Week 6 Reading Reflection

I love the diagram right at the beginning of the article.  I think that is spot on, in regards to how the business world works.  In todays retail world it almost, to me, that the bargaining power of the buyer far outweighs that of the seller.  With the internet and easy access to ads and everything loyalty is something that has seemed to fall by the wayside. On page 7 it speaks of substitutes in the market and I think we have become so oversaturated with substitutes that customer service now has to go to the extreme or a business will not be successful.  With all of the barriers of entry for a new business that already exist the oversaturation of substitutes makes it even worse.  Something that I would ask is if eliminating rivals is not always a good decision, what is best way to accelerate your business while not incurring too much attention from rivals?  Something else I would ask is, with the evolving world and technology can a business over use technology to the point where it is a turn off for customers?   

Idea Napkin No. 1

1.       Who am I? I am a Sales Representative.  I have been working at a dealership for about 10 years now.  My experience goes from internet to floor sales and sales in the service department.  If I were to start this business it would have to be a major part of life taking up roughly 70-80 hours per week.  I would start this business at the dealership that I currently work at and then after I have a solid footing and work out the kinks I would then begin to move to other dealers and set up connections with them.

2.       What I am offering my customers (dealerships and repair facilities) is what all of their customers want from them, CONVIENENCE. I will be the middle man so to speak.  My job will be to pick up the loaner vehicle from the facility and bring it to the customer where I will have them sign their repair order and I will take their vehicle back to have the repairs completed.  After all repairs are completed I will set up a return appointment with the customer.  During this trip I will return the customer take payment and return the loaner to the facility.

3.       Who am I offering to?  My business will be sold directly to the repair facilities, but the customers of the facilities will see the benefits as well.  The customer base is very large and diverse, it is basically anyone with a vehicle.  Even with such large diversity everyone has one thing in common, they want to be as inconvenienced as possible when it comes to getting their vehicle serviced or repaired.

4.       The repair facilities will pay for this service because it will allow them to add more value to their business and give them something that their competitor does not have, yet.  This will help increase their customer base and improve customer retention.

5.       True this something that just about anyone can do, what would set my business apart is I know what customers are looking for and how to provide exceptional customer service.  In order to do that the business must be able to not only claim honestly and reliability but they have to prove it.  That will be the base line and foundation on which my business would be built.

I feel that all of these points can fit together.  Starting small and building the business slowly will be key.  It is important to work out as many possible issues in a small scale before moving onto other facilities and growing the business.  This process will take time and money and will be one of the most trying times of the business, but I believe it is needed in order to be successful on a long term scale.  Liability will be another major obstacle to overcome with this business, after all we will be picking up and delivering the 2^nd largest purchase a person makes in their life behind only their house, so insurance and proper coverage and finding employees deserving of that kind of trust will also be difficult.

Week 5 Reading Reflection

A couple things that I would ask is about how to avoid underestimating a budget when starting and if you were to start a new service how would you make a proper price point?  The chapter speaks of marketability as a necessity to judge how an idea or product will work out, but how does a startup go about marketing their idea before they get too financially invested?  I guess over all this chapter left me with more questions than answers.  One thing I did like is, while I was aware of a lot of the pitfalls, this chapter went deeper than I thought of on a few topics.  I think the biggest surprise was how off point an estimate for a new product would be off.  It states that it is not unusual to be more than 50% off on calculations.

Interviewing Customers No. 2

After interviews I feel that this idea has merit.  If there is a way to set up a program that allow a dealership or repair facility to pick and drop off vehicle and allow the customer to pay without leaving home. I feel that I did speak with the correct customers last as well as this time.  My customer base would be anyone who has a vehicle that needs any type of service at all.  There are people who do not take their vehicle in for service, but they have a spouse who does and seem to have no problems voicing their concerns for their spouses troubles.  I kept my questions broad and very generic because I did not want to lead my questions towards an answer that fits my project.  Another reason I left my questions the same is so I could have a larger group of people with the same questions.  My opportunity is something that exists and is able to be done.  I am currently working with my managers to see if we can implement a program such as this.  One of the biggest issues I am running into is a liability problem. 
TIPS:
1. Be calm and be yourself
2. Write your questions down.
3. Ask follow up questions after your original question is answered

Elevator Pitch No. 1

The opportunity is taking advantage of the fact that just about everyone finds it inconvenient to have to get their vehicle serviced.  Whether it is waiting in line, having to sit in the waiting room, or even just having to drive over there, nobody likes it.  The solution is simple.  Do not have the customers come in.  With technology we can load the same program that the repair facility uses onto a tablet, drive to the customer's home or work and pick up their vehicle.  Use the tablet to fill out the repair order and have them sign.  We will also leave a loaner vehicle with the customer in case they need to go somewhere while we have their vehicle.  When the vehicle is ready we will bring it back out to the customer and switch vehicles.  They can pay with a credit card with a tablet accessory or pay cash which ever they prefer.  With this process we would schedule 2 appointments, first a pick up then a drop off and that is it. This will increase costs, however the added convenience will increase customer retention and also word will spread about your service that no one else is offering, which in the end will increase your customer base.  I would call the service the "No GO Service Plan".