Choosing a product

No matter how long you have been in entrepreneurship, starting any online business has never been this hard. Here is a quick look at the e-commerce landscape:
- Competition is fierce
- Product markets are saturated
- Consumers demand convenience more than ever.

Before you start thinking about the design and experience of an online store, or even choosing your company name, you must choose the products you want to sell. This decision is a strategy in itself, because what you sell will affect every other business decision you make, such as:
- Brand name
- Website design
- Marketing
- Loyalty programs
- Shipping and fulfillment

While each of these components is essential to a successful online strategy, they are worthless without a great product to back them up.

What kind of products can I sell online?

Regardless of the industry you work in, there are two types of products you can sell:
- Commodity products
- Niche products

* Commodity products are essential, high-demand, or popular goods or services. They can be physical or digital products, and they are the products everyone needs.

Commodity products make up the majority of online sales.

Think of anything you buy from Ekuep or from marketplaces with a big brand behind them, such as food, golf clubs, clothing, toys, and more.

* Niche products are goods or services that serve a specific customer base and product category.

In many cases, these products are unique or handmade, which makes them among the distinctive items bought online. Niche products are often manufactured in small batches or on demand, such as a one-of-a-kind embroidered necklace, handmade frozen yogurt, or a leather case for a Samsung device.
However, many store owners sell a mix of commodity and niche products to increase their profit margin.
Offering only commodities, especially if they are popular products sold on major online marketplaces such as Noon, will make it extremely difficult to succeed.

Large online retailers and marketplaces can buy goods in bulk, which makes the products more profitable. But your startup will probably not be able to compete right away. Instead, offer your customers commodity and niche products along with a branded experience to set up your online store for success.

How to choose the products to sell

We all look forward to becoming the next big company, like some of the most famous D2C brands (a business model in which companies manufacture their products and sell them through their own channels, whether in e-commerce, social commerce, or their own stores), but the truth is that in today’s saturated product market, it is hard to come up with product ideas.

Luckily for you, we have put together a checklist for brainstorming product ideas to help you unleash your spirit of initiative and leadership.

1. 1. Identify or create products that solve a problem.

   As Brian Chesky, co-founder of Airbnb, puts it: “If we tried to think of a good idea, we would not have been able to think of a good idea. You just have to find the solution for a problem in your own life.”
   When you brainstorm ideas for a product or service, it is essential to think about the problems in your own life. Kyle Kirkpatrick, an Olympic gymnastics coach, wanted to listen to music while training athletes. The catch? Being able to use headphones that would stay in place, regardless of whether he was running or jumping on a trampoline while performing flips.

   The theory of positive annoyance: Kirkpatrick succeeded in taking what was a minor annoyance and turning it into a brilliant business idea, the invention of Decibullz.
   The reason for his success? Identifying the problem and solving it with ease.
   Your product or service does not necessarily have to be a huge, complex endeavor. It can be extremely simple, yet exceptionally effective.
   Product opportunities can also exist in a few other areas:

Improved product features:
- A new market your competitors have not reached
- Unique product positioning and marketing

2. 2. Look for products that you and other people love.

“Passionate” may be a buzzword, but it carries a great deal of value. Starting your own business is not the glitz and glamour shown in the movies. The reality looks more like long hours, most likely some rocky terrain, and occasional, if not frequent, sacrifice. Being passionate about what you do will not only help you get through the tough times, but it will also help you craft a brand message that speaks to people in a meaningful, authentic, and engaging way.
Let us be real: without passion, what is the driving force behind your online business? By being emotionally invested in your product, you can better deliver its value and message to the market. In addition, an emotional story will help you stand out from the competition.

3. 3. Look for products with branding potential.

   You have identified a potential product that solves consumers’ problems and comes from a place of passion. So what is next? Creating a resonant brand message that can have a big impact in the competitive e-commerce space.
   Crafting a distinctive, memorable brand means you will need to dedicate time to research and truly understand your target audience. Your brand should speak to your potential customers in a way that resonates and compels them to come back. In other words, you want to build loyalty around audience identity.
   Some great questions to start with are:
   - How does your target audience like to be addressed?
   - How will you position your product?
   - How will you design your website to communicate your brand and attract potential customers through the layout and color scheme?
   And the calls to action?

4- Jump on trends early.

Take advantage of emerging markets and carve out a place for your brand. To do this successfully, it is important to stay up to date on trending products and services, then launch an e-commerce site to capitalize on them before they reach peak popularity. As a small business owner, moving early on trends can give your business a big upside, and you will have the opportunity to own the SEO keywords and establish yourself as a leader in the market you serve early on. Start thinking about the products or services that have been trending in recent years.

5- Look for products that satisfy customers’ desires.

It always comes back to what we are passionate about. Another product that has proven successful is one that satisfies customers’ desires.
Shoppers often spend more money on their wants than on their needs, and along with that spending comes loyalty to the brands that understand their obsession.

6- Identify and serve niche segments.

Niche segments often demonstrate the success of e-commerce businesses. Niche segments emerge because they resonate with a highly engaged, high-converting audience (converting is a term for visitors who become buyers). Serving a niche segment is a great business proposition because you are creating a product that solves a problem for a highly enthusiastic audience segment.
Serving an enthusiastic niche audience will help build brand awareness and online traffic, and ultimately, new and returning customers who convert.

7- Discover business opportunities everywhere.

Part of being an entrepreneur is always pushing your imagination. As you go about your role as a global citizen, pay attention to how society behaves. Are there rules that need to be broken? Is there an opportunity to improve the lives of your neighbors?
Which products are gaining customers quickly? Which industries are gaining momentum?
Keeping up with what is happening in the world will help you identify new online business opportunities. In addition, sit down and evaluate your strengths and interests.
Do you love marketing? Do you have a special talent for marketing and no fear of experimenting? Gather the resources, human and technical, to start your online business. Following a structured approach to launching a product and a business will begin to show results in the future.

How do I start selling online?

You have a product, and you are now ready to go to market, online. Before you start building an online store, make sure you complete the following steps:

- Conduct market research.
- Finalize the products for sale.
- Define your customer base, and segment your audience.
- Start researching the e-commerce system you want to sell on (such as your own online store, Amazon, Noon, Kables, OpenSooq, and other sites customers usually buy from).
- Create high-quality product content (including product descriptions and images).
- Put together a strategy for marketing to your potential customers (so you can drive traffic to the store).

The truth is that launching an e-commerce store is neither hard nor easy, but with the right tools and an organized plan before and after launch, you will be on the right track to success.