By Solo Entrepreneur · 14 September 2026 · 2 minute read
Before you begin
List the skills, tools and contacts you already have. Then describe three customer problems in plain language. Talk to potential customers about how they currently solve each problem before proposing your solution. Choose one idea to test with a defined service or sample. Track the effort needed to deliver it, not just interest in the idea. A repeat request is more useful evidence than a compliment.
Turn a skill into a small offer
Imagine someone comfortable preparing product photographs for local shops. A first offer could be a defined set of images for a small catalogue, with a clear delivery format and revision limit. That is easier to discuss than a broad promise to handle all marketing. List the equipment, travel and preparation involved. A skill becomes a business hypothesis when you can explain who needs the result and how you would deliver it.
Test the effort as well as interest
Complete a sample using products you are authorised to photograph. Record the time spent arranging the work, producing the images and making corrections. Ask potential buyers how they currently obtain photographs and what usually goes wrong. A compliment about the sample is useful feedback, but an agreed next step is stronger evidence. Keep your early commitments small enough to honour while you are still learning.
Choose one experiment
Solopreneur Business Ideas become more useful when narrowed to one audience, one offer and one way to reach buyers. Use Finding Your First Customers to plan conversations and One-Person Business Operations to estimate delivery capacity. Record what would make you continue or change the idea. Avoid buying a large set of tools before you know whether the offer solves a problem people prioritise.
Put the notes to work
Prepare a brief with the free planning tool →