Go DaddyImage via WikipediaI started my computer consulting business back in 1987 and at that time I had no idea what the internet was let alone what it would become. But when internet access came to our city you can bet I was one of the first online in our area. It’s become a huge part of my life both entertainment and business wise.

Learning how to take your offline business online is not a difficult task. It’s not very expensive either. A big bonus is going to be the fact you can add a website address to your business card. Oh yeah, then there is the opportunity to make money online.

If you’ve been considering bringing your business online here are a few basic tips to help you get started.

Get Your Business Website Created And Online

In order to get a website online you will need the following:

1. A Domain Name – www.yourbusinessname.com

Domain names are very inexpensive. For as little as $7-$9 per year, you can purchase your domain name at various places online. You would of course try to get a domain name that suits your business.

I use www.GoDaddy.com for purchasing my domains. I have had no problems with GoDaddy and I can use my paypal account directly from within GoDaddy. I like the prices and convenience.

Example: www.webmannmarketing.com where the business name is Webmann Marketing

2. A Hosting Account

Just like in the real world you need a location for your business, even if it’s in your garage your domain name needs to have a place to live online. This is how your site will be able to appear online 24/7/356.

You can purchase hosting for your site for as little as $20 per year, depending on what you will need for it. A quick search online for “website hosting” will reveal hundreds of options, so be sure to research each one and find the best for your business. I personally use HostGator.com as do my clients and I will add that we have had no complaints.

3. Website Building Software or Web Designer

Depending on your knowledge of HTML, you can either build your site on your own or you can hire someone to do it for you. The cost of this depends on many factors, including what all you will need, whether you will do the work or pay someone else to do it, and your level of expertise with coding and building/maintaining websites. However, there are low-cost website builders that make creating your own website a piece of cake. You can find these online by searching for the term website builder.

4. Payment Acceptance Options

This step will take a bit of planning and research, but a good starting point is to use paypal to accept payments. For a low fee you can accept payments right from your website via credit cards and more. Visit https://www.paypal.com for more information.

Your next steps will include planning and researching your market as things may change a bit now that you are dealing with potential customers from all over the world, marketing your products or services, advertising methods and more. These are just the basics of what it takes to get your business online, but you will be well on your way once you have these options taken care of.

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Filed under: create a blog • make money online

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