seeking feedback + advice on a potential business idea

[sahil123720@gmai]

Hi all,

Thank you in advance for taking the time to read my post. I recently joined the Fastlane forum upon reading the Millionaire Fastlane and am currently exploring some ideas I could pursue.

Firstly, a bit about me. I'm a recent graduate student who majored in renewable energy engineering. I do have a technical background and was looking to develop something in either the e-commerce/Saas industry. I am a HUGE nerd when it comes to sustainability/climate change and find that I am quite naturally self-driven in this industry due to my drive to find solutions for climate change at an early age. However, I have been struggling to find anything worthwhile in the 6 months since I completed reading the Millionaire Fastlane .

My idea is to create an online store/website that distributes eco-friendly everyday items - think of things such as eco-friendly coffee cups, paper straws, or even sustainably sourced jewelry. Unsure as to how I would go about validating if this idea is worth chasing, but am driven to make it a reality if I can find a way to give it the green light .

The main questions I have surrounding this idea revolve around the following key points:

1) If you were in my shoes, how would you go about validating the need for this idea? I do recall this being one of the key concepts as a part of the "CENTS" framework. However, I am feeling a little lost with accomplishing this through an e-commerce store.
2) How would you go about getting your first respective buyers if you were to set up a platform like this? Do you run ads o platforms like Google AdSense or Facebook? Do you rely on word of mouth?
3) How many products would I list on my website? Should I scale according to customer demand?
4) What products should I choose to sell? How can I validate if what I'm selling will actually be wanted by the marketplace?

Apologies in advance if my questions seem a little basic, I am still learning the ropes of building a business. Please do not hold back with your advice and be as brutal as possible - the blunter the advice, the more it helps me (and everyone else reading this thread)

-Sahil.

 

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[MRiabov]

Hi all,

Thank you in advance for taking the time to read my post. I recently joined the Fastlane forum upon reading the Millionaire Fastlane and am currently exploring some ideas I could pursue.

Firstly, a bit about me. I'm a recent graduate student who majored in renewable energy engineering. I do have a technical background and was looking to develop something in either the e-commerce/Saas industry. I am a HUGE nerd when it comes to sustainability/climate change and find that I am quite naturally self-driven in this industry due to my drive to find solutions for climate change at an early age. However, I have been struggling to find anything worthwhile in the 6 months since I completed reading the Millionaire Fastlane .

My idea is to create an online store/website that distributes eco-friendly everyday items - think of things such as eco-friendly coffee cups, paper straws, or even sustainably sourced jewelry. Unsure as to how I would go about validating if this idea is worth chasing, but am driven to make it a reality if I can find a way to give it the green light .

The main questions I have surrounding this idea revolve around the following key points:

1) If you were in my shoes, how would you go about validating the need for this idea? I do recall this being one of the key concepts as a part of the "CENTS" framework. However, I am feeling a little lost with accomplishing this through an e-commerce store.
2) How would you go about getting your first respective buyers if you were to set up a platform like this? Do you run ads o platforms like Google AdSense or Facebook? Do you rely on word of mouth?
3) How many products would I list on my website? Should I scale according to customer demand?
4) What products should I choose to sell? How can I validate if what I'm selling will actually be wanted by the marketplace?

Apologies in advance if my questions seem a little basic, I am still learning the ropes of building a business. Please do not hold back with your advice and be as brutal as possible - the blunter the advice, the more it helps me (and everyone else reading this thread)

-Sahil.

Read the thread "Testing your idea" or something like that from NeoDialectic. It's all about your business variables. Tests your idea .

That said, are you providing relative value to your customers? In another words, are you providing value that your customers don't?

I don't want to be a naysayer, but something inside of me screams when I read your text. Read UNSCRIPTED first, it is a great update on TFL.

As for what I really see...
1. C - control
2. E - entry
3. N? Need?...

You don't own the product, the entry is essentially e-commerce and need is questionable.

Try, of course, but beware.

 

[sahil123720@gmai]

Just realized how wrong I sound in my post after doing some additional reading! Thank you for the eye-opener, much appreciated )