Wednesday, March 30, 2016
Tuesday, March 29, 2016
Venture concept no. 1
Opportunity
Born of the need for fun places to bring children under five, 1, 2, 3 Play is intended to help parents and their babies, toddlers and Pre-K'ers by providing a safe, stimulating and weather-proof environment. Florida is gifted with beautiful weather year round; we have very few cold days. However, we have a long rainy season, particularly in the Tampa Bay area where storms frequently come in over the water, and when it rains, parents lack options for indoor fun. We are either forced to create indoor activities at home, which only amuses the kids for so long, or to go to the same few crowded places (i.e. the mall, the aquarium) over and over again.Parents want more options. 1, 2, 3 Play is an indoor facility with over 100 exhibits to keep kids busy. There are more than 100,000 children under the age of five in the Tampa Bay area with many more who flow through because of tourism. It's hard to say how long the window of opportunity will be open for a facility like 1, 2, 3 Play, but as of now, there just isn't a place to support parents of young (<5) children and their play.
Innovation
1, 2, 3 Play is inherently innovative. Other businesses and nonprofits have targeted older children, but no one has gone after the Pre-K and under crowd yet. Developmentally, they have different needs. I think there is a general consensus that children under five can derive value or have fun with activities and displays created for older children whereas older children cannot engage with something designated for younger children--"that's baby stuff"--so in order to capture the most people possible, places have aimed for the elementary and older market and assumed those parents will bring their younger children along, parents of younger children have no other options so they'll test it out and possibly add it to their rotations and overall, they'll end up capturing the entire market.There is a large enough market to focus on children under five and their caretakers. Local businesses centered around moms and babies, like stroller exercise classes, are thriving because stay at home parents have the need to get out and participate in activities with their children. If you have children, especially if you've stayed home with them for any length of time, you know you have to get out in order to stay sane. Creating routines is key to happiness. I used to go to the library for story time on Wednesday, a mommy group Tuesday mornings and strollga Fridays--there was never enough to fill our schedule. We would go to the zoo, aquarium, mall, Grandma's, play dates and I still craved a place I could safely put my baby down, let him crawl, play, socialize.
Only $5 for a day pass means it will be affordable for most people to go to 1, 2, 3 Play. You pay per child rather than per adult; I know I've been irked by paying $50 for myself and another adult then an additional $15 for my child for something only my child will get any value out of. Rather than incorporating an annual option right off the bat, I would like to test the market for 3-6 months. I tend to think a family pass for $125 would be on target, but I'm not sure yet. I would really like feedback on the pricing!
Venture Concept
Well, I don't want to be redundant, and I think I've explained how 1, 2, 3 Play will meet the needs of my customers. Parents need places to bring their littles. I want to provide a place that not only meets but exceeds their expectations. 1, 2, 3 Play will have activities that cater to all the developmental needs of children under five, like a "farm" where they can harvest crops, tend to animals and drive tractors and a touch wall of different textures.I can't divulge all the company secrets, but all aspects of the business have been designed with kids in mind and would be reviewed by child development professionals. There is no direct competitor. The closest businesses would be Great Explorations and the Glazer Kid's Museum, neither of which is geared toward children under five and largely lack incentives for the age group I'm focused on. In order to foster loyalty, customer experience is my top priority.
As a parent, the best experience, for me, means it isn't too crowded, there aren't much older children running my child over while he tries to play and everything is clean and SAFE. If I have to walk around patrolling my son(s) because I can't trust my surroundings, that diminishes the value of the experience for me. I would limit capacity, though I think it would take a little time to figure out how many people is too many people in the space. The biggest trouble with the crowd-limiting concept is whether to look at the number of children, the number of adults or both. A gradual roll out, rather than over-marketing, would help curb the crowds. Promotions would take place during the week rather than on weekends, which would be peak times. Would some customers complain about discounts being during the week when they're working? Perhaps. But I don't foresee that being a sticking point for people, meaning I think those patrons would still come to 1, 2, 3 Play.
The roles available in the business are many, but due to lack of capital, hiring would be modest at first. Admissions, janitorial staff, employees who supervise play are all necessary.
And the fine details
Is there a secret sauce? I think 1, 2, 3 Play would be hard to replicate primarily because of a high barrier to entry. For those who lack the passion and are strictly looking at the venture from a business perspective, it doesn't look like the biggest profit margins are here. After securing a building through either purchase or lease, everything has to be outfitted and people have to be hired--there's a high set-up cost. A business-minded person would then feel it necessary to have a blow out opening with a goal of filling the place with customers. The problem with that strategy is that customer experience would suffer, leaving people with the first impression that 1, 2, 3 Play is too packed and chaotic to enjoy.As I mentioned in my Amazon whisperer post, the next move for me would be to incorporate food service into my business model. After that, I would build out an exterior play yard, provided I had the space and financing. And then? Well, as much as I love the business, I would sell it and find my next love, the next unmet need I can help provide.
Booby traps?
I may have fallen into some of the booby traps described by Dr. Pryor in the write up guide, but I like to think I've written this concept in a way that's easily readable and digestible. I would be happy to listen to any suggestions for the future and can't wait to see what others have done with their concepts. Leave a link to your post...with your constructive feedback, of course. I'm planning to read more than my allotted share of these this week so I'll be searching the blogroll for concepts to comment on.Sunday, March 27, 2016
You, too, can be an Amazon whisperer
1, 2, 3 Play is an indoor interactive play zone for children under five. What drives revenue? Simple. Admission is where the majority of the business's revenue comes from, but what if we expand that pool? I realize our goal this week is to come up with the next product offering but what my customers want next is on-site, healthy dining. Well, on-site, affordable, healthy dining.
As a parent, I run into this problem all the time: we're out playing some place and need to eat more than the snacks that I've brought. If there isn't a snack stand/food truck/restaurant, or worse, if everything is gross and/or ridiculously expensive, we have to leave, and it's often too much of a hassle to go back, which means we spend the rest of the day at home or running errands. The kids miss out on additional play time they could have had.
