“Your idea is worth nothing” is the headline of Forbes post discussing the Snapchat lawsuit. Similarly a post in the Entrepreneur states that “Your ideas have no value”. Is that the same as that your business idea is of no importance anymore?
Over the last decade there’s been a shift emphasizing the business model rather than the business idea. In many aspects this makes sense, but do we push it too far? Business modeling helps us developing a rough idea into something that may be executed. In line with the lean startup approach a resource efficient method is applied, increasing our chances to eventually achieve a good product market fit. This is all true, but choosing the business idea more carefully may create a far better starting point for a business modeling exercise. There are a number of things to consider before moving into modeling, which may improve the chances of creating significant value. Not all business ideas are worth wasting time and resources on. A business idea with a limited potential can seldom be saved be an extensive business modeling effort. It may be a better strategy to go for existing well established business ideas. Business model innovation applied to well established business ideas may create substantial new opportunities. Most recent successes are not based on new business ideas. Starting with the right business idea is rather to start within the right area where the action may be and develop from there. Then business modeling and execution can do wonders, but that is not the same as that business modeling and execution can create value out of any idea. An idea in itself may not have any value, as the two posts above state. It’s all about execution and what you do with an idea. That the idea in itself does not hold any value is not the same as that it is of no importance, but rather the opposite. Choosing the right idea to work with is still a cornerstone when building business, like in the cases refereed to in the two posts above. Given that more or less all ideas have been tested or formulated, coming up with a business idea is to excel in extracting the winners out of existing ideas, rather than making up your own.
Business Creation 
Relating to my own work in this course, I know that I have caught myself thinking about how to come up with an extraordinary idea that no one has ever thought of before. For me, in my mind, that was the only way of creating a successful business. But as Carol Roth stated in the post “Your Ideas Have No Value”, the chance that any idea already exists is very big. Also, by putting a lot of focus on the business idea, it limits many people who think that their ideas are not good enough and never enter the modelling stage. Thus, I agree with the view that more focus should be put into the business modelling part, because anyone can conceive an idea, but very few can realize its full potential. However, it is also true that it is important to choose the right kind of area to develop a business idea from. For example, Shane (2009) in his article “Why encouraging more people to become entrepreneurs is bad public policy” stressed that many start-ups tend to fail because most entrepreneurs are bad at choosing the right industries. As with most things in life, a balance between different elements is needed. Neither the business idea nor the business model can survive without the other.
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I find this discussion very interesting. For me it is evident that the idea must be credible and bring something new and of value to even be considered as a potential business. It is first after this point that the idea can really become a sustainable business to develop. But as the article states, the point where the business model is developed is of course also a crucial component. Despite this I believe that it should although not be in the center of attention, but rather the business idea itself. This create more incitements for sustainable development and raises the odds for creating a long term successful business.
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The first question I ask my self is: When does a business idea turn in to a business? When the company have had it´s first customer? Pay the first salary? And my second question is: When is a company successful? When the customers find the product or service value adding? When the company reached a certain turnover?
I think the correct answer for both of the questions is “it all matters on the situation”. I agree with the two authors that just an idea do not have a value. But the minute you start to work with the idea you add value to it. In the beginning it can be market analysis, customer interview and business model design that add value. When you launched your business the value will (hopefully) continue to increase as the company refines the idea. So a business does have a certain value, but compare to what the value is further down the road it will increase drastically.
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We all have millions of ideas running through our heads, but what differentiates a successful entrepreneur from one of us mere mortals, is the ability to build a value-creating business on a specific idea. I remember in the beginning of this course that we were told there was no reason to try and find a completely new idea with which we could create a business, because basically everything has already been though of. This might be a slightly exaggerated statement, but there is a lot of truth to it. To think that you are the only one to have ever thought of a specific idea seems a bit pompous, as well an underestimation of your fellow humans. As we also have been told in this course, the fact that other companies are already working with ”your” idea shows that the idea appeals to others and holds a lot of potential. If you manage to find an area in which no one is currently working, you should ask yourself why before you jumping into it. Is the idea even possible to execute?
I completely agree with Colao’s statement in “Your Idea Is Worth Nothing: A Rant, Sparked By The Snapchat Lawsuit” that it is the work somebody puts in to an idea that gives that person right to economic compensation. There can be no reward without risk, and if you have not put in any work, foregone any opportunity cost or invested any time at all besides the 30 seconds it took for you to tell someone about your idea, you can hardly claim any right to a company which has taken blood, sweat and tears to build. As explained in the post above, what distinguishes a successful company built on the same idea as an unsuccessful one is the business model and the execution of the idea. A great idea or a great business model cannot separately guarantee a successful company, it is when they are put together that the magic happens.
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Well it is interesting because as the writers point out, and we have experienced in this course, ideas are usually just modifications of what is already out there, if even that. It may be the exact same thing but more smartly executed.
And this tends to say that ideas indeed are not where the value lies, although I would also argue that it depends on what type of idea or in what industry the idea is intended to be a business. For example if the idea is to be a service or a product, if it is a service then that value lies in the execution of the idea since the organisation and work methods within the company to a larger extent define the end product. But if the idea is a product, than right away the founder may have created an idea in a way that no one has before and it is easier to replicate by copy cats. The idea in itself may to a larger degree contain part of the answer to producing the idea.
With this reasoning I would say that the overall message that the articles above give are to a large extent true because today when services are becoming increasingly popular and ideas are abundant the likelihood of an idea being unique is low and the business rather comes from hard work and risk-taking.
The question also remains when something changes from being an idea to being more than that and therefore worth protecting, since ownership after all is one of the central principals that the modern society has been built on
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Before reading the two articles I thought of business ideas as the most valuable parameter since the business idea itself forms a basis for the execution/business model. However, after reading the two articles I have changed my mind somewhat regarding who deserves the credit and where the actual value lies.
I think that if a person who comes up with a business idea also executes it (even if it’s not all the way to goal), that person deserves credit and I would say that the business idea is also valuable. As in the case with the Snapchat lawsuit, I think that Reggie Brown deserves somewhat credit for his idea since he was co-founder and a part of the first step developments. However, if a person comes up with an idea and does not act on it at all, he/she person does not deserve any cred for the idea.
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The two articles are very interesting and what specifically struck me was the way VCs choose which startups to back. Indeed it is so much more the management team and the people behind the execution that they will eventually invest in – and not the ideas. This also proves that chemistry between investors and executioners has to be right, which often means that investors become interested in backing startups in which they see potential in the execution form, or even can identify their own execution style through the startup. However I do believe that ideas have great value, because with great execution you still need to have an edge and therefore, even though the idea might already have been thought of by others precedently many times, I do believe that good executioners give something extra to the idea in order for it to become a success.
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As all of our basic needs are fulfilled at this point, one can only make small improvements of those basic needs or one can make less crucial solutions to problems we did not even know we had. Since the digital revolution and technological advances are leading the way in creating new business opportunities, many people with internet access can execute an idea and most people can brainstorm enough to come up with a business idea of an improvement. As ideas tend to solve problems of less importance higher and higher up in the pyramid of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, the differentiation of the ideas is in the execution and introduction to the market – the first point of contact with the potential customer.
The multibillion dollar business concepts of today are often valuable because of their user base and the recognition, which happens after the introduction to the market, redefining the whole product life cycle and making the market introduction the most crucial step in the process. If you cannot differentiate yourself in the market with your idea, what else is there to make you stand out? I believe it is only natural that the value is in the execution phase, given that the ideas generated in this new paradigm we live in are considerably different than previous multimillion dollar ideas. They do not consist of actual, physical, products and the need for them is often abstract and not as straight-forward as the need for the inventions before the digital transformation.
