Lessons learned session 1:

Course Main Objectives: Improving ones ability to spot and evaluate opportunities for a new business venture Acquiring the concepts and spirit necessary for business entrepreneurship Examining a business model as whole, rather than concentrating separately on its functional aspects Learning the importance of validating the idea and the team before creating a business

Before: Traditional approach business plan Problem: No business plan survives first contact with a customer Nowadays: Revolutionary approach - Business model (Alex Osterwalder); Customer development (Steve Blank); Lean Startup (Eric Ries). First of all - Creating the team: We have to combine different talents to have a good team: Visionary, Hacker, Hustler, Designer. Second step The idea (Remember the ideia is just 10%): To evaluate the idea: 1) Global 2) Scalable (more you produce, less you have to invest per unit) 3) Innovative (something different) 4) Disruptive (that defines a position and a new trend) 5) Viral 6) Bootstrapping (a business that do not require a lot of money) 7) Internet (the internet gives the opportunity to measure the impact: something that newspaper does not give) 8) Mobility (it is a mobile world, remember!) 9) Doable Third, how do we develop this idea and create something with it? We need a business model, a rational process that allows us to organize our ideas, discuss and make decisions on many topics and come up with a plan to make it work. We need to create delivery and capture value.

We must always keep in mind that this is a complex, complicated process and to overcome this we will use a new Business Model: 1) Simple but relevant; 2) A model that everyone intuitively understands; 3) A model that facilitates descriptions and discussion; 4) A model that is not overly simplified and that hides the complexity of the enterprise; 5) A shared language ; 6) A step-by-step program that shows the logic and the players in the creation and development process; And for this, we will use the following Business Model Canvas:

The 9 Blocks of the Business Model Canvas: 1. Customer Segments first we must understand what is that customers want; whats missing and what are they looking for and understanding that they are the heart of every business model. We must also define if we need to group them into segments according to their needs, behaviors and important attributes; 2. Value proposition spot and solve customers problems by providing them with a product or a service that will satisfy their needs;

3. Channels definition of how will we deliver value, what means of communication should be used, distribution and selling points. This represents a very important for the overall customer experience; 4. Customer Relationships how to create, maintain and boost customers relationships; 5. Revenue Streams how will we successfully create value; 6. Key Resources investment in the required assets to offer and delivery value to customers; reach markets and keep creating value. These resources can be physical, financial, intellectual and human; 7. Key Activities define the crucial activities a company must do to make the business model work and be successful; 8. Key Partners creating the right network of suppliers and outsourcing companies, pursuing strategic alliances that can be beneficial for our business; 9. Cost Structure what will all of the costs be to follow this business model; Remember: we have to test the model over and over again! So, testing hypothesis with our potential customers (with the customer development approach in mind): 1. Define who are our main customers; 2. Define what is the problem we wish to solve with the product we plan on developing and whats the solution; 3. Test the solution and analyze the results; 4. Validate if we are testing the right customer segment and, if not, change the business model; This way, we exclude potential failures and we are able to work on more adequate business models. After defining who our customers are, we should do at least one MVP. What Is MVP? MVP stands for minimum viable product and it allows the working team to collect the maximum amount of validated information. This will help us understand if customers are

interested in using the product we are offering and how much are they willing to pay for it. And, like we learned in class today, we are often surprised by our customers answers. Before engaging in this testing method, we should once again define what the outcome should be and compare the real results to the ones predicted. But, testing doesnt end here. In fact this is only the beginning. We had the opportunity to learn about other testing methods, as well as real life cases that were very successful. Main Testing Hypothesis: 1. Interviewing: it is crucial at this stage to listen to what others are telling us. We are not suppose to sell anything, but to understand what is that customers are looking for and what do they expect to get; this is a process that is time consuming but it is crucial for the success of the business model; 2. Survey: they should be short and straight forward, with the maximum of 10 questions. This is a faster way to get feedback from potential customer but should only be done after the interviewing process. 3. 3. A/B Testing: in our opinion, this is a very clever and effective way to test

between two hypotheses. The main idea is to offer the same service or product with one difference; either it is the price of the good, the name, or any other feature we are still not sure about. We can collect information and understand which one was more appealing to the public. After all that we have already the Problem defined the Solution in mind and the Market where our business fit.