Can you start an online biz with just $100?

[majapahit7]

I started with much less than $ 100.The important thing is your commitment to yourself to spend a couple of hours every day to work on it.Be patient..dont give up..and you will see the money come in..
To your success!

[sserbanro]

I will offer you a different perspective. I like all comments, but somehow, I just can't figure out how, everybody IMPLIES the same thing, BUT none points out what REALLY matters.
I am in business since 1993. I've started my first company in late 1993. I had no previous knowledge or experience in any kind of business. I just wanted to prove to the people around me that it is possible to start a company. If I would be granted somehow to start again, well, I would do THE SAME THING. BUT!!! Not the same way.
Most people talk about money, expenses, accountant, utilities, but it seems that nobody wants to point out THE REAL THING: Business is NOT about money!!
Again: business is NOT about money!
C'mon guys, admit it! Do you work for money? Don't cheat yourself! You want arguments? I'm sure you don't need, still there is one: How many days off you wasted just to work on building your business? Don't ask me. I don't dare counting the Saturdays and Sundays... Do you think I am sorry? NO! I would do it again. I do it and I will.
Why do we enter business? Because WE BELIVE WE CAN MAKE IT BETTER. Money only comes AFTER. I was so happy when i gor my first $ 0.18 in a month with AdSense, you can't even imagine it! Why? C'mon, let's be realistic, 18 cents in a month it's nothing! NULL!!
What than made me so happy?
It was THE SYSTEM. I found out how to build a site that brings money in. After that, it's a matter of VALUE. Not money, but VALUE. Adding value to your KNOWLEDGE, brings you clients (please, read FRIENDS!) that actually pay! I don't consider a client just a cow that I can milk $ from. Doing so, will throw you somewhere in the hell of the business. Where business is done through guns, bribery, ***, drugs, politics, armies... and you know the rest. WE don't need such kind of business! There is plenty for all of us! Let me point the things differently: Let's say you're on the dark side. You have to wipe out one of your competitors. What type of sweeper do you hire, an amateur (cheap but dangerous) or a PRO (expensive like hell, but SAFE)? So, no matter on what side we are, we ALL need VALUE.
Now, getting tho the mainstream theme... It's not about $ 100, or less, or more! It is not about how much money you invest, BUT HOW MANY RESOURCES!!
IF you invest in yourself, sooner or later, your knowledge will gain enough VALUE to be RECOGNIZED. If I read one of Lynn's posts, I FEEL she is true. Again: ---> I FEEL. And, because I FEEL IT, I KNOW IT. What I feel, is not BS, because it is backed up with my own experience, with the facts I gathered along the path of my life.
And THAT is not BS! I might be unexperienced in many ways, in many aspects of general knowledge, but NOT IN ALL of them. Somewhere inside me, I CAN FEEL, thus I KNOW. If you find the right direction, that is: YOUR NATIVE ABILITIES (Gifts, Divine Grace), than you can FEEL. And YOU KNOW. The next step is to develop that knowledge at such a level that makes it very visible. That moment we usually call “Success”. Sorry guys, it is not so. Edison said it, I'll only quote him: “Genius means 1% inspiration and 99% sweat.”
That is the real reason behind ANY failure. The lack of VALUE and the lack of SWEAT.
You guys pointed very well the reason of many of those who rush into online business: 95% of them, actually belive that is easy-money. (In some ways, it is, but not the way it is usually perceived...) And that means for them, you-do-nothing-and-get-rich-overnight. I never found such a formula. You can get rich overnight, but through other means: stealing an already made fortune. But this path is not for me. And I belive you are here, with Lynn, because WE ALL BELIVE THE SAME.
A final thought: The strange thing is that KNOWLEDGE, is a real fortune. THE Fortune! Still, nobnody kills nobody for knowledge... Further more, IF WE SHARE IT, THE MORE WE SHARE, THE RICHER WE GET!! Do you want PROOF?
Answer me one question:
Why are you on this forum? For the sake of poverty? The question is obviously retoric. The answer is too obvious. However, if you feel you like answering, please, do so!
In the next article I will try to connect a few things: Resources and native abilities.

[brihar2012]

You have to figure out what it is that you want to do. These days there are a few ways to start out with no out of pocket expenses it just depends if it is for you. Once you find something make the commitment to it and stay through until you hit your goals.

