Great Small Business Ideas to Start: Market testing The finest place to develop a profitable business, and the best way of building success, is often when you are already operating a business. Lessons can be taken directly from the market and your customers to give you an instant guide on what is working—and what isn’t. … Read more
Great Small Business Ideas to Start: Deep-dive prototyping A deep-dive process is a focused, team approach to developing solutions to specific problems or challenges. It is intended to harness the ideas of everyone in a team in a creative, stimulating, focused, energetic, fun, and useful way. The idea A deep dive is a combination of … Read more
Great Small Business Ideas to Start: Achieving breakthrough growth Established businesses often struggle to achieve industry-leading growth rates because their sector is mature or highly competitive, or because they become stuck in the rut of incrementalism. Firms become convinced that they need to compete in the same way as their rivals: minimizing risk, maximizing resources, … Read more
Great Small Business Ideas to Start: Social networking and transmitting company values Regular meetings of key employees from different areas of the company will increase learning, improve strategy, remove boundaries, and increase group productivity. The improved “transparency” that results will make it easier to identify crucial areas of strength and weakness. The idea General Electric’s … Read more
Great Small Business Ideas to Start: Leading “top-down” innovation Direct action should be taken by senior management to harness the knowledge and ideas of employees to ensure consistent and high-quality innovation. The idea The word “innovation” conjures up the image of a process that is spontaneous, unpredictable, and unmanageable. The innovation literature abounds with stories … Read more
Great Small Business Ideas to Start: Mass customization Large-scale information gathering and storing enables the provision of a high-quality, personalized service for each client. By adding value to your product, you can shut out competitors and ensure repeat business. The idea By applying information technology effectively, and training all of its employees to use information, … Read more
Great Small Business Ideas to Start: Understanding demography The world is changing fast, and one of the greatest changes in human history has taken place without many of us even noticing—the changes that result from demographic developments. Understanding these changes can provide a secure foundation as well as significant business opportunities. The idea The idea … Read more
Great Small Business Ideas to Start: Psychographic profiling To improve sales efficiency, customers can be divided into “groups” according to their personal needs and preferences; new customers can then be assessed and assigned to the appropriate group. This profiling combines psychological and demographic groupings— hence the term “psychographic.” This enables the business to cater to … Read more
Great Small Business Ideas to Start: Customer bonding As business competition becomes increasingly fierce, firms should not only focus on attracting new customers, they should also use rewards to retain existing clients and get more out of them, which will also attract more clients. The idea Many industries are characterized by the fight not only … Read more
Great Small Business Ideas to Start: Eliminating waste (muda) In the rush to focus on revenue, many businesses forget to consider the importance of business process and the effects of waste. Put another way, businesses that strive to remain streamlined and well organized have a significant advantage over those that lack efficiency. The idea For … Read more
