...have been projects where I participated in the entire process on a weekly basis over the first 13 weeks or so of a new store. I have recently changed my "business model" to reflect this. I work with about 10 folks at a time, and instead of being Joe Fixit for more and more Yahoo! Store clients, I now offer this turnkey service to a limited number of long term clients and it's really catching on!

First, we help you target a specific niche in your industry. The most important aspect of starting a web-based business is FOCUS. Pick a profitable, popular niche to focus your business on, but not one too broad, or with too many competitors. We put together a list of targeted keywords, and I search for marketing opportunities on the Net. Next, we help you pick the right products. We make sure that enough people are looking for what you want to sell by testing the popularity of your search terms in the various search engines. I also suggest a list of product categories and the specific brands you can focus on to maximize your business.

Finally, we help you prioritize based upon your interest, price point, margin, competition level, or internet opportunity. There are usually several breakout subcategories in a single Yahoo! Store that would be worthy of their own Yahoo Store, so doing this now gives us leads on the next few quarters' worth of projects, and there's enough time before the 4QTR 2003 to get ready for that Christmas sales spike.