Assignment 4A- Forming an Opportunity Belief

Assignment 4A- Forming an Opportunity Belief

Your Beginning Point

In assignment 2A, I came up with the bug that happens when your computer gets low on battery at the library and you did not bring your charger or left it at home. Therefore, I believe that an opportunity exists to rent out the most common computer chargers at the major UF libraries, such as Library West, Marston, Law Library, and Norman. They can rent our computer chargers for Mac computers, as well as, PC’s.  They will set a price of renting a computer charger at $2 a day.

Describe Your Belief

The unmet need is the need for a computer charger at the library but there is not one to use, buy, or rent. Many students that attend the University of Florida and do work or study at the library have this need. This need has always existed and only came about since the invention of laptop computers. Currently, in order to meet this need people have to bring their own computer charger and if they forgot it at home they have to leave the library and waste time to go back and get their computer charger. At this point, I am 100% sure that this opportunity exists.

Prototypical Customer 1 – My Roommate (Female, Senior)

What is the exact nature of the need?

            She has this need when she goes straight from class to the library. Sometimes she does not think she will go to the library after class, so does not bring her computer charger. As a result, she is not able to stay at the library for as long as she would like.      

When did you become aware of the need (all the time or sometimes)?

            She has this need frequently, although not every day. She said it does happen a few times every month.

How long have you had this need?

            She has had this need since she was a Freshman in college. Her favorite place to study and do work is at Library West and she lives off campus on 7^th Avenue all the way by Norman Hall. It is about a 20-minute walk from her apartment to the library.

When did you first become aware of this need?

            She first became aware of this need when she was studying for midterms her freshman year of college. She woke up really early to get a full day of studying, only to find she left her computer charger at home.

How are you currently addressing the need?

            Currently she is addressing this need by either going home when she forgets her computer charger or trying to find someone’s to borrow. Both of these options waste her valuable time to study.

How satisfied are you with this solution?

            She is very satisfied with this solution and would easily rent a computer charger for $2 a day when she forgets hers at home or just does not want to bring it to class.

Prototypical Customer 2 – My Family Friend (Female, Freshman)

What is the exact nature of the need?

            She imagines she will have this need in the future, but she has not experienced it yet.

When did you become aware of the need (all the time or sometimes)?

            So far, she has not become aware of this need, since it is her first year at college and has not studied at the library yet.

How long have you had this need?

            She has not had this need yet because her studying has not truly started for the semester.

When did you first become aware of this need?

            She first became aware of this need from this interview, and not knows that this will be a need for her in the future.

How are you currently addressing the need?

            She is not currently addressing the need because she has not had the need yet.

How satisfied are you with this solution?

            She is very satisfied with this solution for her need in the future. She thinks it is an awesome idea and it is very price friendly, which is important to college students.

Prototypical Customer 3 – My Boyfriend (Male, Senior)

What is the exact nature of the need?

            He often has this need because he is a very forgetful person. He has this need when he forgets to charge his computer at night before his morning class and then also forgets to bring his computer charger to class and the library.

When did you become aware of the need (all the time or sometimes)?

            He only becomes aware of this need once he realizes he forgot his computer charger and is already at the library ready to study.

How long have you had this need?

            He has had this need for the past 3 years and believes he will continue to have this need this year as well.

When did you first become aware of this need?

He became aware of this need this first day of studying freshman year of college when he forgot to pack his computer charger. Luckily, he was at the library with his friend, so he was able to borrow his friend’s computer charger.

How are you currently addressing the need?

            He is currently addressing this need by hoping his friend is there to borrow his or having to leave the library and complete his studies in his apartment.

How satisfied are you with this solution?

            He is extremely satisfied with this solution because he will never have to worry about the repercussions of forgetting his computer chargers again.

Reflection

From all three iterations, I was able to learn that my opportunity has a chance to be successful. I wanted to get three unique viewpoints to get three different opinions. I was able to see a male’s viewpoint, a female’s viewpoint, and a freshman’s viewpoint. Each has a similar satisfaction with the solution that it would be a great idea. From them, I learned that at first seniors would be the most responsive to my solution; however, as the year progresses all ages will be satisfied with the solution. The most surprising thing I learned is that a freshman can still see why the solution is so necessary even though she has not experienced the need yet.

Summary

After completing this assignment, my original opportunity is still there. It still has the chance to be successful and there are many people who will be willing to rent a charger for $2 a day when they forget theirs at home. From interviewing my prototypical customers, my opportunity is very accurate and does not need to be changed. In general, when an entrepreneur comes up with an idea and tests it with their prototypical customer, they should be adaptive to what their customer says. In the end, the customer is always right and will only buy the product or use the service if it provides them utility. Thus, it is important an entrepreneur stays true to their idea, yet adaptive to their customer.