While in college, students have a vast amount of resources
to start up a business- should they desire, and a good amount try. Equipped
with time, direct access to large amounts of quantitative/qualitative feedback,
fresh concepts learned in class, and even mentors such as professors, faculty, and
even other students themselves- it seems many more great start ups would come
out of colleges.
But generally, this is not the case. So why is this? Despite so
many resources students are exposed one would expect naturally for there to be more business start ups across the world.
According to blogger Greg Skloot in his post The StudentStartup Dilemma there is a common problem.
First off he said the problems were not from a lack of
talent, drive, or resources*(cough). Rather they were a result of one
underlying problem: they do not solve problems…
So what are some remedies to aid this issue, well here is
what Greg suggested:
- Think Outside the Campus- A problem for a college student is different for the rest of the world.
- Use the Three Problem Points- "Does my problem cost people money? Does it cost pain? Are people seeking solutions?
- Gather a ton of feedback- The people are there and can be accessed in class, via social media, or countless other means. If you think you have and idea, get feedback.
- Build something quickly and see if people will use or pay for it- What better way to see if someone will buy a product or service than seeing if they will buy your product or service?
- Ignore the consumer-web giants like Facebook, Twitter, Groupon, etc.- Not everyone will be the kid who created Facebook from an algorithm written on a piece of glass at Dartmouth, so don't try to be. The truth is even the least cutting edge businesses: painting houses, mowing yards, babysitting- can be built into a profitable empire-so lets be practical.
In using these five points as references, Greg argued students
will be able to check their logic and make sure their ideas could be sound
business and not just…well a good idea.
