The days of the roaring venture capitalists streaming seemingly endless funds for startup ventures have been over for quite some time.

Starting a small business nowadays has a more rugged individualism approach.

Anita Campbell, editor of SmallBiztrends.com in Cleveland, Ohio, said one thing she's noticed since the dot-com boom is a much renewed emphasis on bootstrapping. She said the emphasis is keeping costs low and finding money for the business itself, what is referred to as getting the customer to pay for the business.

Resources have also changed.

Campbell said when it comes to technology, it looks radically different today than 10 years ago.

"What we have today that we use in small businesses is pretty sophisticated, more than what our parents used in their offices," she said.

She said use tools that put small business on a more equal footing with larger businesses, such as building a Web presence. She said it's much easier to have a professional Web site and market it online than it was in 1999.

Campbell said she's seeing a lot of do-it-yourself small businesses and self-serve business owners, especially with sole proprietors and businesses with less than five employees. She said the Internet has a lot to do with it.

She said owners could use online advertising campaigns with tools such as Google AdWords without having to hire an agency. She also mentioned small business accounting software packages such as QuickBooks in which entrepreneurs don't have buy expensive accounting systems.

Leverage for small businesses in the marketplace comes from targeted, niche and specialized products or services. Campbell said that smart small business owners ask how they can make the buying experience richer for the customer.

"Small businesses that have been able to adjust are still in business," she said.

Campbell used the examples such as travel agencies and independent bookstores.

Travel agencies, for instance, provide some level of knowledge or service that customers can't get online. She said they are getting away from standard booking of flights and they are building an experience with the trip.

Campbell said consulting is another type of small business that is getting more specialized and is growing.

She said baby boomers might leave the corporate culture for example, and start and a consulting business with a specialized niche.

There's more niche focus that type of business than ever before because consultants are selling knowledge, Campbell said, because their knowledge is becoming more specialized and is increasing over time.

Niche isn't the only focus. Campbell said she's seeing more people starting certain businesses that have to do with making people's lives more enriched.

"Pet businesses are very hot. It's a big, big business," she said.

Campbell said another growing business is specialty eating and drinking establishments such as sushi bars and teahouses.

Another business she pointed out that is hot is search engine optimization, or getting businesses more exposure online through making them more visible in search engine results. She said the business is hot because search engines are always changing.

"Press releases have changed. (They are) very much a search-engine play these days," she said.