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My first thought was, as others have mentioned as well, that the initial idea is the most important. After further thought it is probably because I think it is impressive and interesting to think about revolutionary ideas. Of course the initial idea is not worth anything if it doesn’t get realized.
It is interesting to discuss these subjects that in one way are so obvious, yet so difficult. I recently read an article about shark tank where the investors said the person behind the idea and the business is what is interesting. Their, the investors, challenge is to recognize a “good enough” idea and the market for the product. The snuggle is a fun example mentioned here.
Previously we have talked about the fact that we need to create value for the customer. The initial idea does not have any value itself to start but the potential may be their. Some very successful people just have the ability to create great businesses out of anything. That is impressive!
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I would not go so far to say “your ideas have no value” but the articles have a great points. Of course there are a great amount of skill, hard work and passion to develop the idea into a successful company.
It is hard to say which one is the better, because they are interdependent. Thea idea is useless without a good business model, and vice versa the business model is not good without the idea.
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I actually agree that ideas are worth nothing unless you work on implementing the idea and show real effects on the market. In case of business model it is has a value because it makes sense of the idea suggested. As JJColao mentioned in his article “”Your idea is worth nothing” that business model gives value to the idea by making it into something that can be executed.
It is important to start by looking at the areas that has business opportunities or as mentioned in the article above where the action may be and make a business model from there. When the idea is turned into a product then you will see a value in it.
I also agree on the last paragraf written by JJColao that “Business isn’t a race to think. It’s a race to build products and acquire customers.”
I believe the second article “Your ideas Have no Value” written by Carol Roth is more convincing in case of that ideas have no value than the first article, because it gives clear examples.
This subject is interesting and has changed the way I think about ideas. Now I believe what is important is not that you come with an idea but it is to execute it what is important.
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While reading this post and the linked articles I was really thinking exactly the same thing you pointed out in the end; it’s all about the execution. And for the execution to be great the idea also need to be great—for you. You need to either have or gain more knowledge about the subject than everyone else. And you’ll need to have passion for the subject matter, otherwise you won’t sustain. But the idea itself is nothing unique and something I’m really tired of is people hiding away their ideas, because they believe they someone else will take it and do it before or better than them. That is not how it works. We should instead be open with our ideas and share them among us, inspire and help each other out.
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I find both articles very interesting and I consider that the execution of the idea holds the main value. At the same time I believe that a great idea may be a crucial factor when it comes to success, however, it is insignificant without the realization.
Every student in this course has probably understood the importance of a well-defined idea and business model in this stage of the process. I agree with Carol Roth as she claims that you should not put too much effort in protecting your idea. This is of course hard, since somebody probably is thinking about the same –but in the end it is all about who turns the idea to a product or a service.
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Just as many other have said the articles were very interesting. I have always thought of ideas as being extremely important and neglected the fact that execution can be much more difficult. However, after reading the articles I have gotten a new perspective. Most people can come up with an idea but not everyone can execute it. When trying to come up with possible business opportunities in this course one often thought of already existing ideas but modified in some way. By sharing ideas and having a market for them, different actors can focus on what they are best at and the possibility to create new and innovative business opportunities is enhanced.
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These articles are very interesting and bring up an important topic that I think is forgotten by many people these days, including myself. After reading I totally agree with the authors that the value of an idea depends on the management behind it and their execution. However, I also agree with the article that choosing the business idea more carefully may create a far better starting point for a business modeling exercise. I believe that an idea can be more or less suitable for different entrepreneurs and their skills. The fact that VCs tend to support the people behind the business idea and their ability to execute it, indicates that there is an indirect value in the idea that depends on the influencing factors and circumstances for every particular situation such as, the people behind it, the people behind the VCs and so on. Why I think it is hard to say that one way will create more value than the other when choosing between an already existing business idea and try to execute it better than the management before or making up your own idea.
