Your Business Model Could Matter More Than Your Market
On the surface, there’s a big difference between an e-book about how to become a single mother by choice and an e-book about how to live like James Bond.
One e-book is targeted at childless women in their thirties or forties who desperately want a baby, but can’t afford to keep waiting for Mr. Right. The other e-book is targeted at men of all ages who want to know how to eat, dress, and interior decorate like Sean Connery (but probably not the universally decried Roger Moore).
These two groups of prospective customers undoubtedly have very different interests, values, and motivations. Yet the people selling the e-books have the same basic business model: downloadable information products. And because they share the same business model, their opportunities and challenges are surprisingly similar.
Simply put, your necessary skills and responsibilities are determined more by your business model than by the market you serve.
This fact has several implications.
First, it helps to explains how Internet marketers (and businesspeople in general) can often move successfully between markets that seemingly have little in common.
Consider Eben Pagan, who made his first fortune selling dating advice to men, then did it again by selling dating advice to women–and yet again by teaching men and women how to make money online. (I’m guessing that his next venture will be a six-DVD set on how to raise a baby genius.)
Because Eben’s business model has remained the same, his skills have served him well in new markets–skills like managing people and systems, understanding consumer psychology, writing killer copy, and finding A-list JV partners.
The catch is that while your business skills will probably translate to new markets, your enthusiasm may not.
If you’re driven by the challenge of building a personal empire, by competitive rivalry, or by plain old-fashioned greed, it doesn’t much matter whether you’re hawking hemorrhoid remedies or horse-track betting systems. But if those motivations aren’t enough, then you need to be more selective.
The second implication is that turning your passion into a business may not be a sure-fire recipe for life satisfaction.
Dream jobs are often related to art, athletics, drama, music, non-profit work, or lying on the beach sipping umbrella drinks while being fanned by a bevy of young acolytes. Unfortunately, these fields are insanely competitive, low-paying, or both.
Therefore, experts on finding meaningful work will advise you to begin with your passion, then look for a more lucrative angle. Practically speaking, this usually involves some combination of consulting, information products, and physical products.
Not coordinated enough to be a NASCAR driver? Start an online store selling NASCAR memorabilia.
Too old to make it as a pro surfer? Open a surf shop.
That’s not bad advice. The problem is that operating an online store that sells NASCAR memorabilia has more in common with operating any other type of online store than it does with being a NASCAR driver.
Being passionate about NASCAR in no way implies that you will enjoy tweaking SEO, writing sales copy, or managing a team of article writers in the Philippines.
So before you get started building a business around your passion, think carefully about which business activities you enjoy, and decide which business model best fits your values and lifestyle.
