420e: Business Writing for Entrepreneurs, Course Calendar Project 1: Professional Portfolio Week 1: Tuesday In-Class:

Syllabus What is business writing? Homework: Read: ETW, Writing Intro: 3-8, Resumes: 308-318 Post to blog Have an electronic copy of your resume available for Thursdays class Write Memo of Self-Introduction: Name, year, school, major. Why are you pursuing a path in entrepreneurship (if you have specific goals/idea, please specify) What are you hoping to gain from/achieve in this course? Assess yourself as a writer Any additional questions or comments Thursday In-Class:

Resume Lesson & Activities Resume Peer Review Job/Internship Search Homework: Read: ETW, Designing Documents, 71-92, Cover Letters: 303-308 Post to blog. Write a polished first draft of your objective statement (or multiple versions, if you plan on applying for different types of positions). Have the revision available for Tuesdays class. Week 2: Tuesday In-Class:

Revised objective statement peer review Resume Lesson & Activities Homework: Read: ETW, be prepared to discuss Cover Letters 303-308 Find a job, internship, or graduate program to which you want to apply. Revise and redesign your entire resume, and have available for peer review in Thursdays class Thursday In-Class:

Cover Letter discussion & Exercises Initial job search

Homework:

Write a full rough draft of your cover letter to be peer reviewed on Tuesday First draft of resume due posted to Dropbox by midnight Sunday1/20. Read: ETW, Inteviewing 318-322 Week 3: Tuesday In-Class:

Peer Review of Cover Letters Discussion of Interviewing Introduction to Video Resumes Homework: Read articles on video resumes and Skype interviews: Skype: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ming-chen/7-deadly-skype-interview-_b_1274107.html Skype: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505125_162-47541444/ace-your-skype-job-interview-14-smart-tips/ Video Resumes: http://careerrocketeer.com/2012/09/how-to-create-a-video-resume-that-sparks-interest.html Post to blog Revise cover letter for class on Thursday Thursday In-Class:

Peer Review of Cover Letters Mock-Interviews Begin working on script Homework: Have draft of script ready for class on Tuesday First draft of cover letter due posted to Dropbox by midnight Friday, 1/25. Bring in a pair of headphones for class on Tuesday. Week 4: Tuesday In-Class:

Peer Review of video scripts How-to: imovie basics: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFuLi8D-qGk How to add text to your video: http://apple-imovie.wonderhowto.com/how-to/add-text-and-titleswhen-editing-video-imovie-418968/ Sample video clip for download: http://db.tt/Q58UQoSA Revise script Homework: Film a version of video for class on Thursday Thursday In-Class:

Introduction of Reflection Memo Peer Review of rough video

Class time to edit video and work on resume and cover letter Homework: All revised materials due by Tuesday, 2/5, by noon: Cover Memorandum, Resume, Cover Letter, Video File Project 2: White Paper Week 5: Tuesday In-Class:

Introduction of Unit 2 Assignment: Crowdfunding White Paper Introduction to Crowdfunding & Crowdsourcing Homework: Articles on crowdfunding: http://www.forbes.com/sites/tanyaprive/2012/11/27/what-is-crowdfunding-and-how-does-itbenefit-the-economy/ http://www.wired.com/design/2012/06/kickstarter-fail-turned-into-good-design/ White Paper FAQ: http://www.thatwhitepaperguy.com/white-paper-faq.html White Paper Sample: http://www.thatwhitepaperguy.com/downloads/7%20musthave%20features%20final.pdf For the sample paper, you do not have to read this word-for-word, but I want you to go through the whole thing, paying attention to: 1. 2. 3. Design Organization The Purpose of Each Section

Post to blog. **For the budding entrepreneurs: prepare a 1-2 minute presentation, presenting your idea to your classmates. It is up to you if youd like to use PPT or other presentation programs. **For those of you who are not presenting, please list on a piece of , in order of preference, 3 types of products or services in which you are interested (food service, animal grooming, film, video games, whatever you like). Thursday In-Class:

Presentations of Entrepreneurial Ideas Selection of Teams Discussion of White Papers Homework: Read ETC, 185, 190-192: Working Collaboratively Read ETC, 268-293: On Giving Oral Reports. (be aware your group product presentation will be next Thursday) Post to blog. Week 6: Tuesday In-Class:

Parts of a White Paper (http://www.thatwhitepaperguy.com/downloads/7%20musthave%20features%20final.pdf)

Oral Presentations Homework: Read: Kickstarter School: http://www.kickstarter.com/help/school#reward_fulfillment Prepare your presentation for Thursday (2-4 minutes) Thursday In-Class:

Team Presentations Team collaboration on Homework: Read: ETW: Writing Proposals, 197-218 (you can skim the sample proposals, but be prepared to discuss the text) Post to blog Your proposals will be due by midnight on Wednesday, 2/20 Week 7: Tuesday In-Class:

Remaining Oral Presentations Proposals and Progress Reports Teamwork on Proposals Homework: Your proposals are due by midnight on Wednesday, 2/20 Spend some time checking out this Kickstarter project (video, FAQs, rewards, comments , etc.) and be prepared to discuss its pros and cons on Thursday: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/lumio/lumio-onelamp-multiple-forms-infinite-possibiliti?ref=category Thursday In-Class:

