BUSINESS IDEAS
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Finding the inspiration to create something from nothing is the first step to coming up with a business idea. So, to kick off, this is the structure for coming up with viable startup ideas.
Of course, it’s ultimately up to you to decide whether or not anything is worthwhile. As a result, you should think of this framework as a separate “self-validation method” in your toolbox.
Questions to uncover potential business ideas
What are your areas of interest?
You’ll need to accept concentration in order to come up with good business ideas. Emphasis and enthusiasm go hand in hand. That is, if you care deeply about anything, you are likely to spend a significant amount of time thinking about it, which is beneficial when contemplating how to generate actionable ideas.
The good news is that you won’t have to think about this topic for long. You have at least one starting point if you’re passionate about your current work, hobbies, or some other aspect of your life. Make a list of these and prioritize them to help you stay on track with your idea generation efforts.
The bad news is that you won’t get very far if you don’t have zeal. Your thoughts, no matter how interesting they are, will be put on the back burner. This is why one of the main criteria used by venture capitalists to assess a startup’s potential is the founders’ enthusiasm. So, if you’re having a particularly uninspired or passion-less day, take advantage of the opportunity to tap into your inner intellectual curiosity. Learn, read, and apply what you’ve learned.
We don’t inherit our passions; we must cultivate them.
What is the source of the problem?
Once you’ve narrowed down your interests, the next step is to look at areas of intense problem within those categories. That is, areas with issues and, as a result, prospects for change. You might need to be a little more precise than you were when answering the first question to make this jump.
Let’s say you have a strong interest in education. What is the problem with education? What can be done to make things better? The answers to these questions would, on the whole, be very high-level.
However, you can find that breaking education down into smaller sub-categories is a more useful solution.
Accepting that everything is inevitably interconnected to some degree, defining the problem points for one particular group usually leads to greater clarification.
The more widespread an issue is, the more urgent it is to find a solution. The greater the need for a solution, the more likely individuals or businesses will pay for it, and the more likely you will be able to make a profit from it.
However, it’s important to note that not all issues are unpleasant. Those are what we refer to as “empty opportunities.” If you pursue an empty opportunity—one that isn’t based on a painful problem—you’ll soon discover that no one is interested in your idea, and no one will pay for it.
One of the best ways to avoid making the empty opportunity mistake is to solve a frustrating problem you’ve encountered personally, whether at work or at home. In this way, the associated danger is determined not by whether or not you’re solving a particular problem but by how many other people are experiencing the same issue as you.
What is the current solution to this problem?
After you’ve found several problem points in your area of interest, you’ll want to look at existing solutions. In other words, who would you compete with if you had a solution to the problem(s) you’ve identified?
To be sure, this move in the process is a double-edged sword. If no one else is working on the same issue as you, you must invariably decide whether the problem is severe and widespread enough to be considered legitimate.
Also Read: How to Find Business Opportunities Near Me
The startup market, like the rest of the economy, is fairly successful. This implies that by the time a real problem is identified, certain known solutions are already available, some created specifically to address this problem, and some that could be considered substitute-type products or services. This is why, rather than the originality of the founding concept, startup success is often attributed to execution.
If, on the other hand, there are several other alternatives to the problem you’ve found, you’ve confirmed that the problem is real, but you’ll eventually face competition who has a head start in solving it.
Conduct a Google search and analyze the top 10 results before drawing any conclusions about the competitive landscape. Instead, tap your network, subscribe to relevant blog content, and allow yourself to be updated over days, weeks, months, or even years, rather than seconds or minutes. You’ll gain knowledge that will feed your idea-generation forces if you take a comprehensive, open-minded approach.
Is it possible to do it better, faster, or for less money?
You can measure the potential now that you have a solid understanding of the existing solutions to the issues you’re excited about solving. The gap between the current solution and a “perfect” solution can be described as an opportunity. To put it another way, how much potential for growth do you have? Perfection will possibly remove the dilemma and its related suffering for both individuals and businesses forever.
This stage of the business idea creation process is, of course, highly subjective. What you consider to be a sufficient solution should not be acceptable to anyone else. To accurately flesh out these conclusions, you’ll need to focus on your domain knowledge.
What, if any, Business opportunities for change do you see? Are you working to improve your efficiency? Do you want to improve a product or service? Are you adapting an existing approach to meet the needs of a new group of people? Are you making a pre-existing solution more affordable? You may be able to come up with a good idea if even one of these areas can be tackled. If, on the other hand, you can solve several problems with a single solution, you may be on to something.
Go forth and conceive
As you go through the idea-creation process, there are a few things to keep in mind.
The majority of good ideas we have in life are most likely not the outcome of a planned operation, also called organic idea generation.
Organic idea generation is likely to involve breezing through any or all of the steps in this article subconsciously, to the point that the final idea you have appears very clear at the time it comes to mind. This happens all the time in the world of startup idea generation. It typically follows a pattern like this:
- You encounter a problem.
- You construct a solution that alleviates the associated problem.
- Sell this solution to others!”
However, the fundamental principle remains the same: problem-solving is the answer.
Also, brilliant business ideas are difficult to transform into thriving businesses. However, the more ideas you have, the better your chances of spotting and acting on a promising opportunity. It’s a good habit to commit to improving your ‘idea muscle,’ as it increases the chances that one of your organic ideas will be self-validated using a structure like the one given in this post.
Business ideas are delicate. They appear and vanish. However, if you let criticism derail you at this stage, you’ll end up stuck on the concept treadmill, unable to step forward. Ideas are useless on their own. However, it is the things that arise from them that change the world.
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