FLAVORx & CarePages:

How solving a personal problem can trigger the

recognition of a promising business opportunities…

SOUTHERN TAIWAN UNIVERSITYENTREPRENEURSHIP &

INNOVATION

Members of

“AMBITION NANTAI”

Pawel Pretkiewicz MA1N0224

Mouaci AnissaMA1N0244

Bousquet Alexandra MA1N0243

Many business opportunities are recognized by people who are trying to solve a personal problem.

The problem can arise from Financial issues Family issues In a person’s job In a recreational/volunteer activities

When a “creative solution” is found it can also help others! RECOGNITION OF BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES

INTRODUCTION

CASE DESCRIPTION

FLAVORx

1992: Kramm family faced a premature infant.

Medical disorder. Need to take medicine 4 times

a day. Medicine tasted awful. Kramm a pharmacist mixed

concentrated flavor with his daughter’s medicine to taste better.

it became a BUSINESS IDEA! 1996: start an independent

business. Today : it covers more than 25

000 pharmacies worldwide.

CarePages

1998: Langshur family faced a heart defect son.

Need of a series of surgeries. Creation of a Web site –Modern

day blog to post update about their son.

BUSINESS IDEA! 2000: CarePages market to

hospitals, & available to patients & family members.

Hospitals can promote their services & attach their brand & benefit through improved patient/family/friend satisfaction.

700 health care facilities. 2007: acquired by Health Care.

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS Q1) An opportunity is defined as being attractive, durable, timely & anchored in a product or service that creates value for its buyer or end user. To what extent do FLAVORx & CarePages meet each of this tests of an opportunity?

Attractive: The pharmaceutical industry is

structurally attractive The total market size is large A clear “value proposition” to the

consumers that are facing the problems linked to the unpleasant taste of medicines

A quality customer list A clear competitive advantage to the

other medicinesDurable: Real connection with the clients

because of the emotional adding value: the “business funnel”

Scalability of the product: could have a significant impact in the daily life of the patients

Attractive: No significant debt to place the

website, no need to invest personal assets.

No stock, equipment, fixtures and fittings and human resources.

No long-term lease commitments, including asset and property leases.

Can enhance the social responsibility of the hospitals

Can have indirect effects on the patient life

Durable: Creation of a new « need »

Timely : Issue of the parent’s patients

and patients daily life. Emotionnal affect on the

patient and their family. No real competition on the

sector at that time.Creates value for its buyer and end users: Creation to a competitive

advantage to the medicine toward an other one

Easier life for the patients and relatives

Can reduce the hospitals fees for the patient: no need to visit it when the children wasn’t able to take the treatment by example

Timely :   The digital revolution can

also allows improvements of our standard living.

Creates value for its buyer and end users: Improved customer

satisfaction Positive emotionnal impact

on the families that receive support during the stay in the hospital of their relatives

The idea of FLAVORx & CarePages wasn’t developed earlier because...The process of creating something new, leads

sometimes to a high failure rate.Fear of losing money. Even if someone had already this ideas, it is always

hard to make a business idea into a viable business. No enough money/resources to invest in new ideas. No enough personal experiences/ evidences in an

institution.An opportunity is not only an idea: need to entry

into the market with the right characteristic, find a management team to achieve this entrance and need to generate significant profit and growth potential. Its is an huge investment of effort.

Q2) Why do you think the idea for FLAVORx wasn’t developed by a large pharmaceutical company long before Kenny Kramm came along, and the idea for Carepages wasn’t developed by a hospital long before Eric Langshur came up with the idea?

In the old days medicines were hardly accessible and patient was pleased when he/she was able to get some, even if the medicine had disgusting taste. There was no need for drugs with a various flavor.

The B to B seems more appropriate: the patients and relatives don’t pay for the service while this service is supposed to make their life lighter and easier. They don’t need additional fees.

Creation of such a product is associated with an increase in final product price, which certainly customers wouldn’t like.

