How to come up with good startup ideas

8 mins read

Table of contents


This is tricky since startup ideas are subtle and nobody knows which will be successful. Certain types of ideas are far more likely to succeed than others. As a result, this article's purpose is to steer you in the right direction.

This is how it will go. First, we'll show the most common mistakes founders make when coming up with startup ideas. Then, we're going to talk about how to check startup ideas. Then we're going to discuss some recipes for generating startup ideas. And finally, we're going to talk about the 6 principles of creating new things.

The most common mistakes founders make when coming up with startup ideas.

1. The first and most typical mistake is assuming that you must have a brilliant concept to get started. A lot of people feel that the secret to launching a successful startup is to begin with a fantastic idea. So they're waiting for a breakthrough idea before getting started.

2. The second mistake is plunging into the first idea that comes to mind without stopping to think if it's a good idea. And, it's incredible how frequently this happens. Here's the deal. If your business succeeds, you will devote years of your life to it. If so, wouldn't it make sense to spend at least a couple of weeks determining what to focus on first? Consider your first concept a solid starting point. Startup concepts evolve, take, for example, Airbnb. It began as a website for renting air beds in other people's homes. Over time, it evolved into all holiday rentals.

So the first thing you should do is choose a decent beginning place. If you do, even if your original concept isn't outstanding, it only has to be improved to become amazing. If you choose a horrible beginning point, there may be no way to evolve into a good one. You'll have to start from scratch.

3. The third mistake is, to begin with, a solution rather than a problem. For example, let's say you come up with the business concept "WhatsApp for teachers". It's an app, you press a button, and WhatsApp opens for teachers. This is a workable solution. What problem is this supposed to solve? I'm not sure. The point is that if you come up with a concept like this, you've already started with a solution. It's referred to as a "Solution In Search of a Problem" or SISP. And these are typically bad since you never locate the problem. It's far better to start with a problem and then search for answers.

4. The last mistake is assuming that startup ideas are difficult to come by. They're simple to locate, since the planet still has a lot of serious issues to be solved. Remember to find the problem first, not the solution. If you're having difficulty discovering the ideas, it's because you haven't yet learned how to do so. You'll notice fantastic startup ideas all over the place once you understand how to spot them.

Evaluating startup ideas

1. The first measure is the size of the concept. Looking for current big firms that do something similar is the best approach to test this. You may be working in a market that's tiny now but has the potential to be large in the future. That's a good sign that your concept may perform well here.

3. The second measure is how certain are you that you are solving a major problem. You might need to have firsthand knowledge of the issue. Then you should have any fresh, significant insights about this concept.

1. The first measure is the size of the concept. Looking for current big firms that do something similar is the best approach to test this. You may be working in a market that's tiny now but has the potential to be large in the future. That's a good sign that your concept may perform well here.

3. To be an excellent one, you need to create something you'd want to have. For the third measure, you start with yourself as the first user. Then, when you're designing for yourself, you can trust your instincts about what to build. In the end, you have to estimate what other people want when you're developing for them.

4. The fourth measure is that the idea was recently made workable by another company. If some new technology or a new product in the world has turned towards that subject, it is a good opportunity.

5. Our final measures for evaluating company ideas are "filters". These filters are almost universal. One important thing you should do to develop startup ideas is to understand them and how to turn them off.

The most dangerous aspect of them is that they might force you to reject your finest ideas. Even before they ever reach your conscious mind. Here are the most common filters:

  • Reject ideas that seem hard to get started.
  • If the idea is in a dull or too competitive space.
  • If the idea seems too ambitious.

Founders instinctively shy away from spaces where there are existing competitors. You should consider the side of doing things with existing competitors. When founders go into spaces with no existing competitors, they soon find out the reason. Because there are no competitors and nobody wants the product. The ideal situation is a market where there are existing competitors. But your advantage is that you noticed something that they all seem to have missed.

The 6 tips for generating startup ideas.

It is possible to sit down and think about startups. It's, unfortunately, not the ideal technique to develop business ideas.

The best way to do so is to watch them develop spontaneously. There are wonderful business ideas all around you, and if you have an open mind, you will notice them. The problem is that when people sit down to brainstorm company ideas, they usually come up with bad ones. So, startup ideas that come to you easily have a higher chance of becoming good.

First, let's discuss how to generate business ideas organically. Learn how to spot good startup ideas and then let them come to you. To generate them, you must first understand what a good startup idea looks like. This way you can recognize them when you come across them. Then you should keep an eye out for elements that appear to be missing in the world, and continue from there.

