Starting an Online Business All-in-One For Dummies®, 3rd Edition

Chapter 5: New Storefronts, New Opportunities

In This Chapter

• Discovering auction sites beyond eBay
• Creating and selling your homemade goods online
• Selling on demand with CafePress
• Spotting other storefronts that are worth your attention

Selling online through storefronts has become second nature thanks to pioneers such as eBay, Yahoo!, and Amazon. These big-name storefronts quickly earned reputations as being online wealth makers. Although they continue to have the clout to help you pull in numbers and make the sale, bringing together buyers and sellers is only part of the equation in building a successful online marketplace. As online business models evolve and new technologies become available, traditional storefronts struggle to retain their appeal. That leaves the door open for new competitors.

Sometimes, being successful comes down to your ability to spot the next big thing: such as storefronts with a social commerce element, which is simply e-commerce with an interactive component. In this chapter, we give you an overview of some lesser-known auction sites, several “crafty” storefronts, and a few other alternatives for those of you with an eye for design. It's worth your while to investigate each of these rising stars within the growing storefront community.