Adding a quick service restaurant to 1, 2, 3 Play would drive revenue, but more importantly it would solve a problem for customers. Although I can't compare my business or new addition to anything on Amazon, I can relate it to dining at the aquarium, zoo and current kid's museum. I've found there is an emphasis on accessible food (peanut butter and jelly, chicken tenders, fries, yogurt), which is great, but quality is lacking in hot items/items prepared on-site. I think given my current business model, it would make sense to bring in a local restaurant, but because I want to maintain full control of the restaurant and offer a variety of options, it would be delicate to have a sponsor/restaurant partner. Bringing in some juice from SoHo Juice Co. and getting other products similarly represented would be a great compromise.
In case you're the kind of person who likes sifting through Yelp reviews, you can check out the Lowry Park Zoo's and Florida Aquarium's. You'll note most people who mention food simply say it's overpriced, but as someone who has eaten her way around all their respective food offerings, I'll add that the zoo over-seasons just about everything--inedibly so--and, as I said, the quality is lower than what I would like to offer. I realize I won't have a high enough volume to benefit from economies of scope, but I feel responsible to present something to my customers that I would happily accept myself as a customer.
1, 2, 3 Eat - the next step in customer happiness.
As a parent, I run into this problem all the time: we're out playing some place and need to eat more than the snacks that I've brought. If there isn't a snack stand/food truck/restaurant, or worse, if everything is gross and/or ridiculously expensive, we have to leave, and it's often too much of a hassle to go back, which means we spend the rest of the day at home or running errands. The kids miss out on additional play time they could have had.
Adding a quick service restaurant to 1, 2, 3 Play would drive revenue, but more importantly it would solve a problem for customers. Although I can't compare my business or new addition to anything on Amazon, I can relate it to dining at the aquarium, zoo and current kid's museum. I've found there is an emphasis on accessible food (peanut butter and jelly, chicken tenders, fries, yogurt), which is great, but quality is lacking in hot items/items prepared on-site. I think given my current business model, it would make sense to bring in a local restaurant, but because I want to maintain full control of the restaurant and offer a variety of options, it would be delicate to have a sponsor/restaurant partner. Bringing in some juice from SoHo Juice Co. and getting other products similarly represented would be a great compromise.
In case you're the kind of person who likes sifting through Yelp reviews, you can check out the Lowry Park Zoo's and Florida Aquarium's. You'll note most people who mention food simply say it's overpriced, but as someone who has eaten her way around all their respective food offerings, I'll add that the zoo over-seasons just about everything--inedibly so--and, as I said, the quality is lower than what I would like to offer. I realize I won't have a high enough volume to benefit from economies of scope, but I feel responsible to present something to my customers that I would happily accept myself as a customer.
1, 2, 3 Eat - the next step in customer happiness.
Tuesday, March 22, 2016
Week 11: reading reflection
First, a link! You, too, can read this week's reading without the hassle of off-campus proxy.
I'm enrolled in GEB3373 International Business this semester with Dr. Amanda Phalin, and the Capsim business simulation is kicking my team's ass. I mean really burying us. What happened? We performed reasonably well in the practice rounds, and it looked like we were poised to capture a fair market share in competition. Our stock plummeted to $1.00, if that helps paint a picture.
Innovation strategy is what happened, a lack thereof. We were swimming in the performance pond but failed to present a product that delivered the speed and accuracy those customers need. We're still struggling with innovation, and as CFO, it's causing crazy anxiety for me. We're sinking, still failing to pinpoint what our customers care about and how to meet their needs.
Like Polaroid or Kodak, we aren't adapting fast enough, and if we can't catch up to our competitors, we'll be dead in the water.
And this week's reading dovetails perfectly with our Capsim disaster. Corning's strategy has notes of what we've been working on, namely avoiding outsourcing, but let's move away from my troubles.
My biggest confusion this week is about the author's examples, which all seem rocky. Is there solid proof, or is every business's strategy a 50/50 shot at success? Corning, for example, has had success and failure over the years with their strategy so is the goal simply to have more successes than failures?
The reading also touches on VRIN; where there is a valuable process/good/service, imitators will appear.
I'm a little confused about the notion that routine innovation is suicidal, but I think that is based on a humdrum "okay, let's keep innovating without a clear goal or strategy" scenario rather than a sincere desire to continue to progress.
There is no one magic answer, I get that, but bringing that note to a discussion of crowdsourcing? Crowdsourcing is innovative, I suppose, and it does demonstrate the trade-offs the author is trying to explain, but it's a whole separate issue I would have left out of this article. Then again, maybe I'm wrongly hating on Pisano because of my bias against wishy-washy.
What do you think? Gary Pisano doesn't say anything I can clearly call out as wrong. Can you find a loose thread? Do you agree "You Need an Innovation Strategy" isn't particularly innovative?
Give me your words below!
I'm enrolled in GEB3373 International Business this semester with Dr. Amanda Phalin, and the Capsim business simulation is kicking my team's ass. I mean really burying us. What happened? We performed reasonably well in the practice rounds, and it looked like we were poised to capture a fair market share in competition. Our stock plummeted to $1.00, if that helps paint a picture.
Innovation strategy is what happened, a lack thereof. We were swimming in the performance pond but failed to present a product that delivered the speed and accuracy those customers need. We're still struggling with innovation, and as CFO, it's causing crazy anxiety for me. We're sinking, still failing to pinpoint what our customers care about and how to meet their needs.
Like Polaroid or Kodak, we aren't adapting fast enough, and if we can't catch up to our competitors, we'll be dead in the water.
And this week's reading dovetails perfectly with our Capsim disaster. Corning's strategy has notes of what we've been working on, namely avoiding outsourcing, but let's move away from my troubles.
