Having the desire to start a business is a great thing. This means you have the drive and desire to get to work and make something happen for yourself.
However, most small businesses fail because they did not do enough research on the front end on product-market fit.
So, how do new business ideas come about?
The best business ideas come about through the discovery of problems that you face in your day-to-day life that need a solution, or a better way to solve the problem than the current options available to the public.
Starting a business is definitely a worthwhile endeavor, read on below for some more tips in coming up with a great idea.
How did you come up with your business idea?
I have come up with multiple business ideas that all had one common theme; They all solved some sort of problem in my own life. Some ideas were better than others, but the best business ideas help make life easier for other people.
When I take a look at the lessons I have learned from businesses I have started, the best businesses also had a couple of other charactisterics; They also solved problems for not only myself but also for a large number of other people and were businesses that I was somewhat of a subject matter expert in.
Here are some tips to come up with the best business idea:
- Study the Total Addressable Market
If you have a great business idea but it only solved a problem for yourself, your business will not be successful. You need to do plenty of research on the number of searches the topic gets in google, the available options from the competition, and whether your business idea can fill a need in the marketplace.
There are plenty of free keyword search tools that you can use online to get a gauge on how often the terms you are interesting in competing for are being searched.
For instance, lets say you wanted to create a leather jacket for dogs, but found that only 10 people are searching fo this per month. That should tell you to move on to option B. The best niches are ones with high search volume and inadequate options to solve the problem that you think you could build a better mousetrap for.
- Choose a business you have some sort of understanding in
Starting a business is a long journey that sometimes takes years to make successful. The last thing you want to do is be involved in a business that you have zero personal interest or field expertise in. It is totally normal to get excited about a business idea because you think there is an opportunity to solve a problem for a particular market, but as you digest the idea, you may realize that you don’t want to spend your time pursuing something that you have no interest in.
Tip: Think about topics that interest you and focus on trying to solve a problem within the market that you have some sort of passion or experience in. Starting a business is hard enough, so at least choose to work on something that gets you fired up!
What business can I start?
To figure out what type of business you can start, you need to take determine if you want to start a business that is capital intensive, or if you want to stick with a service-based business that has a low initial startup cost.
If you have capital saved up you can do things like open a franchise, or even buy a business to help get you a head start in the customer acquisition process by piggybacking off of existing successful businesses.
If you don’t have any money, don’t fret, as there are plenty of businesses that you can pursue in the digital economy that require little to no startup costs, but will take a ton of grit and focus to make them work!
What is a business idea example?
Let’s assume you have a passion for long-distance running and notice a problem with your water bottle when you go out on long-distance runs. The current options on the market are either very small oz. water bottles which you run out of water with, or the bigger heavier bottles that are too heavy to bring with you on long runs.
You also start to notice that people in your running group also complain of the existing water bottle options and you get validation from others that this is an issue for runners with no option on the market to fill the gap.
A solution here would be to come up with a water bottle that is designed for the long-distance running community. Since you are an avid runner, you know this community well and know that the problem would solve a problem for yourself in others.
The next step is to get some samples made and get some actual feedback to determine the best shape, size, and plastic of the bottle before you get them made in mass production.
What business can I start with 20k?
One of the best businesses to start with 20k is an e-commerce business through companies like Shopify that can help get you a head start.
Buying and then growing will get you a head start that will make things much easier to scale.
How new business ideas come about conclusion
Putting the time into coming up with a new business idea is well worth the effort. While you may be excited to hop into the land of small business, putting the research in on the front end could help reap rewards for you for years to come if you are able to select a business idea with good product-market fit. Best of luck on your business journey!
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