With inexpensive computers, a small business can in many cases produce output which is of the same quality as that of their largest competitors without the overhead that a large company must carry just to keep the organization going. With the Internet, a small business now has access to similar information resources as the largest company and can communicate on the same level.
As a result, in many fields a small business now starts out with a competitive advantage. More and more we will see local small companies and individuals doing one particular thing really well and being very successful doing it. The key is to look at what you like doing, what you do well and what needs doing in that order.
Sometimes you're lucky,you find an immediate three-way match and away you go. Mostly it takes some looking, some experimentation, some compromise and a lot of self-examination. Self-examination because you have to find out what you like to do, not as a hobby but full time. Once you have several of these activities you have to evaluate what you're good at and finally you have to find a market. If you like to do something, chances are you are going to do a good job and there is more likely to be a market for the resulting high quality product or service.
Once you've found that market, you're ready to start work. But don't make the mistake of trying to sell to a market that isn't interested. Selling is a high-cost activity best left to large corporations with high profit margins - you want to find the market that needs what you are offering. If you can do that, your customers will be calling you. More on that next week.
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