One person must be a domain expert in your industry.
1)
This person said he preferred for me not to put his name in this, but he is an
investment banker in the Consumer and Retail group at a well known bank in New
York.
2)
Domain Expert. I wanted to speak with him because he works on deals in my
target industry every day and he could explain to me how businesses he’s worked
with have taken off.
3)
My brother used to be an investment banker and he made the introduction.
4) He talked to
me about the industry and different competitive advantages that companies have.
He also explained how companies in this industry raise capital.
5) If I ever did
start the business and it got large enough for his bank to look at my company
for a potential deal I would take it to him.
One person must be an expert on your market.
1)
Melissa Glikes. She owns and runs a home store in Gainesville that sells
furniture as well as other home goods
2) Market Expert.
Her customer base is the same base that would be buying my mobile heating and
cooling containers/cups.
3) My friend
works for her as a delivery driver so I asked to be introduced.
4) She showed me
the current selection of similar products that she carries in her store (ie. Food
containers, mugs, cooking dishes) There really isn’t a return expectation.
5) She
understands the target market and knows other retailers. She also knows how
people get products into retail stores which could be helpful as well.
One person must be an
important supplier to your industry.
1)
Jack Wanamaker. He Is an older KA (same fraternity) that works for a plastics
company now.
2) Supplier. He
works for Mitsui plastics which is a company that imports, exports, and creates
different types of synthetic materials.
3) One of my
older friends in the fraternity gave me his contact information.
4) I really just
asked him about different kinds of plastics and what would be used in my idea.
5) His company
could supply one of my materials.
Finally:
Reflect. This
wasn’t that different from networking experiences I have had in the past. If
you are intentionally networking then it should be targeted like this assignment
was.
Hi Mason,
ReplyDeleteIt appears that you were able to talk to a decent amount of people in your industry that were able to give you valuable insight. I like how you spoke with an older member of your fraternity; it is important to remember that social organizations provide us with friends and memories but that they also provide us with contacts for the future, so good job using that as a resource.
I think you did a great job finding people from different backgrounds that you were able to converge in interests to what your product can be. It is important to have a multi-disciplinary approach towards solving a problem. I’m glad you were able to find this networking experience useful and I think that its important to meet people and get to know them personally.
ReplyDelete