Online business first steps. Now that you've got the goods, it's time to set up shop

Affiliate marketing Nov 4, 2022

Once you've decided on a particular product to sell, it's time to begin building your storefront. In this case, of course, your storefront will be your website. The first and one of the most important subjects we're going to talk about in creating your website choosing a domain name.

Picking and buying your domain name

There is no rule that says the first step of creating your website should be choosing your domain name but the name of your URL will be used throughout your marketing and on your website so it makes sense to go ahead and take care of this one now. Just to clarify, your URL is your actual website address such as www.yourwebsite.com. In this case, your website would be your domain name.

Choosing your domain name is important and the simpler and more specific you make it to what your website is about, the better. If your website is about learning how to play tennis better, then www.learntoplaytennisbetter.com would make a pretty good website address.

The shorter you can make it the better. Most really short domain names are pretty much gone these days but if you can find one that fits, it might make for a great choice. Here is a quick breakdown of some tips that can help you choose a good domain name for your online business.

Keep it simple-use a few words, but make them specific to your topic
Incorporate keywords if possible-If you can include keywords that people are searching for in your domain name, this will help your site show up in the search engines when people are searching on your topic
Choose your extension-in the website www.yourwebsite.com, .com is your extension. There are others available for different industries such as .edu for education and .biz for business, but .com is the oldest and still most popular. If you can get a .com for the domain you select, then grab it

When choosing to purchase your domain name one company has risen above all others: www.GoDaddy.com

There are certainly many places where you can purchase domain names online but Go Daddy has made them their specialty and their familiarity with the needs of their customers and providing a consistent level of quality customer support has made them the true leader.

They offer domain names for less than $10 per year and much less than that if you purchase them for several years at a time. Their full-time customer service support team can take you through the entire process with ease.

Hosting

The best analogy I can give to the relationship between hosting and your website is hosting is like a piece of land, and a website is like a home that you put on it. Your website needs a place to live on the Internet and that's exactly what hosting services provide. They help to ensure that your website is online and visible to everyone on the Internet 24 hours a day.

There are several things to look for when choosing a hosting service and only one of those is price. Because of competition in the marketplace, the price of hosting has gone down dramatically over the years while the amount of services they provide has gone up. The key thing you want to be concerned with is the quality and level of service you receive from these hosting companies.

It’s unfortunate to think about, but the fact is problems can and probably will arise with your website at some point in time. It's comforting to know that the hosting company you've secured will be there when you need them. This should include a variety of ways to communicate with them including of course e-mail and phone.

If the hosting company you work with only provides e-mail service, this could lessen their effectiveness in times of trouble. In addition, make sure to note their hours of service because unlike bricks and mortar store, your website will be available to customers 24 hours a day seven days a week; you want your host to be available for you as well.

Your hosting account is where you will upload the graphics of your website to then be sent to go live on the Internet. The process of doing this is called FTP, or file transfer protocol. The process is incredibly simple using the control panels that will be available to you on your hosting account, and depending on the level of customer service that the hosting company provides, they may be able walk you through this process the first few times to make sure all goes well.

Below are just a few hosting companies that have provided markedly good service over the years and are backed by an overwhelming amount of positive feedback from past and existing customers. We have provided a few basic specifics about each company, but make sure to visit each site to investigate the terms and services of each company to decide which one will be right for your online website project.

http://www.hostgator.com/ -Host gator has a great reputation in the industry and depending on the scope of your project, can host your website for as little as $4.95 per month. In addition to the 1-800 number prominently displayed on their website, host gator provides a variety of ways to communicate with them and operates on a business model that features 24/7 customer service.
http://www.thirdspherehosting.com/ -Third sphere hosting is a somewhat new kid on the block and they're making a big splash with the incredible variety of services that they are offering to clients. While other hosting services provide you with some options to help you build a website, the third sphere actually features this as one of the main benefits of signing with their company. Again, the level of customer service and communication has been mostly positive from folks who have dealt with this firm. Making Money Online: Let’s Get Started
http://www.cheapwebhosting-1.com -for those of you just starting out and who are on an extremely tight budget, you may consider cheap hosting-one.com because their beginner plan is priced at just $12 per year. While their services are not as comprehensive as those listed above, and they don't offer phone support at this time, the company does stand behind the service of its products and can represent a great choice for someone just starting out.

Because of the low prices associated with hosting companies today and the general ease of use in working with them, many people take their website hosting services for granted; this is a mistake. All of the amount of work that goes into designing and building a website not to mention driving traffic to it in order to sell a product you are featuring would be completely a waste of time if no one can see it.

Developing a strong relationship with a reputable hosting company should be your first step into your online marketing venture. If you latch onto a good one early, you may have just started a relationship that will last for years and wind up being very, very profitable for your business.