4A Forming an opportunity Belief

      Forming an opportunity Belief

I have always had a belief that an opportunity exists and will one day show itself whether it is accidental or on purpose. A particular belief that I have embraced in my life is the idea that self-defense is a crucial aspect everyday life although it is very unlikely a violent event will occur. I believe that a self defense class offered on campus for all to take would be highly beneficial for the personal safety of young college students.

The unmet need is that most people are unaware of tactics on defending themselves. Even if your solution to self-defense do you know how to shoot it, the range of the spray, and the spread of the spray when traveling in the air. The primary audience for this service would be elderly individuals, young children, or adults who do not possess high physical strength and weight. In certain places there are self-defense classes but in Gainesville, FL there are multiple mixed martial arts gyms, but they are incredibly expensive and can be nerve racking to join with no combat training experience. At this point, I cannot say how profitable the opportunity would be but I feel that there would be high participation.

The prototypical customer would include:

a)     Young College women with no defense training

b)    Young college males with no defense training

c)     Parent with a daughter/son

Interview #1: Jessica, 19 years old (name changed for privacy)

a.     What is the exact nature of the need?

Jessica and her friends would feel more comfortable knowing how to defend themselves against being assaulted or abducted. Near her college in Tallahassee, Florida a girl was taken and was not found for a few days. They would like to know if there is anything the can do to combat a situation such as that from happening.

b.     When do they become aware of the need -- that is, do they experience their need all the time or only sometimes?

They experience this need 1-2 times a week as her and friends enjoy the night life of Tallahassee as three colleges including FAMU, TCC, and FSU, produce more or less 100,000 college kids in one city. This means intoxication, dark places, and individuals who view the 7+ highly visited night clubs as grounds for picking up women.

c.     How long have they had the need?

Jessica said that as someone who was physically developed at a young age, harassment and unwanted physical attempts have happened throughout her life.

d.     When did they first become aware of their need? Why?

Jessica used to work as a life guard and wearing a swim suit for 8 hours at a gym, set up the perfect conditions to be approached by males throughout the day. On one instance a large mentally ill man followed Melanie around the pool deck and finally into our break room where she was trapped given there was only one exit. Luckily at the time her boyfriend immediately came to her aid and the police escorted the man off of the premises.

e.     How are they currently addressing their need?

Currently, she has pepper spray and taser her boyfriend has bought her and a little bit of boxing training from him as well.

f.      How satisfied are they with this solution?

She said she would be more satisfied if she knew more combat skills and more importantly tactics to prevent and escape a situation where she could be trapped again.

Conclusion for Interview #1

            I learned that my opportunity can be improved by adding a portion addressing possible prevention methods to make it more difficult to be a prey. I was surprised that during this interview she gave the account of being trapped by this man in the middle of the day in front on coworkers. It shows that the need to defend yourself can happen at any moment.

Interview #2: Bill, 49 yeas old (Name changed for privacy)

a.     What is the exact nature of the need?

Bill is Jessica’s father and he always worries that his youngest daughter who is now out of the house and on her own could become a victim just like every other young female, which are the primary victims of assault and rape. He wants to do anything he can to keep his daughter safe but he is not the kind of person who is violent, owner of a firearm, and doesn’t not have a ton of advice to give his daughter.

b.     When do they become aware of the need -- that is, do they experience their need all the time or only sometimes?

Bill watches the morning news every morning in the city of Jacksonville and because it is a massive city there are always people being murdered, kidnapped, and multiple breaks and entering. Once his daughter left for college that is when he knew neither her boyfriend or him would be with her, which limits the chance of attack. Bill believes that this is need that occurs every day because people are crazy.

c.     How long have they had the need?

As the interview proceeded, he realized how useful this service would have been years ago to instill these skills with her at an early age but recently it has been a large worry since his daughter has been in school for last few months.

d.     When did they first become aware of their need? Why?

He became aware of this need when she left for college. A major change from her normal routine that was in high school, she spent every day and most work shifts with her boyfriend who was a wrestler, gun owner, and carried a knife. Once she left school her boyfriend went to a different college.

e.     How are they currently addressing their need?

Currently there is nothing addressing his need to help keep her safe except linking his debit card to an Uber account so she never has to ride with a stranger or intoxicated friends if she wants to leave a place.

f.      How satisfied are they with this solution?

He is wants to do more and thinks that his daughter participating in this course would only be beneficial and give him and her a less paranoia.  

Conclusion for interview #2:

            I learned that my opportunity could be marketed and supported by parents who care for the safety of their child. Parents have more money than their college student so it would be more profitable for me if they were willing to pay for the classes.

Interview #3: Collin, 18 years old (name change for privacy)

a.     What is the exact nature of the need?

Collin is a smaller male who happened to be bullied when he was much younger because of his size. He also mentioned he was not a very aggressive person so I then asked him if he ever played any contact sports and he said no. He believed that a boxing class would be awesome but he does not want to compete or forced to spare with others.

b.     When do they become aware of the need -- that is, do they experience their need all the time or only sometimes?

Collin has always wanted to find a way to defend himself or others, so he can protect himself or others who are being bullied. He thinks that it is a skill that is better to always have then to not have for the one time you could be attacked.

c.     How long have they had the need?

He has had this need through his late middle school career.  

d.     When did they first become aware of their need? Why?

He first became aware of this need when he has gotten several alerts on his phone from the UFPD about robberies and assaults near or on campus. He does not want to find himself in that situation as other students and if he does, he would like to know what to do.

e.     How are they currently addressing their need?

He currently is not doing anything to address his need. 

f.      How satisfied are they with this solution?

He thinks that a class for everyone with a none competitive atmosphere would be a comfortable and easy way to learn and ask questions about his worries for possible scenarios.

Conclusion for interview #3:

                        Going in I wanted my opportunity to be welcoming of everyone, but I realized that victims of bulling would benefit even if it was just building their confidence for those situations. Maybe they would feel less helpless.

Reflection

How much of your original opportunity is still there?

Most of my original opportunity is still there. The only issue that I did not fully address was a possible price point and location that would cater to the primary audience which are college students.

Do you believe that your new opportunity is more accurate than when you started?

I believe that my opportunity is much more accurate than after I started. This is because I learned how protective parents would be interested in having their children go to a class like this and that all people would find it useful. I also plan to incorporate a prevention lessons because of I think some people would benefit spotting possible hazards before they occur.

How much do you think entrepreneurs should 'adapt' their opportunities based on customer feedback? (In other words, is there a trade-off between adapting and staying firm?)