As we’ve posted several times before (see, for example: 1, 2, 3), coming up with good ideas and then assessing which ones to move forward on is a difficult process.
With that in mind, let us consider these comments from Jane Porter, writing for Entrepreneur.com: “You’ve got a business idea you’re jazzed about, but aren’t sure if it’s feasible. What you need to do is test the concept to see how it stands up to a series of rigorous questions. Where to begin? Here are 10 key questions to help you evaluate your business idea:
- What is my customer profile?
- What am I replacing?
- How do I demonstrate this idea to others?
- Who will I need on my team?
- What resources do I need?
- How long will my purchasing cycle be?
- What’s a reasonable sales forecast?
- How much growth potential does my idea offer?
- Do I possess the necessary skills?
- Can I see myself doing this for the next two years?”
Click the image to reader Porter’s answers to these questions.
I live in a small town where business is run based on the tourist seasons. There are always one or two new businesses that open ever summer attempting to sell high-end jewelry or clothing. But what they don’t realize is that they’re only feeding the tourists. So when winter starts none of the local people want to buy high-end items, so they end up closing after a year or two. These 10 questions are really a great start for an entrepreneur to consider when starting a business, especially in a small town like mine.
Good observation!
These 10 questions provide an easy way for any entrepreneur to carefully consider their new business idea. Growing up in a family of small business owners, the idea of creating and managing my own business is one that excites me, and I would definitely take these questions into consideration if I were to go pursue my own business idea in the near future. I think these questions give an entrepreneur a well-rounded look into the future of their potential business.
The 10 questions discussed in this blog are interesting and thought provoking. We often get excited about our ideas and forget to look at them from all the angles necessary to ensure success. The questions posed here remind us that it is important to look beyond the “here and now” and think about what we hope to accomplish and consider the different options and ways we might be able to do that. This will help clarify not only our goals but the steps that will help us accomplish them in a most satisfactory way.