I decided to interview five students that attend a different university. I thought it would be eye opening to compare parking in two different places. It gave me a better perspective about how are parking situation is compared to what other students have to deal with. The five customers I interviewed were from Florida State University.
I learned a lot from these interviews. I thought it was a learning experience doing it the "index card" way. I am honestly most surprised with myself for conducting these interviews in general. I really was nervous about the whole concept of interviewing people, but I am pleasantly surprised that I was capable of doing it. I know the more I practice the more comfortable I will feel. Going off of that, I think I would change my mindset as the outcome of these interviews. The more willing and confident I am, the better these interviews go whether there is positive or negative feedback.
Hello Rachel,
ReplyDeleteYou are absolutely right regarding the parking regulations and how strict they are. Definitely, parking around campus is a complete stress and I always arrive late to classes because of that. That is why I stopped using my car and I just decided to take the bus; I have to leave like half an hour earlier but I do not have to go through that stress of not finding parking and I can arrive on time to classes. Definitely, any idea or project that you may have to improve this situation would be very helpful to every student. What surprised me the most is that it is not only happening here in UF, but this is also an issue in other universities. Therefore, your idea can be implemented in many universities, not just UF. Finally, interviewing people does get easier with more practice. It happened the same to me, with every interview I got better results regardless of the positive or negative feedback. Here is my post if you want to take a look at it http://berrvh.blogspot.com/2016/02/customer-interview-no3.html
Rachel, I think there is a definite need for parking on campuses. My daughter is a student at FSU and this was one of the stresses she had to maneuver around her freshman year. If you can develop the concept or expand upon how you plan on meeting the need, this would be great. You want to find out from your customers what are those rare occasions in which the parking on campus was enjoyable and what made it enjoyable. Otherwise, I think if you can solve this one, you will have a very profitable company that meets a need of a population right off the bat.
ReplyDeleteHere is the post if interested in reviewing and providing feedback: http://sonjasevolution.blogspot.com/2016/02/customer-interviews-no-3.html
Hi Rachel,
ReplyDeleteI think there is a definite need to solve the issue of college parking. This is a problem with every campus so there is a high need to resolve the problem.
The problem is what are some ways to go about doing this? This is why I love the fact that UF offers online courses. Before I transferred to UF, I would sign up for the earliest classes I could find just to beat the traffic. The reality is it is hard for any college student to get to class at 7:15am.
Also, great job for doing the interviews! I did not have a chance to, but I understand the lack of desire to interview people you don't know.
Here is a link to my general class blog:
https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=8973609705860193196#allposts/src=dashboard
Parking on campus is definitely not a fun task. Taking the bus is also not as convenient, as you have to rely on the bus schedule. Uber is nice, but it is very expensive to do that every day. Relaxing the rules would help a lot of people out, but it may hurt employees who pay more money for staff parking decals. Check out my blog at http://ryanent3003.blogspot.com.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed watching everyone read the index cards. I happen to be an online student, living in Fort Lauderdale but every campus I have ever attended in Florida, parking is ALWAYS a nightmare! I don't think this is fair to students who dish out thousands of dollars a year to go to school, only to miss class because they can't find a parking spot. The added stress of just trying to attend class is completely unnecessary.
ReplyDeleteCheck out my blog at:
http://laurnetz027.blogspot.com/
Hey Rachel! I really enjoyed your post and think you did a great job with the interviews. College parking is a personal issue of mine and I have had to deal with it since my second year of college. Just this past month I get 4 parking tickets! I was very angry. So as a person who has these issues I agree with your idea.
ReplyDeleteHey Rachel
ReplyDeleteParking is definitely a problem not only just here but for many college campuses. I have friends at UCF and FSU that always complain about their parking situation and how hectic it can be. I even know of someone who payed another student for their parking spot at UCF haha. I also liked your idea of having the people you interview read the index cards first.
At any campus you attend, the parking is going to be hectit and confusing. Some days you arrive early and find a spot immediately and some days you can't seem to find a spot anywhere. I think you brought up some great points and came up with a great idea for the customers to read the index cards first.
ReplyDelete