From riding submarines in the United States Navy to galloping ponies in cyberspace, small business owner and Elance buyer, Jeff Ness, has quite a story to tell.



35 year old Jeff Ness is the Founder and CEO of Ponybox.com and its subsidiary Ponypaws.com.  Founded in 2002, both websites offer family-friendly, equestrian and pet-themed online simulation games.

But just like any successful business, starting wasn't easy.  Jeff had the idea for the business, but couldn't find resources to bring his vision to life.  "Our company didn't form, and then we went to Elance," said Jeff.  "Elance was the catalyst that really created this corporation." 

Without Elance, Jeff notes that small and startup companies would not have access to such a diverse talent pool.  That pool included the graphic design and technical web programming expertise to create an online game simulation environment for his specific niche, which is one of the most popular activities on the web.

Fast forward several years, and Jeff has built relationships with several providers and has many Elance projects going on at one time.  "Our core providers are the backbone of our company and they really had a major role in getting us where we are today."

Jeff also enjoys the fluid connections that have developed with an array of providers.  He has the comfort of knowing that he can give his providers a task list and they will manage it and turn out a good product.

"Some of these providers may have 20, 30 or even 40 years of experience in their niche," said Jeff.  It was access to that experience that Jeff believes propelled Ponybox from a hobby to a viable business.  The providers that Jeff worked with knew how to bring a company to market and were able to not only fill holes, but provide a competitive advantage.

And creating a new business wasn't the only reward for Jeff.  Ponybox also provided Jeff with the opportunity to combine his technical expertise with his personal love of horses to create his dream job.  Prior to starting the business, Jeff served five years in the Navy supporting the fleet as a communications technician on board a variety of ships.  This highly technical job involved the transmission of different forms of communications and interpreting the information to our military forces.

For budding small business owners and entrepreneurs, Jeff offers this advice:  "If you have a good idea, Elance will definitely provide you with an avenue for getting it out there."