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

Taking a Shortcut: Purchasing an Existing Site

Securing financing for an online business takes time and persistence — there's no doubt about it. If you're interested in a completely different path, you can take a shortcut. Have you considered purchasing an existing Web site? Don't get excited — you don't have to march up the virtual steps of Amazon.com or eBay and put an offer on the table. (To be realistic, you would be laughed right out the door.) Somewhere between the people dreaming of starting a business and the giants dominating the Internet, hundreds of thousands of other mom-and-pop businesses have already established a small presence online. Many of them are doing quite well, others are struggling, and some just don't have any sense of direction. Those latter categories provide you with the largest opportunity to jump-start your online dreams. Check out the following sites, which provide lists of online businesses for sale:

• BizBuySale (www.bizbuysale.com): This site provides all types of businesses and franchises for sale, including work-from-home and owner-financed opportunities. You can narrow the search for online businesses by conducting a business category search on their site, using the term Internet businesses.
• BizQuest (www.bizquest.com): Claiming to be one of the original business-for-sale Web sites, BizQuest has a healthy number of business listing in all categories. To get the most relevant list of available online businesses, use their search tool to search ...