FIB - Scams 101

Here is how I did it...

Posted By: Steve MacLellan
Date: Monday, November 12, 2007, at 4:22 p.m.(pst)

In Response To: "Survey your prospective market" - How do you do that? (Bob E.)

Hi Bob,

I don't know what you want to sell locally, but I don't mind sharing with you how I surveyed my local market to see if running a used car website would be profitable for me.

>> - How do I go about finding out the demand for the products/services I
>> want to offer?

What I wanted to do was get paid from local used car dealers to list their inventory on my website. Every week I would go around to their lots, snap some pictures while they were filling out the data sheets for me, and then upload them to my database.

To find out if their was a demand was pretty easy. I looked in the newspapers, listened to the radio, and bought copies of the Auto Seller and Auto Trader. Sure enough... there were plenty of local dealers advertising in these venues. So, obviously there was a demand.

>> - How do I then figure out if that demand is good enough for me to
>> start my own business selling said product/service in my area?

From all of the ads I discovered, I took a sample, about a dozen or so (that were already advertising their cars in other places) and researched the cost these people were paying for their current advertising campaigns. Then I put my price right in the ballpark. Of course... this doesn't mean I could start my business yet.

Yes, there was a demand, but... would some of these dealers be willing to pay ME to help them advertise? Yes, they were already paying for advertising, but the question I had to have an answer to was... were they going to give ME a piece of the pie.

There is only one way to find out; ask them.

So I put on my best suit and visited their locations. I told them I had an advertising idea that could make them some extra sales, and asked them if I could get their opinion on it. I made it very clear upfront that I wasn't there to sell them anything. I just wanted their input.

I told them what I wanted to do. They gave me some ideas -- actually some great ideas -- that I hadn't thought of, and included with my service. I asked them what they would expect to pay for something like this and then said if I could PROVE to them that I could help them sell more cars, would they me interested in signing up?

Naturally, most of them said that if I could PROVE that I could help them sell more cars they would be happy to sign-up.

>> - How do I go about finding out out if the existing supply in my local
>> area is already enough to cover the demand in my area or of there is room
>> for me and others?

Some of the things I did that other advertising companies didn't do is that I listened to their concerns, and built some of their very good ideas into my business model. I kept the database fresh, so people looking for cars weren't calling dealers who had already sold the car they were looking at online -- and dealers were taking calls from people who were looking for a car that had already been sold. Plus I took multiple photos of cars that were loss leaders.

I also gave them a short-cut URL they could put on their letterheads and business cards which was a dynamic URL that pulled just their listings out of the database and displayed them -- it was like each one of them had their own website.

No... I mean I REALLY listened to these people. I would take them in a coffee when I dropped by. Often times we would sit down together and talk about kids, houses, renovations etc. People want to do business with people they know and like. Everybody's favorite subject is ME, and they will automatically like you, if you just listen.

>> These are all things I hear about time and time again online and
>> offline but I never understood how one goes about finding these things out
>> and then figuring out if it is a good idea to start a venture given the
>> facts and figures I come up within my research.

Before I had the website built... even before I had the domain name registered, I had a potential client base that was willing to give my services a chance if I could prove I could help them sell more cars. So I knew it was going to be profitable *before* I spent any money on it.

Funny thing is... all the local dealers wind up at the same car auctions and they talk amongst themselves. It got to a point where I didn't have to keep track of new dealerships going up because they were calling me, and a few times I got pulled over around town because someone recognized the online business from the car-magnets on the side of the car... and they gave me their order right on the side of the street.

If you're going to run a business that is going to benefit a segment of the population, you shouldn't have to worry about a lack of interest. Of course I don't know what kind of business you want to run, and I don't know how many businesses in your area would be interested. But all you have to do is ask to find out the answers.

Best Regards,
Steve MacLellan

Build a Used car Website for Profit

Messages In This Thread

• "Survey your prospective market" - How do you do that?
  Bob E. -- Monday, November 12, 2007, at 9:53 a.m.(pst)
  • Re: "Survey your prospective market" - How do you do that?
    Dennis Bevers -- Monday, November 12, 2007, at 12:48 p.m.(pst)
    • Thanks Dennis and Steve - - NM
      Bob E. -- Friday, November 16, 2007, at 3:19 p.m.(pst)
  • Here is how I did it...
    Steve MacLellan -- Monday, November 12, 2007, at 4:22 p.m.(pst)

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