu.be/dNZzXd9llo4


2.) My last elevator pitch was different from my first one. This one I was able to improve on. I realized that I did not talk about price or exactly what I was selling.

3.) This pitch I decided to list the price and what I was directly selling. I also did not have a lot of emotion last pitch. It is hard to talk like you are talking to someone when there is not a direct person in front of you. I also recorded in better lighting this time.

21A - Reading Reflection NO. 2

I read the book, The Art of Social Media: Power Tips for Power Users, by Guy Kawasaki

1.) The general theme of this book is explaining how a business can utilize social media. Social media has more than a billion users world wide. Understanding how to reach these users can be beneficial for a firm. The book points out that while there is many social media users many business' do not no how to reach the users or their target market on these platforms.

2.) This book teaches similar issues and ways of thinking of what is being taught in ENT3003. For example, in class we learned that the best elevator pitch should be 90 seconds or less. In this book it says the best post should have few words to get the message across. Get to the point right away. The book say keep written content under 1000 words. Kawasaki says it is best to make social media content visual an engaging. He also says the title of a post is crucial and one of the most important things. This is similar to what we are learning about elevator pitches. If you do not hook the people about the product or service in the beginning you most likely lost the customer.

3.) Kawasaki says a business should post content that their audience would post and share. The post has to be have purpose and really understand the audience. My exercise for this class would be to find your audience related to your business idea through  interviews, and find out how the navigate on social media. Find out information such as what platforms they use the most and at what times. What do they like and what do they not like. If a business does not no its audience then its post will just be blown by.

4.) The best thing I learned from this book is that businesses do not just need to focus on creating content. They need to focus on content creation. Content curation is just as important and sometimes more important than content creation.   

20a - Growing Your Social Capital

Part 1

1.) Christina Morales. Engagement management editing at the Independent Alligator. Has been at the Alligator for four semesters.

2.) Domain expert

3.) I have a friend who is a Public Relations major at the University of Florida. He connected me to Christina Morales.

4.) Taught me how to use Hootsuite, a social media scheduling platform. I was able to get a free course in the platform and receive a marketing certification.

5.)   Christina Morales can connect me to communication industry professionals that she networks with. She can also give me access to resources to resource she has used to enhance her ability in social media. Provide free lessons on topics. 


Part 2

1.) Zhifeng Gao. He is a graduate professor. His specialty is in marketing and consumer behavior. 

2.) Market Expert

3.) I am a food and resource economics major and my adviser suggested me to schedule a meeting with him.

4.) He showed me the best way to calculate data and how he researches consumer behavior. He is an expert in consumer behavior and really knows how to point out peoples preferences. 

5.) Zhifeng can help me come up with case studies so I can better understand my customers and the people I am selling to.


Part 3 

1.) Charlie Rickie. Workers for a radio station in Gainesville and specializes in advertisement. Charlie broadcasts many Gainesville companies on the air 

2.) Supplier

3.)  I found this person through the internship I currently have. I have worked with him in the past when I want him to run an add for the business I am working for.

4.) I pitched to him my idea and explained to him how I want to help market for smaller businesses. 

5.) Charles can help connect me to smaller businesses in the Gainesville area that he already has connections with. I in return can help him by helping smaller businesses run adds on the radio. 


Reflection: Networking and keeping connections is important in the business world. Running ideas off others benefits both parties. I personally learn a lot by learning through other people's experience. This networking was different from what I have experienced in the past. Most of my previous business communication was to get a job not start a business. 

19a - Idea Napkin 2

You: My name is Tyler Pratt. I am a junior at the University of Florida majoring in Food and Resource Economics with a specialization in marketing and management. I am also pursuing a minor in Business Administration. I have a talent with marketing. I am currently involved with the American Marketing Association. Last semester with AMA, I worked on a marketing project with Yin and Yang Apparel, a startup street wear and music festival clothing company. This semester I have a marketing internship with a local craft beer store and restaurant. I am running all the social media platforms and helping raise awareness of the company. I believe with my skills in marketing and promoting business's on social media will help me launch my B2B small business digital marketing company. My business would introduce me to many different people and cultures.

