What's the best way to brainstorm and compare business ideas? If you didn't guess it right away, the answer is Venn Diagrams. Venn Diagrams allow professionals to creatively organize data to see the relationships between multiple sets of ideas in the simplest way possible. They were first created in 1880 by mathematician John Venn for logic and philosophy, but some say the roots of Venn Diagrams go back even further, all the way to the 1200s, with the first use by philosopher Ramon Llull of Majorca. Over the years, Venn Diagrams have grown in popularity in the business world as an important tool for brainstorming and strategic planning. They are especially useful for entrepreneurs to show how their products and services match customer demands and to gain insight into what the market wants.
Our Venn Diagrams collection provides over forty unique, customizable charts which you can download and customize for any business need. It includes standard venn diagrams, cluster diagrams, linear diagrams, stacked diagrams, and target market analysis diagrams, plus many more. Now, let's review some of the top slides in the presentation that you can use.
Venn Diagrams are a powerful tool for strategic planning, project management and different types of brainstorming. Venn Diagrams can use any number of circles, or any other shape. The presentation includes a standard two-set diagram with circles… and other shapes… where two sets of data or ideas can be compared. The overlapping area is used to indicate shared traits, while the non-overlapping sections indicate characteristics that are unique.
This could be used to compare products, either comparisons between your company's products… or between your company's products and those of a competitor. This can help you see how effective you are at differentiating your product or service. You might also use it to help decide between two products, such as a car, to purchase. The Venn Diagram can show which features are exclusive to each car and which features both cars have. In this example, the text that is normally within the diagram is listed outside it, so that it's easier to read and doesn't become too cluttered. (Slide 5)
There are times when a simple two-set just doesn't cut it. If you're building a business strategy or managing a project, there are often multiple components to take into consideration. A cluster diagram allows you to generate ideas without feeling restricted or forced to create overlap. All the areas can drive objectives individually. Each project you manage will need to comply with a specified budget or scope.
This diagram could break down your project's budget … into labor costs, materials costs, or operating costs, for example… and show the relationship between all of the budget's components. It could also be used to show the relationships between team members, with different circles to represent different tasks that make up the project, and the names of assigned team members under the corresponding circles. Team members who work on more than one task may overlap with the nearby circles, which gives a clear visual representation of which team members will work directly together. (Slide 29)
The linear diagram is ideal when you design a plan that has some sort of chronological order. Each component only shares commonalities with its neighbors. If there are five key steps to your strategy, for example, step one or two might have overlap… such as a handoff process from one team to another. The first circle could be for stakeholders, who pass on their needs to the product management team in the second circle. Then, product management passes the project brief to the research team…who then passes on their research and insights to the design team, who finally hands off the product design to the development team. (Slide 38)
A stacked diagram is almost always used to visualize market sizes. The concentric circles imply that the entire process is interrelated. The total addressable market is at the top, which is the total market size of a potential product or service. This is then narrowed down to the serviceable addressable market, or the customers you can reach with your business…This is finally narrowed down to the serviceable obtainable market, which is the portion of the market you can actually capture. (Slide 40)
With multiple stacked diagrams, you can compare different potential markets. This is useful when you present to stakeholders and need to justify a business decision. Stakeholders might think they have an idea of what market to go after, or which market is most profitable, but a clear visualization — while it won't completely refute their opinion — will let you show clear evidence and allow the numbers to speak for themselves. Their simplicity makes them especially useful when talking to non-technical audiences. (Slide 41)
Venn Diagrams are an ideal way to illustrate all the potential possibilities for your business, whether you're comparing new ideas, market sizes, or organizational structures. The diagrams provide an easy-to-read reference that decision-makers can use to check the strength of their ideas and plans. And remember: you can download and customize this Venn Diagrams presentation for all your brainstorming and strategic planning needs to save time and hours of work.