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My customer image for my Epi-Band product is not very specific. There is no average or typical race, gender, ethnicity or age who has severe allergies. However, I do imagine the customer who would get the most out of it would range from a young child to a pre-teen, about 2-12, who is very active and oftentimes in school or doing extracurricular activities and sports. The reason being that these kids with allergies are often the ones who miss out in these ventures or require special attention in doing so. The Epi-Band would also release a lot of stress for those adults who would originally be in charge of administering and epinephrine auto-injector without the band.

The band will be best for consumers who are active outdoors, doing activities, and not around nearby hospitals. This can range from beach and woodland activities to an everyday house party where someone may accidentally eat the wrong food.

It's kind of difficult to really narrow down my consumer, because I would have to come up with a bias description and it would end up being someone who looks like me and has similar hobbies. This is due to the fact that I am a consumer for my own project. I am the one with a bee sting allergy. I love being outdoors, but am oftentimes limited to what I want to do. However, my cousin who is pretty inactive, lives where its typically cold, and looks very different than me also has the same allergy and is prescribed epi-pens. Do you see where I'm going with this? Anyone can have severe allergies and have a different daily schedule all over the world.

I have everything in common with my consumer, because the only specification is our severe allergy. A deeper specification must require knowledge of their actual allergy. For bee stings or animal related allergies: someone who is oftentimes outdoors. For someone with a food allergy: younger children who are unaware of what they are eating when not around adults.  My product can work for anyone who needs epinephrine. And that cannot be taken very much further.

Halfway Reflection

After two months, this class has not only strengthened strong behaviors, but taught me many more in order to be a successful entrepreneur. While once I believed myself someone who had decent time management skills (though seemed to work best under pressure), I am now not only completing assignments days and weeks early, but also doing them will full passion and excitement. Creativity is constantly flowing within my mind, and where I used to see the world as something to be lived in, I now I see it as something to improve, something to change. I honestly believe that I can see the difference now between looking at the world as an inhabitant vs. as an entrepreneur. More than anything, however, I now really believe in myself. With the proper guidance that Chris has given us, he has shown me how to take an idea and really turn it into something. I may create nothing from what I have created thus far in the class, but that would be my own choice, not because I can't. Chris has really instilled the concept that anything is possible if you take it to its core and have the drive to make it reality.

There was a time in this course where I felt like giving up. It was our first assignment to interview five people about our idea. At the time, I was unsure whether my idea was even good enough. Then I learned that it didn't have to be. It had to be a foundation to build upon, and it was okay to receive negative feedback. That doesn't mean you stop, that means you fix it. After struggling to find even two people to interview, and then struggling even further to make the interview last ten minutes, my mom sent me a text message. It was a quote that said, "A goal without a plan is a wish; If a plan doesn't work, change the plan, not the goal." I then decided to take a different route and really take the advice of speaking in interviews as if it was a conversation. You can't go in expecting to ask ten questions, because you don't know what you may learn within the first minute. By the end of my last interview, the guy had asked me how long I had been working. When I told him I have almost no work experience, he seemed shocked. He said that I spoke with such confidence and ease that it made the interview a really great experience. That was something that has stuck with me today, and made me really believe in myself.

Three Tips for newbies:

1. Watch the lectures! They're so easy to access, and they really help you get an idea of the class you're in. Chris really makes them so easy to watch, and he helps you develop your own persona as an entrepreneur, while helping you to see the world differently. It isn't intimidating, it really is eye-opening, and makes you want to complete every assignment at its fullest. Seriously, just watch it with your morning breakfast and BOOM, done. Plus it means extra credit is easy peezy.

2. Don't give up on your interviews. Yes, extra credit is there, but don't shy away from this opportunity. No, your first one won't be perfect. But after your tenth interview, you WILL see a change in how you speak to people. This change will come with confidence and people will have new reactions to you. It's not only motivating, but it's inspiring for all future projects. Imagine being able to say in an interview one day that one of your strengths is communicating and interviewing strangers!

