12A- Figuring Out Buyer Behavior

1) Pick a segment. 

The segment I have focused on in particular are hopeful and incoming college students who cannot afford the costs of tuition and housing in total. This will prevent many students from attending college, not allowing them to fulfill their full potential. 

2) Find three people who would fit that segment and arrange to interview them. 

I interviewed 3 University of Florida students, some who have begun the process of accepting and exercising their student loans, also students who are not directly affected by this crisis.

3) Begin with need awareness. If the person you are talking to does have the problem, then you're on the right track! For need awareness, we need to figure out at what times, situations, places, contexts, etc., their need becomes the most salient. The questions you ask should be related to determining exactly when, how, and where their need awareness occurs. 

After interviewing one student currently in student debt, one student who has been granted “Florida Bright Futures” and one student who has been fortunate enough to have Florida Prepaid. The first student agreed that lowering interest rates and creating a government subsidy for qualifying students is something that would interest and improve his overall situation. The student who qualified for Florida Bright Futures scholarship agreed with what the first interviewer said, but also mentioned that these requirements must be extensive and create a diversified group of students who would ultimately be granted this subsidy/scholarship. He mentioned that he worked very hard to become a Florida Bright Futures scholar, but agrees with the ideology of the government subsidy. The second interviewee explained that forgoing the cost of tuition has made his college experience much easier, allowing him to focus on his housing costs, consumption of consumer goods and allowing him to avoid student loans. The final interviewee was indifferent on the subject, since he has not done much research on the subject. Since his parents prepaid for his college tuition at a very young age, he does not have much immediate personal interest on the subject, though believes allowing students the opportunity to receive a discounted college tuition can reward the country as a whole. 

4) Move to information search. 

Since the first interviewee currently exercises his right to accept student loans, he believes this idea could have helped him in his college tenure. He does not have much of a choice, being that he is already a senior in his final semester. What he can do moving forward, is continue to work hard in an effort to repay these student loans in a timely manner. By accruing money and devoting a portion of his paycheck to student loans, he will be able to pay these expenses and limit the negative effect of these interest rates for freshly graduated students. The second interviewee, a Florida Bright Futures scholar, does not face the crisis that many college students face, which is paying these debts upon becoming a young professional. This is a product of this students hard work and is what I hope to accomplish by proposing this government subsidy. The final interviewee, a Florida Prepaid child, is the ideal example of what I would like to do for my son/daughter, when that time comes.

5) Report the findings of your research.

A common theme throughout all three of these interviews was the fact that all of those interviewed agreed this would benefit the country as a whole. The more students who can attend college, that previously would not have been capable of this due to lack of finances, can now become college educated. This will create more skilled labor in the United States and grant many children the opportunity to strive for academic greatness, knowing that their college tuition will be discounted. Discounting college tuition for these qualifying and motivated students will create a competitive nature for these students, setting them up well for the future. 

6) Draw conclusions.

This segment is incredibly popular, relevant and growing. As discussed in my prior elevator pitch, the segment of college students in the fall of 2019 was 19.9 million. The overwhelming percentage of these students are in an alarming amount of student loan debt, with increasingly high interest rates. This government subsidy would lessen the burden of college students who qualify for this scholarship. This would allow students to begin to accrue and save their paychecks upon graduation, granting these students the opportunity to circulate that money in the economy, or eventually enjoy the ability of using their purchasing power for something greater, such as a home, car, etc. College and the proceeding years after graduating are an incredibly crucial time for many people, a time that can make or break your financial future and determine the extent of one’s financial destiny.