My Exit Strategy

1) The exit strategy that I would plan to make would be staying with the business for the next several decades and retiring. This could also lead to me passing on the business to family or selling it at the end of my decades long run.
2) I have chosen this particular exit strategy because this product is one that needs to be steered the right way, with the right intentions behind it. Rather than the intentions of juicing every single bit of the customer's wallet and taking advantage of the market. I want this venture to have a good connotation behind it. A connotation that shows the goodness behind what a service truly should be. Another reason for taking this exit strategy is the fact that if I were to let this company get bought out, the system would immediately revert back to what it is today. The system today takes advantage of the fact that it can be different monopolies. It also takes advantage of the customers by not giving them other choices and forcing them into packages. This is exactly what I am trying to change with my company, it needs to be steered in the right direction, and if I were to let it be bought out it would instantly revert back the current corrupt system.
3) This exit strategy certainly influenced how I looked at different aspects of the opportunity. In fact, the opportunity itself was identified by thinking about markets that need to be changed. I thought about the cable company market right now and how it needs to be changed in order to give rights back to the consumer. I think that a service is a lot about giving autonomy to the consumer and letting them come back because of what good service you have given them in the past. Rather than creating a monopoly that forces people. So I think that this exit strategy definitely influenced how I chose this opportunity. I would say that it influenced my intentions in a good way. My intentions are reverting a system back to what is right, rather than taking advantage of individuals. I think that these intentions are reflected by my exit strategy.

Making It Real

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1zMN8dJ73vOgqHbOHKrudDxXiN63cwe8BNwSc6QfaybQ/edit

Celebrating Failure

1) My midterm exam that I had for another class this semester is one that is constantly on my mind. I wouldn't exactly say that I failed it, I just really didn't do well on it. Not only did I not do well on it, I expected to do much better on it. I studied for a few days for this exam, and I felt pretty confident about it beforehand. Once I got to the exam, I was very confident on half of the exam, and the other half I wasn't so confident on. Part of this is my fault, and I have accepted this as my fault, yet it still bothers me. The other fault that I see in it is the fact that the professor didn't tell us that we didn't have to study for that part. He told us that the part in which I was confident in was going to be most of what was on the exam. He even told us not to study on some of the parts that were questioned on the exam. Regardless, he's not to blame, rather I just failed to study for part of it.
2) I learned that when studying I can even contact the professor and ask what I should expect to see on it. Looking for direction before an assignment or an exam is totally acceptable on the part of a student. I from now on will definitely be looking for direction to prior an exam or an assignment I am unsure of, with the professor. Plus, it never hurts to ask the professor for thoughts and expectations.
3) I think many ways about failure. Failure is very hard to accept. Failure is also one of those things that can be great for a person if they take everything they can from it. Failure can teach people to change something for the better. It can also make people learn from their mistakes. I think that learning from failure is one of the best aspects of it. I handle failure in different ways, it just the depends the caliber of failure. Sometimes failure just means that more work is needed. On the other hand, it can mean that you didn't do well on an exam and your final grade will suffer a lot from it. I always try to handle failure from the perspective that you can learn something from it. Each loss (failure) to me is just experience, and there should always be something that can be taken out of that loss that enhances you as an individual. I am definitely more likely to take a risk now than I was four months ago. Just because of the way that this class teaches us about how to deal with failure. The perspective of many people, including mine can be changed if people accept failure and learn to deal with it. If there is anything that this class has given me, it is the fact that I can accept failure and learn from it each time.

Venture Concept No. 1

The cable cutting group is a smart group, interested in saving money, and acquiring the best deal they can get for their money. This smart group of individuals present an opportunity, for which no one is currently filling the need of. Streaming services are fulfilling half of cable cutter's needs. Streaming services such as Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime are able to offer movies and shows at a monthly rate. These individuals have eliminated the basic cable packages that exist today, and successfully switched to streaming services. This is because the basic cable packages that exist within the current cable company system lock their customers to channels they don't want to watch. Customers are forced to buy  a certain amount of channels they don't want to watch. The market is defined equally throughout the United States, as cable companies are running a monopoly with the current system. These cable cutters are extremely loyal to their streaming services, as they are interested in attaining the best possible product they can get. This opportunity is on a world level, as it could potentially be the future of cable as a whole. The window of opportunity will most likely be open for the next few years as no news of major implementation has been announced. Although, action must be taken immediately if actively pursuing this opportunity, because it could be implemented rather quickly. Once implemented the target audience is very loyal and if a good company takes part, they could take a large amount of the available market share.