What are you offering and who I am offering it to:  I am offering a digital marketing service for small businesses. I understand the importance of social media and how it helps the brand of many businesses. Small businesses do not have the time to schedule online campaigns. I am offering a service for small and local businesses to expand or improve their marketing. When their businesses succeeds my business succeeds. I will be giving local businesses my marketing skills. The firms product and message will be received by the consumers in the best way possible.

Why I care: I believe small and local businesses play an important role in the community. They are also vital to the economy. As an economics major I would argue small businesses and competition is a lot better than having only a few big corporations taking over the market. Big corporations have money to spend on big marketing campaigns that small businesses do not have. Running a good campaign does not take millions to make and I will assist smaller businesses in making good quality and affordable campaigns.

Core Competencies: Their are many digital marketing business out their today. However, this one is different because it will focus on the local community and be a lot more personable. Digital marketing businesses today will be located in LA but helping businesses in Scranton. I will make sure to really understand the community I am selling to.

Summary:  The five elements do fit together. My business concept is  related to my major, club and internship. I believe I have learned key concepts and tools to help grow a business. Being able to know what I am offering and who it is for is important. I can be offering something that is really good. However, if I am not offering it to the right person it is bound to fail. I do not have experience with how running a B2B, which would be my week point. I need to know how to finance and budget.

Feedback: I changed my original business idea. From the feedback I saw how I had the marketing skills to start a business and know how to use social media well. I also discovered that the printing app would help need that many college students struggle with. While I saw some potential in the printing app I was not confident and do not much knowledge about apps from a business perspective.

       

17a- Elevator Pitch NO. 2

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=80_QLyVDLj8&feature=youtu.be

2.) Reflection: My first elevator pitch I had a good idea but not a business around it. I changed my idea to something different from what I originally had. People found my idea as a problem that could be fixed. I just didn't know how it could make money or how to best sell it.

3.) I changed my idea to social media marketing which is a problem many small businesses had. I had a direct customer this time and knew who to talk to and sell.

18a - Create A Customer Avatar

My customer Avatar is a 48-year-old man who lives in Chicago, Illinois, a city that has many small businesses. He has two kids and a wife, who is an accountant for a big firm in Chicago   His oldest son goes to an all-boys Jesuit high school and younger son goes to a public middle school. The family owns two economy cars. One is a white 2015 Toyota Camry and the other 2014 Hyundai Santa Fe. The cars are shared between the family members who commute to work usually by Chicago public transportation.

He has two best friends that he met when he was a child. In his free time, he loves to watch sports. His favorite sports team is the Chicago Cubs. He also loves old movies and his two favorite movies are Rocky and Taxi Driver. He likes some modern television and movies but mainly sticks to stuff that he grew up with. Keeping up with new technology is not his strength and barely uses social media.  

For the most part he is busy with work but on occasion he finds time for vacation. He has been out of the country two times in his life.

What I have in common: I really love traveling and checking out old classic MLB stadiums. This past summer I went to Boston and watched a game in Fenway Park. In the future I plan on going to Chicago and watching a baseball game in Wrigley Field. I also keep in touch with a few of my friends who I grew up with as a young child. I think we both share an interest in living in big cities. The reason for this is because big cities have many job opportunities and growth.

16a - What's your secret sauce

Five things that make me different

1.)    I am deliberative and careful in what I do

2.)    I am learner and thrive off learning new things

3.)    I am disciplined and am always listening to others

4.)    I have believe and will not quite on my projects and people I care about

5.)    I am responsible and take everything I do serious

Christina – Tyler is funny and has funny jokes and likes to cook. He cooks very well. The most unique thing is that he is very nice and cares about everybody and not just himself.

Dad – The thing that makes Tyler different is that he doesn’t let things bother him. He like new things and is always taking new approaches in life. He is very bold.

Mom – What makes you stand out of people your age is that you do not expect things to come easy. You have a great work ethic. You do not give up even when things are hard.

Jake -  Great vision, good guy, and funny. Expects the best out of everyone.

William – Tyler is an amazing cook. Responsible and trust worthy. He will get the job done every time.

Link to recordings - https://soundcloud.com/tyler-russell-pratt

Reflection – I was not to surprised by the responses. I consider myself to be a hard worker and disciplined person. I do not see myself as that funny but the people who I am closest to do. I thought it was funny how many of them said they loved my cooking. Cooking is one of my favorite hobbies. I do not like to be boastful but I can agree that I am an excellent chef.

