kristinecabreraposts-blog

[kristinecabreraposts-blog]

WEEK 7

So WEEK 7, we we're introduce to MVP or Minimum Viable Product which is about doing things that don't scale. We as a group discussed about what should we do before our business will start, a lot of us agreed on making a facebook page because it is very convenient and a lot of people can reach from it.

Inside our facebook page is of course our name Hollow-Plus, the background of our business and sample pictures of what our product would be. We even created a poll that has questions regarding our product and their opinion towards the idea. We then decided to share it to our friends for them to answer the poll, one of our teammate suggested to share it one by one rather than by group of people to get a lot to answer the poll.

Regarding the results, we gain 40 answers from 40 people, not the number we expected but still some gave their effort and opinion to help us improve our business idea. We had a problem viewing their answers because we need to pay or upgrade our subscription in order for us to access the 40 answers. Lesson learned is to first, search information on how pages/poll work before investing on it to save time. So we decided to find a paypal owner for us to transact the payment because it will be very difficult for us if we will open a new account for paypal.

So, we even decided to create a short video regarding on Hollow-Plus, what are inside the blocks, how its made, the problem that we are giving solution and etc. Our schedule is very tight right now, but I think we are still gonna push this idea for an MVP.

[kristinecabreraposts-blog]

WEEK 6

Last October 2, 2019 (wednesday) we went to Kawayon, Lumbo, Valencia City to validate a company particularly Goodwill Inc. about the hollow blocks they make. We asked them about trying to make hollow blocks mixed with glass and plastics, they said it is very new to them but it could be possible.

So Goodwill Inc. produces hollow blocks with the use of machines, their hollow blocks are really strong and well made compared to manual made hollow blocks. Just by looking at their finished products you can see that their hollow blocks is durable and stable when you are going to use it. We also asked them if they would allow us to use their machines to create our prototype and test it for more observations and they adviced us to send a letter to their owner which is Ms. Eulalia that she would allow us to use their machines.

We also validated an Engineer about our idea about hollow blocks through chat because he is very busy and cannot find time to make a face-to-face interview. He said he had heard and read about this kind of idea, he also said it might be possible to make hollow blocks with plastics and glass because hollow blocks are not that really crucial in the share of strength in the structural building. He liked the approach of our idea because it gives a new way pf recycling plastics and glass.

As to our MVP we are still on the process of doing things that don't scale. We already created a page on Facebook called the Hollow-Plus you can like the page if you want, we are really open for suggestions. Also we are planning to make a simple and short video that could explain what our business is all about. We are also on the process of asking permission to the owner of Goodwill to use their machines and if she would allow we will set for a date to create our first set of hollow blocks.

More updates next week.

[kristinecabreraposts-blog]

WEEK 5

So we have completely changed our business idea into an echo friendly hollow blocks which we call as the Hollow Plus; the best way of creating and constructing something, while solving a global problem. Our business creates hollow blocks made of cement, any kind of plastics and any kind of glass. It is echo friendly because our goal is to consume used plastics and glass (our possible supplier for the plastics might be at barobo where trash from the city are pilled up), with this kind of procedure we can at least lessen the use of cement in making hollow blocks for housing and even for the flooring.

We are still gonna test its durability by making a sample and we are still searching for makers of hollow blocks that would allow us to make our prototype. As for the validation, we are going to validate the following: engineers, consumers, hollow block makers, family and friends or local households. We are still on the process of validating hollow block makers and consumers and we are still searching for engineers that we could interview regarding our business idea.

So here are our questions for validations:

Questions to be given:

1. Unsa inyong maingon sa inyong hollow blocks nga inyuhang ginagamit?

*mahalan bamo sa hollow blocks nga inyuhang gina palit?

*Dali bani ma pud2?

2. Ug naay product (hollow blocks) mo gawas sa market nga eco-friendly ug barato mo palit mo?

3. Unsa pa inyuhang ika suggest sa amoang product nga buhaton?

As to our Business Model Canvas we are still not done with the Cost Structure and Revenue Streams and there might be changes to our Value Preposition because it was not really well constructed. So our team will still be validating for further ideas that we might add to our business idea.

