Generating your Business Ideas Anthony Plumridge, UWE Knowledge Exchange Manager, HLSS

Be alert to opportunities Open your mind, open your eyes and take a fresh look at the world with which you are familiar.

What to look for: Think of ideas for products, processes, or services which would enhance or improve existing situations ("What we need here is something that would...."). Identify products or services that could be made more effective to save time, effort or money. Look for products and services that people are requesting, but which do not exist.

What to look for: Examine present products and services from various aspects to see what could be added, subtracted changed or combined, to produce improvements Project yourself forward in time and think what might be needed to support new and emerging technologies .

Social enterprise ideas: Under-utilised resources that could benefit the local community Disadvantaged groups that could be helped to help themselves Services that could be provided collectively more efficiently than by a profit seeking enterprise.

Where to look: At home with friends and family At work While shopping At leisure At different cultures and places In the media At your past experience.

Getting the creative juices to flow: Brainstorming Do not rule anything out at this stage A crazy product idea may lead you to identify a brilliant one .

WORKSHOP 1 IDEAS!

At home with friends and family At work While shopping At leisure At different cultures and places In the media At your past experience.

Evaluating feasibility Is there the potential to generate positive cash flow or significant positive asset value in 3 to five years? Is the idea too big? – Knowledge transfer Is the idea too small? – Self-employment Can anyone do it? IP protection possible? Can you stay ahead of potential competition?

Exploring the reality What will it cost? What people/skills are required? Think of similar products – what do they cost? Who will buy it? Why would they buy it? What might they pay? Who are the distributors and suppliers? Will they give support? What is in it for them? What will the competition do? How will they react? After how long? Is there the potential to generate positive cash flow or significant positive asset value in 3 to five years?

WORKSHOP 2 HOT OR NOT?

What will it cost? Think of similar products – what do they cost? Who will buy it? Why would they buy it? What might they pay? Who are the distributors and suppliers? Will they give support? What is in it for them? What will the competition do? How will they react? After how long? Is there the potential to generate positive cash flow or significant positive asset value in 3 to five years?

Final thought……. Do not rely on gut feeling: talk to as many people as possible without revealing the idea