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Do a little digging and you find out it’s relatively easier to make that million-dollar mission-accomplished by finding an online niche—preferably one that actually excites you at your core—and finding out what that niche want.

Too many people do the opposite—they focus on the hottest product or service and try to blast that out to as many people as possible. There’s an inherent risk in being left holding a bag of goodies nobody wants. Only that’s one expensive bag!

Just like the old-fashioned way, you’re not buying tons of inventory and then hoping that you sell it. You get the orders and the money first, then you deliver. Online, you learn your market’s want or gap in fulfillment, and then you deliver a product or service that market wants. Social media is a great way to learn more about your market (and pull in very qualified leads!) once you’ve established what your niche will be and build your website around it.

As usual, proceed with caution. Not everything can be sold online. Not every want that might be clear and evident can be fulfilled just by throwing up a website.

The late Cory Rudl, one of the pioneers of internet marketing and online businesses, used this analogy. If you had a cure for the common cold, in an easy-to-digest pill form, billionaire might not even apply to what you’d be worth. That product would be everywhere—Seven Eleven, every grocery store, corner store, market, you name it.

Now try selling that online. At minimum it takes at least three to four days for the product to get to you. You’re already over your cold by then. It’s a failure from day one. Don’t start with a product. Start with a market, and then find a product for that market that that market wants.

People spend money on things that they want. It’s an emotional investment. A necessity can be satisfied by the most convenient and cheapest product or service. People are willing to pay more money for wants, but they’re usually very price-conscious with things they have to get or do.

And no different than traditional businesses, there’s the backend after that want is fulfilled. It’s the product or service you sell after they’ve bought the first product from you. That’s where all the money is.

Been to the movies lately? If not, no one can blame you as expensive as it can be to take your family out for movie night. But think about whoever is making all that money at the concession stand alone.

You go up to the counter for a small popcorn (because you’ve already tucked away all the candy you’ll need in your purse or bag), but you leave with a large bucket plus a soda. Why? “Well, you can get this for only 40 cents more … Or this meal-deal that saves you this much money.”

Even fast-food workers are routinely taught to up-sell. It’s no different online—the point is your customers come in for one thing and walk away with more—because you gave them something they wanted from the beginning.

Once you have the customer’s name online, it costs you nothing to sell to them again and again and again. You can make 100% more net income than you are right now by back-end selling.