I really enjoyed the self-driven mode of learning. I like independent work so I really appreciate that we were given the option to stay for guided lessons, but then also apply them during our assignments. I was not familiar with the softwares that we had to use for this class, so I really enjoyed “tinkering” with them all. I love working with creative softwares and I really think I will use both TinkerCad and SketchFab in the future. I also really liked that I was able to make connections in the class. I think that the requirement to comment on others’ blog posts really helped with that. I also enjoyed helping other students with their projects and I was able to fine tune my own skills. This class made me realize that making prototypes is not as hard as I thought it would be.
Author: KARIN FILIPOVA
End of the Semester Reflection
I found this course incredibly helpful and fulfilling. After starting my own business last year, I realized that I could have done a lot of things better. Now, I know where I can improve going forward. I really appreciated that the class was both self-driven, but also guided. During online school, I prefer having a set schedule because I feel that it keeps me more organized. I like listening to class discussions and really liked that we had the option to leave or stay. I also enjoyed making the MVP because it allowed me to be creative.
Best of Me Final Video
Over the semester, we have learned a lot about our business idea. Since many students struggle with financial issues, mental health issues, and additional responsibilities, we decided to make a virtual resource center that conglomerates all available resources in one place. Through MVP testing, we learned that there is value in our idea. We reached many people, got a few email submissions, and received over 120 page likes. We were surprised to learn that men were more likely to engage with our ads, and this will help us in the advertising process. Next, we plan to test our idea on a larger scale and start to refine our landing page in efforts to receive more email submissions. It seems like the landing page needs to go straight to the point without giving excessive information as per visitors’ feedback. From there, we will start to build our resource database, create our final website, and partner with other colleges and businesses.
MGT 4952- Final Assignment
Water bottles are a hassle to bring around, especially if you only have a small purse to carry with you. In order to combat this problem, I created a thin, sleek, and customizable water bottle that can easily be taken on the go. Since the bottle is created out of stainless steel, it keeps drinks at their desired temperature. The flat bottom and rubber grips ensure durability and longevity. At the cap, there is a ring so that the bottle can be easily attached to a purse or bag with a carabiner. The colors are completely customizable, and it can be made to have images and text engraved onto the water bottle. I also made a collapsible water bottle made of silicone, while keeping it thin enough to fit in a standard purse. Depending on the customer’s purposes, the water bottles can come in various sizes, ranging from 8 ounces to 24 ounces. Regardless of the size, every bottle will be sleek and slim in design, ensuring maximum portability. I wanted to keep the design sleek and simple so I could appeal to as many people as possible.
Images:
Next Steps
For my next step, I want to finetune my 3D design using SketchFab. I would like to recreate it using the proper materials. For example, I want to make the gray part look like stainless steel, and I want to make the purple parts look like silicone. As of right now, I can only make the entire bottle look metal on SketchFab, but I hope to learn how to change the materials of different elements. I will also try to think of some new funky designs, but I think I lean towards the simple and sleek design. Also, when I was making this product, I was also thinking about how I would get the most use of it, personally. That is why I want to keep the bottle thin and versatile.
MVP Concept
To gauge customer interest, for our MVP, Elina and I believe that a landing page is the best way to assess whether our target customer will be interested in our product. Our landing page will consist of a short summary of our solution, as well as an email sign-up form. Customers can input their emails if they are interested, and if our idea comes into fruition, we can email them with updates. Based on the number of students who input their emails, we can get a rough estimate of how many people would be interested.
For the actual landing page, we plan to use Wix. The reason we chose Wix is because of their free platform that is incredibly easy to use. It is easy to create a clean and professional website. With this in mind, we can easily create an MVP without putting in extensive effort or money. We believe that Facebook is the best platform to advertise on because more that 85% of our target customers use Facebook. Instagram is a great place to advertise as well, so we will use this platform as well. To narrow our scope, we plan to only advertise to those between the ages of 18 and 30. Since both males and females (and everyone in between) struggle with mental health issues, financial issues, and other issues, we choose not to target a specific gender.
For my ad design, I chose to focus on the mental health aspect of our website. Elina, on the other hand, will focus on the financial aspect of our website. Below I have added an example of what I have in mind. In the ad, I chose to add a silhouette of a girl with crazy swirling lines around her. These scribbles represent anxious thoughts. I want to make the customer know that they are not alone, which is why I decided to put the quote at the top. I also want the customer to know that solutions are available to them, which I made clear in the ad. Lastly, I put our logo in the corner for brand recognition.
Here is the link to our landing page: https://bestofmeresources.wixsite.com/mysite
(Also, the Baruch version of WordPress doesn’t allow us to upload videos, so I added the ad as a Youtube link)
Updating Prototype
For the new version of my water bottle, I took everything that Anna said into consideration. I focused on the stainless steel version since she said that the glass one wouldn’t be practical for her. I kept the main design of the bottle the same, because she said she liked the sleekness. However, I did make the bottle a little longer, and a little thicker. This way, it should be able to hold enough water to last her the entire day. The stainless steel bottle also ensures that the drink stays at the desired temperature. Also, knowing my cousin, I would make the stainless steel some kind of multi-chrome purple color. She would love that, but I do not know how to achieve this on TinkerCad. I also debated changing the position of the cap. I believe that it would be easier to drink out of if the cap were closer to the edge of the bottle, and this may take away some of the “flask-ness” of the design. However, I am unsure about this so I included pictures of both so I could get feedback from my peers. Also, since Sunrise said she liked the small flask size, I made sure to make the same bottle in a smaller version. 🙂 I tried experimenting with different water bottle shapes, but I believe it’s best to keep it simple and sleek. Anna would prefer something not too out of the ordinary.
