6 Marks of a Solid Business Idea

This post is going to be quick. I was thinking today about what really makes good business ideas stand out to me. I always feel like certain business just pass the gut-check test with flying colors. People ask me to hear their business ideas all the time. By now, I feel like I can judge something within 5 seconds.

Usually it’s a No, sometimes its a Maybe/I’m not sure, and rarely it’s a WOW YES! So here are some thoughts on what really marks a good idea in my mind:

1. It is simple: you can explain it quickly, succinctly, and on the first try
2. It doesn’t require feedback: you don’t need to go around asking everyone for their opinion. Most of them don’t know any better than you do. So when the idea is good, it really will only require iterating as you execute
3. It is executable tomorrow: you can wake up in the morning and get cranking on it. There is no need to wait around thinking about how good it is. It’s a clear idea and all you need to do is add execution
4. It is something you are intimate with: I always love hearing ideas from people with intimate knowledge of a market building ideas for that market (i.e. a former ad-sales executive building a company to provide tools for ad-sales teams)
5. It gets you excited: you get a warm fuzzy feeling that overwhelms you and makes you jump when you think about it
6. It is scalable: this is something that has growth potential with room for upside

The best part is that ideas are really only the first step and the relatively easy ingredient. To really bake the pie, don’t forget to add execution.