Some business professionals have defined a business idea as the response of an individual or organization to the identified problems or perceived needs of people within a community.
This definition requires that you need to analyze the needs and wants of people within an area to be able to generate business ideas and to conduct a SWOT analysis to define your ability to meet such needs.
Every business or company is a product of initial ideas, meaning that no business venture or organization can exist without successful ideas. Ideas give birth to business; ideas are the seeds that grow businesses. Opportunities on the other hand fuel ideas and ideas that lead to more ideas. So a prospective entrepreneur must open his eyes and mind to be receptive to ideas and to be alert to opening opportunities.
Sources of good business ideas
It has been stated that business ideas are generated from identified opportunities existing within a particular community. But where you find it difficult to identify business opportunities and ideas, you can generate yours via the following sources –
- Personal hobbies and interests
- Existing skills and job experiences
- Franchises
- Internet, radio, television, newspapers and other mass media
- Trade and product exhibitions
- Business surveys
- Consumer complaints
- Brainstorming sessions with friends and associates
- Individual creativity
Why do people need to generate new business ideas?
People, especially aspiring entrepreneurs need to generate business ideas because they are the sole requirements for starting a new venture. Entrepreneurs also generate ideas as a way of responding to market needs or the needs of prospective consumers. Meanwhile, the changing trends in fashion and personal tastes or preferences of people are also the basis for exploring newer ideas.
Furthermore, current business ventures need new ideas to stay one foot ahead of their market competition. The latest technology and new techniques of achieving better results also induce people to generate new business ideas, while it is also possible to have new ideas in response to the life cycle of existing products and services.
SWOT analysis
As soon as you settle on a particular business idea that is suitable to your objectives, then you need to perform a SWOT analysis to test the idea and as well test your readiness to succeed with the idea. SWOT stands for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.
You must place your personal strengths side by side with your ideas or product’s strengths; and also do the same with your weaknesses and those of your products to see how they fare.
You must identify opportunities you need to explore further and how your product can serve further needs while knowing the threats you face in your business and how your personal capabilities influence these business threats.