Opportunity Belief

I have a belief that there is an opportunity to create a product that is not yet on the market. As an avid coffee drinker I noticed that there was so much variety when it came to coffee products. Different kinds of cream, iced coffee, cold brew, espresso, and so on. I realized I had an unmet need everyday when I was drinking my coffee. I like iced coffee, we live in Florida, it's usually always hot, so I like to carry my coffee with me throughout my day in an obnoxiously large Yeti cup. As I went throughout my day, the ice cubes I put in my coffee at the beginning of the day began to melt and water down the rest of my coffee. Because of this my coffee would start to taste really gross and I wouldn't enjoy it anymore so I would pour it out. Once I identified the ice cubes as being the problem, I started asking my other coffee-drinking friends if they also experienced the same frustration, and turns out they did. This isn't a problem for people who enjoy hot coffee, but those who prefer to drink it iced. I thought about what could be a solution, and I tried not putting ice in my coffee, getting those silicon ice cubes, and even trying to convert to a hot coffee drinker. None of those sparked happiness for me. I thought about the idea when walking through the aisles of Publix, quite frustrated at my melting ice situation. I was in the freezer aisle and I went near the bags of frozen fruit and thought once again about my coffee cube problem. I figured if they bagged frozen fruit, maybe they could bag frozen coffee. My belief is that there is an opportunity to create coffee cubes that don't water down your drink, but actually provide you with more coffee. I also remembered how much variety I see in every other category of coffee, so I figured why not coffee and cream cubes, or espresso shot cubes, or basically anything. I thought that having something that keeps your drink staying cold, while slowly releasing more coffee, rather than more water. I'm sure this need has always existed and there have been solutions to the melting ice cube like the silicon cubes I mentioned before, but they took up space in my cup that I would have rather had filled with more coffee.

I'd like to say that I'm 90% sure my opportunity exists and customers would be interested.

Customer number 1: Someone who drinks as much iced coffee as I do.
Do you experience this need all the time? Yes, I have issues with my ice melting in my coffee before I finish all of it, and then it becomes less tasty.
How long have you had the need? Since I started making my own iced coffee at home.
When did they first become aware of the need? I didn't pay much mind to the melting ice at first but then I realized how much of my coffee I was throwing out because of the fact that I didn't like the way it tasted anymore after the ice had fully melted.
How are they addressing the need right now? I don't use any ice cubes at the moment and it's not ideal.


Customer number 2: Someone who drinks hot coffee
Do you experience this need all the time? No, I usually prefer just plain black coffee, but I do live in a climate that gets very warm so I occasionally will have iced coffee.
How long have you had the need? I guess since I started to get into iced coffee which was a few years ago.
When did they first become aware of the need? I did notice that the taste of the coffee would change once the ice would start to melt and it would give the coffee a bitter taste in my opinion. That's why I usually stick to hot coffee.
How are they addressing the need right now? By not drinking iced coffee.



Customer number 3: random person I knew nothing about
Do you experience this need all the time? Not all the time, I drink iced coffee more regularly than hot though.
How long have you had the need? Since I started drinking coffee, so a while now.
When did they first become aware of the need? I realized that the ice would completely melt before I finished my coffee and that made it less likely for me to finish it once that happened.
How are they addressing the need right now? I used to use those silicon ice cubes, but they got to be too much of a hassle so I stopped.



From talking to the three different customers, I realized that coffee drinkers do share my frustration of melting ice and would like if there was an easy, better solution. I also understand that not everyone that drinks coffee, drinks iced coffee, which means they do not have this issue. From talking to customer number 2, it was clear that if there was a better solution, they would be more willing to drink iced coffee. I think that this feedback proves that the opportunity is there for something to be improved upon.

How much of your original opportunity is still there?
I think the majority of my original opportunity is still there, I gained good feedback that informed me on what customers needs and wants are when it comes to keeping their iced coffee cold, but not watering it down.
Do you believe that you new opportunity is more accurate then when you started?
Yes, I think talking to different people allowed me to gain perspectives on peoples everyday struggle with this issue and then allowed me to see more space for opportunity.
How much do you think entrepreneurs should 'adapt' their opportunities based on customer feedback?
I think it should always be a fair trade off between your vision of what your opportunity is supposed to be and look like and what is realistic to everyday consumers.