Tag Archives: Business Idea development

8 Questions to ask your Business Idea

Posted on by
Reply

Its official…2013 is the year of the entrepreneur. If no one else is declaring it, I am. I meet so many people courtesy of my job who are no longer satisfied with just answering to their line manager or following a strict job description. More people want to express themselves doing what they love and enjoy.

So if you are thinking of taking a step towards maximizing your passion or start a business. I have got a few questions you should ask your idea?

bigstock-A-thinking-man-in-the-center-o-28807037

 1. Does your product or service add value?
More people can now see beyond a good idea. If you want to compete with others in the marketplace, then you will need more than nice packaging and a good website. Your product or service should add value to the lives of your target market and readily make a difference once they make a purchase.

 2. Who will buy your product or service?
I made this mistake a few times when I started out in business. As soon as I thought of a good idea, I plunged it right on my website. When people did not buy the service, I got a hump. What I failed to see then was that a good business idea in my eye won’t translate to sales if my target market don’t need it. Take time to discover your target market and their needs. Then develop products and services that meet their specific needs – you will have a better chance of making a sale.

 3. Is your industry a saturated market?
If you are considering a product or service in a highly saturated market, you should be ready to fight to survive. You will also need more that a Unique Selling Point as you can be sure as day that as soon as you launch your idea, someone is going to be on your heel. So analyse your product’s benefits in-depth and find specific and unusual ways to make it stand out.

4. Is there a rise or decline in demand for your product or service?
Is there really any point in bringing to the market a product that is on the decline? If your idea has been waiting on the back burner for many years, is now the time to finally ‘Bring it to Life’? I believe in passion but passion and good business sense go hand in hand. You might need to go back to the drawing board and redesign or redefine your products or services.

5. How will technology advancement or other factors affect your business?
Sadly many businesses have gone into administration recently, I am sure they tried to move with the times but some are not just fast-paced enough to catch up. With the speed of technology development nowadays, the adage “you snooze, you lose” is so appropriate. How long can your products/services last on the market before something new comes along? What are your plans to keep up demands for products or services? Good questions to ask yourself if you are considering a long-term business.

6. Is there room for development or modification to meet new demands?
If you are designing a product or service, you should factor in room for improvement. In five years time, what modifications can you add to your products or what further benefits can your services provide? Have you got another version/better specification model to follow? It is important that you design your products/services with the future in mind so you can keep supplying those who need what you offer.

 7. What are the established businesses in your proposed market doing?
Carry out some research to find out what the big players in your industry have got up their sleeves. What is their next business step, what products do they have in the pipeline? Preempt their next moves and brainstorm their ideas to see if they can give birth to new ideas for your business?

This is totally random but I love this post on Entrepreneur.com ‘The secret of what makes a product go viral’ 

 8. How do you see your product or service developing in the next five years?
Even though most business owners would say they have a five-year plan, the plan can only be at the very best – a plan. If all the variables remain constant, maybe then maybe we can achieve our five years goals. You should always consider various options for your business development at any given time including an exit strategy.

Maybe now is the time to get your business idea or product development off the back-burner and start taking actions to bring it to market. But before you sign the office lease, send out the new product flyers and order the equipment, in-depth market research can never go amiss before a start-up/new development. Consider your options, analyse your answers, if you need to change your game plan, by all means do that but do not stand on the sideline and watch the world go by.

Get a bit of the action! The world is waiting for your business idea to blossom.

Need help discovering your passion, developing your idea, setting up your own business or brainstorming roadblocks in your existing business? Then contact me and let’s explore your options together.

I wish you good success.
Temi Koleowo

Products or Services Development Tip 1

Posted on by
1

They say ideas are a dime a dozen but how do you get that idea that is bound to create a storm in the market place.  Understandably, you want to follow your passion and create a business you can run whilst also having some fun.  Let’s be honest if you follow your passion and your bills never get paid, it is a matter of time before you pack it in.  I am a firm believer of maximising passion to make a living but in the same light you have to ensure there is a demand for what you want to offer.

So what are the things you can do to check if your product or service idea is a viable one?  The following tips can help you develop an idea around your passion:

1279618_people duchesssa

What Group of People Engage and Interest You?

