Assignment 23A: Your Venture's Unfair Advantage
1) Scope of the market segment- there were over 16 million people just in the United States that went Kayaking in 2017.
Valuable- It is valuable to have a large customer base because not everyone is going to want or have the means to buy your product.
Rare- While there are many outdoor activities, not all of them are used by such a wide variety of people.
Inimitable- It would be hard to come up with a new type of activity that is as large as kayaking and other outdoor activities that have been around for centuries.
Non-subtitutional- There are other resources that can provide some of the same aspects as kayaking such as canoeing and stand up paddle boarding as well as biking and other forms of land cruising.
2) Knowledge of the market- I have been an avid kayaker for just about 6 years now and know what works and what does not in a kayak.
Valuable- I think this aspect is valuable because the best way for you to know how to build a product is if you have insight as to what will benefit kayakers and what they would want in the product.
Rare- I don't think this aspect is too rare because a lot of people know a great deal about kayaks and would be able to build a product just a good as the one I have come up with.
Inimitable- I think it would be pretty easy to have as much knowledge about kayaks as I have. You just need to spend time on them and use different brands/styles and know how they track in the water.
Non-subtitutional- I think a substitute to knowledge of kayaking would be knowledge of the kayak industry itself. Such as having intel on a certain brand.
3) Financial Capital- I have been working since 14 and have saved up enough to where I would be able to manufacture a prototype and have it tested and tweaked to perfection before asking outside investors for money.
Valuable- This is valuable because not too many investors would want to put money into something that is just an idea and not a physical product that they can put money behind to get it rolled out and into customers hands.
Rare- This aspect is not that rare because many people have the means to do the same if not more.
Inimitable- It would be fairly easy for most people to get enough money to create a few prototypes and have them tested.
Non-subtitutional- A substitute to possessing financial capital would be having an investor that was willing to invest in your product in order to create the prototypes.
4) Social Capital- As I have mentioned in previous posts, I know a few people who have connections to manufacturing sites that would be able to manufacture my product.
Valuable- This is valuable because I already have the manufacturing connections which would make me able to produce my product with a trusted manufacturer that I know will give me a quality product at a reasonable price. I wouldn't have to shop around and hope that they would give me a good deal and make a quality product.
Rare- This type of resource is not too rare but also not that common either. After a fair bit of research anyone could find a manufacturer that would be willing to produce their product.
Inimitable- Other people could definitely create social capital like this with a little bit of time and effort.
Non-subtitutional- Owning your own manufacturing business or making them at home would be a substitute for knowing a manufacturer.
5) A unique product- I have looked all over the web and have not come across anything like the product I have invented.
Valuable- This is valuable because I don't have the same means of producing this product as an already well known kayak brand does. They would be able to roll this out within months if they had this idea.
Rare- The idea is rare or at least I believe so because of the fact that there is not anything else like it on the market.
Inimitable- It would not be too hard to come up with idea as it only took me a couple kayak trips to realize I bring way too many things on my trips to fit on the kayak.
Non-subtitutional- A substitution to having a unique product would be to create a kayak itself that already has more space and the features that my product does.
6) Available time- As a college student, I have enough free time apart from doing school work that I would be able to allocate to getting my business up and running.
Valuable- This resource is very valuable because as you get older, you have more and more responsibilities and a need to constantly be making money in order to pay bills. This means that you might have less available time to grow your business.
Rare- This is kind of rare in this day in age because of how expensive everything is such as car, house, credit card, and other payments needed to be made. This makes it hard to not work and spend a lot of time trying to make money.
Inimitable- It would be decently easy to replicate this by saving up for a while and then cutting back on work so that you can focus on your business.
Non-subtitutional- A substitute for available time would be if they made their business their full time job so that their business would be their main source of income.
7) Business know how- I was in a club that had various speakers come in and teach us how to start a company and taught us the various aspects of how to start your business and where to get investors from.
Valuable- This is a very valuable asset because you can have a great idea but if you don't know how to start a business, you won't be able to sell your product.
Rare-This aspect isn't that rare because a lot of people are entrepreneurs and know how to start a business.
Inimitable- It is easy to imitate especially because the wealth of knowledge that comes from the internet.
Non-subtitutional- A substitute for this would be to find a company or entrepreneur that would be able to start your business for you.
8) A good location for marketing- Since I am from Ft. Lauderdale, I am in a perfect location to launch my product to the public. Whether it be taking it out on the water and getting customers just by showing my product off or going to one of the many kayak rental companies nearby to pitch and sell my product.
Valuable- As they say in Realestate, location is key and I believe this pertains to marketing as well. The location of where you are able to market without having to go too far is very valuable because you'll be able to get your product in the view of the right people and people who will buy the product none the less.
Rare- This is kind of rare because not everyone lives near where a majority of their market segment lives.
Inimitable- It is imitable because people could move to where their market segment is quite easily.
Non-subtitutional- A substitute for this would be to fly or drive to wherever your market segment is or have a local company market for you in that specific area.
9) Knowledge on social media marketing- I was an intern last summer for a small yacht agency in Ft. Lauderdale that dealt with all social media platforms such as their Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Valuable- The knowledge I gained from building their social media platforms is one of the best pieces to a business I have learned yet. Social media plays a huge roll in the business world and allows you to expand your market segment immensely.
Rare- To know how to produce and maintain social media platforms isn't rare but it is hard. There are so many companies on social media so it is hard to grow a following and maintain interest in your company.
Inimitable- It is imitable because everyone has access to social media and they are able to learn as they go so to speak.
Non-subtitutional- A substitute for this would be to have a marketing company start your companies social media and teach you how to expand your following.
10) A means of distribution- My uncle owns a trucking company in South Florida that both rents out trucks and semis as well as delivers large items such as cars from one place to another.
Valuable- Having a means to distribute your product is very important so that your customers get their products on time and don't have to drive somewhere to pick it up. I think at first it would be very valuable to know someone who can help distribute my product because shipping costs would be very high if I used a normal delivery service.
Rare- It is pretty rare to have a distribution channel that would work tightly alongside your company.
Inimitable- It would be difficult but not impossible to find a private distribution channel for a product.
Non-subtitutional- A substitute would be to use a delivery service such as UPS.
I think my greatest asset is my location. I think its so important to know your market segment and be relatively close to where they live so that you can market and show off your product. As a start up company, it would be difficult to go out of your way to reach your market segment.
Valuable- It is valuable to have a large customer base because not everyone is going to want or have the means to buy your product.
Rare- While there are many outdoor activities, not all of them are used by such a wide variety of people.
Inimitable- It would be hard to come up with a new type of activity that is as large as kayaking and other outdoor activities that have been around for centuries.
Non-subtitutional- There are other resources that can provide some of the same aspects as kayaking such as canoeing and stand up paddle boarding as well as biking and other forms of land cruising.
2) Knowledge of the market- I have been an avid kayaker for just about 6 years now and know what works and what does not in a kayak.
Valuable- I think this aspect is valuable because the best way for you to know how to build a product is if you have insight as to what will benefit kayakers and what they would want in the product.
Rare- I don't think this aspect is too rare because a lot of people know a great deal about kayaks and would be able to build a product just a good as the one I have come up with.
Inimitable- I think it would be pretty easy to have as much knowledge about kayaks as I have. You just need to spend time on them and use different brands/styles and know how they track in the water.
Non-subtitutional- I think a substitute to knowledge of kayaking would be knowledge of the kayak industry itself. Such as having intel on a certain brand.
3) Financial Capital- I have been working since 14 and have saved up enough to where I would be able to manufacture a prototype and have it tested and tweaked to perfection before asking outside investors for money.
Valuable- This is valuable because not too many investors would want to put money into something that is just an idea and not a physical product that they can put money behind to get it rolled out and into customers hands.
Rare- This aspect is not that rare because many people have the means to do the same if not more.
Inimitable- It would be fairly easy for most people to get enough money to create a few prototypes and have them tested.
Non-subtitutional- A substitute to possessing financial capital would be having an investor that was willing to invest in your product in order to create the prototypes.
4) Social Capital- As I have mentioned in previous posts, I know a few people who have connections to manufacturing sites that would be able to manufacture my product.
Valuable- This is valuable because I already have the manufacturing connections which would make me able to produce my product with a trusted manufacturer that I know will give me a quality product at a reasonable price. I wouldn't have to shop around and hope that they would give me a good deal and make a quality product.
Rare- This type of resource is not too rare but also not that common either. After a fair bit of research anyone could find a manufacturer that would be willing to produce their product.
Inimitable- Other people could definitely create social capital like this with a little bit of time and effort.
Non-subtitutional- Owning your own manufacturing business or making them at home would be a substitute for knowing a manufacturer.
5) A unique product- I have looked all over the web and have not come across anything like the product I have invented.
