Researching the market for your business idea is a long, tedious job, especially when you have come up with a very unique idea that might not have been tried out anywhere else.

When you are in the beginning stages and trying to assess the marketability of your potential business, try enlisting friends and associates who fit your target customer group. Ask them for assistance in exchange for a latte or a lunch at your house. Then pick their brains!

You can either choose to meet each person separately, but often by meeting in a group setting, the creative juices can get flowing much better as each person has the opportunity to hear what others think.

During the meeting, ask what they would look for in that type of business. What things would be most important to each person? Hours, availability, personal touches? Of course, it would depend on the type of business you have planned, and you can come up with lots of ideas.

What other ideas can your friends come up with that would relate to your business idea? Why or why would they not use your business or service?

Be sure to bring notes of questions you can ask just in case everyone has an attack of shyness. You can also print out a quick rundown of your business idea and give a copy to each person.

Ask each person to be as honest as possible. You want their true opinion, not a rose-tinted version that your friends give you. The last thing you want is to get glowing feedback on your business idea, only to find out that your friends secretly believe your business will tank.

If you think you are getting good feedback for the sake of friendship, you can also ask your friends for the best thing AND the worst thing about your business idea.

Doing this type of market research is a great way to get feedback on your new business idea, especially when you are just not sure of the true marketability. This will help ensure you do not put too much money into a business that is doomed to fail.

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