6 Steps to Your Big Money Making Idea

Today I want to give you the six steps that could help you find your big idea, but first, here’s a word of warning.

People often come up with an idea no one has ever done before. They get excited about the lack of competition in their sector, or they are convinced there is no one like them in the market; therefore, they are onto a winner.

Unless you’re in some cutting-edge technology company, if someone isn’t already doing it, there is probably a reason for that – and it’s not a good reason. If there is no one else offering a $2,500 macramé master class in the Hunter Valley, there is probably a good reason for that, too. Ideally you want to know others are making a real success of doing what you are doing – then all you need to do is find a way to do it better.

There is an old saying in the marketing and business worlds: “Pioneers get arrows in them.” Have you ever heard this saying: “It’s the best idea since sliced bread.” The man who invented sliced bread, Otto Fredrick Rohwedder, came up with it in 1912, but it didn’t take off until 1928.

That is a long time to wait until your idea takes off.

You’ve also got to make sure the vehicle you choose suits your personality and you’re not trying to make your square peg fit in a round hole. I remember a time when I was consulting for a real estate firm. I originally went in to train the staff in sales skills. I was having a conversation one day with the business owner – I’ll call her Sarah – and I asked her why she was doing it.

It turned out that she was running her business, staff and premises because that was her perception of how a business should look. She said to me, “Well, a proper business has staff and a proper building, that’s what a real business looks like.” My response was, “Who told you that?”

In my mind, a proper business is one that makes a profit – that makes real money, and if it can make that money easily, so much the better. We kept talking and the truth was, she didn’t like working with people, and she didn’t like the responsibility of the staff and the premises. None of the staff were excited about working there, either. On her own, she was a dynamite saleswoman, but she was bogged down by a vehicle that didn’t fit her.

So, we got rid of the building and the staff that were coasting and not doing any real work, and now she’s happy. Better yet, she’s making a lot more money. She fell into the trap of trying to fit into the conventional idea of what a “real” business is, but a business is an entity that makes money by helping people fulfill a need. That’s it – it’s that simple. If you don’t have that vehicle, you need to either leave and get another one, or re-tweak the one you’ve already got, so it gives you a fighting chance.

The question is, how do you find that exciting idea – that idea people want? Here’s a step-by-step breakdown for you:

Step 1: Find a niche.

I like ideas that are targeted to a particular niche. For example, we seem to have a lot of life coaches around at the moment. That is a big area to cover; however what I do is show people ways of making more money in business. That is much more specific and is in a specific niche. It also helps that I did this in the real world, before I became an instructor. The key is to avoid trying to be all things to all people. Find a niche and focus on that.

Step 2: Do your research.

The next step is to do some research and find out if people are looking for what you have to offer. For example, Tim Ferriss, who wrote The 4 Hour Work Week, came up with the title for his book by creating a whole lot of different titles. He then posted those titles individually on Google adwords. The title, The 4 Hour Work Week, received the biggest response.

Here’s a word of warning before you try this: Google has some rules you need to check out before you start putting up ads.

Step 3: Know your target market’s passion.

Are people actively passionate about what you have to offer? Is it just a mild interest, or is there a passion for what you are providing?  It’s way better if they are passionate. Remember the key words here are, “if they are passionate.”

About a year ago, a new store opened in town that sold a zillion different kinds of fudge. I took one look at it and said, “They will be broke in months.” Sure enough, they were. This is because the owner was passionate about fudge, not the customers.

Step 4: Align your passion.

Are you passionate about the idea and passionate about helping people with your idea?  If you love what you do and love to help people, it is so much easier and fulfilling. Remember, your passion is important, but only if it fulfills their passion, too.

Step 5: Be commercially realistic.

Is there anyone else in your line of work who is making the sort of money you want? I used the example before of teaching macramé classes. If the highest price course you can find is, say $25 for a one-day seminar, then the odds of you creating one for $2,500 are slim.

A mentor of mine used to say, “You have to be commercially realistic.” They are profound words. Yes, you should be passionate and love what you do, but you also need to be commercially realistic and see if the idea will fly.

Step 6: Actively market your idea.

You must be willing to market your idea. There is just so much information out there now. This means you need to put your idea out there, so it doesn’t get lost in the noise. A lot of people use “hope marketing.” They think, “Gee, I’ll put this out there and hope it works.” In reality, you need to get active to get it out there.

By Brendan Nichols

Brendan Nichols has the audacity to believe you should work a little for a lot and shows his clients how he averages three months holiday a year. He is financially independent and a best selling author, published by the giant publisher, Harper Collins. He has appeared in the media dozens of times and about a million people watched an exclusive ABC television documentary on him. He has trained tens of thousands of people, on three continents. He originally started from nothing and had several successful businesses before he was an educator. One of these businesses was a highly successful Real Estate project marketing company, where he launched major campaigns.Brendan’s specialty is showing you the steps to make more money and have an amazing life in the process.To get more information, go to www.brendannichols.com.