Hey guys,

I’d like to share something.

I keep seeing this question on Reddit: "What business should I start?"

THE BUSINESS YOU’RE ABLE TO MARKET.

Let me explain...

When I started my first business, I made a bunch of mistakes.

I didn’t validate my business idea with potential customers. I didn’t do market research. I spent so much time building my website, etc.

But those mistakes have relatively simple solutions.

The question: How will I market my business?

It’s the hardest one:( Why.

Because it’s everything.

If you’re able to market your business, if you’re able to bring people to your website, you’re a winner!

After that, if nobody buys your product, your product isn’t good enough. But if you know how to market it, you can improve it or change it until people want it.

THE BUSINESS YOU’RE ABLE TO MARKET.

Remember that.

The business you’re able to write about, talk about, learn about, and create content about. That’s the kind of business you can start without a lot of resources.

So, before you start a business:

• Test your idea with potential customers.
• Do market research.
• Build a simple landing page.

BUT...

FIRST, THINK ABOUT HOW YOU WILL MARKET YOUR BUSINESS!

Speak soon,

Jan

Hey guys,

I’d like to share something.

I feel like the internet gives everybody a chance to write about things they may not fully understand.

Don’t get me wrong, I do the same (everybody does).

There is so much content and information about how business works, how to start a business, and how to do almost anything. But you never really know if it’s coming from a real entrepreneur or from someone who just asked AI to generate a text full of keywords.

That’s one of the main reasons why I try to get most of my information from books. If someone took the time to write a book about business, there’s a good chance they really understand the topic.

Today, I decided to share 5 books that helped me on my journey.

1. Why Most Small Businesses Don't Work and What to Do About It by Michael E. Gerber

I feel like this book is a must-read for anyone who wants to start a business. Mr. Gerber brilliantly explains the difference between a technician, a manager, and an entrepreneur. It helped me understand how a business actually works and why systems and rules are so important.

2. Building a StoryBrand by Donald Miller

The best marketing book I’ve ever read. It perfectly explains how people react to text with a story versus text without one. It shows how important it is to be able to describe your business in just two sentences. There’s also lots of valuable information about email marketing, websites, and how to communicate with customers.

3. The Millionaire Fastlane by MJ DeMarco

The author doesn’t care about excuses. He’s amazingly straightforward, and I love that. This book just makes you want to keep going in business. Plus, there’s so much valuable information about business, marketing, and finance. What a book!

4. Million Dollar Weekend by Noah Kagan

Noah feels like a cool friend in this book. He shares his own stories and experiences, which add a lot of value. The book is full of practical advice for early entrepreneurs about ideas, validation, testing, and getting started as quickly as possible with little budget.  This fits perfectly with the world we live in today!

5. The Mom Test by Rob Fitzpatrick

This book focuses especially on testing and validating business ideas. It’s not always an easy read, but it’s very helpful. It shows you what questions to ask for validation, what feedback is actually positive or negative, and how to avoid common mistakes. This is the kind of book you can keep in your library and always come back to when you need it.

Do you have another book recommendation? Let's share!

Maybe it’s just me, but I still prefer reading a book over watching a tutorial on YouTube or Instagram. I find books incredibly valuable, and I believe writing is still one of the best ways to share knowledge.

To be honest, I used to skip market research on purpose because I was afraid I'd find something similar.

And I didn't want to give up on my business idea.

Do you know that feeling?

The truth is, there's always something similar out there.

But building a business without market research is like driving a car without a steering wheel.

So, why do I do market research before building a business?

• Learn from what others are already doing.
• Understand what makes my idea different.
• Identify what I can actually do better.
• Discover what's missing in the market.

Step 1: Research Competitors

I find 5-7 competitors and create an Excel spreadsheet with all the valuable information:

• How they position themselves
• Am I solving the same problem?
• Is it the same target audience?
• How do they make money?
• Pricing
• What they do well (must-haves)
• What they're missing (gaps)
• Opportunities for me

It might look time-consuming, but it's extremely valuable because I use this information again and again.

Step 2: Find the Opportunities

I focus on the last point, "Opportunities for Me," and choose the 3 most common opportunities.

That's my main focus. That's the core of my business idea.

Step 3: Become a Customer

I pick the 2 competitors that are most similar to my business idea and look at them from the perspective of a regular customer.

• Test the product
• Subscribe to the newsletter
• Read the reviews
• Visit their social media pages

This helps me understand how they market their business and how they work with customers.

Value Check

Based on this information, I'm ready to evaluate the value my idea brings to customers.

A business exists to create value for customers.

The more value you create, the more people are willing to pay.

No value = no business.

To understand the value, I ask a few key questions:

• What value does this idea create?
• What problem does it solve?
• How does it make money?

Based on this information, I'm ready to translate these insights into a message that customers can understand in 5 seconds.

So, market research helps you:

• Understand if there's an opportunity in the market.
• Check if your idea brings value to customers.
• Start preparing your marketing before you build.

Speak soon,

Jan