FINDING AND CHECKING OUT A

BUSINESS IDEA

Based on a guide of the same name published as part of the Business Start Series

Introduction

There are a number of different ways you can find a business idea:

  • develop a new idea yourself
  • copy or alter someone else's idea
  • buy a business or an idea from someone else

Before you start your search there are some basic points you should note. Everyone can search for and find ideas; your background doesn't restrict the ideas you can develop. For example:

  • the bicycle tyre was invented by a vet
  • the frisbee was invented by a baker
  • the cornflake was developed by a farmer.

To be successful at finding ideas you have to be ready to look at anything. Let your imagination run wild - come up with hundreds of ideas; there will be plenty of time later to sort out the possible winners and to drop the no-hopers.

This guide is perhaps a first step in helping you find a business idea. At the end of this guide you will find details of lots of other help which you can use.

Brainstorming

A widely used method of generating new ideas is brainstorming. To brainstorm successfully you need first of all to gather together a group of people -these could be your family, workmates or friends. Groups work best when there are between 4 and 8 people.

The rules are simple:

  • pick a topic on which you want to come up with new ideas
  • set a time limit for the session – approx. 15 mins
  • appoint someone to write down all the ideas generated during the session
  • start by asking everyone just to suggest any idea they can think of
  • when you brainstorm, any idea goes, no matter how crazy or weird it may seem
  • try not to react negatively to any idea;
  • spark off a new idea from the last one
  • try to link ideas together; look back over ideas developed early in the session and see if they can be joined with others to form new ideas
  • finally, remember at this stage you are after quantity - try simply to come up with as many ideas as you can. There's only one way to learn how to brainstorm and that's to do it~ To get you started, here are two examples you could practice on:

Example 1

Pick one of the following:

  • paper clip
  • pair of tights
  • compact disc
  • barrel

Give yourself 3 minutes to come up with as many other uses as possible for your chosen item. You should be able to produce at least 20 ideas.

Example 2

Imagine you are the owner of a medium sized supermarket in a housing estate. Suggest as many new ways as you can, in 5 minutes, on how you might attract new customers into your shop.

Ideas Mapping

Another variation of brainstorming is ideas mapping. A completed ideas map is shown below.

To produce an ideas map a topic is written in the large circle. When you think of an idea relating to that topic you write it in another linked circle. Each series of linked circles is explored as far as possible. You can start as many links of circles as you wish.

There's also a blank ideas mapping worksheet to allow you to try the technique for yourself. If you can't think of a topic to start,
pick one of these:

  • Animals
  • Cycling
  • Caravans
  • Sewing
  • Food.

Ideas Map

Problem Solving

Many products or services are developed to meet particular problems. Think of these examples:

  • Stain remover
  • Polish in a tube
  • Shopping trolleys
  • Burglar alarms

List common problems in the left-hand column of the problem solving worksheet on the next page. Spend some time just thinking about yourself and your family or friends. What problems do you hear them talking about?

List common problems in the left-hand column of the worksheet. In the right-hand column write your solutions. The first problem is there to start you off.

Some solutions will probably suggest themselves fairly quickly but in some instances that might not happen. Faced with a problem, there is a series of stages we go through to help solve it:

Check the facts: / We find out as best we can exactly what the problem is
Find out what is causing the problem: / It could be any one, or a combination, of a number of causes
Think of solutions: / This includes discussion with others and experimenting
Screen possible solutions: / Check solutions to see if they are feasible
Pick best solution: / Make a choice
Implement that solution: / Try it out; see if it works
Evaluate success or failure: / Is the problem solved?

Problem Solving Worksheet

PROBLEM
A. Car theft
B
C
D
F
F
G / WORKSHEET
Engine cut-out after 15 seconds Removable steering wheel Tracking device

Meeting Needs

Very similar to solving problems is meeting the needs or wants of people. We have thousands of needs and wants.

Think first of all the basic needs people have:

Food & Drink
Clothing
Shelter
Transport
Entertainment
Knowledge
Companionship

These are all very large and broad areas. Taking one area, as the example below illustrates, you can see how more specific needs might be identified.

ENTERTAINMENT

SPORT / MUSIC / READING / FILMS / EATING OUT
Ten Pin Bowling
Snooker
Aerobics
Swimming
Basketball
Golf
Pitch & Putt
Driving Range
Indoor Golf
Coaching
Holiday Packages
Making Golf Gloves
Training Caddies /
Fast Food
Restaurant
Cafe
Pub
Hotel
Baked Potatoes
Pizzas
Fish & Chips
Sandwiches
Croissants
Donuts
Indian
Chinese

Meeting Needs Worksheet

Use the worksheet below to help to come up with ideas which meet needs or wants. In the top box write in any broad area you wish. In the boxes on the next lines analyse this need a little further. Finally take one or more of these topics and think of ideas related to that.

Lateral Thinking

This technique encourages you to look at things from a different angle. The example below will illustrate what is meant.

Thirty years ago garages sold petrol and oil and not much more. Today, garages sell everything from coal to sandwiches. What brought about the change? In those early days the garage owner catered for the needs of the car. Now, the garage caters for the needs of the driver.

Here is a case study to test your ability to think in this way. The manufacturers of Uncle Ben's Rice decided to try to increase their sales of rice. How did they use lateral thinking to do that?

Write your answer below:

You will find the answer on the next page.

Examples of other products which came about as the result of lateral thinking are:

Jacket crisps:

For years crisp manufacturers had been peeling potatoes before making crisps, when someone said, "why not keep on the skins?". So today we have jacket crisps.

Louvre blinds:

Venetian blinds were for many years the traditional way of covering windows horizontally; louvre blinds were developed simply by covering windows vertically.

Square plastic bottles:

Bottles have almost invariably been round until someone said, why not square bottles?" and as a result shops can now stock more bottles in the same shelf space.

Can you think of some other examples yourself? List them below:
OLD PRODUCT SERVICE / NEW PRODUCT SERVICE

Answer to Uncle Ben’s Rice

The manufacturers of Uncle Ben's rice asked why people might not be buying rice. Among the answers they came up with was that it took too much time and trouble to make a sauce which accompanies a rice dish. They set about producing a range of sauces which of course now sell close beside the rice in the shops. They didn't actually look at the product, they looked at the people using it. Sharpen Your Focus

Rather than just thinking about the needs and wants of people as a whole, it can be very useful to think about people as specific groups. For example, people fall into groups by age:

New born babies
Infants
Toddlers
Primary school children
Teenagers
Young people
Adults
People taking early retirement
Retired or elderly people

Each of these groups can be further subdivided, for example, into male and female.

Pick any one of the groups listed above and try to identify some of the needs, wants and problems which they have. Then, perhaps using some of the techniques you've seen in this guide, try to suggest ideas which might meet some of these requirements.

Below you will find an example to help you get started.

GROUP / NEEDS/WANTS PROBLEMS / IDEAS
Male Teenagers / Listen to music
Speed
To be in the fashion / System to store CDs/tapes
Indoor go-karting
Army surplus store
GROUP / NEEDS/WANTS/PROBLEMS / IDEAS
A
B
C
Of course, there are many other ways to sharpen your focus. People can be grouped by, for example, their leisure pursuits:
  • Sport
  • Television
  • Reading
  • Outdoor pursuits
  • Hobbies
Each of the sections above can be broken down into further segments. For example, hobbies could include:
  • Photography
  • Stamp collecting
  • Painting
  • Chess
  • Antiques
  • Travel
What other ways can you think of to divide into groups? Remember, the more sharply focused you can be, the easier it is to come up with very specific business ideas. For example, if you identify well-off retired people interested in antiques, what business ideas could you develop to meet their needs/wants/desires? What about:
  • a newsletter on subscription to give them advance notice of sales or auctions and to provide "inside" information on who bought what;
  • classes in furniture restoration;
  • photographing their antiques for insurance or security reasons.

Using your skills

Many people think instinctively about setting up a business based on a work skill they have. That may be joinery, cooking, engineering or word processing.
It is imperative to try and give your business a particular twist. If your skill is in cooking, look for a specialised product you could make. If your skill is in engineering, consider making a product to meet some of the needs of people with disabilities; perhaps to help their mobility
- over 1 in 10 people in Britain have some form of disability. / We tend to forget that we have skills other than those from work - we may have skills from our hobbies, for example, photography, fishing or DIY and we may have skills from our involvement with voluntary or community work such as fund raising, event management or administration.
Finally, we will have personal skills such as organising, planning or communication skills and personal attributes such as reliability, enthusiasm and creativity.
Use the worksheet overleaf to think of the skills you may have and to identify some business ideas which might make use of those skills.

Skills Worksheet

In the area below write down any subject you studied at school, college or university. In the right hand column try to think of any business ideas you might provide, related to each subject.

SUBJECT / POSSIBLE BUSINESS IDEAS

In the area below write down all the jobs you have held or the work training you have had. In the right hand column list any business ideas you can think of related to that training.

WORK/TRAINING / POSSIBLE BUSINESS IDEAS

In the area below list your hobbies/pastimes/leisure activities. In the right hand box list any business ideas you can think of related to those activities.

