When I think about success in import/export, I’m always inspired by Marc Charles, the creator of our Importing Fortunes program. Marc’s a big business builder—he once helped a startup with an initial budget of less than $2,000 grow to $6 million in sales in just 36 months.
And he’s a good guy to know if you want to make serious money. He’s on the forums all the time helping people out. So we sat him down to talk drones, phones, and the mindset for success…
Lori: The first thing many people want to know is: Do you need a lot of technical skill to get started with an online import business?
Marc: No, there really are no skills required other than basic computing knowledge. If you’re familiar with the internet and can shop online, you can do this business.
There is a little bit of a learning curve involved but that really has more to do with running your own business and working for yourself than it does technical skills. That’s more of a mindset and something I help people with in my program. My main goal is to show and prove to people that success can be achieved fairly quickly – with startup capital of $50 or less.
Lori: How do I choose the right product to make the biggest profits in the shortest time?
Marc: There may be tens of thousands of products that someone could import or export, but I strongly advise that you look at what’s currently in demand.
For example, in the last six to eight months, drones have been in high demand. But not just the drones themselves—people want the accessories that are associated with them, like cables and clips. Smartphones, too, are in big demand right now.
But not everyone is excited by drones or phones, so it really is a matter of finding things that are in demand that you’re excited about. That might be health products or herbs and spices or baby clothes. We have a couple of members in the program who, to say they are excited about jewelry is an understatement. They handle jewelry — and different aspects of jewelry that are currently in hot demand — and do well.
It really is up to you to decide what your passion is, what you’re excited about, and then find the right product that matches that passion.
Lori: What’s the most common mistake you see people make when they’re starting out on the import business?
Marc: The number-one problem is being overwhelmed with information. It’s something that I see a lot: A person will get excited, get into the program and special reports, the forums, the teleconferences. Then they’re stifled. They’re at a loss because they are overwhelmed with information and over-thinking everything.
What I do is to teach people how to focus and really take action. Taking action eliminates all of the doubt and the fear of being overwhelmed.
Even if it’s a small action as simple as signing up on Amazon to sell products — which takes about a minute and a half — it’s an action. Taking action eliminates the feeling or fear of being overwhelmed.