Business Alone

There's no doubt about it . . . folks go online to find information. They use the information to learn what's happening in the world around them (news), to communicate with others (email), to be entertained (games, video, music), to connect with others in niches (social networking), and to comparison shop.

Of course there are many similar activities and hybrid reasons why folks fire up the computer and log online. But the basis of most everything that's done falls under the broad category of looking for information.

Knowing that information is paramount is like having a great selling mystery partially solved. If you want to make money online . . . you will most often be successful if you can provide the right kind of information to the group (prospects and customers) that's eager to find it.

I would say, without hesitation, that the business of providing information online is as close to "the perfect business" model as one will find. Here's why . . .

I truly believe that selling digital information online is as close to "the perfect business" model as there is for the home based business entrepreneur.

Digital information is simply info that has been "digitized" so that it can be presented, sold, and accessed online.

Now it doesn't really matter what kind of information you have . . . the steps and process of selling it to others via the Internet will be mostly the same.

Remember, in the previous post we talked about the reason why people come to the Internet, surf from site to site, and search for products and services . . . they are seeking information of one kind or another.

Information seekers is by far the most important reason that your info business has a chance of being successful . . . it's the fact that you are offering what everyone else online is looking for - information!

I'll tell you exactly why this business model is such a "perfect business."

Starting a business is much the same as beginning a road trip to some far away destination that you've never been to before. Hopefully the journey will be a pleasant one and will provide you with the profit and satisfaction that you desire.

You'll find that this journey is often a "thankless" one, but the rewards and the experiences along the way will more than compensate for the many hours of tedious dedication.

I have met many many entrepreneurs that were all packed and ready to go on their business journey, but when asked if they had planned out the trip, the course, the route they were going to take . . . they had given no time or attention to writing down how they intended to proceed.

They were just going to "wing it" and move from one day to the next down the path that seemed to be the correct one at the time.

Are you anything like me? The thought of trying to sell something to someone really turns me off.

I dread the idea of "selling" for a living. I don't like being sold to, as a rule, and I abhor the thought of having to actually be the person that lots of us kind of despise!

I’m going to let you in on one of my closely guarded personal secrets.

In fact, if this ugly secret finds its way into the media, I could become the laughing stock of the Internet small business world!

So please, please, please . . . don’t tell anyone. Promise?

Okay, here it is (in a whisper): I hate selling with a passion.

In the previous post, I mentioned that the fear of selling totally incapacitates some folks that might otherwise become great small business owners.

In fact, these folks may never even try their hand in business because of this fear.

Here are some more suggestions (added to the ones from the previous post) that have helped me to realize that selling phobias can be conquered with a change in mindset.

For some, selling represents a great "leap of faith." They doubt their own ability to actually convince a prospect to reach for his credit card.

In such cases, it may be helpful to consider this: You are the expert!

Yes you. You are in the driver's seat. Prospects are coming to you for information and guidance. You should feel confident, if you've been honest in your sales pitch, that you can deliver exactly what the customer is coming to you to receive.

I know of only one business model that is any easier, quicker, or cheaper to plan and implement than the solo home business online for creating an information business - and this business type would be infinitely improved if it borrowed the attributes and characteristics of the Internet small business operator. I'll explain in a moment.

But first, I wanted to ask you a very personal question: "Will there ever be a better time to get serious about launching that business idea you've been thinking about . . . than right now?"

For most of us, life never stands still. It moves forward at a quickening pace and presents new challenges and circumstances for each of us to deal with every day.

Most "How to Start a New Home Business" books will include a list of personal characteristics or personality traits the author feels are necessary for the entrepreneur to have in order to be a successful small business owner.

The personal traits that I've included on my list aren't those that might "come in handy" down the road sometime. These are essential must-have elements that are the basis of the owner's persona and they will become the foundation of his/her management ability and capacity.

Now don't despair if you don't have all these traits right now. To some degree, at least, every one of them can be acquired or learned with some practice, persistence, and dedication.

If you've read anything about home business conducted on the Internet, you know how important, even critical, it is to choose a specialized niche, one that you can compete in successfully.

Generally, you want to be involved in a niche that is vertically deep as opposed to horizontally broad. If you don't know what that means, here's a simple explanation:

Every niche market has a different dynamic, a unique structure based on the various parts or segments of that niche. In addition, each will have a different set of enthusiasts.

Optimally, you would want to concentrate on depth rather than breadth of the market you're in.

In the previous post we talked about turning a hobby into an online business and why it was a good idea to choose a very deep and specialized market niche.

We also said that the subject of the niche was important and that it should usually be a topic that the owner had experience in, knowledge of, training for, and passion about.

Most often, the business owner will be most successful if he can narrow his potential customer pool down to just those folks that have a great and frenzied interest in exactly what the owner is selling.

I think you would be surprised with the number of potential prospects globally, even though the niche chosen seems way too narrow.