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Five New Business Ideas

You’re invited to pick one and run with it

Vol. 6, Issue No. 23 | December 7, 2010 By Denny Hatch
6
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IN THE NEWS

Wood mills starting to hum again
At the Saunders Bros. plant in Greenwood, eight workers are back; more will follow soon in Monson.
GREENWOOD - Many people gave the Saunders Bros. manufacturing plant up for dead when it closed its doors and went to auction last spring, a victim of the sour economy and cheap imports flooding in from overseas. Less than five months later, machines are humming and the smell of sawdust is in the air again as a skeleton crew puts out rolling pins, brush handles, dowels and other wood products.

Maine's wood products industry has been on the slide for years. Numerous plants that made hundreds of everyday things—toothpicks, tongue depressors, Popsicle sticks, pepper mills, checkers pieces, clothespins, you name it—have gone out of business.

Now, a Portland woman and her partners have bought not only the shuttered Saunders Bros. factory, but three other plants as well in hardscrabble areas of interior Maine. Louise Jonaitis says she intends to bring the plants back to life in regions where times are tough and jobs are scarce.
—Clarke Canfield
Associated Press, Oct. 22, 2010

When I read the story of Louise Jonaitis buying up shuttered wood mills in Maine and getting them humming again with an array of exciting new products, I was thrilled! (See IN THE NEWS at right.)

With the hand wringing about no jobs, here’s a woman entrepreneur (BRAVA!) doing something about it.

I have this client—a couple of middle-aged guys, who have invented a business and need promotional material to launch it, which I am supplying along with some useful (I hope) advice. They have been working seven days a week for months to get it off the ground.

The good news: The premise has been tested and not only is it ready to roll out, but also the business model is scalable and can be leveraged across multiple industries.

The temporary bad news: The small IT firm they hired is backed up to the eyeballs, and while the partners have bet their own money on the business, a bit more capital is needed. They are good guys and I have no doubt the thing will work and will be a bonanza—for themselves and, more importantly, for their customers.

Over the past half century, I started one business and saved two others. And in the course of writing this cranky little e-zine, I have come up with a number of ideas that I am convinced are worth pursuing.

My plate is full, but if you are looking to start something, be my guest.

1. Who’s Advertising What and Where on the Web (wawww.com)
The business I started 25 years ago was “WHO’S MAILING WHAT!”—a newsletter and archive about junk mail for junk mailers. Based on my massive collection of direct mail samples in over 200 categories, it identified successful mailings—those that kept coming in over and over again—and made them available to subscribers, so that they could “steal smart.” This was a breakthrough concept—peeling away the secrecy of direct mail and discovering for sure what was successful. The archive is still in business and it has spawned a number of line extensions—special reports, “The Directory of Major Mailers and What They Mail” and an e-mail archive business.

With roughly 250 million websites and 126 million blogs, many of these folks would subscribe to a (high-priced) paid service that would alert them as to who is advertising on the Internet. Instead of spiders crawling around looking for content—as in Google, Bing, DogPile, etc.—this would be a service that ferrets out advertisers and their ads and makes the information available to paid subscribers on a 24/7 basis. After all, if someone is currently advertising on the Internet, this is business worth going after (as opposed to someone who is not advertising). The huge benefit: Ad salesmen could spend their time selling and generating revenue rather than keeping their noses to a computer screen hunting leads.

Takeaways to Consider

  • “The secret of business is to know something that nobody else knows.”
    —Aristotle Onassis (1906-1975), Greek shipping magnate and second husband of Jacqueline Kennedy
  • Your new business can only make money two ways: creating wants and satisfying needs.
  • Lawyers will tell you that starting a business is easy. It’s the exit strategy that can be murderous and should be decided upon at the outset.
  • In your zeal to start a business, do not go into the deal with too little funding, or the VCs and banks will take it and sell it out from under you.
  • “You must want a big success and then beat it into submission. You must be as ravenous to reach it as a wolf who licks his teeth behind a fleeing rabbit, you must be as mad to win as the man who, with one hand growing cold on the revolver in his pocket, with the other hand pushes his last gold piece on the ‘Double O’ at Monte Carlo.”
    —Marcus Loew (1870-1927), motion picture theater chain owner, founder of Loew’s Inc.
  • “No one ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American people.”
    —H. L. Mencken (1880-1956), American writer, co-founder with George Jean Nathan of The American Mercury magazine