This target audience needs a cable system that allows autonomous action. In order to satisfy the target audience, the cable service itself must be changed. The innovation consists of creating a new form of cable that still runs on the same grid that is being used today. Meaning that all of the channels that are available right now, will stay, yet the system that is used to sell cable to customers will be changed. The system for this innovation allows the customers to choose what they want to watch. In general, the cable cutting movement has sparked cable customers throughout the United States to change to other alternatives. This is because the current cable system is outdated, not only by running a monopoly, but by locking its customers into packages that they don't want to have. For example, if I go to a cable company and want to have ESPN, I will be forced into a basic cable package. This basic cable package will have somewhere around 70 channels, yet I only want to watch one of those channels. The idea of having to pay for a basic cable package is just outdated. The innovation consists of letting the customer choose what they want to watch. Each month the customer can choose to change what they want to watch, by adding, dropping, or keeping channels. The customer would only pay for the channels that they choose for the month. So, if the customer only wants ESPN for the month, they can choose to just have that channel and pay $8 dollars. Customers can choose as many channels as they want, the goal is to give as much autonomy to the customers as possible.
There are a few additions to this basic concept that produce more revenue and publicity for the product. The first addition to this concept being the ability for customers to pay for live events. If a customer doesn't have a channel on which a live event that they want to watch is being played, they can stream that live event for a cost; without having to buy the channel as a whole. For example, if I want to watch the World Series on CBS, and I don't have that channel, I can choose to stream the whole series for a fee. The fees for streaming depend on each channel and the amount of streaming time. Along with live event streaming, pay-per-view services will be added. PPV events such as boxing, UFC, WWE, etc. can be streamed as other cable companies normally would. The second addition is the possibility of partnerships with streaming services. As this model of cable company resembles streaming services models such as Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon, it creates the potential for partnerships. A partnership with a streaming service could mean a few things for the company: more customers and publicity, possible applications for streaming and cable at the same time, and the possibility for content creation such as movies or tv shows.
The reasons customers would switch to this cable company would be for the freedom they have when choosing how they watch television, the cost benefits, and the potential partnerships that may exist with their current streaming services. The competitors for this venture concept are all of the cable companies not only in the United States but the world, as this could be adopted as the new model for cable in the future. The vulnerabilities to this venture concept are the barriers to entry into the market. Cable companies have a current monopoly over different regions in the United States, meaning that there must be a lot of capital available in order to start this venture. The role of price points and customer experience are certainly the most important, as they display what the company values are for this concept. Being a concept that gives freedom to its customers is at the core of the company.
This company will have its model that will make it hard for competitors to copy the success of it. It'll be too late before cable companies realize that this is the model of the future. The next opportunity for the venture is breaking into the market and tackling the initial barrier that exists. Finally, as an entrepreneur with this venture I would want to have a solid partnership with a streaming service, such as Netflix, not only creating content but making the world adopt this new cable service model. 

Elevator Pitch No. 3

1) Here is my third pitch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtHH-F-sSdk&feature=youtu.be

2) What stood out as important was a comment about trying to create a viable competitive model. I set out to look for changes or additions that I could make to create more revenue or a more appealing product. The addition that I made was adding the ability to stream live events.

3) I didn't change this based on feedback, but more based on what I have been thinking about my venture lately. I wanted to figure out more ways that my venture could make more revenue. I came up with the idea of adding live events. If individuals don't have a channel that they want to watch one night for a live event, they can stream that live event on that channel for a fee. This allows customers to choose an event they want to watch one night, rather than being locked into a channel for the rest of the month.

My Unfair Advantage

The opportunity that I have identified consists of creating a cable company like no other. I believe that I have a few resources that could make my venture special, here they are:

1) Management Skills:

Valuable: yes.
Rare: somewhat.
Inimitable: not after the correct work experience.
Non-Substitutable: first hand experience is best for management skills.

2) Knowledge of the current cable system:

Valuable: yes.
Rare: decently rare.
Inimitable: imitable if researched as long as I have for this opportunity.
Non-Substitutable: no substitutes.

3) Understanding how millennials work:

Valuable: yes.
Rare: somewhat rare.
Inimitable: no.
Non-Substitutable: no substitutes.

4) Entrepreneurial knowledge from this class:

Valuable: yes.
Rare: only if going to UF
Inimitable: taking this type of class at another school.
Non-Substitutable: long time, real world knowledge.

5) Knowledge to establish a good business plan and model:

Valuable: yes.
Rare: yes.
Inimitable: somewhat, but must be well researched and thought out.
Non-Substitutable: hiring someone to take charge of this aspect of a business.

6) Being punctual:

Valuable: yes.
Rare: punctuality seems to be becoming rarer, so I would say yes.
Inimitable: can be imitated, but must be done correctly.
Non-Substitutable: no substitutes.

7) Bilingual in English and Spanish:

Valuable: very.
Rare: somewhat rare.
Inimitable: can be imitated.
Non-Substitutable: other languages can be substitutes.

8) Leadership skills:

Valuable: yes.
Rare: somewhat - can work differently for each field.
Inimitable: can be imitated, but would only work to a certain extent.
Non-Substitutable: no substitutes.

9) Multiple connections within the cable industry:

Valuable: very.
Rare: somewhat rare.
Inimitable: can have other connections within the industry.
Non-Substitutable: having stronger connections within the industry, or other powerful connections.

10) Work ethic:

Valuable: very.
Rare: depending which population is being analyzed, can be rare.
Inimitable: not really imitable, must be willing to work in order to have this.
Non-Substitutable: no substitutes.

I would say that my top resource is the multiple connections within the cable industry. The exercise from last week enhanced this and took it to a new level. I think this is more important to my venture, more than the other resources I listed because it allows me to pool knowledge from different sources. It also gives me the opportunity to have these individuals work together with me in my venture. This is important for my venture because of the multiple opportunities that it creates.

Amazon Whisperer

Revenue Drivers:

• Cable service
• Partnerships with streaming services
• Advertising revenue

I believe the next thing that my customers want is the ability to stream a live event. For example, if a customer wants to watch the World Series, which is on ABC, and they don't have ABC. They can choose to stream the World Series for that night. 

This enhances multiple aspects in the business because not only does it improve user experience, it increases the likelihood of a customer switching from a cable company to my cable company, and it fosters customer loyalty. It fosters customer loyalty because my service allows the customer to do more than they had already done with their previous cable service.

There is nothing on Amazon that is remotely close to my idea. Other than the fact that they have a streaming service associated with Amazon Prime, you can't sell what I'm trying to offer on Amazon, at least not yet. 

Growing My Social Capital

1)

• AT&T high ranking employee. 
• Fills in the domain expert slot. He fills in this slot by being involved in the same kind of company I would like to own, just with a different model. He knows a lot about the kind of product/service that I would like to offer. 
• This is my father's friend, I asked my father if he knew anyone in the industry within cable or streaming services. I was able to contact him through the phone. 
• The nature of the exchange was very quick as he was currently at work on his break. Through the phone I was able to ask him about what he thought about my idea. He thought it was a great idea but like I have mentioned before, he thought it would have some initial barriers to break into the business. Mainly because of the big businesses blocking out the smaller ones. 
• Including this person in my in my network will enhance my ability to exploit the opportunity because he could serve as a mentor. He could even transition into my company as an executive. 

2)

• Previous Netflix employee. 
• Fills in the expert in market slot. He fills this slot by having been involved in the streaming industry. He knows how to target the market that I am looking at. He definitely knows about conducting customer research in my area as well. 
• I found this person because my brother is friends with him. My brother works in the tech industry so he knows many people within this part of technology. I was able to contact him through the phone.
• The nature of the exchange that I had with him was very informative about what a streaming service like Netflix operates under. He told me about how a partnership would have to work and that he previously didn't know of anything that they do like what I'm proposing. He was also able to tell me that to get the attention of any executive at Netflix, I would have to bring in numbers and be desired by their specific target audience. 
• Including him in my network will enhance my ability to exploit an opportunity because first, he knows the market. Secondly, he told me that I can contact him again regarding this opportunity if I had any questions. Lastly, he will be able to let me know how the company that I want to partner with works, before I would even try to have talks with them.

3)

• Current cable company employee. 
• Fills in the supplier in my industry role. He fills this slot by currently working as the supplier of cable for people. He is involved in selling product and installing services in my industry. He works asa regional employee for a cable company. 
• I found this person because he is a family friend. I contacted him through the phone.
• The nature of the exchange that I had with him was short because it was during work hours, and I assume that he had more to get done than being interviewed by me. He definitely told me about how cable companies work and how they run on the grid. He explained to me how the suppliers of cable are able to keep the cable company system. This helps me understand how I would have to set up my cable company. 
• Including this person in my network will enhance my ability to exploit my opportunity because I could first, bring him on the company if I need help with establishing my system. Secondly, he can teach me about the grid that I didn't know much about beforehand. 

This experience shaped how I will participate in any future networking events by understanding how to talk to people about something you're venturing into. Even though I may not venture into my opportunity, it will help me understand how to talk to people about something that I may genuinely be interested in starting. It would help establish connections to bring people on board with your idea, or networking with them for ideas. It definitely differed from networking experiences in the past. My past networking experiences have all been business related or internship related. This was more of an inquiring and learning experience. It was cool to see how people in a field can teach you about it. 

