Entrepreneurship book one:
Moving from an idea to producing and marketing a product:
Identifying a profitable home-based business opportunity:
A profitable business is a business that generates earnings (money). The profit
must be enough to earn an income as well as to be able to put money back into
the business so it can grow. It is a measure of success for the business.
Opportunities are idea that work and can be turned into successful businesses.
The following factors need to be considered:
Your personality and interests.
Is there a need in the local community for what you will be offering?
Your own capabilities.
Will the time you spend on making, marketing and selling the product be
proportional to the profit you will make?
Your business skills.
Your available time.
Your energy and health.
The location of your home or the place where you will work.
Your financial position.
Infrastructure, appliances and equipment need.
Appliances – Electrical devices (toaster and fridge for household
use).
Equipment – Implements used in a operation or activity for
household use (oven dishes and grater).
The formulation of the idea:
A business idea is not a business concept. You must identify an idea, analyse it,
investigate all of the possibilities and then write the concept statement to include
the following information:
A description of the product.
An explanation of the benefits of the product for the consumer.
What makes the product unique and how it differs from other similar
products – you must convince consumers that your product is the only
one offering these desirable features and benefits.
Information regarding the selling of the product – to whom, where and for
how much.
Information about whether consumers can order the product
telephonically or online.
Information regarding the credibility of your product.
Information regarding the packaging.
You can explain to your customers how the product differs from your
competitors.
The specification of the product:
, You have to plan and test the actual product and write down the specifications.
This means you have to test the recipe (or find a pattern and make the garment
or item). You need to test your recipe. This means you have to do the following:
Make it look as appealing and as tasty as possible.
Write down the exact quantities of ingredients, cooking time and
temperature.
Determine the exact yield, portion sizes and number of portions.
Write down the method in detail.
Photography it for advertising.
Remember that the end result must always be the same, even if somebody
else makes it.
Now you are ready to test varieties with different ingredients.
Choose a suitable product:
Starting your own business, whether full-time or part-time, demands a serious
long-term commitment. You should be prepared to work extremely hard.
There are a lot of practical issues to consider:
1. The availability of human skills:
You need to do some self-assessment to determine your own skills. A good
idea is to draw up a self-assessment form. If you lack skills in an important
area, you then need to consider other possibilities. You can learn the skill
somewhere, employ someone who has the skills or ask a family member
to assist. If you do bring someone else it is important that they are reliable
and honest. Human skills also involve the ability to work well with other
people.
2. The availability of the resources:
One thing that distinguishes true entrepreneurs from ordinary people is
their ability to make use of available resources. You need to analyse your
financial position and to calculate the start-up costs. Business
opportunities with low start-up costs are good.
3. The availability of work space:
For a food product:
Plan a convenient workflow.
Ingredients should move easily from storage to preparation area, then
onto a cooking area and then to be packaged, labeled and stored.
Dirty dishes must be able to move easily from preparation area to washing
up area.
You must be able to work with little movement and within time limits.
The following should be available in your workspace:
o Lighting, ventilation, correct surface, fire safety and utensils.
4. Availability of raw materials:
Make sure the raw materials you need are easily available in your area.
Establish a good relationship with your suppliers.
Moving from an idea to producing and marketing a product:
Identifying a profitable home-based business opportunity:
A profitable business is a business that generates earnings (money). The profit
must be enough to earn an income as well as to be able to put money back into
the business so it can grow. It is a measure of success for the business.
Opportunities are idea that work and can be turned into successful businesses.
The following factors need to be considered:
Your personality and interests.
Is there a need in the local community for what you will be offering?
Your own capabilities.
Will the time you spend on making, marketing and selling the product be
proportional to the profit you will make?
Your business skills.
Your available time.
Your energy and health.
The location of your home or the place where you will work.
Your financial position.
Infrastructure, appliances and equipment need.
Appliances – Electrical devices (toaster and fridge for household
use).
Equipment – Implements used in a operation or activity for
household use (oven dishes and grater).
The formulation of the idea:
A business idea is not a business concept. You must identify an idea, analyse it,
investigate all of the possibilities and then write the concept statement to include
the following information:
A description of the product.
An explanation of the benefits of the product for the consumer.
What makes the product unique and how it differs from other similar
products – you must convince consumers that your product is the only
one offering these desirable features and benefits.
Information regarding the selling of the product – to whom, where and for
how much.
Information about whether consumers can order the product
telephonically or online.
Information regarding the credibility of your product.
Information regarding the packaging.
You can explain to your customers how the product differs from your
competitors.
The specification of the product:
, You have to plan and test the actual product and write down the specifications.
This means you have to test the recipe (or find a pattern and make the garment
or item). You need to test your recipe. This means you have to do the following:
Make it look as appealing and as tasty as possible.
Write down the exact quantities of ingredients, cooking time and
temperature.
Determine the exact yield, portion sizes and number of portions.
Write down the method in detail.
Photography it for advertising.
Remember that the end result must always be the same, even if somebody
else makes it.
Now you are ready to test varieties with different ingredients.
Choose a suitable product:
Starting your own business, whether full-time or part-time, demands a serious
long-term commitment. You should be prepared to work extremely hard.
There are a lot of practical issues to consider:
1. The availability of human skills:
You need to do some self-assessment to determine your own skills. A good
idea is to draw up a self-assessment form. If you lack skills in an important
area, you then need to consider other possibilities. You can learn the skill
somewhere, employ someone who has the skills or ask a family member
to assist. If you do bring someone else it is important that they are reliable
and honest. Human skills also involve the ability to work well with other
people.
2. The availability of the resources:
One thing that distinguishes true entrepreneurs from ordinary people is
their ability to make use of available resources. You need to analyse your
financial position and to calculate the start-up costs. Business
opportunities with low start-up costs are good.
3. The availability of work space:
For a food product:
Plan a convenient workflow.
Ingredients should move easily from storage to preparation area, then
onto a cooking area and then to be packaged, labeled and stored.
Dirty dishes must be able to move easily from preparation area to washing
up area.
You must be able to work with little movement and within time limits.
The following should be available in your workspace:
o Lighting, ventilation, correct surface, fire safety and utensils.
4. Availability of raw materials:
Make sure the raw materials you need are easily available in your area.
Establish a good relationship with your suppliers.