More updates next week ♡

[kristinecabreraposts-blog]

WEEK 4

Our topic for this week was about Customer Discovery, Business Model & Customer Development. Customer Discover has three stages: 1. Pre-planning 2. Interviews 3. Analysis and Insight. Start up is totally different form a company because start up is jud a temporary organization designed to search scalable and repeatable business model. So what is a business model? It is how a company creates value while delivering products or services to the customers, it is like your strategy in making your product or services unique and valuable to your customers. Business Model has 9 steps to follow; first the Value Proposition, second is customer segments, third is channels, fourth is customer relationships, fifth is revenue streams, sixth is key resources, seventh is key partners, eight is key activities and ninth is cost structures.

We had our pitching done last September 17, 2019 (Tuesday). Our business idea is about an application named GoFinder Poblacion which helps you locate stores where you want to buy something at Poblacion, Valencia City. The pitching went really smooth but our idea was really hanging especially this kind of application is very common and our way of earning profit is through advertisements which is really not practical because you can only earn from advertisment if your applications has many subscribers or users. We realized that starting a business with an application is really hard, so we decided to pivot if our teacher would allow us to change.

Significant reasons why we would like to change our business idea, first is our application idea is very common, actually you can locate stores or find products using the google map, waze, google search, facebook, etc. Second is our scope is too big for starters, we think that we cannot achieve the scope of stores in Poblacion, Valencia City. Third is how we will earn profit, we decided to earn profit through advertisements which is not applicable because our application is not really that famous and if through registrations or subscriptions people would only search through google because it's free and doesn't need to spend money on registrations.

So, we as a team brainstormed for another business idea and came up with Hollow Plus, this idea is about using any type of plastics and glassware waste to make a hollow block for making houses or flooring. It is an idea where we want to reduce plastic and glass waste by making it as a hollow block. One of our teammate knows someone who also made hollow blocks from waste to make a little house of his own and she said it was really not that bad based on its durability but still we are gonna make our own blocks to test it. This idea is still not approved but we are still hoping that our teacher would allow us to pivot with this new business idea.

Thanks for reading. Tune in for more weekly updates.

[kristinecabreraposts-blog]

WEEK 3

Week 3 was very exhausting but I had also learned a lot. Before we started our class we had an 18 minutes activity called the Marshmallow Game. The game was a group game, we were given 20 pcs of spaghetti sticks, 1 meter yarn, 1 meter tape, scissor and 1 pc. of marshmallow. The mechanics was to build a beautiful and tall tower that can freely stand on its own using the given materials. My group first tested how heavy the marshmallow was and how many spaghetti sticks can support the marshmallow, we easily made a plan of making a firm foundation because one of my teammates had done this before. So we made a square base and attached a firm triangle shaped each side of the square, we had division of work, two had to tape the spaghetti sticks that were grouped into two, the other two made the base and other one was responsible for the giving of tape. We made a tower that did stand, our group I think was second from the tallest one. What went well? Our tower freely stands on its own for more than 5 seconds. What went wrong? We were overwhelmed with the spaghetti stick we went all in taping a long stick but cannot support the weight of the marshmallow, what we did was we slowly broke little pieces of the spaghetti stick until it can support the weight of the marshmallow.

Our discussion was about market validation. Market validition is the process of knowing whether your product or idea is useful for a certain target market. In order for a product to succeed you must validate how your market sees your idea/product, is it what they need? Can it solve their problem? And many more. Market validation can save you time because if your idea/product does not go with what they want you can pivot another set of idea. Making a product does not mean it should only be your opinion, you also need to know the opinion of others.

So there are ways to solicit information from your market. First is asking them open ended question, open ended questions are questions that cannot be answered with a yes or no but it must answer a response, it is useful especially knowing what their opinion would be so you could adjust to their needs. Second is the seeing or shadowing, you are observing and processing what others needs. Third is engaging, this is where you make contact with people and observe to uncover new patterns of behavior. I agree with the saying "Validation is hard, but building a product that no one would want is harder."

This week we celebrated he 109th Unified Founding Anniversary and Alumni Homecoming there were many activities that happened, the night market, saulog sa cbm and many more. We were tasked in making the booth for the night market. As student entrepreneurs we really struggled for the first few days especially attracting customers. Our product (pater) were not really familiar to them so what we did was we made the product in front of them, they can see how it was made and what are inside it. Some were really curious and tried it and their responses were positive. Our pater become popular that even the University President and his relatives visited our both and gave us positive feedbacks. It was an overwhelming experience for us especially it was our last day in selling our products.

