{"id":4536,"date":"2015-04-30T19:48:53","date_gmt":"2015-04-30T23:48:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/futurpreneur.ca\/?p=4536"},"modified":"2024-02-14T10:38:22","modified_gmt":"2024-02-14T15:38:22","slug":"5-steps-to-identify-if-your-idea-is-start-up-ready","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/futurpreneur.ca\/en\/blog\/5-steps-to-identify-if-your-idea-is-start-up-ready\/","title":{"rendered":"5 Steps to Identify if Your Idea is Start-Up Ready"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Photo credit: Chris Potter<\/p><\/div>\n

There is no definitive answer to determine if your idea is ready to launch. However, there are some indicators that can help you predict your chances of success. Here are five steps to identify if your idea is start-up ready.<\/p>\n

1.\u00a0<\/strong>Keep fine-tuning<\/strong><\/p>\n

It\u2019s rare to get an idea that unfolds exactly the way you initially envisioned. If you\u2019ve fallen in love with your cool business name or catchy idea, and think that\u2019s what will win the day \u2013 you still have work to do. Most ideas simply need more fine-tuning to turn them into viable businesses, and the best way to do that is to test your idea with potential paying customers. Get face-to-face feedback. If you have an idea that needs to be built, like an app or a new product,\u00a0 make sure you bootstrap<\/a>\u00a0and build it first, or at the very least have a working prototype.<\/p>\n

2.\u00a0<\/strong>Get experience<\/strong><\/p>\n

Experience in the industry speaks volumes so if you don\u2019t have any, get some. Work part-time or volunteer. It\u2019s always a bad idea to be learning about the job and learning the business side of things at the same time.\u00a0 If it\u2019s difficult to get direct experience make sure you know the game really well. In my view, one of the major reasons businesses fail is poor market research!<\/p>\n

3.\u00a0<\/strong>Know the game\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Meet people in the industry, ask tough questions, and prepare for information interviews<\/a>\u00a0with people in the field. Use your time with your contacts to understand what the norms are in the marketplace \u2013 how do businesses market effectively? Don\u2019t fall into the trap of thinking you don\u2019t have competitors because your customers always have the option of spending their money on something else.\u00a0 Experience in the industry speaks volumes.<\/p>\n

4.\u00a0<\/strong>Identify the challenges<\/strong><\/p>\n

Look for opportunities but know the challenges and problems<\/a>\u00a0you will face. This will force you to probe and question your assumptions. Be a realistic optimist. Spend your time learning how your idea will work locally, not just why it will work globally.<\/p>\n

5.\u00a0<\/strong>Minimize distractions\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Make sure the timing is right for you to start your business. Minimize any financial debt and determine what your social\/relationship responsibilities are. Can you count on their support? This is not the time to be taking extensive courses or getting involved with other major activities. Be 110 percent committed to your venture. Have the attitude that this will be a long journey, with no overnight success.<\/p>\n

Aim high but don\u2019t lose your grounding. This will give your start up idea a fighting chance to victory.<\/p>\n

Visit our Get Started<\/a>\u00a0page for more information about starting a business.<\/p>\n

Written by:\u00a0Dominik Loncar, Futurpreneur Canada\u00a0<\/em>Entrepreneur-in-Residence<\/em><\/a>, dloncar@futurpreneur.ca
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\nDominik Loncar is Futurpreneur Canada\u2019s Entrepreneur-in-Residence,\u00a0click here<\/a><\/em>\u00a0to take a look at some of his other articles.\u00a0<\/em><\/em><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

There is no definitive answer to determine if your idea is ready to launch. However, there are some indicators that can help you predict your chances of success. Here are five steps to identify if your idea is start-up ready. 1.\u00a0Keep fine-tuning It\u2019s rare to get an idea that unfolds exactly the way you initially […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":4537,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[15,10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4536","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-entrepreneurship","category-futurpreneurs-and-partners"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/futurpreneur.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4536","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/futurpreneur.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/futurpreneur.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/futurpreneur.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/futurpreneur.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4536"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/futurpreneur.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4536\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/futurpreneur.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4537"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/futurpreneur.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4536"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/futurpreneur.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4536"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/futurpreneur.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4536"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}