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How great is your business idea from a CENTS perspective? Find out instantly...

Agnes

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My idea failed at the commandment of need, even if I was convinced that it was a really good idea. I just needed 10 minutes to find a study on google showing the opposite needs.
But at least I don't make the same mistake I made with my last business (trying to sell handcrafted jewelry in a shop with bad location and poor marketing - omg it was an insane idea :))
 
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MJ DeMarco

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Hadrian

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Just came across this and WOW I got a B- ... I hope I filled it in right! Thanks MJ!

I'll be joining the INSIDERS once I have the MVP on the Market... With the increasing number of Meditation apps out there now I really need to stand out! Frontpage - Celtic Whispers


Celtic Whispers Grade.JPG
 
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Last edited:

MJ DeMarco

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Just came across this and WOW I got a B- ... I hope I filled it in right! Thanks MJ!

I'll be joining the INSIDERS once I have the MVP on the Market... With all the Meditation apps out there now I'm trying to really stand out! Frontpage - Celtic Whispers


View attachment 26757

Actually looks like you've uncovered a bug, at least in the charting. (Should be gray, not red). Will take a look.
 

WAW

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Introducing -- Grade My Business Idea -- a website tool that will instantly grade and rate your business ideas in accordance to a weighted CENTS Framework whereas NEED and SCALE is most important, plus a MARKET ACCESS variable. (If you can't reach a market with a message, do you have a market??)

Grade My Business Idea: Business Ideas and Opportunities Rated Fast

I thought it was about time I created a grading tool with properly weighted metrics to determine the value of potential business ideas. Now anytime someone at the forum comes forward with an idea, I (we) can easily use this tool for dynamic grading. The tool specifies strengths, weaknesses, and puts the idea in perspective of the execution multiplier scale which I detailed at the end of The Millionaire Fastlane .

Just a few examples recently in the last few weeks here...

THE UPSCALE INVENTION

THE BROCHURE HOLDER INVENTION

DIGITAL MARKETING AGENCY / SEO SERVICES (Common "foot in the pool" business around here)

THE DIALYSIS TRANSPORT IDEA

So moving forward, ANYONE can have their ideas rated and graded according to my CENTS Framework, and they don't need to ask me personally! It's all there for you to review, assuming you're honest with your answers.

The tool has only been up for a few days and still have a few tweaks left, but for the most part, it should work.

Enjoy!
This is an awesome tool! Thanks so much MJ for always adding value to us!

I graded an A- Yay!
 

Walter Hay

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I can see tremendous benefits in this test for entrepreneurs planning a business venture.

Although I sold my first business for a multi-million dollar amount in 1987 after operating it for 20 years, I was curious to test the grading system.

My B2B business plan scored a B at 73.1%. The biggest failing was related to time, because the business was almost entirely dependent on my personal skills and presence. I had begun to remedy that before I sold out. My remedies were:

1. I Licensed my formulas and industry specific information to suitable people I knew in other countries. The format I used would be classed as franchising in today's legal environment.
2. I began finding large distributors to whom I could export in other countries. I chose ones who could sell the simpler products.

These measures led to a huge increase in scale.

The issue that prompted me to sell was one that might be worth including in the test. Changing Government Regulations! Big Brother was beginning to impose or prepare to impose strict safety regulations that would impact my manufacturing processes, and also the pick up and delivery of raw materials and finished products. No allowance was being made for the fact that I only dealt with non-hazardous chemicals. Also, the increasing passing of strict franchise legislation in many countries would seriously inhibit my practice of licensing formulas and other information.

Walter
 
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Last edited:

ChewingCandy

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@MJ DeMarco Thanks for this awesome tool!!

Although I got an F lol, I think it's because I entered worst case of each param..

Actually looks like you've uncovered a bug, at least in the charting. (Should be gray, not red). Will take a look.

And I've found a bug too, but I can't find a way to send you DM, please message me so I can send you the detail of the bug.
 

Harbourmaster

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Great great thread. Great great site. NEED and scale are two of, if not the most, important parts of a successful business venture.

Does anyone have any further resources or books on developing your ability to observe people’s needs on a daily basis? Basically looking for help in opening up my mind to listen to the problems and complaints around me everyday to brainstorm potential fixes to these problems.

I was thinking of starting a “Complaints I’ve Heard Today” journal and documenting all the different problems I hear from other people everyday. Any ideas?
 
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Lex Love

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Wow great tool. I have a couple would-be entrepreneur buddies I will have to share this with. I've been gently poking some holes at their ideas.

It's a lot of fun though of course its biggest weakness is user error. I have submitted my idea twice, the first time I got a B+, and then after trying to be more realistic I actually got an even higher score of A-. So mostly at this point I'm doubting my own knowledge of the idea. Either I'm sitting on a gold (or diamond) mine, or I am a bit naive. Given my inexperience I will go with the later.

Still I feel confident I have at least a "B-minus" idea so I feel good to proceed. It's nice to have a tool to validate what I have been feeling for months is a pretty solid idea.
 

Boyd

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I got D- for my self-publishing business.

I also ran self-publishing through the evaluator and got the same grade.

Obviously, control and entry are huge red flags but given your, and others, success I don't think it's a business that should be immediately discredited.

As awesome as this tool is, we need to be careful not to let CENTS be destructive to action.

Just because something isn't initially CENTS, doesn't mean you should ignore it.

