Costumer Interviews No. 1

1. The opportunity I am interested in exploring is the market of younger children who are looking to gain up-to-date athletic training in order to give them an advantage as they head towards more competitive levels of sports. I have many close friends who play several different college sports at the highest level and are interested in making money on the side. I am looking in to starting a training company in my town that takes the knowledge that these athletes have and allows it to be conveyed to younger athletes trying to improve their game.

2. I believe there is unmet need and demand in my town because kids are looking to be trained to improve their game and most parents are willing to spend money in order to do that. While there are a few training services in the area, none can say that kids will get to work with current college athletes.

3. While I didn't have the connections to talk with any parents in Gainesville, I did have wide access to many former athletes who were only a year out of high school, one of my target markets right on campus. I asked students who told me they played a sport in high school:
1. Would you have looked into personal training for a specific sport during your youth if such a service had been available?
2. Would you and/or your parents been willing to pay for such a training service?
3. What would you be looking for in a training service?
4.

5. I learned that there is definitely a market among high school athletes and possibly even at lower levels for training done by current D-1 athletes. People were looking for knowledgeable trainers and D-1 athletes have had access to great coaches and training for years, making them the perfect people to train others.

6. I was definitely a little bit uncomfortable approaching random people in dorms and on the street. However, I think I felt more nervous than the interviewees did, as most were happy to help! Reflecting on my interviewing, I realized I may have made a mistake in choosing my applicant pool. No one I interviewed plays varsity sports at the collegiate level and I am obviously looking to market to kids who are attempting to play in college. Leaving out current athletes may have made my results not as conclusive. However, I suspect that current athletes would have displayed an even higher interest in training than those who only played in high school.