The Guided 9-Stage Framework by Bozward & Draycott (2017) is a structured approach to entrepreneurship that helps individuals move from idea generation to a fully operational business. It is particularly useful for those who need a clear, step-by-step guide to navigate the complexities of starting a company.

Overview of the 9-Stage Framework

1. Self-Awareness -- Identifying personal motivations, skills, and entrepreneurial mindset.
2. Idea Generation -- Exploring business opportunities and evaluating potential ideas.
3. Market Research -- Understanding customer needs, competitors, and market conditions.
4. Business Model -- Developing a structured model (e.g., Business Model Canvas) to outline value propositions, customer segments, and revenue streams.
5. Business Planning -- Creating a detailed business plan covering finances, operations, and marketing.
6. Legal & Compliance -- Setting up the legal structure (e.g., LTD, LLC), handling intellectual property, and ensuring regulatory compliance.
7. Resource Acquisition -- Securing funding, recruiting a team, and acquiring necessary assets.
8. Launch & Growth -- Implementing the plan, acquiring customers, and scaling the business.
9. Sustainability & Exit -- Evaluating long-term strategies, adapting to market changes, and planning an exit strategy if needed.

Is It Worth Using This Framework?

• Pros:

  • Structured and methodical -- Helps prevent missing key steps.
  • Great for first-time entrepreneurs -- Provides a roadmap to reduce uncertainty.
  • Balances personal and business aspects -- Includes self-awareness and exit strategies.
  • Can be combined with other frameworks -- Works well with Lean Startup, Business Model Canvas, and financial planning tools.

• Cons:

  • Can feel rigid -- Some entrepreneurs prefer a more flexible approach.
  • May slow down execution -- Not all businesses need extensive upfront planning.
  • Not ideal for rapid experimentation -- Startups relying on fast iterations (e.g., Lean Startup) might find it too structured.

Are There Better Approaches?

It depends on your business type and goals. Here are alternative frameworks:

1. Lean Startup (Eric Ries)

-   Focuses on building a **Minimum Viable Product (MVP)** quickly.
-   Uses rapid iterations based on customer feedback.
-   Works best for tech startups and innovative ideas.

1. Effectuation (Sarasvathy, 2001)

-   Entrepreneurial mindset approach: Start with available resources, then discover opportunities.
-   Ideal for startups with limited capital and uncertain markets.

1. Business Model Canvas (Osterwalder & Pigneur)

-   A one-page framework to map out value propositions, revenue streams, and key resources.
-   Great for visualizing and testing ideas quickly.

1. Blue Ocean Strategy (Kim & Mauborgne)

-   Focuses on **creating new market spaces** instead of competing in existing ones.
-   Best for innovative and disruptive businesses.

Best Approach for Your Business (Dhruvi Infinity Inspiration)

Since your company focuses on B2B SaaS solutions with automation and AI, the best approach might be:

• Lean Startup -- To test and validate your SaaS products quickly.
• Business Model Canvas -- To define customer segments and revenue models.
• Guided 9-Stage Framework -- To ensure legal, financial, and operational aspects are covered.

Would you like me to help create a customized hybrid framework tailored to your business model? 🚀

4o

You said:

So please write me neccessary steps to build my ruby on rails app that implement those models with code please

ChatGPT said:

To implement a Ruby on Rails SaaS app based on a hybrid approach combining the Guided 9-Stage Framework, Lean Startup, and Business Model Canvas, you'll need to follow these essential steps:

🚀 Step-by-Step Plan to Build Your SaaS Business Builder App in Rails

(Combining the 9-Stage Framework + Lean Startup + Business Model Canvas)

📌 1. Setup Your Rails App (Foundation)

Tasks

• Install Ruby and Rails
• Initialize a Rails 7 app
• Setup PostgreSQL (recommended for SaaS)
• Configure Devise for authentication
• Add Tailwind CSS for styling

Code Implementation

bash

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`# Install Rails (if not installed)
gem install rails -v 7.0

Create a new Rails app

rails new business_builder --database=postgresql --css=tailwind

Move into the project directory

cd business_builder

Setup database

rails db:create db:migrate

Install Devise for authentication

bundle add devise
rails generate devise:install
rails generate devise User
rails db:migrate`

📌 2. Define Core Models (Business Model Canvas)

We need models to represent business ideas, customer segments, revenue streams, and market research.

Models

• BusinessIdea: Stores business name, description, and owner.
• CustomerSegment: Defines target customers.
• RevenueStream: Defines how the business will make money.
• MarketResearch: Stores insights about competition and industry.

