What is the ideal way to create your best ideas? Of course, you want them to be powerful and work. But it doesn’t happen by chance. You must have a plan.
Create Your Best Ideas: 10 Ways to Make Them Powerful
It takes work to create your best ideas, but the steps to bringing a great idea to life are pretty simple. It is also easy to get started on your lightbulb flash of genius.
Dream
Remember the movie Field of Dreams, where the Iowa farmer, played by Kevin Costner, said, “If you build it, he will come”? This is often misquoted as, “If you build it, they will come.” The premise of the movie is a dream to turn a cornfield into somewhere dreams come true. The concept applies to how to create your best ideas equally well.
The best, most powerful ideas don’t just happen. They start with a spark. Often, dreams are the source.
- Actively try to remember your dreams.
- Capture what you recall on paper.
- Add as much detail as possible to flesh out the dream.
- The dream catalyzes some of your best ideas.
Create Your Best Ideas: Brainstorm
Gather colleagues, family, or friends to brainstorm ideas for your next project, task, or big idea. The input from others who know and share your goals or support your efforts can bring unique insight into innovative ways to accomplish the endeavor. Be a good listener so you capture the group’s insights.
- Pick a time when other projects or tasks aren’t pressing.
- Make it a lighthearted meeting.
- Offer snacks or refreshments since food is always a nice touch.
- Encourage creative thinking where everyone’s input is welcome.
Do What-If and What-Then
Using what-if and what-then analysis can streamline the process of generating scenarios and further the great ideas you create. Microsoft Excel has Scenario Manager, Data Table, and Goal Seek.
These tools help to:
- Determine key variables.
- Create and define scenarios.
- Outline potential outcomes.
- Analyze the impact of each scenario.
- Develop action plans.
- Update and review scenarios.
Analyze the Competition
Who else has something similar to your idea? While you strive to be first to market or create something completely different, recognize that variations of your idea may already exist. To ensure yours can gain traction, you must know the competition.
To simplify this task, use a template. Remember the four Ps of any marketing plan: product, price, place, and promotion.
- List the competitors with products or services similar to yours.
- Conduct online research to get data on their offerings, considering the four Ps.
- Analyze those offerings and compare them to the best idea you’re attempting to market.
- Know the competition’s positioning in the market. Consider their branding and messaging.
- Examine how the competition advertises, their SEO strategies, content marketing, and their presence on social media.
- Next, do a SWOT analysis. This examines the competition’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.
- Research market trends.
- If you can, track the competition’s performance and monitor their customer experience.
- Regularly update your competitive analysis.
Create Your Best Ideas: Talk Marketing Strategy
After conducting your competitive analysis, bring your A-team back to discuss marketing strategy. Where can you stand out from the competition with fresh, robust, targeted marketing efforts to boost your product or service?
Remember that a marketing strategy encompasses your overall marketing efforts. This differs from a marketing plan, which entails specific tactics and actions to achieve your goals.
Role-Play Your Pitch
The following way to create your best ideas is to role-play your pitch. Pretend you’re pitching your idea to the Shark Tank. Talk directly to Kevin O’Leary, aka “Mr. Wonderful.” You want to win the competition, so playing the role of an entrepreneur seeking funding from investors is fun and illuminating. See this excellent guide on pitching and winning on Shark Tank.
Then, switch roles and play the sharks. You’ll gain valuable insight and hopefully further flesh out your best ideas.
Plan for Incremental Growth
Unless your incredible idea is a one-off, you’ll want a growth plan ready. Will there be project or product updates, a new version, better technology offerings, the next in a franchise, or another sequel?
Keep in mind that planning for incremental growth involves defining all your business’s key elements:
- How you deliver value to your customers.
- What competitive advantages do you have to build upon or maintain?
- How does your service or product offering vary by customer segment?
- What role does technology play in creating value and levels of resources?
- Outline your business’s overall scope, including your value chain position.
Create Your Best Ideas: Appoint Leaders
Who will lead your efforts to bring to life the best ideas you create? Determine who can fill that role by constructing a list. Do interviews to consider candidates. Refine your pool until you select the most appropriate leader.
If you are the leader, remember that you’ll get the most from your teams by not being the demanding boss.
Designate Teams
In addition to a leader or leaders, you’ll need teams to work together to bring your best ideas to market. If this is a new company, product, or service, the work will be a ground-up endeavor. This doesn’t necessarily mean that it won’t succeed on the first try, but it will potentially take longer.
Create Your Best Ideas: Allocate Funds and Seek Investors
Unless you’re independently wealthy (and even if you are), the next step to fulfilling your best ideas and making them a decisive success is to set aside funds and seek funding from investors. Even major corporations see the advantages of using outside funds to pay for new products.
