The first is demand, and demand creates customers. To discover demand, we must consider the following factors: first, the degree of demand, or dependence; second, the scale of demand; third, the substitutability of demand; and fourth, competitors.
First, the degree of dependence on demand
Requirements are not very necessary, they are very dependent. Human needs are divided into many levels. For example, the needs for food, clothing, housing, transportation, and personal safety are basic needs and the first need. They are also needs that will not disappear no matter what level human beings develop to. Assuming an economic crisis occurs, whether it is the entire economy or individuals, people may not go singing, they may not buy LV bags, and they may reduce entertainment activities such as dining out, but they will not miss basic needs such as food, transportation, and communication. Some The degree of dependence on demand is very high, and some can be replaced. For the Internet, the need to find information; the need to read news, communication, and online transactions are the most basic needs. For example, the demand for some value-added services, such as entertainment, may be greatly affected by the economic downturn. Therefore, this kind of business will never disappear. The only problem for this kind of business is that there are too many competitors and the profits are too thin. The higher the degree of dependence, the larger the demand market and the less affected by economic fluctuations.
Second, the scale of demand
That is, how many people will use the product or service. For example, if you are building a recruitment website, if it is an industry-based recruitment website, such as a construction recruitment website, the scale of demand will only be limited to the construction industry, but if you are building a comprehensive recruitment website, there is no such restriction. The size of the demand determines the size of the market. Of course, the size of the market itself is not necessarily related to profitability. Because sometimes, the bigger the market and the more competitors, the smaller the chance of winning and the smaller the profit. However, in some vertical fields, if you can do it well, you can achieve good returns.
Third, the substitutability of demand
Some needs are fungible. For example, when you go on a date with someone on a weekend night, you can choose to go to the movies, chat in a coffee shop, or go to a concert. Such needs are replaceable. Such substitutable demand is likely to be profoundly affected by industrial changes.
Fourth, competitors
Finally, what needs to be considered is that there may be multiple players entering the market. Is this demand already provided by players, and has it been done well? If it is done well, then the cost of entry will be very high, is it worth it? Enter? If it is not done well, are there still opportunities? If this is a new demand and no one enters this field, are the barriers to entry in this field high? If the barriers are not high, how to establish this field? barrier. Is the time to enter this field right? Does it cost a lot to cultivate the market? And so on.
In the process of conducting the above demand analysis, it is best to discover an innovative model, an area that is not valued by others, and then do a good job in positioning, such as quickly accumulating users and forming advantages. Thinking about profit models by analogy is also the key to exploring innovative profit models. Of course, these prerequisites are based on the core needs of users.
The profit model of ChinaChem.com founded by Sun Deliang is very simple, namely advertising and membership fees, and it has achieved success. The reason is simple, he discovered the needs of users. ChinaChem.com has thousands of members. Many chemical company employees open SinoChem.com as soon as they get to work. The accumulation of popularity has led to a substantial increase in advertising value. A small banner advertising space can sell for more than 400,000 yuan a year. Some companies are even afraid of rising prices for advertising space, so they reserve the space for several years and receive real money, making profits very natural.
The more you think about profit models and user needs, the easier it is to discover the common patterns of many Internet profit models, such as Tencent Side 2, 51 Community, Zhengtu Games, Alibaba, China Chemical Network, etc., all of which are the same. Whether it’s QQ or 51, money often comes from users’ needs to show off themselves and become celebrities in the community. On dating websites, it’s the need to let more people know them. These needs are all the needs of individual users. . The same is true for websites such as Alibaba and ChemChina that mainly have corporate users. When there are many users on the entire website, getting differentiated membership services or more display opportunities means more business opportunities. .
Behind the profit models of these websites, a large number of users gather behind one website, resulting in a scarcity of display resources. This scarcity can be used to achieve the purpose of user payment through differentiation of membership services and differentiation of display resources. (Source: Xiake Webmaster Station)