Internet Businesses and Traditional Businesses

In today's world of the Internet it is interesting to note the massive differences that have occurred even in the last decade.

At the ripe old age of 41 I am fortunate enough to have grown up, along with my business partners, having known the old business world and being able to embrace the new.

When we had our first major foray into the business world through our original company, Nexxus (UK) Limited In 1995, we tried to avoid all the "pitfalls" of traditional business and branch into distribution as opposed to manufacture, thereby avoiding warehousing, and excessive staffing, crippling rules about health and safety and the usual expenses such as lorries, forklifts etc.

What did we end up with? Warehousing, staffing, lorries forklifts, racking, 50 000 square feet of warehousing and a pile of overheads.

Thus, when I created the concept of our current business three years after selling Nexxus, I think that one of the primary directives was to avoid the aforementioned traditional costs.

Introduce internet business -- at Citylocal, we are able to conduct a successful, communications-based business encompassing several countries without entering into the traditional problem-infested areas of international transport, late goods, letters of credit & warehousing.

We are able to conduct business using technology rather than physical goods and even perform presentations using 21st century systems that 10 years ago would have seemed impossible.

In a sense we are able to conduct business in a manner that perhaps in the 1980's, for example, was only available to the money or stock trading markets.

As one is probably well aware, why trade the physical stock if it possible to trade the price of the commodity? Ultimately, of course, the physical stock or money will have to move but why dirty one's hands?

This is essentially what internet business can deliver for people that are able to free themselves from the mindset that they have to be involved in moving the physical goods or indeed the service necessary to satisfy the customer.

With an increasing amount of people using the net as a search facility or knowledge accessibility forum, the internet is gaining ground every week on traditional business.

What does this achieve for people apart from the obvious benefits of being able to work at home more effectively or gain instant access to vast amounts of information?

Put very simply it enables people to reach a previously untappable audience and, given the right work done with search engine optimisation experts, enables people to reach massive potential customers.

The whole approach to the internet is what is important and the realisation that one does not necessarily need to physically transport certain goods to be an effective market maker is essential.

This all being said, the age-old necessities of a business hold true- the service or product must be desired, good quality and the right price to make the potential transaction attractive.

Thankfully this is one area that I personally hope will never change and good old economics should see us through on this one - opportunity and choice.