What’s Next?

Existing Market

Step 1: The next step for me would be to solidify the design of the product and its maintenance. I would then have to look into the cost of making it and research the manufacturing process for this type of product.

Step 2: I based this section on conversation and interviews that I previously had throughout the semester on my product/business idea. I think what most people would want to see next is a prototype in action, maybe have one that they can test themselves. The feedback that I’ve received is to try to make sure I have the design/build of the product all figure out before I continue. This is something that I’m still working/doing research on.

Step 3: I think the feedback is pretty straight forward and honest. The next step is really to come up with a concrete design for the product that would allow me to start looking into actually building the prototype. After that, I would be able to start looking into the manufacturing and development of this type of product in terms of cost, location, and productivity.

In terms of growth, I would rely heavily on social media marketing. I think people spend so much time on their phones and social media that it provides for a great median to get the product in front of them. I would have to come up with ideas for clever and low-cost marketing that would increase the product visibility on social media platforms. I would also like to make sure that those efforts are being use effectively by trying to target the correct population.

New Market

Step 1: I was planning on targeting the U.S market of cat owners but looking at the international market would be a different ballgame. I’m more in tune with the market here as I would be in other countries. I would have to more research to see if it would even be worth entering markets in certain countries. I assume some countries have a much lower percentage of households with cats. It is also quite possible that some have a higher percentage.

Step 2: The value that it would create for the international market would essentially be the same as the U.S market. The biggest unknowns for me would be figuring out the cultural sentiments that exist for indoor cats in other countries. Is it a popular thing? Do people consider their pets to be family members? Would they prioritize spending money on a better litter box? These are all questions that I would have to ask myself before attempting to enter that market.

Step 3: For this section, I also based on the previous conversations that I had regarding the venture. I spoke to my parents who are from Colombia and asked them what they thought about the idea. They told me that in Colombia (at least where they are from) many people have indoor-outdoor cats, so there isn’t a large market for litter boxes. This can vary by county or even by region within the country but would definitely be worth thoroughly researching before entering these other markets.  

Step 4: A lot of what I learned about this new market matched the expectations that I had. I will be the first to admit that the amount of research that I did is not enough to definitely say that the information that I gathered applies to all of the market. However, I think it has shown me that there is some truth to the ideas that I had.

At this point, I would not be comfortable entering that market. I think that my initial assessment of the U.S being the best place to start this venture is still correct. While I do think that there are other countries where this might work, I don’t think it’s worth it to start there. I believe perfecting it in the American market will allow us later to expand to other markets without taking on as much risk.