There are lots of people who have the desire to go into business for themselves. That is a whole lot easier these days with the opportunities that are available through the internet. Consider for a moment the differences between the two

The traditional “physical forms” of business (as distinct from online or ‘virtual’) usually involve:

a shop front, some products, maybe an employee or two to run the business while you are not physically present.

What that means is you have to pay for establishment fees, rent, power,shop fittings stock insurance, security, sign writing, and possibly costs of recruitment before you even open the doors for business!

Add to that the costs of advertising, premium rates to be in a prominent location,most physical business owners expect it could be between two years and three years before they see any real return on their investment. (Business people starting out must have either deep pockets or a very friendly bank manager)

Then there is the constant possibility of robbery, shop-lifting, arson, staff turn-over, and a major operator in the same sort of business setting up close by.(How do you think the little take away food store would manage if McDonalds decided to establish an outlet next door?)

Don’t get me wrong. There is a place for physical businesses, and I really respect those people who put in the time, commitment and finances to establish the opportunities for me to put food on my table and a roof over my head

By comparison consider the advantages of an internet business,

(1)Low start up costs. There are lots of stories about people starting really a successful internet business with not much more than an idea and a computer connected to the Internet.

Amazon.com provides the classic example. Reputedly, “the world’s largest bookstore” Amazon apparently began with two young college graduates and a computer on the kitchen table.

With an internet business, the “shop-front” is a web-site which exists only on the Internet, so there is no need to pay for rent, stock, electricity, staff, insurance, or any of the other costs associated with establishing a physical business.

A successful internet business can be run from the dining room table of your home.

There are, of course, some costs involved. You will need a computer access to the internet a web-site and depending on the products you sell, guaranteed availability of stock.

I am simply wanting to point out that compared with establishing a physical business, there are minimal costs in establishing an internet business.

(2) You can mix it with the “big boys” No matter whether it’s a large multi-national corporation with millions to spend on marketing, or one person sitting at the kitchen table, when it comes to a web based business the customer can only view one web-page at a time. The tools used to make that web page attractive enough for the potential customer are equally available to the big corporation and the small business operator. In fact, there is a limit to how many “bells and whistles” can be put on a web-site before it becomes too slow to load and thereby ineffective.(web surfers are an impatient lot) The internet, then, becomes the great leveller. The small one-person business can compete (if they choose) with the big operators for the attention of the potential customer.

If you choose, you could create an air of opulence and sophistication through your web-site at a fraction of what it would cost in the physical world. You can make your business appear much bigger than what it really is, without deceit or any type of activity that would be of interest to the various authorities.It’s all in the way you develop your web-site.

(3)The time you spend on your business is your choice. Most physical business require a huge time commitment. In fact, I have heard it said that if the business does not operate without you present then you are still are not running a business, you are an employee. You just happen to be working for yourself. Once your internet busines is up and running, you can choose how much time you commit to it.

Now, don’t misunderstand me here. There is not such thing as a set-and-forget type of business. You still need to work on your business, if not in your business. Let me explain what I mean.

In a physical business you may spend so much time doing the mundane type things that you just don’t have the time to step back, look at how you might improve your business and thereby increase your bottom line. There are customers to serve, stock to maintain, staff to manage, book-keeping to do, maintenance to do etc.etc.etc. “Part time” businesses don’t exist in the physical world.
With an online business, your “store” is “open” 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Potential customers can access your site regardless of what you are doing. You don’t physically have to be there. In fact, in reality, you can’t be there.That means you have more time to do the things that will increase and improve your business, rather than the mundane maintenance. No matter what business you choose, the major task is to get the customers through the door. I do not want to discount the skill of selling, but unless the customer comes through the door that skill is wasted. So, with an online business, once you have developed your website, you can concentrate on getting people “through the door” and leave the rest to the highly trained, knowledgable, sales staff you have on duty. And who are they? Or more correctly, what fills that role of salesperson? Your web pages, of course.

(4)You have only the best sales staff working for you FOR FREE. Imagine, if you can, sales staff who

are always attentive to the needs of your customers and enquirers

never ring in sick

are never grumpy, or tired, or hung over, or miserable.

are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week

never expect a pay rise or overtime

are never going to leave, taking their “inside” knowledge with them, go to a competitor or even become a competitor themselves.

Rather, they have at heart what is best for your business and will do their utmost to see it develop and grow, just as you would want. That is because they ARE you, at your very best. And, of course, when you find a different approach,you can have your “sales team” take on the new ideas without question simply by changing your web pages.

(5) The world is your customer base With a physical store you are limited to a certain ‘catchment’ area. You may expand that catchment area by offering catalogue sales etc, but essentially you rely on people from a particular geographic region for your business. That may be fine for something like a supermarket or delicatessen which caters for a wide range of people. But what if you are a specialty store that caters for only a small percentage of the population? Physical businesses that specialize usually find they have to locate where there are more potential customers, either in a busy shopping centre or major Central Business District. As a result they usually pay much higher rents for the privilege of increased traffic.

With an online business you can “set up” wherever you choose, provided you have access to the Internet. Connection to the Internet makes your online business available to every other person on the face of the planet who has an internet connection.

Specializing no longer creates a problem, because your product or service would have to be really bizarre for there not to be sufficient people in the world who are interested in what you offer to make it a viable business. And given the content of some sites I have come across on the Internet that are making money for their owners, I mean REALLY, REALLY bizarre.
But like all things, the best advice I can give is to start off small, and grow your business at a rate that is appropriate to your situation. There are many people who will promise you the world for very little cost either in time or money on your part. The reality is success comes to those who (a) are open to the possibilities that they can be, AND deserve to be successful. (b) put the time and effort in to see the opportunity through to success and © take their business venture(s) seriously enough to commit to sticking with it, doing what needs to be done, when it needs to be done, for as long as it needs to be done. Those who don’t have all of those components will invariably continue to struggle.

Graham Hunt, is a full-time webmaster of a number of very successful sites.  His latest can be found at [http://www.thedropshipguru.com]www.thedropshipguru.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Graham_Hunt http://EzineArticles.com/?5-Advantages-Of-An-Online-Business&id=836200

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