Growing Your Social Capital

Domain Expert: I spoke to someone who used to be an Uber driver. He is a domain expert because although he did not drive for SNAP, he did drive for uber so he has experience with driving people around to different routes. I met him through random talking and realized he was a driver. I asked him if I could tell him my idea for SNAPX. He would be useful because since he knows the Gainesville area he would be helpful in coming up with efficient routes that would be easy for the drivers to follow.

Market Expert: I spoke to a third-year transfer student. She is a market expert because she would be the prototypical customer for SNAPX. She does not have a car and lives off campus so she is the prime market expert. I went up to ask her if she lived off-campus and if she had a car. When she said yes I asked if I could talk to her. Including her in my network will be useful because since she is directly in the target market, she can help me make improvements to the business so it is in its best form.

Supplier: I spoke to one of the members of UF’s Student Government. They are a supplier because SNAP is funded by the UF Student Government, so SNAPX would be funded by Student Government also. I found them by going to the Student Government Office and asking to speak with one of the members. I asked if I could interview them and talk to them about an idea. Including this person in my network will be useful because it will help me figure out the proper funding to make sure SNAPX is actually feasible.

This experience was very interesting for me. I was surprised by how these different people were able to provide something different and to the creation of my idea. This was different than networking I had done before because, with this, I had to make sure the people I was speaking to fit the specific criteria of domain expert, market expert, and supplier. Usually, when I would network, I would just connect with anyone who was tied to the company.