Step 1 of 6 · Find ideas

How to find startup ideas worth testing

Guides on finding startup and business ideas: sources that work, turning a problem into an idea, and mining communities and reviews for real pain.

  1. 1 Find ideas
  2. 2 Validate demand
  3. 3 Score & choose
  4. 4 Market & pricing
  5. 5 Launch & traction
  6. 6 Risks & red flags

4 find ideas guides

  1. 1Intermediate · 5 min readWhy vertical SaaS still has roomVertical SaaS means software built for one industry's specific workflow rather than a general capability sold to everyone. It remains less crowded than horizontal software because each vertical is individually too small to attract large competitors, requires domain knowledge that is expensive to acquire, and rewards workflow depth over feature breadth.
  2. 2Beginner · 6 min readHow to find startup ideas: six reliable sourcesGood startup ideas rarely arrive as a flash of inspiration. They come from looking repeatedly at a few dependable sources: problems in your own work, things you already pay to have done, big products that do too much, unglamorous industries, rule changes with a deadline, and gaps between tools.
  3. 3Intermediate · 6 min readHow to turn a problem into a business ideaTo turn a problem into a business idea, sharpen it in stages: write a specific problem statement naming who suffers and when, identify who would pay to fix it, describe the job they are trying to get done, sketch the smallest solution that does that job, and choose a narrow wedge — one segment and one use case — where you can win first before expanding.
  4. 4Beginner · 5 min readHow to find startup ideas in online communitiesOnline communities are a record of people describing problems in their own words, often with the workaround and the frustration attached. The richest sources are niche forums, one-to-three-star reviews of established products, job listings for manual roles, vendor support threads, and posts asking whether a tool exists.

Learning paths that cover this

Key terms

Horizontal SaaS
Software built for a common function, such as invoicing or project management, used across many industries.
Ideal customer profile (ICP)
A precise description of the type of customer who gets the most value from your product and is easiest to win.
Jobs to be done (JTBD)
A way of understanding demand by asking what progress a customer is trying to make, not what features they want.
Unbundling
Pulling one function out of a large, general product or platform and building a focused product just for it.
Vertical SaaS
Software built for the specific workflows of one industry, such as dental practices, construction or logistics.
Wedge
A narrow, compelling first product or use case that gets you into customers before expanding into a broader offering.
Full glossary →

Templates

  • Problem statement template

    A one-page structure for describing who has a problem, how often it happens, what it costs and what they do about it today.

All idea guides