Loading...
Answers
MenuHow can I test if my business idea would be successful?
I will keep things general but essentially I want to build a platform to allow local people in my area to utilize private trucks, trailers and vans for fast and convenient deliveries, drop offs, etc. Think about you pulling up to a Best Buy in your Honda Accord and you want to take home a 72" tv.
Testing a new concept and would like your feedback on whether it would make sense or not.
Answers
This is an interesting idea. In fact I faced a similar problem recently - I wanted to pick up a sofa that I'd bought from ebay.
My options were - borrow a big van and drive it there and back, hire a man and a van to do so.
I chose the man and the van via this service - https://www.anyvan.com/
So a solution already exists here but perhaps there's a spin on it? Get people to pick up your items when they're traveling that way anyway - it's been done too - https://www.nimber.com/
It maybe that your market isn't mature and there's a need for this where you are.
What I'd suggest is the following:
Sketch out the problem/s and what people do about that problem
Sketch out the use cases
Sketch out all your assumptions
Then try and debunk them - one by one
Speak to people - whether that be on forums, facebook, in person, friends, relatives etc and gain as much insight as you can.
Once you've got that insight try and sketch out the solution to the problem
Once you've got that - then go back to your BMC and re-hash the whole thing
Then build a cheap website/landing page saying that you can solve that problem by doing xyz - you don't even have to have the service or anything
Promote it and collect feedback
Re-hash the BMC
Then decide whether it's viable or not.
Happy to chat through in more detail.
Really cool that you intuitively know to spent time investigating the probabilities before jumping into things. If there is a Startup Weekend near you do that - in 54 hours you will get to wrap a small team around the idea, learn + do customer validation an get expert help from local mentors. If that isn't a possibility, you could create a landing page that "sells" the idea as if it exists, then put a couple hundred behind targeted fb ads to see if you have something that people are interested in. At minimum, read Eric Reis' Lean Startup book to learn how to ensure you create a product that really fits a market. :) Get in touch if you want to chat more!
First thing I started with was researching what my competition would be. Are there any other apps out there already providing the same service - in my area or out of it. There are a couple that I'm aware of Buddytruck & goshare. How successful are these companies? Are they competing in your market? How would you differentiate from them.
Second I would consider your supply chain - are there drivers with the right types of vehicles in the area? What businesses would promote your services to their customers? Engage with the business owners or executives to get their prelim feedback.
Third who are your target customers? How would you engage them?
Fourth would be your financial proposal. Is there enough potential revenue? Do you have the capital to finance it and keep it operational for a year? When do anticipate enough revenue to cover your costs...etc.
I'd be happy to talk through this with you and share my experiences and challenges particularly is founding my own tech startup.
Best wishes.
Allycen
One way is to show it to your target market (specific customer) and get feedback and then take that feedback and develop the idea further. This is a low risk and cost option to test your business idea.
Talk to me if you would like to know more.
Related Questions
-
how to start earning on clarity.fm
Most of the earnings come from the people you are in contact with. The platform is not that big at the moment but it can be earned. My recommendation is to create content on your private page web, facebook, instagram ... and leave a clarity link through your work. If you need extra help call me for 15 minutes.DB
-
How can I sell my app idea, and do I need to get it patented?
This is a little hard to answer because it is so vague. It depends on the area, the market and the strength of innovation. I know that The App Guy has a terrific podcast at http://www.theappguy.co/ and is also trying to organize a community for App developers to sell their ideas. Let me know if I can be of further assistance to discuss patentability in terms of its value to getting a sale or license. What ever you do, don't spend money filing a full patent, just a provisional. Good luck.TH
-
What percentage of VC funded startups make it to 100m+ revenues in 5 years or less?
100M+ in revenues in 5 years or less does not happen very often. As an example of one sector, here is an interesting data visualization (circa 2008) of the 100 largest publically traded software companies at that time that shows their actual revenue ramp-ups from SEC filings (only 4 out of these 100 successful companies managed this feat, which themselves are an extremely small percentage of all of the VC-funded software companies): How Long Does it Take to Build a Technology Empire? http://ipo-dashboards.com/wordpress/2009/08/how-long-does-it-take-to-build-a-technology-empire/ Key findings excerpted from the link above: "Only 28% of the nation’s most successful public software empires were rocketships. I’ve defined a rocket ship as a company that reached $50 million in annual sales in 6 years or less (this is the type of growth that typically appears in VC-funded business plans). A hot shot reaches $50m in 7 to 12 years. A slow burner takes 13 years or more. Interestingly, 50% of these companies took 9 or more years to reach $50m in revenue."MB
-
For every success story in Silicon Valley, how many are there that fail?
It all depends on what one decides to be a definition of a "success story." For some entrepreneurs, it might be getting acqui-hired, for some -- a $10M exit, for some -- a $200M exit, and for others -- an IPO. Based on the numbers I have anecdotally heard in conversations over the last decade or so, VCs fund about 1 in 350 ventures they see, and of all of these funded ventures, only about 1 in 10 become really successful (i.e. have a big exit or a successful IPO.) So you are looking at a 1 in 3500 chance of eventual venture success among all of the companies that try to get VC funding. (To put this number in perspective, US VCs invest in about 3000-3500 companies every year.) In addition, there might be a few others (say, maybe another 1-2 in every 10 companies that get VC investments) that get "decent" exits along the way, and hence could be categorized as somewhat successful depending on, again, how one chooses to define what qualifies as a "success story." Finally, there might also be companies that may never need or get around to seeking VC funding. One can, of course, find holes in the simplifying assumptions I have made here, but it doesn't really matter if that number instead is 1 in 1000 or 1 in 10000. The basic point being made here is just that the odds are heavily stacked against new ventures being successful. But that's also one of the distinguishing characteristics of entrepreneurs -- to go ahead and try to bring their idea to life despite the heavy odds. Sources of some of the numbers: http://www.nvca.org/ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ven... https://www.pwcmoneytree.com/MTP... http://paulgraham.com/future.html Here are others' calculations of the odds that lead to a similar conclusion: 1.Dear Entrepreneurs: Here's How Bad Your Odds Of Success Are http://www.businessinsider.com/startup-odds-of-success-2013-5 2.Why 99.997% Of Entrepreneurs May Want To Postpone Or Avoid VC -- Even If You Can Get It http://www.forbes.com/sites/dileeprao/2013/07/29/why-99-997-of-entrepreneurs-may-want-to-postpone-or-avoid-vc-even-if-you-can-get-it/MB
-
What is a normal churn rate for b2b saas company with an average monthly revenue of $850 per customer? Is 10% of the total monthly sales high or low?
10% of the total monthly sales churning on an absolute basis is near fatal. That means that within 5 months, you have 50% absolute churn per year, which reveals fundamental flaws with the service itself. Anything above small single digit churn is telling you and your team that customers are not seeing enough value in your product. I'd start by doing as many exit interviews as you can with those that have churned out, including, offers to reengage at a lower price-point while you fix the issues that matter to them. Happy to talk through this in more detail in a call.TW
the startups.com platform
Copyright © 2025 Startups.com. All rights reserved.