Box up your business idea - Business model canvas

Did you know that you can convert your business idea into a business model using a canvas made of 9 boxes?

It's called the Business Model Canvas.

Instead of going through the drag of writing up a business plan when your idea is still young, you can use the business model canvas in a much more interactive and creative way.

The 9 boxes

The 9 fields of the canvas represent the essential parts of any business model.

• Customer Segments - Who is going to pay you?
• Value Proposition - The products or services that create value for your different customer segments.
• Channels - How do you interact with your customers to deliver the value?
• Customer Relationships - What types of relationships do you establish with your customers?
• Revenue Streams - How do you make money?
• Key Resources - How do you create and capture value? What are indispensable assets?
• Key Activities - What do you need to do really well?
• Key Partners - Who can help you?
• Cost Structure - Where does your money go?

It's practical

If you work with somebody else on it, it is really handy to print a large canvas, pin it up and stick post-its on it whilst discussing your idea.

When I work alone, I generally prefer just typing into digital copy.

The canvas is a great tool to sort out your thoughts and test ideas. It gives that entire creative process a structure to follow. That is probably what I like most about it. I usually feel lost or get annoyed in meetings where ideas bounce around, but are difficult to capture and in the end nothing gets done. The canvas solves that for me.

More info

Here is the first Youtube video from a series of short videos by Strategyzer explaining the Business Model Canvas in more detail.