I am a true believer that Small Business is Alive and Well on the Internet.

Actually, I would go one step further, and say that, not only is it alive and well, but the Internet is one of the best new frontiers for Small Business that we have seen for several decades. I see Small Business competing with Large Business in the way that competition was meant to be. I think this is especially true for Designers, Technicians, Programmers, Graphic Artists, anyone involved in the perpetuation of the Internet. Big business, in fact, may be at a disadvantage, at least in these early years of Internet evolution.

Small Business, independent free-lance designers, artists, programmers, even retail sales folks, are faced with very few start up obstacles. Internet real estate is extremely affordable. About all it takes to get started with a Small Business on the Internet is some hosting space and a good idea. Now that, is indeed, the true spirit of competition.

The Internet has made available an enormous collection of aids, tools, advice, articles, and free software, on just about anything one needs to do to get things going with a Small Business on the Net. Sure, you can launch a mega site with a huge investment layout for designers, advertisers, but you know, that whole arena and strategy has always shown high risk, and generally marginal returns.

In fact, most Big Business is really at a disadvantage during these early decades of Internet evolution. They have inherited an unplanned extra expense layout costing some well into the 6 digit figures, and with an almost sure guarantee of no short term return from their investment.

During the past five years, large businesses have been forced to develop an Internet presence to stake out their real estate in the New Frontier. Our local paper, for example, services a metropolis of 600,000. No small city. I've watched them go from some very small ideas about their Internet presence around 1996 to realizing they had to launch a massive Internet presence, at no small expense I might add. Where news publishers used to show only the headlines to attract readers, now they have to keep content constantly updated, and the content can't just be a headline or the Internet reader will go elsewhere. Where folks used to buy a Sunday paper to see the movie times, the local news publishers have to keep a constantly updated database of local movie listings, or folks just go to Fandango.

So, I assert that Small Business opportunity is seeing what I'll call the "Golden Years" of Internet evolution. It's one of the true places where the small guy (or girl) has a healthy chance of seeing their business idea to market, with little cash layout, and few obstacles. Big Business, on the other hand, is not seeing much of any "Golden Years" given that they are charged to build a new frontier presence, with sometimes large cash layouts, with little guarantee of short term return, or face eventual loss if they don't keep up with technology.

I assert that the "Golden Years" for small business will easily last through the current decade. I believe that opportunity for small business within the Internet community is not only alive, but robustly alive. If you are a designer, programmer, information tech, developer, writer, publisher, artist, crafts maker, even a self appointed expert in a given subject, and you have not already put in some serious effort to make an Internet presence, then my advice is do it now. Do not pass go, do not collect $ 200.00, do not go to jail, do not dream of Boardwalk, but get your stuff out there, and Keep it out there for at least the next few years before deciding you cannot afford an Internet presence.

Here's the Nitty Gritty:

• Hosting space is cheap.
  You can get your own domain going and hosted for about $ 100 per year. I'm talking reputable, high bandwidth hosting, with a locked-in domain name for your business. You can't even buy a years worth of custom printed business cards for that money. And you can't hand out your business cards all over the world, like you can with a well done web site presence.
  
  
• Do it yourself.
  If money is an issue, do it yourself. In fact, I recommend that for sole proprietorships, or many Small Businesses. The Internet has amassed a phenomenal amount of free information on just about anything you can dream up, and most of it is not advertising come-on's, or even splattered with flashing advertisements. Most of it is clean, valuable, thorough information. Indeed, the Internet is the first place a person would head with their ideas these days, and it is absolutely amazing what is available to help you. You don't need to spend any money, or if you do, you can find what you're looking for from an independent Small Business person, selling their books, arts, ideas, on the web.
  
  For example, when I look for software, I always look at Freeware & Shareware before I look at the expensive stuff. About 90% of the time I can find what I want from an independent vendor. Just shop wisely. I recently bought a help compiler program for $ 19.95, which does exactly what I want, and I had been looking at the big commercial version for about $ 295.95, which I'm sure is very nice indeed. But, don't pay for what you don't need. Find the information, the software, the advice, that compliments your skills and ability. Later down the road, when business picks up, then you can shell out some bucks for the big productivity packages. But in the beginning, keep time and skill on your side, not money.
  
  
• There is an old Indian saying: The work will teach you how.
  I have been doing business on the Internet since 1996. got started by reading a tutorial on how to make simple HTML pages. Animated GIF images were cutting edge technology, and web space was a little more expensive, sort of a novelty, and Bandwidth, well that was a constant worry, if you got too much traffic, you'd get a $ 100 bill before you knew what happened. These days no one should worry about bandwidth.
  
  
• If you can't do it yourself
  Well, then you'll need a little more money where skill is not available. Indeed, as the Internet moves toward more and more sophistication, the Do-It-Yourself approach is becoming further and further out of reach for the Do-It-Yourself er. Shop around and you can see there are millions of independent business people doing work on the Internet. But, of course, buyer beware, especially on the Internet. If you are prudent, you can find excellent craftsmanship for anything you need, from someone that has an established record of trustworthiness.
  
  
  1. Use rating systems, eBay, Half-Price, PayPal, even independent artists, developers, designers, have some kind of feedback history, if not an actual rating system available to evaluate them. Use public resources to do your research.
     
     
  2. Use the WhoIs database to see who a domain name is registered to. How long has it been registered? Does the phone numbers & address match the owner of the business?
     
     
  3. Make sure the vendor has a good set of examples or stock for you to look at, and perhaps even references to past work or sales, if not an actual rating system, links to past projects, or happy customers.
     
     
  4. Use the major Search Engines (Google, AltaVista, Yahoo). Do a blind search for the business person's name, business name, type of business, just to see if obviously negative stuff emerges, or perhaps if some genuine positive stuff arises. Nice things about the Internet is that lots of content gets slung around.
     
     
  5. The Internet is still User Driven rather than Advertising Driven. Amazon's user comments on books, eBay's rating system, PayPals established sales records, are all user driven, and not driven by advertising. It's good business for eBay, Amazon, PayPal to create trust, and provide high quality vendors. Public feedback is a great evolvement. Before the Internet, buyer beware conscious people, have always had to learn to read between the lines of an advertising jingle. Now, it's suddenly good business just to let the consumers rate things, rather then invest millions of advertising dollars to market your product.
     
     
  6. Does the Business have a Dedicated SSL Certificate registered in their Business Name for their Web site? Note: The SSL Certificate (if they have one will give you information on the business, location, etc.)
     
     
  7. Is the Business listed with any related Online Professional Associations? For example, ShareWare Associates for programmers, or the Online Better Business Beaeura?
     
     
  8. Does the Business list their Online Business relationships or partnerships? Do they list Ratings from other independent sites or Web Based Ratings Systems. For Example, hosting services are rated in several large listing services.

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