Week 4 Reflection: RISE Self-Evaluation

The purpose of this assignment is for me to conduct a self evaluation my final project - my business plan. This allows me to critique my writing, ideas, and performance during the month.

Week 4 Reflection: RISE Peer Review

The purpose of this assignment is to provide constructive criticism to my classmate in regards to their fictitious company. This gives the student and myself the opportunity to give feedback and share ideas with their classmates.

William Humphrey – PTAH Business Plan

What struck me about your business plan was your ability to give a briefly but concisely description of each section of the business plan in your executive summary. This gives the reader information on what they are to expect from Ptah’s business plan. It made me want to revisit my own idea/plan to rewrite my business plan. I think that you did a quality job at explaining my marketing and operation plans.  You were very detailed and communicated in a professional manner.

What were you trying to highlight when you communicated that the word “Ptah” is from the Egyptian God of creation? I think that it may have been more interesting to include how the Egyptians culture of art and nature is relevant to your industry and business of choice. You never stated where your company was located. This is critical in identifying the headquarters of your business to help readers get an idea of the geographic location. Additionally, identifying the location can assist in forming your target consumer and target locations. Do you plan to provide the equipment and software for the customer or will your be editing and polishing the final product? Customers should know what services are available and those that are not up front.

You might want to submit your costs chart. This helps the reader develop a better understanding of your business’ financial situation. Have you considered crowd funding or small business loans as a funding option? When you do not consider other funding options, this limits the company’s potential and growth. You must research and find out what funding options work best for your business.

Perhaps you can add more insight by detailing your target consumer. This should be as specific as possible. Additionally, you could re-purpose your marketing idea with social media to pursue email blasts or social media blasts. 

Week 3 Project: Finalized Business Plan

This activity gives me the opportunity as a professional and an entrepreneur to learn how to write a business plan. I am incorporating every essential aspect of a success business plan to my ficitous company.


Click Here To View The Business Plan

Please Click The Link To View the Financials/Start-Up Costs

Executive Summary

Neway Interactive Advertising is becoming a stronger and more divers company. In 2014, the performance with several of our largest clients exceeded our expectations. The processes and procedures, and strategies continue to perform well. We saw a continuation in the growth of the clientele in 2014, which lead to a financial season for the company.

Our intentional strategies reflect the knowledgeable and experienced professional team. Over the last 2 years we have focused on expanding our client base, improving our marketing tactics, and to deliver strong long term business relationship with our clientele. 

Appendix

Dhanik, T. (2015). The 4 digital advertising trends that are reshaping advertising. Retrieved from http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/242393

Goldberg, L. (2015). IAB Internet advertising revenue report conducted by ProvewaterhouseCoopers (PWC). Retrieved from http://www.emarketer.com/Article/Total-US-Ad-Spending-See-Largest-Increase-Since-2004/1010982

Fidelman, M. (2014). 8 cutting-edge marketing tactics that work better than facebook. Retrieved from http://www.forbes.com/sites/markfidelman/2014/08/26/8-cutting-edge-marketing-tactics-that-work-better-than-facebook-ads/

Moran, G. (2013). 5 ways to funds your small business. Retrieved from http://www.kiplinger.com/article/business/T049-C000-S001-5-ways-to-fund-your-small-business.html

Karczewski. T. (2015). 4 content marketing industry trends unfolding in 2015. Retrieved from http://www.skyword.com/contentstandard/enterprise-marketing/4-content-marketing-industry-trends-unfolding-in-2015/

Week 3 Practice: Elevator Pitch

This elevator pitch helped me to learn more about myself and how to market myself to another professional. This can include any education or professional correspondence. This is very helpful as I continue to mature as a working professional.

Click Here to Listen to My Elevator Pitch

Week 3 Analysis: Financing

This assignment taught me the advantages and disadvantages of different funding sources based on the needs of my business. It was interesting to see what each funding type had to offer for a first time business lender.

Enjoy My Prezi - Click Here!

Week 3 Practice: Marketing Decisions

This activity is intended to help me brainstorm viable ideas for marketing strategies. This has been very helpful in understanding the many options to marketing to my target consumers.

Click Here to View My Marketing Strategies

Week 3 Exploration: Graphic Designer & Artist Coach

This is an activity the was created to expand the ideas and thoughts of being an entrepreneur. It helps me identify the successes and failures of entrepreneurs. Ultimately, it is designed to obtain further knowledge from professionals that started their own businesses.

Week 2 Project: Business Plan - Part II

Industry Analysis and Trends

Neway Interactive Marketing is well positioned to address and master the most unique requests and requirements of their clientele. The company is functioning at full capacity due to it achieving the Best Advertisment of the Year two years in a row. The company has experienced an increase in clientele after they one this award both years.

