11A – Idea Napkin No. 1

1) You

I am a senior studying Business Administration with a minor in Event Management. I am organized, hard working, and motivated. I am also very outgoing, a strong communicator, and friendly. I have had three different professional office experiences. The first on was at an insurance company, while the other two were at Universities. I currently work at Shands as an Administrative Assistant in the Community Health and Family Medicine Department. If I was to start this business it would be a large part of my life until it was fully established and I could hire someone else to manage it. My passions is to help others, so I would want to incorporate this into the business by donating some portion of my profit to a charity or nonprofit. Since it would be a new product/ business it would take a few years to grow a customer basis. Most of my time would be spent organizing the business and marketing to my target audience. 

2) What are you offering to customers? 

My product will be used to decrease preparation time and the clean up process of cooking by measuring exact amounts of spices needed for any recipe. It will have a touch screen that allows the cook to chose which spice and measurement they would like. The machine will dispense 1/8 teaspoons to 2 tablespoons of spices and can hold up to 2-4 cups of each 15-20 different spices. There are two different designs one made out of plastic and the other made of metal. There are also two different prices for the machine. The lowest prices is 75 dollars and holds 15 spices, while the highest price is 100 dollars and holds 20 spices. The Spicer can also hold oil, which allows the cook to get perfect measurements of oil.

3) Who are you offering it to? 

My product will be used by inexperienced cooks, people who hate washing dishes, and people who cook with many spices. All of my customers waste time or struggle with measuring spices, which causes them to ruin their recipes. Any age is able to use my product, but I am targeting more towards people 18 and older. Most inexperienced cooks are in college, because that is the first time they have to cook for themselves. The more expensive machine will be marketed towards richer customers. My target market is motivated by making perfect meals and saving time. 

I am also marketing to restaurants who could save time by using my product. I will first start selling to small, Mom and Pop restaurants. I will also market to restaurants close to me in Florida, so I can personally visit them and promote my product. The restaurants are motivated to save time and money with my product.  

4) Why do they care? 

Customers will actually pay me money to use my product because it will save them time and money. By using The Spicer recipes will no longer be thrown away and wasted, because too much of a spice was added. The overall cooking experience will be more enjoyable, because the machine takes away the tedious task of measuring spices. The customer will not have to wash measuring cups after cooking, which will minimize the clean up process. It also saves time throughout the cooking process. Additionally, the machine is a great storage container for the ingredients. The customer will no longer have a messy cabinet full of spices, but a machine on their counter that provides organized storage. 

5) What are your core competencies? 

Spice organizer have been created but none of them dispense perfect measurements from 1/8 teaspoon to 2 t tablespoons. The were created for organization, while mine was created to measure the ingredients. My competition is unable to hold as many spices as my product can. Most of them contain 12 spices, while mine contains 15-20 different spices. They also cannot hold as much of each spice as the Spicer can. My machine will be simple to use and come in different colors to match the customers kitchen. By providing customized colors, customers will be able to alter the machine to best fit their preferences. Lastly, my competitors do not have an oil dispenser that can be added onto the machine. All of these core competencies set me apart from my competitors. 

Evaluation of the Five Elements

I think most of these elements fit together, but some do not. For example, the ones that fit together are my skills, the product, my target market, and the reason people would purchase the product. The product fits perfectly with the opportunity I am trying to solve. Additionally, my management and marketing skills would help organize the business and promote the product. In contrast, there are aspects of my business that are weaker. For example, I am not a strong salesperson. To expand my business, I would need to team up with someone who is experienced with direct selling. I would need to find a partner who has connections with local restaurants or knows specific individuals who would buy my product. His/Her sale skills and my management skills would be a great combination to start this business.