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I would say that most ideas are worth nothing since almost every business idea that grown to be a big business have been tried over and over again until there is a perfect match between the team that executes the idea and the circumstances surrounding the team and the idea. So I would say that the idea in itself is worth very little but an idea combined with a good team and good timing is worth much more.
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How often does one come up with the idea that will stay the same after implementation? My guess is that the billion-dollar ideas seldom come out as first sketched or thought of. Every idea is based on assumptions of market demand and of course, if the first assumption is close to reality that is great and less work has to be done in order to become a business. Frankly put, ideas does not pay bills businesses does.
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It seems kind of harsh if a business is developed by a couple of individuals which is then pursued by one of them, leaving the others out of profit. It may be understandable if nothing else than just the idea has been contributed, but in some manor it says something about the person who took the idea. The author of the article “Your idea is worth nothing: A rant, sparked by the Snapchat lawsuit” speaks of the importance of being able to create a product. If nothing of value comes from an idea, then the idea is worth nothing. I guess he is right, but I also think that if anyone of us would get our idea stolen by one of our potential collaborators, then we would also be mad that we weren’t involved and could have a piece of the pie.
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I recently took a course in business model innovation which dealt with exactly this type of questions, don’t focus on the idea itself, use an established idea but innovate parts of the business model where you see potential to be unique or different. I think this course will make us do the same by analyzing industries and not focus on specific ideas but rather parts of the industry that will experience great change as technology evolves. This doesn’t necessarily mean that we have to come up with a new idea but instead innovative ways to change existing ideas with new technology. I also think the linked article was very interesting and I agree with the author that it is the team behind the execution of an idea that will make that idea profitable not the idea or business model itself.
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The easy way out will always be to rely on an already existing and well established kind of business ideas. When I read the article I do not think that it is two extremes. I think that one drives the other.
To be able to have “great execution and what you do with the idea” you have to have an idea that also suits timing and trend of the world today. By modeling you can come far but this with long detours.
If we look at history there is a clear combination between a good business idea, modeling AND of course tons of execution and will that has built the most successful companies.
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I would like to question the distinction between idea and model here. Where do we draw the line between them and how does that relate to where value is added. As Theresia suggested above, it seems as we start adding value to an idea as soon as we formulate it in our own words – what ideas do we even consider to be of interest? But then again value will be accumulated through the efforts of this ongoing formulation of the idea, although perhaps in a more continuous manner than suggested by the concepts of idea and model.
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I believe in two things that enable people to be more creative and identify business opportunities:
1) Decide that you want to be a person that identifies business ideas.
2) Make sure to surround yourself with other people that are discussing and coming up with ideas.
Which is similar to the findings that Steven Johnson discusses in the youtube movie “Where good ideas come from”. In my case I try to be at Stockholm School of Entrepreneurship and study and work as much as possible. There I run into this type of people and get into the right mindset that enables me to have the right “glasses” on. I shall try to find more co-working spaces or incubators like that.
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I think it is interesting what is written about ideas, that business ideas are just modifications of other existing ideas. And also what we have been discussing in class that all ideas we came up with already have been or is up to be tested by someone else. When starting a new business, this is a part you have to count in.
This gives be a sense of hope, because I think myself that I do not have great ideas and I have problems thinking in that way in my daily life. But with this in mind, maybe I can stand a change and just modify another’s great idea to make a difference.
I also relate the first linked test to my daily life. I would say that more than one time a day someone else or myself says something like: “That what exactly what I was going to say/do.” And as written in Forbes, it is worth nothing if you do not do it, or at least try to. Even though we have another relation to business ideas. If you steel someone else’s business idea you may feel very bad, but are you actually? It is, like everyone writes and says, a huge risk to start a new business. And you have to work your as off, with no or vary low pay. That is the sacrifice that is worth something!
But as written in the post about, have we taken this too far? Even though it is the hard working people that deserves the success, they could not have been doing that without the idea?
