In an earlier post, I noted 4 things you should look for when trying to move into the B quadrant. Going a bit deeper in the DOW Theory Letters, Richard Russell outlined what an ideal business looks like. This is not the full list, but ones that I think are the most relevant in the 21st century economy. If you are interested in making money as a business owner, these are the top traits you should be looking for in a business:
Low Investment – It does not require huge investments (in cash or loans) or tie up your capital in equipment.
Low Overhead – It does not need an expensive location, expensive inventory requirements, have large utility needs, or large budgets for advertising, payroll, etc.
Unlimited Global Market – It sells to the world, rather than to a single neighborhood, or even a single city or state.
Protected – It sells a product which cannot be easily substituted or copied; it is or can be copyrighted, trademarked and/or patented.
Portable – It can be moved anywhere with ease. Where you go, your business can easily go.
Frees Time – It leaves you with free time – it doesn’t require your labor and attention 12, 16 or 18 hours a day.
Unlimited – It is one in which your income is not limited by your personal output (think of the HVAC installer in the E quadrant) – you can sell to 10,000 customers as easily as you sell to one.
One more that I would add, is Scalability – It has a proven system that can be easily duplicated (using the franchise model without the actual costs of franchising).
Why is all of this important? Because in today’s economy, you can start a lot of businesses that check every single box for as little as a couple hundred dollars startup with very little monthly expenses. Some common forms they take are: drop shipping, affiliate marketing, lead generation, and professional network marketing.
