Now that you’ve got reams and reams of ideas for your new business venture you need to evaluate them. Not all of them are going to be winners and you need to sort the wheat from the chaff now. So, over the next two weeks, we’ll be looking at what questions you need to be asking yourself, not only about the viability of the business idea, but about how you feel about it too!
The Four Points to Consider
It’s all well and good having loads of ideas, but the question is, are any of them actually any good? How do you know? Well, you can’t ever really know if and idea is going to be a winner or not, but you can carry out some research to see what the likelihood is of it being at least something that could be a viable. But, it’s not just about whether the business will work, it’s also about your feelings towards it. Answer the questions listed below and you should end up with a list of potential business ideas that are not only money-spinners but that you’ll enjoy too!
There are four main areas you need to assess when looking at any business idea. These are:
- Does a market exist for your idea?
- Can you give the customer what they want?
- How will you find and approach potential customers?
- Are you interested enough in the idea to work at it full-time?
Let’s look at these questions on more detail.
1.Does a market exist for your idea?
This is a pretty vital part of the puzzle. If you don’t have an existing or potential market for your idea, your business will be doomed from the start. There’s no point selling something nobody wants! Think about these six questions:
- Who is your target market? How larger is it? Where is it based?
- Do you know how much they’ll be willing to pay for the product or service on offer?
- Who are your competitors? What do they offer and for how much?
- Why do you think people will choose you product over that of your rivals? Try to think up at least three reasons.
- If applicable, how will you protect your idea?
- Where do you think your future customers will come from?
2.Can you give the customer what they want?
If you can’t, or you can, but not at a competitive price, it’ll be a non-starter. So think about these questions:
- Do you have, or could you learn, the skills you need to create the product? If you can’t produce it yourself, do you know who can? How good is the quality? How much does it cost and what’s the minimum amount you’ll be required to buy?
- What price are you likely to sell the product or service for and is this a price that’s compatible with your competitors? If it’s not, how will you persuade customers to choose your product over your rivals?
- How much money will it take to set up and run your business for a year? And, where will you get that money? Do you have it or will you need to borrow?
Let’s leave it there for this week, as you have quite a bit to think about. Next week we’ll look at the final two questions. Have fun!
