Venture Concept #2

**Original Venture Write-Up** (Edit section at Bottom)

Venture Concept Write-Up

The opportunity for my idea of creating a dog-necessities subscription box service is relevant because nearly every dog owner in the United States can benefit from this service. The potential customers are those dog owners that seek to treat their dog in a way that can make them happy, while saving money, saving time, and ensuring their dogs are consuming the safest products. The nature of this need arises because people want to provide the best for their dogs but often do not know how to do this. The subscription services solves this need by doing that work for the subscriber. Also, as more people are getting more busy, they are looking for things that will save them time and a subscription service like this will ensure that dog owners do not have to waste time at retail dog stores. Finally, people are always looking to save money and because my subscription service will buy products in bulk quantities, the subscribers will be paying well below retail cost for the items they receive.

This market is defined geographically by country. An issue subscription services face is shipping costs, and that is why it would be difficult to compete with similar subscription services in far away countries because they have to pay more to get the products shipped to them. The United States has a great infrastructure set up and makes it cost-effective to ship items across the country. Demographically, there has been a larger shift to new pet owners being younger and younger. Many college students right now are beginning to get dogs and especially recent college graduates. This is a great demographic for the company because they are more receptive to new ideas like product subscriptions than older and more traditional consumers are. In addition, this will only apply to the demographics of those older than 18 because that is the age when people first start to get dogs, however, if children with families that have dogs see information about the service they may beg their parents to join the service.

Customers currently satisfy this need by going to retail stores to get products or by using other subscription services. From the people I have spoken with, the customers going to retail stores often feel unsure, intimidated, and confused about the items in the retail stores. These people often end up not getting the right products for their dogs and spend a lot of time and money doing this. The people that currently use do subscription services see it as a way to pamper their dogs and not a matter of convivence, piece of mind, and saving money. Typically, the users of these services see the boxes of a way to treat their dogs rather than the primary way to care for their dogs needs (other than providing food).

This opportunity is huge because there are so many new millennial dog owners and so many soon to be dog owners. Also, there are so many dog owners right now that are not using subscription services that could be greatly benefitting from them. If I am able to convince dog owners that our subscription service is the best way to care for their dogs then there are so many potential customers for the service. It is crucial that we explain that our abides by the fact that “you provide the food, and we will provide everything else your dog needs for the month to be happy”.

This window of opportunity should be open for a very long time because more and more people are getting dogs. Also, the service industry for products is beginning to explode with the use of digital marketing strategies on social media as a great way to acquire new customers. As long as consumer trends tend to move towards services, ecommerce, and more people continue to get dogs then this opportunity will be available for a very long time but it is crucial to enter now before the market gets too saturated.

The innovation aspect of this service is not that it is unique, but instead that the company will focus on educating customers the benefits and value of the service and explain how it can replace shopping for your dog. This service is uniquely aimed at being a replacement service for going to the store to buy treats for your dog and will not be advertised as a way to solely pamper your dog, although your dog will be pampered. The innovation lies in the approach to consumers and appealing to the benefits it will bring them to help them improve their lives and make their dogs happier.

This company will make money buy having customers subscribe monthly to the subscription service and paying a monthly fee. Fees will be lower each month based on if they sign up for longer plans. The company will also make money by offering the products that have been in pervious boxes online to be purchased in the future.

Customers will realize they should switch to this new product but it will be hard to educate them. Customers currently can go to Amazon to buy items for their dogs or even to retail stores. What the customers can realize, however, is that they often don’t spend the time to look after their dogs needs because they’re busy themselves and buy them no more than food. The subscription I propose will allow them to not have to think or worry about the items their dog needs each month.

Packaging and price point are huge for this company. The packaging should explain the simplicity and purpose of the items inside and be bright, vibrant, and recognizable colors to create an unique experience to come along with the box. Price point is important so customers can see the value of obtaining the box compared to retail and other subscription competitors.

The company’s most important resource will be feedback we get on the service. It is crucial to listen to what customers have to say about the box so we can understand how to deliver what dog owners need. Next for the venture would be to branch out into creating our own products to include in the boxes based on the customers wants and to make better margins and lower price points. In five years, I see this subscription being a success but also see a lot of competition entering the market and so it will be important to adapt to circumstances as they appear and be proactive rather than reactive. 

What I Learned

Billy's comment on my venture concept was great. He really liked the idea of my venture concept and told me to be well aware of feedback from users. That gave me the idea to keep the current model, but really incentivize a way for users to give great feedback on what they like, don't like, and improvements they want.

Final Reflection

1.) There have been some crazy moments this semester. Reading through the posts show how far my idea has come. I now know a new approach I want to take and target market. I am happy to have taken this class because I have great ideas of what I can do to be successful.

