Trying to Figure Out A Business to Start?
Since starting this blog, I’ve had many people contact me directly asking various questions relating to business and doing business online. The number one question I am getting comes down to this:
Many people want to start a business, but they aren’t sure what to do.
My advice is pretty simple: stop searching for the next big thing and figure out a niche business providing a product or service that people are looking for.
The thing is – starting a business online doesn’t really have to be complicated. Most people wanting to start a business online would be satisfied with making low 6 figures a year in profits. That isn’t difficult to do. I’m not saying it is easy. I’m also not saying there isn’t work involved. But it’s not really not difficult.
Many people when starting online businesses look at affiliate marketing, blogging, arbitrage, information marketing, etc as options. There is a lot of information out there on how to make money doing these things. It’s not difficult to get started but it can be difficult for most people to see significant income versus having your own product or service.
Business Idea Generation for Serial Entrepreneurs
Serial entrepreneurs are people who create business after business. Sometimes this happens one at a time; other times multiple businesses are created simultaneously. The skill sets of serial entrepreneurs can vary widely but typically most are creative and strong at both marketing and monetization.
As a serial entrepreneur, my own approach to coming up with new business ideas is probably different than what it would be for an average person. I look to see what people want. Why do I take this approach? I’d much prefer putting my resources behind something that I know has a ready market than trying to create a market on top of everything else. Then it becomes simply a matter of tapping into the people who want to find what it is that I have to offer.
I do discovery through the following methods:
- Social media – what questions are people asking?
- Blogs – what do bloggers mention having a need for?
- Reviews – what reviews show new products/services are lacking but there is a demand for?
- Google Adwords Keyword Tool – what areas are growing in search and where is there potential?
- Forums – what questions are people asking? Where is there apparent need for a new product/service?
- News – what changes are taking place that will result in a need for new products/services?
- Company offerings – what new developments are taking place that would make sense to roll out to my existing client base?
Although most of what I do is in B2B (business-to-business), I am really open. If there is an opportunity, I will go for it.
I am simplifying things a good deal. Since I am an advocate of using domains to attract traffic, the ability to acquire relevant keyword domains also factors into my filtering. I probably look at several dozen new business ideas a month and may pursue only one of them.
Business Idea Generation for Newbies
If you’re at the point of trying to find your first online business to start, you may consider the above discovery methods but I’d recommend taking a bit of a different approach.
I’d suggest to start off with an area you are genuinely interested in. Try and drill down until you get it to a level that is manageable for research purposes. Then go through the above list to see what ideas you can come up with.
Let’s say for example you are very passionate about both golf and travel. You see that on forums, social media, etc there are a lot of people asking about golf courses in various areas they will be traveling to for work or pleasure. You find out that there is no review site of golf courses that lists details about different courses. So you decide to start a site where you collect the basic information about different courses and then allow user generated reviews. You then decide to approach different golf courses, resorts and shops about advertising. You can also include links for products to improve one’s golf game that would pay you a commission if a sale results (affiliate links). Finally, you want to include one personal review per month and look for courses/resorts to comp you and maybe work out a deal with an airline to be an official sponsor of your site.
Note: I have no idea if a site like the above exists already 
It’s a lot easier to start a new business if you already have some basic knowledge of the market as a consumer and if you are enthusiastic about it.
Good luck!
Photograph by NJ..