My biggest confusion this week is about the author's examples, which all seem rocky. Is there solid proof, or is every business's strategy a 50/50 shot at success? Corning, for example, has had success and failure over the years with their strategy so is the goal simply to have more successes than failures?
The reading also touches on VRIN; where there is a valuable process/good/service, imitators will appear.
I'm a little confused about the notion that routine innovation is suicidal, but I think that is based on a humdrum "okay, let's keep innovating without a clear goal or strategy" scenario rather than a sincere desire to continue to progress.
There is no one magic answer, I get that, but bringing that note to a discussion of crowdsourcing? Crowdsourcing is innovative, I suppose, and it does demonstrate the trade-offs the author is trying to explain, but it's a whole separate issue I would have left out of this article. Then again, maybe I'm wrongly hating on Pisano because of my bias against wishy-washy.
What do you think? Gary Pisano doesn't say anything I can clearly call out as wrong. Can you find a loose thread? Do you agree "You Need an Innovation Strategy" isn't particularly innovative?
Give me your words below!
Monday, March 21, 2016
My unfair advantage; or, ha, HA!
The
Livia Soprano GIF "What makes you think you're so special?
It's all a big nothing." That's me. It's not that I'm rolling
around casting negativity over everyone but rather encouraging those close
enough to share their work woes to push harder and find something meaningful to
do. Someone I've known for nearly ten years was recently expressing futility
and disappointment about their job being a glorified salesperson of
poison--their words, not mine--and I've heard what feels like the same story
over and over from nearly everyone I know.
The unfair advantage of starting your own business has to be choosing something you believe in. Unfortunately this isn't the kind of post I can end with my simple, prophetic answer. I have to show my work.
THUS
My unfair advantage isn't one of the aforementioned resources, it's a lethal combination of all of them. I have the experience of being a mother with kids who can test 1, 2, 3 Play as well as a sister with kids who can test the facility and a mother who is a pediatric nurse with specific knowledge of childhood development and countless resources across the board in early childhood education, community resources and local government. I'm working on a degree in business and have that background but I also have the insight of a former liberal arts student who took courses in design and visual aesthetics.
As a Realtor, I not only have knowledge of local markets and prices, I have the network to consult. Although they seem silly to list, common sense and organizational skills help when building and creating from the ground up. I have collateral I could use to secure a business loan, and with the combination of business knowledge, experience, common sense and organization, I could also write the business plan to present to lenders
In short, it's the whole, not one individual part, that gives me an unfair advantage.
The unfair advantage of starting your own business has to be choosing something you believe in. Unfortunately this isn't the kind of post I can end with my simple, prophetic answer. I have to show my work.
THUS
Here's
a list of ten resources I have to put in to 1, 2, 3 Play:
1) Mother - Being a mother is not inherently rare, but I am the only one to give birth to my children and raise them in our unique circumstances. As such the experience is extremely valuable and inimitable. I don't like to think about a substitute; if I die, their lives will go on, but they will only ever have one mother.
2) Realtor - Again, the simple fact of being a Realtor isn't rare--there are 1,150,141 Realtors--but the service I offer my clients is unique to me. I am the only me with my own perspective and insights. Woot woot. Is it valuable? In terms of this venture, yes. Is it imitable? Maybe, if someone tried awfully hard. I can't refute substitutability. My clients could go out and find a passable agent that would get the job done.
3) Community connections - I like to wander into small businesses. I'm addicted to SoHo Juice, for example. My connections are authentic, or I like to think they are, and I know there are people with larger networks, but I don't think they're as in tune as I am. VRIN score = 0, Real life score = invaluable
4) Design knowledge - Valuable, yes, rare, no, inimitable, no, non-substitutable, no. I still view my design knowledge as a strong asset because I could save money on building and exhibit design costs, but other people, particularly those with more financial capital, could be on par or better than me with respect to sick design.
5) Education - I'm about to become repetitive. Yes, there are millions of other people out there with college educations. I guarantee you there aren't many people who have taken the path I have taken and have the Renaissance, inter-disciplinary background I have. My education is valuable--I've defended that time and again--it isn't rare or inimitable, though no one would want to traverse the rocky road I've left behind, and the jury is out as to whether it's non-substitutable. Many would argue there are substitutes for education, namely experience, but I'm not sure I agree.
6) Kids - Let me be clear, my kids have a perfect VRIN score. The service they would provide to 1, 2, 3 Play as testers does not. It is valuable to have my littles, and my friends' littles, to run around and provide feedback about what works and what doesn't, but there are thousands of other small children I could rally to try 1, 2, 3 Play so they aren't rare or inimitable or non-substitutable. What my boys say and do, however, is all of those things. Kids are awesome.
7) Organizational skills - My organizational skills are a product of military upbringing, teachers stressing planner use and my severe, Type A personality. I crave planning. Crossing chores/events/assignments off my list brings me great satisfaction. I bet one of you reading this is thinking, "me too!" Organizational skills are valuable but strike out on RIN.
8) Support system - I want to defend my support system; they're one-of-a-kind. One of the best things about them is something that may sound odd: they question EVERYTHING. They would not following me into a dark, murky swamp at two in the morning. They would collectively put a stop to my shenanigans until all inquiries are answered. Their feedback and support is valuable, rare, inimitable and non-substitutable. Our relationships wouldn't be what they are if we hadn't spent our formative years together.
9) Financial leverage - Any schmuck can come up with financial capital so is financial leverage valuable, sure, but it isn't rare, inimitable and non-substitutable unless I'm looking to argue semantics (and I'm not).
10) Common sense - I've been told recently that common sense is rare and valuable. It isn't an inimitable or non-substitutable resource, but there is something to be said for this underappreciated advantage.
1) Mother - Being a mother is not inherently rare, but I am the only one to give birth to my children and raise them in our unique circumstances. As such the experience is extremely valuable and inimitable. I don't like to think about a substitute; if I die, their lives will go on, but they will only ever have one mother.
