Set-up Trello account and got acquainted with software
Organized subteam meetings via GroupMe + added to calendar
Hurdle: subteam members are across 3 different time zones and have different scheduling conflicts
Resolution: Sent out a when2meet to organize regular meeting times (subject to change if needed)
Determined value proposition and maintenance of customer relationships for our chosen revenue stream (shown below)
Hurdle: Because we divided the sections of our business model canvas amongst subteam members, we became experts in our assigned sections and not others
Resolution: After completing our respective sections, we scheduled another meeting to go over the work we did and ask each other questions, ensuring that each member understands/agrees with the work done by other members
Synthesized work with team members’ to create full business model canvas
Created presentation template to be used for all deliverables (development of personal subteam brand)
Presented revenue stream proposal to full team and Stephanie
Week 2 - Competitive Analysis : July 24 - August 1
Overview of Things Learned:
Technical Area:
Identifying competitors
Competitive analysis tools
SWOT analysis
PEST analysis
Position map
Tools:
G-Suite
Trello
GroupMe
SCRUM
Soft Skills:
Project management
Effective communication
Active listening to team member findings/concerns with material
Asking questions to subteam members and team leads as necessary
Quick response rate
Punctuality at team and subteam meetings
Research
Understanding STEM-Away’s product, strengths, weaknesses, business model
Understanding competitors’ product, strengths, weaknesses, business model and how they compare to STEM-Away’s
Adaptability
Public speaking
Meetings Attended:
7/25 Team Meeting 4 (Competitive Analysis)
7/27 Subteam Meeting 3
7/28 Subteam Meeting 4
7/30 Subteam Meeting 5
7/31 Subteam Meeting 6
8/1 Competitive Analysis Presentation
Tasks Done:
Organized subteam meetings + added to calendar
Ensure that all subteam members are on the same page at the start of each meeting
Laid out agenda at the start of each subteam meeting, ensuring that team members agree with prioritization of tasks
Asked subteam members and team leads questions about technical content as they arose
Performed SWOT analysis on STEM-Away based on current product and proposed revenue stream
Researched and performed SWOT analysis on competitor, the Intern Group (shown below)
Created summary table with team showing comparison of STEM-Away and each subteam member’s chosen competitor
Hurdle: Due to scheduling conflicts, not all team members’ individual competitive analyses were completed by the time we wanted to consolidate our findings
Resolution: For future deliverables, the team set more definitive deadlines on when tasks should be completed and also encouraged each other to communicate any barriers to task completion
Presented competitive analysis to full team and Stephanie
Hurdle: While the majority of our presentation was practiced, there were miscommunications on how certain slides would be presented
Resolution: While this was a great lesson in quickly adapting to a situation, we devoted time prior to the each of our future deliverables to go over what would be said
Led team in creating a completely visuals-based presentation by providing chart templates and showing example of how to present competitor data
Synchronously performed SWOT analysis on STEM-Away with team, allowing us to be clear on which parts of STEM-Away we want to emphasize when comparing with competitors
Regularly updated personal daily standup on subteam Trello board and reminded team members to do the same to ensure team leads and subteam members are aware of each other’s progress
Goals for Upcoming Week:
Understand different marketing techniques based on target audience
Create a marketing piece that is geared towards university administrators
Collaborate with team to develop monthly social media calendar for STEM-Away, taking into consideration how audience demographic changes based on social media platform
Ensure all team members are on the same page regarding our plans for our deliverables
Asking questions to subteam members and team leads as necessary
Quick response rate
Adaptability - ability to change plan to complete deliverables based on team members’ schedules outside of internship
Research
Which platforms should be used to market to particular customer segments?
How do different customer segments interact with these platforms (e.g. time of day, types of posts most likely to be engaged with)?
