1.) You: My name is Autumn Farmer and I am a sophomore here at UF. I am pursuing a Biology major and an Innovation minor. I am specializing in Natural Science with the hopes of becoming a nurse. I am an Innovation Academy ambassador which means that I get to act as the liaison between newly admitted students and parent and the Innovation Academy. I am also a dancer for Dance Marathon at UF. DM at UF is a fundraising organization on campus with all proceeds going directly to the patients at UF Health Shands Children's Hospital. I have a passion for helping others and my product stems from this passion. I have seen the lack of wheelchair accessibility and my desire to help was unleashed. This product would help me achieve my goal of helping others as a result. I have dreams of pursuing a career in the medical field and this product is intertwined with that dream.
2.) What I'm offering to customers: My product is a wheelchair ramp that functions as a conveyor belt and can be easily hidden underneath carpeting or tiling in any business. The ramp is small and portable for easy travel. This product will solve the issue of a lack of wheelchair accessible throughout businesses and help harvest independence for wheelchair users.
3.) Who am I offering it to: My customers all have a lack of wheelchair accessibility in common. This product would be offered to businesses that do not have wheelchair access for their customers. These businesses would specifically have steps that are difficult or impossible for wheelchair users to conquer, thus establishing a need for an innovative wheelchair ramp. The demographic characteristics of my customers varies among all ages, races, and genders.
4.) Why do they care?: My customers will only care about the product if they have empathy for those in wheelchairs. Wheelchair users will care about this product but my target market is businesses that lack wheelchair accommodations. To make these businesses care, I need to reiterate that by adding this wheelchair ramp, they will have an increase in customers and therefore an increase in profits.
5.) What are my core competencies?: This wheelchair ramp functions as a conveyor belt which I have never seen in a wheelchair ramp. It can also be easily hidden and therefore is not bulky and taking up extra space. Business owners can purchase a ramp relatively easily to further meet their customers' needs.
6.) How my elements fit together: I believe that for the most part, the elements of my business plan work together. I think that my passion for helping others carries through all aspects of my business and could help contribute to its' success. I believe that the only outlier of this plan is convincing businesses that lack wheelchair access that they should make the necessary accommodations. Convincing these businesses to make a change might be the most difficult facet of making my business a successful one.
7.) Feedback memo: Two of my classes gave me helpful feedback and praise. One student mentioned that he loved how small and convenient my product is, I incorporated this detail into the description of what I am offering to customers. Another student mentioned that he could sense my passion for helping others through my involvements. This bit of feedback was very much appreciated and I added more justification as to why I love helping others and how my passion connects to my business.
3.) Who am I offering it to: My customers all have a lack of wheelchair accessibility in common. This product would be offered to businesses that do not have wheelchair access for their customers. These businesses would specifically have steps that are difficult or impossible for wheelchair users to conquer, thus establishing a need for an innovative wheelchair ramp. The demographic characteristics of my customers varies among all ages, races, and genders.
4.) Why do they care?: My customers will only care about the product if they have empathy for those in wheelchairs. Wheelchair users will care about this product but my target market is businesses that lack wheelchair accommodations. To make these businesses care, I need to reiterate that by adding this wheelchair ramp, they will have an increase in customers and therefore an increase in profits.
5.) What are my core competencies?: This wheelchair ramp functions as a conveyor belt which I have never seen in a wheelchair ramp. It can also be easily hidden and therefore is not bulky and taking up extra space. Business owners can purchase a ramp relatively easily to further meet their customers' needs.
6.) How my elements fit together: I believe that for the most part, the elements of my business plan work together. I think that my passion for helping others carries through all aspects of my business and could help contribute to its' success. I believe that the only outlier of this plan is convincing businesses that lack wheelchair access that they should make the necessary accommodations. Convincing these businesses to make a change might be the most difficult facet of making my business a successful one.
7.) Feedback memo: Two of my classes gave me helpful feedback and praise. One student mentioned that he loved how small and convenient my product is, I incorporated this detail into the description of what I am offering to customers. Another student mentioned that he could sense my passion for helping others through my involvements. This bit of feedback was very much appreciated and I added more justification as to why I love helping others and how my passion connects to my business.
Hey Autumn,
ReplyDeleteYour idea was a really interesting solution to help make wheelchair users more comfortable! I believe that many companies would be willing to invest in this, particularly in Florida where there are a lot of elderly people that use wheelchairs. My advice to you would be to try and sell your idea to major companies first that value inclusivity and are always looking for ways to make employees and customers feel valued like Google.
Hi Autumn,
ReplyDeleteExcellent post! You did an awesome job of incorporating the feedback from your previous idea napkin into this one. I definitely think that you should drive in the fact that your product is small and convenient. That will be a major selling point as you are pitching to companies because most wheel chair ramps that you see at various places are large and take up a lot of room.
Dear Autumn,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading your post and thought it was incredibly detailed and well written. I am constantly amazed by the product that you have created and how passionate you are to help others. I love that your product is accessible and convenient, all while being aesthetically pleasing. You did a great job describing your product and its versatility. My advice to you would be to pitch to some corporate companies. Overall, excellent job!
Dear Autumn,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading your post and thought it was incredibly detailed and well written. I am constantly amazed by the product that you have created and how passionate you are to help others. I love that your product is accessible and convenient, all while being aesthetically pleasing. You did a great job describing your product and its versatility. My advice to you would be to pitch to some corporate companies. Overall, excellent job!