Spherical Approach I - the soft launch of the program
A complete failure or a necessary stage?
Spherical Approach I, Programme Results Assessment:
Goals of the program:
- Gather and set up the material needed
- Test procedures
- Reveal possible challenges, difficulties or unpredicted events
Results of the program:
- Material Gathered: Partial. Only 12 sessions, as the programme didn’t run the full course. However, it was clear which parts were overwhelming and new solutions were needed to simplify the next programme.
- Testing the Procedure: Partial. The programme could work well with 1.5 hour sessions once a week, but the duration of the programme was still unclear as the programme didn’t run until the end.
- Reveal Possible Challenges, Difficulties or Unpredicted Events: Partial, as the programme didn’t run its full course. However, it was clear that the life stage of the student (as well as the challenges that come with this stage), does affect our professional performance. In addition, it was clear that the motivation that comes with a group, leads to much a better performance for all involved.
For me, launching a new product has become a simple routine after having launched many products and services over the years.
From my experience, the reason most businesses fail is because they think that a soft launch means a small party where you invite many people to drink and eat, as well as offering them products and services for free!
These things do form part of the soft launch to a certain extent, but the most important thing about a soft launch is to test the products or service and get feedback from your prospective audience.
The goal of Spherical Approach I was to soft launch the service. To gather the material needed, to test the procedures and to understand the effort needed, as well as possible challenges and difficulties. Following this stage, additional goals were to collect feedback about the programme, with the aim of having everything tweaked and perfected for the proper launch.
At the soft launch stage, you actually make your first sale. Because you must find at least one potential client and sell him the idea that he or she needs this service. So, the goal was to find a person who wants to build a business from scratch. For this, I found Cristina and I was quite excited about her. She was exactly the ambitious, clever and skilled lady that I was looking for.
This all happened just before the 1st Covid quarantine! But I thought that the timing was perfect, as Covid forced us to slow down the rhythm of our social lives and gave us time to rest and actually think.
Challenges:
1. Should you offer the service for FREE for testing?
There is a huge debate between specialists about whether you should charge or offer the service for FREE when you do the testing. The failure of SA1 convinced me that if the person doesn’t have to pay – even a small amount – for something, they will never put in the required effort to achieve their goals. Moreover, when the first difficulties arise it is easier for them to quit than to put in the effort to overcome the difficulty.
2. Is there really the right timing for a person to start a new business?
Spherical Approach I taught me that the ‘You’ is probably the most important element of the puzzle. And when it comes to humans there are so many external factors that can affect our success. The first lock down was something that affected most people’s positivity and mood. Christina was in Brussles at this time, far from her family and completely isolated from her friends. She felt down and unable to focus on what was important.
3. Does a student need motivation?
Much research has shown that working in groups can dramatically increase each individual’s motivation to complete difficult tasks. Undoubtedly, when it comes to a group of entrepreneurs, sharing experiences and ideas will benefit everyone.
However, there are many entrepreneurs that prefer to work 1-2-1.