A path to success is challenging. More so, if we speak about starting a small business. At the very beginning, 2 key points really matter: choosing the most suitable market niche and strengthening your position in it. Huge companies have little capabilities to meet all the possible human needs. There will always be demand for particular products or special services in more or less narrow segments. These demands provide the best chances to enter the market.
Devote some time to decide what kind of business will bring the actual value. Not too much, though. Some potential entrepreneurs waste a lot of time planning instead of taking the first steps to success. Overthinking never works; you should take a deep breath and start working towards your dream. The earlier you start, the sooner you can evaluate the results. Trial-and-error is one of the fundamental ways to solve any problem. Even if something goes wrong, you can always make the conclusions from previous attempts and try again.
Once again – it is vital to decide on the market niche where you can do the most. If you still hesitate about your choice, try to answer the following questions.
Define Your Passions
Of course, business is about signing deals and increasing the profit. However, if you don’t care about what you do, you will hardly join the front-runners. If your business isn’t your passion you can easily lose interest at any stage of its lifecycle. Overcoming the challenges with passion is a sort of test. The niche you decide to conduct your activities in may not be the most lucrative but if you have feelings for what you do you have all the chances to keep your head above the water.
Identify 15 topics you are interested in maximally. Think about ways you spend your free time, things that make you happy, future you would like to pursue. Analyze what books or magazines you read or what videos you enjoy on Youtube, remember the non-profit activities. Take a short break, then pick 10 things you can say you feel really emotional about from the list.
What Can You Provide the Potential Consumers With?
Now it is time to narrow down your list of preferences. If your business can solve some particular customer problems, it definitely will be profitable. Your products or services must be useful to consumers. Otherwise, there is no reason at all to start. People suffer from various inconveniences and have myriads of needs. The question is – which of these can your skills and inclinations help solving?
But how to discover the unsatisfied needs and desires of potential clients? The best way is to talk to your target audience directly. Arrange the one-on-one meetings with its representatives, organize discussions and keep your hand on a pulse of the market needs. Ask short questions and make short quizzes to reveal the interests and pain points.
Browse the Internet to find answers to your questions. Study Quora discussions, review the popular forums and be always aware of what the target audience discusses. People ask questions if something bothers them. The more you know about problems the faster you can tend to them.
Identify Your Competitors
Competition is a great thing. It provides customers with better products and improves the overall market conditions. The higher is the competition, the more profitable the niche may seem. However, it is not always like that.
A thorough research is needed here. Search for the prospective competitors and log the details about them. After the information is collected, review it and think how your presence can change this market. Are there any opportunities left for you to attract the customers with? Will you be able to offer something unique? Can you create a profitable business in this niche? Although you may feel that there are too much information and too little chances to succeed, these 3 indicators will show if there is enough space for your business:
No Transparency
You have spent several minutes on a business website but it is still unclear what the company expertise is and who are the founders. The processes are too complicated and no FAQ page provided? Such faceless websites are the great proofs the niche is still unoccupied and there are many opportunities for growth.
Poor Content
Informative catchy content is one of the top things that win customers’ attention. If it is obvious that the potential rivals have no viable Internet marketing programs you can still join the niche.
No Paid Advertising
Even if it seems like a website is well-developed and transparent, you have one more chance to enter the niche. Little paid advertising tells us that the company may be not as successful as it seems to be.
Evaluate the Possible Profit
Is your list shorter now? Even if it’s not, you can implement a right approach and find new ideas following this guide. You have analyzed much data, you have read a lot. And now, when you have a better vision of field to start your business in, it is time to decide on monetization.
Why do you want to start your business? In 90% of cases, the answer is “I want to run my own business to earn good money”. It is quite reasonable and honest. So look for the most expensive products and services in your category. If you cannot find such offers, your niche is not profitable. The entrepreneurs that work here could not turn their efforts into money. If there is enough but not too much offers you can raise your capital here.
Quick tip: analyze the price ranges and create a spreadsheet with the prices set by your potential competitors. It will help you to set the competitive prices in the future.
When thinking of the profit, keep in mind you cannot start a business on your own. You have to build a cooperation with manufacturers, marketing and advertising specialists, website developers, etc. This will be the start of getting some minimum commissions while developing your own solution.
Test Your Idea
You are almost there! All you need to do is to test the idea and find out if it is really profitable.
One of the ways to get this task done is to create a simple website with product pre-sale. Use paid advertising and social media to attract visitors and make your first deals.
If it doesn’t go well with a pre-sale, it doesn’t mean you have made a wrong choice. Change the messaging, analyze your offerings and improve the advertising. Adjust, improve, and test your idea once more.
Final Thoughts
A one-fits-all solution does not exist. The processes of finding a perfect niche may vary from business to business. Remember not to spend too much time planning and always be passionate about what you do. Or rather, choose the idea you feel most passionate about since the start.
After you make sure the niche is truly viable, start a high-quality website development. Add the blog section, increase conversion rates and boost the revenue in a chosen niche.
