The first challenge any entrepreneur faces is to generate an attractive business model that will captivate his or her interest for the several years it takes to grow the business. Recently, I’ve assisted several London entrepreneurs generate new business models and in doing so, developed a set of useful techniques one of which I’d like to share.

Technique #1: Brainstorm in pairs and use consumer & technology trends as food for thought

1. Pair with someone else and ideally grab an airy bright room with a whiteboard

2. Randomly pick one or more consumer trends (see Trendwatching or  TrendHunter for ideas)

3. Based on your experiences, in the areas that relate to the selected consumer trends, identify and list out pain points or problem areas that you think require better solutions

4. Select one or more technology trends (see Gartner or TechRadar for ideas)

5. Using selected technology trends, sketch out technology solutions for the pain points which resonate with you the most

6. Maintain an open mindset and patiently entertain ideas and concepts that you ordinarily wouldn’t

7. Ideate for a couple of hours max till you have at least one business model with the target segment, value proposition, delivery mechanism and monetisation method identified