Okay, so I have this niche idea. I'm currently an architecture student who is graduating in August, well, my idea is based around this. As an architecture student, you have to have all kinds of drafting supplies. Well, that gets really expensive. So I want to create an e-biz that can order drafting supplies for students, based on what they need and it will be shipped to their homes, dorms, or wherever. I've already found a company that sells drafting supplies cheaper than most art stores and I would only up take a small commission based on the total cost of the supplies (including shipping). What I want to know is, A: is this a good idea and B: is there anything I need to do for like forms or whatever.

Any help would be appreciated.

Neat idea. They do it for elementary school kids, why not college kids?

I would certainly use an application form. They fill in their stock list, payment information and delivery information.

If you set it up online, you can do it easily with a Zen Cart or OSCommerce shopping cart.

Good luck with it.

T


Tina Brooks, VP Marketing
Brooks Pepperfire Foods, Inc.
Makers of Peppermaster Hot Sauces
http://www.peppermaster.com

Eat more peppers!

Thanks for the advice and the encouragement. I wasn't sure how well it might be received. I like the idea of using the forms for them to fill out all their information. Thanks again!

~ imagoodgurl4 ~

It sounds like a good idea but you want to ask yourself - how big is that market going to be and how are you going to reach this market?

So, first, you're going to want to do some research - look at how many schools offer these types of programs, how many students are typically enrolled, etc. This shouldn't be hard because much of this information is going to be available on line.

Even if the market is relatively small, getting a website set up is not not going to be a high start up cost because you can get hosting and the shopping cart stuff for a relatively cheap price (see my sig.).

But, you may have an issue with advertising - will the schools sell you a list of the students in the architecture program? Will they allow you to put up fliers on their campus for your website? You may to read this page - http://pagebuzz.com/howto-planning.html

One thing that you may want to use as a great way to get people to your site is to add a discussion board where new (and older) students can come and socialize - ask questions about ideas, etc. - similar to this board. That way, you could also make money off of advertising

I think you also asked a question about forms you need - right? Do you mean business forms? You can find information here - http://craftersbuzz.com/business_getstarted.html - just find your state and you will see links to get you to the right place.

Good luck!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

http://pagebuzz.com - Small Business Website Hosting. $19.99 per month, no up sells, no contracts, no surprises. Shopping cart, photo galleries, drag and drop editors, graphics, specialized programming for car dealers, real estate agents, and others.

I think that imagoodgurl4 is going to discover that doing it just for architectural students is like cutting off her nose to spite her face.

Having the ability to simply log on, list the required text books and then find them waiting in their dorm is going to appeal to a lot of people.

She doesn't need the school to sell her or even give her a list of students in the program, she simply needs to market to high school students who are graduating.

I think the bulletin board idea is fantastic, but I think it should target graduating high school students and first and second year kids. After all, grad students aren't exactly needing help finding their textbooks, etc.

Drive traffic? Sell the SAT study guides, the kids will click on the site while looking to pass their SATs and will remember it for when they go to get their textbooks. Also, use podcasts and blogging to increase SEO.

T

Tina Brooks, VP Marketing
Brooks Pepperfire Foods, Inc.
Makers of Peppermaster Hot Sauces
http://www.peppermaster.com

Eat more peppers!