Have you ever considered the extent to which Google  controls what you’re exposed to? Tap a search into the search engine and there are typically millions of results, but Google puts them in order (based on goodness knows what) so there’s very little prospect of you discovering stuff which Google places well down the list. Million short is a new search engine that attempts to address this.  It enables users to remove up to the first 1,000,000 most popular results in order to make browsing the web more surprising and give the underdog a fighting chance.

After installing Million Short, users can simply select how many of the top results – anything from 100 to 1,000,000 – they want to discount, and then search as usual.  Search results will then be displayed, along with details about which sites have been excluded. If the user spots a link they want to see, they can still access it.

Perhaps you might to give this a try, or maybe it will give you a little inspiration and encouragement. If there’s a desirable alternative to something as big as Google, there have to be viable alternatives to the ‘big boys’ in your market.

Website: https://millionshort.com/

As we’ve said many times here before, the great thing about a subscription based business is that it provides continuity of income. The box subscription concept is becoming increasingly popular, and can be applied to many markets. Customers pay a monthly subscription, and in return receive a box of ‘goodies’ each month, specially selected for them on the basis of  either their regular usage patterns or their stated preferences.

We’ve seen this business model applied to tea, coffee, chocolates, beauty supplies, specialist foods, dog treats, vitamins and razor blades to name but a few.  So what else could you try? The key points  to bear in mind are that suitable products should be consumable, relatively low priced and cheap and easy to deliver.

There’s nothing new about providing a decorating service, so what do you do to stand out from the crowd. You might not be able to paint better than everyone else, but perhaps you can do it quicker. That’s the premise behind WOW 1 DAY Painting which promises to deliver quality work by skilled painters – all in one day.

The appeal of this is obvious. One of the main downsides of having decorators in the house is the upheaval. This company promise to have it all done and dusted in a single day. And in a technological world where people are becoming increasingly used to instant gratification – getting it now – this is a big selling point.

WOW 1 DAY Painting is a US based company. Could you bring the concept to the UK? Thinking more widely, are there other traditional, mature businesses that could benefit from a one day style make over?

I’ve just read about a scheme in Uruguay to give free entry to clubs to people who register zero for alcohol on a breathaliser.  The Ministry of Public Health introduced the scheme in order to combat drunkenness and alcohol poisoning amongst  youngsters who often drink on the beach in the day, before a night out,  to save money. The scheme is designed to  discourage them from drinking in excess, and also benefit participating clubs, since the youngsters will buy more drinks in the club while, hopefully, still consuming less overall.

It looks like a potentially win-win arrangement, and I wonder whether it might work in the UK too, where similar problems exist. Thinking more widely, are there any potential win-win opportunities like this in your area of expertise and influence?

Car insurance is expensive, and let’s face it, most of the time we’re not actually driving a car. Cuvva is a service that aims to provide short term insurance for people who don’t actually own a car, but borrow  or share the driving in one  from time to time.

Previously, drivers looking to borrow a car from a friend or family member were required to arrange to be covered by the owner’s insurance policy, usually for a minimum of 24 hours and with time-consuming paperwork. Through Cuvva, you can insure for as little as an hour, and paperwork is kept to a minimum.

Thinking more widely, the idea of offering a service for a much shorter period than is customary, is an interesting one.  Few months ago, we wrote about hotel rooms that can be rented by the hour. What else might find a market if it was offered on a very short term basis?

Website: www.cuvva.co