challenge - can this be done

[colintho]

everybody knows the story behind Yahoo, most also know the story about ebay. Both of these started as small ventures - almost hobbies back then. Can this be repeated especially now there are so many talented individuals around having a great deal of expertise and knowledge as can be seen from the messages posted.

first steps would involve creating a brand - then some hard work / team building etc....

It would be great to see a UK site / compaby take on these internet giants.

Can this be done

[heini]

Tend to think the days of mega entrepreneur opportunities are over as the web becomes more similar to traditional business every day.
But then experience tells us the huge players in a couple of years won't for sure be the same as today....

[edit_g]

The simple answer is no. Not without having a truly unique selling point which people are interested in.
All the niches are filled to the brim...

[lazerzubb]

Easy, the companies you are talking about is not unique and not the first one's to come up with the ideas, (Ebay, Auction have been done for ages, and there were portals before Yahoo.com was launched even though not in the same size)

All you need is to do it better than the other one's or just succed in the points that the others lost or didn't do.

Then off course Money always help, and even though the invesments are comming around again, it's quite hard to get some money from them, that is if you don't have it yourself, or don't want someone else having control of your company.

[jackofalltrades]

Im sure with the talent on this forum, a small group of people could equal if not excede the achievments of the big names! ;)

Who's uo for it? :)

C'mon!

JOAT

[Eric_Jarvis]

depends on having the USP and a decent business model...if anyone has and needs an i18n specialist :)

[jackofalltrades]

Id say that most of the main players dont follow conventional business models, they tend to set the trend.

I think truly unique selling points (ie not just regurgitated SPs) would dictate a new trending setting business model.

You cant do whats been done before if you want to reach the scary heights of fame and fortune! :)

JOAT

[veritysystems]

Start to promote a unique product/service on the web before most people have thought of it.....now where is my crystal ball...

[DaveN]

just take a look around you yahoo, ebay, what about WebmasterWorld don,t you think that this as grown and grown and grown.

so yes is my answer, all you need is the right idea and the commit to follow it through..... oh and be willing to work 24/7 ;)

DaveN

[edit_g]

Ahem... And have some actual capital. Own or VC's- but capital will be needed.

To be sure- with all the talent here we could build a better yahoo or OPD but does the world need one? No. USP first, then money, then execution.

[Eric_Jarvis]

if you genuinely have a unique and viable idea then it isn't all that hard to find investment...actually it's not that hard if you have a complete load of b*llsh*t and a very well produced business plan

[jackofalltrades]

you dont really need capital.

most stuff that your average web designer needs to pay for could be covered by other people - everyone has something to offer! ;)

JOAT

[ukgimp]

You cant do whats been done before if you want to reach the scary heights of fame and fortune!

Not always true. Anyone remember smiths crisps here in the UK, they were the top brand. They let Walkers in with a slick marketing campaign and now rule the roost (with getting into a crisp favourite foo thread :)) and most of the business.

did not Nissan do this also? or they took over Datsun. I remember a Datsun with little nissan logo, like a special addition.

[jackofalltrades]

Thats true, Walkers did rise up, but thats a different story.

One competitor outdoing another in an existing market is just good business - creating a unique venture from the start and taking the market before the competition can jump on the bandwagon and get their greasy paws on your customers - that takes something special.

;)

JOAT

[thunderpaste]

As long as capitalism survives and smart people are encouraged to take risks we will see many great successes. Ones on the scale of Yahoo may be rare but there are success stories unfolding everyday in the real world. (like WebmasterWorld)

It will happen. I hope I am there to see it.

[Go2]

It can be done!

Everything starts small. For example, this entire exchange of information hinges on Tim Berners Lee having a good day about a decade ago.

I've read somewhere that the giant leaps are most probable to be taken by individuals not groups of people. History has shown that works such as those by Newton and Einstein have not been produced by teams of scientists working in a project, but rather by individuals thinking in new ways.

The only limitation to human invention are the laws of nature. And we have only begun to understand these concepts. I believe that that the number of scientific discoveries, technical inventions, as well as business ideas generating big money is for all practical purposes endless....;)

[colintho]

from the financial position Yahoo has just about it $1 billion tunnover for 2002, with profit just showing for the quarterly reports, show profit 2nd qtr couple of million, 3rd qtr is about $25 million (approx)

this has seen the yahoo share value double from $8 to $15 in oct! so they must have some scary overheads!

so this $1 billion dollar market place that they have!

I'm sure that there is a place for a new start up / project

would like to here from anybody interested

[colintho]

forgot to mention - Thanks for some great comments on this subject

[copongcopong]

just remember the lessons from the great internet bubble burst.

old school (old economy/ old style) of business still counts in building and Maintaining another yahoo or ebay.

if you got one unique and good idea (internet business plan), i can assure you that there are also someone (or hundreds) who's thinking about it.

good luck or idea may push you but hard work would make the business going ... and going ... and going ... and going ... :)

[snowman]

Can it be done?

Maybe. Anything can be done, after all.

It is worth it?

Probably not, as of this writing.
After all, how many more Yahoos or Ebays does anyone need before it really gets absurd and starts going to seed.