- I have worked in the signage industry now for over three years. While that time period isn't long, especially compared to my co-workers, it has netted me valuable experience in understanding what the customers needs are in this field. I am fortunate in that I have experience in every task in our little shop. I have experience in production, design, sales and installation. As far as my aspirations go, had the question been asked a year or so ago I would have been able to give a clear and detailed answer, now however I am not so sure. This business concept is one I have thought about since before taking this class, and should it become a reality I believe it would be the primary focus of my life.
- My company's purpose is to provide high quality signage to customers anywhere in the world. I have seen the current quality of online signage and I find it lacking. The unmet need of my customer is a reliable supplier of professional quality signage. In my time in this industry I have discovered that there is virtually no business that does not have a need for some form of signage. Even an entirely web based business still has a need for vehicle magnets and graphics to aid in promotion.
- My customer is a business person. I have determined both from my experiences at work and from my interviews that the average private citizen has little use for signage in their personal lives. The only call I have for signage for people not connected with a business entity is generally a birthday or anniversary banner, or perhaps a small vinyl decal for the back window of their car. Entrepreneurs and managers are the main purchasers of signage, and they are my target. Businessmen also understand the importance of quality and are willing to pay for a higher quality product if they believe the product will be a good investment. In the case of signage it is also a necessary investment.
- Customers will pay for my product because it will be of a higher quality than they can currently receive from an online sign company. While I may not beat the prices of places like Vista Print, I will beat their quality. In my current job I have many out of state customers whom I have never met face to face and likely never will. They communicate with us via email or phone and then we ship them their finished signage. My business will provide the same quality of product and service to the end user without the waste of a brick and mortar storefront. In addition, by providing an web based store front with an emphasis on user-friendliness, my company will be just as readily accessible and mass-marketable as my competitors.
- My core competency that sets me above my competition is a personal belief that if you deliver a quality product to the customer then they will come back. A sign isn't like most retail products. A sign is as unique as the person or company who has commissioned it. It is not mass produced (unless it's a bandit coroplast) and has to truly represent the identity of the company whose logo is on it.
The feedback I received was largely positive and didn't involve any suggestions for improvement. All of the commenters mentioned my focus on quality over price as a positive. I tried to further emphasize on this point in this post. Another benefit that was mentioned in the comments was that I am a business to business enterprise. I to believe this is a plus, and I expanded upon that point in item number three. Having taken the time to reread my last post and to reflect on the feedback I believe I have a better understanding of these five elements.
Hey Luke! This is an awesome idea. It's so cool that you took inspiration from your job now. This was a very good idea that you seem so passionate about and I would love to see it become very successful. You took the feedback given to you (which you said was mostly positive) and allowed it to better your product. If you want to see my post, it can be found here: http://entblogemilytreasure.blogspot.com/2016/03/idea-napkin-no-2.html
ReplyDeleteLuke,
ReplyDeleteI agree and think that the five of your points work together really well. You seem to really know what you are doing in your business and know who your customer is and what they want. You did a good job of going back and seeing what feedback you had on your first round. If you get the chance and want to check out my post, you can read it at http://mbvandepol.blogspot.com/2016/03/idea-napkin-no-2.html
Luke,
ReplyDeleteYour post stood out from the rest because it was so well written. It was intriguing to see how your past experiences in the signage industry influenced your being and ideas. Additionally, it's cool to see how you found problems with current online signage and decided to come up with a way to improve the system. My idea has to do with dance shoes, so our ideas aren't really similar, but we did share similarities in how we thought our ideas pieced together. If you want, you can check out my post here: http://cassidymckbusiness.blogspot.com/2016/03/idea-napkin-no-2.html.
Overall, great post!
Luke,
ReplyDeleteYou have a great idea and it seems like you also have a really solid foundation of knowledge. Who do you plan on marketing towards? Some groups of people would consider cheaper better than quality, like college kids. I think you should market towards wealthier clients. If you want to read my own idea, check it out here: (http://taylorjnoe.blogspot.com/2016/03/idea-napkin-no-2.html). Great job on a well written post!