In this market, there is an opportunity to partner with governmental agencies that are in need of advertising services. This can create a long lasting partnership as a contractor. Additionally, the company has the opportunity to expand its advertising mediums to include transit advertising and digital billboards. Additionally, the company can start attending trade shows, conventions, and expos to showcase their product and services. This will also give the company an opportunity to see what the competition has to offer.

The threats that would create a barrier for the business to enter successfully is our financial issues. The company is currently having difficulty breaking even and paying the operational expenses. Another threat could include ensuring that the advertisements created do not include trademarked or copyright content without receiving proper approval.

Today, almost everyone has a smartphone. Video advertising is said to increase due to consumers changing their viewing habits. Consumers are spending an exceptional amount of their time watching videos. This is means that video advertising is a very essential advertising medium that every advertisement created by Neway should include.  

Target Market 

The market that Neway Interactive Advertising will be entering in is a competitive that knows how to identify their target audience. As a whole, Newway will be targeting a variety of target audience based on the client’s brand. We understand that every service or product appeals to a different market. This means that some consumers fit in a broader market and some do not.

The trends are leading to everything digital. This includes transit advertisements, mobile advertisements, and digital billboards. The market size is about 100,000 people. In 2014, the United States spending $189 billion dollars in advertising media. This includes digital and mobile Internet advertisements).

http://www.emarketer.com/Article/Advertisers-Will-Spend-Nearly-600-Billion-Worldwide-2015/1011691

Our customers are the users of these products and services. The consumer profile is a male professionals, entrepreneurs, and degree holders between the age of 25-50 years old in the Mid West areas.

The market is ready for this business. Many companies are producing their own advertisements that are low quality and are hurting their brand and image. The market is ready for a multimedia advertising company that can handle the demands of the client while building their brand and image. The market currently has a number of advertising firms all that specialize in different areas and offer different resources. Some offer training and strategy building classes to businesses.

The advantage that the business has with the target market is the know-how and flexibility in project ideas. We have worked with over 100 businesses that all wanted something different. We are ready and are willing to overcome any challenges that a business faces when making their ideal advertisements.

The Competition

There are a number of close competitors in the Los Angeles area. Three key competitors in my area that offer similar services and products as my business are Dailey & Associates, Miller Group Marketing and Advertising, and the Davis Elen Advertising.

Daily & Associates is a advertising company that offers full-service creative advertisements. They are known for telling “memorable brand stories for almost 50 years.” This company is not willing to travel to clients that are not in their local area. Neway Interactive Advertisements will willingly and at no additional expense to the client, travel to the client if they are not in the Los Angeles area.

The Miller Marketing and Advertising is a company that creating advertisements and marketing strategies that connect the brand’s ideas with their consumers. They specialize in advertising, branding, research, social, mobile, and digital. They do not process the secret six-step process that is now Neway’s trade secret. Neway is leading its clients in the right direction by making all advertisements using the six-step process.

Davis Elen Advertising is a company that produces advertising content. They specialize in partnering with large-scale companies that have established long term contracts with the business. An advantage that Neway has over Dale Elen Advertising is our opportunity to utilize a think tank lab that is equip with the most high tech and cutting edge technology and software to make any advertisement known to man.

The barrier that is faced when trying to compete with current competition is assuring new client that our services will reign supreme. Many clients are loyal to their advertising companies because they have not tried any other business. Additionally, reaching the correct contact person in a business is sometimes difficult for a start-up business.

Neway can meet the needs over the competitors by staying current and constantly providing shareable content on social media.

Week 2 Practice: SWOT Analysis

This activity was intended to survey the companies Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats in relation to its competition. This allows me to address every portion of the growth, success, and limitations of the company. 

Week 2 Analysis: Competitor Research

This activity is requires me to research and analyze the competitive advertising companies that are in my industry of choice. This activity has allowed to me analyze my own business to find my competitive edge to keep the loyalty of my soon to be customers.

Week 2 Exploration: Photography & Adventure Travel

The purpose of this assignment was to read about successful entrepreneurs and their best and worst business practices. The assignment is intended to shed light on business smarts that cannot be obtained in a textbook.

Week 2 Practice: Industry Overview

This activity was intended to give insight on the industry overview, industry statistics, forecasted trends, seasonality cycles, and financial patterns. This activity helps me to think like an entrepreneur in regards to industry specifics that directly impact my business. As an communications entrepreneurs, I had to determine what are the current market opportunities and what is the long term outlook for my fictitious company.

Please Click the Attached Link to View the Prezi Presentation

Week 1 Practice: Entrepreneurial Readiness

This is a blog post about the reading about some aspect of being an entrepreneur. I first researched funding options for small and large-scale businesses. The second article I read was about small business loans.

Week 1 Project: Business Plan - Part I

Company Description

Neway Interactive Advertising (NIA) LLC will operate in Los Angeles, California as a creator of high-end multimedia advertisements. As advertising production specialists, we focus on implementing the latest process and best ad practices exclusively to small and large-scale clients that are seeking ingenious, eye-catching, clever, and memorable advertisements for their brands. 

