Business Ideas 101

[Dave A]

Start a website called something like the complete internet, or give me your link. Put a simple form on it that people over the world can submit a link to their site on it, and a brief idea of the site, and a catagory. The idea is to create a single site with links to the whole of the internet, I know a huge grand task

That's pretty close to the Open Directory Project - which has been pretty dead and broken for years already.

And then there's Open Index - which also seems to have ground to a halt.

[vieome]

That's pretty close to the Open Directory Project - which has been pretty dead and broken for years already.

And then there's Open Index - which also seems to have ground to a halt.

Thanks for the Links

[wynn]

Sounds like a 'link farm' to me

[Jan2D]

I realize the thread started out as a dumping ground for ideas other people could pick up and build on. Unfortunately it's mostly impossible to adequately judge the value of an idea without talking to potential clients.

My advice to someone who wants to start a business would be to forget about thinking of the perfect business idea. I'd suggest: find one person who will pay you real money to solve a problem they have. That means talking to an individual, understanding their problem, solving the problem in a (preferably) cheap way and getting payed.
Then find another person. Solve problem and get payed. Then another person.

If you're lucky one of two things will eventually happen:
1. you will find one client that pays you enough (or often enough): a whale.
2. you will find enough clients with the same common problems that you can solve: a market.

From there on it's the more common business challenges like cash flow, capabilities, capacity, scaling, marketing etc.

The initial stages of starting a business should be looking for people who are willing to pay you ASAP. It's important to be passionate about their problem, but if they don't want to pay you then the problem isn't a big enough pain for them or they don't think you can solve it in a good way.

So forget about business ideas. Get emails, phone numbers and referrals that lead to face to face meetings.

[vieome]

Problems are good. It is by solving everyday problems that one makes money.

My thought exactly, find a problem first. I guess this thread should rather be about common problems then.

[pmbguy]

Too busy to shop? too Phat to go get groceries?

Ok, so the problem in this case is that many people have very busy days and don’t always have the time to get groceries

An old business idea is to deliver groceries to people. I have seen a few come and go, but it can really work. There is a market for this amongst the upper middle-class and wealthy.
Negotiate with a big grocer for a good price, have the grocer pack the orders. Have a good return policy with the grocer. A simple system for charging clients. Use students who have a vehicle to deliver. People can order via sms, call, email and website. Focus marketing on the wealthier suburbs of the bigger city centres.
Have something special or different about the business, eg. All female staff all of them wear polo riding outfits or something, the crop and all, different and funky. People remember a business name if something in the business stands out.
Everybody needs food but who has time to get it.

[Dave A]

Negotiate with a big grocer for a good price, have the grocer pack the orders. Have a good return policy with the grocer. A simple system for charging clients.

Or a variant that I (my wife, actually) subscribed to years ago - once a week we'd get a basket of quality fresh goodies delivered to our door.

The supplier was a farm stall.
Staples were things like eggs, lettuce, tomatoes, potatoes and a bread of some sort (there were about 4 variants that were supplied on rotation).
Then there'd be a few "surprise" goodies - jams, different types of mushrooms, cheeses.
And a recipe to make best use of some of the week's supplies.

It was pretty cool as it introduced us to some unusual ingredients and recipes that we might not have discovered or tried otherwise, and of course it really helped the wife come up with some variety in our meals without too much heavy thinking and research.

It wasn't cheap, but with all the various benefits, it wasn't that expensive either - fair value for money we thought.

[adrianh]

I think that a lot of people use shopping as an excuse to get out for a bit - that is probably why these ventures don't succeed.

[pmbguy]

You are right, people do like to shop. According to psychology it’s a power thing, when people are confronted with so much choice and they themselves get to choose exactly what they want, it provides a sense of power. Perhaps because women don’t share the same societal power that men do, they perhaps seek out other avenues of “power intake” and therefore like shopping more than men.

I can remember lots of these type businesses that have failed in the past. But I believe that the time available for people to shop is becoming less with time, therefore the market for such a business can only grow in the future

The client chooses from a catalogue with different sections
Groceries (From one grocer)
Take away (Mc D, KFC, Steers......as many as possible)
Medication (over the counter, from one pharmacy)
Alcohol (one shop)

The catalogue can have lots of sections depending on whether it is practicle and profitable. Even add hardware, movies and Stationary
(If the client makes a special order from a shop you don’t normally go to, they will pay a premium)
The business could be marketed as a home delivery and business delivery service.
Now a business that can deliver multiple items from multiple shops to satisfy many needs will be superior to a business that only delivers groceries.
I hope your memory is good, because in 10 years there will be big established business all over the place doing exactly what was discussed. At that time I would be requesting a noddy badge and a sexual favour from anybody who disses my idea, HaHa

The fact is that you can have a good business idea a good market for it, but you are a bad businessman. Or you are a great businessman, have a great idea, but no market. Or you are a great businessman, there is a market, but your business idea stinks

[adrianh]

Us old men need to go shopping to make sure that all them young & moist "strawberries" that we remember actually do exist!

[pmbguy]

Us old men need to go shopping to make sure that all them young & moist "strawberries" that we remember actually do exist!

Shame

[vieome]

I think that a lot of people use shopping as an excuse to get out for a bit - that is probably why these ventures don't succeed.

Well for one on this idea you saving people time, that they can use to get for a bit and do something other then shopping.

I'll say this much, the most important thing about coming up with business ideas is the ability to think laterally.

While it is easy to say any idea wont work, I think it is better to challenge ones lateral thinking concept by trying to see how one can get an idea to work that others say it wont work.

And as we can see the idea may not work directly but perhaps the idea can be molded and shaped to come up with a new concept that does work.

Or a variant that I (my wife, actually) subscribed to years ago - once a week we'd get a basket of quality fresh goodies delivered to our door.

[wynn]

I have never thought of buying the week's or month's groceries as shopping, buying yes, comparing prices, maybe.
Shopping to me is when you decide to get a new pair of shoes or, clothes or camping equipment, because that is when you shlep from shop to shop looking for something that you like, is suitable or you can afford.
If you bought a new pair of shoes every week it would cease to be shopping.

And yes I agree, a site that allows you to order the groceries, even the hardware online to be delivered at the same price as if you went and bought it yourself, traveling and parking expenses included, that would be something I would look at.
After that going to a supermarket to see that you are not being screwed by the online service prices, now that would be shopping!

[pmbguy]

I think the business idea makes more sense when one considers that the delivery service wont totally replace an individuals shopping habits, instead it is a supplementary shopping service for those too busy on a particular day to shop.

[pmbguy]

Sorry, that sounded a bit obvious, but many see this kind of thing as a either-or choice