15a - Figure Out Buyer Behavior NO. 2

I have changed by business idea completely. I have found and discovered a new opportunity. Social media marketing for small businesses that do not have an active on social media.

First interview was with an employee at ReQuest Physical Therapy

This small business does have employees who post on social media accounts such as Facebook and Instagram. However, they do not have a person who focuses on their media accounts. The manager of ReQuest Physical Therapy would really like for someone to run their social accounts but it is not a full-time job and the big media companies charge to much. This business has hired third party businesses or people to help them out such a photographer. However, the photographer is not invested heavily in the ReQuest Therapy so could careless on the company’s performance. This owner likes investing in people who are invested in him also. He says it has to work both ways. Effort goes along way.

Second Interview was with the owner of Flacos

This is a small local Cuban restaurant is located in downtown Gainesville. The owner likes to use social media to post about her pastries she has made so customers should come in. She would spend money on a marketing campaign or a business to run her social accounts at a reasonable price. She has realized that being active on social media has helped bring awareness to the restaurant. Paying for advertisements for a small business especially for a restaurant can be challenging according to her. When she works with another business, B2B, loyalty and honesty is the number one thing she looks for. She needs to trust the other person and business.

Third Interview was with the owner Crafty Bastards Restaurant

I got the most information out of this interview. The owner of this restaurant really understands the importance of social media and advertisement. She works with other businesses to help her grow all the time. She has noticed that some of the businesses she hires for advertisement do not keep up with technology. She likes working with people who are strongly motivated and responsible. When she sees strong social media engagement, she see more growth in the business. She wants to invest more time in it but doesn’t have the time as a small business owner. She thinks she would benefit if someone showed here data explaining trends of what is working and not working in marketing.  

Conclusion: Small businesses are conservative on spending money on other businesses. However, they do need the help. Small businesses see the importance of social media. They believe a strong social media presence helps their business grow.

14a- Halfway Reflection

1.) What are the behaviors that you have used (or developed) to keep up with the requirements of this course?

I am taking 15 credits this semester plus an internship. Time managment is key for me. ENT3003 has a lot of work but it is duable. I expect about two maybe three assignemnts a week for this class. You will have assignemmnts that require interviews. For those assignemnts I reccomend doing them early. Finding people to interview can be a challenge because the professor does not want them to be people you know. I space out my lectures for this class to prepare me for the cupcake. If you take notes during the lecture you should get the points for the cupcake. This classes pushes you to think and be innovated, so that you be able to see business opportunities. 

2.) alk about a moment or two when you felt like "giving up." What pulled you through? Do you feel like you've developed a tenacious attitude during the past two months? What experience or experiences most contributed to this?

Some assignments are more work than others for this class. I am taking a lot of credits this semester and when I see ENT3003 assignments that are more in depth and require more time, I sometimes feel like skipping it. However, I have come to figure out that the assignments grow on each other. Giving up on one and skipping it would not be benificial. Maybe I would still get the A but at the end of the day what matters is if you learned something. ENT3003 is not about getting an A.

3.) What are three tips you would offer next semester's student about (1) fostering the skills that support tenacity and (2) developing the 'tenacious mindset' ?

Don't settle. When it looks like you are doing good, always tell yourself you can do better. Get inolved at UF and get out of the comfort zone. The more you do the more you grow. Opportunities come when you put yourslef out there. Find balance while in college. School work can get heavy sometimes, try to find things to do other than academics. Go to the gym or read a book in something you are interested in. 

13a- Reading Reflection #1

1.)    I read Shoe Dog. A memoir by Phil Knight the founder of Nike.

What surprised you the most? The shoe business was so much different back then. Shoe Dog takes place from the early 1960’s the 1980. Today shoes are highly engineered and are designed for very specific wear. Shoe prices were also a lot different and more expensive today. When Phil Knight first started his company, it was very small. His shoe business was not called Nike. The original name of hist first business was Blue Ribbon Sports. He started his business in 1964. I wasn’t until 1971 when he rebranded and started Nike. I was also surprised that Phil Knight got his shoe idea from a spontaneous trip to Japan.

