My First Million

The best business ideas come from noticing what's working and doing it better, faster, or for a different audience.

Build profitable businesses by structuring public government data into useful consumer tools

Entrepreneurs looking for defensible business ideas, developers comfortable with data processing, anyone seeking government data arbitrage opportunities

6-18 months to launch, 2-5 years to build defensibility

What Success Looks Like

A profitable business generating millions in revenue by making public data accessible and useful to specific customer segments, with strong brand recognition and customer loyalty despite low structural barriers

Steps to Execute

Identify a personal frustration with finding information that should be publicly available

Research what government databases contain relevant data

Map data access methods (APIs, FOIA requests, bulk downloads, web scraping)

Build data processing pipeline to clean and structure raw government data

Create user-friendly interface that solves specific customer problems

Add value through search, filtering, analytics, or visualization features

Build brand recognition through content marketing and customer service

Layer on network effects like reviews, ratings, or user-generated content

Checklist

Data is truly public and legally accessible

Government has no incentive to make data user-friendly

Clear customer pain point exists around accessing this information

Data updates regularly enough to maintain value

Can build distribution and brand faster than competitors

Inputs Needed

Technical skills for data processing and web development
Understanding of relevant government data sources
Customer development skills to validate demand
Marketing budget for initial customer acquisition

Outputs

Structured database of previously hard-to-access public information
Web interface or API for customers to access data
Customer base willing to pay for convenience and structure

Example

“Import Genius takes public shipping manifest data that's available but hard to access, structures it into a searchable database, and sells subscriptions to businesses wanting to research suppliers and competitors. Revenue comes from making public information convenient and searchable.”