Question 2 :

Carepages prefer to use Business to Business strategy than Business to Consumers because…

The overall volume of B2B transactions is much higher than the volume of B2C transactions.

B2B is also used in the context of communication and collaboration. They also use social media to connect with their consumers/patients/family/friends.

Finding gap in the markets, services/product were needed by a group of people but doesn’t represent a large enough market to be interest to mainstream retailors or manufacturers!

Opportunity to attract a larger number of users. The product proposed to the patient by the hospital builds trust and is reliable.

Patients are not willing to pay for this type of service, so the only chance to make a profit is to offer cooperation to the hospitals.

Q3) Why do you think CarePages markets its products to hospitals rather than

directly to consumers. Like MySpace & Facebook do?

Similarities :-Solving a problem: Identifying opportunities involves noticing a problem & finding a way to solve it! -These problems can be pinpointed through observing Trends.- Creating such a business is a good way to earn money and in the same time to help people. Opportunity recognition process: 1st step: Recognition of problem 2nd step: Need to observe & follow Trends! In the case: Social forces- “what

people think is IN”. Need to observe the business/product/service Opportunity Gap which is the difference between what’s available & what’s possible it will lead to a new business idea.

3d step : Finding gap in the markets, services/product were needed by a group of people but doesn’t represent a large enough market to be interest to mainstream retailors or manufacturers! People are frustrated because they can’t find a product/service that they need & recognize that people feel the same way.

Need to have a strong social network (also prior experience, cognitive factors, creativity) to recognize opportunities.

Q4) What similarities do you see between FLAVORx & CarePages? What does each company teach you about the opportunity recognition process?

A focus group is a small number of people (usually between 4 and 15, but typically 8) brought together

with a moderator to focus on a specific product or topic.

The people who are facing durable sickness have special lifestyle and issues.

Both companies can generate and conduct discussions among all the employees, patients relatives and patients themselves about the issues they are facing and the feedbacks of the service and products.

It could lead Flavorx and Carepages to find new problems that patients are facing, and trying to solve them with new products, service that can enhance the daily lives of their clients; or just find some way of ameliorate their product/service to maintain on their market sales.

Q5) How could FLAVORx & CarePages effectively use focus group to Strengthen their existing products & solicit suggestions for related product ideas?

We think that in order to create a similar Website that would offer frequent updates and notes of encouragement and support, we have to focus on the groups of people who have some real problems such as…-drug addicted.-anonymous alcoholic.-prisoners. -Students in a foreign country struggling with their exams.-young pregnant lady.-battered women/men by their husband. -new entrepreneurs struggling with their new business. -Parents facing their children’s adolescent crisis.

Q6) Think about the service that Carepages offers. Brainstorm other situations that people are in where it might make a sense to set up a Web site or blog that allows a person to provide frequent updates & receive notes of encouragement & support from friends. Pick up your best idea. Could a business be set up to facilitate the process for others?

In the cases of people trying to managed to solve a problem, they might share their impressions and give some hints how they were able to fight with addiction or other difficult period of their life such the case of battered women/men by their partner , parents facing their children’s adolescent crisis, or even young pregnant lady rejected by their family.

New entrepreneurs struggling with their new business. Young entrepreneurs can get help from expert persons such as CEO, teachers… They can even have support from their customers by suggesting them new collection of product or services. It would be a strong community sharing ideas and supports.

Regarding with the prisoners it would be totally innovative Website. For example nowadays in Europe inmates in prisons have access to internet, but they can’t use social network like Facebook. Often they need support from their family or friends. Permanent contact with relatives can have good impact on socialization process and may decrease the case of repeat offence. Website like this can be founded by private investors and then offer to government or prison authorities

Students in a foreign country struggling with their exams can have supports from their friends and parents. The Website can also be a platform for senior students to share their experience with junior students from the same university. Transactions can be done such as selling books from previous year, offering private lessons, for graduated students sharing their professional network / internships.

Question 6: