The Twenty Percent

For this project I spoke to an entrepreneur who creates custom dresses for girls and original keepsakes for weddings, etc. I have long admired her work; her creations are absolutely gorgeous and amazing. Not only that, there is obviously a lot of love and pride put into her work. Here is the answers she gave to the questions asked:

Who are your target customers? Weddings and people with children.

Where do you find your customers? Etsy

What are your customer's demographics? Woman with children and brides to be

What kinds of media do your customers consume? Mobile apps

What are your customers' problems? Receiving items on time. Typically delayed shipping causes a lot of trouble for me with them.

What are your customers currently doing to fix their problems? Learning from experience by ordering earlier.

How big, on a scale of 1-10, is this problem in your customers' lives? 10 for the ones experiencing the delay. Added stress, especially for brides to be.

Do your customers have a budget allocated to fix this problem? They could order rush, but choose to chance it to save money.

As for “potential” customers, I spoke to a bride and two moms. I asked specifically about ordering customized items. Two said they had used Etsy before to order customized items. The third cited the higher cost of many Etsy items as a reason not to use it. Shipping was brought up as an issue by all three, both the cost and time. When asked about media, Apps were in the list, but so were Netflix shows and lots of kid’s cartoons (little wonder with two moms).

I felt like Brooke has an excellent grasp on her customers and their needs. While one potential customer said Etsy items cost too much, that is not a customer Brooke would have ever had anyways. The other two would happily purchase from Brooke for their customized needs. Following Brooke myself, I know she is constantly seeking feedback from her customers and from friends and family to improve what she offers, prices and service.

Week 8 Reading Reflection

1) What was the biggest surprise for you in the reading? In other words, what did you read that stood out the most as different from your expectations? 

I have heard about crowdfunding sites before, but it was interesting to learn about them a little more in depth.

2) Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing to you.

I did not find the readings confusing.

3) If you were able to ask two questions to the author, what would you ask? Why?

How much risk should an entrepreneur be willing to take as far as self-funding an idea?

How can one best decide how much stake in the company to give a venture capitalist?

4) Was there anything you think the author was wrong about? Where do you disagree with what she or he said? How?

I don’t think there is anything they were wrong about.

Half-way Reflection

1) Tenaciousness is a skill. During this course I have really had to learn to get over myself. What I mean by this is that I cannot allow my own negative ideas of myself to hold me back from achieving what I put my mind to. I actually skipped doing the second week of interviews because I was too nervous to talk to anyone (the week before I was at Mardi Gras where everyone talk to strangers). I have regretted not doing the assignment ever since, not for the points I missed, but because of the experience I missed out on.
2) Tenaciousness is also about attitude. After skipping the second week of interviews, I wondered how I would continue in this class if I could not get the guts to go and talk to strangers. After all, I could only skip so many assignments and still get a decent grade. Talking to my biggest supporter, my fiancé, about my issues helped. He helped to refocus me and remind me about seeking to reach my goals. When I did the third interviews we stood nearby (inconspicuously) for support, and that helped. Then when free money came along I did it on my own without too much anxiety. I have always been tenacious, or I would not be pursuing a degree now, but this has forced me further out of my comfort zone and increased my tenacious attitude.
3) Three tips. 1) Get a support system that will hold you accountable. Make sure they know what assignments you have, and they hold you accountable to complete them. 2) Follow Pro. Pryor’s established plan; it works if you work it. 3) Forget what others are thinking of you and keep your goal in site.