The internet has opened up a whole new world for small businesses. No longer does it matter where you’re at or what size of company you have. And there are opportunities for anyone that wants to create a presence online. Your customers can be anywhere in the world! No matter what your service or product is there is a high likelihood that those searching for it will be able to find you online.
This is the first part in a series on how you can put your business on the web & attract customers interested in your products & services. It’s an overview of the steps to take & I’ll cover a topic each day.
It’s like building a house & that’s the analogy that I’ll use. I’ll also include the many resources & products that Network Solutions offers to make it straightforward & customized to your needs.
1. Find a location for your house & an address – purchase a domain name
The best part about having a business online is that it’s relatively inexpensive to get started. It’s much more inexpensive to have a business online than in a physical location! I’ll take the guesswork out of choosing a domain name. Once you’ve decided on a domain name, Network Solutions makes purchasing it easy.
2. The foundation – hosting package
Every house needs solid footings to support the infrastructure. Network Solutions offers a number of options so that you’re able to start your online website off to a good start.
3. Building it – planning architecture & choosing the design
As with a house there are many ways to build a website. Network Solutions has options for every level. If you’d like to do it yourself you can no matter whether you’re a beginner or a seasoned programmer. And if you’re just too busy then Network Solutions has talented people that will do it for you!
4. Furnishing it –
An empty house is of no interest to those that live there or are visitors. So it’s important to create information that’s of value & is relevant to your visitors. And if you keep adding more then it will give people a reason to keep returning to see what’s new.
5. Helping customers locate your house – SEO, keywords, & metatags
Once you get your house built it’s not of much value if people can’t find it. There are some straightforward things that can be done to help those searching find your site. Search engine optimization (generally abbreviated as SEO) sounds complicated but Network Solutions offers services to assist you with it. Keywords & metatags are also helpful to providing a more direct path to your site.
6. Doing business - ecommerce, paypal
It’s as easy as using a spare room for an office. Network Solutions has a number of options for setting up your site to allow people to purchase your products. They also have an in-depth article on selling online.
7. Inviting people to your house – marketing & networking
Once your website it set up & ready for business the last step is to get the word out. There are two parts to this. Network Solutions offers some great options for helping with marketing. And I’ll also give some tips on finding & networking with potential customers.
As you can see it’s relatively easy to get started. Start thinking about how you want people to find you online because that’s our first step!
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