2.) The most formative was actually going out and doing interviews. This makes it seem real and that you actually have an idea because you are completing actions. These were also my favorite experiences because I love talking to others.

3.) I do think so yes. I think I developed this through the mindsets promoted in the class and also the books I have read relating to entrepreneurship. I still work to start doing more than thinking though.

4.) I recommend they take the class as seriously as possible because there is a lot of value if you actually do all the assignments when sometimes its easy not to put full effort into them. The assignments I really tried on gave me the most valuable experiences.

The Exit Strategy

I intend to let this business grow as long as possible and hold on to it as long as I enjoy working on it. I think it will be important to keep up with trends to keep the business alive and I will be focused on that fully with little time to think about selling. For me, entrepreneurship and starting a business is more about enjoying the process, working with people you like, having an awesome team, having a relatively flexible schedule, and not about selling for money...although money as an outcome of the business is a top goal.

I have selected the exit strategy of going with the business until I lose interest or get excited about a new venture because I'm focused on living a happy life and I believe following where my heart is at in terms of what I'm working on is the best way to do this.

I think this exit strategy influences all of the decisions I make in the venture because I know this is something I want to grow and work on for a very long time and I would be dedicated to overcoming challenges the business faces. This has influenced my overall goals for the business and is why I look to expand the business to other markets and ideas to diversify the business so it can continue to grow.

Reading Reflection #3

1) What was the general theme or argument of the book?

The general theme of “Cognitive Surplus” is that people spend so much time watching TV that they are missing out on hours to have a “Cognitive Surplus”. This “Cognitive Surplus” is the time people would otherwise have to collaborate, learn, or work on projects if they were not watching television. Clay Shirky notes in his book that the amount of time watching TV by Americans in one year could be used to make 2,000 Wikipedia-sized projects, yet we waste that time watching TV. Shirky does, however, notice that for the first time people are moving away from watching TV in their surplus time and instead using computers or mobile devices. Shirky interprets this trend as a good thing because he has seen people join together and form collaborative groups through the internet.

2) How did the book, in your opinion, connect with and enhance what you are learning in ENT 3003?

This book connects with ENT 3003 because it highlights your ability to create similar to how the class shows how you can create ventures. Not only does it talk about the ability to create a venture, but shows how there is time for everybody to create movements. I think this book goes to show that if you would spend your free time, or cognitive surplus, on creating rather than just consuming than building ventures would be extremely possible.

3) If you had to design an exercise for this class, based on the book you read, what would that exercise involve?

I would design an exercise where we have to track what we do in our surplus time. I think it would be very valuable to see where all the hours in our week go. How many to school, work, classes, and homework and how much to eating, socializing, sleeping, and using electronics. I think this activity would open people’s eyes in college and have them realize that by just being full-time students they many feel like they’re doing a lot, but for many of them they are only “working” twenty hour weeks and have plenty of time to collaborate and create.

4) What was your biggest surprise or 'aha' moment when reading the book? In other words, what did you learn that differed most from your expectations?

My biggest surprise in the book was that people are more satisfied in the short run by watching TV because they are filling an emotional void. I think that collaborating and working on projects during your cognitive surplus can be extremely valuable because it will pay off more in the long run but I think people are reluctant to start this because they have associated “work” as a negative thing and cannot find the motivation to start unless they get some sort of immediate recognition or reward.

Celebrating Failure

The failure I've faced this semester is the lack of taking action. With the entrepreneurial venture I have, I have thought about pursuing it with my best friend for several months before the semester started. We have thought up lots of great ideas but have continually failed to meet deadlines and get anything done because we are still prioritizing other things over getting the business started. One of the largest failures we have encountered is that we have seen new competitors in the market be successful after we already had the idea so we know that we could have started and been successful.

This has made us learn and come to realize how important it is to "do" rather than to just think. I think it would be helpful if we made everyone aware of our venture so that way we are held accountable for our actions rather than having no consequences since nobody knows.

This class has shown the value of taking action. If you were to truly follow all the requirements for this class you would be well on your way to making a business happen but its easy to slack off and not take everything seriously because we are wired now to prioritize exams for other classes over things we want to pursue even though we are well aware that as business students our experiences are way more valuable than our GPA.

What's Next

Existing Market

I discovered lots of new information about the existing market and how to grow the market from the individuals I interviewed. When discussing the topic with the potential customers, I learned that they do think the future for dog items is subscription services but that they would like to have say in what kinds of items they are receiving so they can choose what types of items they're getting but still are surprised about the specific items they receive. One person I interviewed uses a service called BarkBox but said that she doesn't think it is the most efficient because they focus on cute themes for the box rather than the functionality purposes of the company.

The most sense for the future of the growth of this company is to take the route to focus on the segment's benefits for the consumers rather than the cute aspect of the boxes delivered. Doing this provides more value for the customers rather than just giving them something that is exciting and cute for just a few days.

