Business Idea Key Terms

Some key terms for turning business ideas into realities
By J. Stoltzfus, writer/programmer LOCAL CITIZEN At some point in their lives, many Americans have a good business idea. The way that public structures are set up tends to facilitate new small businesses, but for those who want to take the plunge, there are many challenges to successfully getting that business up and running. New business people face a learning curve concerning what's needed to start up a legitimate business and what it takes to run one. New entrepreneurs can read up on basic terms that are useful for getting great business ideas made into concrete realities.
 

Market (and marketing) research

Market research and marketing research often get confused. Market research is the basic study of how a business idea will "do" in a current market. This is crucial for business ideas and startups in any field.
Try: Learn more about market research and marketing research from Marketing Teacher online.

Niche market

A niche market is a little space in a market that is not currently filled to capacity. Many smart business ideas trade on getting into one of these spaces and providing something that will "fill the niche."
Try: Learn about the definition of niche marketing from Texas A&M. Or use SCORE's "60 Second Guide to Creating a Market Niche" to get started in finding that niche for your business startup.

Home-based business

A home-based business is any business that is conducted from the home of the founder, co-founder or entrepreneur. A home-based business can apply to many industries from data entry to specialty chocolate production.
Try: Find a definition on what constitutes a home-based business from America.gov. Read up on home-based business ideas at Entrepreneur.com.

Franchise

A would-be business owner can often take advantage of a "business idea in a box" in the form of a franchise. A franchise allows an investor to buy the rights to using an already established business name for creating an independent shop. Detailed legal agreements rule franchise relationships.
Try: Get a detailed definition of what a franchise is from Business Law.

Business plan

The business plan is the cornerstone of a well-thought-out business idea. The business plan includes much of the original business idea's brainstorming, and is also a master plan for setting up a business.
Try: Find out a lot more about what goes into a business plan at this helpful small business guide from the U.S. Small Business Administration.

Fictitious name

For many new business people, the idea of a fictitious name is a tough one to understand. A fictitious name is a name for a business that needs to be registered as an identity for that business.
Try: Learn more about the fictitious name and registering business names from Nolo.