HOBBIES/PASTIMES/LEISURE / POSSIBLE BUSINESS IDEAS

Read all about it

The written word in newspapers, periodicals, magazines, directories and books, is a treasure trove of ideas.
Every paper or magazine you read is full of advertisements -look at these as products or services which you could supply rather than buy. Similarly, mail order catalogues should be seen as lists of ideas rather than of purchases. There's a very good chance that many of the products you see advertised are not made in Northern Ireland.
There are many other published sources of ideas and a number of them are listed below.
Where to Find these Publications
There are a number of key sources for you for all these publications:
  • Your local library
  • Belfast Central Library
  • Your Local Enterprise Agency
  • Your Invest Northern Ireland Regional Office
  • European and Business Information Centre, Belfast.
In the latter case, you will need to make an appointment but in all the others you can just call in.
Trade Magazines
There is almost certainly a trade magazine for the business area you're thinking about, whether it is furniture making or bee keeping. / You will find details of new products or materials or processes, stories about new businesses opening, advertisements for agencies and distributorships and market information. In short, you will get the inside track. If you are not certain about the particular magazine ask your local library to help
- they may have copies of the relevant magazines and if not, they can quickly give you the details.
A subscription to the right trade magazine will repay itself many times over.
Specialist Business Idea Magazines
These concentrate on making people aware of all kinds of business opportunities. Examples are "The Business Opportunity Digest" and "Business Ideas" - they are available only on subscription.
Newspapers
Northern Ireland’s three daily newspapers have regular business supplements now. They contain very relevant information on new businesses, products and opportunities.
Business Subscriber Publications
These are quite specialist and contain details of new businesses looking for investment or details of businesses for sale. One example is 'Venture Capital Magazine".
Business Books
There are dozens of books on how to set up a business and many of these include notes and tips on how to find ideas - some actually list business opportunities.
Publications From Foreign Countries
Many countries produce trade newsletters and these contain details of products made in that country which may be offered on a licence, distribution or agency basis. A particularly good example is the "American Commercial Newsletter".
In the Republic of Ireland, the Irish Trade Board and the Industrial Development Authority have produced a range of publications which detail opportunities in a number of markets e.g. food, clothing and engineering.
Franchise Directories and Magazines
Franchising is a method of getting into business which is gaining in popularity. A franchise is an offer from someone who has already established at least one successful business to provide you with all the know-how and expertise (and sometimes materials and equipment) needed to set up a similar business. A fee is usually chargeable. The franchise industry produces several magazines and directories which give details of most of the franchises on offer. See journals and directories for more details. / Government Publications
There are a number of other government publications which contain a wealth of information, e.g.:
Household Expenditure Survey – gives information on a whole range of products and services on which families spend their income.
Social Trends – provides details on population, education, employment, income and expenditure, housing and much more.
Census and Electoral Registers - give detailed population statistics and identify trends e.g. numbers in certain age bands.
Licensing Magazines
Licensing can be a very attractive way to start a business if you have particular skills, but are not sure about which product to make. A license allows you the right to make or assemble a product. You can be supplied with know-how and plans only and allowed to make yourself or you can be supplied with parts and allowed to assemble.
"International Licensing" is one magazine which lists many licensing opportunities.
Two, or more,
heads are better
than one / Talk your business idea over at an early stage, before you spend too much time and money, with someone you trust. A very useful place to start is your Local Enterprise Agency and their advice will be free and totally confidential. You will find their phone number in Yellow Pages under Business Enterprise Agencies. You can also contact your local Invest Northern Ireland Regional Office.

Checking out your Idea

In some cases you may have to check out the technology of your idea – will your new mousetrap actually work? In some cases you may have to check out the availability of premises – can you find a shop in the right location to sell specialist records/CDs to young people?
Regardless of what your idea is, you will at some stage have to do market research.
Market research means finding out if there will be, or could be, paying customers for the product or service you hope to offer.
In this section there is some basic advice on how to do your own market research.
Market research is conducted in two ways:
  • Desk or secondary research
  • Field or primary research
Desk research means consulting material on your market which has already been published. This information comes in a wide variety of ways:
  • Market research reports
    e.g. Mintel, Keynote.
    These are specialist market research reports which are produced regularly and which cover a wide range of topics.
  • Directories
  • Statistical publications e.g. social trends, family expenditure survey
  • Trade magazines
  • Press cuttings
  • Computerised databases
/ You will be able to access most of these sources from:
  • your Local Enterprise Agency;
  • Your Invest Northern Ireland regional office;
  • Your local library or Belfast Central Library;
  • European and Business Information Centre, Upper Galwally.
It is usually sensible to consult all the published data you can before embarking on any primary research.
Primary Research means carrying out research yourself.
This can take various forms:
  • Face to face interviews
  • Telephone interviews
  • Postal questionnaires
  • Discussion or 'focus' groups
  • Tastings or samplings.
This short guide cannot go into detail on all these methods. If you need assistance to carry out your own research you should approach your Local Enterprise Agency for help.
Before undertaking any research you need to be clear about what you want to find out. Here are some of the questions you might want your market research to answer:
  • what is the overall size of the market?
  • are there any trends which are noticeable? e.g. are sales increasing or decreasing?
  • who buys this product or service?
  • who uses this product or service?
  • who actually makes the decision to buy?
  • when and how do people buy?
  • where do they buy?
  • what essential features must the product or service have?
  • why do people buy?
  • what benefits are people buying?
  • are there any standards or regulations my product or service must observe?
  • who are my competitors?
  • what are their strengths and weaknesses?
  • what price should I charge?
  • what terms and conditions do buyers expect?
/
  • how should I promote my product or service?
If you are able to answer these, and perhaps other questions satisfactorily, you should be in a position to estimate the amount of sales you are likely to achieve.
The key question is will these sales be sufficient to allow you to operate a viable business?
To help you answer that question, you will need to consult other publications in this series.

Sources of Support