The Venture Mentoring Service of Innovate St. Louis
The InnovateVMS Social Enterprise Idea Generator
The Idea Generator is a mentoring program of InnovateVMS to help nonprofits identify viable, sustainable revenue sources. The Idea Generator is based on the market research technique of ideation or the process of creating new, innovative ideas and concepts.
The IVMS Idea Generator
The Idea Generator is a program that is engaging, awakening, and fun. InnovateVMS assembles an ideation team that consists of InnovateVMS mentors, social entrepreneurs, and college students. Ideation Team members are chosen based on their interest in the nonprofit’s social mission, their professional or educational interests and background, and their ability to think and express their thoughts creatively.
The IVMS Idea Generator is a 90 minute session where the nonprofit's management team will discuss their organization’s vision and passions, basic financials, a description of the constituents they serve, and a basic analysis of the market in which they operate. Through a series of questions, exercises, and brainstorming, the ideation team then identifies or generates ideas for potential earned revenue opportunities and the strengths and weaknesses of each are discussed.