10 Components of a Successful Venture

1. Creativity Innovation Entrepreneurship • 10 Components of a Successful Venture Think Outside Yourself Think Outside Yourself

2. 1) Will people pay for it? It's paying customers who validate an idea and determine which ones have the greatest chance for success. An idea is just an idea until you have a paying customer attached to it. Anyone can discredit a simple idea, but no one can discredit paying customers."

3. 2) Does it solve a problem? The best business ideas are those that solve a problem in some way. If there is a problem that affects you, your friends, family, co-workers, etc., then the chances are high that it affects people you don't know as well.

4. 3) What's its price point? While there are many ways to solve problems, great business ideas do it in a way that is less expensive than what the market will endure. (price + quality = value) Once you have determined that you are solving a legitimate problem in a scalable way, you need to determine not only the value that it delivers to your target customer, but what people would pay for that value. Once price is determined, then you can assess if your solution is business worthy or not."

5. 4) Is it scalable? Great business ideas are ones that can be easily scalable. Can your idea be systemized, automated or expanded as the interest for the product grows? Many great ideas fail because the entrepreneurs behind them never planned for scalability.

6. 5) Is it unique? Too many entrepreneurs think they are on to a great idea when their heart starts to pound, their pupils dilate and they can't concentrate on anything else. You know you have a great business idea when you stop sweating, get back to reality and focus enough to Google the concept and find out nobody else is doing it quite like you.

7. 6) Does it gain cyber-traction? One way to determine an idea’s potential is to create a simple website to see if online consumers are interested. The website should have a company name, logo and brief description of the concept. It should also include a box that says, "Sign up on the waiting list — first come, first served." Then email your target list asking them to check out the site, sign up if interested, and share with others who might be. If you get a few dozen sign-ups in a day, you're probably onto something, and you already have your first few customers to contact.

8. 7) Will vendors be interested? The best indicator of a business’s potential success is the amount of interest it generates from outside vendors. If peripheral businesses are clamoring at your door to gain an audience, then you can rest assured you are probably sitting on a lucrative proposition.

9. 8) Is it hard to duplicate? The best business ideas are the ones that can't easily be duplicated. If there is a great idea and barriers to entry are low, you can be sure imitators will follow. New businesses should have strong differentiators and/or barriers, like patents, technology, management team, delivery systems, access to markets, to help ward off the competition.

10. 9) Does it win recognition? Truly great business ideas are outwardly recognized by an external source, such as investors, paying customers, trade organizations, or the media. Recognition from those who are not intertwined with the original idea or business are less biased and therefore more likely to recognize the difference between a subpar and truly extraordinary idea.

11. 10) Can it last? Business ideas that can cater to people over a long period of time make for the most successful ventures. Entrepreneurs need to picture their business in two, three and 10 years to determine if their product or service will still be relevant. Trends and fads can disappear overnight. If you're confident your idea will still be the answer to your customers' problems and it'll continue to bring in more revenue for your business in all the years ahead, you have a great idea to work with."