Land of Opportunity

An article about a library that lends iPods with audio books got me to thinking. What are some possible business opportunities involving Apple iPods?

National iPod Rental Networks

There are least two markets for a national chain of iPod rental centers — airports and truck stops.

There have been several businesses in the past that rented various items to air travelers at one airport and enabled the item to be dropped off at another airport. Why not an Apple iPod Shuffle? iPods could be loaded with either audio books or popular music. Travelers would rent the iPod for their trip, with a credit card as insurance against theft. At their final destination, the traveller would drop their iPod off for use by another traveller. As an added income trail, audio ads could be included along with the music.

A similar service could be provided for truck drivers, who are already one of the largest markets for audio books. By collaborating with a national truck stop chain, such as, Petro or Flying J, a national system of rental points could quickly be established. An exclusive agreement would ensure that steady truck traffic to the truck stop’s network of centers. Again, iPods could be loaded with audio books, music and ads.

Audio Tours

For those wanting to stay local, why not rent iPods to tourists for walking tours of downtowns, gardens, museums, and galleries? Perhaps a kiosk in a tourist district could be used to rent and collect preloaded iPods. Maybe a local art museum or public gardens would like be interested in making some extra cash by partnering with a business offering iPod rentals. The business could provide the museum with a number of iPods loaded with a museum tour. The museum would rent the iPods to their visitors. Proceeds from the iPod rentals would be split, much like current vending machine agreements.

iPod tourist rentals maybe a good business opportunities for those living in popular foreign vacation spots. Imagine meeting an arriving cruise ship and renting iPods with a walking tour of nearby Mayan ruins.

iPod Loading Services

One opportunity that numerous folks are already taking advantage of is the iPod loading service. For a fee, you offer to help folks load their new iPods with their favorite music and audio books. Clients drop off their iPod and their CD’s. You convert their CD’s into MP3s or other formats and load their iPod for them. The client picks up their iPod and CDs the next day.

These are just a sample of business opportunities using the new Apple iPods. The next time you read about some new technology or device, ask yourself, how could this item be monetized and turned into a business opportunity.