Ideas don’t build S***, EXECUTE! (Part 1)
Every great thing in existence today started as an idea in the head of someone. Execution of those ideas brought their vision into existence.
In this blog, I will like to highlight from my personal experience and how I came to the conclusion that, ideas don’t build s***(projects, businesses, relationships, etc). My focus here will be on entrepreneurs and startups.
Personal Story
In Q4 of 2018, I was talking with a software engineer at our office about the advancement of tech and the various solutions that are being built to solve everyday problems. In the conversation, he said, “It seems developers in this part of the world are lazy, we don’t like solving the hard problems. If we did we would have improved the USSD ( Unstructured Supplementary Service Data) experience by now.” This statement hit me hard and I couldn’t stop thinking about it.
Later, I (non-techie) went back to the software engineer (with experience from the telcos) to understand how one can build an exceptional application with great UI for USSD. He explained a lot of things to me, much of which were complicated stuff. At the end of the discussion all I wanted to know was, is it possible? As you guessed, Yes, it is and I immediately got an idea on how to go about it. Right after the meeting I called two software engineers (my friends) and asked them to assess the idea I had.
The idea was simple, to develop an app that could handle billions of USSD transactions seamlessly while giving users a great experience (UX), all without an internet connection. Features like generating unique QR codes for each number for fast & easy transactions were to be implemented. I thought of how we could market it to institutions to list their services on the app. Institutions like the National Insurance Scheme, Fund managers, Banks, etc would be potential customers.
I started researching on smartphone penetration in the Ghanaian market. Android surfaced as the leader because of its price to meet the low class. Mehn!! I even thought of how the lower-class users will distribute the app through Xender because they are very cautious of data usage when downloading apps. Access internet penetration stats on Ghana here.
Time went by and I didn’t hear anything positive from those I shared the idea with. There were concerns about whether the telcos will be onboard with this plan. The other concern was security. At this point, I had started working on another idea which I could execute ASAP.
And then BOOM!!!
On 24 July 2019, I came across click2go on DevCongress slack group. I was amazed that another person had the same idea and was working towards it. I downloaded the App and started using it for my airtime and internet bundle purchase. Since the current version didn’t allow for momo transaction, I had to do it the old school way dial it in my call app.
I decided to connect with Nana Kwame Nyantakyi, the developer of click2go, and we shared ideas on features that could be added to the app.
Fast forward
On 1st September 2019, another developer from the same DevCongress community released a beta version of his app called FayaPay. Yes, you guess right, it’s also a USSD protocol app that allows you to use USSD services without connecting to the internet. His app like the earlier one allows you to purchase airtime & bundle but has also figured a way to let you perform momo transactions. Again, you have a unique QR code assigned to your phone number which can be used to receive payments.
After seeing and using the app, I sat down to reflect…This was what I said to myself. Three people had the same idea, one (myself) let the idea remain an idea and did no productive work on making the idea work, the second (click2go) started and built the app for people to use but with basic features, the third (FayaPay) also built the app, launched with a lot more features and got an edge over click2go and of course, me.
Ceteris paribus, if at this current state the 3 of us go out to seek investment who do you think is likely to get funded? Obviously the third.
If business ideas could be stolen and executed easily, big firms won’t be making acquisitions
This ending is going to feel like GOT final episode and you might be pissed right now, but don’t worry. There is always another season. I will bring it all home in part two.
In part 2, I will talk about how entrepreneurs can share ideas without giving away too much or sharing proprietary information …Stay tuned, Cheers🥂
