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30A – Final Reflection This semester I had a lot of fun and feel like I learned a lot. I think the best thing I got out of it was just losing all reservations about walking up and asking people to talk to me. I can see that being a really useful skill, and the first round of interviews was definitely the moment where I realized that this class would make me get out there and try things. Some of the things I'll remember are the three books I read for this class, because I enjoyed the wright brothers book so much that I started a personal tradition to make a custom bookmark for every new book I read. These are the three for the books I read for this class, but I have done one for the eleven books I read since the Wright brothers and really enjoy it as a way to remember and think about books I read.   (The story behind that one is that I so far completely have ignored all social media, but reading the book on it made me realize that I do many of their practices for a ...

29A – Venture Concept No. 2 Note: Most of this post is the same as my last one because I only received positive comments since then. To make it easier, I am putting all the changes or additions in bold. I welcome any new readers to see the whole thing and give me any thoughts, but did't want people who saw the last one to have to find the slight tweaks I made. Most of my changes are simply to add an extra detail or idea I got from one of the comments or interviews.  Opportunity: Thousands of new students, alumni, parents, and sports fans walk through the UF bookstore each year. As they tour the campus, many will end up buying merchandise showing the UF colors or logo. Currently the bookstore has hundreds of items in orange and blue so that all can display gator spirit, find a gift, or get a souvenir. Many of the current merchandise options are clothing and clothing accessories for that gators can proudly wear their spirit, but as anyone who has shopped for a clothing I...

28A – Your Exit Strategy 1) Identify the exit strategy you plan to make. Do you intend to sell your business in the next 5 years for a large return? Do you intend to stay with the business for several decades and retire? Do you intend to protect the venture as a family business, and pass it down to your children? Once the ZipStrip makes it big and the concept starts being copied by others, I plan to just sell what I have and move on instead of trying to keep a patent or fight for market control. This has been a great experience, but I am not passionate about making clothing accessories and plan to focus on other projects. 2) Why have you selected this particular exit strategy? I have a lot of interests that I feel strongly about and a lot of opportunities that I want to pursue before I would invest in the ZipStrip. I think that working until my idea is taken up by others is a victory on its own because even as I work on other things I will be able to see the ZipStrip thriv...

26A – Celebrating Failure 1) Tell us about a time this past semester that you failed -- whether in this class, or outside of this class. Don't spare any details! It'd be even better if there was something you tried several times this semester, and failed each time.  My biggest failure for this class was that I was completely blindsided by one of the most valuable assignments and had to rush to the point of considering skipping it and banking on the extra credit workshop. The assignment in question is 20 Growing your Social Capital. I normally plan these assignments ahead at least if I don't do them earlier in the week, but that week I had just looked at the other assignment and the title of this one before deciding I could wait until Friday. I don't know if I expected this assignment to just be more easy interviews or maybe doing the pitch to people in the real world, but when I read on Friday morning that I was supposed to reach out to real business people and ...

27A – Reading Reflection No. 3 For this assignment I chose to read the Art of Social Media by Guy Kawasaki and Peg Fitzpatrick. 1) What was the general theme or argument of the book? This book was a really interesting pick for this assignment because it was less about the value of Social Media for an entrepreneur, and instead focused fully on the steps you should take to build a social presence for a new company or personality.  2) How did the book, in your opinion, connect with and enhance what you are learning in ENT 3003? This book is less about what we are learning in this class, and more lessons that will help to make all the work we do on this class effective. I think this book will add to any business I create in the future and really help get my ideas noticed, funded, and sold. 3) If you had to design an exercise for this class, based on the book you read, what would that exercise involve? I think the most fitting exercise for this book would be to have st...

25A – What’s Next? Existing Market: The "Fan" group from my customer avatars Step 1: Talk about what you think is what's next in terms of products and services for your venture. As I keep targeting the Fan customers, my next step would be to expand from just UF and to reach out to other brands and teams that would want something like the ZipStrip. Step 2: Alison: Her biggest recommendations was that I keep talking to as many people about it as possible to further understand what customers want, and to make more options for the actual designs I would sell. Andrew: He also wanted multiple designs, but also said that I should be careful to make the product easy to understand in a store with a informative display and by allowing people to try attaching ZipStrips to their jackets in the store. Alex: His advise was to start selling online to start, and that I could consider selling jackets as well Step 3: With this round of interviews I really cemented my impression t...

24A – Venture Concept No. 1 Opportunity: Thousands of new students, alumni, parents, and sports fans walk through the UF bookstore each year. As they tour the campus, many will end up buying merchandise showing the UF colors or logo. Currently the bookstore has hundreds of items in orange and blue so that all can display gator spirit, find a gift, or get a souvenir. Many of the current merchandise options are clothing and clothing accessories for that gators can proudly wear their spirit, but as anyone who has shopped for a clothing Item in the bookstore these are usually sold at a high price. A shirt could cost $40, a vest $120, and a jacket upwards of $60. There currently is few options for people who want to wear orange and blue on a college budget without choosing between a textbook and that cool jacket. I believe there is a strong market opportunity for wearable UF gear between ten and fifteen dollars. As it stands the closest product to fill this gap is a few of the ch...