The Company’s Mission

Neway Interactive Advertising LLC is committed to delivering high-end multimedia advertisement on excellent industry knowledge. We are dedicated to exhibiting a real understanding of the problems that affect our clients and finding the solution. We are devoted to assisting clients in achieving their marketing goals and objectives.

Services

Complete and custom creation of advertisements will be provided this includes all the audio-visual and printed media. These services will be provided to businesses seeking a variety of advertisement types, which includes but is not limited to radio ads, television ads, billboard ads, building ads, brochures, and direct mail-in ads. We will provide these services by setting up a series of consultation meetings with the client to establish the goals and requirements of the client’s advertisement(s), to engage and concur with the client during the creation and production process, and to deploy the advertisement to the businesses’ target market. Individual quotes will be rendered per project.

The company currently has a solid clientele base but wishes to expand to more non-profit and governmental agencies. Neway Interactive Advertising seeks to meet the growing needs for ad creation in the Greater California region. Currently, Neway has clients in over six states and this number is growing due the quality service provided to each and every client.

Development to Date

The advertising production specialist team has developed an award winning and effective six-step process to produce high-end multimedia advertisements. This six-step process is ready to be deployed and used for each client. Full time staff located in Los Angeles will be available to handle customer inquiries, accounting and invoicing, and updating the social media networks in person or by phone.

Legal Status and Ownership

Neway Interactive Advertisements was registered in January 2012 as a Limited Liability Company in the state of California. NIA is owned and managed by Adrienne Grimes and Lauren Grimes in Los Angeles, California.

NIA has trademarked the company name “Neway Interactive Advertising” and the company slogan, “We will show you the way to success.” Currently, NIA is working with legal representation at have the six-step creation and production process registered as a trade secret.

Operations

Neway Interactive Advertisements will operate from Los Angeles California. It will operate as a full-service creator of high-end multimedia advertising company that provides complete and custom advertisement services to small and large-scale companies that require a wide range of production mediums. Individual quotes will be rendered per project.

The facilities will include a full service team of advertising production specialists that will create, build, and execute custom advertisements as they are requested. The team will have the option to travel to clients where the need permits. Project fees will be based on project time length and the specific requirements of each project. An agreement can be established to include multiple advertisement contracts over a specific period of time.

A team of skilled customer service representatives will handle any accounting, invoicing, and customer questions during normal business hours. The unique quality of service provided by the team from NIA will offer clients a wide range of advertising project mediums.  

Technology

The facilities will include a full creative “think tank room” equip with an array of hardware and software.

Hardware: 3 MacBook desktop computers, 3 MacBook Pro laptops, a color printer, scanner, fax machine, Cisco IP Phones, a External Backup Server

Software: Microsoft Office, Photoshop, Visual Basics, iMovie, Garageband

MANAGEMENT

The management that makes NIA a success because it is comprised of 3 people make up its successful management team.

Key Employees

Adrienne Grimes, OWNER. Adrienne Grimes has over 8 years of managerial, entrepreneurial, and advertising creating experience. Through meaningful networking and working in the advertising industry, Adrienne has developed professional associates within the production industry all over the nation. Adrienne is responsible for all the day-today management and financial decisions. Additionally, she is responsible for implementing the company’s long and short-term objectives. She has developed projects for multiple Fortune 500 companies on a continuous basis. She is alumnus at Massachusetts Institute of Technology with Bachelors of Science in Advertising and George Mason University.

Lauren Grimes, Head Designer. Lauren has over 5 years experience in creating advertisements with LivingSocial. Lauren is responsible for leading the design team during creation phases of the projects Lauren is a graduate from George Mason University majoring in public relations and management. He has had the opportunity to produce advertising and marketing media for President Barak Obama for his first term.

Antoinette Harris, Head Producer. Antoinette has over five years experience in designing creative media for Truth. She will be responsible for deploying the advertisement ideas on a wide variety of platforms and mediums. She is a graduate from the Art Institute of Philadelphia majoring in public relations and computer and graphic design. She has been featured in the New York Times for her memorable ads.

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Key Advisors

Jamal Santiago, Head Public Relations Manager for The Truth. For over ten years, Jamal Santiago has owned and operated the media produced for The Truth operating out of Flordia. The Truth is a national tobacco prevention campaign that seeks to stop minor smoking. With over 20 years experience in public relations and advertising, his expertise and respected insight into the industry will be able to give creditable and valuable advice to NIA.

Andrew Cummings, Media Analysis Specialist for PALO. For over fifteen years, Andew Cummings has owned PALO Media and Productions Company operating out of San Diego, California. Andrew is a well-known strategist in the media industry in California. Aside from being a key investor for the “think tank” room, Cummings has been an effective partner in determining long-term and short-term growth for NIA.