The game is survival of the fittest. And there's no shortcuts, no fast and easy rule. Just pure wits and fervor. Now who will survive?

E-commerce is an ever-changing realm. One has to update himself regularly about the hot trends in the industry. If not, he won't be able to compete well with rivals. With hundreds of thousands of competitors on the net, how is he to survive?

The truth is it's relatively easy for anybody to do e-commerce. Online business opportunities swarm the web. There are lots of rivals as well. According to IDC, a Framingham, Mass.-based research firm, the entry barriers are low, and the opportunities are great - considering there are more than a billion Internet users worldwide.

Online sales are big business. How big? Well, U.S. small businesses sell approximately $200 billion worth of goods and services online, a number expected to reach $500 billion by 2010. Also, the total e-commerce market represents around $2 trillion in revenue and is expected to reach $3.7 trillion by 2010, says Jamie Herzlich.

If you want to be included in the list of precious few who are deemed survivors, here are some pointers:

1. Stay on the code of business basics.

"The same rules of business apply in the online world as they do in the brick-and-mortar world," says John Gantz, chief research officer and senior vice president for IDC and co-author of "E-Commerce for Dummies." "There are no shortcuts. Simply having a Web site is not enough. You have to have a product that people want."

2. Submit your optimized web pages to major search engines. Be sure to use keywords wisely.

You'd be surprised at what a difference the right words can make, says Louis D'Annucci, owner of rockville centre-based Bargain Travel Cruises. "Visitorship went up 200 percent with the change of keywords," he says.

3. Ensure your site's navigation.

Make it easy for visitors to find what they're looking for. Then allow them do the work of spreading the good news for your online business.