Websites Related to Today's Edition

Wood mills starting to hum again

Murdoch Sets Times.uk Pay Wall; Loses 90 Percent Web Traffic

The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP)

E-Z Pass

“Bringing A Product to Market From Your Home”

“The Truth” Newsletter

Dektor Voice Stress Analysis Machine

The Third Most Exclusive Club in the World: The Héokiens

The Hénokiens


 

Companies Mentioned:
6

COMMENTS

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Most Recent Comments:
Zane Lumelsky - Posted on December 08, 2010
2. Payment System for Web Content
Not so new. Several companies have been in the web "micro payment" business for years. I'm most familiar with www.clickshare.com. Check them out.
Wash Phillips - Posted on December 07, 2010
Denny, Thanx for the generous offer and encouraging entrepreneurs-yet-to-be!
Question about 2 of your refs for The Hénokiens: de Kuyper, the Netherlands (since 1695), distillers of gin, schnapps and liqueurs, was about 20 years ago touted to be owned by National Distillers (though that may have been the bragging of a mere distributor arrangement). And these Hoshi folks--with "the Ryokan with 100 rooms that can accommodate 450 guests"--do they specialize in families, close friends or orgies? 4.5 guests per room???.
Brent D. Gardner, CLU, ChFC - Posted on December 07, 2010
You said "Lawyers will tell you that starting a business is easy. It’s the exit strategy that can be murderous and should be decided upon at the outset."

Three aspects of every project, every business, every relationship: 1. Entry, 2. Growth, and 3. Exit.

Everyone talks about the first two, almost everybody ignores the last of the three.

That's where guys like me come in, and often stir up the pot, but good. We ask the difficult and disturbing questions.

If a business owner, investor, or decision maker lives by Rule #1 - "Begin with the end in mind" then they will often make different decisions about who they get in bed with.

Now I talk about exit strategies with EVERYTHING, and I have found that even in the business of funding exit strategies, I'm one of the few who bring up the bad parts first.

I often begin conversations with prospective clients with "Let's talk about the divorce clause."

I coach my clients that if anyone approaches them with a business idea, an investment opportunity, or seeks a partner, AND they want to skip past the exit strategy, who won't ask AND answer the tough questions up front about how the exit will be spelled out in the contract, then that's a red flag. Don't just say no, say hell no.

Dev. Kinney - Posted on December 07, 2010
The publishing model for periodicals you propose is supported by the successful one created by Apple I tunes. So I can't understand why it hasn't be tried.

Also wonder how ASCAP gets a payment from a professional piano player or band who is taking requests. Or, for that matter, how any composer's rights are protected. I know of a few who have been robbed by publishing companies declaring bankruptcy. Or having employees do a "rewrite" and never giving an acknowledgment.
Ruth Sheldon - Posted on December 07, 2010
Always fascinating stuff Denny. Some day, I'd love to see one of your ideas hatch.
Jeffrey Dobkin - Posted on December 07, 2010
Enjoyed your post, Denny, as I always do. I was further delighted to see your write up of Gary Bronga's Book. He's a real entrepreneur and very successful in marketing his Clipeze product line. I do remember his days when he started out in his bedroom, while he worked his day job at NASA.
I met Gary when he drove up from Florida to hear me speak at DMDays NY. I was flattered to hear his story and his success as it revolved around my book, "How To Market A Product for Under $500."
Gary wrote me a letter which I ran in entirety alongside his photo in the front matter of "How To Market A Product for Under $500." For years people could read about his success, of which I am privileged to be able to help. In part, he says and I quote:

“I am writing this letter to tell you how much your book, How To Market A Product for Under $500! helped me obtain success with my product CLIPEZE.”

… “The first thing is did was read your book from cover to cover. I could hardly put it down! The book is filled with great practical ideas."

“The second thing I did was to go back to chapter one and start doing everything you suggested step by step, line by line.” …”The more things I tried and the more experience I obtained the easier marketing my product became. Now many sales come to me. Orders pour in by fax, mail and phone every day….”

"I go back to your book weekly to help do our campaigns over and over again.”

