Growing Your Social Capital

Domain expert in my industry

1)    He is a computer scientist with a background in programing and app development.

2)    Domain expert, because he knows about the mobile app industry.

3)    Thanks to a friend who is his nephew.

4)    He did me the favor of analyzing my plan from the programming perspective, and since it is for educational purposes, he did not ask for anything in exchange.

5)    Having this person in my network helps me understand a lot more on the technological challenges of my business idea, and also helps me strategize to be successful.

Expert on your market

1)    He runs the valet parking of a luxurious hotel in Orlando

2)    Market expert, because he knows about the way people behave and utilize the services of parking in situations when there is limited availability.

3)    A very good friend of mine.

4)    He gave me some insight both in the parking market for crowded places, and also on the way businesses behave in this area, and the services they like to have. He did not ask for anything in exchange.

5)    Having this person in my network helps me understand more on how parking businesses work, which is very useful.

Supplier to the industry

1)    He has coded multiple apps already (especially databases for tracking labor) and has sold some of them to businesses for their use.

2)    Expert supplier, because he knows what it means to sell app-related products to companies.

3)    He is a personal friend who recently graduated from UCF.

4)    He talked to me about his experiences selling apps and gave me some tips on how to show potential clients how useful the app can be. He asked for lunch in exchange.

5)    He definitely boosts my network by being someone with so much expertise that I can use in my endeavors

This experience definitely showed me how important it is to network, and how some of your contacts can give you even more contacts that you can use in your favor. This experience was also very different from the previous ones we had been doing as it included much more networking with experts in our field.

Idea Napkin No. 2

Since I did not receive comments/feedback in my last post, basically my ideas are staying the same with:

You:

I am a motivated and hard-working individual, who likes to have challenges and take risks as a part of my life. If I were to start my business, I would aspire to get it growing as early as I can, and it would become a fundamental part of my everyday life. I would be happy to work for that challenge.

What are you offering to customers?

I will be offering a system of cameras that track open parking spaces, and a mobile application that tells the public where they are, and whose turn is it to get that spot.

Who are you offering it to?

I would be focusing on people older than 16, who drive and have a car, live in cities or commute to places with limited parking, and have smartphones and the willingness to use mobile applications. About their psychographics, they should be at least a little bit impatient, it can help if they are usually late to places, or they just do not have a lot of time to waste on finding parking.

Why do they care?

People and businesses would like to pay money to me because alleviating parking struggles would boost their quality of service, and ultimately, customer satisfaction. A place with more customer satisfaction is a place where most people want to go, and therefore, there is more potential revenue for those businesses.

What are your core competencies?

My main competency is the fact that my idea has not been developed by any other company so far. Therefore, I would be the very first person to venture in this type of business, so that at least for the first couple of years, I would have a freeway to develop my company and get as many clients as a possibly can.

I believe these elements fit together, and if applied properly, they could potentially become a part of a successful business plan. I also think that although my product would need to be polished before it was finished, my personal characteristics and what I am offering to customers could be successful.

There was no feedback which is why I cannot take away points on that on this occasion.

Create a Customer Avatar

My prototypical customer has definitely some money. They are always late for events, but anyway keep doing it. They drive mid-class sedans or perhaps a small SUV. They probably would watch some comedy shows like The Office or something along those lines. They have one or two kids, with some being adopted. They are not much into politics and tend to vote for whoever their friends/family are voting. They are older than 18, and usually younger than 50, but they all feel more mature than they actually are.

What do you have in common?

The fact they we are late to multiple events, we drive the same type of car, and they have the same amount of kids that I expect to have.

Do you think is a coincidence? Why?

I really tried to be objective with my customer prototype, and not let it be influenced by my own preferences or characteristics. But in the end, one tends to feel a little bit identified with our prototypical customers.

Elevator Pitch No. 2

https://youtu.be/KUBA8uFNhDU

Based on the feedback from last time, I decided to cut my video about 20 seconds shorter from last time, so to have just the right amount of time. Most of the people very positive with the feedback so that motivated me a lot. Of course, I appreciate the time that people put to give me feedback, so it helps me get better every time.

What’s Your Secret Sauce?

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

a)     I am very optimistic in all situations, and try to find the good out of everything that happens in my life.

b)    When I put an objective in my life, I am capable of spending multiple hours a day in making sure that I am in good track towards my objective.

c)     I always make sure that I treat people equally and give everyone an opportunity to express their ideas.

d)    I tend to be very organized and responsible with meeting deadlines, and with fulfilling requirements that I trace myself.

e)    I do not like to give up, and will keep working on accomplishing my dreams no matter how many times I have to try.

2.     People who know me best

Unfortunately, and because of coronavirus, as excused by Dr. Pryor, I was not able to conduct the interviews. However, I noticed that the characteristics that I previously mentioned are ones that they always tend to highlight about myself.

3.     Reflect on the differences

Based on the comments that my friends I would not make any corrections, as they always reassure me that these characteristics definitely reflect me.