Blog Post #4: Assignment 4A - Forming An Opportunity Belief

Hey everyone,

1. My Beginning Point
I believe that people love going to see live music. Whether it's at a small dive bar in the middle of nowhere, a large concert in a big city, or a weekend-long music festival, it has been proven for many years that people will pay, sometimes a lot of money, to listen to their favorite musicians and bands perform in person. However, something that can make or break a fan's experience at a concert is the people that they are at the concert with.

2. Describing My Belief
When a person is deciding whether or not to attend a concert, one of the main factors that influences their decision is who else is actually going. People tend to find live music much more enjoyable when surrounded by people they know, meaning that they are more likely to go if they know someone else that is going. Therefore, what if you are someone that really wants to see a certain band perform but you cannot find anybody to go with you? Some people decide to go alone anyways, while others simply decide to not go and miss out on possibly one of the concerts ever! There are also some consumers who simply enjoy meeting other people with tastes in music similar to them. If only there was a way concert goers could find and meet other people going to the same concert before it even starts.

3. Identify The Prototypical Customer
The prototypical customer of a product that does this would definitely be someone who enjoys music and attending concerts, music festivals, and other forms of live music. Another characteristic would be someone who has difficulty finding people to go to concerts with and doesn't enjoy going to them alone. People who enjoy meeting and getting to know other people could also be prototypical customers.

4. Iteration

1. Iteration #1
1. What is the exact nature of your need?
1. I always find so many concerts that I want to go to when I'm home over summer. But none of my friends from home like the same kind of music as I do so I always have trouble finding people to go with. And since I'm not a fan of going to concerts alone, if I can't find anybody to go with, I end up not going at all. So I'm just looking for people to go to concerts with.
2. When did you become aware of this need?
1. During the summer after my freshman year in college, there was a really great DJ performing nearby that I wanted to see. But since I couldn't find anybody to go with, I ended up skipping it. Afterward I saw a video of it on YouTube and it looked amazing so I was mad.
3. Do you experience this problem a lot or only sometimes?
1. When I'm home I experience it a lot. But when I'm at school I rarely experience this problem because a lot of my friends at school like the same music as me.
4. How do you address this need?
1. I usually just try to stay near my friends from school so we can all go to concerts together.
2. Iteration #2
1. What is the exact nature of your need?
1. I always love meeting new people, especially at concerts because we have similar tastes in music, obviously! However, sometimes I'll meet someone and they turn out to be creepy. So I guess my need would be that I want to be able to see who's going to the concert beforehand so I can know who to stay away from and who to talk to.
2. When did you become aware of this need?
1. Last year at a concert.
3. Do you experience this problem a lot or only sometimes?
1. When I first started going to concerts I experienced this problem a lot. However, as I've been to a lot more concerts and I've become better at reading people and more experienced, it doesn't happen that much anymore.
4. How do you address this need?
1. I'll go on Facebook. Usually the concert will have a page on it where people can say whether they are going or not.
3. Iteration #3
1. What is the exact nature of your need?
1. I love live music and I don't mind going to concerts alone, but I definitely prefer going with other people I know. However, I don't have many friends that like the same music that I do and I'm terrible at going up to strangers and striking up a conversation out of nowhere in person. I wish there was a way I could interact and befriend people at the same concerts as me in a way that's more comfortable for me and less nerve wracking.
2. When did you become aware of this need?
1. My senior year of high school. I went to this concert by myself and I had a decent time, but I tried to hangout with some of the other fans because I thought if I was around friends, the concert would be more enjoyable. However, I ended up coming off as very creepy and socially awkward.
3. Do you experience this problem a lot or only sometimes?
1. Yeah this happens to me a solid amount of the time. 
4. How do you address this need?
1. I usually just go on Facebook and try to direct message some of the people that said they were going to the same concert as me on the concert's page. Sometimes it works, but other times I just feel very intrusive messaging some stranger on Facebook.

5. Reflect

After talking to some of my prototypical customers, I learned that their is already a platform where concert goers can meet others going to the same concerts as them; Facebook. However, I also learned that some people don't feel comfortable messaging random strangers online simply because they are going to the same concert. The most surprising thing I learned was how many people want to go to concerts and meet other people instead of simply just enjoying the show they are at. 

6. N/A

7. Summarize

Very little of my original opportunity remains after completing this assignment. For starters, there is already a way for people going to the same concerts to meet each other, but they don't feel very comfortable utilizing it. I do believe my new opportunity is more accurate than when I started. I think entrepreneurs should always be adapting to the needs of their core customer demographic in order to meet their needs.