IDEAFEST Student Business Idea Competition

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Starting a new venture is a big step to take, so having clarity about your business idea and whether it is viable is the first step. Here is a simple plan to help you assess the clarity of your thinking on the new business idea you have in mind. It will be used by the judging panel, together with the supporting videos, to shortlist five finalists.

Summarise clearly and succinctly your answers to the following questions and please limit your completed questionnaire to 2000 words.

You MUST provide an answer to every question 1 – 10, but you do NOT have to answer each sub question within each main question, they are there to prompt you.

Questions 1 to 4 will need to be completed and submitted ahead of the workshop for those who plan to attend it on Thursday 12 June.

Q1 – What is your business idea?
Describe your idea (max 100 words)
Example:
Skin Analytics has developed a way to allow people to map and track their moles for change over time using their smartphone. Asymmetrical change is the single most sensitive indicator of melanoma and needs to be seen by a medical professional as soon as it is detected. Melanoma survival rates start high but drop quickly, so early detection is critical. Skin Analytics was developed under guidance from a medical advisory board of dermatologists, GPs and image processing specialists. We provide an easy to use and automated way to baseline your moles and detect changes faster. We’ll tell you when something changes and give you and your doctor a customised report.
Q2 – Does a market exist for your business idea?
Your answer should consider the following:
·  What is the opportunity (whether that is a problem or gap) that is addressed by your business idea?
·  Who is your target customer?
·  What evidence do you have there is a market for your business idea? At this early stage you might not know the numbers, but it will be important to talk with potential customers and justify starting a business with strong evidence that there is a market of sufficient size to exploit.
Q3 – How will you reach the market?
What marketing and sales strategy will you implement?
Will you sell direct or through an intermediary e.g. a reseller?
Q4 – What is the competition and what advantages does your business idea offer?
In your assessment of the idea it is essential that you explore competition to your business idea in detail. Completing Porter’s Five Forces analysis will help you assess the competitive environment. An introduction to the method will be provided at the workshop.
Summarise how you are different from and superior to the competition. In other words, what are your competitive advantages, the reasons your customers should choose you?
Q5 – Why will your business idea sell well?
What evidence do you have that the customer will buy?
Write down your ‘sales value proposition’. This is the statement of benefits your product / service delivers that fulfils customer needs and creates real value e.g. reducing time/costs, increasing efficiencies or improving revenues or margins for the business customer, and making life better in some way for the consumer.
Q6 – What is your business model and how will you make money?
Include a description of the potential revenue streams that your venture will deliver at least in the first 2-3 years.
Preparing a business model will help you. Consult ‘Business Model Generation’ by Alex Osterwalder and Yves Pigneur. This will ultimately help you prepare your business plan. An introduction to generating a business model will be provided at the workshop.
Q7 – What do you bring to the party and who else do you need to involve in your venture?
A key question is ‘Can you (and others you will involve) deliver the business idea and build a successful venture?’ So, consider the following questions:
·  What experience, knowledge and skills do you bring to the venture? What connections do you have in the industry?
·  Who in addition to yourself will need to be involved? Will you and the others be working full time or part time? If you need other people, what experience, knowledge and skills do you need them to have?
·  What initial organisation will be required and how will it be structured? What services do you want external advisors to provide and how will they be compensated?
·  Where will you work from?
Q8 – What are your revenue and cost projections and how will you finance your venture?
Having sufficient funds or access to funds to support your venture is crucial, so you will need to have some answers to the questions:
·  What are your rough projections for revenues and costs based on the business model you have described above?
·  How much money will it take to get your venture off the ground? Will you (and your partners) be financing the early stages of your venture? How much will your venture need to get it through year one?
Q9 – What potential risks might your venture face?
The risks could be competition (competition will respond to your entry and there will be followers, copiers and imitators of your idea, should it get market traction), new technology, on-going funding and loss of key people, among others.
Q10 – What are your longer term intentions and personal objectives?
Is this venture a lifelong business that you will want to own and run or is it your intention to make a profit in a specific timeframe and then exit the business? If you are seeking to exit, when might that be?
What is your personal motivation? For example, to make money, create wealth and improve the environment? Your motivations are key and will determine in large part the issues of funding and raising finance. Investors will be highly interested in what is motivating you when you seek finance.

©Henley Business School, University of Reading 2014 Page 6