So, you鈥檙e itching to become one of those fashionable Internet millionaires.
But where to start? The Net itself can help you plan the perfect online
business, and at www.actium1.com you can discover how to take your first steps.
The site details the types of Internet-based companies that are successful
today, along with plenty of do鈥檚 and don鈥檛s鈥攕uch as not using the Net to
sell perishables like pastries and hot dogs. Another useful hint is to test your
site using the 28.8 kilobits per second modem most people still get by with, or
you鈥檒l get a false impression of the site鈥檚 speed.
To see what other Net entrepreneurs are working on, hit the 鈥渋deas鈥� button
at www.startuponline.com, which lists some e-commerce plans for which funds are
currently being sought鈥攑resumably these are ideas for which patents have
not yet been applied. Flushed with enthusiasm and armed
with your great business idea, it鈥檚 time to think up a snappy domain name for
your website. Make sure no one has got there first by checking at
www.netbenefit.co.uk or www.netsol.com.
So that鈥檚 the idea and the name sorted. Now comes the real work: putting
together a proper business plan. At www.Bplans.com, a software wizard will guide
you through the process. The site is designed to sell business planning
software, but it has lots of useful info for beginners.
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Finally, business plan in hand, it鈥檚 off to schmooze the venture
capitalists (VCs) to get some startup funding. You鈥檒l find a gaggle of them at
the increasingly popular e-networking club First Tuesday,
www.firsttuesday.co.uk. Netropolitan attended one of their packed-to-the-rafters
European meetings and witnessed VCs urgently approaching Netheads, saying: 鈥淒o
you want money? How much?鈥� Such is the fervour with which financiers want to
jump into Web projects right now.
After that, it should be plain sailing. Get an absurd valuation for your
company. Then sell up. Simple!
