In one episode of the Ali G show, Ali presents his idea of the “ice cream glove,” which helps people keep their hands warm and drip free while they enjoy their ice cream, to Donald Trump. Within 30 seconds he has Donald running away and probably calling security on Ali. That said, the ice cream glove is definitely not the worst example of an inventor, or even a multinational corporation, failing to do market research on their idea.
It’s important to distinguish between ideas and opportunities. An idea is just a concept with some potential. An opportunity is something that will add value to peoples’ lives and is something they will exchange cash with you for. So how do you tell if you have an opportunity?
How to know if customers will “bite”
Once you’ve figured out something that other people and businesses really need, you should determine if there’s …