Get Online

Getting online and coming across as professional can be a real headache if you are not sure where to begin. Here's a few simple things to think about before taking the online plunge.

1 - Email

• Do you look professional ?
• • A common problem is simply presenting yourself in a less profesional way by using free email accounts such as hotmail and yahoo.  But that's not all.  I recently worked with a business that had their own domain emails forwarded to a gmail account.  The gmail account was hacked.  Hassle for the owner and rather irritating of everyone on his contacts list who got high volumes of spam.  Are your emails open to being hacked ?
  • • Try putting "gmail hacked" into google
    • or "hotmail hacked"
    • or "yahoo mail hacked"

2 - Domain name

To have professional emails you'll need your own domain name.  It may look something like www.SpeedNetwKing.biz or www.malray.co.uk

• Think about what you want from a website
• • do you need an online shop
  • do you simply need an online business card
  • do you need to be able to develop email marketing campaigns
  • what terms do you think people search on when they look you up on a search engine such as google
• Think of what value your site will add to the lives of you existing and potential customers
• • have empathy with their needs and wants
• Will you market your site online or offline ?
• • is being found for free on google important to you ?
  • is being able to spend money on online advertising something you feel would help your business ?
• Do think you need a blog (online diary) ?

Brainstorm

• Make a list of all the "buzz" or "keywords" associated with your business. 
• Do some brainstorming - spend 5 or 10 mins just writting uncontrollably of everything that comes into your head assocated with your website.  It does not matter if you don't have a site yet.  Simply imagine you have the site of your dreams and let you imagination run free.

Try it out

• Look and see if you can secure yourself a domain name with your favourite most applicable keywords.  Here's a --->>> good resource <<<---

3 - Hosting

So what computer stores and manages all my email and website ?  The answer is you need a hosting account.  This will work round the clock serving you and your customers.

You can get hosting accounts in all shapes and sizes from a range of hosting providers.

4- Visualise the website

Close your eyes.  Can you see your website ?

5 - Get the site built

Ok now I have really done it now.  Scared yet ?

There's no need it is as easy as picking option 1 or option 2.

1. Do it yourself - hosting and designing then building the site
2. • You'll need a hosting company
   • You'll need a design tool
   • You may need a source of graphical content
   • You may well need programming experience for some elements
   • You'll need time, how much depends on you, the tools you use, your ability to learn, your ability to visualise the end result.
3. Get someone to do it all for you
4. • The key to this is simply to find someone you can trust.
   • Try to find someone who can add value to your vision of your website
   • Comminucate well with them.  And make sure can and will reciprocate.
   • If you think they can do the above then well done you're on to a winner.
   • Build a check list of tasks here's an example
   • 1. explain your needs and wants no matter how sketchy
     2. listen out for ideas you haven't thought of or considered yet
     3. if you don't have a domain yet then take advice about the finding the best domain name
     4. discuss costs, this should include domain name, hosting, planning and development, support

Last not least don't worry if you don't know all the answers.  And certainly don't worry about the cost (bear with me).  The fact is a well put together site is there to make you money.
The cost is a bit like asking how long is a piece of string. 

At the end of the day YOU GET TO decide on the length and quality of the string.