To your success,

Harry

[a0rta]

I started up an travel agency for about two years ago together wit a friend and is today making a full living from it. It's an Internet agency (non-ITATA) but we have all the support and service as a traditional agency if just caling us.

I started with no money and made a website powered by Joomla (free), got the booking system for free and have an agency who sell tickets on bulk that we buy from and who issues all our tickets. We don't pay anything up front for tickets, services or hotels. We pa our suppliers when our clients pay us and if we don't get paid the tickets is automatically canceled aswell as the hotels so it's realy no risk at all for us.

We are using an good incomming agent who provides us with hotels and full services over a whole continent and we sell so much of their services so they are even giving us free office space on some of our destinations.

Sure one do normaly have to pay some money for a start-up. Like the webhost, domain name etc (if not using free blogs which might work for some business) but we got our first hosting for free from a friend who have a webhotel, I got the domain for free as a bonus for earlier bought domains and we started with only mail and lateron added phone and caling hours but then we already had made money so it wasn't among the start up costs. Still.. We are today using all the callings through Skype-in which works good for us and it's very cheap.

With our bank we solved it so we got a business account for free for the first 3 month and our travel insurance (on the market we need one of those to be able to market and to opperate) that will cover all the expenses for our clients if we go bansrupcy, was set with a bank guarante and we negociated to get the first 6 month without any monthly fees and the first year without mortage. In most contries this guarante isn't even neded.

Sure. We had to put down a lot of work to get everything up and running and if one should be fair working hours should be counted as a cost (or at least as an alternative cost since we could had done other things that would have generated money during this time) but all start-ups takes a lot of time and one have to count with hard work for no money to get up and running.

We are today one of the biggest Internet travel agencies on our market and that's mainly due to the fact that most actors on the market is lousy when it comes to SEO and we could easily take one after one of the 1st position on Google for our chosen keywords and with that we also increased our cientbase and revenue.

We hwere two who started with no money at all except the work we did put in and today we have employes and a stable business so sure it's working.

If one can fly to the moon one can for sure open up a business with no cost at all! Still.. Count on the cost to come lateron cause they always do...

Also.. If beeing an entreprenure like me be prepared to get bored when the business is fully functional. I love to start new projects and I love to make money during the time but I don't like when everythings there. It feels like there isn't anymore for me to do and I am seriously thinking of moving further to other prjects now.

I even started with some affiliate marketing projects just to have some fun things to do when I get some time over. Don't make any big money from it but it forced me to investigate that area of Internet marketing.

Got a little bit away from the main subject here but the answare is defineatly Yes! One can start up a business for less then $100.

Just be creative and never turn an idea down.

[Barry Plaskow]

[dotcomsecretsuk]

Obviously if you have no time to invest in a part time business the results will be non-existent. You have to be realistic as well.

When I started blogging I thought it would be as simple as just putting your ads on a blog and driving traffic to there. This approach is about as likely to be successful as sending solo ads in ezines without any opt in option to your potential customers.

I've learnt more recently that content is important and building trust with other marketers as important.

There has to be some sort of plan and focus for the future, what is your immediate goal. When are you likely to achieve that and where do you want to be long term? Who are the people that are going to be coming along for the ride? and do you want them all there?

[robert adams]

[dotcomsecretsuk]

[tess47]

[chastill]

I started mine for less than $10. bucks.

[Ryan Mc]

There are companies out there that offer Free Domain Name registration, one click software install for several content management programs(wordpress), and hosting for one annual low price. Look around and do your homework.

Setting up paypal account is free. They have relatively low transaction fees for small amount of sales. (this will get you started) After the business takes off you will want to get a merchant services account because the transaction fees are lower based on volume. You need to justify that with sales volume.

Recap:
1.) Look for domain name, hosting, software combos. I found some for my site for one year $77 bucks!
2.) Set up a PayPal account (if you don't already have one).
3.) Offer exceptionally valuable products or services


I agree that you get what you pay for and you need to be careful. Email me. I'd be glad to make some suggestions.[/code]

[chastill]

[Lynn Terry]

I just posted a brand new (free) tutorial that outlines how you can set up an online business for under $10. I think you'll enjoy this one:



Enjoy!

[ebiznes]

Really, the amount of investment to start up your business is not as important as your special skills, motivation and area of expertise.

It is better to start a business at the area of your interest and expertise to enjoy your work and succeed in a shorter time.

[glowinggal]