Read Start Your Own Business Online

Authors: Inc The Staff of Entrepreneur Media

Start Your Own Business (73 page)

BOOK: Start Your Own Business
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Whether buying from a large or small provider, basic hosting service—along with standards like domain name registration and e-mail accounts—starts at about $10 per month but can go up considerably, depending on your needs.
Still not sure which host to choose? Log on to Compare Web Hosts (
comparewebhosts.com
), where you can compare hosts based on price. Other variables include amount of disk space allocated to you, available bandwidth, number of e-mail services offered, customer service support availability, database support and setup fees. For even more information, check out CNET Editors’ web hosting guide at
reviews.cnet.com
. Under the “Internet Access” menu, click on “Web Hosting,” followed by “Most Popular Hosts.”
 
AHA!
 
Although people have gotten increasingly comfortable with the internet as a secure place for credit card transactions, a little reassurance doesn’t hurt. Have whomever sets up your shopping cart component provide a message to customers that details your company’s policy for protecting credit card information and customer /client privacy.
How much disk space do you need to store your website? Generally, 1MB can hold several hundred text pages, fewer pages when images and multimedia content is included. Web hosts typically offer between 10MB and 50MB of free storage. The better web host contracts offer more than 100MB of disk space, which should be adequate for most situations. If you’re unsure how much disk space or bandwidth you need, check with your website designer or computer con sultant before you sign on a web server’s dotted line.
 
WARNING
 
You can create the most incredible website in the history of the internet and then incorporate cutting-edge content, but if your text is filled with grammatical errors, misspelled words, inappropriate language or misused words, it will immediately destroy your reputation and credibility. Make sure you have your site edited and proofread before you launch it.
Ka-ching
 
The best part of e-commerce is that customers do the work while you make the sales. You’ve probably noticed that companies of all sizes, from SOHOs to the Fortune 500, use sticks and carrots to encourage web usage vs. telephone support for all sorts of transactions. Every time you serve yourself on the internet, whether it’s to purchase an airline ticket, a can of cat food, or 100 shares of stock, you’ve saved the seller money on salaries and, ultimately, office space and phone charges. Nevertheless, business owners should consider carefully how many sales support services they want to handle themselves.
In fact, many e-commerce entrepreneurs turn to the web hosting companies we mentioned above to solve all their e-commerce needs, such as handling credit card transactions, sending automatic e-mail messages to customers thanking them for their orders, and forwarding the order to them for shipping and handling—and of course, domain registration and hosting.
Another option is to incorporate an electronic shopping cart module, which allows people to place their orders online and process their credit card payment transactions. A site using a shopping cart module should have these four components:
KEEPING UP APPEARANCES
 
U
nless you’re careful when designing and programming your website, it might behave differently to different people. This is because web browsers (the software that enables net users to navigate the web) differ somewhat in how the websites they access perform. Make sure your website is fully compatible with Explorer, Safari, Firefox and Chrome, which are the most popular web browsers. Also make sure the content works well and looks good on the screen of a cell phone or wireless PDA, such as a BlackBerry or iPhone.
 
 
So how do you know how your site is behaving? Whenever you have the chance to use computers with different browsers, check your site. Note differences in appearance, ease of navigation and speed. Be sure to check compatibility issues with all browsers (and all versions of each browser) before launching your site. Nothing destroys your credibility like computer mishaps.
1.
Catalog
. Customers can view products, get information and compare prices.
2.
Shopping cart
. The icon works like the real thing. It tracks all the items in the basket and can add or delete items as the customer goes along. It’s like an online order form.
3.
Checkout counter
. The shopper reviews the items in her cart, makes changes and decides on shipping preferences, gift-wrapping and the like.
4.
Order processing
. The program processes the credit card (or payment option), verifies all information, and sends everything to the database.
 
AHA!
 
Here’s another idea to give your customers peace of mind: Look into third-party certification seal programs that let you post a symbol to signify that your website is using effective privacy practices. Leading firms offering these programs are the Better Business Bureau Online (
bbb.org
) and TRUSTe (
truste.org
). Or you could display the VeriSign seal, which verifies that your business has been approved to protect confidential information with industry-leading SSL encryption.
Final Check
 
You’re now just about ready to launch your online business (or the online com ponent to your traditional business). Here’s a checklist to keep you on track:
• Keep your online and e-commerce strategy in focus.
• Put full contact information on your homepage.
• Make sure your online message is clear.
• Keep graphics clean and eye-catching.
• Make sure your website is free of glitches, typos, and dead ends that frustrate visitors.
• Ensure your site meets its objectives.
• Enable visitors to get information quickly and easily.
• Make sure your website meshes with the rest of your business.
Once your website is up and running, it’s time to get to the really important jobs. The first is getting visitors to your site (generating traffic), followed by encouraging them to become paying customers. Promoting and advertising your site properly, and on an ongoing basis, will be essential for its success. To learn how to do all this and more, turn to Chapter 34.
chapter 28
 
KEEP IN TOUCH
 
Using Technology to Stay Connected
 
 
 
 
 
T
hese are exciting times for mobile entrepreneurs. In the past few years alone, we’ve seen laptop computers become smaller and far more powerful, and we’ve seen clunky cell phones transform from being devices simply for talking into sleek smartphones capable of a wide range of wireless interactivity. In addition, the cost of traditional long-distance phone service has plummeted, and the option to use the internet as a phone (using VoIP) has become extremely viable for saving a fortune on calls (as well as making video conferencing an affordable option for everyone).
Thanks to the wireless web, we can connect to the internet anywhere and anytime and have a high-speed connection from a laptop computer, netbook, smartphone or wireless PDA. Even as this book was being written, a major technological advancement—the iPad—was announced by Apple, which will no doubt once again change how businesspeople communicate and stay connected from virtually anywhere, whether it’s through e-mail, instant messaging (IM), online social networking, or some other online-based application.
 
TIP
 
When selecting a cell phone, smartphone or wireless PDA, don’t just look at the equipment in terms of its features and functionality. Determine what types of service plans are available, what fees are associated with those plans, and what downloadable apps you might want to use.
While the technology that allows us to communicate more effectively is becoming increasingly powerful, the price for all this power is decreasing. Today, just about any startup entrepreneur can afford the latest BlackBerry or iPhone, netbook or laptop with wireless connectivity, or a new iPad tablet. These technologies allow us to talk, video conference, e-mail, IM or communicate in ways never before possible—from anywhere we happen to be. We’re no longer held down by cables or phone lines or the need to find Wi-Fi hotspots or electrical outlets. We can conduct business as efficiently as if we were sitting at our office desk.
Do Your Homework
 
Yes, the technology to do these incredible things exists, but it’s your responsibility to discover what’s out there, then determine the best ways to use it to make you more productive—and competitive. Everyone’s needs are different. While a netbook might be the ultimate solution for one person, a full-powered laptop computer or the latest Apple iPad might be a more useful tool for someone else.
BOOK: Start Your Own Business
13.29Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

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