Expert contact comunication - Garth Morgan

This is the email communication that I have had with Garth Morgan so far and it has really helped:

Dan to Garth:

Garth,

I have completely changes my direction for this project. I let my desire to do a packaging project get in the way and painted my self in to a corner with that.

So here is the new direction:

For my project I am going to design something that makes cooking more fun, exciting and playful for Bachelors.

I want to do this because it is a lot of work to cook for yourself and not much fun. It is just easier to buy unhealthy TV dinners, easy unhealthy foods, and fast food. Cooking is healthier, cheaper, and impresses the ladies.

That would be the mission/problem statement in essence. I have not ruled the packaging idea out of the picture completely, just leaving it as an option.

I have contacted Doug Wilson, a business professor I have had here at U of O to help me nail down my demographic a bit more and help me find what their major areas of interests are, so I can find out what the general aesthetic interests are and what they would be more likely to respond to.

The tentative idea is a (or a line of) cooking utensil(s) and/or pans that would make the experience of cooking more enjoyable, and therefore more desirable to do. And an other idea would be, depending on the demographic, something having to do with a game or other entertainment.

I have made way in contacting a chef to find out what the bare essential cooking equipment would be and any ideas they had about making cooking more fun.

I kinda took my sweet time arriving at a final direction, which I hope will not come back to bite me in the butt.

I have attached a copy of my Syllabus with a class schedule so we are both on the same page about when things need to happen. I would like to talk with you about creating an action plan this week sometime, when ever you have the time (preferably before Wednesday). I don't have classes before 4 pm Monday through Thursday. Friday class starts at 2 and gets out at 8.

Also what are your thoughts on this direction? Do you have an ideas or things I should look at or consider?

What in your mind, would make cooking food more fun/enjoyable/playful for a bachelor?

~Dan Munger

Garth to Dan:

Hi Dan,

First step is to gather "data" that bolster your plan of action. Find your demographic and spend some time with them in whatever way you can. They won't tell you what to do, probably, but if you listen carefully they will reveal why they hate cooking, or why the love eating out, or what they like to eat vs. what they always eat. "It takes me 30 minutes to make dinner, 10 minutes to clean up, but only 5 minutes to eat - too much work." Or, "I can never decide what to eat." Or, "I simply don't enjoy cooking , and I'm willing to pay to eat out." But what else? "Chicks dig it when I cook once in a while." "I had a great meal at the Excelsior, and I'd love to be able to recreate it without dropping $40." And isn't there something in the handbook that demands that every man be able to grille a perfect steak? What about tailgaters?

Are the factors economic? ease of use? what happens during preparation or after? There are hundreds of books written by "experts" like Rachel Ray on preparing great meals in 30 minutes with a smile on your face. If it was that easy, every bachelor would do it. How much prep and forethought is required? How much work is there after? How do I prepare my leftovers for storage? Where do I put them? How much beer does it displace in my fridge? What can I do with fast, boxed food (like Hamburger Helper) that is way more interesting, easy and fast than what it is all by itself?

That should get you going in a direction: Utensils for cooking one thing, lots of things, or nothing at all. Recipes? Location? Process?

All the way through, with every half- or fully-baked idea or direction, hold it up to the presentation filter. Does this make a good story? If I had to describe this to Grandma, would she get it?

Be sure to ask the biz professor how he suggests you interact with the demographic. He might even have resources that can connect you with targets for interviews, focus groups, shop-alongs, or in-home observation. When you talk to the chef, find out how much your demographic overlaps with his , and if not how much opportunity that presents. Connect the dots, write it all down, create a plan that has clear steps with clear deliverables. (Even "fuzzy" steps should have clear deliverables - an answer to a question, for example.)

Give me a call when you have a draft of your plan, but only a draft. Time's wasting!


Remember, it's way easier to solve one problem rather than many. When solving multiple problems, it becomes a difficult story to tell. (I never buy those RonCo things on TV because I can't figure out what they do - slicing AND dicing AND making little fleurettes? I just want a carrot peeler that doesn't take my finger tip off.) At the end, it may be a single bug you're addressing, and that's okay if it's the most compelling bug."

Garth