Growing My Social Capital

It's Who You Know, Not What You Know

Entrepreneurs can reap profound benefits from their social capital. If you know how social capital works, then you can build it!

This is a 'networking' experience -- but unlike other 'networking' opportunities you may have had in the past, I'm going to set very clear parameters on this experience. This will help you focus your efforts on achieving exactly what you need for this experience; moreover, you can set parameters on any future networking experience, to get the most out of it.

Mission: establish contact with three new people, who will be valuable to helping you pursue your business idea...

One person must be a domain expert in your industry. This would be someone who's engaged in the same type of business activity as you would like to be. They may own the same kind of company that you would like to own, or they may be a technical expert who knows a lot about the kind of product or service that you would like to produce.

1) "The Olive Guy" from the Gainesville Farmer's Market

2) He would be the domain expert in my industry; he is a phd in hydroponic technology and owns his own education program for sustainable agricultural technology- he also sells homemade olives at the farmer's market 

3) I found the Olive Guy at the Gainesville farmer's market where I go every week for my groceries. This time last year when I was working on this project, I established contact with him and requested some feedback on my sustainable development ideas for Gainesville. 

4) This exchange was an informal interview where he talked to me about the costs and benefits of starting a business centered on sustainable development ideas. There was no exchange other than information and good, interesting conversation!

5) He was very realistic about the important factors of entrepreneurship in this field and, as a highly educated, yet down to earth individual with plenty of exposure in sustainable technology, could act as a great mentor for my endeavors. 

One person must be an expert on your market. This would be someone who is targeting your market with similar products services -- or knows a lot about conducting customer research in your area -- or represents a major piece of your market (this might be most applicable with B2B markets).
1) Directors of Cymplify

2) These guys are Market experts (without knowing how useful they are to me) 

3) Cymplify is a new cafe here in Gainesville centered on sustainability as well, but are angled in a slightly different direction than are my business ideas 

4) This was another informal interview conducted at Cymplify; I asked them to talk to me a little bit about their journey to creating the cafe, and specifically how they discovered their market and how their market turned out differently than they might have expected in the creation process. I went about it in a very informal manner as a curious customer, and mentioned that I had my own sustainability ideas but 

5) Including these people in my network is a questionable move as it could go one of two ways; we could either become competition (which I think would be the more likely case) or we could work to complement each other in the sustainability/"green" movement here in Gainesville. Regardless, observing their business and keeping them more familiar is a better option, as they are a fantastic source of information relating to a market that is still growing. 

One person must be an important supplier to your industry. This would be someone who is selling products and services to other organizations/firms in your industry. 1) Gainesville local farmers; my main contact would be the organizers of the Alachua County Farmer's Market because my cafe would be built on the objective that 

2) They would be the supplier/main contact for all of the food products that we would be using/selling

3) I knew about the Alachua County Farmer's Market since I moved to Gainesville because that is where I get the majority of my produce; to contact the board who organizes the farmer's market activities, I had to go online to find the contact information and emailed them with my questions. 

4) The exchange was over email and was only an informative conversation about the possibilities of supplying a restaurant with the produce that moves through the farmer's market. They offered to be a contact to make recommendations as to who I should contact, but recommended that I make direct contact with the farmers themselves to see if we can make business arrangements that way. 

5) Keeping the Gainesville Farmer's Market as a contact is very valuable as they have all of the information on the local agricultural and artisanal markets in the local area. 

Finally: Reflect. This experience requires you to do a little 'targeted networking.' How will this experience shape how you participate in any future networking events? Did this experience differ from your networking experiences in the past? How?

This experience made me really think harder about who I would contact and being prepared to talk to them about what exactly I needed from them. The worst thing is going to meet someone or going to get information from people and not being prepared to answer the questions: what is my goal, what do I need from you, what would it cost you, how would it benefit you? I would say this is the first tier of my networking process, and the next step would be going one step deeper and going to talk to the contacts that I gained through this activity. 

