Information Consultant

Startup Costs: $2,000 - $10,000
Home Based: Can be operated from home.
Part Time: Can be operated part-time.
Franchises Available? No
Online Operation? Yes

The amount of information available today is staggering. For companies planning new products and patents or scoping out the competition, and for many other types of businesses, the trick is in figuring out how to access the information they need. If you love research--the excitement of sifting through a maze of books, magazines, journals and other esoteric sources for bits of information--you can ride to the rescue as an information consultant. You can seek out material for all sorts of clients--attorneys preparing cases; advertising, public relations and market research firms preparing campaigns; financial wizards; medical researchers; environmental engineers; or management consultants. Despite this wealth of potential customers, however, you should plan on specializing in a particular field. This way, you'll be familiar with the usual 'suspects' or avenues of research, so you'll be able to complete assignments faster. And since this can be a difficult business to market, by sticking to one industry, you increase your word-of-mouth advertising capacity. The advantages to this business are that you can start part time if you like, you're always learning something new, the industry has lots of room for growth, and if you love digging through information for the sheer joy of discovery, you'll be in information nirvana every working day. You'll need dogged persistence and the skills and experience to take you down the proper research avenues, plus the creativity and intuition to lead you in new directions when the usual methods fail. In addition, it helps to have a background in the field you choose to specialize in, but this is not an absolute requirement.

The Market

111

Needed Equipment

111

Information Consultant Ideas

Online Trade Show Directory

Compile information about trade shows across the globe online.

Online Entertainment Coupons

Make cheap entertainment even easier to find by putting coupons online.

Domain Name Broker

Match marketable domain name owners with willing buyers.

More from Business Ideas

Side Hustle

This 79-Year-Old Retiree's Side Hustle Earns $4,000 a Month: 'I Work as Much or as Little as I Desire'

Dan Weiss saw an article about a side hustle in the local newspaper — then decided to try it himself.

Franchise

Free Webinar | October 23: Taking Control of Your Life Through Franchising

Ready to be your own boss? Join our webinar on 10/23 at 2pm ET to learn how being a franchise owner can allow you to take back control of your daily schedule and stop working for someone else. Register now!

Growing a Business

At 24, She Was Fired From Her Advertising Job. Then an 'Incredibly Important' Mindset Helped Her Build a Multimillion-Dollar Business.

Melissa Ben-Ishay's brother Brian Bushell encouraged her to follow her passion — and it led to major success.