Written Assignment: Web Developer Value Proposition

Imagine you are a consultant to a new start-up in a large city such as New York City. The entrepreneur who has sought your help has experience in web page design and social media content development. The entrepreneur’s hobbies are martial arts, yoga, wood working and church activities. She has not yet tested any of these talents in the business world but feels she has something to offer in those skill sets. There is intense competition in New York among web page designers, social media editors and IT support and the entrepreneur wonders how she can effectively compete. With software continually entering the marketing with advanced versatility and simplicity, developing web pages can be done by a novice using the software and potentially putting her business at risk.

Answer the following questions:

1. Discuss your suppositions. What does your environmental analysis reveal? Is the market dominated by a few leaders? Is it fragmented with many businesses? Is there an opportunity that is not currently being sufficiently addressed? Include Porter’s Five Forces and a PESTLE
2. How could she differentiate herself from the competition? What should she name her shop? What would her value proposition and USP be? How can she define her core benefit so that she builds a product/service that fulfills that benefit? Describe the 3 levels of the product.
3. Describe, in detail, her target market – the age, income, interests, and attitudes of her ideal consumer. It doesn’t imply others would not be interested. It only suggests that she has an ideal customer in mind upon which to build her differentiation approach. Be sure to include demographic and psychographic variables and at least one VALs category at a minimum.

The goal is to identify the problem the entrepreneur is facing and provide some recommendations as to how she can best increase her odds for success given the competitive nature of a large metropolitan area such as New York City. Include rationale to justify your recommendations and tactics that explain how the recommendations can be implemented. Remember to speak to generic strategy.