2) Realtor - Again, the simple fact of being a Realtor isn't rare--there are 1,150,141 Realtors--but the service I offer my clients is unique to me. I am the only me with my own perspective and insights. Woot woot. Is it valuable? In terms of this venture, yes. Is it imitable? Maybe, if someone tried awfully hard. I can't refute substitutability. My clients could go out and find a passable agent that would get the job done.
3) Community connections - I like to wander into small businesses. I'm addicted to SoHo Juice, for example. My connections are authentic, or I like to think they are, and I know there are people with larger networks, but I don't think they're as in tune as I am. VRIN score = 0, Real life score = invaluable
4) Design knowledge - Valuable, yes, rare, no, inimitable, no, non-substitutable, no. I still view my design knowledge as a strong asset because I could save money on building and exhibit design costs, but other people, particularly those with more financial capital, could be on par or better than me with respect to sick design.
5) Education - I'm about to become repetitive. Yes, there are millions of other people out there with college educations. I guarantee you there aren't many people who have taken the path I have taken and have the Renaissance, inter-disciplinary background I have. My education is valuable--I've defended that time and again--it isn't rare or inimitable, though no one would want to traverse the rocky road I've left behind, and the jury is out as to whether it's non-substitutable. Many would argue there are substitutes for education, namely experience, but I'm not sure I agree.
6) Kids - Let me be clear, my kids have a perfect VRIN score. The service they would provide to 1, 2, 3 Play as testers does not. It is valuable to have my littles, and my friends' littles, to run around and provide feedback about what works and what doesn't, but there are thousands of other small children I could rally to try 1, 2, 3 Play so they aren't rare or inimitable or non-substitutable. What my boys say and do, however, is all of those things. Kids are awesome.
7) Organizational skills - My organizational skills are a product of military upbringing, teachers stressing planner use and my severe, Type A personality. I crave planning. Crossing chores/events/assignments off my list brings me great satisfaction. I bet one of you reading this is thinking, "me too!" Organizational skills are valuable but strike out on RIN.
8) Support system - I want to defend my support system; they're one-of-a-kind. One of the best things about them is something that may sound odd: they question EVERYTHING. They would not following me into a dark, murky swamp at two in the morning. They would collectively put a stop to my shenanigans until all inquiries are answered. Their feedback and support is valuable, rare, inimitable and non-substitutable. Our relationships wouldn't be what they are if we hadn't spent our formative years together.
9) Financial leverage - Any schmuck can come up with financial capital so is financial leverage valuable, sure, but it isn't rare, inimitable and non-substitutable unless I'm looking to argue semantics (and I'm not).
10) Common sense - I've been told recently that common sense is rare and valuable. It isn't an inimitable or non-substitutable resource, but there is something to be said for this underappreciated advantage.
My unfair advantage isn't one of the aforementioned resources, it's a lethal combination of all of them. I have the experience of being a mother with kids who can test 1, 2, 3 Play as well as a sister with kids who can test the facility and a mother who is a pediatric nurse with specific knowledge of childhood development and countless resources across the board in early childhood education, community resources and local government. I'm working on a degree in business and have that background but I also have the insight of a former liberal arts student who took courses in design and visual aesthetics.
As a Realtor, I not only have knowledge of local markets and prices, I have the network to consult. Although they seem silly to list, common sense and organizational skills help when building and creating from the ground up. I have collateral I could use to secure a business loan, and with the combination of business knowledge, experience, common sense and organization, I could also write the business plan to present to lenders
In short, it's the whole, not one individual part, that gives me an unfair advantage.
Sunday, March 20, 2016
Growing my social capital
The lowdown
This is where I deviate from the plan. Normally, I wouldn't be anxious about veering off course--it's kind of my M.O.--but with the zero-tolerance policy, and somewhat mixed messages about whether we can use different activities for different concepts, I feel like I'm stepping out onto wobbly rocks in molten lava...that's redundant, but I was going for parallelism, and most of the applicable adjectives I could stick on "lava" are redundant. Hot lava, molten lava. #formerlitmajorproblems
Anyway, opportunity presented itself in the form of two monthly networking events, and I knew I could exploit this exercise and make valuable business connections. So I did. I think the successful real life application justifies my temporarily stepping out on 1, 2, 3 Play.
Background information: I'm a Realtor and a member of the National Association of Realtors (NAR), Florida Association of Realtors (FAR) and Pinellas Realtor Organization (PRO), the last of which hosts a number of events and classes each month. There is every opportunity to connect with people in the business, and I make every excuse to avoid networking. For the longest time--as long as I've been in the business--I've known about the monthly marketing session, with other Realtors and affiliates, and PRO Connect, which is a happy hour, informal, chillaxing social. It just so happens both of the aforementioned events fell on the Tuesday before this assignment was due. Score!
But the actual players I'm using here are people I was introduced to through other connections. I'll talk about that more later.
The players
1) Bill Wall, Broker-in-Charge at The Property Shop (Domain Expert)
In real estate, in Florida at least, you start out as a sales associate (Realtor) and can progress to Broker through additional experience and education. I have been asked over and over whether I'm going to pursue becoming a broker and the thought terrifies me. Enter Bill. All Realtors work under a Broker, and I have a relationship with my Broker, Mark Schmitz. He's always at my disposal. Still, it's nice to have an outsider whose brain I haven't picked yet. I referred a listing to Bill--you can check it out here--and so our relationship has a separate cadence from my relationship with my Broker.
To break it down to basics, I called him one day out of the blue and asked if he wanted a referral. I'd never given a referral before so I wasn't sure what the proper etiquette would be. Have you seen Superbad? How things went down somewhat resembled how Jonah Hill is with Emma Stone. Or maybe it was more like Michael Cera and his ladylove Becca. At any rate, I nervously asked if he wanted a referral, he asked what, I loudly, quickly blurted out "DO YOU WANT A REFERRAL LISTING?" To which he replied yes, and I went silent. With referrals, the referring agent (me) receives a fee for the referral if the other agent gets the listing and it sells. There's associated paperwork. So there I was on the line with Bill, him asking, "well, what's the listing?" and I was unsure whether to just tell him the address and sellers or make him sign papers first.
