The hardest phenomenon to predict is the future, especially if you’re still struggling to figure out what’s happening in today’s economy. But predicting the future is exactly what you need to do if you’re enrolling in school, starting a fresh career, or investing in new skills.
The attribute of most successful entrepreneurs is that they don’t follow the herd but anticipate the needs of the market earlier than the competition.
Of course, such anticipation is not without risk, but the result is often great.
It is good to note that inventions like the automobile, Internet and smartphone were all regarded with high degrees of scepticism when first introduced, the business site, profitable ventures reported.
The automobile gave rise to a global network of small businesses, such as parts makers, dealerships, and service centres. The Internet has spawned a host of online companies, many of which, such as Amazon.com and eBay.com, have grown from small operations to very large ones.
So what are the small businesses of the future? Daily Trust identifies some of these businesses thus:
Data Crunching
The era of big data is just getting started, with many firms eager to tap vast new databases to gather more info on their customers, their competitors, and even themselves. The challenge isn’t just crunching numbers; it’s making sense of them, and gaining useful insights that can be translated into a business edge.
Marketing and market research are two growing fields where the use of data is exploding. With the right gadgets and know-how, you can position yourself for this time bomb business. Examples of firms making it big in the data world in Nigeria are Story Lab Academy and BudgIT
Water Trading
You may wonder why this is being mentioned. But water is becoming scarce, researches reveal. It has been said that water is the oil of the 21st century. But humans don’t need to drink a litre or two of oil every day. Even in the southern side of Nigeria where there is much water, pollution and pollutants has hindered such sources from being potable.
You can drink the water or let plants drink it; hence one can still sink some investments into bottling water, irrigation water among others and still earn a living in Nigeria in many locations. Making and selling sachet water remains a good business in Abuja and its environs and it can be expanded to include supplies of bottled water, fruit juice, and large quantum of water for domestic and industrial uses.
This is because many areas still lack access to public pipe-borne water around neighbouring Nasarawa and Niger states and many places within the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Mobile Marketing and Brand Consulting
Due to the ever-increasing number of people who surf the web using mobile devices like smartphones and tablets, businesses are now realizing the need to adopt mobile marketing as a way of targeting prospects that use mobile devices.
This has led to an increase in the demand for mobile marketing consultants. Since indicators are suggesting that mobile devices will continue to dominate for a long time, there’s a huge opportunity for mobile marketing consultants.
You can tune up for this as social media marketing expert while helping other start-up firms promote and grow their brands. A few months’ training at the professionals’ place can make you virtual force to reckon with this year.
Car Sharing Business
The Car Sharing Business (CBS) may not be a popular one in Nigeria yet, but it is something to look out for in the future especially across metropolis characterised by long hours of traffic jams and rising fuel price.
The concept is already trending in the United States where it is called Car Sharing and in the United Kingdom where they know it as Car Clubs (CC). It is a model of car rental where people rent cars for short periods of time, often by the hour. There is the growing trend of Car Hire (CH) as it is known in Nigeria mostly around hotels and airports. But the angle of sharing vehicles at congested areas is yet to be popular as it is in China and elsewhere. For instance, the Taxify platform began in Abuja in November after existing for some times in Lagos.
