Lately, I’ve posted a lot of “personal” stuff on this blog. I think it’s time to get back into business. Don’t worry though, you’ll see more about our new baby later on and how that will affect our goals and what I’m doing online to meet those goals.
A long time ago, I had a poll which asked: What’s the #1 Thing Holding You Back From Making Big Money Online? Again, here are the results:
The most popular answer: an idea (at 37.5%!)
That’s definitely a stopper. Without an idea, you can’t really do much else. My goal with this post is to give you a thought process you can use so YOU can find that idea. The thought process comes with three simple questions that you should ask yourself. Let’s go through them one-by-one.
Question 1: What Do You Do?
A lot of people who look for ideas start with keyword research and look for what other people are looking for. That’s fine, but one of the most important aspects about having a successful business is passion, which comes MUCH easier with stuff you’re already into. Even if you find a niche that will work and will make money for you through keyword research, you’ll find that you’ll quickly lose energy and motivation if it’s something your just not that excited about.
So, ask yourself: “What do you do?” Think about your daily life. What could you spend hours doing because you enjoy it so much? What are some goals you have that you’re working toward each day? What do you do well? Answering these questions will help you determine what you may have the energy for when establishing yourself and your business online. I’m sure there are hundreds of things you do each day that you are totally passionate about or are really good at. It is those things you should write down now, and don’t even think about how you could make money yet.
For me, I was passionate about passing the LEED exam. I really wanted to add that credential to my resume, and it just so happened I had the energy to start a business because of that passion. With this blog, I really had a passion for making passive income online, so it’s really easy for me to write about it and share my experiences with you.
Question 2: What Would Help Make What You Do Easier?
With your list of “things you do”, look at each item and ask yourself, “What would make doing this thing easier or more convenient?”
Think about this question from all angles. For example, if one of your passions is “making soap”, don’t just think about physical items and gadgets that could make your soap making experience easier or better, but also think about what kind of information you would find useful too.
In addition to what would help you now, think about what would have helped you when you were first introduced to this topic – as if you were a beginner who knew absolutely nothing about it. Use your experience and knowledge about the subject to figure out something that you really wish was around when you first started.
Try and think of 3 or 4 things for each item in your list from question 1.
Question 3: Has it been done?
Take what you learned in question 2, and do a Google Search for anything like it.
If you’ve found something like it…
That’s a good thing. That means there’s probably a market for it and people are spending their money on it. At this point, you should ask yourself this question: What can I do better than these guys? What are they missing that I would include? If you can answer these questions, you’ve found a potential idea that can be profitable that you know you’ll have the energy and passion for. Don’t worry about the competition…it’s good that they’re there. It’s good for both the consumer and for you, because when you create a product that’s better than what already exists, you’re going to attract more customers and grab a portion of that existing market.
If you’ve found nothing like it…
Then you’ll have to ask yourself a couple of further questions: Why hasn’t anyone created this item already? Is it something that everyone else figured out would not be profitable, or is it a novel idea that hasn’t been thought of yet?
You’re going to have to do a little more research to see if it is a good idea that would help just you, or other people too. This can be done through keyword research and just asking people in your potential audience.
So By Now…
I don’t expect you to have an idea already, but I hope this post has been able to at least get the gears going in your head and give you some direction as to how to find that passionate and profitable idea.
Good luck everyone!
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True dat to question #1.
One of my great joys in life is watching people attempt to make money online in a niche they know little to nothing about and/or have little to no interest or experience with and was clearly picked because they saw a bunch of other people making good money that way. It’s hilarious.
The tip I end up giving the most when people are trying to come up with their idea or niche is this: go to your close friends and family and ask them what they would go to you for help with.
If they had some type of problem with something, if they had questions about something, if they couldn’t figure something out or get something done… what would make them say “Hey, I need to call ::insert your name here::!”
The responses they give will tell you exactly what niche you should be in and what your idea should revolve around.
And congrats on the baby, by the way.
This post is really a useful article for everybody who is thinking about starting an online business!
As a matter of fact, generating an idea and brainstorming is the most important and basic step in the entire process that could determine a number of our future efforts. Without an idea, market research is useless. Without an idea, getting motivated and taking action would not make any sense.
Thanks for sharing your valuable knowledge with us.
Regards,
Hooshmand
Excellent post–I think everyone has half a dozen passions. A passion is a good starting point for a business because “stick-to-it-ness” is critical when things look bleak and you need the motivation of a passion to go on!
Another great post with great advice – Thanks, Pat! I struggle [terribly] with this question, but have been trying to use something I recently read to help with the process of coming up with an answer, and hope that someone else might benefit from it, too (as I have from CMP’s comment).
The author is really into visualization and suggests that the reader visualize the following to find their passion:
“You wake up in your perfect bedroom, in your perfect house, in your perfect location. Perhaps your bedroom has a balcony overlooking the ocean and the drapes are gently blowing in a comfortably warm breeze.
For just this day, you are not someone’s partner or parent. You have absolutely no responsibilities. You are infinitely wealthy and have no need to work. Everyone you love is safe, cared for and happy. You are in ideal shape – physically and mentally – and you have boundless energy. Everything is perfect.
A member of your staff comes in with your very favorite breakfast (with the calories and fat magically removed), and as you begin to savor your first bite, this person asks: ‘What would you like to do today?’ ”
I found this seemingly simple question much harder to answer than I thought it would be. The first thing I thought of was, “No kids? I’m inviting my husband over!” (Sorry, Pat… I have 4 kids, ages 7 to 24… I’m a little jaded
But the author (Jon Gabriel) specifically said we also had no partners… Hmm…
Only a couple of things come to mind that I would truly want to do (not 1/2 dozen, DDFD
, but I think I need to work harder to imagine no responsibility… perfection… the ability to do whatever I want.
I hope this helps provide another perspective in the quest.
BIG-TIME congrats on learning you will soon be a Daddy, Pat!
It’s great to have so much substance shared here at your blog, Pat. Inevitably, you do have to have passion for your product, AND, there has to be just the right level of interest in the market. Thanks for providing some of the nuts and bolts for good business planning.
#2 is a great point. I try and do this all the time by asking friends and family what would make their lives better or easier. Taking in all of these ideas is a great way to come up with ideas.
Yeah!! i agree was really a great point..Market search is useless when there’s no idea..We have to determine whether our effort is the way of a better step in the process of doing such a great things in our environment..
Very good post!!! its a very nice to share here at your blog..Taking all this idea may bring a good things to everyone..
Hi, thanks for the information I found it very usefull
I’ll be sure to keep it in mind.