Generate Models

bash

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rails g model BusinessIdea name:string description:text user:references
rails g model CustomerSegment name:string description:text business_idea:references
rails g model RevenueStream name:string description:text business_idea:references
rails g model MarketResearch competitor:string insights:text business_idea:references
rails db:migrate

📌 3. Implement Lean Startup (MVP & Validations)

• Add validations to models to ensure data integrity.
• Implement associations between models.

Models with Associations

app/models/business_idea.rb

ruby

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`class BusinessIdea < ApplicationRecord
belongs_to :user
has_many :customer_segments, dependent: :destroy
has_many :revenue_streams, dependent: :destroy
has_many :market_researches, dependent: :destroy

validates :name, presence: true, uniqueness: true
validates :description, presence: true, length: { minimum: 10 }
end`

app/models/customer_segment.rb

ruby

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class CustomerSegment < ApplicationRecord
belongs_to :business_idea
validates :name, :description, presence: true
end

app/models/revenue_stream.rb

ruby

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class RevenueStream < ApplicationRecord
belongs_to :business_idea
validates :name, :description, presence: true
end

app/models/market_research.rb

ruby

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class MarketResearch < ApplicationRecord
belongs_to :business_idea
validates :competitor, :insights, presence: true
end

📌 4. Build CRUD Features (User Can Add Business Plans)

• Scaffold controllers to manage business ideas, customer segments, revenue streams, and market research.

bash

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rails g controller BusinessIdeas index new create show edit update destroy
rails g controller CustomerSegments index new create show edit update destroy
rails g controller RevenueStreams index new create show edit update destroy
rails g controller MarketResearches index new create show edit update destroy

Example: Controller for Business Ideas

app/controllers/business_ideas_controller.rb

ruby

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`class BusinessIdeasController < ApplicationController
before_action :authenticate_user!
before_action :set_business_idea, only: %i[show edit update destroy]

def index
@business_ideas = current_user.business_ideas
end

def show; end

def new
@business_idea = BusinessIdea.new
end

def create
@business_idea = current_user.business_ideas.build(business_idea_params)
if @business_idea.save
redirect_to @business_idea, notice: 'Business idea created successfully.'
else
render :new, status: :unprocessable_entity
end
end

def edit; end

def update
if @business_idea.update(business_idea_params)
redirect_to @business_idea, notice: 'Business idea updated successfully.'
else
render :edit, status: :unprocessable_entity
end
end

def destroy
@business_idea.destroy
redirect_to business_ideas_path, notice: 'Business idea deleted.'
end

private

def set_business_idea
@business_idea = current_user.business_ideas.find(params[:id])
end

def business_idea_params
params.require(:business_idea).permit(:name, :description)
end
end`

📌 5. Add Views with Tailwind

• Create simple forms for adding new business ideas.

Example: New Business Idea Form

app/views/business_ideas/new.html.erb

erb

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`

Create a New Business Idea

<%= form.submit "Save Idea", class: "btn btn-primary" %>
<% end %>`

📌 6. Implement AI-Powered Market Research

• Integrate an external API (e.g., OpenAI, Hyperhuman) to generate market research insights.

Example: AI-powered Market Research Service

app/services/market_research_service.rb

ruby

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`require 'openai'

class MarketResearchService
def self.generate_insights(competitor)
client = OpenAI::Client.new(access_token: ENV['OPENAI_API_KEY'])
prompt = "Provide market research insights for the competitor: #{competitor}."

response = client.completions(
  engine: "gpt-4",
  parameters: {
    prompt: prompt,
    max_tokens: 100
  }
)

response['choices'][0]['text'].strip

end
end`

Usage in Controller

ruby

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`def create
@market_research = MarketResearch.new(market_research_params)
@market_research.insights = MarketResearchService.generate_insights(@market_research.competitor)

if @market_research.save
redirect_to @market_research, notice: "Market research added successfully."
else
render :new, status: :unprocessable_entity
end
end`

📌 7. Deploy and Test

• Use Docker for local development.
• Deploy to Heroku or Render.

Deploy to Heroku

bash

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`# Install Heroku CLI
brew tap heroku/brew && brew install heroku

Login to Heroku

heroku login

Create a new app

heroku create my-business-builder

Push code to Heroku

git push heroku main

Run migrations

heroku run rails db:migrate`

📌 8. Gather User Feedback & Iterate (Lean Startup)

• Add Hotjar or Google Analytics to track usage.
• Run A/B tests on features.

📌 9. Monetize & Scale

• Implement Stripe for payments.
• Offer freemium & premium business plans.

🚀 Next Steps? Would you like help integrating Stripe for payments or building an admin dashboard for tracking users?