Is the marketplace crowded?

[eluser]Milos Dakic[/eluser]
Just wanted to see what the community had to say about the current market for web applications. I have been looking into developing a few web applications for things like project management, invoicing, documentation etc. What do you think of apps that are already available? What don't you like about them? What would make you want to move to a new app of that sort?

I will potentially base my ideas of currently existing apps but would put in my own touch and features as that is why I wanted to do something like this in the first place.

Hope to get some feedback from people who use such apps and to see what they think.

[eluser]t0psub[/eluser]
Well i believe the thing about that is everyone has different needs and every company is different which makes different needs. I think that is why there are so many applications on the web.

This is the reason the web company i work for develop there own CMS / Applications

[eluser]BrianDHall[/eluser]
One thing to consider is sort of niche marketing. For instance, consider how many accounting software packages there is available. Then notice that there are countless more that are specifically tailored to the needs of a given industry, like construction, real estate management, printing, etc.

So ther are plenty of email apps, but is their an email app...say, specifically tailored to the needs of school teachers and administrators?

Another might be document management - lots of applications and services for that, but they are often so general that I wouldn't begin to TRY to even set one up. Feels like you need a PhD on computer science just to figure out what the hell most of the things do, and another month of manual reading an training to figure out how you'd set it up for your particular type of business.

Another tack is focusing on the needs of an under-served user type, and then developing one by one a suite of tools useful to them. Like, oh I don't know, bowling alleys. Live online score updating, easy to use streaming video capabilities of their league games, marketing and advertising management tools, etc.

[eluser]Milos Dakic[/eluser]
Brian, would you say its better to have many little separated applications or a very large modular application? By this I mean you can add and do anything within the large application which is not restricted to a certain user type. Therefore expansion into other areas and markets won't be as hard to do if you have your base.

[eluser]rogierb[/eluser]
I think he is saying, start with the basics an tailor it to one branch. Then add modularity for that specific branch. Once you got that finetuned to perfection, we will probably have to start calling you Gates:-)

It is always better to start with a (larger) nice market then to generalize.

[eluser]Milos Dakic[/eluser]
[quote author="rogierb" date="1254740858"]I think he is saying, start with the basics an tailor it to one branch. Then add modularity for that specific branch. Once you got that finetuned to perfection, we will probably have to start calling you Gates:-)

It is always better to start with a (larger) nice market then to generalize.[/quote]

I'm thinking of starting off with a base, user management, permissions and the works from there I can actually build anything. It can be multiple applications with multiple modules or a single application with multiple modules.

It's very hard to know what the market needs until you actually make something and see how you go. It's pretty much a trial and error scenario since you can't tell who is going to buy your software and who isn't. You might make your product for a specific audience and end up selling to a totally different audience.

However I'm not going for a Gates here I'm hoping to make something that is very good at what it does. From there the limits are endless

[eluser]flameijpzmt[/eluser]
Live online score updating, easy to use streaming video capabilities of their league games,

[eluser]Milos Dakic[/eluser]
[quote author="flameijpzmt" date="1254749409"]Live online score updating, easy to use streaming video capabilities of their league games,[/quote]

Do you care to elaborate?

[eluser]BrianDHall[/eluser]
I read a book (multiple times, actually) called "Jump Start Your Business Brain" - really great book.

Anyway, the author pointed out something that seems like very valuable advice to me, so I shall pass it on.

In any business, a venture can be categorized as one of three scenarios:

1) Selling an existing product to an existing customer. This is the easiest sale the make, and also generally the least profitable. It's like being a grocery store and trying to sell a box of corn flakes to someone who already buys cornflakes. You maintain the status quo.

2) Selling an existing product to a new customer. You have a product you know will sell and you know why people buy it, so you search for a new customer. It's like the job of an insurance salesman - its often just a matter of making the calls, getting in front of the customer. Its profitable, it creates growth for your venture, but obviously it suffers from the same problem all existing products has - competition and fragmented markets. Its like trying to get someone to buy Grape Nuts cereal who has never tried them.

3) Selling a new product to an existing customer. Far easier to find an existing need of a current customer and seek to fill it as you already have the contact info, you are already have some reputation, its far easier to get in the door and get that customer who is already happy with you to try your latest and greatest. The downside here is if you are selling something that simply replaces something else the customer buys from you (like when people buy Honey Nut Cherios instead of regular).

4) Selling a new product to a new customer. This has the most potential for growth and profit, but its also the hardest position to be in. The costs are the highest, the work is the highest, you have to overcome lots of obstacles to make even a small sale. Some of the biggest companies took this approach, but when you compare it to all the companies that tried and met with limited success or failure (only to have other companies copy them in many ways and ultimately do better than them) it doesn't look like a great position to be in.

You should try to get yourself into positions 3 and 2 - build customers, sell them your existing products to maintain status quo and develop new ones to meet their needs (which will be must easier to make work because you already have customers to try it out on and either buy it or give you feedback on why not).

Position 4 requires lots of staying power and dedication. For every Twitter there are literally thousands of websites that you've never heard about that never got anywhere.

[eluser]BrianDHall[/eluser]
[quote author="Milos Dakic" date="1254741212"][quote author="rogierb" date="1254740858"]I think he is saying, start with the basics an tailor it to one branch. Then add modularity for that specific branch. Once you got that finetuned to perfection, we will probably have to start calling you Gates:-)

It is always better to start with a (larger) nice market then to generalize.[/quote]

I'm thinking of starting off with a base, user management, permissions and the works from there I can actually build anything. It can be multiple applications with multiple modules or a single application with multiple modules.

It's very hard to know what the market needs until you actually make something and see how you go. It's pretty much a trial and error scenario since you can't tell who is going to buy your software and who isn't. You might make your product for a specific audience and end up selling to a totally different audience.

However I'm not going for a Gates here I'm hoping to make something that is very good at what it does. From there the limits are endless [/quote]

Actually I recently heard a bit on the radio about what you mention here. A group of economists noted that online startups and internet businesses (including software, service, retail, and 'exotic' busineses) should experience MORE growth even in the difficult economy. The reason? They state it typically has now become cheaper to start a business than it is to complete formal market research and focus groups!

In short, the basic model is come up with something that some specific group of people you can target wants. Then offer something you think they might like, and see if they like it. If not, stick it in the freezer or on the back burner and try something else.

Build the customer base, get to know them, focus on satisfying their needs and don't get tricked into thinking there is more money in larger "potential markets".

After all, most people don't get dates by walking into a crowd and screaming at thousands of people and hoping to get a few takers. It is generally more advisable to find specific people you are interested in, approach them, and see if they will show an interest in what you have to offer.