Forums: Discussions for entrepreneurs and small business.

Hello everyone,

I`m a new member here, in my late 20s, and I am positive that I am ready and able to start my own business. I have held many jobs. Currently I am at a job earning 6-figures, but the unhappiness and desire since childhood to be my own boss is driving me mad.

Trying to find the right business for me has been difficult. My single talent is that I am a master of internet marketing - a true PPC and SEO expert. Therefore, the business should be internet-based. I lean toward retail, because it provides me the opportunity to build a large web site which I am confident would rank highly in the search engines and very effectively reach my target market.

The problem lies in that I have no real passion for any particular niche besides perhaps internet marketing. Providing that as a service does not interest me. Working in that industry for years has left me jaded. The passion for me comes from owning my own business - I truly don`t think it will matter what it is, so long as it is profitable.

I have $50,000 in cash to invest and a residual income apart from my job that would easily pay the bills for the next 6 months and possibly beyond (assuming it doesn`t dry up). I am leaning toward leaving my job very shortly and working on whatever venture I choose full-time.

I am just looking for some guidance or suggestions on what businesses I should absolutely avoid (for instance, I`ve read the margins on computer parts are prohibitively low) and what businesses I should give a closer look. Of course I would be more than happy in any way to help anyone kind enough to help me.

Thanks!
Paul

Welcome, Paul!  Well, it seems you`ve been thinking this through for a while and you got some of the financial hurdles covered.  That`s great considering it`s one the major barriers most of us entrepreneurs face.

As for choosing a business, you might want to check out this lengthy discussion about finding your passion.  Most of us believe passion is a pretty important ingredient to success and perhaps the ideas might spark something in you.  For example, what are some of your hobbies?

HP began without a clear direction.  Hewlett and Packard became friends and decided to start a company before they knew what it would be about.  They experimented with various things before they made a sound-related machine thus giving them an entrance into technology.

You might think about partnering with someone.  I have two partners with my startup and boy am I glad we`ve got each other.  After all, the word "company" denotes more than one person.  You might find someone with a passion for selling such-n-such while your passion is in the building and growing of the business, especially from the technical end.  Complimentary skillsets can often make for a stronger start out of the gate than going it alone.

I`ll add to Steve`s comments that too many people these days seem to be getting confounded between "solving problems" in general, versus the underlying idea of a business as solving "a" problem---a specific problem. As you know, a strong business idea saves people money, saves them time, or solves a recurring problem.

By way of example, my daughter loves doing jigsaw puzzles. We`ve talked about what`s the attraction, and she`s fascinated by the intricate use of patterns in problem-solving. She has that kind of mind, and so the jigsaw puzzles are a nicely harmonic way to exercise that passion.

Now, would it make sense for her to start a business making or selling jigsaw puzzles?

A lot of people would say yes, that`s "obviously" a passion of hers. And yet she has no desire whatsoever to start a jigsaw puzzle business.

The point is that there`s a difference between exercising a skill as opposed to having a vision for a business. It`s better if that vision *includes* the many skills you have, and the problem is to figure out what`s at the heart of your strongest skills.

Take the blanket term, "Internet marketer." Drop the Internet, since marketing is a skill category on its own. But the key question is what exactly IS marketing? Isn`t it a communications skill, working with persuasion?

If you follow that logic, then by way of example, I`m suggesting that people would say, "I want to start a business as a persuader." Phrased that way, it begins to point up the difference in skills versus product. It only gets complicated when we look at products versus services.

So getting back on track: Do you want to start a business selling a tangible product, or a business selling a service? You`ve mentioned retail---any particular niche within the retail industry? If you`d rather sell a service, what specific service would it be?

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Tracy Barnhart, Owner
Giverny, Inc. / Mini Me Geology
http://www.GivernyOnline.com
http://www.MiniMeGeology.com

Hey Paul:

I just recently found a company called GotWebMojo.com that might be able to help you. It appears that they`re a newer company but they`ve got some free services that can help Internet marketers. Hope this helps! Best of luck to ya. - Jim