I trusted Bill would follow-through and gave him all the information. Obviously the house is listed now, and when it sells, he and I will both benefit. Beyond this transaction, I now have a resource in the area I can refer other clients to. I went up to North Carolina to meet Bill--did I mention this was an out of state deal, which is why I can't be the agent? We walked through the property together, I gave him my pitch, showed him I did my research and we sat down together to decide the price and strategy. It's satisfying to have another professional appreciate your opinion.
And Bill asked the same question many others have, whether I'm going to become a Broker. I'm warming up to the idea.
2) James Watson, Branch Manager at Universal Mortgage and Finance (Market Expert)
James was referred to me through my mentor, fellow agent John Egger. I was in a tough spot where another lender was telling me they couldn't close by contract date, and John said to give James a call, explain the situation and see if he could help. I called James and ran him through the details, and we're set to close the file next week. It's a sale I likely would have lost and a buyer who may have gone to someone else if I didn't come up with a solution. It's not a closed deal, but James is pushing us through. He's encouraging about my career, noting that I should do well, particularly with common sense on my side.
3) Errol Ayuso, Ayuso Surveying (Supplier)
There's a common misconception that surveyors have an easy job. Errol helped a buyer of mine, getting his survey done quickly and for a good price--it wasn't in a plated subdivision so not all surveyors will accept the survey--and I referred him to another buyer who is a price conscious first time home buyer and needed a survey done ASAP. Here's where the popular idea of what a survey is, what kind of work it takes to complete, comes into play. Like others, I figured Errol and his associate, Chris, would be in and out in less than 30 minutes, but I asked him to give me a call when he was headed to the property so I could grab some of his business cards for my desk. Yes, we really still use business cards! Anyway, Errol called me and said I had at least three hours to get there. Three hours. Once I arrived on the scene, Errol ran me through his process and the after-party of filling out forms and creating the paper survey we receive.
Errol appreciated my interest; I really do want to learn about all aspects of the real estate business, even the side jobs, like inspecting, appraising, surveying, that I don't personally do. The more I know, the better I can serve.
The conclusion
All of my contacts for this project and beyond emphasize the importance of connections. Not only do you need to connect with buyers and sellers, you need to have a good rapport with lenders, inspectors, appraisers, contractors, surveyors and other Realtors. It's a simple concept. We all hear about the benefits of networking, but I had become numb to it. When you begin to see the real relationships forming, and how those relationships benefit your clients and your life, networking moves away from the concept of that thing you're supposed to do if you want to be successful toward becoming second nature.
Purposeful networking, growing my social capital is inherently different from the shallow mingling I've forced in the past. I'm building something real now, and that is why it was important for me to do this in the context of my current profession, using people who I have more than a surface acquaintanceship with. Will I venture out to PRO social events more often? Reply hazy, try again, but I am going to continue to meet people and foster work relationships. I went to a community connection for Realtors in Largo and signed up to take a class next week so maybe I'm turning a new leaf on this networking business.
This is where I deviate from the plan. Normally, I wouldn't be anxious about veering off course--it's kind of my M.O.--but with the zero-tolerance policy, and somewhat mixed messages about whether we can use different activities for different concepts, I feel like I'm stepping out onto wobbly rocks in molten lava...that's redundant, but I was going for parallelism, and most of the applicable adjectives I could stick on "lava" are redundant. Hot lava, molten lava. #formerlitmajorproblems
Anyway, opportunity presented itself in the form of two monthly networking events, and I knew I could exploit this exercise and make valuable business connections. So I did. I think the successful real life application justifies my temporarily stepping out on 1, 2, 3 Play.
Background information: I'm a Realtor and a member of the National Association of Realtors (NAR), Florida Association of Realtors (FAR) and Pinellas Realtor Organization (PRO), the last of which hosts a number of events and classes each month. There is every opportunity to connect with people in the business, and I make every excuse to avoid networking. For the longest time--as long as I've been in the business--I've known about the monthly marketing session, with other Realtors and affiliates, and PRO Connect, which is a happy hour, informal, chillaxing social. It just so happens both of the aforementioned events fell on the Tuesday before this assignment was due. Score!
But the actual players I'm using here are people I was introduced to through other connections. I'll talk about that more later.
The players
1) Bill Wall, Broker-in-Charge at The Property Shop (Domain Expert)
In real estate, in Florida at least, you start out as a sales associate (Realtor) and can progress to Broker through additional experience and education. I have been asked over and over whether I'm going to pursue becoming a broker and the thought terrifies me. Enter Bill. All Realtors work under a Broker, and I have a relationship with my Broker, Mark Schmitz. He's always at my disposal. Still, it's nice to have an outsider whose brain I haven't picked yet. I referred a listing to Bill--you can check it out here--and so our relationship has a separate cadence from my relationship with my Broker.
To break it down to basics, I called him one day out of the blue and asked if he wanted a referral. I'd never given a referral before so I wasn't sure what the proper etiquette would be. Have you seen Superbad? How things went down somewhat resembled how Jonah Hill is with Emma Stone. Or maybe it was more like Michael Cera and his ladylove Becca. At any rate, I nervously asked if he wanted a referral, he asked what, I loudly, quickly blurted out "DO YOU WANT A REFERRAL LISTING?" To which he replied yes, and I went silent. With referrals, the referring agent (me) receives a fee for the referral if the other agent gets the listing and it sells. There's associated paperwork. So there I was on the line with Bill, him asking, "well, what's the listing?" and I was unsure whether to just tell him the address and sellers or make him sign papers first.
