Last week, we covered three big questions every founder must answer before investing energy, time and money in a startup idea:
- 1. Is the market big enough?
2. Is the problem urgent? and
3. Will customers pay?
If you missed it, go read previous edition.
Now, in this edition, we go deeper. Today’s focus is on three new filters that are make-or-break for most startups in the early stage:
✅ Can your idea be standardized?
✅ Will it give you recurring revenue or is it a one-time hit?
✅ What’s the competitive landscape, and how should you think about it?
Let’s dig in.
1. Can your solution be standardized?
If your product or service needs a new process or customization every single time, you’re not building a business, you are into a profession at best.
Standardization means building it once and selling it 1000 times with minimal variation.
Test yourself:
- Can you package the offering in a way that doesn’t change for every customer?
- Can a new team member or franchise run it using SOPs you create?
Examples:
✅ Yes: Canva Pro subscription, online courses, Uber ride flow.
❌ No: Custom website development for every client, customized gifting / printing, wedding planning, event management, handmade one-off art, consulting, one-on-one coaching etc.
Standardization = Scalability.
2. Can you earn recurring revenue or just one-time hits?
This is the “compounding engine” of any smart business.
A customer who pays you monthly/yearly is far more valuable than one who pays once and disappears.
Ask yourself:
- Is your product regularly needed?
- Can you build a subscription model or repeat-purchase cycle?
Examples:
✅ Recurring: SaaS tools, insurance, grooming kits, online coaching.
❌ One-time: Wedding dress, Interior Designing, or any non-recurring services
One-time models are not bad but without a repeat sales mechanism, they need constant customer acquisition, which burns time and cash. Customer Lifetime value (CLTV) which is an important metric of any business goes for complete toss in such cases.
3. Are there others already doing it?
Spoiler alert: If no one is doing it, that doesn’t mean you are the smartest. Probably many before you tried and failed. Remember there are 7 billion plus people on this planet.
I am not asking you to look for a 100% original idea. Rather you should find a smart entry point into a market that already has customer behavior and demand.
What to check:
- Who are the top 3 players already doing something similar?
- What are their strengths, weaknesses, pricing, positioning?
- Can you find a gap in audience, feature, experience, price, or geography?
🟡 If the space is too crowded with no clear point of difference — dangerous.
🟢 If the space is new but with signs of life (some players, some traction) — great place to build.
This is not about copying. It’s about competing smart or even better – positioning differently.
Quick Self-Check:
Bottom Line:
Your startup can’t survive on “hope and hustle.”
You need repeatability, revenue predictability, and clarity about where you stand in the market.
Don’t build something that drains you every day just to make few thousand rupees.
Build something that scales while you sleep.
If you want personal help running your idea through this checklist, you know where to find me.
Stay sharp. Stay real.
Happy Venture Building!
Abhishek Tiwari
