Seminar Summary

Monday’s seminar and readings touched upon the definition of a business model. We understood it to mean a framework of what a business does and how it makes money doing these things. The template from the readings broke the term “Business Model” down into interlinking elements: Infrastructure (Core Capabilities, Partner Network, Value Configuration), Offer (Value Proposition), Customer (Customer Relationship, Target Customer, Distribution Channel) and Finance (Cost Structure and Revenue Streams). We found that business models are built upon the principle of making a profit and generating sustainable revenue streams, and that they do this by creating value for customers in their products and services. The definition of “value” was discussed and is key because it cannot be said to simply mean “important.” The value proposition should be offering something rare in order to solve a problem for the consumer, which in turn creates demand and sustainable revenue. (E.g Amazon offers a rare personalised customer service experience, tailoring marketing to meet an individuals need by tracking customer tastes.) The seminar also, as Natalie said, highlighted the difference between Innovation and Entrepreneurship when we talk about business models. Innovation was defined as the actions and processes instigating change in a business, and entrepreneurship the attitude or approach that drives this change.

We again discussed our blog and its proposed purpose. Whilst we agreed that it is fundamentally an internal learning tool for ourselves as students, we also recognise that it might be of interest to Students of Publishing and Business, Industry Professionals, Authors and Enthusiasts. Our target audience could stretch to include these other groups, who may be able to feed back into the blog.