Spotting a great business opportunity can be the start of a long and successful career as an entrepreneur, but do you know how to go about identifying the best ideas? Keep reading for some tips that should help you to weed out winning opportunities.
Exploit your expertise
Business ideas can come from virtually anywhere, but if you have a particular area of expertise, it’s best to start your search there. Offering advice on this topic, entrepreneur Chris Niarchos suggests that the more you know about an industry, the better equipped you’ll be to see opportunities within it. He notes that you’re more likely to have a good level of knowledge about the products or services that are already available, as well as what’s currently working and not working. You’re also more likely to have a clear idea of what companies are doing within the industry.
Bear in mind that you don’t need to have professional experience within a certain field to have in-depth knowledge about it. If you have a hobby or passion that you’ve put a lot of time into, this could be your source of expertise.
Try to see solutions where others only see problems
Many of the most lucrative business ideas emerge when people find solutions to common problems. So, when you experience a difficulty, or you notice other people struggling with something, try to see this as an opportunity. A great example is the businesswoman Hailey Coleman. She founded the company Damn Heels, which specialises in selling lightweight, foldable flat shoes that people can slip on after they’ve spent an evening in high heels. The innovative entrepreneur had the idea in the summer of 2007 when she was walking home from a party and her shoes were causing her pain. She now runs a successful business selling footwear across the world.
Note down all your ideas
Some of the best business ideas occur at random moments. You might be doing your weekly shop, driving your car or relaxing in the bath. So that you don’t forget these thoughts, make sure you write them down as soon as you get a chance. You’ll probably find that you’ll go on to rule many of these concepts out, but you never know which will have the potential to succeed.
Act swiftly and decisively
As writer William Arthur Ward neatly stated: “Opportunities are like sunrises. If you wait too long, you miss them.” The fact is, if you don’t act on your best ideas swiftly, there is always a risk that someone else will beat you to it. So, if you develop a concept that you’re happy with, it’s essential that you have the courage to follow it up. To be a successful entrepreneur, you must be willing to take calculated risks.
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