3. Believe in your project. Everyone else may not see it, but if you saw it then there is probably something there. Like my mom told me, it's not about changing the goal. Keep your goals! Maybe just change the path you take to get there.

Portmanteau: Esproffee

Esproffee (noun):  Coffee with a shot of espresso. Similarly known as "A shot in the dark".

I came up with this word a few months ago, actually. Almost every single morning my boyfriend takes out his "poor man's" espresso maker, and makes a double-shot espresso for himself, while I make a pot of coffee. One day I was exhausted, and really needed a pick-me-up, so I told him that if he gave me a shot of his espresso, I would give him half of my coffee. We made the trade, and about an hour later we asked one another if they were as "cracked out" as the other. The answer was yes.

As someone who has not always been a morning person, this esproffee drink began to turn me into one. I started sharing the idea with my friends and sisters, and they actually just thought it was a great idea (not specifically a new one, but an easy way to order what they wanted). I even started saying it to the people who serve me coffee at Know Where Coffee! At first I called it "cospresso," but esproffee seemed to stick more.

To this day, my boyfriend still wakes me up with the same question, "Espresso, coffee or esproffee?" I'd like to think that means my word was a success.

Idea Napkin No. 1

1) You. 

My name is Josephine (Josie) Rosario. I'm an economics major with a passion for nutrition, writing and sketching, which seem odd for the education I am receiving. However, I want to use my skills in quantitative methods, business management, marketing and finance to be able to run a company dedicated to bringing health to people's lives. Im unsure of what exactly that will entail, but for now I see myself working for companies such as FitBit, Onnit, etc. 

I believe my business venture plays a huge role in my aspiration because it is a solution for those with severe allergies who struggle in everyday situations. We live in a world that is fast-paced and often ignorant of those who have needs that seem rare, yet these needs are often and come about in situations that are dangerous to them yet seem normal to everyone else, i.e. swimming, golfing, dining, etc. 

2) What are you offering to customers? 

I am offering a solution to the everyday struggles of an epinephrine auto-injector, called an Epi-Band. This band will encase a small monitor encased in a comfortable wrap around your leg. This monitor will hold four small needles on one end with a medical monitor on the other that will read blood levels 24/7 or whenever you feel the need to have epinephrine on you. For me, with a level 6/6 bee sting allergy, it would be anytime I am outdoors. When the sensor detects histamine levels in your blood stream, it will release the four thin, undetectable needles into your thigh muscle which will immediately administer epinephrine. A second dose will be released if the first does not help histamine levels. 

3) Who are you offering it to? 

I am offering this product to people with severe and life-threatening allergies. This usually entails those on a scale of 5/6 or 6/6 in the allergy measurement test. However, the demographic truly just engulphs anyone who already has a prescription to an epinephrine auto-injector such as the Epi-pen. This covers all age groups, because allergies are not very selective in certain people. However, I do predict that my band design that comes in specific designs to allow for a fun and unique experience will be for those in a younger age group. Customizing and creating medical products that are carried in fashionable designs usually appeals to a younger customer. Often, I see this with braces, casts, etc. 

4) Why do they care? 

This kind of immediate detection->administration that my Epi-Band offers will take out the possibility of human error regarding the carrying of the Epi-pen and the way it is administered. Because it is attached to you, it may detect histamine levels before someone even knows they are going into anaphylactic shock. People with severe life-threatening allergies begin showing signs of anaphylaxis almost immediately, sometimes in less than 60 seconds, and timing is everything. The longer they wait, the longer they have to pay for medical bills in the hospital to do what the Epi-pen could have done early on, because anaphylaxis worsens all symptoms and causes a string of other issues as it continues to push the body towards death. The time utility for the Epi-Band is unbeatable, and enhances chance of survival by 100% for those who cannot even find their Epi-pen and are far from a hospital. Who wouldn't pay for a life-saving device when they're already paying for the old model epi-pen?