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Jag tycker det känns viktigt att lyfta skillnaden mellan ”business idea” och ”business model”, speciellt med hänsyn till diskussionen kring värdet av en idé kontra värdet av att förverkliga idén. Som denna kurs är upplagd har vi arbetat med att komma fram till business ideas från megatrender i samhället och tittat på möjliga förändringar i samhället och infrastrukturen. Vi har också haft mycket fokus på att identifiera problem och motstånd som kan komma att uppstå och arbetar med att hitta lösningar på detta och hitta vägar att ta sig runt problemen.
Att kunna vända sin, eller någon annans, business idea till en business model är mycket lättare sagt än gjort. Och det kanske är just därför vi diskuterat och läst just om att endast själva idén inte innehåller det verkliga värdet. En av de viktigaste frågorna att ställa sig för att kunna lyckas med detta kanske är just: Vad säljer vi till vem? Detta för att kunna marknadsföra på rätt sätt men även för att kunna bygga hela modellen kring det faktiska värdet.
Allt detta vi har läst och sett om idéers ursprung och värde känns för mig mycket positivt. Då jag känner att jag inte är en person som spottar ur mig idéer. Så för att öka mina chanser att se fler möjligheter och lösningar kommer jag ta med mig metoderna vi har använt i kursen och även lärdomarna från youtube-klippet. Det vill säga att de flesta framgångsrika idéerna och modellerna uppkommer i samarbete och att olika människor tänkte olika och kan komplettera varandras tankar. När jag har berättat för vänner om den här kursen är det flera som har sagt: Jaha, jag skulle ju inte dela med mig av mina idéer. Vilket jag har försökt svara på genom att säga att det inte handlar om att framföra sina egna idéer, utan att lära sig hur man kan hitta möjligheter. Nu känner jag att jag har något mer konkret att svara när jag får en sådan reaktion igen. Och samtidigt kanske försöka få dem att förstå att det är genom samarbete man kan nå framgång.
Jag tror också att det är vanligt att man gör det för svårt för sig. Ibland kan det vara bättre att börja enkelt. Man vill alltid prestera så extremt högt att det kan slå tillbaka och istället bli ingenting. Det kanske än bättre att börja försiktigt för att testa och sen utvidga. Om man vill göra något eget kan man ju till och med titta på andra som misslyckats med en idéimplementation som kanske egentligen var mycket bra. Och istället modifiera den och kanske lyckas. Lite som med Wrapp, fast de själva gjorde modifieringen.
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Johnson belyser att han tror att den historiska ökningen av ”connectivity” har varit en av de största drivkrafterna bakom både vetenskaplig och teknisk innovation. Jag tycker att det är intressant att han även tar upp vad internet gör med våra hjärnor idag. Numera är vi ständigt uppkopplade och ”multi-taskar” ofta, något som jag tror både kan gynna och hämma kreativitet. Det kan gynna innovation genom att vi så oerhört enkelt kan ta del av andra människors tankar och idéer, utan att behöva gå till ett så kallat ”kaffehus”. Vi kan dessutom ta reda på om någon annan sitter på samma idé och redan har börjat utveckla denna i t.ex. Australien (något som tidigare hade tagit betydligt längre tid). Jag tror dock att den ständiga tillgången till information (i princip vad som helst, bara ett klick bort) kan få oss förvirrade och ofokuserade i vissa fall. Har man kommit på en idé (eller flera) kan det således vara svårt att veta om man ska gå vidare med denna eller försöka satsa på någonting annat. Jag tror däremot att fördelarna är fler, då bl.a. internet idag fungerar som det nya ”kaffehuset” som möjliggör en ny plats där idéer och tankar kan utbytas.
Jag håller med honom att många lyckade idéer slår igenom efter en lite längre tid då de tar lång tid att utveckla. Han menar att detta beror på att de skapas genom kollisioner av så kallade ”hunches”, vilket jag tycker är en finurlig visualisering. Jag tror på att många entreprenörer ofta har behövt modifiera och bygga på sina ”originalidéer” innan de fått ett stort genomslag.