Elevator Pitch No. 3

1) The pitch. Same as last time, 1-minute long. No Web cams. No sitting. Be dynamic! Upload the video to YouTube (as you do with all of your videos) and post the link.

2) A reflection on the feedback you received from your last pitch. Describe what stood out to you as important, what feedback surprised you the most, what feedback you think was outright wrong or silly. 

3) What did you change, based on the feedback?

Be sure to include the phrase "Elevator Pitch No. 3" in the post title and label it "Week 10." 

Week 9 Reading Reflection

1) What was the biggest surprise for you in the reading? In other words, what did you read that stood out the most as different from your expectations? 

• The most surprising thing to me was the intricacy of the R & D elements of forming a marketing concept and transforming it into a marketing plan. 

2) Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing to you.

• No piece of the reading was confusing to me; the reading was just very long and very detailed. Honestl, my attention span is the most challenging part of following through with these readings.

3) If you were able to ask two questions to the author, what would you ask? Why?

• What were some key historical examples of successful and unsuccessful ventures to create marketing concepts and plans in the business world?
• What research and development methods have been the most successful in start-ups and business relating to sustainability and green technology?

4) Was there anything you think the author was wrong about? Where do you disagree with what she or he said? How?

• I absolutely am not qualified to challenge the author's opinions on marketing development and strategy, but am interested in learning more in the future. 

My Secret Sauce

1) Describe five ways in which you think you have human capital that is truly unique.What is it about you, exactly, that makes you different? 

Self assessment is usually really difficult for me, but I took the StrengthsFinder2.0 assessment and it really cleared up for me some pieces of my human capital that I didn't previously consider to be strengths. Before taking this quiz, this question would have been nearly impossible for me to answer, but now I revert to this because it seems to be a fairly accurate description of me.

• Strategic:People strong in the Strategic theme create alternative ways to proceed. Faced with any given scenario, they can quickly spot the relevant patterns and issues.
• Connectedness:People strong in the Connectedness theme have faith in the links between all things. They believe there are few coincidences and that almost every event has a reason.
• Relator:People who are strong in the Relator theme enjoy close relationships with others. They find deep satisfaction in working hard with friends to achieve a goal.
• Communication:People strong in the Communication theme generally find it easy to put their thoughts into words. They are good conversationalists and presenters.
• Command:People strong in the Command theme have presence. They can take control of a situation and make decisions.

I consider myself to be unique because of the life experiences that I have had growing up in a military family, but attribute 100% of that to my awesome family and the adventures we have had together as we have moved through the big blue world. Via the fam, I have acquired cultural exposure, a desire to impress and always be the best version of me, at the very least for my family. 

2) Interview the people who know you the best...

Mamacita: (aka La Reina/Königin)
The O.G. Betty Badass of the family-taught me everything about everything

      

Papito: (the dude with all the answers) 

Dance dad, leader extraordinaire

               

 Sabrina: (my other half) 

Professional "tell-it-to-u-straight-aholic"

  Carlitos Ortiz(aka Snowball)
Also bff by default      

Nahel Abugattas: (adopted bro)
Adopted me as a homie freshman year of collitch & we been boizz ever since

   

Kris: (main dude/"the chop")
Also a professional humbler- tells the truth
even when it's irrelevant..

3) Reflect on the differences. How do you see yourself, and how do others see you?

I see myself as a confident human being who is pretty easy going unless I am traveling in a fixed direction, and then I become resolute and determined, and momentum turns into progress (most of the time, otherwise, there will just be some really intense procrastination). I love traveling, I love being around the people that I love- that is the most important thing to me, by far, and I think that every moment that isn't spent enjoying life/the people around you/creating positive motion in the world/bettering yourself, is time wasted. 

One thing that surprised me that a few of  the people that I interviewed had to say about me were comments in regards to me being caring, as well as how sincerely they took this interview. I am very awkward when it comes to showing affection and complimenting and accepting compliments, and the people in my life are nearly all comedians who rarely take anything seriously (much less me), so to hear them speak seriously about me was definitely a new one. I don't take myself very seriously, but obviously these people know me well enough to see way past this and have a such a clear idea of who I am.

