Business Alone

Competition for business products or services of any kind is a given. In Hometown, USA you may not have competitors for what you sell; but on the Internet, the world is your market and you will have to learn to compete . . . or die!

Times are changing and every solo business owner needs to design his little company in a way that it can be globally competitive, regionally competitive, and even locally competitive.

Before the Internet, it was often sufficient that a small business only worried about the competition down the street, in a neighboring town, or within a short drive.

You owned a gift shop and your customer pool was everyone within walking distance, or easy driving distance, probably within the radius of your community and maybe a few other small towns within 25 miles.

I recently came upon an article that was a great resource for online entrepreneurs. It described the favorite activities of web surfers and other users who were accessing the Internet.

The thought I had was this: why wouldn't a new or aspiring (or even seasoned) business owner want to keep this list on file and return to it often as a way of understanding what activities were important to an online business owner?

Why should these things be important to an online owner?

All over the globe there is a wave of entrepreneurism that is sweeping the small business world both here in America and in far away places. What is fanning the flames of this hot topic is easy access to the Internet.

The pioneers that are striking out on their own to carve business niches and discover new ways to profit from online marketing are simple working men and women with a common desire.

They all want to throw off the shackles of employment slavery.

They want to earn a living owning and operating their own small business.

They want to run their storefronts from the confines of the kitchen table!

I hope the term "solo" doesn't confuse you or cause any concern about what this type of business really refers to. You see, in some folks' minds, "solo" is just one thing - a song that is sung alone by one person.

But as we're using the term here in the business sense, "solo" simply means that you are in business for yourself and by yourself. No partners, no employees, it's just YOU.

You see, back in the 1990s, some high-flying solo business types were labeled “lone eagles.”

The lone eagle image I have etched in my mind is this: a highly paid but restless white collar executive that turns his back on the Wall Street establishment, moves his family to Vail, Aspen, or Park City, and now consults a few hours a day from his ski chalet corner office as he sits atop the world raking in outrageous fees, answering to no one, and living a luxurious jet set lifestyle of travel, fortune, and whatever money can buy.

I don't care what industry you're in or what product or service you sell.

I can tell you, unequivocally, exactly, what the future of your business holds.

How could I possibly know what that is?

Simple.

The future of every business is just one thing . . .

Give me one good reason why you feel you can't compete with big business?

I know, I know - the image of the giant squashing the little guy with no effort at all can be pretty intimidating.

You wonder . . . "How can you and thousands of other small-time operators working out of a home office compete profitably in customer markets where the big boys have their products stacked high and deep and their margins honed razor thin?"

Just how do you run a bootstrap operation and attract customer interest and trust in the midst of mammoth ad campaigns, huge branding budgets, and non-stop glitzy intrusions?

How many folks do you know that have had a great business idea, but never got going because they figured they couldn't compete with Wal-mart or just big business in general?

Maybe you've experienced some of those thoughts.

I have a sense that this "road block" stops many aspiring small business owners from ever pursuing the dream of going into business for themselves.

Listen . . . there are hundreds of thousands of solo small-time operators working out of a home office competing profitably in customer markets where the big boys have their products stacked high and deep.

Here's the key: choose your niche wisely, specialize deeply, focus on your strengths, and forget about going head-to-head with the juggernauts.

Let me give you an example.

Large business organizations are like 1,000’ cruise ships: they’re slow to get underway, slow to bring to a halt, they require a very wide turning radius, take a large crew to man properly, and tons of daily fuel to propel.

And, oh yea, they’re loaded to the hilt with baggage!

Operating such a beast requires a crew of thousands and enough financial and physical resources to run a small country. I’d be surprised if some of these vessels don’t have their own zip code!

You, on the other hand, in your home based business, are a one-person dingy – a tiny drop in the ocean, so to speak, that better stay clear of the path of these giants or you’ll be sucked into their wake and lost at sea forever!

But there is a way . . . a secret way to survive . . . and even thrive!

You are the new owner of an online business. You have made the decision to go out on your own and leave the crowded corporate business world behind.

You have chosen to "do your own thing" - to be your own boss - to take sole responsibility for everything that happens in your business and you answer to no one (except, of course, your spouse!)

In the previous post, I gave the example of developing an online bookstore in such a way that you're not trying to compete with the Big Box retailers head-to-head.

Here's how to do it: