What is important to focus on in laying out a business model?

Take-aways from a talk in the Trust Center on 6/27/16

1. “Articulate your model” - Alex Osterwalder’s business model canvas

• This is an iterative process with three main steps:
• Getting from business idea to business model
• Visualizing your business model
• Iterating the business model
• A good business model should be: interesting, scalable, have the right infrastructure
• Don’t let others’ examples block your creativity, try to think outside of the box
• All nine building blocks are correlated and work together:
• Customer segments
• Value propositions
• Customer relationships
• Channels
• Revenue stream
• Key resources
• Key activities
• Key partnerships
• Cost structure

2.  Three guidelines

• Focus on the business, not on the semantics – the canvas is mainly for getting the principles set and there’s no need to spend too much time on perfecting it.
• Don’t fall in love with your first model
• Iterate rapidly and learn from the iterations. Most business models change after testing with customers – don’t let this discourage you.