MGT 4952- Assignment 3 Summarization
My interview with Anna went very well. I learned that there is value in my idea and that I should proceed forward with it. I avoided telling her that it was my design, and tried not to ask any leading questions. I wanted to get as honest a response as possible. Overall, she liked the design of my thin water bottle but preferred the stainless-steel option. She also mentioned that she would use it on the condition that it held enough water. She doesn’t want to have to refill it every hour. She also liked that there was a carabiner on the cap and the fact that it looked sleek.
Another reason I believe there is value in my idea is because of a comment I received from Sunrise. Sunrise mentioned that my design perfectly solved different pain points she had been experiencing. She mentioned that other reusable bottles are too bulky and inconvenient to carry around. Sunrise also said that this design would come in handy for festivals, something I hadn’t thought of before. (Thanks for the idea Sunrise!) Sunrise liked the idea of a water flask. This tells me that she may prefer a smaller-sized bottle, unlike Anna. When initially designing the bottle, I made sure to include various renditions because I knew that people would prefer different sizes. Because of my interview with Anna, and Sunrise’s comment, I think I have enough information to move forward with my idea.
UPDATE:
I received another great comment from Tenzin. (Thank you, Tenzin!) I feel as though women have more trouble with carrying around a water bottle than men. My theory is that men have been conditioned to never have to leave the house with a purse. They always bring the bare necessities, like a wallet and keys. Women, on the other hand, are always expected to be prepared for any situation. That’s why we carry purses with tide sticks, pepper spray, sewing kits, water bottles, etc. Women’s clothing also avoids pockets, so we are forced to bring an additional bag with us wherever we go. Regardless, Tenzin’s comment makes me see that there may be more value in my idea. (Comments posted below)
Assignment #2 Summarization
Primary Research Takeaways
- There is no one place where students can gain access to all of the resources that are available to them
- There are plenty of resources available for students
- Many businesses want to gain access to students so they can expand their target market
Secondary Research Takeaways
- Many people actively search for resources that they need
- Anxiety surrounding access to food, rent payments, and more has increased during the pandemic
- Students are unaware of what resources are available to them
For our idea, Elina and I did extensive research to find out who our competitors are, and who our target customer is. We came to the realization that we do not have one direct competitor that collects all available student resources in one area. We did, however, realize that we have multiple secondary competitors. One competitor is a student’s academic advisor, who should have some knowledge about resources available to students. However, it is impossible for just one advisor to know about every single resource out there, so we know that our idea has value. Another indirect competitor is the Baruch Advisement page, and other pages similar to it. The Baruch Advisement page posts helpful information that is solely relevant to Baruch students. Although this page does post relevant information, most of the information revolves around Baruch administrative tasks, such as registering for classes. For our business, we would incorporate resources that relate to the daily life of a Baruch student. For example, we would include financial, legal, and mental health resources, among others.
For our target customers, we assume that the early adopters will be college students. Specifically, college students who come from households with an income that falls below the poverty line. From our research, we also found that students of color are more likely to be plagued with responsibilities outside of school that add to anxiety and depression. Because of this, we speculate that our early adopters will be students of color who come from households with incomes below the poverty line.
From our research, we also know that there is value in our idea. There are hundreds of resources available to students, however, many students are unaware of what is offered to them. We also know that thousands of people look up resources on Google. Phrases such as “food banks near me” are extremely common in the search engine. If Elina and I made a website where all of these student resources were listed, with guides on how to take advantage of them, we really think we could create value for our customers.
Lastly, we plan to pursue the hidden revenue business model. Students have enough on their plate as is, so we want to make sure that our service is free. Since we need funds to maintain the website, we plan to partner with companies who are looking to tap into the student market. For example, we can partner with a bank that offers resources to students. Since we have the most direct access to the undergraduate population, we can help the bank tap into the student market.
Customer Assumptions
For my cousin Anna, I came up with these four assumptions that are essential to the success of my product. Firstly, I assumed that she needed a small water bottle to fit in her purse. This is an important assumption because it is the basis of the product. It is also relatively easy to test because it can be answered with a simple question. Another assumption I made is that Anna is open and receptive to new ideas. This can be fairly difficult to test because she might think she is open to change, but in reality, she may be stuck in her ways. This is an important assumption because it means that she is actively trying to solve her problem, and therefore looking for an alternative. Another assumption is that she does not want to use a flask as a portable water bottle. Although flasks are small and thin, it may give off the appearance that she is an alcoholic. This is easy to test because I can just ask her how she feels about drinking water out of a flask. Lastly, I make the assumption that she prefers smaller purses because they are easier to carry around. This doesn’t make or break my product, because these bottles can easily fit in larger purses as well. However, the bag she chooses greatly depends on the situation, so it can be hard to prove whether she leans towards one or the other.