What to sell online
If you are looking to [tag]start a home business[/tag] and wondering what you can sell online the answer is – sell what you know and are passionate about. Sounds simple but the options are so many that it may help to first rule out what you should not sell online.
There are 3 simple questions you can ask to ensure you are selling the right item to avoid going down the wrong product path.
The questions have nothing to do with researching supply and demand or locating a niche market to sell to. They actually need to come before you do that kind of research. And if you violate one of them, then you can guarantee the product you choose will NOT sell very well online and your business will be in a bad place right from the start.
So here they are…
Question #1: Can you find the product easily at the local supermarket, or mall, or local store?
Ask yourself "why would people go online to buy something they can easily get on their regular weekly shopping trip?"
Unless your product is something truly unique, or has a unique selling feature such as a lower price or is a hard-to-find product you will find it tough to compete with the fact that your customer can go to the local store and get the item today without waiting and shipping costs.
Question #2: Is your product a "time-sensitive" product?
If your customer needs it right away – then how are you going to convince them to wait 2-3 days for it to be shipped to them?
For example, if you are thinking of selling a sore throat spray do you think your customer will wait for you to ship the cure to their sore throat? No – they will go to their local drug store and get what they need today. ( also a good example for question #1)
Question #3: Does your product belong in a market with a ton of competition?
Do a quick Google for your product and you will quickly see if there is already a huge number of savvy marketers selling to your intended customer. If that is the case you should probably choose a different product.
A real easy example of this is Amazon.com. They’re one of the hugest online vendors out there. If you decide to start your own site selling books, or music, or DVDs, they will be your competition – do you think you stand a good chance at succeeding? Probably not.
Unless you figure out a way to offer a lower price (doubtful) or cater to a very specific niche Amazon hasn’t yet tapped (difficult), you’re going to have a hard time getting your business off the ground.
I don’t want to discourage you here – Nothing online is impossible – but remember that the more competitive the product you are selling the more time and money it will cost for you to become successful.
These questions can seem very obvious but you would be surprised at how many people don’t ask them before they ever start. Without asking them you can sepnd a long time working extremely hard for minuscule results. And if these 3 simple questions are asked at the start making money online does not have to be that hard!
If you think these questions rule out most products then you are not being creative enough – if you look hard enough there are thousands of great products that people want, can’t find locally, and can’t find online easily. If you are selling one of those products you can hit a home run every time!
To get started selling online Erich Winnecke has put together a great program that gives you a free website and offers a comprehensive training program called 3 Phase Profits Training. You can read more here www.toponlineprofit.com