New Market

A radically different market than what this market offers is the B2B market. When talking with one of the people I interviewed, they suggested having a section on the website where people can also purchase specific products. This sparked an idea that we can work with current small manufacturing companies of dog products to begin creating products for us that will specifically fit the customers needs. By doing this we will be able to establish good relationships with companies and further grow the business. I also learned from someone I interviewed that they think there is great potential in hosting events for dog owners to show up to to meet other dog owners and interact with the business on a physical level. This new market is attractive but cannot be reached without first tackling the existing market.

Venture Concept Write-Up

Venture Concept Write-Up

The opportunity for my idea of creating a dog-necessities subscription box service is relevant because nearly every dog owner in the United States can benefit from this service. The potential customers are those dog owners that seek to treat their dog in a way that can make them happy, while saving money, saving time, and ensuring their dogs are consuming the safest products. The nature of this need arises because people want to provide the best for their dogs but often do not know how to do this. The subscription services solves this need by doing that work for the subscriber. Also, as more people are getting more busy, they are looking for things that will save them time and a subscription service like this will ensure that dog owners do not have to waste time at retail dog stores. Finally, people are always looking to save money and because my subscription service will buy products in bulk quantities, the subscribers will be paying well below retail cost for the items they receive.

This market is defined geographically by country. An issue subscription services face is shipping costs, and that is why it would be difficult to compete with similar subscription services in far away countries because they have to pay more to get the products shipped to them. The United States has a great infrastructure set up and makes it cost-effective to ship items across the country. Demographically, there has been a larger shift to new pet owners being younger and younger. Many college students right now are beginning to get dogs and especially recent college graduates. This is a great demographic for the company because they are more receptive to new ideas like product subscriptions than older and more traditional consumers are. In addition, this will only apply to the demographics of those older than 18 because that is the age when people first start to get dogs, however, if children with families that have dogs see information about the service they may beg their parents to join the service.

Customers currently satisfy this need by going to retail stores to get products or by using other subscription services. From the people I have spoken with, the customers going to retail stores often feel unsure, intimidated, and confused about the items in the retail stores. These people often end up not getting the right products for their dogs and spend a lot of time and money doing this. The people that currently use do subscription services see it as a way to pamper their dogs and not a matter of convivence, piece of mind, and saving money. Typically, the users of these services see the boxes of a way to treat their dogs rather than the primary way to care for their dogs needs (other than providing food).

This opportunity is huge because there are so many new millennial dog owners and so many soon to be dog owners. Also, there are so many dog owners right now that are not using subscription services that could be greatly benefitting from them. If I am able to convince dog owners that our subscription service is the best way to care for their dogs then there are so many potential customers for the service. It is crucial that we explain that our abides by the fact that “you provide the food, and we will provide everything else your dog needs for the month to be happy”.

This window of opportunity should be open for a very long time because more and more people are getting dogs. Also, the service industry for products is beginning to explode with the use of digital marketing strategies on social media as a great way to acquire new customers. As long as consumer trends tend to move towards services, ecommerce, and more people continue to get dogs then this opportunity will be available for a very long time but it is crucial to enter now before the market gets too saturated.

The innovation aspect of this service is not that it is unique, but instead that the company will focus on educating customers the benefits and value of the service and explain how it can replace shopping for your dog. This service is uniquely aimed at being a replacement service for going to the store to buy treats for your dog and will not be advertised as a way to solely pamper your dog, although your dog will be pampered. The innovation lies in the approach to consumers and appealing to the benefits it will bring them to help them improve their lives and make their dogs happier.

This company will make money buy having customers subscribe monthly to the subscription service and paying a monthly fee. Fees will be lower each month based on if they sign up for longer plans. The company will also make money by offering the products that have been in pervious boxes online to be purchased in the future.

Customers will realize they should switch to this new product but it will be hard to educate them. Customers currently can go to Amazon to buy items for their dogs or even to retail stores. What the customers can realize, however, is that they often don’t spend the time to look after their dogs needs because they’re busy themselves and buy them no more than food. The subscription I propose will allow them to not have to think or worry about the items their dog needs each month.

Packaging and price point are huge for this company. The packaging should explain the simplicity and purpose of the items inside and be bright, vibrant, and recognizable colors to create an unique experience to come along with the box. Price point is important so customers can see the value of obtaining the box compared to retail and other subscription competitors.

The company’s most important resource will be feedback we get on the service. It is crucial to listen to what customers have to say about the box so we can understand how to deliver what dog owners need. Next for the venture would be to branch out into creating our own products to include in the boxes based on the customers wants and to make better margins and lower price points. In five years, I see this subscription being a success but also see a lot of competition entering the market and so it will be important to adapt to circumstances as they appear and be proactive rather than reactive.