Tom Polanski
EVP, Sales & Marketing, eBrand Media, Inc.
My partners and I have discovered an online marketing opportunity that apparently hasn't been monetized. We've done some preliminary research and we're reasonably confident that there may be real opportunity in this discovery. However, we’re faced with a number of challenges which include but are not limited to: 1. We can’t really protect this idea until we develop a system for it. We can protect the system. 2. Our discovery is unique and there is no historical data. Although we feel certain there is tremendous value in this opportunity testing and intelligence gathering will have to be done to determine its actual market value. We have companies willing to participate in the tests. 3. We’re privately funded and don’t have the resources to finance the programming, testing and other work that will need to be done to bring this service to market. 4. We don’t have experience writing business plans as we all decided the best way to start our agency in 2005 was to simply jump in to the deep end. 5. We don’t know how to seek partners, investors and capital without giving away the idea and the work we’ve done to develop it thus far. My feeling is that NDA/Non-circumvents can easily be circumvented.
Steve Durkee
Market Strategist/Analyst/Executive Director
Best Answers in: Education and Schools, Occupational Training
This is a pretty common question, and the good news is that the government has a specific interest in trying to foster independent business ventures. I am sure that you and your friends are aware that, usually not for a lack of effort, most small businesses fail in a short amount of time after startup. That being said, it would be economic suicide if they provided grants to everyone who had a business idea; but there are a lot of no-cost resources that can assist in keeping the goal of a low-cost startup and minimized risk. First things first, get organized and find someone who can assist you with a strategic plan. I would recommend visiting a SBA office in your state (you can also take a free course in creating business plans on the SBA website). They can tie you in with S.C.O.R.E. which is a conglomerate of volunteer retired executives who can more than likely assist in answering most, if not all, of your questions. I would be cautious about seeking venture capital until you have a clearly written and documented business plan. As far as programming (this is becoming a common barrier in the information age), the only low-cost solution I can foresee being feasible is to seek out your local university's computer science department and post a notice for an internship opportunity for a talented programmer. I think it is still possible to start a successful business venture with little to no capital as long as you have the human investment covered, some creativity, and time invested in procurement of resources. Most of all push forward and set a timeline to accomplish every step. I come from a family of innovators and the message I always try to instill is “There are millions of good ideas out there, but millionaires are the ones that put them into action.” I have listed the SBA site to help you get started, best of luck to you and your team!
Links:
http://www.linkedin.com/redirect?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Esba%2Egov&urlhash=35B1
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