 Are there differences in how you assess yourself compared to others? What do you think causes these differences? 

A difference that I noticed was that I seem to see myself as a much more laid back, easy-going person than apparently I come off as. I am aware I have a strong personality, but I guess I confused having very low blood pressure and being generally content most of the time with being easy going (I admit I like to get my way)! 

Do you think your interviewees are correct about you?

If they weren't, I wouldn't be able to say that these are the people who know me best. I feel like they have a way more accurate view of who I am then I do myself- and I live with me 24/7. 

Finally, going back to your list from part 1, would you make any corrections to the list? How? 

I would not make any changes to my list. My ideas about who I am and what I stand for remain pretty consistent, but these are people who are "up there" on my favorite humans list, so even though we rarely take each other seriously, I definitely take constructive criticism and their opinions very seriously. If/when need be, I would make changes to become a better me based on what they might have to share with me. 

Idea Napkin No.2

1) You. Who you are. What your talents are. What your skills and experiences are. Also: what are your aspirations? Specifically regarding your business concept, how do you see this business (if you were to start it) playing a role in your life?

• So obviously, from my blog, you can probably derive that my name is Sofia Ortiz. My bio is available on my blog from one of the first weeks of the entrepreneurship course, but in summary, I am a military brat and have moved to 13 different locations between the United States and Europe, but grew up during my high school years in southern Spain, where I call home. One of the most accurate descriptions I have received in regard to my strengths was my results after taking Strength Finder 2.0's personal assessment, which stated that my five core competencies were: "Communicator," "Strategy," "Command," "Relator," and 

2) What are you offering to customers? Describe the product or service (in other words, how you'll solve customers' unmet needs). 

• I am providing a service that turns underutilized space in homes and industrial workspaces (like rooftops) into green space, beginning by converting an abandoned building in the city of Gainesville into a zero carbon footprint space and an example of how sustainable technologies can be used to make these dreams a reality. Eventually, this would be a service that employs the homeless of Gainesville as volunteers to help maintain the gardens/sustainable systems put in place by the business.

3) Who are you offering it to? Describe, in as much detail as possible, the demographic and psychographic characteristics of your customers. Think especially of this question: what do your customers all have in common? & Why do they care? Your solution is only valuable so far as customers believe it is valuable to them. Here, explain why customers will actually pay you money to use your product or service. 

• My general target market would be the community of Gainesville, as this project aims to add value to the city as well as the people employed and supported by the city of Gainesville. 
• More specifically, the sustainable cafe would be targeting college students as the main source of income
• Next would be the middle-aged market, especially young families of Gainesville who are geared towards working to create a sustainable future for themselves and their families. 
• Finally, this would be targeting corporations (especially restaurants) that can implement the ideas of creating gardens in compact spaces to add value to their products and services by introducing homemade agriculture as well as providing a space that acts as a natural stress reliever, reducing stress as well as increasing productivity merely by improving the aesthetics of the workplace. 

4) What are your core competencies? What sets you apart from everyone else? Also: what do you have that nobody else has?

• One thing that makes me unique is my drive and my energy once I believe in something. I have a gift that my natural energy is such that when I am excited about something and motivated, it becomes contagious and people begin to follow me in a direction. Also, when it counts, I am a very strategic thinker and work well under pressure to come up with creative and constructive solutions rather than falling apart. 

Reflection & Takeaways:

1. This project needs energy; get people who are excited on your side to start chipping away at your progress
2. Look 

Week 8 Reading Reflection

1) What was the biggest surprise for you in the reading? In other words, what did you read that stood out the most as different from your expectations? 

• So far the book has covered such a range of topics in such depth regarding entrepreneurship and innovation, that to see it move even further into intricate detail about financing in entrepreneurship was a bit of a surprise, especially since start-up, innovation, and individual entrepreneurship funding is absolutely its own ballgame. 

2) Identify at least one part of the reading that was confusing to you.

