Time for introspection
Internet is fast emerging as a new medium of communication. The temptation to cling on to the Internet is strong among businessmen. For, Internet brings about tremendous cost savings. These businessmen seem to view e-commerce as a new channel. It is time they broaden their perspective.

Plans of a B2B portal
Which B2B portals will be successful? Answers B K Sethi, CEO of the Mumbai-based Electricmela.com, India’s first portal catering to the electrical goods industry: "B2B e-commerce will work in an industry which is fragmented and where profitability per transaction is low."

Eventful B2B sites
B2C sites catering to the travelling needs of individuals are there dime a dozen. There is no dearth of information on how to plan a vacation, the best hotels to stay at and the hotel tariffs. But, here is a hospitality and event planning site with a difference: Mumbai-based 73Coffees.com works on the B2B model.

Portals in the making
An office in India, without you having to supervise it personally, seems to be a great idea. After all, there seems to be a lot of foreign businessmen keen to run a business in India. But, there are fears, which are understandable. Not being able to understand the local language and wary of corruption, these foreign businessmen are thirsting for help. Finally, they have help coming form Indiafamily.com.

Dimensions of a hub
B2B e-commerce hubs tend to be two-way networks that mediate between buyers and sellers and create benefits for both sides. The value created by consumer hubs increases linearly the number of buyers and value created by B2B hubs increases as the square of the number of participants.

Crafting a B2B e-comm strategy
Internet is taking the world by storm. It is changing the way business is being done. The Internet economy has produced many offsprings. E-commerce is the most illustrious of them. Thanks to e-commerce, globalisation is taking place at a faster pace and the rules of doing business are changing.

Options in B2B selling
Manufacturers are perplexed about B2B selling. To sell on the Net or not is the new dilemma they are facing today. Most manufacturers see the Net as a threat that could overturn their assiduously-nurtured network of distributors and dealers.

Sizing up the B2B business
Optimistic projections expect business on B2B sites to grow ten times the size of B2C trading. The implication: retailers should buy more from wholesalers.

Potential sectors for B2B
Here is a quick glance around the major marketplaces. This should reveal where the action is building up.

"We need validation and certification systesm"
Coolstartups.com is a web-based venture catalyst that helps entrepreneurs and investors create, build and fund early-stage companies in the domains of Internet, technology and media. It has been founded by Ranu Vohra, Gaurav Deepak and Kaushal Aggarwal. Coolstartups.com in turn has been funded by venture catalysts from India, Europe and the USA.