{"id":44365,"date":"2023-10-20T15:35:27","date_gmt":"2023-10-20T15:35:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/startupsmart.test\/2023\/10\/20\/five-questions-to-help-you-pick-the-right-startup-idea-startupsmart\/"},"modified":"2023-10-20T15:35:27","modified_gmt":"2023-10-20T15:35:27","slug":"five-questions-to-help-you-pick-the-right-startup-idea-startupsmart","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/uncategorized\/five-questions-to-help-you-pick-the-right-startup-idea-startupsmart\/","title":{"rendered":"Five questions to help you pick the right startup idea – StartupSmart"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Chances are you felt inspired with a business idea at some stage. This inspiration sparked dreams where you could launch a business empire and achieve your dream lifestyle.<\/p>\n

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The next question is what typically stumps most aspiring entrepreneurs, though:  “How do I know if this business idea is the right one?”<\/p>\n

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Entrepreneurship becomes more enjoyable and less risky when you get the foundations right. One of the key aspects is selecting the right business idea.<\/p>\n

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Through working with aspiring entrepreneurs, I have uncovered five questions to ask when creating and investigating the feasibility of your idea.<\/p>\n

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1. What field do I have an unfair advantage in?<\/b><\/p>\n

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Think about the various advantages you have. It could be your technical background, knowledge of the industry landscape and diverse exposure to various markets. <\/p>\n

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Also, you should factor in areas where you have a high level of interest. For example, what do you spend your leisure time doing? What type of experiences or materials do you spend the bulk of your disposable income on?<\/p>\n

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By combining your background and interests together, you can create value that is uniquely yours. This forms the foundation of your business idea.<\/p>\n

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2. What frustrates me the most?<\/b><\/p>\n

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When exploring gaps in the market, one of the most effective techniques is to interview yourself. Ask yourself: What is a frustration you currently face, that doesn’t have a solution?<\/p>\n

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By identifying those pain points, you immediately have a market of one. And since most of our problems are not unique, it is highly likely that others are facing similar problems too.<\/p>\n

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3. Who are my customers?<\/b><\/p>\n

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It is important to clarify and get intimately acquainted with the people you are serving.<\/p>\n

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While it is great to raise millions of dollars in investor funding, some entrepreneurs focus on seeking validation in the wrong places.<\/p>\n

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Ultimately, it is your customers who will determine if your startup sinks or swims.<\/p>\n

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Instead of raising funds you need to interview prospective customers, learn about the language they use to describe their pain points and even pre-sell to them on the solution before investing heavily in the production process.<\/p>\n

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4. How do I plan to acquire them?<\/b><\/p>\n

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After identifying your customers, you need to focus on customer acquisition. While attracting referrals through your network is one method, you need to reach out to your prospects directly.<\/p>\n

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The best way to start is to ask, “Where are my customers hanging out?”<\/p>\n

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Generating leads applies to both offline and online mediums. In offline settings, this could apply to industry meet-ups or training programs where you can speak and network.<\/p>\n

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In the digital world, this could refer to online forums, advertising platforms or social media where you can provide useful content.<\/p>\n

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5. What is my minimum viable product?<\/b><\/p>\n

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Lean testing allows you to validate the product concept and build an email list, even before investing in a product.<\/p>\n

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Similarly, you can decide on what would be the minimum viable product for your business. This MVP should provide a soundbite for your audience to benefit from in your potential offering before both parties invest heavily in each other.<\/p>\n

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Bin Teo is the marketing manager of brand marketing agency Social Star.<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

  Chances are you felt inspired with a business idea at some stage. This inspiration sparked dreams where you could<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":59289,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44365"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=44365"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44365\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/59289"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=44365"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=44365"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=44365"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}