Professional certifications are booming but most prep tools focus on IT (AWS, CompTIA) or generic test prep. Niche certifications—actuarial, HVAC technician, insurance adjuster, real estate appraiser—have dedicated practitioners willing to pay but few modern study tools. The pain: existing options are either expensive enterprise solutions or sketchy brain dumps. A modern AI-powered platform with spaced repetition, adaptive learning, and practice exams could own these underserved niches. Start with ONE certification (e.g., HVAC technician—high volume, clear career path) and expand.
💰 Revenue Blueprint
Three-tier value ladder to monetize from day one
Unlimited practice questions, progress tracking
Mock exams, detailed analytics, AI tutor
60-day access + guarantee pass or refund
📊 Market Evidence
The Market Gap
Big players focus on high-volume IT certs. Niche professional certs underserved with either expensive or low-quality options.
🏆 Competitor Landscape
How existing players stack up in this market
| Competitor | Pricing | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Coaching Actuaries | $200-400/exam | Market leader for actuarial exams, high quality but expensive |
| MeasureUp | $99-199/exam | IT certs focus, enterprise-heavy |
| BenchPrep | Enterprise only | White-label, expensive B2B |
| The Actuarial Nexus | Subscription | Newer indie player, modern platform |
Market leader for actuarial exams, high quality but expensive
IT certs focus, enterprise-heavy
White-label, expensive B2B
Newer indie player, modern platform
Launch Strategy
1. Pick ONE niche cert with active subreddit/forum. 2. Build MVP with 200+ questions. 3. Launch at 50% discount to early adopters. 4. Collect testimonials. 5. Expand to adjacent certs.
🛠️ Recommended Tech Stack
Suggested tools and technologies to build this idea
Why this stack: Standard stack works. Question bank management is key complexity.
Score Breakdown
Good market signals with room for growth
Market (20%) + Revenue (20%) + Trend (15%) + Competition (15%) + Build (15%) + Pricing (15%)
8 — Coaching Actuaries, MeasureUp prove willingness to pay $100-400
6 — Limited indie proof but enterprise success validates market
7 — Online tutoring market growing 10%+ CAGR
7 — Most focus on IT, niche certs underserved
6 — Question bank creation is main bottleneck (2-3 weeks)
8 — $50-150/exam validated by competitors
🚀 Start Building
Copy a prompt into your favorite AI coding tool and start building this idea right now.
Build a SaaS product called "Niche Certification Prep Platform". ## Product Overview AI-powered study tools for underserved professional certifications (actuarial, HVAC, real estate) with spaced repetition and practice exams ## Problem AI-powered study tools for underserved professional certifications (actuarial, HVAC, real estate) with spaced repetition and practice exams ## Solution Build Niche Certification Prep Platform ## Target Audience indie hackers, small businesses, and solopreneurs ## Tech Stack - Next.js 15 (App Router) with TypeScript - Tailwind CSS v4 for styling - Supabase for auth, database, and storage - Vercel for deployment - shadcn/ui for UI components - Framer Motion for animations ## MVP Features to Build 1. Landing page with clear value proposition 2. User authentication (sign up, sign in, forgot password) 3. Core product functionality based on the solution above 4. Dashboard for users to manage their data 5. Pricing page with at least 2 tiers (free + paid) 6. Basic settings/profile page ## Known Competitors Coaching Actuaries, MeasureUp, BenchPrep, The Actuarial Nexus ## Key Risks to Address Standard market entry risks ## Deployment 1. Set up Supabase project and configure environment variables 2. Deploy to Vercel with `npx vercel --prod` 3. Set up custom domain 4. Configure Supabase RLS policies for security ## Instructions Start by creating the project structure, then build the landing page first. Use server components where possible. Make it mobile-responsive from the start. Focus on getting the core value loop working before adding polish.