Idea Napkin No.2

1) I am a Sport Management major heading into my final semester this fall. My talents and knowledge are centered around sports, management, building operations, and customer service. I have experience in various fields such as: building operations, baseball operations, and management. 

2) I'm offering a cable service that runs as an independent company on the current cable grid. I believe that this model will be the model for cable companies in the future. The unmet need here is the fact cable companies force people into both contracts and minimum packages. My idea to fix the unmet need is similar to a streaming service. The company model will be set on letting the customers choose what they want to watch on a monthly basis, just like a subscription. The company can also have partnerships with streaming services such as Netflix and Hulu. These partnerships would include the service and access to the application through the cable company, offering versatility. 

3) The demographic that I am offering this product to are cable cutters. These cable cutters tend to be younger adults that are attempting to save money by not having to pay for cable. Thus, they "cut cable" and switch to streaming services. This demographic isn't limited to young adults, but it is certainly made up of mainly young adults. All of the customers have in common the fact that they want to save money, and watch good television. The cable service allows for this by allowing them to switch monthly from having all the channels they want to having none for a month.

4) Customers care about this because they don't want to buy into the system and monopoly that currently exists with cable companies. People will actually pay money for this because they would be saving money instead of paying for a package from other cable companies. They will also pay for it because they know they will use it. If a customer decides to get ESPN for the month, it is because they want to have ESPN, and are going to be watching it. When they pay for a basic cable package to watch ESPN, they also get 60 other channels with it that they probably won't be watching, yet they have to pay for it. And lastly, customers won't feel locked in with this sort of service, they will feel the same way about cable as they do with streaming services such as Netflix and Hulu. 

5) What sets this cable company model apart is the fact that it is willing to accept a loss of money in exchange to gain market share for the later years when this model eventually gets adopted. While other companies will be forcing individuals to buy into their basic cable packages, and this cable company will be gaining market share for the future with those customers leaving the current system. The cable company could choose to make more by abiding to the current system that exists in cable, but it is about doing the right thing, and putting the customer first. This company will already have experience and partnerships with streaming services down the road, when other cable companies are forced to get their feet in the water with my proposed system. The company is about setting up a great long term goal of having more market share by providing a fair service. 

These elements I've proposed fit together. The tough part about these elements fitting together is establishing the company. To gain market share in the current cable system, some serious capital would be needed. The monopolies that currently exist within the cable company system would try to create roadblocks for this sort of system to break through in the business. But, once those roadblocks are broken, it is just a matter of setting the correct marketing strategy and tactics to gain the correct market share. Eventually, when some market share is gained, partnerships with streaming services would begin. These partnerships would create word of mouth for the correct target audience with services such as Netflix or Hulu. Overall, the synergy is there for these elements, and the company must know the roadblocks will be there before breaking through into the market. 

Reading Reflection No.2

For my second reading reflection I read "How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big" by Scott Adams. This book was awesome and it is basically a mix of a lot of things that a successful person may learn over their lifetime.

1) One of the major themes of this book is highlighted by Scott's independent thinking. This book is about challenging conventional wisdom in the world. This book stresses the fact that success doesn't come overnight. According to Scott, success is the product of continued experimentation and staying on that trail of experimentation.

2) The book enhanced so many characteristics of my entrepreneurial mindset. There were so many concepts that connected to multiple subjects the course covers. One of the concepts of accepting failure really connected with me because it's something I've learned in the course. Entrepreneurs will go through failure, but it's how they learn from those failures that makes them successful. The book and the course cover this very well, so it enhanced the way to accept this concept.

3) I think the exercise that I would design would be called "goals vs systems." This book stresses the fact that people with goals aren't happy until they achieve those goals. While individuals with systems are always happy as long as they are following the system. For example, an individual trying to lose 15 pounds, will only be happy once they lose the 15 pounds. While an individual with a system of just losing weight, will be happy as long as he is following the system. The results will come with systems, and happiness will stay at a constant. The exercise for the class would be to change one goal in their entrepreneurial mindset to be a system.

4) Honestly the thing that most surprised me when reading the book was how his mindset differed from mine with some things. I really liked when he talked about goals vs systems. I was also surprised at his logical approach to business and life. It changed the way I think about working. The concept of knowing when to quit was very powerful.

Elevator Pitch No. 2

1) Here is my second pitch:
https://youtu.be/MnVjpoM81Nc

2) The feedback that most stood out to me really was establishing the company as an independent company, rather than an already established cable company switching to the new model. I liked the feedback that was given about the advertisement that could exist within the new model for this cable company. I also liked the feedback about the partnerships that could exist within the company with something like Netflix or Hulu.

3) I changed the company model based on the feedback. Now the company will be an independent company that is being established on the cable company grid system, rather than an already established cable company that is switching to my model.

Thanks for the feedback.