I trusted Bill would follow-through and gave him all the information. Obviously the house is listed now, and when it sells, he and I will both benefit. Beyond this transaction, I now have a resource in the area I can refer other clients to. I went up to North Carolina to meet Bill--did I mention this was an out of state deal, which is why I can't be the agent? We walked through the property together, I gave him my pitch, showed him I did my research and we sat down together to decide the price and strategy. It's satisfying to have another professional appreciate your opinion.
And Bill asked the same question many others have, whether I'm going to become a Broker. I'm warming up to the idea.
2) James Watson, Branch Manager at Universal Mortgage and Finance (Market Expert)
James was referred to me through my mentor, fellow agent John Egger. I was in a tough spot where another lender was telling me they couldn't close by contract date, and John said to give James a call, explain the situation and see if he could help. I called James and ran him through the details, and we're set to close the file next week. It's a sale I likely would have lost and a buyer who may have gone to someone else if I didn't come up with a solution. It's not a closed deal, but James is pushing us through. He's encouraging about my career, noting that I should do well, particularly with common sense on my side.
3) Errol Ayuso, Ayuso Surveying (Supplier)
There's a common misconception that surveyors have an easy job. Errol helped a buyer of mine, getting his survey done quickly and for a good price--it wasn't in a plated subdivision so not all surveyors will accept the survey--and I referred him to another buyer who is a price conscious first time home buyer and needed a survey done ASAP. Here's where the popular idea of what a survey is, what kind of work it takes to complete, comes into play. Like others, I figured Errol and his associate, Chris, would be in and out in less than 30 minutes, but I asked him to give me a call when he was headed to the property so I could grab some of his business cards for my desk. Yes, we really still use business cards! Anyway, Errol called me and said I had at least three hours to get there. Three hours. Once I arrived on the scene, Errol ran me through his process and the after-party of filling out forms and creating the paper survey we receive.
Errol appreciated my interest; I really do want to learn about all aspects of the real estate business, even the side jobs, like inspecting, appraising, surveying, that I don't personally do. The more I know, the better I can serve.
The conclusion
All of my contacts for this project and beyond emphasize the importance of connections. Not only do you need to connect with buyers and sellers, you need to have a good rapport with lenders, inspectors, appraisers, contractors, surveyors and other Realtors. It's a simple concept. We all hear about the benefits of networking, but I had become numb to it. When you begin to see the real relationships forming, and how those relationships benefit your clients and your life, networking moves away from the concept of that thing you're supposed to do if you want to be successful toward becoming second nature.
Purposeful networking, growing my social capital is inherently different from the shallow mingling I've forced in the past. I'm building something real now, and that is why it was important for me to do this in the context of my current profession, using people who I have more than a surface acquaintanceship with. Will I venture out to PRO social events more often? Reply hazy, try again, but I am going to continue to meet people and foster work relationships. I went to a community connection for Realtors in Largo and signed up to take a class next week so maybe I'm turning a new leaf on this networking business.
Friday, March 18, 2016
Week 10: reading reflection
Some weeks I crave the consistency of Kuratko, but this week I wish we had an external reading. I hate answering the weekly reflection questions with the same "No surprises, no confusion, no questions, nothing to contest." It should be good to understand text and find it straightforward, but it makes for very poor, boring blog posts. Any talk radio listeners out there? The appropriate analogy is that I enjoy listening to live (talk) radio but "best of" shows leave me lukewarm when I've heard the material before.
I don't want to leave you lukewarm. I want you to walk away from my blog feeling like you've learned something new in an engaging way. When I can't argue much with a weekly reading, I lose my schtick.
Let's give it a try. This week we looked at Chapter 11: Financial Preparation for Entrepreneurial Ventures, and if your mind isn't mentally building a business, you probably tuned out for 90% of the reading. Don't worry. I've got you. Accounting isn't for everyone, and the reading is strongly reminiscent of basic and managerial accounting. I tapped into my retained knowledge and did a lot of nodding in agreement this week, though it was less nodding in agreement, more nodding to my internal dialogue of "do we remember this? yes? okay, good."
Key financial statements are an important thing--show them to yourself now and then to keep the material fresh, regardless of your business destination!
Budgets and forecasting are daunting, and honestly I was glad for the recap in those arenas. It was a section I had to read twice (okay, maybe three times), but it was all familiar and logical. And I guess that's what I can say about the entire chapter: it was familiar, factual, logical and reasonable. The topics were the kinds of things that are helpful to go over repeatedly because when you aren't working with break-even analysis and pro forma sheets everyday, you forget all the fine details. Well, all the basic mechanics, if I'm being frank. I'm not confused, just absorbing slowly.
Until next week...
I don't want to leave you lukewarm. I want you to walk away from my blog feeling like you've learned something new in an engaging way. When I can't argue much with a weekly reading, I lose my schtick.
Let's give it a try. This week we looked at Chapter 11: Financial Preparation for Entrepreneurial Ventures, and if your mind isn't mentally building a business, you probably tuned out for 90% of the reading. Don't worry. I've got you. Accounting isn't for everyone, and the reading is strongly reminiscent of basic and managerial accounting. I tapped into my retained knowledge and did a lot of nodding in agreement this week, though it was less nodding in agreement, more nodding to my internal dialogue of "do we remember this? yes? okay, good."
Key financial statements are an important thing--show them to yourself now and then to keep the material fresh, regardless of your business destination!
Budgets and forecasting are daunting, and honestly I was glad for the recap in those arenas. It was a section I had to read twice (okay, maybe three times), but it was all familiar and logical. And I guess that's what I can say about the entire chapter: it was familiar, factual, logical and reasonable. The topics were the kinds of things that are helpful to go over repeatedly because when you aren't working with break-even analysis and pro forma sheets everyday, you forget all the fine details. Well, all the basic mechanics, if I'm being frank. I'm not confused, just absorbing slowly.
Until next week...
Wednesday, March 16, 2016
Elevator pitch no. 3
Do you remember, as a kid, taunting and teasing "first is the worst, second is the best, third is the one (fill in the blank)" about EVERYTHING? Well, I'm here to present my evidence that first is, in fact, the best, second is all right and third shows signs of burn out. I would love your feedback on all three of my pitches so...
Last round I received more critique than I had in the first round, and I agree that getting some of my body in the screen and allowing myself the freedom to be expressive is a plus. But I still want more feedback thus pitch no. 3. Is it better to keep it short or extend it out? Would the pitch work better if I were dressed in a button up, looking natural, rocking mom mode? I personally think it's important to be genuine, but I understand the world of work is different from the world I'm presently living in. To have a real shot at financing, would true business dress be required?
I think the concept of an elevator pitch, standing in an elevator with someone and spitting out your best, dictates a video with more body, which is why my first pitch is my favorite. That and the fact that I felt unrestrained in terms of the angle and my body language. The only reason I toned it down and pulled back was to come across more professional, and I don't know that's the right route for me or my business.
What do you think? I'm anxiously awaiting your comments. If you're a shy drive-by, clickity click below on the survey.
Sunday, March 13, 2016
My secret sauce
Ingredients:
- 3 cups persistence
- 1 cup (self) motivation
- 1 cup determination
- 4 heaping Tbsp curiosity
- 1 Tbsp support system
- 3 tsp intellect
- A dash impulse
1) From Brittany with love - Brittany says I'm one of the sweetest and kindest people she's ever met! Honestly, I'm so flattered. Brittany and I used to be mortal enemies, but our relationship has grown over the years. I think we've uncovered many similarities, and it's brought us closer. I will also take her statement that I'm always there when you need me and claim I'm reliable. Admittedly, there are exceptions to my reliability because I prioritize my family and friends first, but overall, I do my best to accommodate everyone--I always have.
2) I had to include Beth in this assignment; she's seen parts of me that my other close friends/family haven't, and I think that gives her a unique perspective. Beth fell a little short describing how exactly I'm unique, but I'm going to get her to expound upon things. I want to know more about what Beth thinks, what she sees.
4) Compliments of Thom - Thom's response made me blush. He really tapped into who I am, though not necessarily how I see myself. His vision of me is much more pure. And incredibly flattering. Now I want to dress up like a woodland faerie and save some animals.
5) An underwhelming finale - One of the people I expected to know me best was the most tongue-tied. To be fair, I gave none of my interviewees advance notice of what I was doing--Beth being the exception as she got a voicemail and responded via text. I wanted honest answers; I didn't want anyone to manufacture an answer that would sound good but didn't truly apply to me. I'll have to work on my impact with this one.
Review:
My own perception of what others think of me has always been that I'm a stuck up bitch. I'm intelligent, assertive and communicative. If I have a problem, or can make a contribution, I address it openly and honestly. As people get to know me, they realize I tend to think of a collective "we" rather than the individual "I," and there's a shift in perspective that opens the pathway to a deeper connection. My interviewees do see that I'm communicative, and they also describe me as caring, generous and personable. I think I'm much harsher than those closest to me; I see beyond what they see, and they're at an advantage (versus people meeting me for the first time) because they've known me as long, and as intimately, as they have. My interviewees are all "correct," though (as if their opinions could be wrong). I suppose if I were to add some components to my ingredients, it would have to be kind, connected to nature/the universe and thoughtful.
Week 9: reading reflection
Hey, Kuratko. Whatchu doing in Chapter 10? From the first time I set my sights on you, it was like running into an old friend. Again in Chapter 10 it's not so much about surprising new facts but about re-learning. Week to week I wonder if we're going to hit a chapter that bridges the gap between past knowledge and what I've missed while I've been gone.
I enjoyed ticking the boxes of common elements in the marketing skills of great entrepreneurs. If anything, I'm lacking the clear vision of what I want to achieve next, but I do have broad concepts I'm pursuing going forward. The bit about living in fear of being preempted in the market is true, but I would like to see the author tie that back into stress and stress relief for entrepreneurs. I suppose the stress is essential, the pressure pushes us forward, but it would be freeing to live free of it.
Does the author feel primary information is more important/relevant than secondary information? Sometimes, in the interest of time, I imagine entrepreneurs operate on secondary information. Certainly at the beginning of a concept we use secondary information to form the framework of the idea. I'm also curious what the author would have to say about mixing up questions for information getting quests (i.e. simple questions then hard questions back to simple questions).
I can understand why scaled questions, which are just as simple as yes/no questions for interviewees to answer, are emphasized, but I would rather push beyond a simple yes/no for specific answers than have a scaled answer. The conformity doesn't cover individual details, though I understand the text is speaking more to paper questionnaires than personal interview.
I'm printing out the web design tips to keep on hand. Has anyone else noticed the helpful charts?! It's like Pokémon, gotta catch 'em all (and file them somewhere for reference).
This chapter prompted thoughts of telemarketers. I have a newfound appreciation for the training telemarketers must have. Think about it. If you've ever stayed on the phone with one, they subtly figure out they're speaking with the decision maker and mine for whether they'll have an angle to sell you their product. Clever, clever.
I enjoyed ticking the boxes of common elements in the marketing skills of great entrepreneurs. If anything, I'm lacking the clear vision of what I want to achieve next, but I do have broad concepts I'm pursuing going forward. The bit about living in fear of being preempted in the market is true, but I would like to see the author tie that back into stress and stress relief for entrepreneurs. I suppose the stress is essential, the pressure pushes us forward, but it would be freeing to live free of it.
Does the author feel primary information is more important/relevant than secondary information? Sometimes, in the interest of time, I imagine entrepreneurs operate on secondary information. Certainly at the beginning of a concept we use secondary information to form the framework of the idea. I'm also curious what the author would have to say about mixing up questions for information getting quests (i.e. simple questions then hard questions back to simple questions).
