From Idea to Offer

Welcome to Lesson 4 of 4 in Enterprise Building Foundations. It takes about 15 minutes.

An idea becomes a business when it becomes an offer: something specific, for specific people, that someone would pay for. In this lesson you will turn a skill you already have into a small first offer, and see what a fair price has to cover. Then a short quiz on the whole course, your Idea Capture Sheet, and three quick questions about your next step. Finish all four lessons to unlock your certificate and the Idea Spotter badge.

Scripture comes from the King James Version. This is general education, not business, legal or tax advice, and it cannot promise particular results.

Since last time

Last time you chose a small action: looking at what already exists for your problem, having one conversation using only the good questions, or asking someone for three reasons your idea might not work.

Look back at the week. What did you try, and what did you notice? If you did not manage it, say so honestly and carry it into this week.

In this lesson you will

• Turn a skill you already have into a small, specific first offer that someone would pay for, at a price that covers its cost.
• Recall the main habit from each lesson of the course: the three questions, spotting problems, honest research and a first offer.
• Complete your Idea Capture Sheet and say honestly whether your idea is ready for the next step.

Before you start

How true is each of these for you today, from 1 (not true) to 5 (very true)?

• I could describe exactly what I would offer, to whom, and what it would cost me to deliver.
• I know which skills of mine someone would pay for.
• I know what my idea needs next.

1. Start from the skill you have

The best first offers are built from skills people already have. When the tabernacle was built, the work went to people with real, specific skills.

Exodus 35:31 (KJV) 31 And he hath filled him with the spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship;

Bezaleel's skill was specific, and it was put to work on something people needed. Your first offer can begin the same way: with something you can already do well, not something you must learn while customers wait.

Most people have more of these skills than they think: cooking, braiding, repairs, tutoring, sewing, typing, cleaning, organising, translating, looking after children. To turn one into an offer, make it narrow:

• "Braiding for school children, at home, on Saturday mornings", rather than "I do hair".
• "Repairing phone screens within a day", rather than "I fix things".
• "Maths lessons for pupils preparing for exams, two evenings a week", rather than "I teach".

A narrow offer is easier to explain, to deliver well and to recommend. You can widen it later.

Think about it: What do you already do well enough that someone would pay for it this month?

Try this week: Write one skill of yours as a narrow offer: what exactly, for whom, and when. Say it to one person in one breath.

2. A first small offer, honestly priced

A good first offer is small enough to try this month. Make clear what the person receives and add one promise you can keep every time: "ready in two days", or "redone free if it fails within a week".

Then the price. Proverbs has an earthy picture of what work costs.

Proverbs 14:4 (KJV) 4 Where no oxen are, the crib is clean: but much increase is by the strength of the ox.

No ox means a clean stall and no harvest. Tools cost something, and they make the work possible. A fair price covers:

• Materials for each sale.
• A share of tools and running costs, such as transport and phone credit.
• Your time. Many beginners forget this and work for nothing.

Then check what others charge. If your price is much lower, are you covering your costs? Start with only the tools you truly need, and buy the ox when the field is waiting. Full pricing and finding your first customers are taught in KMA's Enterprise Building Track.

Think about it: When you think about pricing, which do you most often forget: materials, tools, or your own time?

Try this week: Work out roughly what one delivery of your offer would cost you in materials, a share of tools, and your time.

3. Your Idea Capture Sheet

Over four lessons you have practised four habits:

• The three questions: who pays, for what, and what it costs to deliver.
• Spotting problems: complaints are clues; start close to home; see it from their side.
• Honest research: ask about what people have done, and hear the other side before you spend.
• A first offer: start from a skill, make it narrow, price it honestly.

Below, you will bring them together in your Idea Capture Sheet: the problem, who has it, what they said when you talked to them, and a first small offer.

Your idea is ready for the next step when three things are true: you have a problem, you know who has it, and you have talked to at least one person who has it. If one is missing, that is your next task, not a failure.

Then three short questions help KMA suggest the right next step for you.

Think about it: Of the three (a problem, the people who have it, a conversation with one of them), which do you already have?

Try this week: Show your Idea Capture Sheet to one person who has the problem, and ask, "Would this help you?" Write down what they say.

Activities

Reflection

• Looking back over the course, what has changed in how you see the problems around you? What has changed in what you actually do?

Key takeaways

• An idea becomes a business when it becomes an offer: specific, for specific people, that someone would pay for.
• Start from a skill you already have, and make the offer narrow.
• Price honestly: materials, a share of tools, and your time. Check what others charge.
• Ready for the next step: a problem, the people who have it, and at least one conversation.

Your next step

You have finished Lesson 4, the last lesson of Enterprise Building Foundations. You are on the path of growth: you have an Idea Capture Sheet and know what your idea needs next.

These lessons give you the everyday basics. To keep growing, KMA offers two next steps:

Mentorship. Work on your own idea with a KMA mentor who helps you talk to real people, shape a first offer and follows up with you on what you tried. See KMA's mentorship packages. See the mentorship packages

Or: the Enterprise Building Track (monthly Learning membership). Prefer to learn on your own first? The Enterprise Building Track takes these basics further: a full one-page business model, a research plan with a small paid test, honest pricing and finding your first customers. See the Enterprise Building Track