You have an idea. Maybe a concept for a product or service. Or you want to build a new technology to address a problem you have experienced. You have had ideas before and just weren’t sure what to do with them. As time went by you saw your idea on TV or in a store. Now you have a new idea and you are wondering:

“Is this a good idea? Is it a business?”

Your challenge is to take your idea and make it into a business — if it can make money and help people with their problems.

Your business idea, your business concept, will succeed or fail based on your ability to translate the idea into a clear, well-defined business model with a specific market opportunity.

Everyday people have ideas that are great, good or merely okay. What makes the difference? Is it the product or technology or the service alone? Or is it something more? I will argue that it is something more. You see a business concept or an idea for a product has to satisfy multiple elements to be successful. It has to:

• work.
• be produced or reproduced in quantity.
• have prospective customers see it as a solution, a viable alternative to what is being offered in the market now.
• benefit the buyer and the end user (not always the same people).

Finally, it needs a market large enough to be profitable.

Translating an Idea into a Business Concept

Okay, you have an idea.  Now you need to determine if it satisfies all or some of these criteria as you have currently envisioned it. So your first step is to define in detail what your idea is, what problem it solves or need it fills. You need to identify who has the problem and what benefits they are looking for from any solution.

Explore the Three Components of Your Business Concept

To succeed, you need to define and clarify your business concept. Then you need to find its place in the market.  By this I mean you will need to identify the actual “product” your business will sell. You will want to target a specific market/customer. Ultimately, you will need to create a  business model that explains how you will do each of these elements while making money. Each of these is addressed in the C.O.R.E.℠ Genesis program.

The “Product”

When it comes to the product, you have to have a clear, concise, product description, including how it works and is used. Key elements of that product description are the benefits to the customer.

The Market/Customer

This is a critical element of success. So, you may have the greatest product.  If you match it to the wrong customer, then you won’t succeed. You are working to identify the scope or number of people who have the problem, their awareness of the problem, what they are doing now (competitors), and what the customer values – how they make their buying decision

The Business

Creating a business means having the capability  to deliver the product, reach the customer, and make money.  To know if you business concept is viable, you have to examine the market Opportunity and what it takes to serve your customer market. (See Opportunity page of this website for more on this.)

As you work through the process of defining your product idea and business concept, examining what is in the market currently, and become an expert in your product, its potential, the potential customers, you will likely find yourself revising and tweaking your idea. Ultimately, you want a well-developed business concept before you move ahead.