Starting A Web Business
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5 Tips for New And Old Webmasters.
To new and old webmasters starting a web business: These five basics will help you get your internet business off to a great start - and possibly make improvements to your existing one.
#1: Get Your Own Domain Name.
If your business does not have its own domain name, you are sending a clear signal to other internet users.
And it’s not a very good one.
Using something like http://users.yourisp.com/yourname/index.htm as a business website address gives many web users the impression that you don’t really take your business seriously.
Some will avoid dealing with you based on this one fleeting impression. Can you afford to be turning this business away?
You can purchase domain names from thousands of resellers. I’d STRONGLY recommend you use NameCheap.com
This registrar won’t steal your name immediately after you do an availability search, unlike some other very popular and well promoted registrars.
My hub The Radio Rule will help you with choosing a domain name.
#2. Use your domain name for all email addresses.
Many businesses with their own domain name still continue to advertise their old, ISP based email address instead of their own domain based email address after they start their web business.
Ie They’ll use www.businessname.com for their website, and then have something like businessname@aol.com as their contact email address.
This is crazy, because it
· Locks you into using your current ISP permanently
· Undermines your marketing, branding, and promotional efforts
· Gives free promotion to another company every time you give out your contact details.
· Gives your business an unprofessional internet image.
If the ISP goes out of business, your contact details on advertisements and promotional materials will be useless.
Of course, you will still receive email sent to your ISP based address as long as your account there remains open.
However, you should stop giving the old ISP based address as the contact address for your business. Just start using your new address on signs, business cards, stationery, advertisements, etc.
# 3: Make Sure that your domain name works without the “www” prefix..
Many hosting companies still set up their systems so that www is needed in front of your domain name to access your website.
This is a problem, because many people leave off the www prefix when typing in web addresses.
If your website needs the this prefix, they’ll get an error message – and assume that your site is not available. And move to the next supplier on their list.
Try your own website now. If it doesn't work without www, get in touch with your web host and get them to fix it. It's a simple technical adjustment, and should cost you nothing.
Dropping off the www also has some little known benefits when promoting your business
· In spoken advertisements, you can gain 2 seconds of promotional time if you don't have to say "Doubleyoo Doubleyoo Doubleyoo dot" before your web address.
· On posters, signs, and in newspaper advertisements where you have to work in a fixed width, you can make your domain name larger and more prominent if you leave out the WWW
#4: Put Full contact details on EVERY page of your website.
Many people print out web pages of products, services, etc to read while they are away from the computer.
They make purchase decisions by comparing printed copies of your information with those of your competitors.
If your contact information is not printed on those pages, they’ll probably call your smarter competitors, who provided email addresses and phone numbers.
Please Note: Some web designers disagree violently with this concept, and feel that it "spoils the artistic look" of your web pages.
Remember that you're the boss. Decide what's more important for your business: the ability for clients to easily get in touch with you, OR the artistic feelings of your web designer.
#5: Make sure that your web pages print properly
It's really frustrating when you print out several pages of a website, and the right side has been chopped off.
Don't let this happen to your pages. Make sure that whoever develops your website makes sure that pages can be printed without getting chopped off.
Internet Explorer with standard settings will print a page up to 637 pixels wide without chopping anything off.
Of course, it’s possible to adjust modern browsers to print the entire page, even if it is greater that 637 pixels wide.
But most people visiting your site won’t know how to do that. And just curse you because their prints are chopped off.
#6 Traditional Bonus Tip: Don't use huge graphics with dark backgrounds
If people curse you because their pages get chopped off, they'll be chasing you with axes if you produce pages with huge, black background headers, footers, and images.
Because printing out 10 pages could pretty well empty their expensive ink cartridges.
(Another hub about Inkjet Refill Ink - The Most Expensive Liquid on the Planet discusses my thoughts on this precious substance.
Thanks for reading.
Regards, Eric G.
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Comments
Yes shadesbreath some registrars do register the name you searched for if you don't purchase it immediately.
Network Solutions is the main offender, and I understand that quite a few other companies do it as well. Or pass searches on to associates, who then register them.
See http://blog.domaintools.com/2008/01/network-soluti for a detailed discussion.
Now, apparently Network solutions say that they don't do this any more. And anyway, they were doing it as a "service for their customers".
