23A – Your Venture’s Unfair Advantage

This assignment was very difficult for me because I don’t have a lot of resources at the moment, or at least not that I could think of. My business has been “hypothetical” in terms of getting everything set up but I don’t actually have a product to represent the brand. I think I fell short of the 10 resources requested.

The list:

1. Online presence
1. Online presence is growing of course but I started tracking my journey to health about six months ago. In this time I’ve gained hundreds of followers that enjoy learning about my journey and they seek out guidance. This resource is exremely valuable because it has an unlimited reach. With social media, people are interacting with you from all over the world so you don’t have the challenge of demographics. The “retail” aspect of my business would be promoted online as well, allowing me to reach a larger audience. Right now this is considered to be rare because other companies are trying to promote health and weightless through supplements and not support or knowledge. Companies show results that are unattainable with just diet pills, its false advertisement at its finest. It’s also rare to have a strong online presence that promotes health for no other reason than to help others. It’s not hard to copy at all but its hard to understand. Most people don’t understand the value in education and support thus, there is not an online presence for trainers who support education and support. There might be similar products on the market but not many. I’ve started to see a disturbance in the market as consumers seek healthy alternatives. Consumers are no longer ok with what their being sold and are pressing for a change. Companies face heat from consumers that want natural products with no preservatives. Although I am not panning on selling food or nutrition, at the moment, I do predict that all people need is knowledge and then they will have the power to make their own changes.
2. Personal results and story
1. I’ve gained followers by sharing my journey with the world. People actively seek guidance from people who have felt the same struggles. I’ve noticed an increased trend in peoples desire to understand and develop their lifestyle and they seek fitness health and wellness trainers like myself. Although I’ve only lost 25 pounds, the results speak for themselves and thats what intrigues people. This is rare and important because its not something offered by most companies. You can not go to a business and see the growth from day one to success. Its influential from consumers and It also creates a sense of trust. I’d never advertise something to a customer unless I’m willing to do it or have the ability to do it. 
3. Access to educational material
1. As a university student I have access to a lot of research articles published around the world. These research articles play a huge roll in the development of my products. This is important because it allows me to back up my products with scientific research. Companies don’t spend a lot of time providing actual data to consumers and I believe thats exactly why this aspect is most important. If I am to make a purchase I want to make sure I know the inside and out of the product and what it can do for me. I am not a person to blindly purchase something that can not be backed up by research. I am currently disappointed with the availability of food guides. Companies are promoting “Keto” plans for long term goals which is actually incredibly unhealthy for the body and can create serious health concerns, but companies don’t advertise that because they know the results are legit and people can easily drop 10-30 lbs on a keno diet. A keto diet is not a long term solution so with the weight loss you will be subject to weight gain if you switch back to a normal diet. Additionally, there are companies out there that promote wight loss through cutting calories, which is known to be affective. It is not healthy to cut calories down to a level that is not sustainable for muscle growth and weight loss. My products are long term and do not offer a “band-aid” approach. Setting consumers up with the materials to lead a healthy and productive life is not hard but the market has become over inflated with money driven companies that do not have a humanistic approach. 
4. Personal fitness guides
1. This is where you start to “tread in someone elses water” for lack of better terms. The market is in my opinion over populated by applications and co plans that sell diet plans and fitness guides. This of course allows me to create a disturbance by offering a humanistic approach to the market. Promoting knowledge will bring power and thats what sets my company apart. Additionally, no one else offers a support system in conjunction with their products. With UDiety you get access to a blog where you can share your stories and support others in their journey, and vise versa. 
5. Meal guides
1. Companies like Blue Apron offer the actual meals for consumers and it’s really expensive. I don’t plan on offering meal kits because I believe consumers have more savings power from just having knowledge and then making the conscious decision to prepare meals of their choice. With my diet plans, I introduce foods that are healthy and nutritious and help promote specific benefits. Consumers who know what to buy will have an easier time finding the products at a discounted price or in bulk. 
6. Open availability 
1. The best part of my service is that advisors are readily available to help make customers dreams a reality. I have four other individuals that work under me to provide the same support that I’d offer to customers. Right now a team of five can manage 16-20 people and dedicate a 30 minute time slot for each person. This means that my business can essentially grow to over 100 people before I have to expand and recruit new people. 
7. Starting capital
1. Starting capital is important. My starting capital is knowledge and skill. I have the ability to use resources from school to supply the knowledge and I have a talent for art and creativity to create the actual meal guides. Since the products are digital they will not cost anything to make, just man hours. So to start this journey all I need is to focus on the why and incorporate that into guides. Working with consumers directly to identify weak points in their lifestyle also comes at a low cost.

For me my most important resource is actually tied between educational resources and online presence because I feel they go hand in hand. I wouldn’t be able to create the product for consumers if I didn’t have the educational resources to back me up, it would just be opinionated meal guides that won’t provide results. On the other side of this, You also have online presence. I wouldn’t have a client base if I didn’t have the 600-800. Followers that I do have. That number is also expected to grow and my products produce results for people. The results can be shared through social media which will further my online presence. Both of these are very important because it plays into what sets my company apart from the rest.