What about the entrepreneur inspired you the most? I was most inspired by his dedication and work ethic. There were so many stressful times in his work where most people would have stopped. Phil loved his work. Running was his passion and selling running shoes was like a dream to him. It didn’t matter about the money. In the beginning of his shoe business he was making nothing. While he was making very little, he saw so much potential in his idea. Knight was a track runner at Oregon University and used his track connections to his advantage. He showed the importance of networking and how good communication pays off.

What about the entrepreneur did you least admire? Was not a fan of his love life. To me it seemed kind of creepy, but it is not my business. When he was starting his shoe business, he was a professor at Accounting professor at University in Portland. He ended up getting married to one of his students.

Did the entrepreneur encounter adversity and failure? If so, what did they do about it? Yes, he did many times. He was always short on money. For the most part sales were not an issue for Knight. His main problem was finding money. A lot of people around him did not believe and have good trust in Knight. They did not see success and ended their support early. People saw big competitors such as Adidas, and didn’t see how Knight could compete. However, Knight was determined and eventually got his brand in professional races. He had Prefontaine, one of Americas greatest athletes, sign a shoe deal with him.

2.)    What competencies did you notice that the entrepreneur exhibited? Knight was good a have good strong connections. He might not have had a lot of connections but the ones he did were very good. Knight was able to have connections overseas, which in the 1960’s was extremely hard. Communication was different back then.

3.)    Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing to you. The part I found most confusing was the big lawsuit Nike was involved in with a big shoe manufacture in Japan. It was confusing because Phil Knight was the author of the book so it was obviously bias towards Nike. I am not sure how innocent Nike was in the law suit. I know Knight did some shady things with Japan and did some small lies. For example, Knight told the Japanese company that he had a shoes business before he actual had one, just so he could purchase shoes and stock up.

4.)    If you were able to ask two questions to the entrepreneur, what would you ask? Why? I would ask him if he thinks it is possible to start a business-like Nike today? I would ask him this because I would like to know what opportunities entrepreneurs have today. I would also ask him, when did he first see his Business as a success? I would ask him this because I would like to know if he always saw it as a success from the beginning, or it wasn’t until he started seeing lots of revenue and profit.

5.)    For fun: what do you think the entrepreneur's opinion was of hard work? Do you share that opinion? I believe Knights opinion of hard work is similar to mine. Hard work pays off if you are doing what you enjoy. Working hard at something that you love is great, even if you are bad. Knight loved sports and running. He put all his work into what he loved. He was good at writing and accounting but did not put all of his work into those skills. He used those skills to help his dream.

12A- Figure out buyer behavior NO. 1

My market segment: For this assignment I chose to interview three people who live in an off-campus apartment.

Interview Summaries:

Two of the students had a printer one did not. Two of them lived in apartment complex's that had printers. Some lived in apartments closer to campus than others. The student without the printer, lived in an apartment complex right across from campus. His apartment complex had a printer and did not find printing as difficult on campus as other because it was an easy commute. He said his apartment complex’s printer was not as reliable and seemed to always be out of ink. The two people who I interviewed that had printers lived farther from campus. The student who did not have a printer in the complex, said he strongly relies on his printer to work. He has a car but uses the bus to commute because he does not want to pay for parking. Printing on campus for him is inconvenient, especially when it is last minute. The other student that lives in an apartment with a significant distance from campus, had some of the same problems. However, this student did not live in a complex with a printer. He had one himself and so did his roommate. He asks his roommate to print if his is not working.  

How they solve the problem:

All three solve the problem differently. One student attempts to use his complex printer first then a printer on campus if it does not work. Another uses his printer first, then has the option for his apartment complex printer, and if that does not work campus. The other student will use his printer then ask his roommate, and the resort to campus.

What I learned:

I learned that on campus printing seems to be the last resort to the problem. For the student who lived closer to campus printing on campus is not much of a problem as it is to others. If the person first attempt of printing does not work the will allude to using the printer closest to them. For the students who lived off campus they preferer to either use their apartment complex printer or roommates printer before going to campus.  

Conclusion: The segment was bigger than I thought and can be narrowed down. People living close to campus could have been its own segment, as could people who live far from campus. The more options the student has the print, the less likely they will use printing app. I believe the printing app will be used before on campus printing. Studnets that have less printing options before on campus printing would be more likely to use the app. 

