Are you trying to launch a startup but hitting a wall when it comes to finding a unique idea?

Don't worry, we've all been there! Almost everyone on their startup journey might have gone through this phase at some point.

I've had my fair share of failed product attempts before realising that I was doing a lot of things the wrong way.

Now, I'm able to release SaaS products that are being used by fellow founders and users.

approach to discovering startup ideas is something that I genuinely admire.

He a thought-provoking insight on how to come up with a great startup idea.

Paul says, the very best startup ideas tend to have three things in common:

• 1. They're something the founders themselves want
• 2. That they themselves can build
• 3. And that few others realize are worth doing

Why focus on a "problem" rather than an "idea"? Simply because it's the quickest way to monetize your idea.

Sometimes it feels like every problem has already been tackled, or there's already a solution out there. Tough luck, right?

Especially for all you aspiring entrepreneurs who have to choose between trading time or money to get your biz off the ground. Lucky ducks are the ones who can do both!

When you focus on solving a problem, you know you're spending your energy on something that's legit. That might sound like common sense, but the biggest mistake founders make is not validating their idea and trying to solve problems that don't actually exist.

To find out what problems people are facing, you gotta get a pulse on what people are struggling with. Once you have that, it's time to build products that solve those problems!

But the real question is, how do we know what people are really struggling with?

Well, there are a bunch of ways to explore free ideas from your day-to-day homies.

Search Engines are a great starting point. You can search for the questions people ask in your niche on Google and get some insights.

If you're into SEO, there are tools like Ahrefs, SEMRush, and AnswerThePublic that can suggest some pain points in your niche.

If that's not your thing, you can check out Reddit.

They have a subreddit for almost everything, so you can join relevant groups and observe what kind of challenges users are facing on a daily basis.

Social Media is also a goldmine. You can join Facebook groups, LinkedIn groups, forums, or communities to get an idea of what people are talking about in your niche.

Everyone is using LinkedIn, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and whatnot these days, so you can easily find people who need help with building a resume, finding a remote job, or writing a poem.

I even joined a few groups on Facebook and was amazed at how people are obsessed with this new kid in the market. Some are creating memes, TikTok videos, writing essays, sales copies, and whatnot.

Don't forget Twitter! Most founders and makers are very active on there, so you can follow hashtags that interest you and get tons of ideas from just one tweet a day.

Once you start thinking about problem-solving, the possibilities are endless.

Let's face it, not every solution needs to be unique.

As an entrepreneur, you might have heard people say that your product should be unique to succeed in the market.

But here's the truth - uniqueness does not always guarantee success.

There are countless businesses out there with a unique solution that failed to make an impact.

Rather than focusing on creating something entirely new, focus on providing a better solution to an existing problem.

You don't need to reinvent the wheel every time!

In fact, building on something that already exists can save you a lot of time and resources.

Plus, you'll have a better understanding of the market and its needs.

So, don't be obsessed with coming up with a unique solution.

Instead, focus on solving a problem in a better and more efficient way than the existing solutions out there.

A lot of times, we can simply replicate what others are already doing and provide something extra that they may be missing in their products.

There are a few ways to do this:

1. Look at negative reviews of the leaders in a category, do you notice any themes? Are they themes you can address?

2. Look at who the leaders are targeting. Can you build something specifically for a niche? Bonus points if it's a niche that will supporta healthy business but is too small for the incumbents to fight for.

3. Are there marketing opportunities you can exploit? What are they missing?

4. Can you translate the solution to a similar problem?

When you finally find some SaaS startup ideas that you're excited about, it's natural to worry that you're too late to the game.

But honestly, forget about them! Focusing too much on what others are doing can limit your creativity and vision.

If you look around the businesses in your locality, almost everyone is competing with each other and still surviving.

It's a very rare phenomenon where your startup may get killed by a competitor unless you lose interest in it.
It simply implies that there is a high demand for the product or service and the current solutions are insufficient in addressing various issues.

Focus on the problems you want to solve and how you can provide value to your potential customers. By doing this, you'll be able to create a product or service that stands out on its own merit, regardless of what the competition is doing.

Of course, you should still keep an eye on what your competitors are up to, but don't let it consume you. Use their successes and failures as learning opportunities, but ultimately, trust in your own abilities to create something unique and valuable.

While it's true that pursuing an idea that genuinely interests you is often the best approach to finding a great startup idea, not everyone has the luxury to do so.

For SaaS startups, the key is not so much to actively brainstorm or come up with an idea from scratch, but rather to pay attention to what is already happening in the world around you.

This is how many of the most successful startups are created.