| The merits of leveraging the power of the | | | | with a leveraging of the possibilities of virtual |
| internet, compared to doing business in a physical | | | | business, and that physical business premises are |
| location are hotly contested. In truth, building a | | | | relegated to the confines of history. This is not |
| successful business, lifestyle and long term legacy | | | | strictly true, as the future does lie in leveraging |
| relies on a combination of both physical and virtual | | | | the power of the virtual world, but in combination |
| components. | | | | with existing physical businesses, not isolated from |
| Physical business locations, like stores, offices or | | | | them. To successfully build a business and legacy, |
| warehouses do have their place in a successful | | | | coupled with an enjoyable lifestyle, the |
| business, as they offer somewhere to build a | | | | entrepreneur must work out the best way to |
| sense of community and shared endeavour. | | | | combine the physical and virtual. |
| However, they require large sums of capital to be | | | | The virtual world will never replace the physical |
| invested, and this means that this money cannot | | | | business, just as the internet will not kill off |
| be leveraged for other parts of the business. | | | | newspapers, and the television did not kill off |
| Operating these premises also requires large | | | | radio. These business enterprises merely adapt, |
| amounts of time and effort, which again could be | | | | evolve and transition into new business models. So |
| leveraged elsewhere in the business. | | | | how do we envision this relationship between the |
| All this time, money and effort is tied up in a | | | | physical and the virtual, and how do we make it |
| building, it is not driving value for your business, | | | | work? |
| and it is in some sense redundant. All this money | | | | Put simply, the possibilities of the virtual business |
| is at risk, as with any investment in your business, | | | | world should be used as a tool to leverage the |
| but this risk is not generating any return or | | | | promise contained in the physical business. For |
| increased value. | | | | example, a successful local salesroom should view |
| These difficulties of operating a physical business | | | | the internet as a way of transporting their local |
| premises can be juxtaposed with the value of a | | | | success to a much greater scale. The internet |
| virtual business. Virtual businesses require much | | | | does not replace their successful physical |
| less capital, time and effort to be tied up in | | | | operation, it takes that success and leverages it |
| premises, allowing these resources to be | | | | into a much larger scale. |
| leveraged in other parts of the business and build | | | | Getting the best out of both virtual and physical |
| value. Virtual business also allows a far greater | | | | business will propel your business to huge success, |
| level of flexibility, as they are easy to adapt and | | | | and build a lifestyle and legacy that you can enjoy. |
| reposition in the light of market changes. This | | | | Success will depend on your ability and willingness |
| flexibility also allows for a much better quality of | | | | to leverage the power of both forms of business, |
| lifestyle for the business owner, who is free to | | | | and not close your mind to those areas perceived |
| manage their business around other commitments. | | | | as out of date. |
| At first glance, it may seem that the future lies | | | | |