"Now that I have been successful bringing a new product to market I am often asked for my advise from people who are thinking about bringing an “idea” to market. The first thing I tell them is to buy and read a copy of “How To Market A Product for Under $500.” Gary R Bronga

It's a privilege to have been able to help people such as Gary, and now he feels this too as evidenced by his own helpful book. Thanks for presenting his 55 word review. And thanks for presenting my book review - as told by Gary - even though it ran over at 182 words. Jeffrey Dobkin
Click here to view archived comments...
Archived Comments:
Zane Lumelsky - Posted on December 08, 2010
2. Payment System for Web Content
Not so new. Several companies have been in the web "micro payment" business for years. I'm most familiar with www.clickshare.com. Check them out.
Wash Phillips - Posted on December 07, 2010
Denny, Thanx for the generous offer and encouraging entrepreneurs-yet-to-be!
Question about 2 of your refs for The Hénokiens: de Kuyper, the Netherlands (since 1695), distillers of gin, schnapps and liqueurs, was about 20 years ago touted to be owned by National Distillers (though that may have been the bragging of a mere distributor arrangement). And these Hoshi folks--with "the Ryokan with 100 rooms that can accommodate 450 guests"--do they specialize in families, close friends or orgies? 4.5 guests per room???.
Brent D. Gardner, CLU, ChFC - Posted on December 07, 2010
You said "Lawyers will tell you that starting a business is easy. It’s the exit strategy that can be murderous and should be decided upon at the outset."

Three aspects of every project, every business, every relationship: 1. Entry, 2. Growth, and 3. Exit.

Everyone talks about the first two, almost everybody ignores the last of the three.

That's where guys like me come in, and often stir up the pot, but good. We ask the difficult and disturbing questions.

If a business owner, investor, or decision maker lives by Rule #1 - "Begin with the end in mind" then they will often make different decisions about who they get in bed with.

Now I talk about exit strategies with EVERYTHING, and I have found that even in the business of funding exit strategies, I'm one of the few who bring up the bad parts first.

I often begin conversations with prospective clients with "Let's talk about the divorce clause."

I coach my clients that if anyone approaches them with a business idea, an investment opportunity, or seeks a partner, AND they want to skip past the exit strategy, who won't ask AND answer the tough questions up front about how the exit will be spelled out in the contract, then that's a red flag. Don't just say no, say hell no.

Dev. Kinney - Posted on December 07, 2010
The publishing model for periodicals you propose is supported by the successful one created by Apple I tunes. So I can't understand why it hasn't be tried.

Also wonder how ASCAP gets a payment from a professional piano player or band who is taking requests. Or, for that matter, how any composer's rights are protected. I know of a few who have been robbed by publishing companies declaring bankruptcy. Or having employees do a "rewrite" and never giving an acknowledgment.
Ruth Sheldon - Posted on December 07, 2010
Always fascinating stuff Denny. Some day, I'd love to see one of your ideas hatch.
Jeffrey Dobkin - Posted on December 07, 2010
Enjoyed your post, Denny, as I always do. I was further delighted to see your write up of Gary Bronga's Book. He's a real entrepreneur and very successful in marketing his Clipeze product line. I do remember his days when he started out in his bedroom, while he worked his day job at NASA.
I met Gary when he drove up from Florida to hear me speak at DMDays NY. I was flattered to hear his story and his success as it revolved around my book, "How To Market A Product for Under $500."
Gary wrote me a letter which I ran in entirety alongside his photo in the front matter of "How To Market A Product for Under $500." For years people could read about his success, of which I am privileged to be able to help. In part, he says and I quote:

“I am writing this letter to tell you how much your book, How To Market A Product for Under $500! helped me obtain success with my product CLIPEZE.”

… “The first thing is did was read your book from cover to cover. I could hardly put it down! The book is filled with great practical ideas."

“The second thing I did was to go back to chapter one and start doing everything you suggested step by step, line by line.” …”The more things I tried and the more experience I obtained the easier marketing my product became. Now many sales come to me. Orders pour in by fax, mail and phone every day….”

"I go back to your book weekly to help do our campaigns over and over again.”

"Now that I have been successful bringing a new product to market I am often asked for my advise from people who are thinking about bringing an “idea” to market. The first thing I tell them is to buy and read a copy of “How To Market A Product for Under $500.” Gary R Bronga

It's a privilege to have been able to help people such as Gary, and now he feels this too as evidenced by his own helpful book. Thanks for presenting his 55 word review. And thanks for presenting my book review - as told by Gary - even though it ran over at 182 words. Jeffrey Dobkin