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by Derek Gehl
Most internet home business entrepreneurs fail when they start their internet business because they make one large error.
They don’t find out if there are potential customers for their product before deciding on what to sell.
Successful entrepreneurs start home businesses by finding under-served niche markets — BEFORE they decide what product or service to sell.
Once a product or service is found that can service a particular niche market, the internet entrepreneur must do market research to ensure their idea is a profitable one.
So if you want to avoid the deadly mistake that causes the majority of Internet startups to fail, follow these three essential steps.
Step #1: Brainstorm your own passions and interests
Entrepreneurs who start home Internet businesses based on their own knowledge, experience, and expertise are far more likely to be successful.
If you don’t find your internet business idea enjoyable you will not be motivated to stick with it and put in the necessary work needed to make it a success. Before finding your underserved niche make sure to brainstorm your interests and let them be your guide.
Unique skills and interests can come in a surprising variety of forms. For example, knowing how to pass the exam required to become a firefighter is a skill on which you could base a business. So is quilting, or collecting model trains, or kicking a bad habit like smoking or biting your nails. But a lot of people find it difficult to think of their own unique expertise.
The best way to get started is to create a list of all the jobs you’ve ever had… all the hobbies you’ve ever pursued… all the volunteer work you’ve ever done… all the times you’ve helped someone and felt really good about it… and all the challenging situations you’ve had to overcome in your life.
Then go through the list and pinpoint where your particular areas of skills and interest lie. When you’ve got a few different topics, you’ll be ready to do some research into potential businesses.
Step #3: Find your niche
When finding your niche market you should think small if you want to find large profit online.
A small, untapped and specialized niche market can be the source of big revenie online.
On the Internet, niche markets are groups of people searching for an answer to a common problem, but aren’t having much luck finding relevant results.
The fact is, most people do not go online to buy at least not right away. They go online looking for information to solve a problem.
Once you’ve found a group of people who are all looking for a solution to the same problem — without success — you’ll have discovered the “hidden treasure” that will form the basis of your successful internet home business!
If you start with a big, broad market you will likely find it full of competitors. You need to think small.
So be patient and explore all the possible avenues. You’ve got to drill down, down, and down again — until you finally strike gold!
How will you this kind of market?
With a simple keyword research tool like BeBiz you can find out exactly what people are looking for — and failing to find - on the internt, based on the passions and interests you identified in Step One. Then all you have to do is think of a way to sell them what they’re looking for.
If you start your internet home business this way, you’ll know there’s a market of eager potential customers out there who need your product even before you’ve spent any time or money creating it! But even when you think you’ve found a niche, you can’t just rush off to create the hot product you think everyone will want to buy. The next step is to validate your market.
Step #3: Validate your market
To validate your market you need to confirm it has profit potential. Can you actually make money from it?
To find out, ask yourself these four key questions:
1. Is the market easily defined and reachable? Most potential markets will already have places where they congregate. Online groups, forums, discussion boards, clubs, and special websites will give you the opportunity to analyze who exactly your potential customers are.
Find out who your potential customer is and you will have a better idea of whether or not they will buy from you.
2. Is the market small enough so there aren’t many competitors, but big enough to be profitable?
You want a small pond, but it still needs enough “fish” in there to make it worth your efforts. If you find lots of competitors who are well established, well supplied, and well funded, back away! You should look for a smaller, more precise niche.
3. Do your potential customers have money… and are they willing to spend it?
You need to know if these people actually buy stuff… so it’s a good sign if there’s some competition already selling products to the market. You’ll have a much harder job selling to people if there are too many free products or free sites available.
4. Is your niche willing to spend money on your product in order to solve their problem?
A motivated niche market will eat, sleep and breather their interest . You want a potential market who are so passionate that they will do anything to get all the information they can related to the subject.
Think about quilters or stamp collectors…their obsessive interest is a large reason those markets are so profitable.
In closing
It’s essential you follow these three steps when you start an internet home business. If you can find a niche market based on your interests, you’ll be able to create a business you’re passionate about. And if you validate your market before you create a product, you can be confident your business will be profitable.
This is a simple, but proven formula…it will set you on the road to success with your internet home business.
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