KaChing: How to Run an Online Business that Pays and Pays

Conclusion

When James Ritty, an Ohio saloon owner, created the first cash register in 1879, his motives were pretty simple. He wanted to stop his employees from stealing his takings. His machine, based on a device that counted the number of revolutions a ship's propeller made, kept track of his business's sales. Later versions included a drawer for the money. Putting a bell on that drawer meant that he also knew when his employees were handling the cash.

Registers have changed a bit since then. They're now digital, programmable, and can even track the purchasing patterns of individual customers, enabling the seller to make personalized special offers. They're more likely to take credit cards than cash, and now that Jack Dorsey, the brains behind Twitter, has invented Square, a small credit card reader that plugs into the earphone socket of an iPhone, they can even fit in your pocket.

But they no longer go KaChing.

That's a shame, because to entrepreneurs, it's a wonderful sound. Each ring is an endorsement, a reminder that all of their hard work has been done for a reason. They've had the idea; they've implemented the idea; and now they're getting their reward.

This book hasn't made a KaChing sound, either. But it has given you the means to make deals and take cash.

For anyone with a head for business and a mind to be his own boss, the Internet represents an open country of unlimited opportunity. Mining that opportunity will take effort. Once your passive revenue systems are in place ...