eCommerce is such a huge topic. Tackling it in any sort of organized fashion is going to be difficult, so what we've done is created a series of articles based on business models that will serve as a launching point for various topical discussions. This means that whether you are an individual e-tailer or an advertising site, you'll find information about technology, IT, marketing and traffic generation.

One thing that is important to note as we discuss eCommerce business models is that most sites on the web do have some crossover. It is very rare to find a site that is purely operating a single business model at any time. What we've done here is looked at a number of ways you can make money on the web -and we have offered example websites that have used a primary business model to become profitable. 

Additionally, these are business models we've identified that can cross over from B2B or B2C, they may hold inventory, drop ship or do both, they may have POS systems in place if they are bricks and clicks and they may use RFID technology and advances warehousing.

They may also be tiny businesses that operate out of a home or small office space, managing multiple web software applications and cobbling them all together with staff. They could be service providers that merely use their web presence to drive traffic to their organization.

The beauty of the web is that you can start with an idea, or a product and you can build your business model almost as you go. You'll see websites that started as web only and have now opened successful branch stores to further their brand. You'll see boutique stores that have launched a website which has then generated traffic nationwide which prompted growth in all facets of their business. You'll see manufacturers capitalizing on low overhead by selling direct to consumers while managing their relationship with their B2B customers.

Web business is by nature quixotic and it prompts out of the box thinking.

• Why stick to advertising only revenue when you can offer a service to subscribers?
  
• Why only offer banner ads when you could also generate affiliate commissions?
  
• Why sell only shoes when you could capitalize on your supply chain and shipping strengths and sell apparel and accessories as well?
  

The options are endless as people come up with more and more creative ways to market, brand and drive traffic to their websites all in pursuit of making online shopping the experience it should be.

That being said, the matrix of business models out there can get pretty complex. We've tried to come up with some simple categorizations that can be applied to a lot of the businesses out there as well as some basic success factors that should be assessed within the context of those business models.