// Market signals
Some ideas in the directory carry market signals: three ratings that answer the three questions every builder asks before starting. Here is exactly what they mean and where they come from.
Demand — how many people want this
QUIET · STEADY · HIGH · SURGING. Based on live search data: how many people search for this kind of product each month, combined with what we observe hitting our own pages. SURGING means searches are accelerating right now. QUIET is not an insult — some of the best niche businesses live in quiet markets where every searcher is a buyer.
Field — how many rivals are already there
OPEN · CONTESTED · CROWDED. How hard incumbents and advertisers are fighting for these buyers. An OPEN field means focus wins: nobody dominant is serving this niche. CROWDED means you need a sharp wedge or a different audience to matter.
Ticket — what one customer is worth
$ · $$ · $$$. Derived from what advertisers pay to reach these buyers. When companies pay $30+ for a single click from this audience, each customer is worth serious money — a $$$ ticket means you need dozens of customers, not thousands, to build a real income. $ tickets need volume; $$$ tickets need focus.
★ Prime
An idea rated HIGH or SURGING demand, an OPEN field, and a $$$ ticket gets the Prime mark: lots of buyers, nobody serving them properly, and each one valuable. These are rare, and they never stay open forever.
Where the data comes from
Search volume, competition, and advertiser pricing from commercial search-data providers; observed demand from what real searches hit this site. Signals are refreshed on a monthly cycle and shown as tiers rather than raw numbers, because tiers stay honest as the numbers move. Ideas without signals simply have not been through a data cycle yet.