Online Content Company Small Business Profile

Michelle Madhok of White Cat Media is a successful small business owner who runs an online content company. This hardworking entrepreneur has answered a series of interview questions to share some great insight into the world of internet content and e-commerce.

What Is an Online Content Company?

"White Cat Media delivers original product related content to consumers via blogs and free subscription based e-mail newsletters. We derive 70% of revenues from display advertising and 30% from commissions on product sales. WMC has developed an efficient business model that utilizes low cost freelance writers for content creation and outside vendors to handle logistics and monetization."

Is it Important to Identify the Right Demographic for Small Business Success?

"White Cat Media properties target women ages 25-40. Essentially, this is the largest segment of online users. More importantly, this segment spends more money online than any other. The total online shopping market for 2007 was estimated to be $136.4 billion (+20%). One of the largest product segments within this number is apparel (over $20 billion), 75% of which is purchased by women (most of which are between 25-40)."

How Can Someone Find An Idea for Starting a Business?

"I found that when women get busy they become split in half. One half is the woman who is CEO of her home - she goes to work, pays bills, gets kids to soccer practice and plans dinner. The other half is the woman who wants a bubble bath, a glass of chardonnay and time to have her nails done. Women are time-starved. My goal is to help women use the Internet to add time back into their lives and fulfill their desires to look and feel better about themselves.

While working in D.C., I used to shop at the outlet malls for friends who didn't have time. Meanwhile, online shopping was growing rapidly. So after five years at AOL, I started thinking. Say you want to buy black pants. No one was telling you the best place to buy black pants on the Internet. Shopping magazines like Lucky were popping up, but the online content did not exist, so I created SheFinds. Advertisers were also trying to figure out how to reach the working woman."

Should a Prospective Entrepreneur Be Prepared to Start and Run a Small Business?

"I financed SheFinds myself and have spent about $20,000 of my own money to get the business off the ground. Initially it made me nervous - I didn't want to blow through my savings, but we started realizing revenue within 4 months.

Letting go of the corporate safety net was tough. I've been a 'good girl' all my life, a good student, worked for good companies. Making the jump into business for yourself, sometimes people look at you cross-eyed and say, 'You're going to do what!?' You're not going to starve. You can always get another job. But it's a challenge for most of us to get over that initial fear."

Are Small Business Employees a Good Idea?

"I have 2 full time editors, my husband, who has recently joined the company as COO, and our network of freelance writers who search the Web for stylish yet functional products (for Shefinds.com- fashion and beauty, for Momfinds.com- products for mothers/babies). It's tough to walk the line between working "in" the business and working "on" the business. The only way for the business to grow is to get out of the way and let other people execute on your vision while I work on moving the strategy forward."

Michelle Madhok has a final word of advice for hopeful female entrepreneurs. She encourages them to connect with other women looking to start a business to create a network of cheerleaders.

Online Content Businesses Can Be a Great Idea.

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