When we're looking into an online business, we need to consider a few things. If we don't, we could find ourselves throwing money away, and left feeling very sheepish about the lack of a decision making process. To better help us all understand what to look for, consider the following ten items:

1. The product has to be something you are interested in and can relate to

As humans, our interest level has to remain high. If it doesn't, we lose interest, and our mind begins to wander. Once our mind wanders, our focus is broken, and, well, we're off doing something else. If you are not interested in the business, and can not relate to the business - don't get involved in the business. When is the last time you went to a gym and had an overweight slob who smelled of alchohol as your personal trainer? The personal trainer is a role model. They are what the rest of us strive to be. The same holds true for an online business. You must be able to fit the role, and the role must fit you.

2. There has to be a no-risk factor

We need a guarantee. We may love the job, and the job may love us, but if something just doesn't click right - whatever that may be - then we need assurance that we aren't hung out to dry. When we have to put money on the table for anything, we need to know we can pull it back for whatever reason.

3. There has to be a need in your life to fill

Chances are, we are not as unique as we think we are. Chances are that there are thousands of people who have the same needs in their lives as we do in ours. If we are able to find something that fills that need, how easy would it be to share that with other people? Since we're interested in it, can relate to it, have no risk involved, and it has just filled a need - it becomes very easy to share.

4. The chosen niche must not be flooded

How many people are tired of the latest weight loss craze? Seems that every person has "the solution" to the global weight problem. That niche itself is overweight with solutions! I can remember years back when the telecom niche was flooded with telephone calling plans. I wouldn't talk to anyone who identified themselves as a telecommunications expert. The same holds true for online businesses today - if the market is full of competitors, it will be very difficult to compete.

5. It has to be different, and better than something like it

When you get a moment, look at your shoes. Yes, your shoes. Ever since the first person stepped on something and thought, "Hey, that didn't feel good", there have been shoes. The basic design hasn't changed: a layer of comfort and protection between our feet and the ground. However, shoes themselves have changed drastically over time, and will continue to evolve. Next time you're at the mall, walk into the athletic shoe store and ask for a product demonstration. You will be amazed. In the same way, whatever business we become interested in cannot be a plain cookie cutter business. Those just do not work.

6. The technology must be there to support it

There are still some of us that recall all to well the dot com dot bomb years. Everything was super-inflated, investors were pouring millions into simple ideas. But the technology was nowhere to be found. High speed Internet Access wasn't widely available. Dynamic server sided programming languages were still young. The time was not right. Today, all of that has changed, and analysts predict we're about to see another rise in .com's. This is good news to us, but only if the company we're looking at has the technology to support what they're doing.

7. There has to be a solid team behind it

So, by now, we're interested in the product. We relate to it. They've offered us a money back guarantee. We see a need in our life, and we see how the company is going to fill it. We've done our homework, and know that the niche isn't flooded. The company is different enough that people will remember it over others, and we know the technology is there to support it. Great. Now... what about the human factor? What good is all of what we've just said if the person behind the wheel doesn't know how to drive? Any company that wants to succeed into todays market must have a hard working, dedicated and knowledgeable team behind it. If it doesn't, it is doomed to failure. We do not want to be part of that.

8. There must be an extremely well written business plan in place

Now we know we have a solid team working with us. But what are we working towards? If the business plan doesn't exist, than neither does the business. In the same manner, if the business plan is a kaladescope of fragmented ideas, you can bet that the business is akin to a ghost ship sailing aimlessly at sea, with the only hope of stopping it's dismal voyage of dispair being the rocky shores of self destruction. If you cannot understand how the business plans to be in business - then chances are the business themselves doesn't know either.

9. You must be able to communicate with a support representative easily

Some companies provide knowledge bases. Others provide online chat interfaces. Still others provide a phone service. There are also forums and help files. Good companies strive on customer support. My personal preference is to try to find out the information on my own first. If I can't find it it a forum or knowledge base, I like to initiate an online chat. Most of the time, my question is answered by the person in chat sending me back to the page I was just on and pointing out the one paragraph that I skipped. If I cannot communicate my issue in chat, then I like to have a person call me. Yes, I said call me. It's their dime, so it's their time. I don't like being placed on hold. I would prefer not to tie up my phone line while listening to bad elevator music while waiting for someone elses problem to be solved.

10. The Earnings Plan must be clean, percise, and easy to understand

How are we going to make money doing what we want to do? If we have decided to join an online business, we had better have a very clear understanding of how it is we are going to get paid. We do not want to spend 3 hours a day trying to figure out how to make a buck. It has to be spelled out and explained to us in a way that a 12 year old could understand it. Why? Because our minds are trying to sort through all the other details of the business. Confusion is the last thing we need to deal with.

When I am presented with an business opportunity online, I walk myself though this process. I do want you to notice that money is the last thing I look at. When we think with our pocket books, our thoughts tend to go our out a....anyhow... you know what I am saying.