about a "Market"....there is ALWAYS ROOM for ME!

My very first venture...offering burglar alarms to home and business owners. I was told by every one who knew me that..."There's ALREADY a burglar alarm company around every corner and behind every bush!"

I thought, "So What! There's ROOM for ME! And sure nuff...in 3 yrs I had 17 employees and the largest alarm co in the North Shore of Chgo.

"Non-experienced" people "build boogie men in their minds". They "Think" because it "seems like" the market is "saturated"...it probably is...and they "tip toe" into the market with low prices and sure nuff...in a few months or a year they're out of biz.

People like "me"...take a look at the market...decide what I want to charge to "make it worth MY while"...put together a "package" and go out and sell the heck out of it.

Example;
I just finished my 3rd town (Ashland, oregon)...creating a "Restaurant Menu Guide" placed in hotel lobbies.

I got 28 restaurants to pay me $790 to be in MY book.

When I went to the first hotel to get permission to place MY Menu Guide in their lobby...the Manager pulls out a book from behind the front desk and hands it to me.

It's a book of MENUS.

Did I say, "Well...by golly miss molly.... somebody has ALREADY done a "Menu Guide" in this here town...I guess I better not even tryto do another!"

Heck NO!

I put MY sample guide on the desk in front of him and said, "HERE'S a "Menu Guide"! Look what THIS has in it AND...notice ALL the full color photos AND...notice (this)....AND...notice (this)
...MINE is 10 TIMES better looking and it includes things the other doesn't!"

I then said, "Would you let me place MY Menu Guide in the lobby?"
To which he said, "Yes!"

I then asked him for a copy of the existing Guide and I proceeded to sell 80% of the restaurants in that book.

"Competition"..."Saturated Market"...I "THRIVE" on these!

If nobody was doing what I'm doing...I'd wonder whether there is a market for what I'm doing.

Carlotta....a "saturated" market means;
"People without intestinal fortitude will NOT try to enter! Only people with "IF" will go in and...more than likely...make it go!

And PLEEZE....if you put a FSBO site together...DON'T "give it away"....just because you feel "low price" will get you business. It probably will...in the beginning. Then it comes time to ask yourself...could I be making more money busing tables?"

Proudly CHARGE for your service! And give people REASONS WHY they should pay your fee!

Don Alm

> Hi Don!

> That is a great idea and should work well in
> some markets.

> If Carlotta's market is at all like mine
> though, it is already overly saturated with
> real estate agents bumping into each other
> everywhere. They have magazines, websites,
> newspapers, radio and even television tours
> of the homes that are listed with the real
> estate agents ... but what is being done to
> help the FSBO market? Nothing!!!

> The FSBO has a sign in their yard and will
> perhaps run an ad in the local newspaper for
> a month maybe two before they quit running
> the ad because it is too expensive and you
> can't include enough to motivate buyers
> without it starting to ad up enough that you
> may as well pay the agents commission.

> I say if you are in an area that can benefit
> from the website like you mentioned ... go
> for it. It is a great idea.

> If ... on the other hand that market is
> already being catered to abundantly ... why
> have competition in the same ole' real
> estate market when you can own the FSBO
> market?

> Find your niche or carve one out Carlotta.
> There is lot's of great ideas out there. I
> think you are embarking on one that there is
> all kinds of opportunity and room to grow
> in.

> Hope this helps.

> Randy Sutton