Strategic Thinking - Develop ideas for marketing pieces and structure of posts for social media calendar based on research done for each customer segment
Creativity - Each subteam member created a different type of marketing piece intended for a different customer segment
Growth mindset - taking constructive feedback and using it to improve
Public speaking
Meetings Attended:
8/2 Team Meeting 5 (Marketing)
8/4 Marketing Talk w/ Katie
8/5 Subteam Meeting 7
8/6 Subteam Meeting 8
8/7 Marketing Presentation
Tasks Done:
Organized subteam meetings + added to calendar
Ensure that all subteam members are on the same page at the start of each meeting
Laid out agenda at the start of each subteam meeting, ensuring that team members agree with prioritization of tasks
Created email newsletter for university administrators including overview of STEM-Away (with words from Debalenna), student testimonials, upcoming events/ways to get involved, and a method for contact (shown below, select pages)
Developed 7 different marketing ideas intended for university administrators for social media calendar, carefully considering when university administrators would most likely be looking at their email, LinkedIn, etc.
Presented marketing strategy, including marketing pieces and social media calendar to full team and Stephanie
Asking questions to subteam members and team leads as necessary
Quick response rate
Strategic Thinking/Prioritization - As there are infinitely many keywords that can be used in our keyword strategy, we thought about which would give us the greatest reach for the lowest price and observed trends (e.g. more students taking a gap year due to COVID-19)
Public speaking
Meetings Attended:
8/8 Team Meeting 6 (Marketing II)
8/11 Subteam Meeting 9
8/12 Subteam Meeting 10
8/13 Keyword Planning Overview
8/14 Marketing II Presentation
Tasks Done:
Organized subteam meetings + added to calendar
Ensure that all subteam members are on the same page at the start of each meeting
Laid out agenda at the start of each subteam meeting, ensuring that team members agree with prioritization of tasks
Created text-only LinkedIn ad for students, highlighting STEM-Away value proposition and a means to learn more about how to get involved (shown below)
Brainstormed customer survey questions with team
Compiled list of keywords to use for Google Keyword Planning sheet
Hurdle: Unable to create account without entering payment information
Resolution: Initially explored other free keyword planning tools but ultimately sent list of keywords to Vrinda to be used in Google Keyword Planning since other tools were not as exhaustive
Created SEO strategy for STEM-Away with team, taking responsibility for: meta-description, URL structure and backlinks (shown below)
Presented SEO strategy, LinkedIn marketing pieces, non-conventional platforms that STEM-Away can use to market to full team and Stephanie
Ability to explain different SEO strategies and their benefits to subteam members as questions arose
Learned about different keyword planning tools and how to determine which keywords to actually use
Created solution-oriented SEO strategy showing what STEM-Away currently does vs. how it can be improved (e.g. showing current URL structure and showing how it can be reorganized to optimize for website scrapers and user experience)
Goals for the Upcoming Week:
Concisely summarize our internship experience in pitch deck
Asking questions to subteam members and team leads as necessary
Quick response rate
Creativity - creation of story-based pitch deck
Delegation through dividing pitch deck components to different team members
Conflict resolution
Public speaking
Meetings Attended:
8/15 Team Meeting 7 (Pitching/Final Week Logistics)
8/18 Ideation Webinar w/ Vrinda
8/18 Marketing Talk w/ Katie
8/19 Starting a Startup Webinar w/ Vrinda
8/19 LinkedIn Talk w/ Stephanie
8/20 Subteam Meeting 11
8/22 Subteam Meeting 12
8/23 Final Presentation
Tasks Done:
Organized subteam meetings + added to calendar
Ensure that all subteam members are on the same page at the start of each meeting
Laid out agenda at the start of each subteam meeting, ensuring that team members agree with prioritization of tasks
Analyzed customer survey results with team
Worked with team to develop different STEM-Away customer personas, allowing us to tell a story of how STEM-Away would benefit each of these personas during our pitch
Practiced presentation with subteam and team leads
Presented pitch deck and elevator pitch to full team and Stephanie
Achievement Highlights:
Worked with subteam to overcome disagreements on most effective way to present personas, ensuring all members are happy with contents of our pitch deck
Summarized learnings from the internship in a 15-minute story-based pitch for STEM-Away
As someone who is interested in founding a startup, one of my biggest roadblocks has been ideation. Thanks to the strategies provided by Vrinda in her webinar, I now feel confident that I have the tools and ability to develop my own business ideas!
