Assignment 11A - Idea Napkin No. 1

1. 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?
• My name is Jacob and I am a third year Information Systems student in the combined degree program for Information Systems and Operations Management Master's degree. I have experience in small entrepreneurial ventures I've started dealing with social media, internet marketing, web design, and more. I am familiar with the basics of programming and know Java. I want to work in the technology field but also own my own business. If I were to start this business, I would see myself learning more about app development and interviewing more gym owners to see if they have any recommendations.
2. What are you offering to customers? Describe the product or service (in other words, how you'll solve customers' unmet needs). 
• I am offering a simple way to check to see how crowded your local gym is. Often times, I will be discouraged from completing my full routine because the gym is too crowded and I can't afford to spend 2 hours in the gym. This app would let users check how crowded the gym is and recommend a time best to go based on their needs and capacity patterns of the gym based on time of day.
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?
• This app would primarily be for people with a gym membership. Of those with a gym membership, the ones with a flexible schedule would find most use of it. Typically, people who use this app would be motivated to be healthy and stay in shape.
4. Why do they care? Your solution is only valuable insofar as customers believe its valuable to them. Here, explain why customers will actually pay you money to use your product or service. 
• The app would likely start off being free and gain revenue through advertisements or sponsorships, but people would use the app because it could save them time when working out and make going to the gym less stressful. 
5. What are your core competencies? What sets you apart from everyone else? Also: what do you have that nobody else has? 
• As far as I know, there isn't an app that can let you check the amount of people currently in your local gym and recommend a time to go when it's less crowded. We could even have an option to send a notification when the amount of people in the gym drops below a certain percentage.

I believe that these elements fit together fairly well. I think there is potential for people to use and benefit from this app and create a trusting relationship with consumers. The hardest part would be trying to monetize it through means other than advertising, which would take time, but would pay off in the long run if the app has enough users.