5) What are your core competencies? 

My product is separate from what's out there because it is the ONLY other epinephrine product on the market. As of now, there is one distinct model of an epinephrine auto-injector and it is the common pen-like model that encases a long needle and requires manual injection. Often, people even inject themselves with the wrong end, and the needle ends up piercing through their entire thumb. My product takes out any and all human error regarding administration and even the human error of forgetting or misplacing the modern epinephrine auto-injector. The Epi-band will change the way people live with their severe allergies on a day-to-day basis.

Summary

I believe my Epi-band has the potential to change people's lives. It is not only innovative, it is risk-free and emphasizes a normal life for those who feel theirs were cut short. Quality of life matters, and with the benefits and possibilities that my product offers, people will be able to take advantage of a solution that takes away fear of living and allows them to partake in situations they never thought they could before. My next step is to look into the technology costs that will go into this. However, microchips and blood sensors are often seen in diabetes patients who wear insulin needles everyday. With updated technology, I believe we could take this further without bearing the burden of price on the consumer. Furthermore, I believe this product has strong potential to be reimbursed by insurance companies.

Tweaking the Innovation

This week, I struggled to find the exact revenue drivers for my product, as it is a medical service offered to a particular group of people. What I have discovered, however, is multiple ways I could sell my product that doesn't involve simply insurance or direct medical billing. For those who have not been introduced to my product, it is called the Epi-Band. It is a modern and innovative design based on an epinephrine auto-injector; however, it can be worn 24/7 in a comfortable band around your thigh, and will immediately release epinephrine into your blood system the minute its auto sensors detect high histamine levels.(See my week 5 Thunderdome project for further information!)

1. I've found that I can potentially profit not only from the actual sale of the product itself, but as a fashion statement. People who wear things for necessity find it appealing when it comes in fashionable pieces, the way young kids wear colored rubber bands in their braces or some people find decorate body casts. My outer band that encases the sensors can potentially be sold as separate, stylish pieces for when it is visible an worn with shorts or a bathing suit. With this in mind, I won't profit solely from billing insurances or direct consumer costs just for the medication it holds.

2. The core level of my product is that it delivers epinephrine and saves peoples' lives immediately when they go into anaphylactic shock. This product is purchased because it, regardless of anything else, holds the medicine that decides life from death. The tangible level of my product is the model and design that the epinephrine comes in. No longer will it be a large bulky pen that doesn't easily decipher which side the giant needle comes out of. No longer will it be forgotten in dire emergencies. And no longer will you waste minutes searching for your auto-injector when those minutes can cost you your life. My model is attached comfortably to you 24/7, the way an insulin monitor is. However, the needle remains inside the sensor until histamine is detected. The needle will then release automatically and deliver the epinephrine dose inside. The augmented level of my product really lies within the fact that it potentially can be covered by insurance depending on the individual case. Furthermore, it may have place utility if it is easily accessible in every pharmacy.

4. There isn't much I can do to alter my product's core level, because it is one medical treatment for a specific group of people. I could, however, look into other diseases that could use this potential technology that would be worn 24/7. I would like to alter the aspects of the tangible level and provide more ways to wear this design comfortably. As of now, however, it cannot be changed because the thigh is the only medically functional place that epinephrine can be injected to work immediately. Potentially, I could make the carrying case more functional, sleek, or stylish. The augmented level seems to be best changed through money incentives. This could be by allowing discounts on carrying cases (the bands) when purchasing a basic band! It is similar to the way iPhones are sold bare, and people automatically buy the case afterwards.

Elevator Pitch No. 1

Business: Epi-Band

Opportunity: Providing a way to simplify and ease the lives of those with severe and life-threatening allergies

Solution: A comfort band that encases a blood monitor and wraps around your thigh; it can be worn 24/7 and immediately administers epinephrine when its sensor detects large amounts of histamine in your blood stream