The Ultimate Shoestring Startup

By Bob McElwain
Posted Monday, August 23, 2004

Without a dime, you can start a business right now that will in time fulfill your grandest dreams. A fortune. A lifestyle. Or whatever you see success to be. It's simple. Start a newsletter. Let a site come later!

Oops! I can almost see the eyes tilt upward. Some are racing down the page in desperate search for something at least practical.

But there is no better way to start a business than with a newsletter. Your age means nothing. Good writing skills help. But if yours are lacking, you can improve them.

What follows is the ultimate in practicality. All you need is some time. You would spend a lot of bucks starting up offline. You can do so free online.

First You Need A Niche

What you need is a focus or niche. And the narrower the focus, the better. The object is to become an expert in this niche. So rather than select dogs, settle on Dobermans or Poodles. Better than classic cars, select vintage Jaguars.

Yeah, But I Don't Have A Clue

Prowl the Web every minute you can spare. Look for sites of interest to you. Examine each one. Make note of anything they seem to have overlooked. While it's hard to do, what you really want to find is a niche others have ignored. Barring that, create your own.

Go to MoHatta.Com . Here's a business that could have started with a newsletter. Say the fellow just could not find really hot peppers, sauces and so forth. Since he loved such things, he likely knew at least a few people who felt the same way. So maybe there are others.

He might have begun with a newsletter in which he took orders only by checks delivered by US Mail. It's hard to make a buck this way, but it's a great testing bed for an idea. Once interest is demonstrated and there have been a few orders, it is easy to move to the Web. And to do so with confidence.

So I've Got A Niche; So Now What?

You likely already have your own email address and access to the Web. If you don't have a mailing program, you need one. Get a free copy of Pegasus (http://www.pegasus.usa.com) or the free version of Eudora (http://www.eudora.com).

In either program, open a new address book. Begin your mailing list by adding your address. Not much, but it's a start.

Now the hard part. Write a newsletter. It does not have to be long. It does not have to be profound. It does have to be something of interest to those you have targeted, And it has to be well written. Initially, writing as well as you can must suffice. Improve your skills as necessary as you continue.

But What Do I Say?

Most anything. Talk about something you already know. Write just as you would tell a friend about it. Or find something you didn't know, and write about that.

But I'm No Expert

Note the last sentence above. Every time you dig in and learn something you didn't know, you expand your expertise. And when you explain this new information to others, it will become clearer to you than it was when you started. As you find more, you'll know more. And that's what being expert is all about.

An Audience Of One

One of the toughest challenges in starting a newsletter is the realization that you are writing only for yourself, and maybe a couple of friends. There is a tendency to kind of let things slide, for nobody is really going to see it. The trick is to write as though you have thousands of subscribers hanging on to every word. In short, always produce the best possible copy, and seek to do better next time.

Without a website, you can't offer to swap links. But you can offer to run an ad in exchange for a link. And you can swap ads with other newsletters just getting started.

Build a great sig file that offers your free newsletter. Try something like: mailto:yourname@home.com?subject=SUBSCRIBE. Most mailing software will send you a message when this is clicked with SUBSCRIBE as the subject.

Get Aggressive

Go down and talk to a real live person at your ISP (Internet Service Provider). Most offer a small amount of disk space free for non-commercial use. You don't have to say you're trying to build a business. Just explain you're starting a newsletter. No advertising. Just content. Chances are they'll let you put up a page with a subscribe form on it. Go to ListBot, grab a form, post it, and you're almost in business. You now have a small platform from which to extol the virtues of your newsletter. And you can refer people to this URL in your newsletter and sig file.

Looking Ahead

Keep all your articles. When you do build a website, put them up as pages. Since they are focused on your niche, they will rank well on the search engines, and begin drawing traffic to your new site almost immediately.

Begin even now trying to find a great domain name. And when you find one, even if you can't afford a site, buy it. Good names are hard to find and they are disappearing rapidly.

Go ahead and open a site as soon as you have a great domain name and a few articles. Pair.Com may be the perfect answer. They provide top quality service for $5.95/month. Pass on all free hosting services until you can afford Pair.Com. Free sites degrade the credibility you are seeking to build.

But Where's The Profit?

Even before you have a site, search the Web for products you can sell. If you're into cabinetry, find sources of wood, plans, and finished product. What you want are products that can be drop shipped. That is, you take an order, keep a part for yourself, forward the balance, and the company delivers. It's not a way to get rich, but it's a great way to start. Forget about a merchant account initially. While affiliate programs are not as attractive, they will do for getting started.

In all this you are not really looking for significant profits. You are simply learning about doing business online. And there is a lot to learn. Getting your site right.
Writing compelling copy that sells. Search engine positioning. Advertising. And there's more.

So What's Really Happening Here?

Your major focus remains your newsletter. You continue working to grow it. And you continue improving your writing skills.

Most important, you continue to build your credibility and expertise, and your position within your niche. One of thedumbest things to put up on a site is a silly claim as to how great an expert I am. Nobody will believe it. Yet they absolutely *must* before they will buy from you.

You solved this dilemma beautifully with your newsletter. In it, you have shown your expertise and demonstrated your credibility with practical, useful information. And you have established your position within your niche by providing information and resources not available elsewhere.

It's All About Passion

Sometimes it seems as though there are just two kinds of people in the world. Those who stick their necks out and take the shot. And those who don't. The latter sometimes tend to clutch their brew come day's end, and mutter something about
never having caught a break.

Unless you win the lottery, you are unlikely to catch more than a cold, unless you're in there swinging. Even then, you are likely to strike out and turn away from the game unless driven by passion.

If you find you lack passion, look further. Because you need it to carry you through or around the rough spots. Great race car drivers have it or they wouldn't risk getting into
a car. Great runners have it or they would not live with the aches and pains inherent in the sport. If you have a grand passion for what you are doing, there is little that can
prevent you from achieving your goal.

About the Author
Bob McElwain
Web marketing and consulting since 1993
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