23A – Your Venture’s Unfair Advantage My product is the ZipStrip. It is a strip of fabric with zippers on both sides that you can zip up into a normal jacket. After the last round of feedback, I am now just targeting the "Fan" group of customers and hope to partner with UF to reach specifically the Gators as my first test. These ten strengths set it apart from other ideas and will let me uniquely help customers.  1. A new idea Valuable - people pay for novelty, and the market is open Rare - no one I interviewed had heard of something like this Inimitable -  it will be easy to copy, but if I successfully brand with UF then that would change Non-Substitutable - this is much cheaper than most clothing accessories 2. Simple, easily manufactured product Valuable - low manufacturing cost and few components will mean we can make a profit Rare - most products are mor complicated and involve more steps to manufacture Inimitable - again, this can be copied Non-S...

22A – Elevator Pitch No. 3 https://youtu.be/XIWp-nk-BD4 I did not get many comments or critiques of my second pitch on the blog, but once again got a lot of good feedback from Dr. Pryor. He didn't like how the avatar images I used paused the pitch, wanted me to focus on location and one of my three groups, and come up with a way to actively target that group. I thought this was good feedback, but that I would have to change a lot. To respond to that feedback I changed my script and started by focusing on the Fan demographic. I explained that I had tried to contact several UF employees who are in charge of the branding and selling of UF merchandise in the Social Capital post, and hoped to start the ZipStrip by selling to gators in the UF Bookstore for $8-10. I hope to use the money from that partnership to expand the ZipStrip into a website to market to my other two customer groups that want a ZipStrip to add style or deal with weight gain. I think my delivery might act...

21A – Reading Reflection No. 2 I read the Makers book by Chris Anderson for this Assignment. Overall I thought it was an interesting read and that the philosophy behind the Maker Movement described in this book, but that Anderson placed far too much stock in this movement to solve our economic issues. 1) What was the general theme or argument of the book? Anderson is very enthusiastic about how technology is opening up new opportunities for entrepreneurs and businesses that operate in new ways. He discusses the maker movement and where it came from, and then the technology and trends he sees changing it today as well as where he thinks it will go in the future. 2) How did the book, in your opinion, connect with and enhance what you are learning in ENT 3003? I think this book did a great job combining things I have learned in this class with the Creativity in Context class I am also taking for the Innovation Academy. In that class we learn and use many of the design program...

20A – Growing Your Social Capital For this assignment I emailed three people who could help me understand how to sell my ZipStrip. Because I have three different groups of customers I want to market to for this assignment I focused on only  the "Fan" group.  Supply Expert: Pamela Braseth Dragon Sports founder Pam is an family friend and gave me my two first jobs, so I have a lot of experience asking her for favors. She also was the owner of a triathlon store and sold the team caps, suits, jackets, and shirts to all the local swim teams in my area which makes her the only person I know with experience acting as a supplier for sports teams. My favor to her was a list of questions about how, when, and who buys these team merch items. Is it just for the swimmers? Do the parents and family members want their own shirts?  How were the items branded to the teams (team colors, logos, mascots, slogans...)? In asking for this information I promised to make a set ...

19A – Idea Napkin No. 2 1. My special skills have stayed the same since last Idea Napkin, but I will try to write them down into a short list instead of a block of text like last time.  2 years of teaching experience as a Volunteer in AmeriCorps Public Speaking and communication Problem Solving Working in a team 6 months as Education Technician at the Choctawhatchee Basin Alliance Leadership Designed lesson plans and trained new AmeriCorps members Sociology Major, Innovation Minor Human centered thinking Creative solutions starting from empathy I plan to use these skills to create an educational board game, and hope working on the ZipStip will let me gain experience for turning an idea into a physical product.  2. I am making the ZipStrip. This is a strip of fabric with zippers on both sides that you could zip up into a normal jacket. This will work to ad extra width to the torso and help people who don't fit into standard jacket sizes, and all...

17A – Elevator Pitch No. 2 My first video was well received and I got a lot of useful feedback, especially from our teacher in his video review. Because of this feedback I changed how I described the target for the size restrictions to those who had experienced weight transition as well as unusual proportions like I had stated originally. I also added the "Fan" customer from his sports merch idea which I really liked. I estimated a price based on research of bulk order materials and the low complexity of the ZipStrip (I could make one quickly with just the fabric, zippers, and a sewing machine) and found a Price that would let me fund the materials and costs while still staying far cheaper than a whole jacket. This was actually the first take I did of my pitch and I just went with it because I thought that I would get in my head and mess up if I tried to go back and change things. I enjoyed making the pitch video again and think it is better than my first video...