För att se fler möjligheter och lösningar tror jag framförallt att man ständigt ska försöka strecha på sina rutiner och ta sig ur komfortzonerna. Det finns oändligt många sätt man kan göra detta på, t.ex. genom att arbeta med nya personer i grupparbeten eller börja på en ny sport. Jag tror att man bibehåller sitt kreativa tänkande genom att alltid testa nya saker och framförallt använda sin positiva sida. Man ska självklart inte blanda ihop detta med att vara naiv. När jag är positiv brukar åtminstånde jag lättare komma på lösningar på problem i jämförelse med om jag hade varit negativ. Har man väl kommit fram till en lösning eller sett en möjlighet tror jag att det även är viktigt att vara modig och våga misslyckas, för att överhuvudtaget gå från idé till handling.
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Kommentar missad föreläsning:
Materialet är väldigt intressant och det jag tar med mig är att man konstant måste titta på vad människor har för behov och hur man kan tillgodose dessa, men även att man när man har en idé måste fundera lite extra på den och kanske kombinera den med något annat för att det ska bli någonting riktigt bra. Där måste man för att hitta rätt i dagens uppkopplade värld välja rätt informationsflöden att följa för att få ut den största potentialen ur den enorma kunskapsbas som finns därute. För att även om vi genom internet har väldigt lätt att nå folk med idéer innebär det också att bruset är väldigt stort. Förutom att göra det svårt att hitta rätt information gör bruset att vi kan ha svårt att balansera tiden då man är uppkopplad med tid då man inte är det och enbart bearbetar sina tankar eller kommunicerar face-to-face. Jag tror i alla fall personligen att man måste ha en kombination för att få ut det mesta av sig själv och möjliga idéer, så en balansgång behövs där. I en värld där folk har svårt att hålla konversationer utan att konstant titta på sin mobil tror jag att det kan vara svårare att nå djupa insikter, men samtidigt ger det potential att nå ut till fler.
För min egen del tror jag att det är viktigt att jag som skrivet ovan dels hittar en balans mellan egen reflektion och kommunikation med andra, både irl och genom internet. Exempelvis kan jag komma på mig själv med att vara så pass rastlös att jag så fort jag har “dödtid” så kommer telefonen fram istället för att jag låter den vara och sådant tror jag kan bidra till att man får bättre idéer och reflekterar över problem bl.a.
Sedan tror jag också att för egen del är det väldigt viktigt att jag vrider och vänder på ett problem för att hitta den bästa lösningen då jag har lätt för att fastna i spår.
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In my mind it is obvious that business ideas have value – the specific business they envision could not be made without them. That does however not mean that we are not allowed to copy them (since ideas exist only in the immaterial world I can copy your idea and you still have it).
I can see ways in which it makes sense for it to be frowned upon copying ideas; there are many ways in which we as a society decide to hold back from doing certain things when everybody doing so make us better off. In western movies (and surely in less exaggerated terms in the real wild west) enemies have usually mutually agreed to only attempt to kill one another in very controlled and ceremonial circumstances. This makes it so that they can relax during all other times of day. With this in place it is very simple to just choose to break the agreement but that is regarded by society as not clever but rather just uncivilized and anyone doing so will be shunned upon.
I believe that in certain ways we view startup ideas the same way. It is easy to just take a good idea and try to implement it in a business yourself but this annoys those who are of the belief that we have agreed to not copy each others’ ideas. In some ways that agreement would make sense as it would allow founders the time to implement their idea in a thoughtful manner rather than just hastily trying to be first to market before someone else implements the same idea.
This whole question could then appear to be one not of disagreements on the value of ideas but rather what we have agreed on regarding copying of them. I do however also believe that many of the Snapchat-like lawsuits are simply opportunistic and not really about moral disagreements.
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