After doing some personal reflecting and speaking with Dr. Pryor, I have decided to transition into consulting which will allow me to pursue a passion of helping small businesses grow and develop to compete with large companies.
1. An entrepreneur who wants to purchase from me, A local party leader in charge of merchandise, and a candidate for Citrus County Commission.
2. Number 2 is missing in action...
3. One factor that seemed highly important to this segment was not really price, but someone that could complete their needs. I think that what I am selling is not something that most people consider. However, branding and marketing products that match your brand are crucial for development. If there was anything that they really wanted that I could consider holistically it is professionalism. Not obviously, you only want to deal with people who are professional, but everything I do with my business is behind the scenes. Because it is their name tied to what I put it, they think that this is absolutely necessary. It is my product and my service, but their name. Going into the business, I understand this too and need to ensure they trust my judgement.
4. A majority of my service is online, and my product can be transferred in person, but because a majority of what I produce will require custom graphics, it will mostly be online rather than in a store. This is good because the standard brick-and-mortar is declining in relevance. What is beautiful about this is the flexibility in working with these companies. I want to help start-ups who do not have a lot of revenue. Because of this, I can accept the money up front if they have it or create a deal where I garner a certain percentage of the revenue from the social media sales that I produce. This allows them to get sales so they can stay afloat and incentivizes me to get them sales through social media. This is a B-2-B business, but it is only for start-ups (at least for now) and so there is probably only one person I need to go through to get where I need to be.
5. Customer value for these individuals I interviewed is very important because they are involved in politics. Now this is important for all businesses, but they want to consider whether or not they are gaining more or losing votes for their candidate of choice, their party, or their own campaign. As a political science student, I have a niche specialization in voter decision that will help me with their concerns. So, they have the trust in me to work on their behalf with their candidates of choice. Beyond that, they told me they will be satisfied when they see more people recognizing them and voting for them. Support in politics is hard to see at the aggregate level before an election, but other metrics like campaign donations/public involvement are the factors that would determine their satisfaction. This leaves my business in the hands of their customers, but that's marketing and advertising.
6. All of these individuals were excited to support an entrepreneur and thought that my cause in politics was great for my personal development. They all have recognized that they need someone reliable in these sectors and were looking to me to be that person. Most of them wanted to keep me in the political sphere, even though I want to specialize in small businesses. I feel like I am competent in politics because of my previous experience and college education, but maybe I need to do some redefining of my markets/segments to get where I want. Possibly, this is where people value my company more and I end of passionate about this. Personally, I do not think that enough is done in this country for small businesses which is why I think that I am passionate about helping them.
7.Well, I just started doing more brainstorming for this field and am happy with my results so far. I think that I can get more people to buy into it because I am more passionate about it. I want to figure out more as I move along because I do not want to get stuck in the political network. I have always viewed that as a strong hobby that I would take seriously later in life. I do not want to be known as the guy who has been in politics their entire life. I want people to know me as the guy who was passionate about his community, revolutionizing the way the world things, and the person who will fulfill their American Dream and protect it for others. This seems highly idealistic, but I really think that America is lacking that right now. We have fallen into this mold where we think that everything needs to be rational. Why is this? Like Dr. Pryor said, America doesn't do anything cool anymore. I agree with this assessment because we have forgotten what a risk is.
Hi Nicholas,
ReplyDeleteI think your idea is great and always have such a respect for people that work behind the scenes and don’t always get credit for the very things that make businesses work. Starting somewhere where you’re already comfortable and familiar is a great idea I think because people will see you being successful doing that thing and then will be more willing to add to your skills. Also, being in the field gives you experience and knowledge that you would never get from a classroom. Well done!