For our Student Enterprise class, we went to SandBox Industries which is an organization the focuses in funding future companies on the market. They taught us about how they have to rebuild a lot of companies because most of them don’t make it through their first year. The building we walked into was a very comfortable place and everyone was down to Earth. The kind of people that work there are people who love new creative ideas.
After they did introductions, they let us present out business plans to them. It was a very nerve racking experience talking to people that shoot down business ideas everyday, but they took it easy on us. My presentation could have been more informative and clearer. I didn’t need to use paragraphs on each of my slides and I could have used more color or pictures to get the audiences attention.
I got some really good feedback from the employees watching my presentation. One person said that instead of having a magazine, I could have a wedsite where people buy the photos that photographers take. From there I would keep some of the money but also give money back to the person that took the picture. Another way I could improve my business plan is to update the financial plan and market strategy.
I learned that all aspects of a business are equally important and that you need be able to answer the “killer questions” before they are asked.