(Late) Prof. Ramachander at B-school used to take this module on New Product Development. It was a fantastic course that focused on a very simple premise: Insight - Idea - Innovation. That's it. 

Our studies were built on this model. We will be given a case and asked to draw these three aspects out of the business. It might look simple at the outset. But when you get down to defining what is that unique customer insight that got translated into a multi-billion dollar business, it's not as easy as it sounds.

The case study which stands out vividly in my mind is the (very popular) Southwest Airlines one, the only airline to have been profitable ever since its launch. So what differentiated SW from the rest? What was their  unique insight? The answer might look like something to do with giving seats cheap. Sure, but how does that make you profitable?

(SW's unique insight was to compete with cars or rather ground transportation. Click here to read a case study on SW I discovered recently)

We used to dissect a bunch of businesses and arrive at the Insight-Idea-Innovation matrices. Finally, we had to do this project on creating a new product from scratch. My project partner Smitha  and I worked on this idea (it was her insight) of using heat generated from refrigerators to be used for warming up food. We did a neat job by speaking to housewives, meeting consumer durable manufacturers and dealers. Many thought we are a little 'off', but hey who was observing the wasted heat that your fridge produced. The project was a success. 

I still use the 3i matrix when I work on new ideas and projects. You should try it too.

Insight: that deep unique knowledge you have about a consumer. 
(music on the go, simple to use)
Idea: the concept that you can translate this innovation into. 
(a music player that fits your pocket)
Innovation: using the concept to convert the idea into an innovative product. 
(an easy to use, mp3 player that can store up to 1000 songs)

Today, if you have a new product in mind, there are multiple ways you can take it to market. 

Apart from Kickstarter, Quirky is an interesting disruption in the NPD market. It's simple - submit your idea, get voted and if Quirky selects it for manufacturing, you get royalties for life. You should check it out.

From an early age, I started reading business magazines and bios of entrepreneurs I could get my hands on. It was a little weird. I didn't like or play sports much. But I could tell a thing or two about the businesses I read about (this skill doesn't necessarily help you make money, FYI). At one point in time I even thought of starting a business called BB (short for Business Books; very subtle, I know). BB is like a birchbox of business books. I would have loved such a service if it existed. Business books ain't cheap and we don't typically read it more than once. (Anyone interested? Give me a shout.)

My earliest tryst with entrepreneurship involved bicycles. Except for my first, I upgraded to new ones mostly by selling the old one to other kids taking only the little incremental amount needed from my parents. I loved doing this and hustled the trade, negotiated and closed it all on my own. I started doing this in grade 4 and the last cycle trade I made was in grade 11. 

Coming to think of it, my earliest stint at business was not with cycles. I started this in-'house' (literally) magazine service where I reported the 'local' news and sold a hand-written magazine to all co-habitants for Re 1 a pop. It was ridiculous, but I took it very seriously and thankfully my folks bought it from me during the days I created them. Obviously, this did not last too long especially with my controversial reports on my siblings playing during study time not finding favouring and my parents could not go through this torture of sorting out our differences anymore. But I enjoyed it.

Maybe if you are young college student, or a kid, there are easier ways to start a business now without having to resort to the stuff I did. Trust me, there's never been a better time to be an entrepreneur. Here are some easier ways to get you started.

Weebly lets you create great-looking, fully-functional websites using a drag-and-drop interface (no coding required, whatsoever). I made this site completely free of cost on weebly and I love them.

And speaking of coding, in case you wanted to learn it, Codeacademy lets you do just that, in a simple, as easy as 1-2-3 manner.  In fact, I am doing a course on codeacademy as we speak and its awesome. Edit: Check out Learnstreet and Treehouse as well.

An online store? Start one with Shopify. I have helped some not-so-IT-savvy folks set up a store online recently using this service.

For those not going the internet route and starting a brick-and-mortar store/company, use Square to convert your phone/tablet into a credit-card reader. Start selling. You're good to go. Edit: The Indian equivalent that's come out recently is Ezetap.

If you are doing a good job online (or offline), advertising is free, and it seems to work too.

Want to expand, grow your network, partner, find co-founders, make connections, you already know this works very well too. 

And if you are really serious about the whole thing, Docracy opens up access to standard, legal documents required to start a company, manage and run it, contributed and vetted by the community. 

Isn’t it just awesome to be an entrepreneur now?

See this video of Steve Blank speaking about 'The Democratization of Entrepreneurship'

'Something Ventured' is one of the most  comprehensive and well-made documentaries on the VC industry. Filled with interviews with pioneers of the industry and the silicon valley revolution, this 2011 production gives you a ring-side view of how VCs make decisions that have helped create some of the world's most successful companies like Intel, Apple, and outliers like atari. A must-watch for all entrepreneurs, b-school students. Available on netflix (that's where I saw it) or buy it here.

I have run a family business and sold it. I have also run a start-up and closed it.

Through Godcap and this space, I hope to share thoughts and interact with young/college entrepreneurs. My area of interest is in products and services that become a regular 'way of life' in the consumer internet space, particularly platforms, networks and marketplaces.

So here goes.