Valuable- This is valuable because I don't have the same means of producing this product as an already well known kayak brand does. They would be able to roll this out within months if they had this idea.
Rare- The idea is rare or at least I believe so because of the fact that there is not anything else like it on the market.
Inimitable- It would not be too hard to come up with idea as it only took me a couple kayak trips to realize I bring way too many things on my trips to fit on the kayak.
Non-subtitutional- A substitution to having a unique product would be to create a kayak itself that already has more space and the features that my product does.
6) Available time- As a college student, I have enough free time apart from doing school work that I would be able to allocate to getting my business up and running.
Valuable- This resource is very valuable because as you get older, you have more and more responsibilities and a need to constantly be making money in order to pay bills. This means that you might have less available time to grow your business.
Rare- This is kind of rare in this day in age because of how expensive everything is such as car, house, credit card, and other payments needed to be made. This makes it hard to not work and spend a lot of time trying to make money.
Inimitable- It would be decently easy to replicate this by saving up for a while and then cutting back on work so that you can focus on your business.
Non-subtitutional- A substitute for available time would be if they made their business their full time job so that their business would be their main source of income.
7) Business know how- I was in a club that had various speakers come in and teach us how to start a company and taught us the various aspects of how to start your business and where to get investors from.
Valuable- This is a very valuable asset because you can have a great idea but if you don't know how to start a business, you won't be able to sell your product.
Rare-This aspect isn't that rare because a lot of people are entrepreneurs and know how to start a business.
Inimitable- It is easy to imitate especially because the wealth of knowledge that comes from the internet.
Non-subtitutional- A substitute for this would be to find a company or entrepreneur that would be able to start your business for you.
8) A good location for marketing- Since I am from Ft. Lauderdale, I am in a perfect location to launch my product to the public. Whether it be taking it out on the water and getting customers just by showing my product off or going to one of the many kayak rental companies nearby to pitch and sell my product.
Valuable- As they say in Realestate, location is key and I believe this pertains to marketing as well. The location of where you are able to market without having to go too far is very valuable because you'll be able to get your product in the view of the right people and people who will buy the product none the less.
Rare- This is kind of rare because not everyone lives near where a majority of their market segment lives.
Inimitable- It is imitable because people could move to where their market segment is quite easily.
Non-subtitutional- A substitute for this would be to fly or drive to wherever your market segment is or have a local company market for you in that specific area.
9) Knowledge on social media marketing- I was an intern last summer for a small yacht agency in Ft. Lauderdale that dealt with all social media platforms such as their Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Valuable- The knowledge I gained from building their social media platforms is one of the best pieces to a business I have learned yet. Social media plays a huge roll in the business world and allows you to expand your market segment immensely.
Rare- To know how to produce and maintain social media platforms isn't rare but it is hard. There are so many companies on social media so it is hard to grow a following and maintain interest in your company.
Inimitable- It is imitable because everyone has access to social media and they are able to learn as they go so to speak.
Non-subtitutional- A substitute for this would be to have a marketing company start your companies social media and teach you how to expand your following.
10) A means of distribution- My uncle owns a trucking company in South Florida that both rents out trucks and semis as well as delivers large items such as cars from one place to another.
Valuable- Having a means to distribute your product is very important so that your customers get their products on time and don't have to drive somewhere to pick it up. I think at first it would be very valuable to know someone who can help distribute my product because shipping costs would be very high if I used a normal delivery service.
Rare- It is pretty rare to have a distribution channel that would work tightly alongside your company.
Inimitable- It would be difficult but not impossible to find a private distribution channel for a product.
Non-subtitutional- A substitute would be to use a delivery service such as UPS.
I think my greatest asset is my location. I think its so important to know your market segment and be relatively close to where they live so that you can market and show off your product. As a start up company, it would be difficult to go out of your way to reach your market segment.
Hey Daniel,
ReplyDeleteKnowledge of the market is a very valuable resource to have. It's also great that you have a starting location in mind for you business as well. I also put time as one of my resources. Your product could be imitated. Competitors who see any value in your idea could make something simpler and possibly sell it for cheaper.
Hi Daniel,
ReplyDeleteYou did a great job with the VRIN analysis of each of your resources. I found the VRIN analysis a bit challenging, just because I don’t usually think about these aspects of a resource every day. I think that by continuing to do VRIN analysis on basic things, I will be able to tremendously improve my entrepreneurial way of thinking.