Continued from Part 1

Blueprinting your Social Network

First, try to describe your concept in one sentence with a few keywords.  The thinking here is that you should be able to describe your web start-up in one succinct sentence so that you can then stick to this core concept when fleshing out the details of your site.  Remember that oftentimes the more narrow in focus and easy to understand your start-up is the more potential it has to go viral. Think Google.  People won’t talk about it if they don’t know what it is or why it would benefit them quickly enough.

As an example, I am currently working with team to launch our start-up “social directory” SurviveDivorce.com.  In thinking about the concept, I have narrowed the description to: “SurviveDivorce.com is a social directory connecting persons going through divorce with professionals, resources and other’s at different stages in the divorce process.”  Notice I have stayed away from any fluff words and only spoke about the core utility of the site.  Fluff can come later.  Also, there are important features left out of this sentence.  For instance, one of the features we’re incorporating into the site is a “stealth mode” for users to give them ultimate privacy while they use SurviveDivorce.com to the fullest.  This will be a differentiating feature, but people aren’t going to come to the site for privacy, they’re coming for utility.  Privacy is simply a way we can earn their trust and time and differentiate from less-conscious competitors. Privacy is a feature we’ll describe in our Blueprint.

Now that you’ve brainstormed and written your concept sentence, it’s time to flesh that out to a basic outline.  And I do mean basic.  Write down the main features you are initially envisioning for the site.  Use bullet points.   This feature-set is sure to change, so just get everything on paper at this point.  Now that you’re ideas are on paper, it’s time to make a list of your competitors.

The reason I suggest analyzing the competition as such an early stage is because the web is a pretty fast-paced and innovative environment.  Before you spend hours and hours planning your concept without regard to what’s on the market, take the time now to see what’s out there.  Create a spreadsheet and do some creative Googling.  Find as many competitive websites as possible, focusing on direct competitors.  Add the URLs to your spreadsheet along with a brief description on the site.  Note its design, features, community size, length of time in business, strategy, and pricing to start with.  The goal is to be able to easily compare competitors as well as use this information to determine who the major players are and how business is going for them.

It’s also key in my opinion and based on experience to not marry your idea before you date it for a while.  I see many entrepreneurs so in love and committed with their first idea that they are blind to reality.  You must think of the business planning phase as test driving a car or going on a date.   Your goal is to flesh out your idea, check the facts and then make an educated decision on how to proceed.  Don’t be afraid to abandon ship if you don’t like what you find or don’t feel as comfortable as you did before you realized Goliath was already present in the marketplace.

Next time we’ll talk about analyzing your target market, further fleshing out the website concept in the form of a blueprint and building financial projections.