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Wednesday, December 22, 2010

The Next New Businesses

Entrepreneurs, investors, dreamers, and others spend a lot of time trying to figure out the next new businesses.

Will Rogers said investing was simple. Buy low, sell high. If it doesn’t go up, don’t buy it.

This week I’ve seen several indicators of where profitable businesses are growing, in a stagnant economy with  uncertain capital markets. Filling in existing niches.

The web, especially social media has roughed in some great new service areas. Now is the time to add the supporting services that make them even better.

John Battelle explains why Groupon is such a great idea. Reading the post, I realized there is plenty of room for other offerings that serve the same target market, a rich area for new business.

Edmund Lee in Advertising Age reports about AdKeeper, a new service building off of what we already use. Taming the frontier, making it friendlier for the risk averse, new ways to use what already exists. The Telegraph Road

Little new technology, just making what we have better, faster, cheaper. Seeing what is needed differently. These companies bolster existing, better funded companies, an intelligent acquisition strategy in a poor IPO market.

Do you see a pattern here?

1 comment:

  1. Dick:
    Good observations about what's emerging and the action plan to help it along.

    I must say that I am reminded of the activities in Makers by Cory Doctrow - individuals and twosomes innovatively creating useful new things from existing (and even obsolete)things.

    It seems that this is the path which is evolving - big ideas from individuals using existing technology differently. The possibilities are truly endless!

    ReplyDelete