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"Virtual" Opportunities Aplenty

Paul McGuire
/
fotolia.com

There appears to be no end to the business opportunities that have been created by the Internet. 

You, literally, can sit at home, never leave the premises, and become almost any kind of service business you want to be.

Consider what happened a couple months ago on Mother’s Day. Virtual florists cropped up all over the country.

First, you create a web site. Then invest in aggressive search engine promotion. Then buy e-mail lists and start blasting out flower specials nationwide.

When a customer responds, say to send flowers to his mom, in Poughkeepsie, you fire off an e-mail to Poughkeepsie florists to see who wants to deliver what you sold, at the price you promoted, for the percentage you’ll give that florist to do it.

Leading florists in almost any market won’t take the deal. But there’s usually one or more that will. You collect on the customer’s credit card, then pay the local florist.

In between floral holidays you can become a virtual plumber. A virtual house painter. Carpenter. Lawn service. Electrician. Heating and air conditioning company.

You get a customer lead, then find a legitimate local operator to provide for a customer you generate at the price you’ll pay him to do it.  "Virtuality" is a lot cheaper than reality.

And you never left your computer.

To reach Mr. Malmo, hear and read more of his commentaries, or to ask him your own marketing question, go to http://askmalmo.com.

My mother introduced me to WKNO-FM and public radio long before I can remember. I suppose the first thing I really recall about WKNO-FM is that every afternoon, when my mother picked me up from school, the radio was tuned-in to The World, then All Things Considered, probably beginning around age 8. The way these reporters and hosts took you from the comfort of your mom's van to wherever in the world they were reporting from absolutely fascinated me. From then on, I was officially hooked.