Business Idea Generation: Meaning, How To, What To Consider, Process & Conditions It  Must Meet In Order To Be Successful

Generally speaking, an idea is a thought or collection of thoughts that generate in the mind. An idea is usually generated with intent but can also be created unintentionally. A business idea is a concept that can be used for financial gain that is usually centered on a product or service that can be offered for money.

Business idea generation is the creative process or procedure that an entrepreneur or a business organization uses in order to figure out solutions to any number of difficult challenges. It involves coming up with many ideas, selecting the best idea or ideas, working to create a plan to implement the idea, and then usually taking that idea and putting it into practice. the idea can be tangible ( you can touch or see it) or intangible (symbolic or cultural).

The successful business idea must meet the following three conditions:

1. It must offer benefits to the customer by solving a problem or fulfilling a need: Customers buy products and services for just one reason; to satisfy a need. So, if your business idea cannot satisfy customers, it won’t be successful. Every successful business idea must have a unique selling proposition.

2. There must be a market that is willing to accept it: a promising business idea must offer a product or service that will be accepted by a large market. It must also have feasible arrangements for catering to that large market as well as your unique values that the differentiates it from the competition.

3. It must have a mechanism for making revenue: a successful business idea must show how much money can be earned from it and how the money will be earned.

Process of ideal generation

This is the process of creating, developing, and communicating ideas which are abstract, concrete, or visual. The process includes constructing through the idea, innovating the concept, developing the process, and bringing the concept to reality. Business idea generation and opportunity analysis are the foundational building blocks for launching a new business or venture. The origin of a business idea and the analysis of the opportunity needed to build and grow such an idea into a business structure is one necessary marriage in entrepreneurship.

The process of generating business ideas could be learnt and developed.

This is a unique quality that an entrepreneur needs to develop if he wants to generate business ideas that would later become a business structure.

The concept of generating new business ideas is not only essential for intending or prospective entrepreneurs; existing business owners also need to understand how new business ideas can change the level of business operations that invariably will lead to greater productivity and success.

In seeking to generate new business ideas, you can utilize any of the following:

i. Pursue the type of work you love: ideas flow easily when you are involved with the things you love. Focus on areas where your interests lie, as this can lead to innovative 

ii. Look for opportunities: Stay alert for gaps and deficiencies in the market. Whether they are unmet needs or areas for improvement, opportunities abound for those willing to seek them out.
iii. Brainstorm:  Set aside dedicated time for brainstorming. Encourage free-flowing thoughts without judgment to generate a wide range of ideas.

iv. Keep your goals in mind: The types of ideas you should pursue will vary depending on your goals. That is why it is important that you identify these goals before generating ideas.

v. Go traveling: traveling is a great way to identify new opportunities. You might find that there is a certain technology missing in your area of destination, or your vacation spot has a service that could be in high demand back home.

vi. Look for where demand is: if a certain industry, product or service enjoys high demand, chances are there is more than enough room for you to help fulfill these needs. A great way to generate ideas is to identify which sectors have lots of consumer demand. Once you indicate areas of need, it will be easy to generate ideas on what you can offer.

vii. Look for unfulfilled demand: you can also look for needs that haven’t been fulfilled. Unfulfilled demand means that consumers want something but haven’t been getting it. An example of this could be bad customer service in a particular industry: a service that is normally paid for that can be offered for free, a product or service that is more reliable, or a technology that hasn’t been developed yet. Try to think of anything that customers are demanding, either out loud or quietly, but aren’t getting. If you can fulfill this need, you’ll find customers flocking to you.

viii. Improve the process: think about a process that can be improved. Customers love convenience, so if you can think of any process innovation that can make a product or service more convenient better than your competitors, you are giving yourself a significant competitive advantage. You can offer cheaper products, higher quality products, better customer service, or market the product more effectively. Improving that, you have created a better way to produce or add value to a product and have first raised the standards for your competition. While you have already innovated, your competition will be struggling to keep up. An alternate benefit is that you may perform a process so well that other companies may want to outsource to you because of your improved ability to deliver.

ix. Fill a niche: an industry might be saturated with competition, but individual market niches may feel alienated by the advertising of the bigger companies. Marketing products to a niche could be a great opportunity for you to enter an industry without having to outright compete with bigger companies. When considering different businesses to open, try to think about the different niches you could target and you’ll find that you’ll never be short of business ideas.

x. Consider your resources: money, skill, and time. How much do you have of each? Depending on what you have of each can affect which business ideas are feasible and which need to be put on hold. If you are thinking about offering a particular service in which you have no experience or money, you have to wait and pursue another venture until you have acquired enough skill or money to provide the service.

It is an established fact that any business to come into being or any existing business to experience growth and expansion, idea generation, creativity and Innovation are three necessary factors that must come together in application and practice.