Earn Extra Income from Selling International! [Internet Income]

As prosperity enters into some of the most populous regions of the world, namely Asian countries like China, India, Korea and Phillipines, there is growing opportunity for small businesses in the US to sell to consumers in these countries and generate some Internet income to boot! For the most part, big businesses have moved in to sell everything from raw materials to high-technology goods. However, the average consumer remains hungry for services in many niche areas - especially those consumers who travel to the US!

We all have been hearing about the growing prosperity in Asia, specifically China, India, Korea and Phillipines. These countries are benefiting from outsourcing, the movement of manufacturing and services to these countries, and the huge investments that companies worldwide are making in these countries.

These countries are not only providers of goods and services, they are also huge consumers! For example, China imports a lot of raw material as well as high-technology items such as nuclear reactors, missile and space technology, and planes. India is a huge importer of computer hardware and software products to support its burgeoning IT industry.

Interest in the US

These countries have long been fascinated by the US due to the opportunities and general prosperity here. And now though these countries are on a faster growth trajectory (China is poised to have an economy as large as the US by 2035), the interest in US has only deepened because:

The US is the largest market to whom they sell
US Universities continue to be very attractive for advanced degrees
Touring the US is now more affordable for them!

Each of these areas offers opportunities to you for providing useful services and developing an additional stream of income.

Business Travel

The number of Chinese and Indian businessmen and women visiting the US is high and projected to rise even further. Though most business travelers have their itinerary fixed and taken care of by their US counterpart, many times they may need to change their schedule and would pretty much be on their own.

This is because not all travelers are dealing with large Fortune 500 companies. Many of the interactions are between small businesses at both ends - with neither having much ability to afford a large adminstrative department to make travel arrangements.

A comprehensive website that covers large parts of the US and offers an easy one-stop-shop for the business traveler - providing detailed information about each city, how to get around, how to remain connected, and recommendations on the best places to stay and do business will prove extremely useful.

Moreover, if the site is geared to a traveler from a particular country - say China - helping the person bridge the cultural differences, and providing information on local Chinese eateries and entertainment would further endear the website to the traveler.

The idea here is for the website to be like a lifeline for the traveler.

Inspite of the huge number of travel sites, there are not as many devoted to the business traveler as you might expect. Here are a few:

http://www.businesstraveller.com/

http://www.btnmag.com/businesstravelnews/index.jsp

If you are site offers truly useful and relevant information, you can go with a subscription model - most businessmen will be all too glad to become members.

Students

Students from India and China have long flocked to the US for studying at its institutes of higher learning. The Internet has made finding this information even simpler, and yet not simple enough.

In the pre-Internet days, students were content to get information from friends and other students who were already in the US. Or they would visit some US institutions situated in those countries and rely on books like Peterson's guide to US Universities.

But now all the websites of all the Universities are available online. However there are so many out there that it is extremely difficult for students to find the right match - especially for an international student - and therein lies your opportunity!

A website that allows you to search for graduate school programs based on:

Duration of the program (1 year, 2 year, 4 year)
Quality of program (as measured by an independent agency)
Required qualifications to enter the program in terms understood by the international student (for example, 1 year of Masters program for students from India is the minimum required for entering most graduate school programs in US)
Required standardized tests (GRE, GMAT)

Later, this can be extended to specific recommendations on how best to apply for a given school, and how to improve chances of getting admission.

One of the best sites today for graduate school admissions is http://www.gradschools.com/. However they cater to the American student, and do not have all the search parameters to make them even more useful, and certainly do not cater to the international student seeking to study in the US. Another site, http://find-edu.org/, provides some of the needed search criteria, but does not provide the international flavor that will be your site differentiator.

Cater to the international student body, and you have a good chance of success at having a heavily used website which could be then monetized.

Tourism

This is one of those subjects that have been written about extensively, and the market is near saturation. You will have to do extensive research on a very niche area within this market - perhaps working with a particular local government body to promote their town to the foreign market. Without that niche, your chances of success in this area are remote.

Focusing on the student population and the business traveler offers excellent opportunities for a part-time business, with the potential to provide a high level of extra income for your use. However, please also note that this will have to be an ongoing operation. Content oriented sites must be kept fresh with latest topical information - that increases the trust in the brand and the quality of information keeps visitors coming back.