Week 6: Data Analyses and Workshops

In the past week, I focused on analyzing data that are currently available and coming up with a framework to systematically categorize and summarize future data to be analyzed. I observed 2-3 counseling sessions per day, and recorded what each business consulted for. I have yet to plot data, nor have I used code to systematically analyze my observations, but on the top of my mind I remember that most businesses’ problems are focused on funding and customer acquisition—specifically for non-physical, service-oriented businesses.

1. Funding: Mostly, at the end of the day, when you are going to start a business, you are going to the bank or a government-subsidized source of funding, like SBA loans. These loans can be extremely helpful, covering on average half of what one needs to acquire or start a business. However, a crucial barrier to these loan application is proving your expertise or advantage in the field. Why are you the one to run the business? The other half of the expense can be challenging as well.
2. Customer education and acquision: If you are selling a service, why do I need it? And how do I get that information? A small business might be trying to grab regional customers in an over-saturated national market filled with other companies that have much better SEO. Reaching an educated customer that wants to pick your service is important.

These are the starting points I have for my analyses. I will add to these categories more next week.

Next week, I will focus on systematically analyzing the data. I am also currently in the process of getting permission from my supervisor to utilize past session notes from the database. To protect the privacy of the businesses, I have anonymized these data before publishing the research, or even discussing with my family or school supervisor.

During my internship, I have had a lot of fun shadowing these sessions as well as workshops!