This thought might never have occurred to you, but we are all more comfortable with certain groups of people than others. Some love being around mothers, students, football enthusiasts, foodies, professionals, women, men or techy people.   The people you like to hang out with and things that interest you might be an indication of who you can be selling your products or services to.

Facebook Founder

Take for instance the story of Facebook founder Mark Elliot Zuckerberg.  He launched Facebook from his dormitory room. With the help of friends, he took Facebook to other campuses nationwide and soon after moved to Palo Alto, California. By 2007, Facebook had made him a billionaire at the age of 23. By 2010, Facebook had an estimated 500 million users worldwide and reached 1 billion in 2012.  Wikipedia 2013.

That is a simple indication of how the people you hang out with can become your target market.  So get those magnifying glass and look at them closely.

My Mini Story

There are many people with similar stories who built their businesses based on the needs of people around them.  Due to my analytical ability, my family and close friends used to approach me when they are contemplating a business decision – initially I wasn’t sure why.   After many years of writing business plans for free, it dawned on me that I can actually make a living doing this albeit in a professional way.  My first few customers were my family and friends and I am grateful for their trust in me.  Now that my company accommodates people from all walks of life, it is amazing to think that this was something that was always a part of me.

Taking the First Step

So if you want to start a business on a part time, full time or as an additional income to your current career – look closely at the people that interest you.   It could be your work colleagues, your jogging buddy or your lunchtime/church group.  Do not start looking at them on the basis of money but on the basis of meeting their needs.  It is easier to sell to people you know to start off and grow from there.  Study them and start jotting down in a notebook what you think they need that you can provide.

Till Next Time…Don’t Stop the Process of Your Business Start-up.  Keep Moving!

Temi

www.businessfirststeps.co.uk – personalised and practical business set-up and start-up services.

What is in Your Warehouse?

Posted on by
1

I had the glimpse of Asda’s depot recently. I was amazed at the number of activities that go on behind the scene, whilst we innocently shop for our daily needs.  There were boxes and crates everywhere, people unpacking, packing, moving, checking, listing, scanning, noting and buzzing.  There were just so many people involved in getting the stock from suppliers to shelves.

If deliveries were dumped all over the Asda depot floor without being checked in, left unpacked for days then delivered late to the shop floor.  The innocent people who come in to the store just to pick up a few groceries will probably not be able to do so.

Your Personal Warehouse Stacked to the Roofbigstock-Full-warehouse-with-forklifts--16555610As you may have noticed from my previous posts, everyday life always gets me thinking. What came to mind as I observed this depot was the bare truth that we are all custodians of personal warehouses.

The same delivery process is applicable to what is occupying the space in our personal warehouses.  Many of us have got huge skills, talents, gifts, experiences, services, products etc that should be accessible via the ‘shop floor’ so the numerous people who need what we have can gain access to them.  But for reasons best known to us, our depot is littered with unopened boxes that are yet to be shipped to the right location or arranged on the appropriate shelves.

I am also guilty of this syndrome.  I started analysing our exhibition at the recent business show, I was truly amazed at the number of people who need the services we provide.  Whether Business First Steps went to the show or not, it will have taken place. The only difference being many people may not be able to access BFS’ warehouse to pick up the services they need.

The same goes for those thinking of starting businesses, community groups, social enterprise or new career – what you have is the solution to someone’s problem or the answer to someone’s question. The question is, are your goods on the shelves where they can be accessed?   If you are already running a business, are you maximizing the products or services you offer?  Are you constantly restocking your shelves?

Who is Taking Stock of Your Stock?

Many of us are probably taking stock of what we have done over the past 10-11 months. I try as much as I can not to be swept away by the “what have you achieved this year” syndrome. It doesn’t matter to me if you set goals in April, June or November. The most important aspect is not the time you set the goals but the actions that follow the goals.

bigstock-Taking-inventory-19677038According to Wikipedia 2012 ‘Stock-taking or inventory checking is the physical verification of the quantities and condition of items held in an inventory or warehouse.

