Starting a Business - Part II

SBOCTeam — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 15:18:00 GMT

Do I Need a Great Idea?

By Chris Freeburn

You know you want to be your own boss and run your own business. You've thought it through and asked yourself the hard questions and you are sure that being an entrepreneur is not only something that you find appealing, but something that you believe fits with your personality and work ethic. Now you need to decide what your new business will do.

Some entrepreneurs start off with a great idea. Maybe it's an original idea for a great invention, or software application, or even a service that no one else is providing to the public. In many cases, these people are so motivated by their idea that setting up a business to deliver on its promise is almost a natural step.

Not every entrepreneur has a Big Idea first, however. Many entrepreneurs begin with the desire simply to own their own business and then decide what that business should be. Having a bold, radical idea is good-even helpful-but it isn't a requirement for becoming an entrepreneur. Many entrepreneurs get their start in well-established, almost generic types of business like dry cleaning, landscaping, or repair services.

So how do you find the right idea for your business?

Start with yourself

The best place to begin your search for business ideas is yourself. First, take a good look at your own skills and interests. Do you have any specific skills or work experience that could translate into a business opportunity? For example, do you possess a technical education in a particular field (electronics, computer science, or engineering, for example)? Or perhaps you worked in a company that did something you think you can do on your own. If you did and you found that education or experience rewarding, than you may wish to leverage that asset into a new business.

Prior educational or work experience in a given field can also provide more than just knowledge -it can give you contacts with potential customers or experts who can help you launch your business.

More importantly, is there something that your particularly enjoy doing? Could that activity be the basis for a new business? Debbi Fields turned her passion for baking into a multimillion-dollar cookie empire when she and her husband founded Mrs. Fields Cookies in the 1970's. It's always easier to put in long hours building a business when you genuinely enjoy the work.

Look around

Is there something you think is missing where you work or live? Maybe you've noticed that the nearest dry cleaning business is in the next town, or that there is a pressing need for local child-care or dog walking for people who work all day. You can learn a lot about what products or services people in a given area might be willing to pay for by listening to your neighbors. Is there something they continually complain about needing, or not having nearby? If so, that might be the basis for your business opportunity.

The franchise option

If you want to own your own business, but are having difficulty generating an idea on your own, you might want to consider purchasing a franchise. By buying a franchise you are purchasing the right to open a store, restaurant, or outlet of an existing, and presumably successful, business.

A franchise reduces some of the risk of starting a business by yourself because you are purchasing an already established brand name complete with a track record and some level of support and advice from the corporate parent. Franchises usually have chain-wide policies governing pricing, vendors, location, decoration, advertising, and employment policies. Some entrepreneurs, especially first time business owners, find it easier to have all these decisions already made for them. Additionally, many franchisors-though not all-provide training for their franchisees on the mechanics of running their business, which helps further reduce first time-business owner anxiety.

Thousands of franchises-in diverse industries ranging from food vendors to skin care-are available for purchase in the United States and Canada.

However, owning a franchise isn't for everyone. While some business owners like having the details of their décor, prices, and products dictated by a corporate parent, others chafe under the restrictions. If total independence is something you crave, you may want to look for your own idea for a business.

Getting Started: Part I

akgold — Sat, 21 Jul 2007 00:33:00 GMT

Be sure to do all your homework before you take the plunge and start your own business.
By Max Berry

So you want to start your own business? Maybe you have an idea you think is so good, you believe it will be a sure-fire hit. Or perhaps you are simply sick of working for someone else and just want to strike out on your own. The first step in founding a business is to define exactly what your new business will do, in as specific terms as possible.

If you don’t have a specific idea for a business of your own, you might want to consider buying a franchise—that is, opening an outlet of an existing successful business. If you have your own idea for a business, the first thing you should do is to write that idea down on paper. You can start by writing down a general idea, and then develop it, narrowing its focus. “Too often,” says management consultant C. Davis Fogg, “people have too vague an idea about what they want to do. Just saying ‘I want to open a store,’ or ‘I want to build computers’ isn’t enough. A small business can’t be General Motors—it needs a tight focus in order to distinguish itself from the competition.”

Putting your idea on paper makes it easier to focus on the details. “There is no substitute for writing it down,” say Martin Lehman, counselor at the Service Corps for Retired Executives (score.org), which helps small business owners get their businesses off the ground. “Write down your idea, and then break it down to the smallest elements: Who exactly will be your customers? What products or services will you offer?” Be specific, Lehman advises. Write an exact description of the products or services and to whom they would appeal. “Don’t just assume ‘people’ will want whatever your business is selling—try to figure out what type of people, what age, income, gender. You need to know who your business appeals to before you can judge how it will do in the market.”

Understanding the specifics of your idea is the most important starting point for launching your business. Once you know exactly what you want your business to do, you can begin to research the mechanics of your idea. Where should you locate the business? In what geographic market will your business function? What is the competition? Is there enough consumer appetite for your products or services to keep your new business going? Has anyone else opened businesses similar to yours in the area and what happened to them? What will it cost to procure the equipment or supplies you will need? This applies to franchise operations as well. Franchises generally offer fairly specific information about costs and often have rules regarding location, advertising, and the décor of franchise outlets. Still, whether a particular franchise is a good fit for a given area and for you is something you can only determine through dedicated research.

Your research might include visiting similar businesses, or even working for one in order to gain experience in that business, if you’ve never worked in a similar field. This is particularly true in the case of a franchise. “Seeing how a particular business operates on a day-to-day basis is crucial to figuring out if you actually want to run one of your own,” says Fogg.

If you have never run a business before, or have little experience in the type of business you wish to start, you should seek out people who have and talk to them about their experiences. Their advice can alert you to difficulties you may not have anticipated and point to possible solutions.

“Before I opened my first retail store, I went to several possible locations and stood outside them all day long, just watching who passed by,” Lehman says. “That way I could see what sort of people would be walking past the store on a regular basis, and then I chose the location with the most people I thought likely to buy what was in my store.”

As you progress with your research, you can begin to create a detailed business plan. Your business plan will assemble all the information you gathered during your research and translate that data into a clearly stated outline of your business.

Max Berry is an Associate Editor/Writer for Business 24/7 Magazine.

Starting A Business

Starting a Business - Part II

Getting Started: Part I