Couple of days ago I posted in Twitter an article published on May 14, 2010 by the New York Times, Technology Section: “Do Web Entrepreneurs Still Need Venture Capitalists?

In the article, Robert Hendershott, a professor of private equity and entrepreneurship at the Leavey School of Business at Santa Clara University, states: “As the cost of starting a Web company decreases, thanks to cloud computing services and technology that entrepreneurs can rent instead of buy, many founders can finance a new company without the help of venture capitalists, using their savings, money from family and friends and credit card debt, Mr. Hendershott writes. More often, they are choosing to sell small, immature companies instead of taking the longer, riskier path of developing a business that could one day go public. That makes venture capital less relevant, he concludes.”

For small business owners and entrepreneur wannabes, the most important part of this paragraph is: “…thanks to cloud computing services and technology that entrepreneurs can rent instead of buy…”

==> Virtual Business

What does that have to do with getting your business up and running by the end of the month?

Well, you can have a full-blown customer service, sales, marketing, accounting and even human resources department fully operational in less than a month, or even in less than a week…all using sophisticated, inexpensive and sometime free cloud computing.

Cloud computing, is internet technology that can be rented at a minimum monthly fee. In certain cases, if the technology is open source, it can be downloaded into your own hosting service for free. That is right, sophisticated, and ready to use technology for FREE!

I mean ladies and gents; this is stuff that major corporations used to pay hundreds, if not thousands of dollars and it is now available for your very own use at very little or absolutely no cost.

==> Virtual Business

So realistically speaking, how much do you need to invest to start up a virtual business?

In my free guide “20 Insider Secrets For Starting Your Own Virtual Business on a Shoestring” found in my http://VirtualBusinessDashboard.com site, I discuss the many benefits of a virtual business. The one that relates the closest to this article is the question: “How Much Do I Need to Invest to Start up My Virtual Business?”

Here is the synopsis:

You may be wondering…how much money would it cost you to start a sophisticated virtual business?

Here is a rough idea, and these barely scratch the surface:

1. Communications System: Phone, fax, chat and a sophisticated PBX About $ 60 per month
2. Customer Service: With support desk, chat, knowledge base and FAQ’s. About $40 per month
3. Back-Office Tools: With customer relationship systems, document management, corporate site and content management…you can actually set these up for zero cost
4. Accountant, taxes and accounting system: About $65 per month

…TOTAL COST: approximately $165 per month…it does not get any cheaper than that!

So, as you can see, there are no more excuses as of why you can’t start, grow and manage a sophisticated business. It’s a matter of taking a little time to learn, and just do it.

Visit Virtual Business Dashboard to get the “20 Insider Secrets for Starting Your Own Virtual Business on a Shoestring” and a video of “The Best Business to Start in This New Economy”

… visit the Virtual Business Dashboard and get your FREE insider secrets.

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