How to bring your business idea to life
I really enjoy talking to young entrepreneurs who I meet at my lectures at Moscow School of Management “Skolkovo” as well as in other places. These people are full of enthusiasm. There is light in their eyes and dozens of innovative ideas in their heads. I am sure that they will succeed because they know exactly what they want.
The only thing that is not always clear to them is how to achieve the intended goals. How to bring their business ideas to life? Who to talk to about them first? How to overcome the possible obstacles? If you also want to fulfill your business dreams, I hope you will find some useful tips in this article.
Base yourself on common sense and rationality
You have probably read many stories about genius ideas that started with a scratch on a napkin or, as in the case of Facebook, with an algorithm written on a window glass of a student dorm.
Shot from the movie “Social Network”, directed by David Fincher, 2010
It’s great if this is followed by a concrete business plan. But it sometimes happens that the innovator is so immersed in the dream that he or she loses the sense of reality and refuses to admit that his or her idea is not viable. Enthusiasm and boundless faith in your plans are good, but try to keep your head cool and rational.
Find people to help you
In the movie “Social Network” there is a funny episode when the actor who portrays Mark Zuckerberg runs out of the building wearing shorts with flip-flops and finds snow under his feet. It’s because he worked 24 hours a day, not noticing the change of seasons.
If you do not want to work in the same mode, make a list of those who will help you. These are not necessarily future business partners, who need to know all the details of your project. These are the people to whom you can delegate some part of your work on analyzing and testing the idea. For example:
- financial experts who will help you assess the investment risks
- economics students who will help you conduct a marketing analysis
- freelancers who will conduct surveys among the target audience, purchase the competitive products, etc.
Photos here and further: www.depositphotos.com
Determine what skills you lack and what to do about it
There was a time when I tried to get involved in every inch of my businesses, including operational management. Then I realized that my strengths are goal setting, strategies, development roadmaps, and, of course, networking, and not business process management. Therefore, I now hire managers to do the job that I am not particularly good at.
In every business, there are areas in which the founder lacks skills. For instance, are you ready to do the bookkeeping yourself? How about advertising? Hiring staff? If these are not your strengths, decide which way is preferable for you: learning these skills or delegating these tasks to other people.
Find out the potential of your idea
In other words, conduct a comprehensive market research. Suitable sources of information can be found both online and offline: from Google to professional associations and industry events. And, of course, do not forget about the “field investigation”, that is, direct communication with your target audience. After all, your first priority is to find out who needs your product and what customer problems it solves.
For example, if you think that your target audience is young people, conduct a survey among them, show them samples or at least images of your product. The main thing is to make sure that your product or service will be in demand.
Note!
If, as a result of the research, you realize that you have made some mistake or have not taken something into account, do not rush to abandon your idea. Just return it to the draft stage and refine it. Sometimes one or two small changes are enough to make the idea complete and promising.
Analyze your idea using a 4C formula
The 4C stands for “company, clients, competitors, companions”.
- The Company is, first of all, you as its creator and founder. Why do you want to implement this business project? What are your company’s mission and values? Think about the main ideas you want to convey and what promises you will give to your customers.
- Clients are not only those who will buy from you. For example, toys are bought by parents, but children are the ones who play with them. And mommy bloggers are those who can influence the decision to buy. Create an avatar and a marketing message for all three groups of your clients: buyers, end consumers, and influencers.
- Competitors can be direct, indirect and potential.
Direct ones sell the same product or service as you.
Indirect competitors sell other things but in some cases, your customers can choose them instead of your products. For instance, when a man seeks a gift for a woman, he can choose between perfume and jewelry. These are completely different goods, but under certain conditions, they will compete.
Potential competitors are those who, perhaps, will start selling the same goods as you. For example, in one neighborhood there are two bakeries, one of which is baking bread, and the other is baking cakes. If both expand the range, they will become direct competitors.
Study all three groups of competitors and think about how you can stand out from each of them.
- Companions are not only your strategic business partners. These are any organizations that are interested in your success. For example, professional associations, event organizers or the media who wants to take an interview with you. Make a list of the main companions that you would like to work with.
Start testing your idea
Before proceeding to mass production, it is necessary to test the prototype. This is where the target audience will help you. Get feedback from them, most importantly, critical comments about your product. Find out how much they are willing to pay for it. Determine what changes need to be made before the launch onto the market.
Before starting your business, you need to ask yourself many questions. But, perhaps, the most important is this one: do you sincerely care about your idea or you just want to catch a trend and get rich quick? Maybe someone will disagree with me, but I am sure that in the latter case, you should not start a business.
First, you’ve got a great deal of work ahead of you. If this work does not appeal to you, you simply will not be able to handle it.
Second, when you enjoy what you do, the results are much better. Therefore, I sincerely wish you to implement the business project of your dream, which will bring value and joy to both you and your clients. You can start with these steps:
- Base yourself on common sense and rationality. Try not to get carried away by your dream, stay clearheaded and realistic.
- Find people to help you analyze and test the idea.
- Determine what skills you lack and what to do about it: learn these skills or delegate the tasks to other people.
- Find out the potential of your idea by conducting a comprehensive market research. First of all, determine who needs your product and what customer problems it solves.
- Analyze your idea using a 4C formula: company, clients, competitors, companions.
- Test your product prototype before launching it onto the market.