If you want to create a business in the future, being an expert on anything useful is beneficial. The best way to do so is to get a job at the vanguard of some industry or try a workshop for startups. If you work at the cutting edge of any subject, you will notice strong business ideas before others.

Okay, let's go over the actual 6 tips for coming up with startup ideas.

  • The first is one of the best since it’s most likely to result in solid ideas. You begin with what your team excels at. Consider ideas that you have an unfair advantage in executing. Then, you're essentially coming up with all the ideas that have a solid founder/market fit.
  • For the second piece of advice, consider what you would like someone else to build for you.
  • The third one is, what would you be enthusiastic to work on for the next ten years, even if it failed? What are you truly enthusiastic about?
  • Number four, seek recent changes in the world and consider ideas that now have potential.
  • Number five, seek firms that have been successful lately. You can think of fresh interpretations of them.
  • Sixth, talk to individuals you know and ask them what problems they want to solve. The disadvantage of this formula is that most of them are not good at recognising business ideas.

Startup concepts

Wanting to develop a business that expands very quick is normal. You're building a small startup, and there's nothing wrong with that.

The startup idea is made out of three concepts. The first is the problem, as it is the initial condition. You must describe what the territory is like for this firm that allows it to develop. The solution is the second. What are you performing inside those parameters that allow it to expand so quickly? And the third is, what is your argument? What is your justification for why the product you're about to launch, will be successful?

1. The problem

Here's a suggestion for discussing and determining whether your problem & conditions are correct. Know that the right problems are in demand and affect numerous people. You want to avoid the ones that a few individuals have.

You should like problems that are growing. You should like situations that are urgent and must be addressed as soon as possible. You should like challenges that are difficult to solve because if you can sort them, you can make a lot of money. Then you should like common problems. The ones that individuals will experience again and again, and often in a short period. You must have a lot of motivation, capability, and trigger because they must all emerge at the same moment.

2. The solution

The only advice we have for the solution is the best advice you can ever receive from anyone. And that is, as we've said before, do not start with the solution. Don't begin with a solution before you have an actual problem. When you want to create something new, you might search for some new technology. After that, you can stop and ask yourself, "What problem can I fit into this solution?". Otherwise, you'll realize you went the wrong way and your product is not working or selling.

That ends up being a far more challenging approach to expanding the firm. While businesses can develop in this manner, it is inefficient. It's far better to say, "Let me see what difficulties people have, and then I'll take whatever I need to remedy them." As a result, you are much more likely to expand.

Look at what you're building right now or look at the reason why you're trying to do this startup. Do you only care about the technology and building something, or have you started with a problem? You need to do whatever it takes to solve users' real issues, not hypothetical ones.

3. What’s your insight?

You need one, it can't be like, "I have a problem I'm solving" and then have no explanation why. What is the reason why your solution will work and how exactly will you make it work? Here is where a lot of businesses are tricked. Because it's always about how you profit from your company's advantage, right?

Why are you going to triumph over everyone else? Why are you going to be the first to expand? Because that insight is what the investor needs to pick you over everyone else. And it must be tied to growth, you must have an unfair advantage that explains why you will develop fast.

Principles of creating new things

Try to find simple solutions, to overlooked problems that need to be solved. Deliver them as informally as possible, and start with a very rudimentary version. Then iterate them rapidly.

Some people can’t recognize new ideas in the beginning. Others who follow this method will almost always do things that appear to be wrong to others. And that is the point. And why is this strategy successful in the long run? Because it gives you all the benefits that other individuals hold back. They do this so they appear legitimate, and they end up losing.

There is less competition while working on solving overlooked problems. You are also more likely to discover new things.

When you deliver solutions informally, you:

  • Save all of the work that would have been required to make them appear spectacular.
  • Drop the risk of deceiving yourself and your audience.

This technique's use extends beyond companies, computer languages, and essays. It will apply to any type of creative effort.

New ideas are constantly beneath your nose. So search for basic things that others have overlooked. Things that people will later claim as "obvious". Don't be fooled by norms and the need to be remarkable. Determine the root cause of the problem and work your way up to resolve it. Don't worry, the product will prevail in the end if you follow all the advice. And start as soon as possible so you have time to learn from people what you should improve.

Do you need to build a mobile startup and don’t know where to start?

Talk with our experts and develop a solution that will provide your company with a competitive advantage. Until the next one, do your research, be confident, consistent, and don’t give up.

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