Without boring you with all the details, what it actually meant was they charged an inflated price if the customer subsequently bought the name, and I believe they also used it to test its money making potential with Adsense during a 5 day grace period, when they could have the use of the name free of charge.
If the domain name made money for them, they'd keep it permanently. If it didn't - they'd release it for normal sale again.
ICANN is changing the rules for registrars, so that this is no longer possible in future.
If you check out my other hubs, you'll find a few that should fill in some of the gaps in your knowledge about web stuff. And there's also my $5,000 per month inner circle membership where I share lots more things like this :)
I have an account with GoDaddy? Are they ok... or is NameCheap a safer bet?
Ah Shadesbreath -
GoDaddy eh? You connoisseur of hype and glamour!
Information like that is normally reserved for my inner circle, but seeing you've given me such entertainment with your hubs, here's a freebie :-)
I wouldn't touch Go Daddy with a barge pole for many reasons. Many of which are discussed here: http://nodaddy.com
You can find lots of other comments about them if you search google, or web hosting hangouts like http://webhostingtalk.com
Ugh. You know, I feel like the guy who was all happy because I finally got the nerve to go talk to that chick at the bar after watching everyone else dance with her, only to find out that my lucky 2 AM rendevouz just cost me a trip to the clinic and a shot. /sigh.
I'm going to be pissed if I can't move my domain if I ever need to. I hope the guys at Nodaddy can at least intimadate Godaddy into being respectable. Switching domains is no less complicated and intimidating than was getting one finally to begin.
That's an eye opener - I might have to consider moving. Do other registras have the "after market" of expired domain names too?
Interesting hub and an eye opener for some. In the past Ive used streamline.net and found them pretty reasonable with what they offer.
Eric, as always, thank you very much for your very valuable practical knowledge and experiences! I simply love, that I could 'drink from your inner circle wisdom cup' fro 5000 per month:), and I am looking forward to use your extensive webmaster tips. Domain name registering is the first and very important part of any webmaster. I will use old Latin from school here to state how very important is that fact: 'Condition sine qua non' ('condition without which it could not be'). I am already reading NoDaddy.com and Namecheap.com, as well...
Excellent advice all around. All six tips are based on what the user needs in order to have a good experience with a website. You make that point very well when you say *Decide what's more important for your business: the ability for clients to easily get in touch with you, OR the artistic feelings of your web designer.* Real success is never all about *me*, it's all about *you*.
Can't wait to read the next 6, or 60.
Wow, thanks for all this Eric. Do you think that writing should be considered a 'business' and that buying a domain name is worth it? I have a webpage at Weebly just to show some writing samples and I refer prospective clients to it a lot. It seems to work out. I know I am totally web-not-savvy and that if I got even half a clue I could probably make more ad revenue, but I confess I have this attitude toward it that is kind of like the attitude I had towards trigonomics in high school---like, crap I'll never understand if I live forever so why even try? That's self-defeating I know but it does seem to be one of those topics that you either 'get' instantly or you're doomed to helpless cluelessness.
Any thoughts, advice? If there's a fee involved I'll have to wait until I buy home heating oil for this winter...
In the meantime, thanks for sharing your insights here! (Even if I don't understand them...)
Pgrundy, yes, defintely get your own domain and host. Even if all you do is put up a one page web brochure.
Eric, Im still a dot com virgin who needs to break out of this bad habit! and when i do, i know just the place for good information concerning Domains!
Thanks,
@pgrundy.
Yes, definitely get your own domain name.
You can then redirect this to your weebly site, or any other site.
Or as dabblingmum says, create a page that has links toall the other places where your work lives.
As a prospective client, I'd be more comfortable going to your own domain name, rather than somewhere with the name "Weebly"
You could set up a free site at blogger to hold your content, links, etc. and connect your domain name there, and then change to a paid hosting site later.
The whole point of having your own domain name is that you are in full control of your website and content, and can make all the changes you like behind the scenes, while maintaining one constant point of contact that will NEVER change - as long as you keep the domain registered.
I regard a domain name as the number one essential item for anyone who wants to do any kind of business on the net.
Great information. There is so much to learn. Thanks for the great advice!
Thanks Eric and thanks also Dabbling Mum. I'll do it. I ppreciate the advice.