Don't let CENTS stop you from striking out into the world and grabbing your first small win.

I guess the only true way to determine if self-publishing is worthwhile is put books on the market (action) and let the market determine if this business is viable. All the while keeping in mind that EE>E (executional excellence overcomes entry).

execute excellently or face mediocrity.

This is totally going on the wall above my computer.
 
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MJ DeMarco

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This tool just accused me of being a liar and providing contradicting information on the form and it refused to grade me. Are you developing an AI that can look into our souls , @MJ DeMarco ?

Because you gave unrealistic answers. It detects BS, usually someone who says they have this awesome need and value skew with zero entry barriers. Yea, sure, and I have a bridge for sale in NYC.
 

Agnes

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My idea isn't good enough but at least I understand why :) Thank you for the tool.
 

mercenariez

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@MJ DeMarco
So, you're better of making a churn and burn type brand. What I mean is invest in the product rather than brands for these ventures.

Would you mind elaborating on this part please? I can’t really understand what you mean by “churn and burn” from my google search of the definition. My guess is something like repeatedly getting out new products when the demand for the last one fizzles out — but why sacrifice branding?

Appreciate the help!
 
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MJ DeMarco

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can’t really understand what you mean by “churn and burn” from my google search of the definition.

A churn and burn is selling products for no particular reason other than you think you can profit by offering the Lowest price, when the profit disappears due to commoditization and lack of value skew, find a new product and repeat.
 
Last edited:

1step

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Over 700 ideas graded now.

Appreciate any upvotes!

I know it says you don't keep track of ideas/answers in a database but do you track the average score from businesses submitted?
 

MJ DeMarco

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stephen kageche

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Introducing -- Grade My Business Idea -- a website tool that will instantly grade and rate your business ideas in accordance to a weighted CENTS Framework whereas NEED and SCALE is most important, plus a MARKET ACCESS variable. (If you can't reach a market with a message, do you have a market??)

Grade My Business Idea: Business Ideas and Opportunities Rated Fast

I thought it was about time I created a grading tool with properly weighted metrics to determine the value of potential business ideas. Now anytime someone at the forum comes forward with an idea, I (we) can easily use this tool for dynamic grading. The tool specifies strengths, weaknesses, and puts the idea in perspective of the execution multiplier scale which I detailed at the end of The Millionaire Fastlane .

Just a few examples recently in the last few weeks here...

THE UPSCALE INVENTION

THE BROCHURE HOLDER INVENTION

DIGITAL MARKETING AGENCY / SEO SERVICES (Common "foot in the pool" business around here)

THE DIALYSIS TRANSPORT IDEA

So moving forward, ANYONE can have their ideas rated and graded according to my CENTS Framework, and they don't need to ask me personally! It's all there for you to review, assuming you're honest with your answers.

The tool has only been up for a few days and still have a few tweaks left, but for the most part, it should work.

Enjoy!
Thanks Mj
 
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Fabrxce

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Really like that the tool easily shows the flaws of any business ideas!
 

Martin Galli

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This is VALUE!!

I've tested an idea I had and was eager to start developing, and thanks to this framework I realized that it hugely lacked ENTRY.

I will keep investigating for new opportunities!
 
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Agnes

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Introducing -- Grade My Business Idea -- a website tool that will instantly grade and rate your business ideas in accordance to a weighted CENTS Framework whereas NEED and SCALE is most important, plus a MARKET ACCESS variable. (If you can't reach a market with a message, do you have a market??)

Grade My Business Idea: Business Ideas and Opportunities Rated Fast

I thought it was about time I created a grading tool with properly weighted metrics to determine the value of potential business ideas. Now anytime someone at the forum comes forward with an idea, I (we) can easily use this tool for dynamic grading. The tool specifies strengths, weaknesses, and puts the idea in perspective of the execution multiplier scale which I detailed at the end of The Millionaire Fastlane .

Just a few examples recently in the last few weeks here...

THE UPSCALE INVENTION

THE BROCHURE HOLDER INVENTION

DIGITAL MARKETING AGENCY / SEO SERVICES (Common "foot in the pool" business around here)

THE DIALYSIS TRANSPORT IDEA

So moving forward, ANYONE can have their ideas rated and graded according to my CENTS Framework, and they don't need to ask me personally! It's all there for you to review, assuming you're honest with your answers.

The tool has only been up for a few days and still have a few tweaks left, but for the most part, it should work.

Enjoy!

I like this comment:

"Wow! Something smells fishy, no weaknesses found for your idea!"

Rating of the new idea: B!
 

BellaPippin

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Oof I got C- for the travel thing.
 
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astr0

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Thanks, MJ, it's a really great tool!

The grade for the current project we're working on is very precise if we're really executing that well
GradeMyBusinessIdea.com: NDA proj (Results)

Hugely saves time to evaluate an idea on CENTS and probably is more objective too as it's possible to use it in a vacuum, not seeing other ideas at the same time.
For the best backlog ideas that we have the results pretty much correspond with what we've got on a whiteboard/spreadsheet.

This tool actually helped to see a pretty important pattern. New ideas score very high on parts we struggle currently. Like limited Control, Scale and Ease of Access.

The best one so far is B-
GradeMyBusinessIdea.com: RE stuff (Results)

Are there any better than spreadsheet tools to organize value array and compare value skews between competition?
 

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