When times get tough, it is natural to tighten your belt. Most people focus on keeping what they have. Their instincts are to calm down and guard their assets until things get better. However, the fact is, indications are that Internet sales are continuing to grow, making this a great time for building a home Internet Business. In addition, this in tough times could be one of the easiest things you can do.

Common sense will tell you what you can these days. With job losses, banking troubles, and worse in the headlines. People naturally have less money in their pockets and are spending less.

However, as with so many other things related to the Web, traditional thinking does not seem to apply. While retail sales falter in the stores, online sales have actually increased. During the period leading up to the Christmas holidays, web sales increase.

Therefore, if you were toying with the idea of heroically going against the grain and daring to prosper in these times, Selling online would seem to be a good way to go.

The trick is to minimize your Risk by expanding your business without putting many of your assets on the chopping block. The cost of opening branch locations—real estate costs, insurance, etc.—versus inexpensive web site hosting alone is a great reason to start selling online.

Opening a new location also means adding more staff—the single biggest item on many companies’ budget. This is another instance in which expanding to sell online instead really shines by comparison – a sequential automatic responder costs only a few dollars a month.

You may think you are already behind the curve. You may think that the Internet has already exploded and you would be a latecomer to try to set up shop on the Web this late in the game. However, you would be wrong. In the U.S., for example, even today, majority of small businesses are still not online.

If you are one of the astonishingly large number of small business who are not yet selling online, this could be the moment you should seize. The benefits and the outlook are great, and the risk and expense are minimal. If you are reading this, you already have a computer and Internet access, which is all you need to get started with simple web hosting setup.

With the resources and services available to small businesses looking to go online, you may be shocked at how easy and affordable it can all be. There are services that will help you set up a great website and start building a customer base online, and, through an economy of scale, charge you next to nothing for it. In addition, you will not have to learn a single line of programming code.

The opportunity is there, the necessary cash is negligible, and the risk is negligible. Will you take it?