Interview 1:
The first person I interview chooses from the alternatives solutions by what is the most efficient and convenient for them. They also said price is a factor when choosing but they believe that in the case of comprising their safety when getting to and from campus they would be willing to pay for a service that would increase their safety when traveling. Their post-purchase evaluation seem to be did it save me time getting to where I needed to be and was it a safe option. If they thought both of the questions to be answered with yes then they were content and thought their decision was qualified as "good".
Interview 2:
The alternative solutions the person has besides the scooter would be to walk, ride the bus or have their roommate drop/pick them up. When choosing between the alternative they said during the day they just walk because they enjoy it. At night, they said they rather have their roommate help them with a ride because they do not feel that safe walking home by themselves in the dark. They said that money is a factor for them so that is why they try to avoid calling in Uber as a way of transportation. Their post purchase evaluation seemed quite simple but they consider their choice good if they made it to the place they needed to be on time and they got their safely at a minimal or no price.
Interview 3:
The last person I interviewed was different than the rest as he lived on campus and fit my market by using a scooter for around campus travel. He said he currently only walks around campus, as he has no bike and does not want to figure or worry about the bus system. So he does not really have to choose from any alternative currently as his only method of getting to and from places on campus s walking. He said he would love a fast way to get to places but does not want to buy a bike because the upfront cost is so high and he sees peoples' bikes get parts stolen from them. He seemed not to be price sensitive and would definitely give the scooter a try.
After interviewing potential buyer in my market it seems like the scooter is a good idea to implement on and around campus as an alternative method of transportation. My only concern would be the pricing, I already have it priced cheaper than Uber and Lyft but it still might be too high for some highly price sensitive consumers. All the alternative methods that they are using now are free so this scooter has to have a high enough value for people to think it is worth their money.
Tuesday, March 10, 2020
Wednesday, February 26, 2020
Reading Reflection No.1
Steve Jobs, Walter Issacson
1.
- What surprised you the most? I found it surprising that Jobs started college and started studying liberal arts. This is shocking to me because his passion and ultimately his company is not built on a foundation of liberal arts but rather technology/coding/business.
- What about the entrepreneur did you admire the most? Steve Jobs was a very straight forward and blunt guy. He told you his honest opinion about your idea even when it is bad. This is an aspect I desire about Jobs because that is something I would want from my boss and my peers.
- What about the entrepreneur do you admire the least? I find it least admirable that he dropped out of college after one year. I understand college is not for everyone but such a driven person like Jobs such have had some structural college experience to gain knowledge. He ended up being very successful without college but I feel like college could have helped him understand how to run a business.
- Did the entrepreneur experience adversity and failure? If so, what did they do about it? Jobs faced a lot of adversity and hardship throughout his life with the company in personal life. With Apple, Jobs had many battles against other big software companies like Microsoft and Google. He ended up working out the situation with Microsoft allowing them to make Office suitable for Apple products.
I believe some competencies that Steve Jobs had were grit, determinations and the willingness to succeed. He did not let go of situation that frustrated him but rather pushed through to see the end. His passion for technology drove his ambitious personally to be successful.
3. Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing to you.
The book really never showed his struggle with Apple. The book talked about how he got to the place of starting Apple but never mentioned how it took off. Suddenly it shifted the story to his success and how his products took off and he started selling millions of products.
4. If you were able to ask two questions to the entrepreneur, what would they be and why?
The questions I would ask would be:
Did you think you were creating the next big thing in the technology world or were you more surprised by the take off it had?
If you could go back and change a time in your life, what would it be and why?
5. What do you think the entrepreneur's opinion was of hard work? Do you share that opinion?
I believe Steve Jobs opinion on hard work is you have to work hard even when you think the universe is pushing against you. To be successful you have to put in hard work even on the days you feel like giving up. I believe in a similar opinion of his definition of hard work.
Monday, February 24, 2020
Halfway Reflection
1. Some strategies I have developed to keep up with this course is to come to lecture or watch them live on my laptop. If I watch the lecture when they happen it is easier to keep up with them and I do not find myself cramming two lectures on Sunday to do the cupcake. This allows time for me to get the assignments done for the week and also easily manage other classes as I take this course. Another strategy is to try to take the cupcake when it comes out. This makes it easier to take the cupcake because the lectures happened only a few days ago. If I wait to Sunday or Monday to take it, it is much harder because I am only able to remember what my notes have not the information still in my head from being at lecture.
2. I have not felt like giving up in this class so far but by far I dreaded and felt the most out of the class when we had to do the first elevator pitch. It was something I was not looking forward to recording and submitting. I feel like I had a good tenacious grip on this class so far as I feel like you have to remain on top of this class in order to not fall behind. There are weekly assignments and cupcakes that you have to stay with if not those are easy points you give up and can not get back.
3. Three tips I would give to future students:
a. Either go to live lecture or watch the lecture live, easiest way to stay on top of this class.
b. Take the cupcake when it first comes out, will be the time when you recall the most from the lectures.
c. If you want to be an entrepreneur, listen and actually do the assignments because they can help you develop your idea into a business.
