18 - Create a Customer Avatar

My customer would be a young man who is involved in sports. Typically team sports in high school or intramurals in college. A lot of these kids will be athletes involved in sports after their classes, so they need a boost in the afternoon. For hobbies, most will have interests in video games, cars, and sports. They have no children because they're young. They're perhaps a little too cocky for their abilities, and have the delusion that most teenagers do that they are invincible.

As far as what I have in common with this dude, I was a lot like him when I was in high school. Playing lacrosse after school, being tired after lunch, and playing video games and gawking at cars when I got home. It's no coincidence that I'm targeting a niche that I know well.

12 - Figuring Out Buyer Behavior

The segment of buyers that I have selected for this post is High School Athletes. Mostly because they're easy to interview because they have nothing better to do.

The thing is, these kids don't google energy drinks. They mostly don't like coffee, as it's bitter and quite an acquired taste. Usually if they need a boost before practice or something, they'll drive to the gas station after school but before practice and snag an energy drink off the shelf and maybe a small snack. They are able to get these quickly and easily, because there are gas stations everywhere and the inventory they have in stock is pretty static and consistent across the country. Energy drinks, sodas, water bottles, candy bars, crunchy snacks, etc. They're aware of the need for a boost in energy because they're tired from being in school for 7 hours. They know how to solve it, so they just pop on over to the gas station. No need to research it, they know it's there.

11 - Idea Napkin No. 1

1. I'm a college student who will be 20 in a week. I would like to be something more than I currently am, and realize that the kind of opportunity that I'm looking for doesn't just appear in front of you, so I will have to create my own opportunities, ideally within something I'm interested in.
2. I want to sell a product that I can be passionate about, so I'm creating an energy drink (which I drink far too much of) that will be marketed to athletes (I like sports). This will be designed for athletes and eventually I may specialize the formula for individual sports.
3. My customers will be athletes that need more energy. I intend to make this the kind of thing that's not going to give you cancer or something.
4. My intention is to have this product actually taste good, not like medicine you have to take. This product should provide a competitive edge.
5. I myself am an athlete so I at least know what someone would want. As a certified personal trainer, I also have a very in-depth knowledge of various supplements and how they affect the human body.

I think my biggest challenge with this product will be marketing it to people and differentiating it from the rest of the energy drink market. People have a negative view towards energy drinks as "unhealthy", so I obviously don't want this image for a product marketed towards athletes, who are usually more health-conscious than the typical consumer.