You’ve probably heard the stories of those 20-somethings who started an online business in their garage that they later sold for millions of dollars. Many people believe that those days are long gone. I totally disagree. It seems like every week I hear about another stay-at-home mom or jobless trucker who started an online business on her kitchen table and now earns more than most doctors. This kind of thing still happens. It’s what keeps me going sometimes. The brass ring is there. All you have to do is reach out and grab it. I intend to use this article to help you decide how to get your website off the ground with as little hassle as possible.
Before you start pooling your resources, you should give some thought to where you are going to set up the physical part of your virtual storefront. Yes, you have yet to find a real place to do business. You don’t necessarily have to rent office space; instead, consider setting up a home office. An additional bedroom or study is a good option. If a room is not available, then perhaps a corner in a room where computers, books, and other related equipment reside.
While doing business online means you don’t have to rent space in a physical location, you do need to set up virtual space for your online business. This is accomplished by creating a website and finding a host for your site. These “cyber owners” are called web hosting services. A web host is a company that, for a fee, makes your site available 24 hours a day by maintaining it on a special computer called a web server.
These days, web hosting is available and affordable for even the tightest of budgets. The large number of web hosts out there and competing for your attention have driven costs down over time. I routinely buy web hosting for less than $5.00 per month. Don’t let the cost fool you either. My website rarely goes offline, and if it does, my web host’s customer support is available and efficient. I have plenty of storage space too. If you think your website is going to outgrow the basic web hosting package, then I urge you not to worry. I still recommend starting with a basic package and buying additional space as you need it.
Another thing to keep in mind is the bandwidth allowed with your account. Basically, bandwidth can be defined as the amount of action (traffic) your website experiences on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis. Unless your website becomes a traffic magnet (my biggest dream!), the bandwidth allocated to your account will probably be more than adequate. However, it’s still a good idea to ask a potential web host how they handle excess bandwidth. The good guys do nothing more than let your website run as usual and send you an email to let you know that your account has exceeded its allotted bandwidth and that you can purchase additional bandwidth for a few extra bucks a month. Disreputable web hosts have been known to shut down your website without warning if you exceed your allotted bandwidth. They then wait for you to notice and contact them, at which point they try to charge exorbitant fees to get your site up and running again. Before you make the purchase, give them a call and ask how they handle this situation should it arise.
Get the hardware you need
To do business online, your most important piece of equipment is a computer. Other hardware, such as printers, scanners, monitors, and routers, is also essential. You need to make sure your IT equipment is up to the task because you’ll be spending a lot of time online: answering emails, checking and fulfilling orders, checking out your website, and marketing your product. I use a custom built PC. My reasons are that it’s expandable, more affordable than name brands, and I don’t have to worry about pre-installing any unwanted software or programs before I buy it. I also got a better warranty than I would get at a major office supply store computer outlet. There are thousands of websites that offer these custom computers. Take a look at some of them.
Choose your software
For the most part, the programs you need to run your online business are the same ones you use to surf the Internet. Because you’ll be in the business of providing information rather than collecting it, you’ll need some specialized software like the following:
A web page editor: Also known as a web page builder or web page builder tools. These make it easy for you to design web pages without having to learn HTML.
Graphics software – If you are planning to create your own website and want to draw images, you will need this software. I use Adobe Photoshop but it’s up to you. Read some reviews and even try some for 30 days before you have to buy.
Storefront software: You can buy software that guides you through the process of building a complete online business and getting your pages on the Web. osCommerce is free and quite easy to set up and use.
Accounting software: you have to count them. To keep track of expenses and income, there are programs that act like spreadsheets, help with billing, calculate taxes (if any), and calculate sales tax. Intuit is where I would look first.
Getting your business online will require a lot of setup. Get it right and you only have to do it once.