Friday, February 21, 2020
Figuring Out Buyer Behavior No.1
The segment of my market that I pick is students who live off campus who do not have any means of transportation in Gainesville, meaning they do not own a car, scooter or bike (skateboard etc.).
Interview 1: (female living at 2nd Ave)
For her, the need awareness comes when she tries to get to and from campus later at night whether she is going to study at the library or for a club meeting. She says during the day she does not mind walking to and from her classes and even if the timing is right she will take the bus to school. But at those later hours the buses run less frequently and she does not feel safe walking home alone at night. For her, her immediate solution is having her roommate who has a car pick her up or catching a ride home with a friend. She says sometimes she will walk home and call a friend but she is nervous doing so, occasionally she will call an Uber depending on the price and time of night.
Interview 2: (male living at Gainesville Place)
For him, the need awareness comes for when he goes to classes. For most of his classes he rather bikes than take the bus. He just takes the bus because he has no other alternatives. He says the bus is reliable in coming every 15 minutes from his place but to get to his stop it takes about 25 mins which he believes is too long. It makes him leave for class way earlier than he like to. For his immediate solution he rides the bus. He says he does not come to campus during odd hours in he evening and if he has to his roommate drives him. The bus is consistent but just puts a strain on his day because he feels like his commute to and from school makes him unproductive for over an hour each day.
Interview 3: (female living behind mid)
For her, the need awareness comes when she goes to campus for work. She works at Starbucks in the library. She sometimes gets weird hours making her leave at night time. She says it would be nice to have a reliable and safe way to get home at night. She says none of the bus loops run close to her place leaving her to walk. Neither of her roommates has a car so she just calls her boyfriend every night when she has to walk home alone. She says during the day she does not mind walking to and from classes and work because she feels safe. Her immediate solution is walking and talking to someone on the phone but she believes that if that had rental bikes she would use them because of their convenience and less scary to ride a bike at night than walk.
After interviewing three different people, I feel like there are multiple uses for these bikes just to get to and from campus. They all would use them at different hours and for different circumstances. It seems the UBikes would be a huge convenience for students because it would allow them to use them whenever the time is right for them to head somewhere. I would describe this segment as people who are looking for a new transportation method for travel, there current method is working but they are tired of their current state. They do not stretch very far when it comes to information search as they go with the only solution they currently have. For one it is relying on the bus for the other is they rely on their boyfriend to call them.
Interview 1: (female living at 2nd Ave)
For her, the need awareness comes when she tries to get to and from campus later at night whether she is going to study at the library or for a club meeting. She says during the day she does not mind walking to and from her classes and even if the timing is right she will take the bus to school. But at those later hours the buses run less frequently and she does not feel safe walking home alone at night. For her, her immediate solution is having her roommate who has a car pick her up or catching a ride home with a friend. She says sometimes she will walk home and call a friend but she is nervous doing so, occasionally she will call an Uber depending on the price and time of night.
Interview 2: (male living at Gainesville Place)
For him, the need awareness comes for when he goes to classes. For most of his classes he rather bikes than take the bus. He just takes the bus because he has no other alternatives. He says the bus is reliable in coming every 15 minutes from his place but to get to his stop it takes about 25 mins which he believes is too long. It makes him leave for class way earlier than he like to. For his immediate solution he rides the bus. He says he does not come to campus during odd hours in he evening and if he has to his roommate drives him. The bus is consistent but just puts a strain on his day because he feels like his commute to and from school makes him unproductive for over an hour each day.
Interview 3: (female living behind mid)
For her, the need awareness comes when she goes to campus for work. She works at Starbucks in the library. She sometimes gets weird hours making her leave at night time. She says it would be nice to have a reliable and safe way to get home at night. She says none of the bus loops run close to her place leaving her to walk. Neither of her roommates has a car so she just calls her boyfriend every night when she has to walk home alone. She says during the day she does not mind walking to and from classes and work because she feels safe. Her immediate solution is walking and talking to someone on the phone but she believes that if that had rental bikes she would use them because of their convenience and less scary to ride a bike at night than walk.
After interviewing three different people, I feel like there are multiple uses for these bikes just to get to and from campus. They all would use them at different hours and for different circumstances. It seems the UBikes would be a huge convenience for students because it would allow them to use them whenever the time is right for them to head somewhere. I would describe this segment as people who are looking for a new transportation method for travel, there current method is working but they are tired of their current state. They do not stretch very far when it comes to information search as they go with the only solution they currently have. For one it is relying on the bus for the other is they rely on their boyfriend to call them.
Wednesday, February 19, 2020
Idea Napkin No. 1
1. My name is Danielle Arigo and I am a sophomore from Tampa, Florida. I am at the University of Florida pursuing a degree in accounting. I really excel when it comes to projections and analysis of numbers. I think this would be beneficial to my company of UBikes when it comes to the financial side of the company. It could help my company better project how many bikes to start out with and estimate the growth of the company throughout Gainesville.
2. My business offers an affordable solution to traveling around Gainesville whether it be for enjoyment or as a reliable transportation method. May students do not have cars or bikes in Gainesville so instead of trying to Uber or walk to and from places they can rent a bike at their convenience.