Hi,
Nice hub. You suggested that the NameCheap.com is a good site to register domain name. I found a site called 1and1.com and it is offering cheaper registration fees. Is it good?
My New Hub:
http://hubpages.com/hub/How-You-Could-Make-Money-t
Nice Article Eric. What I would like to point out is. There are people out there that scan for domain name searches. As I found out the hard way. The initial sign out was interfered with. Then after going through the process again my site name had been hijacked registered a few seconds before. Within five minutes the name was posted for auction. Policy is you have a time limit to recind the purchase. I believe it is 30 days though I am not sure. I did finally purchase the name as the order was recinded for the regular registration price.
@ sdas86
I don't know anything about 1and1.com. Why not do some research using the link I provided earlier? And if cheapest is your sole criterion, be prepared for problems.
As a very wise man said to me a long, long time ago, in relation to cars:
Good. Fast. Cheap. You can have any two.
I've subsequently discovered that this is a universal law whose principles apply to pretty well everything.
@aquariancore
There are many different ways that people get ripped off by the domain name "industry". Your experience is pretty common. Glad you got it back.
Here's a quickie that will help many of you gain what is called a high conversion ratio. Traffic is great, but if you're running a drive through you don't want people just passing through you want them ordering right?
Well, an easy way to get started on turning visitors into customers is by identifying what I term the call to action. What is it that you want your customer to do? And saying, "Buy stuff" doesn't count. :-). Figure out whether you want them to call you, email you, purchase a particular product, or fill out some online form. Then gear the page, it's contents, picture selections, promotional graphics around that call to action.
Good Post though with some solid suggestions.
Great advice - I learned so much here. Boy do I feel like an internet virgin. LOL
Nice Hub..good easy to read content..There is a lot to learn in this crazy web world, it's steep..but it's worth every beadof sweat!
great newbee info here Eric.. and stuff i have never heard of or considered.. like stealing names and making sure the domain works without www.. in fact most of what you mention here .. thx so much this is very valuable cheers :)
Great stuff on starting a web business.
Just a word of caution be careful when adding a domain name as part of a hosting package as you may only be renting the domain. In others words it is registered in someone else's name and not yours. So what happens if you decide to cancel the hosting is that you lose your domain name as well. You have nicely built up some nice links etc on your domain name for someone else who can now profit by your efforts.
Could be a lot more frustrating than people stealing your searched domain name.
Keries
Thanks Keries,
Yes, you're absolutely correct. There's a LOT of traps out there, and I'll be writing about more of them soon.
The issue of domain ownership is covered on my "3 Time Bombs" hub at http://hubpages.com/hub/Domain-Name-Owners
Regards, and thanks for visiting. Eric G.
Great advice, and thanks for the GoDaddy info. I'm trying to learn this stuff as I go, but I am admittedly a noob :)
thank you eric. will bookmark this page. we're buying a domain name soon ... so this comes as a good reference hub. Godbless:)
Eric, this is really a great help. Something else popped into my mind. Does it matter whether its a .com or a .net?
Thanks for all the comments.
@ ripplemaker:
.com is preferable, but if you can only get .net then go for it.
There's some more detailed info on domain names in another one of my hubs at
http://hubpages.com/hub/domain-name-how-to
Regards,
Eric G.
Thanks for the great tips.
Wish I could have found all this earlier, it has taken me a year, and a lot of cash to learn these tips!
Everything you listed is absolutely True!!!
David
Hi eric, just wanted you to know. Because of your hub, we decided to change the name we originally thought about and got one that needs no hypen and a dot com too! LOL thanks for the tips.
Thanks David and Ripplemaker.
I'm glad you found the hub useful.
I'm writing an e-book with a lot more stuff like that , which is intended for people BEFORE they set up a website.
I'll be providing a free copy to my list members. See www.taseric.com for more info.
working
Shadesbreath says:
2 months ago
Do they seriously do that? Steal your domain if you just search it? Gawd. People suck if that's true. I'm so just starting this whole internet formal presence thing... whatever... and, bleh... if I have to deal with that stuff I'm so screwed.
At least I know about this now. Hurry up and write other hubs for all the other crap I don't know about yet that I'm going to get hosed on. /sigh