ONSALE is an online global auction house for computers and electronic equipment. The 24-hour, competitive bidding format allows customers to receive between a 15 and 20% discount on most items. ONSALE’s site draws approximately 50,000 visitors a day and reports sales of around $8 million per month.

After viewing an item, a customer places a bid by entering their bid amount and a valid credit card number. Winning bids are displayed as the item is auctioned. If the customer is outbid, ONSALE sends an e-mail providing the customer with an opportunity to resubmit a higher bid. Merchandise is shipped to the winning customer’s address. In July, 1997, Newsweek reported that, like conventional auctions, some items sold at nearly 33% discounts, while others sold for above retail value.

ONSALE provides a reliable method for suppliers to quickly and completely liquidate excess goods at excellent prices. ONSALE maintains popular sale items in inventory and sells them directly to consumers. In addition, ONSALE will act as a broker for vendors wishing to sell excess inventory. ONSALE receives revenue from a percentage markup on each transaction and receives supplemental income from advertising.

ONSALE went public in April of 1997. Two-thirds of all sales are generated by repeat customers and about 1000 new customers register per day. Sales are growing at over 40% per quarter.

Name: InsWeb Description: Consumers can get quotes from multiple insurance companies by submitting a single form URL: www.insweb.com Founded: 1995

InsWeb helps simplify the process of researching, evaluating and choosing auto, life and health insurance. InsWeb’s online customers fill out a single form specifying their needs and receive price quotes from multiple insurance companies based on the information on that single form.

Founded in 1995, this 100 person company is an unbiased, comprehensive insurance resource maintaining over 5000 pages of information including information on the financial strength of about 6,000 insurance carriers. InsWeb sends consumer requests to over 25 different insurers who are part of its network.

Consumers find InsWeb valuable because the service is free and enables them to research, evaluate and get quotes for most every insurance need at one site. Insurers value InsWeb because it reduces the cost of issuing a policy by an amount equal to about 10-15% of the first year’s premium. In addition, because consumers input information directly onto the form, clerical error (and thus costs) are significantly reduced.

As of May, InsWeb was receiving 600,000 hits per month. That number increased to 1.5 million by October, representing a 250% increase in visits to the site.