#18A – Create a Customer Avatar For the ZipStrip I have been exploring several types of people who would be interested. I originally only started with one, but through my interviews and the responses to my previous work I have found better ways to picture who would be interested in my ZipStrip. Customer #1: The Tough Fit This group is using the ZipStrip to make jackets fit better for a variety of reasons such as: weight transition pregnancy proportions that don't fit normal sizes (original use for Jeff who's arm length would not fit jackets if he went up a size) They are probably interested in a ZipStrip that fits into a jacket (black or neutral color) to not draw attention since the purpose is utility and not cosmetics This group is mostly middle aged adults  Consumer #2: The Fan This customer has a loyalty to a brand or team that they want to display in a colorful ZipStrip (UF would be the ideal first brand to reach out for this) They have l...

16A –What’s Your Secret Sauce? 1. What makes me special: Attitude- I have a really calm and steady personality. I think most people think of me as hard to shake and easygoing. Most of the time this is a really good thing, but deciding that something is not worth thinking about it if it bothers you has caused problems for me before. This is the hardest skill on this list to make sound unique, but I am fairly sure that if you knew me you would point this out as one of my key features and not something most people have.  Communication Skills- I have well practiced communication skills and have always enjoyed speaking to people whether it is in front of a group/crowd or a single person. I think the thing about my communication skills that is special is that I wouldn't call myself outgoing but that I am comfortable speaking with almost anyone and can find a way to have a good conversation or make an impression. I have enjoyed the interviews for this class and keep being sur...

15A – Figuring Out Buyer Behavior No. 2 Interview #1: Jenny Liked to customize clothes and usually adjusts clothes herself. She changes the fit and length, cuts off collars, and adds embroidery Instead of looking for something like the ZipStrip she would be more likely to just go but supplies and change her clothes herself She said that the changes don't take many supplies and its usually inexpensive. She shops for her clothes and tailoring stuff in person but would be fine using online shopping for small pieces and accessories. She grades her purchases on durability and looks, but most;y on functionality Interview #2: Sarah Was willing to accessorize but was not as thrifty as Jenny Needs to try on clothes in person and doesn't do much online shopping Price, durability, and style were her things she looked for decided what was a good purchase by how often she wore something Interview #3: Helen (my sister and also in the next assignment) Customize...

Tenacity & Paying It Forward 1)  Tenaciousness is a competency.  What are the behaviors that you have used (or developed) to keep up with the requirements of this course?  I think I have put in more effort than required for most of the assignments and blog posts and really started looking forward to reading feedback and seeing the blog develop. After the course I will probably try and make a personal blog to make a habit of explaining my ideas and interests. *Cough* 2)  Tenaciousness is also about attitude.  Talk 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? I had several moments before some of the interviews where I was unsure of how to start or what to do. The speaking to people was less of a problem than figuring out who to try and approach. I didn't want to bother any...

13A – Reading Reflection No. 1 I read The Wright Brothers by David McCullough. I love reading Biographies, and had a lot of fun with this one. It was a great story and as someone who has loved airplanes since I was a kid it was just very cool to get more context on the first flyer and everything it took to get there. 1) What surprised you the most? I had no idea that it took years after they first flew for it to be commonly accepted or that there was ever any doubt in their invention after the first success at Kitty Hawk. I had seen all the pictures they took of their tests and of the first flight so I would not have expected that they would be not trusted with so much evidence, but their reasons for keeping everything secret were valid.  What about the entrepreneur did you most admire? I was most impressed by the moment after their fist tests at Kitty Hawk when they realized that the total knowledge on aerodynamics made in history so far could only take th...

12A – Figuring Out Buyer Behavior No. 1 In previous posts I've been focusing on the group of people with size constraints for Zip Strip, and in those interviews I came across the idea of Zip Strip as an accessory to customize clothes for anyone. To explore this possibility I interviewed three people why customize their clothes and like adding smaller accessories and see if the Zip Strip would interest them. Interview #1: Zahriah, Student She liked to customize clothes, both for style and fitting. She especially liked personalization options that let her put her initials or name. Most of her customizing is done without a particular outfit in mind, but more to (literally) put her name on clothes and make them unique. She liked the idea of bright colorful Zip Strips to add to normal jackets. Thought that people would ask about it if they saw. Buys most of her clothes on line and liked that I planned to sell on a website.  She thought that the different options woul...

11A – Idea Napkin No. 1 1) Who I am: My name is Paul Radomski. I am a transfer sociology student at UF in the Innovation Academy program. This is my first semester and I am enjoying all of the experience so far. I am a transfer because I took two years off to volunteer after getting my AA degree in high school. In those two years I worked for AmeriCorps in the Grasses in Classes program. We taught thousands of kids each month a custom natural science curriculum to encourage future scientists and plant a local salt mash grass, additionally my AC program worked to restore dozens of acres of national parks and the coastline with the removal of invasive plants and the building of oyster reefs. After volunteering, I was hired by the Choctawhatchee Basin Alliance, the nonprofit that partnered with the Grasses in Classes program as their Education Technician to edit and create the GIC curriculum as well as train and manage the next group of AmeriCorps members. Additionally I have bee...