| I attended the 2010 Internet Retailer Conference & | | | | There were complimentary appetizers, alcohol and |
| Exhibition at McCormick Place in Chicago from June 8 | | | | beverages, massages - chair and feet, and cell phone |
| - June 10, 2010. Although I was there as a member | | | | charging. I know for certain that the massage |
| of media, the entrepreneur in me could not resist | | | | therapists were independent contractors hired to |
| noticing money-making opportunities to share with | | | | work the conference. |
| others. Especially in this recession. Following are five | | | | Business Opportunity 4: Mobile Solutions to Internet |
| opportunities I discovered during my three days at | | | | Businesses |
| the conference. | | | | Most people start their shopping online with mobile |
| Business Opportunity 1: Start an Online Business | | | | phones coming in a close second. Armed with this |
| The purpose of this conference was to provide | | | | information, figure out how to make shopping easier |
| education, tools and resources for online businesses. | | | | for customers; create applications and software for |
| Retail sales plunged 7% while internet sales actually | | | | organizations; or come up with something so unique |
| increased 2% during these challenges economic times. | | | | that Apple and Google will compete for it. |
| In fact, ecommerce sales were 18.48% in March | | | | Business Opportunity 5: Writing, Design, Editing, |
| 2010. | | | | Publishing, Printing |
| You can't really lose by starting an online business. | | | | Each of those 400 companies had marketing |
| You can start part-time at home with little overhead. | | | | materials ranging from business cards to manuals. |
| But you must have a quality product for the right | | | | They all had logos to distinguish themselves from |
| audience with excellent customer service. | | | | other organizations in attendance. All of the 175 |
| Business Opportunity 2: Become a Service Provider | | | | speakers needed bios, and may have other |
| to Online Businesses | | | | promotional needs outside of the conference. The |
| Businesses from all over the world attended this | | | | conference materials were outstanding. Also, The |
| conference. Over 400 vendors providing | | | | Internet Retailer magazine may be open to freelance |
| approximately 70 types of business services | | | | journalists. |
| displayed and discussed their products and services. | | | | These were just a few of the opportunities I |
| Some of the services included: web design, credit | | | | discovered during my 2010 Internet Retailer |
| card protection, internet security, customer service, | | | | Conference experience. I hope you use this |
| live chat for online customers, and multi-channel | | | | information to consider business ideas, and to create |
| marketing. Visit to learn more about the opportunities | | | | opportunities for yourself. As you can see, you can't |
| available and how to get started in this industry. | | | | depend on other people to take care of you, so it's |
| Business Opportunity 3: Become a Service Provider | | | | best to put your destiny in your own hands. |
| to Conference Organizers | | | | |