People who think of starting their own business often worry about "what if it fails?" There is a fear that not only the business fails but the associated loss of investment capital. Then there are debts incurred during the operation of the business in the early states.

Although these are problems there are ways round them, especially using the internet.

Often the advantage of the internet is overlooked and people consider the starting of an online business the same way as a traditional one. It certainly is possible to start up and run a business online without having to invest any money at all. With no investment other than your time there will be far less stress and zero risk.

Over the years I have owned a mixture of businesses. Two of them were the traditional style with premises to rent, employees to pay (and deal with) and stock to buy and store. I also started three online businesses that were run entirely by myself from home.

One of the traditional businesses failed and was a great stress factor in my life while attempting it. It also cost me a lot of money to close it down without getting my investment back. In contrast, the online business had no set up costs at all and even though two of them eventually fizzled out, it didn't matter. I had made good money while they lasted and didn't have to invest anything to get them going.

So how can you start an internet business without spending your own money?

My own favorite choice is what is know as affiliate marketing. Promoting companies' products online for a cut of the profits. There are a huge number of ways to do this that don't involve spending any money at all and they can be very successful.

The are of course techniques to learn and it does take some work but the methods are tried and tested and as a business model they are successful.