“Solve A Problem” They All Say When You Are Trying To Think Of A Business Idea. This Is The Part They Usually Leave Out
We went out for brunch today down at the local beach, walked past some weird pop up shark bus museum (in the pic) as you do and managed to grab a table outside in a good spot (an achievement at the busy cafe run by the wee Scotsman!).
The breakfast bruchetta. Excellent and quite healthy. Poached eggs, sourdough, avo, oils, balsamic, chopped tomato, onion and mushrooms washed down with an exceptional large flat white.
As I was sat watching the world go by eating brunch, I thought about the week (although it’s not over yet) and what I was going to write about when I got home in this post.
You always hear people tell you that your business idea needs to solve a problem. This is the part most leave out.
I’m in quite a few ecommerce, business and startup groups on social media and follow relevant accounts and one thing I see a lot, is people looking to start a business and really struggling with coming up with an idea.
One piece of advice that gets thrown at you all the time is ‘solve a problem‘.
While it’s true that you need to solve a problem, it often leaves people confused and when further questions are asked, the person dishing out this advice often struggles to explain it properly. Oftentimes because they haven’t done shit and are simply regurgitating the sentence that they have heard before.
Here’s the thing. When you are new and trying to come up with your idea, one part of ‘solving a problem’ that stumps people seems to be the belief that you have to come up with a revolutionary, unique solution to the problem.
No. You are probably not going to be the next Uber.
For most people, you just need to solve a problem and make them prefer your solution vs a competitor’s. If your solution is first to market then there’s likely going to be a flood of similar alternative solutions released by competitors not long after anyway.
Example:
You launch a fashion brand – which many people will ask what problem does that solve? – and the problem you are solving is making people feel cool.
Are you the only fashion brand solving that problem? No of course not. There’s many to choose from but you just put your own spin on the solution, your own design/style or tweak it to solve a second sub problem (e.g. made from sustainable fabric).
If business models already exist selling this solution then guess what? It works!
Now having said that, it is important NOT to directly copy your competitors because you will lose
Yes you can take the solution offered, improve it, change the design, make a version for an undeserved market etc etc. The list is endless but don’t just copy.
I heard the best explanation ever yesterday on the MFCEO podcast, as to why copying another business means you’ve lost.
“What you are seeing your competitors doing now is the realization and result of planning and ideas that were conjured up 1-3 years ago.”
You’re not innovating if you do this and will always be behind if you are simply copying what they are doing today.
So no you do not need to offer the only solution to a new problem, but yes you do need to make it your own.
