I love info products and service businesses.
I wish I would have started my entrepreneurship journey by focusing on these two types of businesses.
Why do so many first time entrepreneurs fail? One reason is that they try to go too BIG! They try to build the next Facebook or Groupon.
These entrepreneurs create businesses so complex that they can barely explain it themselves.
In this post I will argue that first time entrepreneurs and serial entrepreneurs without success need to look at starting info products or service based businesses.
What is the fundamental goal of entrepreneurship? Well there are a myriad of reasons people start businesses but at its core entrepreneurship is about MAKING MONEY.
Therefore entrepreneurs need to look at the quickest way to cash (at least initially).
Too many entrepreneurs (myself included) get stuck on the details.
My website is ugly, I don't have enough Facebook fans etc.
The problem with obsessing about the details is that you burn months and months focused on the wrong stuff.
You need to be obsessed about the customer and how you are you going to SELL.
How will you reach the customer etc? Set a sales performance goal EVERY month.
For our site I said we must sell 100 video courses every month.
That is our "20 Mile March".
Meaning we will just keep grinding every month trying to get to 100 sales.
After a few months once you have learned and improved your sales processes maybe 100 sales in a month becomes easy.
Then you can bump the number up to 125.
The big take-away here is 1) Figure out how in your first month of business you can close 10 sales 2) Don't obsess over the small details just get started.
You may be asking but where do info products and services fit into this philosophy? Info products and services can be sold on DAY ONE.
Create an eBook one morning and begin selling it that afternoon! Throw up a Facebook page for your eBook or service to act as your website to start.
The goal of your first business should be 1) To make money 2) To succeed.
I believe wholeheartedly that your best chance to succeed is with an info product or a B2B service business.
Creating an info product has never been easier.
Writing an eBook or creating a video course with iMovie is a great way to get started in the info products business.
The margins are also awesome.
You create an eBook and sell it for $19.
That $19 is almost pure profit.
You create the eBook once and sell it forever! B2B service businesses are also quick and easy to get started.
Think of a service you can do for other businesses.
Run their Twitter, Facebook, or YouTube profiles.
Write sales copy for their website or help them land interns.
Whatever the service, it requires almost zero startup capital.
The key with both info products and services is that 1) they require little money to start 2) you can start selling on day one.
As the entrepreneur there is nothing better than controlling both the product creation and the sales of your product.
You are in complete control of your own destiny.
It is up to you if the business will succeed or fail.
Yes, yes this requires a TON of WORK at the beginning but as you learn how to create and sell your product you can begin to bring on help.
Make sure to document ALL OF YOUR PROCESSES.
Before hiring anyone you need to know the process inside and out.
Also you need to have a detailed operations manual to hand the new employee on day one.
You should not train the new employee personally.
The manual should train the new employee.