Small Business Blog

What’s standing between you and your dream of self-employment? For many would-be entrepreneurs, the largest obstacle is developing a viable business idea. The experts say you’ll find the right idea by looking at your own interests and areas of expertise. But that exercise could still leave you scratching your head…wondering what you could do, that hasn’t been done already.

Before you scratch yourself raw, try these brainstorming techniques to get the creative juices flowing.
Think in terms of problems and solutions

No doubt you’ve heard it a thousand times, but good business ideas involve solving problems. And the best business ideas provide solutions to relatively common problems, problems people already know they have.

Start training yourself to define your purchases in terms of problems and solutions. Say you ate a hamburger in your car last Saturday afternoon: ask yourself what problem that burger solved. Chances are, you didn’t eat it because it tasted amazing; you had some other motivation. What was it? If you get in the habit of analyzing daily problems and how you solve them, you’ll eventually stumble on a problem that has no readily available solution.

Here’s an example. Recently, I had a craving for Greek food while traveling. Using my phone, I located a few online reviews for a nearby Greek restaurant. I mapped the address and was on my way. Upon arriving, it was clear that the restaurant was closed and had been for some time. Frustrated, I asked my husband why so many webmasters have directories for businesses that are supposedly open, but no one has a directory for businesses that are closed. Now there’s your idea; the next step is to figure out if there’s a way to make money off of it.
Start analyzing your best and worst purchase experiences

Sometimes great business ideas aren’t built on the product—they’re built on how the product or service is delivered. You don’t necessarily need a revolutionary product idea. It might be enough to create a delivery method that is better, more convenient, sexier than what’s currently available. When you make purchases, jot down what you liked about the experience. Think about how you could apply those improvements to your own product or service.

Listen when you hear someone say, “you know what’d be cool?”

Good business ideas often crop up in random conversations. But you’ll miss out if you aren’t listening. Pay attention to the needs and desires of your peers, even if they seem ridiculous. Someone probably once said it’d be cool to have a table-top plant that grows in the shape of an animal.

Watch Internet search trends

Use Yahoo! Buzz and Google Trends to stay in touch with the masses. Apply your problem/solution mindset to analyze the types of information people want. Think about why they’re searching for that information and ask if you can create a product or service that would fulfill that same objective.

Pay attention to your own shopping habits

Have you ever gone in search of a product you can’t find? Years ago, I went in search of a bowed shower curtain rod that I had seen in a hotel room. Believe it or not, I couldn’t find one. But now those curtain rods are everywhere; even Target has them—indicating that unfulfilled demands don’t stay that way for long. The next time you can’t find a product or solution, ask yourself if others would have a similar need. And then be ready to take action.