The basis of any good elevator pitch, and therefore any decent business, is the crystallising of a problem and a compelling explanation of how your start-up will solve that problem.<\/p>\n
<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Unfortunately, it\u2019s likely that many other people will have had thoughts along similar lines to you. Solo \u201cEureka\u201d moments do occur, but by the time you get your idea to market, you can find yourself rubbing shoulders with a number of competitors.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Don\u2019t let this be a cause of dismay. There are plenty of other factors \u2013 strategy, price, service, cashflow management and marketing, to name a few \u2013 that will set you apart from those in the same sector as you.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n But it is worthwhile to be aware of industries that have become saturated or those where start-ups have miserably failed to challenge market leaders.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n With this in mind, we\u2019ve put together a list of the 10 start-up niches that have become overcrowded. Don\u2019t let this put you off forging ahead. In fact, we\u2019ll be happy if you prove us wrong. But don\u2019t tell us we didn\u2019t warn you.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n It would seem a no-brainer to most of us, but some start-ups feel that the iron grip Google and, to a lesser extent, Bing has on the search engine market is somehow vulnerable.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Numerous search sites, such as Cuil and Powerset, have come on gone, unable to break this stranglehold.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The latest ploy is to encourage people to use recommendations on social media sites as a way to find products or services on the web, as demonstrated by the admirable Dane Westerweller\u2019s Mate of Mine.<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n It remains to be seen whether this approach will bear fruit but the clear lesson from recent history is not to go head-to-head with the search giants.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n At StartupSmart, we\u2019ve been repeatedly told about the same gap in Australia\u2019s culinary market \u2013 the need for fresh, authentic Mexican food.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Separate US expat entrepreneurs have rushed to fill this need with the creation of Guzman Y Gomez<\/a> and Mad Mex<\/a>, while Zambrero also espouses the need for an alternative to the sub-standard Mexican fare traditionally found in Australia. These three impressive franchises are rapidly expanding across the country.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n So, if you are set to launch a Mexican chain on the premise of food imported from Mexico, made by Mexican chefs, served in an upmarket fast food kind of way, save the explanation. We\u2019ve already heard it, unfortunately.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n One of the most striking aspects of the inaugural StartupSmart Awards was the number of submissions from parents who based a start-up idea around their own experiences of raising children.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Given the welcome rise of \u201cmumpreneurs\u201d and the lower barriers to entry when starting up, this deluge perhaps wasn\u2019t surprising. However, it was interesting to see how many, whether it\u2019s Olibaby.org, SleepyWings.com.au or Rashoodz.com.au, focused on children\u2019s clothing.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n These examples are all great ideas. But accessories and quirky t-shirts for babies are now near-ubiquitous among parents with the disposable income and inclination, as even a quick Google search or a stroll down a shopping strip will demonstrate.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n If you plan to build a sustainable business in this sector, you will have to provide a genuine point of difference in what\u2019s becoming a very crowded field.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Also, there are only around 300,000 births a year in Australia. As a target market, that\u2019s not a huge space to tussle over.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Unless you\u2019ve spent the last 18 months in a monastery, it\u2019s unlikely that you will have failed to notice the avalanche of group buying sites that has descended upon Australia.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Spreets, Catch of the Day, Scoopon, Star Deals, Jump On It, Cudo, Ouffer \u2013 the list goes on and on. Indeed, we are already starting to see consolidation, as evidenced by Star Deals\u2019 acquisition of Crowdmass<\/a>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Granted, there are niches within this niche. BizzBuzz is attempting to corner the small business group buying market<\/a>, while Liquid Deals aims to do the same thing for wine<\/a>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n But, aside from coming up with something completely new in a packed field, you will also have to grapple with the possibility that this bubble could burst spectacularly in the foreseeable future.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n If you\u2019ve started up a business with a half-decent website, there\u2019s a good chance that you will have crossed paths with a web developer.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n If so, you probably didn\u2019t have to look far. The ability of web developers to work at home with low overheads and affordable technology has seen their numbers explode in recent years.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Where previously you\u2019d need a fairly expensive agency to build you a top-level website, the job can be done by a one-person band working remotely from their home office.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n1. New ways of search<\/h2>\n
2. Mexican restaurants<\/h2>\n
3. Clothing for children<\/h2>\n
4. Group buying sites<\/h2>\n
5. Web developers<\/h2>\n