- How do you define success and what are you hoping to achieve from your business? (Hint: Some entrepreneurs want to grow a business quickly and sell it; others want to start something and make it big; others want to start something that replaces their current income).
- What groups of people do you know really well? (Hint: You are probably in most of those groups; they could be divided by demographic, hobbies and interests, work-related issues, etc.)
- Within these groups, what problems exist or what needs are there?
- Among the problems or needs you’ve identified, what are the solutions that are commonly used?
- Who provides these solutions currently, how do they deliver them, and what do they charge?
- From your list of solutions, what interests you most or what could you spend hours each day doing? (Hint: Entrepreneurs need to love what they do to help sustain them through some of the more difficult times)
- From your list of solutions that interest you, what can you do better than others? (Hint: If you bring the same solution to market that someone else has, you’ll end up competing against someone else on price. However, if you bring a solution to market that is creative and different, you’ll have a far better chance of survival)
- How will you make money from this core product/service? (Hint: What is it that people will actually be buying from you? Some kind of product? A service?)
- How many do you need to sell each month to earn the income you desire to earn?
- What will your income, expenses, and profit be per unit sold? (Hint: You’ll have to determine what a unit is. It could be the product itself. It could be per-page or even per-word if you’re a writer or it could be per-hour if you’re a coach).
- How will you find an audience to listen to you?
- How will you generate leads from that audience?
- How will you qualify those leads to become prospects?
- How will you present your product/service to your prospects?
- How will you deliver your product/service?
- How will you make sure your customers are happy?
- How will you get more sales from existing customers?
- How will you get your existing customers to tell others about you?
- How will you do these same successful practices over and over and over and over, consistently and with excellence?
- How will you stay current to the evolving needs of your market?
- What will you do if disaster strikes or if your business is not as successful as you’d like?
- What will you do with your business once it is successful?