Chronicle 1

 WebVenture Chronicles

Chronicle 1

Welcome to WebVenture Chronicles!

Hello! I'm Nicolette Semmelmeyer, a student at BYU-Idaho. I major in Professional Studies and am deeply interested in Digital Marketing, Graphic Design, and Entrepreneurship. I've launched this blog as part of my Web Business Creation Course to document my journey through the world of online entrepreneurship.

Why This Blog?

In "WebVenture Chronicles," I will share my experiences, challenges, and triumphs as I explore web entrepreneurship. This space will serve as my digital diary, where I'll reflect on weekly lessons, incorporate insights from course materials, and connect these learnings to my personal and professional growth.

My Goals

My primary aim with this blog is to deepen my understanding of web business fundamentals and connect these lessons to broader life experiences and my spiritual journey. I invite you to join me as I navigate the complexities of entrepreneurship, guided by faith and a passion for digital creativity.

This Weeks Lessons

This week was really great. We studied a case about a startup business and whether to choose a product to sell first or decide on a business model first. I recommended brainstorming products to sell first and then selecting a business model. This way, the team can think freely about cool and new things they can offer before they get into the details of how to sell them. I wrote an essay based on my recommendation and discussed our idea further as a class. What really resonated with me was how this approach helps us start strong and keep growing our businesses in a smart way, ensuring we are more successful.

Next, we learned about setting up a Google Ads account and using its Keyword Planner. I had learned quite a bit about using Google Ads in a prior course about Digital Advertising a few semesters ago, so this lesson served as a refresher. We then read a case about someone deciding whether to start a business selling snowboards or setting up a site providing information about chess and selling advertising. This was a fascinating case, as my assumption was that snowboards would be the most viable option. However, the chess info site is by far the best idea because it reviews the level of competition and demand for both chess and snowboarding using the online tool Google AdWords Keyword Planner. I wrote an essay on my recommendation, uploaded the data from Google Ads Keyword Planner, and then discussed it as a class. What impacted me was the idea of not judging a business by its cover and how a simple online tool can spell out a business's demand and ability to compete in the marketplace.

Lastly, I began working on the first course project, which involves choosing what business you want to start or a product to sell. For the project, I will be filling out a pre-made spreadsheet where I will be brainstorming business ideas, inputting data of the keywords used for each idea, the ease of starting the business, the demand, the competitive levels, the possible suppliers, startup cost, time requirements, profit potential, and lastly the spreadsheets recommendation of which business shows the most significant potential based on the data. I had a lot of ideas, but I decided that starting a Charm Bar web business selling custom charm necklaces and bracelets would be the best option based on the business's resultant score. The project isn't due till next week, but I wouldn't wait to know which business idea will win out in the end. I may start the other businesses later, especially since some of my ideas were close contenders.

Moving Forward

These lessons have profoundly impacted my decision on the type of web business I wish to start. It's incredible to see how directly these teachings influence my choices, and I feel guided by God in these decisions. With the insights and data from my coursework, I'm equipped to move forward with the beginning steps of launching my Charm Bar business, and I'm excited to take you on this journey.

Join the Conversation

What challenges have you faced in starting or thinking about starting your own business? Do you use tools like Google Ads to inform your decisions? I'd love to hear your stories and strategies. Let's learn and grow together in this adventure of entrepreneurship.