• I am currently taking financial accounting as an economics major and it is ruining my life, so when I saw references to accounting principles and theory, part of me wanted to cry, and the other tenacious part of me wanted to delve in and figure out exactly what the author was writing and explaining because I find financial accounting unnecessarily confusing. 

3) If you were able to ask two questions to the author, what would you ask? Why?

• See the end of Question 4
• What are the three most important takeaways (if you could narrow it down) to financing and understanding finance in business? Basically 3 point summary of all there is to know, please: go. 

4) Was there anything you think the author was wrong about? Where do you disagree with what she or he said? How?

• I think that statistics and facts can be thrown around all day in regards to the perfect "pick-me" formula when presenting to and dealing with venture capitalists, but that in today's day and age, you have to have a little "extra something" to get picked to be financed by a venture capitalist. Obviously, when competing against the best of the best in your field, you must differentiate to stand out, but what would be most interesting to me would be a breakdown of the most effective differentiation methods when dealing with Venture Capital. 

The Twenty Percent

1) Find a business owner and talk to them about their customers. Who do they think their target customers are? What are their customers' unmet needs?Where do they find their customers? What are their customer's demographics? What kinds of media do their customers consume? Etc.
I spoke to the owners one of my favorite panaderias (José from Pastelería Nunos) in Madrid about how they started and how they became so successful. I chose them over another sustainability cafe that I knew of in the city to interview because they have built a very very loyal customer base, which can be hard to do, especially as a young company in a gigantic city, and in my experience in businesses like this, the most important thing to focus on is the people.  

• According to the owner, José Fernández-Ramos, the keys of success to his business are:
• Location: they have a prime location in the heart of Madrid; "tenemos mucha suerte...." 
• Their target customers are the local workforce in Madrid's city center & their "hotspots" of the day are the transit times, like breakfast and lunch, when the business people of Madrid traditionally take their coffees and pastries
• As opposed to some other more modern businesses, their social media is fairly limited, and they prefer to build their customer base in-person because they are targeting a very specific audience in a very specific location, otherwise if they were planning on expanding, he says he would consider other channels of communication for his customers.

After being asked for advice on how to go about starting a bakery-type business, offered me the advice to keep it simple. He said the most important thing is to recognize one customer need, and to clearly address that need better than your competitors. In his case, this was pastries and coffee. "Not complicated and my customers clearly like it."

2) Next, go and talk to 3 'target customers' -- using the demographics/psychographics the entrepreneur described. As these 'target customers' the questions in the paragraph directly above.

• After talking to three different customers between the breakfast and lunch rushes at the bakery, this is the feedback that I received: 
• Customer 1: Banker, Santander Bank, Madrid
• Loved the bakery because of the convenient location on his way to work; also loved that it was a family environment and that when José is in the bakery, he makes an effort to personally check on his customers. He did not have any critiques for the bakery.
• Customer 2: Undergraduate University Student, St. Louis University Madrid
• Only the second time she had been to the bakery, but came back because she enjoyed the wide selection of pastries and said the coffee was very good. "A good way to start my morning." She said she would continue to come back. Only critique offered was a suggestion to be able to call in orders or have a web page where people could see what pastries or deals were offered on a particular day. 
• Customer 3: Construction Worker
• Likes the wide selection that the bakery had to offer and that certain specialty items were available depending on the time of the year, which kept him looking forward to coming back (like the turron during Christmastime, for example). Did not have any critiques other than that the bakery can get crowded and noisy at times, but that that is a sign of content customers. 

3) Reflect. Does the entrepreneur adequately understand their customers' problems? Where are the differences? Why might these differences exist. 

• Yes, the entrepreneur has a clear picture of who his customers are and what they want to take from his business. I really liked the advice he gave me in regards to "keeping it simple" when it came to my business ideas and how I sold them to customers, because I know I have a tendency to get wrapped up in details a lot of times. One thing that José might want to pay attention to eventually is his customers' need for contact through social media, even though he prefers to run more of a traditional, "mom 'n pop" style operation. 

*entrepreneur requested that I not record the interview*