Growing Your Social Capital

Domain Expert:

I spoke to a senior at UF that is also an Uber driver. I found her because I posted on facebook asking if anyone knows someone or if anyone is an uber or lyft driver and she said she works for uber over the summer. She is very knowledgeable in the ride sharing industry and told me the busiest times for her were around 1 and in the afternoon. She said driving was really fun. When I told her about my business idea she was pretty skeptical because she said it would be hard for me to find drivers that are willing to take people and it would also be hard to make the business free since the drivers need to be paid appropriately. She said it reminded her of the later gator or SNAP.

Market Expert: I also posted on Facebook asking if anyone knew or was a SNAP driver and one of my friends said one of the girls she used to live with was a SNAP driver. She told me she was busiest in the late afternoon and at night and it was hard to get everyone to their desired destination on time and without people complaining. She told me my idea would be good to go to places outside of campus because since SNAP already existed it would be too competitive.

Supplier: I had a hard time coming up with a supplier for my carpooling app since it’s technically not a product and drivers supply their own cars and work on their schedules. So I decided to talk to a potential driver since they would be the ones supplying the carpool. I asked my friend who has a car and is also on a tight budget and would appreciate the little extra income. She said my idea is perfect because she would not have any specific shifts and just be picking people up on her daily errands.

Reflect:

I enjoyed networking with these individuals because they were honest and told me straight up if something was going to work or not. In the comments a lot of times it is just positive feedback and does not help me actually evaluate my product/service. But Naty, the Uber driver told me she was skeptical and the SNAP driver, who works directly with UF students helped me see potential trends. This experience was helpful because I sort of had to pitch my ideas like I have done in the elevator speeches. It was more formal than when I usually interview someone. In the future I am going to definitely practice what I am going to say better.