Mind to market

The Disney Corporation is a global brand and one of the world’s largest organisations - it started with a pencil drawing of a mouse on a blank piece of paper!

How can we learn from this amazing story and develop ideas that generate income and sustainable revenue streams. Having the idea is often the easy bit - how you make money from it is unquestionably the hard part.

Some thoughts:

• Great business ideas come from a variety of sources - a hobby, a problem you have identified, an idea you spotted on holiday or maybe there is an existing product or service that you think you could improve upon

• Once you have come up with the idea you have to be clear on how to progress it from your blank piece of paper to a 200 word description of how it improves upon what already exists

• Success in taking your idea from mind, to paper to market will be dependant on three factors

• Commercial drivers for the new idea (CD)

• Human factors - drive and determination to succeed supported by the right people (HF)

• The resources to make it happen (R)

• Successful commercialisation = CD x HF x R – have you thought it through? Sounds simple - hard graft!

• The commercial drivers should define a clear demand for the idea you have come up with, only with an effective route to market

• The commercial drivers should define the business model for profitable revenue generation

• Great ideas are often protected in some way shape or form - eg patent, trademark

• The success of an idea or new ventures is underpinned by an individual or a team with desire and determination to succeed

• Great ideas need to be resourced effectively - finance, IT, facilities, premises, partners - what resources do you need to make your idea a success?

• Thomas Edison said, “I do not invent anything I cannot sell”. Be sure your idea reflects the needs of a marketplace