In a recent article on the Shopify blog, Tucker Schreiber (@tuckerschreiber) shares 5 truths you, as an entrepreneur, should know before you start your online business.

 “You will without a doubt learn many things along the way and make some mistakes. But what if you didn’t have to make some of those mistakes?”

 Here are the 5 things detailed by Schreiber:

1. You don’t need to spend a lot of money
2. It’s easy to fall into paralysis by analysis
3. If you build it, they won’t come
4. Your idea is worthless without execution
5. You are your biggest competitor

 We agree with Schreiber’s comments, so pay attention entrepreneurs! In addition…

Customers won’t buy a solution to a problem they don’t know they have!

Here are 3 questions to ask yourself:

1. Is the problem you are solving large and painful?
2. Is your target market actively searching for a solution to this problem?
3. And is your target market actively spending money to solve this problem?

If the answer is no, you may want to reconsider your venture. It is very expensive to teach people and then get them to buy.

If the answer is yes, how do you further validate your marketplace? Good question. Here are some questions to answer:

• Are there existing solutions in your market?
• Is there meaningful web traffic for your market?
• Is there meaningful online commerce for your market?

When you validate your solution for targeted traffic and real conversions, then you’re on your way!

(Also, for more information on how to validate your marketplace, check out this webinar – CLICK HERE.)