A Happy new Year!

I’m Hiro, working at New business promotion Div of a petrolenum company in Japan.

This is my first time to comment on your questions.
I’d be very happy if my comment help you some!

Question 1 -

I think there are “three steps” to make a decision, if I were an independent Entrepreneur:
1. I would make sure how the company is seriously interested in my product idea by asking whether the company can write comment or recommendation if some VC is requested. If the company says YES, then I can make sure that my idea is enough attractive for it and there is high potential for winning that the company will buy my product in the future.

2. If the first step is rejected, then proceed to seek other buyer or VCs who shows curiosity about my idea or even is willingly pay upfront supports in order to make a test model product.

3. If there is no buyer at both steps, then I need to realize that my idea so far does not worth being payed by anybody and this means my idea is not attractive and possibly the time is not ripen enough. So I need to decide I should deicide whether to keep on moving recklessly or quit finding prospective customer and start thinking about another oppotunity.

Question 2 -

I think there are “two steps” to make a decision:

1st. I’ll find out the potential market size of the market in coming years.(i.e. how large the future market will become?) If i can find the crue which shows this market will grow far more than current level and my product cannot be mimiced by any body for long time because of technological paten for example, then I will start soon. Moreover even if my R&D cost does not match the income of the product, because I can establish frontier position if it is now, and the position or technological know-how will become my exclusive strength about the product and I can understand the customers needs from the beginning.

2nd. If the 1st is not the case, then I will think about my reasource allocation whether the profit is enough to support my minimum annual or monthly life budget as long as I am engaging in the project. If the profit level fulfills my expectation, then I should get involved in the project. As jfh says above in his comment, it is wasteful to miss a ripe apple to fall in front of me!

I’m looking forward hearing from you.

Best regards,
Hiro

The question is: What should you do? Take the business or move on to some other opportunity?

Please leave your analysis in the comments section and I’ll give my opinion after getting a few of yours.

2. Yes. I would take.

Happy new year!

Juliana

1 –
…”So you ask the customer if they will advance you the cash”…
If you propose use their Facilities (to give secure that you will work everyday), show a project with cash flow linked with specific deliverables (with this they will see each dollar being delivery) and show that if they will do the project with their team they will spend more money and time maybe they will accept cash in advance!

…”It’s a small amount in comparison to their cash on hand”…
Focus on show that they will spend small money if they do himself (cash flow of the project + fixed cost with employees)!

2 –
…”this product does not lead to a scalable business”…
Yes… Non scalable business in Brazil are growing (higher profit on exclusive projects)…it means, 5 customers in parallel with exclusive products are scalable in this kind of business…

Thanks…

Leandro

Let’s see if all your wisdom has rubbed off on me a bit…

1)Walk away: find a company/person willing to partner with you and share the risk.

2)Never turn down a “sure” profit. Do the transaction and use the profit to continue to entrepeneur..if that’s a verb.

Peace,
John

PS: now you have to “follow” my blog: sherbornpastor.blogspot.com

For the question 1:

I would seek for another opportunity! I learned that the client should fund the project! Search investment banks, independent investors and friends or relatives is not recommended.

For the question 2:

I sell the product to the customer and I get the profit of the first transaction, so I can invest the profit in a new business idea to another client.

Drunk’s walk…

Thank’s.