How To Write Business Concepts That Win Stakeholder Buy-in (2024)

The heart of every successful business is a good idea—but an idea alone isn’t enough. In order to translate your initial inspiration into a living, breathing business, you need to flesh it out with practical details. This is the process of turning a business idea into a business concept—and it’s the first step toward creating a business plan. A business concept allows you to articulate exactly how your product will connect with customers, and it helps you get support from early stakeholders.

What is a business concept?

A business concept is a short and clear document outlining your business venture’s essential elements. Think of it as a bridge between your initial idea and a fully developed business plan. Your business plan documents also examine the viability of your idea, highlighting its strengths and potential challenges.

The importance of a business concept lies in its ability to provide a well-defined, concise snapshot of your plan’s key elements—often the very factors investors scrutinize when considering funding your enterprise. A well-crafted concept with solid projections attracts funders and shows that you understand the value of your business and how to sustain and grow it.

Elements of a business concept

A business concept doesn’t necessarily come with a preset template or a list of boxes to check. What you ultimately include in your concept depends on your business, its offerings, and your potential investors. Here’s what most business concepts include:

Description of products

At a minimum, your business concept should clearly and concisely describe your company’s products, highlighting the characteristics that set you apart from competitors. Though brief, this section is important, painting a compelling picture that captures and holds readers’ interests.

Target market

Your target market is the group most likely to buy your product and refer friends. Use this section to showcase your ideal customer profile (ICP). Your ICP is defined by their affinities (e.g., gardening, healthy eating, fashion), age, social concerns, family status, income level, price sensitivity, shopping preferences (e.g., online vs. in-store), preferred marketing channels (e.g., social media, billboards, TV, streaming), and geography (from world market to country to specific neighborhood). Use this part of your business concept to explain how you will tailor your messaging to your target customers.

Unique value proposition

Your unique value proposition (UVP) is a succinct declaration that outlines how your customers can expect to benefit from your product. Is it of higher quality? Does it last longer? Can you do what your competitors do but for a lower cost? Your UVP emphasizes why your product or service is the best solution available.

For example, if you’re designing a sound-activated sleep apnea pillow that adjusts firmness to open airways, your UVP will explain the product’s unique value to consumers. This might include superior technology, materials, and overall benefits—like higher thread count, greater comfort, or eco-friendly fabrics—that make your product stand out.

Business model

Your business model is your organization’s plan for generating money. It breaks down your finances, including project expenses, pricing, and profitability projections. It can also cover how your business will source inputs, prepare the product for market (e.g., manufacturing, suppliers, etc.), and deliver it to customers. This section lays the foundation for future business development.

Competitive analysis

A persuasive business concept demonstrates your familiarity with your industry. It outlines what competitors offer and analyzes their delivery, marketing, and pricing strategies. The more facts and figures you include in your competitive analysis, the better. This can preempt questions from investors, loan officers, partners, and other stakeholders about your business’s viability and market share.

Market launch strategy

Entering a market can be the make-or-break moment for your new business, and early stage investors will likely have questions about how you’ll introduce your offering to the world. Your launch strategy outlines your plan to make a lasting, positive first impression.

For example, if you’re opening brick-and-mortar stores, soft launches or preview events can engage local customers. For an online business, you might use social media teasers, build email lists, offer previews to influencers, and provide launch-day deals, like BOGOs or 10% off for new signups.

Growth potential

Much of your business concept will focus on preliminary details, but investors and other stakeholders are chiefly concerned with return on investment and long-term goals. How will you ensure profitability and business sustainability?

A good business concept outlines exactly how you plan to grow your business once you’re up and running. Will you target a new customer type or geographic market? Will you develop additional product lines or service packages? Will you launch an ecommerce operation alongside your brick-and-mortar shop? This section of your business concept outlines these strategies and their anticipated effectiveness, and includes rough execution timelines.

An example of a business concept

Consider a company that’s launching a dog camera with pre-recorded voice responses. This company’s business concept would include the following core elements:

• Description of product. This section explains how the security camera is designed for pet owners to monitor their pets while at work or traveling. The company describes how its product responds to barks or other distress sounds by playing soothing recordings of the owner’s voice.

• Target market. About half of American workers would rather bring their pets to the office than leave them home all day, but it’s not always an option. The business concept notes that with pet owners increasingly unwilling to leave their dogs unattended, there’s a growing demand for in-home camera systems. These systems, often linked to consumers’ smartphones, offer visual checks and live audio interactions. However, owners are not always free to tune in to their camera networks and soothe a pet’s distress in real time.

• UVP. The concept notes that its product provides peace of mind for pet owners. This type of smart dog camera not only allows for visual monitoring but delivers immediate comfort through personalized voice recordings.

• Business model. This section makes clear that the product will be available through brick-and-mortar pet shops, big-box pet retailers, and online via major internet shopping platforms. Pricing will ensure a 15% profit margin.