I can understand why scaled questions, which are just as simple as yes/no questions for interviewees to answer, are emphasized, but I would rather push beyond a simple yes/no for specific answers than have a scaled answer. The conformity doesn't cover individual details, though I understand the text is speaking more to paper questionnaires than personal interview.
I'm printing out the web design tips to keep on hand. Has anyone else noticed the helpful charts?! It's like Pokémon, gotta catch 'em all (and file them somewhere for reference).
This chapter prompted thoughts of telemarketers. I have a newfound appreciation for the training telemarketers must have. Think about it. If you've ever stayed on the phone with one, they subtly figure out they're speaking with the decision maker and mine for whether they'll have an angle to sell you their product. Clever, clever.
Wednesday, March 9, 2016
Idea napkin no. 2
Take two here at Adventures in Entrepreneurship on the 1, 2, 3 Play idea napkin, and I'm drawing a big blank on where to improve and refine my vision.
Let's break it down. If you'd like to read my first go at it, click here. It's like a Choose Your Adventure book! You're welcome. For those of you who want to keep it simple, here are the highlights:
- I'm a mother of two boys under the age of five (three and one, for inquiring minds).
- I have grappled with what to do with my children, particularly during rainy weekends and hot summer days.
- 1, 2, 3 Play is a concept spawned from the problem of no enriching activities for young children, ESPECIALLY indoor activities.
- My concept focuses on children who fall into the baby, toddler or Pre-K age groups.
- Parents are willing to pay for 1, 2, 3 Play because it provides a safe, age-specific play zone accessible year-round and regardless of weather conditions.
- I have connections within the community, experience in real estate, negotiating and early child development and the personal connection of being a mother.
- The business idea is another child to me. I understand the client because I am the client, but I have the knowledge and know-how to remove some bias and look at the idea rationally. The statistics support the feasibility and potential profitability. My relationship to the product/service as well as the community gels beautifully with creating and sustaining the business.
Air conditioning. There is tremendous advantage to a temperature-controlled play area; it removes concerns about overheating, sun stroke, sun burn, dehydration or, on the other end of the spectrum, catching a cold. Have you ever put sunscreen on a young child? I remember my first time. I sunscreened my son's face and didn't know to avoid his forehead--as soon as he sweat, it was in his eyes, and he was screaming. Not fun. Children aren't fond of the taste of sunscreen either.
You may be able to guess I didn't have a lot of feedback on my first idea napkin. While I love the praise, I'd like some criticism lest my ego inflate. I tried to draw some conclusions based on the praise. My biggest takeaway is that mom status gives me street cred. It's funny, this came up in my interview with Enchanted Spirits owner Kathy, who said she faced the question of why did she have the right to start her business. I wonder if that's a question we all face or specific to certain fields. I tend to think it's the former. Signing off in ponderance.
Tuesday, March 1, 2016
The twenty percent evolved; Or, There's something about Kathy
Wasn't I just talking about how I have poor planning? Maybe I'm imagining it, but I think my half-way reflection touched on personal bouts with follow-through. I can't decide what it is, do I have ADD or ADHD? Is it depression? Am I just absent? Whatever the case, I find myself frequently waking up and chasing a metaphorical train to my future, and last week, the train happened to be the 80/20 rule. I wanted to reach out to someone with a unique business, a unique vision. It took some time for the light bulb to go off--my mind kept circling around the same predictable ideas--but I realized Enchanted Spirits was it.
Imagine a place hidden to those who can't see it. I know, that sounds silly, but think Harry Potter and the train to Hogwarts (there I go with trains again...) Platform 9 and 3/4. Enchanted Spirits is a shop you don't find until you're ready; honestly calling it a shop does it a disservice. The owner of Enchanted Spirits, Kathy, mentions her vision of Enchanted Spirits becoming an experience, but the truth is that it already is. When I walk in, I can breathe. Really breathe. Everything that's going on outside evaporates, and I can focus on, well, nothing. I don't have thoughts while I'm at Enchanted Spirits, I have feelings. I feel like walking into one room or another then I feel like picking something up; there's no inner dialogue interrupting me. I feel, and I do.
So who was behind this mystical place of safety, warmth, mystery? I would have to wait to find out as my initial interview attempt was postponed--this is where follow-through comes into play. I almost passed on an interview that put a real person to the lofty image of entrepreneurs that we've been studying. Kathy is intelligent, well-spoken, ballsy, persistent, a lit fire with no signs of stopping. My words can't do her justice, and neither can my slapdash interview, but I know we can all find value in what I did capture.
Forgive my shaky camera hand and the fact that this recording is essentially the middle of a conversation that started before the camera was rolling and ended several minutes after I hit stop. Without further ado:
Inspirational. Authentic. Collaborative.
Imagine a place hidden to those who can't see it. I know, that sounds silly, but think Harry Potter and the train to Hogwarts (there I go with trains again...) Platform 9 and 3/4. Enchanted Spirits is a shop you don't find until you're ready; honestly calling it a shop does it a disservice. The owner of Enchanted Spirits, Kathy, mentions her vision of Enchanted Spirits becoming an experience, but the truth is that it already is. When I walk in, I can breathe. Really breathe. Everything that's going on outside evaporates, and I can focus on, well, nothing. I don't have thoughts while I'm at Enchanted Spirits, I have feelings. I feel like walking into one room or another then I feel like picking something up; there's no inner dialogue interrupting me. I feel, and I do.
So who was behind this mystical place of safety, warmth, mystery? I would have to wait to find out as my initial interview attempt was postponed--this is where follow-through comes into play. I almost passed on an interview that put a real person to the lofty image of entrepreneurs that we've been studying. Kathy is intelligent, well-spoken, ballsy, persistent, a lit fire with no signs of stopping. My words can't do her justice, and neither can my slapdash interview, but I know we can all find value in what I did capture.
Forgive my shaky camera hand and the fact that this recording is essentially the middle of a conversation that started before the camera was rolling and ended several minutes after I hit stop. Without further ado:
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