Why do companies and people aspiring to start a business need to generate ideas? Isn't it just about noticing a niche in the market and going out and providing that product or service? It's not always as simple as "build it and they will come." Most products and services always have room for improvement, and before entering one of these markets, a company should first try to establish how it can be improved. The ways to accomplish such tasks are through idea generation techniques. The same goes for existing products and services that need to be improved. There are many ways to generate ideas, including: • Questioning assumptions • Triggered brainwalking • Redefining opportunities • Creative problem solving • Brainwriting https://www.innovationmanagement.se/ 30/05/2013/le-7- greatest-ideation-techniques-of-all-time/ Four main techniques There are many more among these, but in this study we will only look at four of the main idea generation techniques. Focus groups Focus groups are one of the most common types of idea generation techniques used around the world. The main purpose of a focus group session is that a group of people are asked about their perceptions, opinions, beliefs and attitudes towards a product, service, concept, advertisement, idea or packaging. Questions are asked in an interactive group setting. where participants are free to talk to other group members. Everyone's opinion is valued and there are no wrong answers. The first ever focus group was held at Ernest Dichter's home in a room he built above his garage. They have come a long way since then. The benefits of holding focus groups include the following: • The ability of participants to interact with each other When... middle of paper... opportunities opportunities. The result of using this type of idea generation can be beneficial to the company as it can highlight a problem with a certain type of product, giving the company the opportunity to expand into this market or improve a product or existing service it already provides.Reverse BrainstormingReverse Brainstorming is very similar to the original brainstorming activity, except that criticism is allowed. Attention is focused on the negative aspect of a product or service, which means that special care must be taken to ensure that group morale is preserved. The way the process is generally handled is to identify everything that is wrong with an idea and then discuss ways to overcome the problems. Overall it is a very interesting technique and can be very useful for remedying a recurring problem for which it is difficult to find a solution.