This may be done to provide an audit of existing stock valuation. It is also the source of stock discrepancy information. Stock-taking may be performed as an intensive annual check or may be done continuously by means of a cycle count.’

How often do you take stock of the resources delivered to your warehouse?  Are you using your knowledge, skills, talents and resources to add value to the lives of others and yourself?  Are you marketing the products in your warehouse to those who need it?

One of the key elements of stock taking is to understand your own strengths and weaknesses. What manpower have you got to move your stock? I am reluctantly letting go of tasks that slow me down. I now let someone else do them (and stack their own shelves) whilst I can concentrate on what matters most to me.

There are a lot of factors we need to consider when setting goals for ourselves – these include:

  • Personal and family circumstances
  • Your abilities and personality
  • Your mind-set and daily schedules
  • Available resources – including funds, knowledge, support etc.

If the task at hand is one of your pet hate why don’t you delegate it? Just imagine if Asda directors/managers decide to do the depot work themselves, rather than put people in place to move the products to the shop floor.  All those intricate details need to be taken care of and they choose to hire the manpower for it.

In one of my previous blogs I wrote about my new acronym ADO – Automate, Delegate and Outsource – this is helping me a great deal, I feel a lot lighter with less baggage. There are just so many tasks one person can get done at any given time. I have come to realise that there is no point feeling guilty about tasks you may never get done – I felt that way for a very long time. Be realistic and get help, however you can even if you have to trade by barter.  If you are thinking of starting or growing a business and you can’t navigate through the numerous steps, get help!  Do not make the mistake of convincing yourself that you will get it done and let another year come and go.

Stock taking is a necessity but the stock-taker has the power to make sure the floor is adequately stocked and meeting the needs of those who want to buy the goods.  So if you have to take stock as we approach the end of the year, do it with the mindset that you will get your goods to the ‘shop floor’ before they expire in the depot.

I wish you good success.

Temi Koleowo

http://www.businessfirststeps.co.uk

Practical and Personalised Business Start-up Coaching, Services and Support.

Do you Love your Business?

Posted on by
Reply

It is always a good idea to evaluate our lives and motives at regular intervals, asking ourselves questions such as:

  • Are you in love with your job or business?
  • Is it serving the right purpose or is it just something to get by?
  • How do you know what you love to do and do what you love?

These are questions a lot of us do not actually want to answer, especially if you have been in the same role for many years doing the same job or running the same unprofitable business.

On another spectrum, there are some people out there, who wake up with exhilarating excitement to face every day. They are those who are fortunate enough to have found something they love to do.

Stopping the Same Old Thing

If every morning fills you with dread and you wonder how you will get through the day, it might be worth your while to take a step back and evaluate your life. It is of vital importance that you love your business and not love just the money you get from the business. Money is easy to love, but it is not so easy to sustain that love when things are not working.

If there is no true joy and passion for what you do, need for growth and improvement will be on the back burner. You will have no desire to expand or grow your business, eventually the aspiration starts to wane and the business might collapse.

True Business Love

When you are involved in a business you love, you are keen to develop that business and always taking steps to make it work. You are passionately engulfed in business activities that will ensure your venture grows. There is the urgency to provide solutions and solve problems to push your project to the next stage. You are also always in a constant state of productive and proactive change, and you are most of the time invigorated and excited.

The passion and fervency you use to run your business is what turns into sustained profits. The challenges that might occur along the way are seen as the chance to climb higher. You are open to opportunities, in tune with your inner self and able to spot channels that will accelerate your business growth. The core element of an entrepreneurial mindset is PASSION, something which cannot be developed doing what you do not love or enjoy.

Finding something you enjoy and love will take a conscious effort on your path. It is an envious place to be when you are doing what you love and getting results. Once you discover your passion for the right business, your natural instinct kicks in and drives you to success.

There are ways in which you can discover and embrace something that interests you and find the business of your dreams. Visit http://www.businessideabooster.com to learn more about how to discover your passion and start a journey to a more fulfilling life.  Alternatively sign up for the one-2-one Passion Definition, Business Idea Development or Brainstorming Sessions.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6424651 Picture by Nellart sxc.hu.