3. I am offering it to University of Florida students primarily who do not already possess a car, scooter or bike. These students primarily live off campus and are needing a way to travel to campus. The general age of my market is people who are around the ages of 17 to 24. These people have some extra discretionary money they do not mind spending to get around campus or Gainesville. Most of my potential consumers find the RTS system inconvenient either because of the timing or pick up locations.
4. My business is valuable because there is nothing like it in Gainesville so far. I already have a competitive advantage on the market if people enter the market after I start because mine would be the first product they know and use. My business is also valuable because of the convenience factor, people can use the bikes whenever they want and do not have to wait for a specific time to come around in order for them to ride. Lastly my business is valuable because it is cheaper than other competitors that offer rides. The bike is a more reasonable price for college students on a tight budget compared to Uber or Lyft.
5. My core competency is being like no other business in and around the Gainesville area. MY company of UBikes serves the needs of students by providing a way to get to and from campus. In addition the UBike can be used for pure entertainment. If it is a nice day out friends can get together and ride bikes and explore downtown Gainesville. I believe no other company serves needs of transportation and as a leisure activity.
After analyzing my business in depth I believe it can be successful with proper estimates. I believe to launch this business there has to be a really good estimate of the number of people who would use the UBikes. From a conservative standpoint I can always add more bikes around the area if it is successful. The upfront cost is so high with a business like this so it is important to see how well the business does before growing. I definitely think there is a market that would adopt these bikes into their everyday lives.
2. My business offers an affordable solution to traveling around Gainesville whether it be for enjoyment or as a reliable transportation method. May students do not have cars or bikes in Gainesville so instead of trying to Uber or walk to and from places they can rent a bike at their convenience.
3. I am offering it to University of Florida students primarily who do not already possess a car, scooter or bike. These students primarily live off campus and are needing a way to travel to campus. The general age of my market is people who are around the ages of 17 to 24. These people have some extra discretionary money they do not mind spending to get around campus or Gainesville. Most of my potential consumers find the RTS system inconvenient either because of the timing or pick up locations.
4. My business is valuable because there is nothing like it in Gainesville so far. I already have a competitive advantage on the market if people enter the market after I start because mine would be the first product they know and use. My business is also valuable because of the convenience factor, people can use the bikes whenever they want and do not have to wait for a specific time to come around in order for them to ride. Lastly my business is valuable because it is cheaper than other competitors that offer rides. The bike is a more reasonable price for college students on a tight budget compared to Uber or Lyft.
5. My core competency is being like no other business in and around the Gainesville area. MY company of UBikes serves the needs of students by providing a way to get to and from campus. In addition the UBike can be used for pure entertainment. If it is a nice day out friends can get together and ride bikes and explore downtown Gainesville. I believe no other company serves needs of transportation and as a leisure activity.
After analyzing my business in depth I believe it can be successful with proper estimates. I believe to launch this business there has to be a really good estimate of the number of people who would use the UBikes. From a conservative standpoint I can always add more bikes around the area if it is successful. The upfront cost is so high with a business like this so it is important to see how well the business does before growing. I definitely think there is a market that would adopt these bikes into their everyday lives.
Friday, February 14, 2020
Testing the Hypothesis Part 2
Changing up my solution to the problem. My solution for the lack of parking in and around UF campus will be solved by having bikes all around campus that people can use for however long they want. These bikes will be called UBike. Say they want to ride from Heavener to the Reitz and then they park it at the Reitz and another person can use it to go from the Reitz to their class at the music building. These bikes would be spread around campus in a 2 mile radius allowing people to use them to get to and from school if need be. The bikes would charge you by the minute and that is where my profit would comes from after the first initial upfront cost of getting all the bikes.
What? This need this solution is trying to fulfill is a way to get to and from campus that is more reliable and safe than walking or trying to catch the bus. This solution also tries to fulfill the need of people trying to get from one side of the campus to the other in a short period of time.
Why? The need of people inside the boundary is different than those who are outside because the need of the people outside have already been fulfill by a bike of their own or a scooter. However, someone with a scooter might still use the bikes on campus because the scooter parking is on the outside of campus and where they need to go in all on the inside of campus.
Interview Findings:
After changing my idea of solving the problem, I found this idea makes a lot more sense. This caters to more people's needs as it fulfills people who do not have a car at school can still get around campus. People thought the bike idea was a neat way of solving the problem as people who lived in big cities before said their downtown area had rental bikes that everyone loved to use. This is positive news because if they are successful in other areas it makes me hopeful they can work here. UBike seems like an ideal idea in potential consumers eyes as they view this options as affordable and efficient.
Inside the Boundary
Who is in it: UF students, faculty, and visitors (2 miles radius)
What the need is: safe and efficient to and from / around campus
Why that need exists: limited parking and other transportation method
Outside the Boundary:
Who is not: people living beyond the 2 mile radius or have a scooter or bike
What the need is not: a bus system or inconvenient
Alternative Explanations: other methods of travel
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