What I Would Sell If I Had to Start From Scratch in 2028

I think about this question more than most people might expect. Not because I'm anxious about losing what I've built, but because it forces me to separate what's actually important from what's just accumulated habit.

Here's my honest answer.

The Niche I'd Choose

I'd go into AI tools for a specific profession.

Not "AI productivity" — too broad. Not "ChatGPT for business" — too generic and competitive. I'd pick one profession I genuinely know something about and focus there entirely.

Why this niche? Because in 2028, there's a massive gap between the general AI content that's everywhere and the specific, practical, "here's exactly how to use this in your daily work as a [specific professional]" content that almost nobody is producing well.

If my background were in marketing, I'd go "AI for in-house marketing teams." If it were in healthcare, I'd go "AI tools for private practice therapists." If it were in construction, "AI for residential contractors." The intersection of a real professional background and AI tools is underserved almost everywhere you look.

The demand is real. The purchase intent is high. And the competition at the specific level is still manageable.

The First Product I'd Build

A prompt pack + Notion workflow bundle for that profession.

Two components:

1. A set of 30–50 prompts specifically designed for the day-to-day tasks of that professional — client communication, documentation, research, reporting, whatever is most time-consuming
2. A Notion workspace that organizes their workflow and integrates the AI use cases

Price: $37–$49.

Why this combo? Because it solves two problems at once (what to prompt, and how to organize the work) and gives me more pricing flexibility than a single component. It's also faster to produce than a course and more concrete than an ebook.

I'd build it in 2 weekends. First weekend: research (Reddit, Quora, professional forums — find the actual complaints), then build. Second weekend: write the product description, create preview images in Canva, and set everything up.

Where I'd Sell It

MadeThis. This isn't a sponsored answer — it's just where I'd go. The setup is fast, the checkout converts well, and the affiliate program is built in so I could set up a referral structure from day one. I've tried alternatives, and the comparison is at /madethis-alternatives if you want to see the full breakdown.

I've never felt like I was fighting the platform to do what I needed to do, which sounds like a low bar but isn't when you've tried other options.

How I'd Drive Traffic With No Audience

This is the hard part, and I want to be honest: there's no quick fix.

In the first 30 days, I'd do three things:

1. Find the communities where my audience lives. For any profession, there are subreddits, Facebook groups, LinkedIn communities, and forums. I'd be genuinely useful in those communities before I mentioned my product. Share knowledge, answer questions, build a small amount of goodwill. Then, when the time is right, mention what I've built.

2. Write one blog post per week targeting a specific search term. Not to get immediate traffic — SEO takes time — but to start building the foundation. A blog post targeting "AI prompts for [profession]" or "how to use ChatGPT for [specific task]" will eventually rank. Planting those seeds from day one means they're growing while I build the business.

3. Be direct. Tell people I know. Post about it on LinkedIn. Email anyone in the target profession I have a connection with. Not spam — genuine, "I built this, you might find it useful."

Would this get me to $1,000/month in 30 days? Probably not. Realistically: 30 days to first sale, 90 days to consistent sales, 6–12 months to meaningful monthly income. That's the honest timeline for starting with no audience.

What I'd Do Differently Than I Did the First Time

Less perfecting, more shipping. I spent too much time on the first version of everything I built. The market cares about whether your product solves the problem, not whether the design is pixel-perfect or the ebook is exactly 10,000 words instead of 7,500.

More specific, faster. I started in niches that were too broad. If I'd gone narrower from day one — one profession, one problem, one product — I'd have gotten to first sales faster and learned more quickly what worked.

Build for search from the start. I didn't take SEO seriously for the first year. Don't make that mistake. Every piece of content you create, every product description you write — write it for the person searching for it, not for the person who already follows you.

The First 30 Days, Specifically

• Week 1: Niche confirmation + research + product outline
• Week 2: Build the prompt pack + Notion template
• Week 3: Write product descriptions, create preview images, set up on MadeThis
• Week 4: Community participation + first traffic-driving blog post + direct outreach to network

After 30 days, I'd have one product live, some initial visibility in the right communities, and the beginning of an SEO foundation. Not rich. But started.

The starting is the thing. If you're reading this and you've been thinking about starting — pick a niche, read the niche guide, and give yourself a 30-day deadline. The window isn't closing, but it's also not getting wider.

Build something. Put it on MadeThis. Tell people about it.

That's it. That's the whole plan.