Thanks for reading my blog for Week 3. More updates next week.

[kristinecabreraposts-blog]

WEEK 2

A lot has happened this week. We had a business literacy seminar, we had a discussion about idea generation process, and also we had an activity called rejection therapy. All of this experience gave me learnings that I could use for my future.

So, our business literacy seminar was held at the University Convention Center last September 4, 2019 with a theme: Transforming Mindset towards Business Innovation. There were four speaker invited, the first speaker was Ms. Glaiza Caralde from the Go Negosyo, next is Mr. Henry Binahon from the Binahon Agrifarm, next is Engr. Elpidio Paras the owner of Dahilayan and Seven Seas and lastly is Mr. Roy Yabut Vice Chairperson of the Mroy Company. Each one left a message about creating a business, each one explained why their company's unique, each one advised how to start a business, innovating a business and each one shared their experience as entrepreneurs in the real world. I have learned that in creating a business you must love what you do and take risks in order to know if you will succeed and if you will fail try again and never give up.

This week we had a discussion about the Idea Generation process. So, there are 4-steps to develop an idea for a product. First is identify a point of pain in a target market, this means that you have to know the struggles of your target market and make it an opportunity for you to create a product that would be of use to them. Second, innovate a product or service, don't settle for less innovate your product in order to attract your consumers. Third is test your business model, a business model is the way your business makes money. There are a lot of models you can use one example is the pay as you go. Fourth is explore how to acquire customers, this is the most challenging step for me because you have to create strategies and be creative in order to attract customers to your product or business.

Rejection Therapy. So, what is rejection theraphy? It is a social-help game where you do dares that is typically answered with a no but your goal here is to make them say yes. My dare was to ask someone randomly to give me a piggyback ride. I had three attempts, the first attempt I got rejected because he said he was still a senior high school student, it was really awkward and embarrassing. My second and third attempt was really smooth because without hesitation they said yes. My learnings in this game is that you have to take risk and if you fail you can learn from it and try again until you will make someone say yes. Receiving a NO hurts but the pain I received made me stronger.

Thanks for reading my blog for Week 2. More updates next week.

[kristinecabreraposts-blog]

WEEK 1

There were a lot of things I’ve learned this week, making problems into a business was the highlight. In our society today people are encouraged to create their own business or to become an entrepreneur and in order to become one, one must recognize opportunity. Opportunity to build or create something you are passionate about because doing what you love can unleash your potential to become more successful and aside from being passionate you should also consider how you will earn through your business.

Another lesson I have learned is the Behavioral Patterns of Entrepreneurs. First is Pay it Forward, you have to agree at other’s help and in return do the same. Second is Storytelling, realize something new by induction, and then learn to communicate the story a new language. Third is Friend or Foe, learn to trust others without expecting anything in return (it’s better to give than to receive). Fourth is Seek Fairness, in everything you do one should always seek fairness so that others won’t get hurt. Fifth is Plan to Fail, never plan and expect that you will never fail, we are humans, we make mistake or fail but let us use it as a learning to become more successful. Sixth is Diversify your Network, connect to people that you would not normally connect with and open with them, share with them and also learn with them. Seventh is Perfection vs. Good enough, perfection is no good, but good enough is perfect. Eight is Collaboration, working individual or by team helps you build or strategies effectively. Ninth Believe that you can change and influence the world. And lastly be a ROLE MODEL for the other entrepreneur and innovators, share you knowledge and experience and help each other out.

For our business idea we have discussed to create a website named GoFinder Poblacion. If there are apps that suggest restaurants or malls you could go to then we have GoFinder Poblacion. Well, we are creating a website that will help local stores be known. This website is like trivago but our website focuses on local stores around Poblacion, Valencia City, Bukidnon. Sometimes we want to buy something but we just don’t know where to look for, well this website will help you find the store that sells the products you are looking for. As we take into discussion we had arguments on how to earn from this business but we will still be improving our business idea so we could launch it as early as we can.

We interviewed local stores around Poblacion, Valencia City and asked them about our business idea; some of them agreed for their business to be known but some of them also disagreed. Maybe our idea needs more improvement for them to be persuaded.

Thanks for reading my blog for WEEK 1 in Entrepreneurial Minds. More updates next week.