11A - Idea Napkin No. 1

About Me

My name is Tyler Pratt. I am a junior at the University of Florida majoring in Food and Resource Economics with a specialization in marketing and management. I am also pursuing a minor in Business Administration. I have a talent with marketing. I am currently involved with the American Marketing Association. Last semester with AMA, I worked on a marketing project with Yin and Yang Apparel, a startup street wear and music festival clothing company. This semester I have a marketing internship with a local craft beer store and restaurant. I am running all the social media platforms and helping raise awareness of the company. I believe with my skills in marketing and promoting business's on social media will help me launch my printing app. A good business idea can not going anywhere if it is not marketed well.

What am I offering.

I am offering a product that takes away the stress from last minute printing for college students, or simply an alternative way for people who do not have a printer or have a printer that is not working a way to print. I have seen borrowing apps, mainly for college students. For example, there is a borrowing app for game day outfits catered towards college students. My app will have a similar concept to a borrowing app. I am also thinking about adding more things to borrowing app such as coffee machines. Many students want that fix of coffee in the morning or at night to study. Being able to buy coffee directly from a college neighbor can save time and money. For students who do not have a coffee machine they tend to go to the Starbucks and buy over priced coffee. Sharing a coffee machine would save money and give students loaning their machine money.

Who am I offering to

I am offering a product that caters towards college students. Money and time are usually short. Students are always busy and always broke. Not everyone can afford a printer or a coffee machine. But these things are a necessity for many students.

Why I care.

I am a college student and I can relate to the struggle. I have had trouble with printing and prefer a cup of coffee while studying for an exam. I also like marketing and would have a great time marketing a product that I believe benefits college students.

My core competencies

There are borrowing apps out there, but as far as I know the ones that cater towards students are for clothes. This app stands out because both parties benefit. The person loaning their equipment makes money and the consumer gets what they need at a good and fair price.

Summary

The five elements do fit together. My business concept is not directly related to my major, club or internship. However, I believe I have learned key concepts and tools to help grow a business. Being able to know what I am offering and who it is for is important. I can be offering something that is really good. However, if I am not offering it to the right person it is bound to fail. I do not have experience with how to create an app, which would be my week point. I need to know how other borrowing apps function.

   

10a - Elevator Pitch

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RdBYKEJmZHc&feature=youtu.be

9a - Testing the Hypothesis Part 2

Who: My opportunity was with college students who needed a more reliable way to print. In my new interviews I reached out to some online college students. I also interviewed some people who are recent college graduates.

What: The online college students I talked to didn’t have the same printing issues to the extent of on campus students. Some of the online students print but, a printing app wouldn’t be as convenient. The only online student that saw the app as a bonus was a UF PaCE student because he lived near campus. The some recent graduates I talked to had printers, and others did not. In one interview the person said she did not find it as difficult as it was in college. One told me he finds himself printing a lot more than he did in college. He has a need to print more important documents. 

The printing opportunity seems to be bigger near the college but is still a need outside.

Why: Online students turn all their assignments through canvas or email, unlike on campus students who can have assignments due in person and need to be printed. There was a UF online student who interviewed, and he lived near campus because they are in the PaCE program. While, this person turns all of his assignments on canvas, he prefers to print sometimes. The recent college graduates I interviewed had some problems with printing but not to the extent of existing college students. One reason was, almost all had printers and unlike college students, they had jobs and could afford buying new ink. Another was, if their printer was not working their job had one, they could use for free. Not every recent grad had money or a had job that offered printing. 

Inside the boundary

Who

• ·       On campus college students who do not have a printer
• ·       PaCE students
• ·       Younger people recently out of college who do not own a printer

What

• ·       Any student who is struggling to print an assignment
• ·       Students who prefer print but cannot print
• ·       People outside of college who need to print a document but do not have the means to do so.

Why

• ·       On campus college students still need to print assignments in and turn them in on print
• ·       Some students prefer print over constantly looking at a screen
• ·       Not everyone owns a printer. Younger people outside of college do not own printers sometimes. They might need to print an important document but can not.

Outside the boundary

Who

• ·       100% Online college students
• ·       Young graduates with a stable job and who own a printer

What

·       Do not need the frequency of printing

·       Already have reliable ways to print

Why

•  ·       Own printers and can afford ink
• ·       Their jobs have printers
• ·       All assignments are turned in through canvas or email.