From idea to action. Ye! Boost Program Seminar 1

Transcription

1 From idea to action Ye! Boost Program Seminar 1 May 22,2015

2 Topics covered today... Where do good business ideas come from? What are the steps from idea to launchable product? How can you find out whether your business idea is feasible? What can you do TODAY?

3 Who are we? Child and Youth Finance International (CYFI) empowering children and youth to take a lead in the future of finance Ye! ( is a global online platform and community for young entrepreneurs

4 Ye! Boost Program Overview Activities A year-long training program centered around a one-week Social Enterprise BoostCamp in Amsterdam. Apr May Online seminars For entreprenerurs that: Have a social impact focus Are young (16-30 years of age) Are based in Ghana, Kenya or Philippines Are early-stage (post ideation) Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct One-on-one coaching Social Enterprise BoostCamp Nov Local workshops Dec Jan Feb Mar 4

5 Application Open now!

6 All great businesses start with an idea

7 But Bringing your idea to existence can mean: Challenges Time consuming Frustration

8 There are 5 stages from idea to startup Spot opportunities, generate business ideas Deliberate the idea Study feasibility: Go/No-Go Decision Prepare a business plan Launch a minimum viable product

9 1. Spot opportunities, generate business ideas Business ideas can come from a variety of sources Forces, trends and mega-trends tech, macro, social, political Changing market structures and needs Market inefficiencies Products in the market Personal experience, hobbies and amusements, personal passions

10 Answer the needs! Solve problems where people are already paying for solutions. I was trying to create a new behavior and convince them of a problem they didn t know they had. It worked for Steve Jobs, but it didn t work for me. Google made search better. Amazon simplified online buying and selling. Netflix solved on-demand streaming media. Uber is trying to make on-demand car service better. What can you make smarter or better?

11 2. Deliberate the idea Three steps you can take to deliberate your idea Write it down Self-assessment Get feedback from the others

12 Write (or draw) the idea Mindmapping e.g. Coggle ( is a great (free!) online mindmapping tool.

13 Self-assessment Are you ready?

14 Self-assessment Personal Characteristics Check Personal Skills and Experience Check You are a leader You enjoy making your own decisions You enjoy competition You have strong willpower and discipline You plan ahead o List your skills o What specific skills are needed for your business? Personal Conditions Check Are you aware that running your own business may require working hours a day, even weekends and holidays? Do you have the physical stamina to handle the work load and schedule? Would you be able to cover your living expenses before your business becomes profitable? Is your family prepared to go along with the strains? Do you possess those skills? If not, could you find someone that has the desired skills to work with you? If your answer is yes to most of the questions, you probably have what it takes to run a business.

15 Business Model Canvas

16 Geoffrey Moore s Positioning Statement Helps you summarize and present your idea For (target customers) Who (have the following problem) Our product is a (describe the product or solution) That provides (cite the breakthrough capability) Unlike (reference competition), Our product/solution (describe the key point of competitive differentiation) Example: For travelers who read a lot, the Kindle is an electronic bookreader that puts thousands of books at your fingertips. Unlike Apple s ipad, you can use our reader for weeks on a single charge.

17 Get feedback from the others Negative feedback is as important as positive ones

18 3. Study Feasibility: Go/No-Go Decision Technical analysis Organizational analysis Market analysis Competitive analysis Financial analysis How feasible is the product What is the organizational capabilities and personnel requirements? How big is my market? What makes your product or service special Can I do it financially

19 Technical analysis How feasible is the product Example: Product feasibility score Score Functional design and attractiveness User friendliness Product safety Ease and low cost of maintenance Ease of processing and manufacturing

20 Organizational: SWOT Analysis Analyze yourself Analyze your team Analyze your product/service For a great business, you need to a) have a great product, b) have great marketing and c) manage the money. Guess what? The person who can do all three has never been born. - Ernesto Sirolli

21 Market analysis Theory says you need to look at Demand analysis: here you determine the type of demand that exists for your product or service (eg: consumer, distributor), and establish the size of the market and its growth capacity. Supply analysis: look at the life cycle of the industry. Is it the right time for you to be entering it? Also study the way the industry is structured and think about how that will affect your business. Relationship analysis: how do the various groups within the industry interact? What is the bargaining power of buyers and suppliers? Is there a threat of substitute products or new entrants?

22 Useful Google tools to help research your market Google Trends Provides trend information about how people search. This can provide popularity insight around product category. You can see related searches and what geographical areas see the highest and lowest amount of searches which can help inform local marketing strategies. Link: Google AdWords Keyword Planner ( Can help provide calculations on how often a search occurs for a topic, and how competitive it is. You can get historical statistics such as search volume and traffic forecast. You can set up Google AdWords campaign to see if people are search for the product/service you want to offer (you only play after clicked). Link:

23 Example: Google Trends

24 Some more tricks and tools Use Smoke Test Set up a one-page website with a "Launching Soon" page. Promote it and see how many people click through. E.g: LaunchRock Travis Steffan Serial Entrepreneur Conduct a survey Create online survey to help you gather feedback and ideas, gauge needs, interest, and gaps in specific industries. E.g : SurveyMonkey Test with yourself Ask yourself if the product is something you would use. The easiest way to validate an idea is to first "survey a market of one: yourself." Matt Ackerson Founder of Petovera.com & SaberBlast.com

25 Example: Launch Rock

26 Competitive analysis Top questions you need to answer How is my product or service different to those offered by my competitors? Why will customers purchase the product or service from me rather than my competitors? Are there any barriers to me entering the market? What makes my competitors successful?

27 Michael Porter s Five Forces Framework For analyzing competitions The entry of competi tors The bargaining power of buyers The rivalry among the existing players The threat of substitu tes The basis of competition are the features that customers in an existing market have said, Yes, this is what is extremely important to me. I will dump my current supplier/manufacturer for your new product because yours is smaller/faster/easier/cheaper to buy/get to/tastes better, etc.) Steve Blank The bargaining power of suppliers

28 Financial Analysis (initial) Your network can be a great source of resources! Resources does not necessarily mean money! If you get a service or product for free, that can also help! We ll cover this topic in another seminar.

29 5 stages from idea to startup Spot opportunities, generate business ideas Deliberate the idea Study feasibility: Go/No-Go Decision Prepare a business plan Launch a minimum viable product

30 Start today! 1. Write down your idea with Geoffrey Moore s Statement! 2. Evaluate your readiness to become an entrepreneur with our checklist! 3. Do a SWOT Analysis of yourself and your product 4. Research the market with Goolge tools, smoke test The best time to start was yesterday. If you didn t, make today the day.

31 Q&A

32 Put to practice! Freebie.supply: 400+ free tools for startups!