Idea Napkin No. 2 

1)    You. 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 Elio Murillo. I have two pets at home, one dog and one cat. This has provided me the experience of dealing with litter boxes and cat waste. I’ve tried several different products and haven’t really been completely satisfied with any of them. This has put me in a unique position to feel motivated to solve this issue and develop a better product. The skills that I believe I possess and can help me in this process are drive, optimism, and communication. I don’t have a solid solution yet, but the optimism and drive keep me going and continuing to think about how to solve this issue. My aspiration is to have it be a product that can truly offer a solution to these issues. I see this playing a role in my life by first and foremost keeping me away from my cat’s waste and helping others with the same issue.

2)    What are you offering to customers? Describe the product or service (in other words, how you'll solve customers' unmet needs). 

The idea is to provide a product that is going to collect your cat's waste and self-clean with minimal involvement by the customer. There are other products out there that attempt to this but end up creating either more of a mess or are more difficult to clean even if it doesn’t have to be cleaned as often.

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?

The obvious commonality amongst the customer for this product is having a pet cat. Beyond that, though I think it is going to appeal most to those that are busy and don’t have time to keep up with the litter or do not enjoy cleaning cat waste (probably most people).   

4)    Why do they care? Your solution is only valuable insofar as customers believe it's valuable to them. Here, explain why customers will actually pay you money to use your product or service. 

As mentioned in the previous question, no one likes to clean cat waste. It piles up very quickly and smells horrible. Also, not to mention, it is not sanitary to have it pile up or have to clean it with your hands. All of this makes me believe that people will pay for a product that would reduce the amount of cleaning required and would also keep the area clean for the cat to use.  

5)    What are your core competencies? What sets you apart from everyone else? Also: what do you have that nobody else has? 

Some of my competencies, which have become a lot clearer after the secret sauce exercise, include compassion, optimism, drive, and communication. I think a combination of all of these skills sets me apart from everyone else. In addition to that, I have the experience of owning and caring for a cat and the particular disdain of having to deal with the litter box. All of these things put together to give me the skills and drive that no one else has to pursue the development of this product.

Feedback Memo: I got feedback about how my experience with having a cat is a part of what makes me qualified to solve this issue. I tried to include this in this idea napkin and I really believe that seeing myself as a customer for my product helps keep me motivated to pursue the idea. I did also get feedback about not having a blueprint for the product that I’m envisioning. I’ve struggled with coming up with something specific, but I’m currently doing research to put something together. Like the feedback that I got says, I just need to get started and figure the rest out as I go.