It Takes More than an Idea
It’s no surprise that I am huge fan of the ideation process…every entrepreneur, business owner/manager, and independent professional should regularly invest time and energy in creating ideas, thinking them through, and taking action to implement those that will have the highest pay-offs. But it takes more than just an idea to create impact, particularly when it comes to creating a viable and sustainable business. And yet it seems that many well intentioned potential business owners conveniently forget this…opting instead to fall in love with their idea as they convince themselves that their belief will lead to tremendous success. Nowhere is this behavior more evident than on the ABC Television show American Inventor which debuted its second season last night. Granted the focus of the show is on "finding the next great American invention," but the underlying premise is to find an invention that has the potential to become a successful business venture. For those who have not seen the show, here is the essential premise: people who feel they have the next great invention are given the chance to pitch their idea to a panel of four judges who give it a thumbs up or a thumbs down. From the initial reviews semi-finalists are selected who receive $50,000 to develop their idea into an actual product. These semi-finalists then present their ideas to the panel a second time and a winner is selected who receives $1,000,000 to develop their idea into a business. So why am I writing about this? Because not only is the process interesting and somewhat realistic about the way ideas actually get funded in the real world, it is instructive for anyone who wants to build a successful business. No matter what industry you are in, whether your idea is new and unproven, a new twist on an old approach, or an innovation of some kind in form, style, or function, you will face the same challenges that the people on the show face each week…proving the viability of your idea in the marketplace. The good news is that it doesn’t need to be as hard as it often seems to be for the contestants on the show. There are many easy, low-cost ways to gather information about the potential of your idea, including: Online Research…look for competing products and services to compare yours with and delineate the specific differences between what you offer and what they offer. Use this process to define the real uniqueness of your idea so that you can position it properly in the marketplace. Also make sure to identify the businesses that will directly compete with you, as well as those who might be candidates to sell the product you are planning to produce. On-the-Street Research…the simplest way to get some valuable feedback about any new product is to show it to people and get their candid reactions. It may be tough to stand there and listen to people who seem to be raining on your dream, but their honest and candid feedback is invaluable in helping you to refine and enhance your idea so that it meshes with the interests of the consumers who will ultimately make or break you. Going Shopping…no matter how innovative or revolutionary your product or service, there will be products and services that people naturally compare it to when they see it. The best thing you can do is to shop around so that you are as knowledgeable as you can be about those products and services that people will see as similar to yours. Use this information to clarify the real benefits of what you offer and to put the value of your product or service into a proper context. Let’s stop there for now. My main point here is to remind you that the power of an idea lies in its ability to help you build a sustainable business. What appears innovative and captures your attention may or may not be seen the same way by others. To refine your ideas, use the three simple, no-cost approaches above to do some market research that will help you reveal the true potential of your next big idea!
