Majon International generates free online malls for interested parties, complete not only with stores but with multiple built-in affiliate links for you to take advantage of and promote. Click here to see my mall.
What makes these malls nice is that you don't ever have to pay a fee for them. In that sense, they may be a better bet for a beginner than an online store that needs to be hosted and/or stocked. Another nice thing about these malls is you have your own e-commerce site at your fingertips within minutes of signing up! That's a great feeling, and a greatly RELIEVING feeling if you've jumped into a webstore proposition with both feet. But these neat little malls don't make money all by themselves. You do have to promote them.
I see a mall like this as a no-lose proposition, but if you want to win, you have to push. This probably means that at some point or another you have to pay. Good no-pay ways of marketing your mall are banner exchanges and of course posting a banner on your own blog or website. Reasonably low-cost marketing includes Google Adwords. WARNING: SET YOUR BUDGET LOW TO START!!!! Perhaps $5 per day and 25 cents per click. Go to my Building the Empire blog for a nice set of SEO tools. The Spider Simulator is probably the best keyword mining tool you'll find, especially for the price. FREE!!!
I really like that word. I know it's a favorite among most e-commerce neophytes, which is why whenever I find a decent FREE service I'll be the first to share!
Happy E-marketing!
Cie