Discussion of Lumio and case studies In-Class activities Homework: Read through all of these case studies, taking the time to look at the PleaseFund.US sites they are studying: http://www.pleasefund.us/blog/article/how-crowdfunding-can-work-for-you We will discuss these in class on Tuesday. While you read the case studies and look at the sites, take note of additional pros and cons you observe that were not mentioned in the case study. Write a rough draft of a case study of the crowdfunding project selected by your group. Have this ready for peer review on Tuesday. Week 8: Tuesday In-Class:

Video Resume/Mock-Interview Examples Discussion of case studies: http://www.pleasefund.us/blog/article/how-crowdfunding-can-work-for-you Peer review of case studies Creation of case study case studies Homework:

Work on white paper. Thursday In-Class:

Work on white-paper. Optional check-in with instructor Homework:

o Work on white paper. Week 9:

Tuesday In-Class:

Discussion of Executive Summaries TOC How-To Homework: Reference ETW: Executive Summaries, 172-173; sample ES 174. Thursday NO CLASS Homework:

White Paper due uploaded to Dropbox by midnight on Thursday. Begin discussing the role & responsibilities for your presentations. Presentations will occur on Thursday, March 21, and Tuesday, March 26. Week 10: NO CLASSSPRING BREAK Week 11: Tuesday In-Class:

Discussion of Presentations Time to work on presentations as a group Thursday In-Class:

Presentations Week 12: Tuesday In-Class:

Presentations Introduction of Project 3 Homework: Email me regarding your group preferences before noon on Wednesday (tomorrow). Please read the following:http://freeworldmedia.com/blog/beyond-storytelling-narrative-brandmarke http://www.twistimage.com/blog/archives/a-simple-way-to-rethink-your-braBeyond the traditional:

http://bnotions.com/transmedia-a-case-study-for-brand-strategy/Examples: http://thestoryoftelling.com/best-brand-stories-on-planet/ http://bnotions.com/transmedia-a-case-study-for-brand-strategy/ http://www.credomobile.com/And what about Subaru? Harley Davidson? Diet Dr. Pepper? Would you classify these as being presented with brand narratives? Please post your thoughts on theses questions or anything else regarding the readings on the blog (before noon on Thursday, 3/28). Thursday In-Class:

Brands & Branding Homework: Read Site Study Guidelines doc: Dropbox > Project 3 Begin thinking about how you might like to apply these questions to deciding what type of business your team will propose to replace Jakes Readings on conducting research: On Market Analysis (overview): http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/78002 On Market Analysis (in-depth):http://www.vainteractive.com/inbusiness/editorial/sales/ibt/market_analysis.html On Surveys: http://marketresearch.about.com/od/market.research.surveys/a/Conducting-Market-ResearchSurveys.htm, http://marketresearch.about.com/od/market.research.techniques/a/Choosing-BetweenQualitative-And-Quantitative-Methods.htm

Purdue University: ENG 205 & 420e Home ENG 205 ENG 420e White Paper
Course Calendar Previous Assignments Week 12: Tuesday In-Class:

Discussion of Market Analysis & Market Research Homework: These are the categories that will need to be included in your report to Ms. Barber. Please explore these categories and be prepared to discusss them in class on Thursday: http://www.sba.gov/category/navigationstructure/starting-managing-business/starting-business/how-write-business-plan On the importance of a business plan: http://www.sba.gov/category/navigation-structure/startingmanaging-business/starting-business/how-write-business-plan Complete your surveysat least one online survey, one script for an in-person interview Thursday In-Class:

Crafting your Business Plan Week 13: Tuesday In-Class:

Discussion of Building a Brand and Advertising Homework: Continue working on surveys, conceptualizing your brand, prepping your presentation. Thursday In-Class:

Workday Homework: Your proposal is due Friday via Dropbox (by 11:59 p.m.). This report should be a be in a memo format, welldesigned and informative, and should sketch out a preliminary plan and work completed thus far. I recommend going through each section of the business plan and including the information you already know about that section and/or what you have planned. This is also the place where you can include questions or concerns to which you would like me to respond. There is no set page length. Though your individual memos are still due, no group memo is due this week. I will respond to/grade this document by the following class on April 16 to allow you time to respond to my questions and suggestions. Week 14: Tuesday In-Class:

Financial Planning In-Class Work Homework: Continue working on business plan. Begin preparing your presentations. Thursday In-Class:

Discussion of presentation expectations In-Class Work Homework: Presentations due uploaded to Dropbox by no later than 3 p.m. on Tuesday, April 23. There will be no printing in class. Please come prepared with any supporting documents and/or props. Presentations will occur April 23 and April 25. Presentations will be 10-15 minutes long and order will be determined randomly. You must be prepared to answer questions from myself, Annemarie Barber, and your classmates. You may use any props, visual aids, and materials (within reason). Every group member does not have to speak, but I will expect a final memo from group members establishing their roles in presentation and final report.