How to Get Your Business on the Internet

Steps for getting your home business or gift basket business onto the internet.

There are specific steps you should take to establish your Internet presence. We'll give you an overview below.

Decide on a Domain Name

There are varied opinions of what domain name Steps for getting your home business or gift basket business onto the internet.

format is best for search engine effectiveness. If you haven't chosen a name for your business yet, then now's the perfect time to sync your business name with your domain name.

You want a .com extension. Do not go with a .net or a .biz or any other TLD. The .com is what people are used to typing, and the .com will always be the preferred extension.

Confirm the business name you want is not already taken.

Check with your local state Department of Revenue to determine the business name you want is available.

If the business name you want is available, will it transfer well as a Domain name?

Consider This:

If your business name is going to be 'Marys Gift Shop' ... it isn't going to transfer well as a Domain name. Why?
Because MarysGiftShop.com isn't going to index well in the search engines. It's not unique, it doesn't tell anyone what your products are or what you sell.

A better name would be 'TexasGiftBaskets.com' or 'HealthyGiftBaskets.com' or 'KidsGiftBaskets'.com

When selling on the Internet, you want to develop a niche customer base. It doesn't matter what niche you develop - but because the gift basket industry is competitive - choose a name that will set 'your' gift basket business apart from all the others. Once you've established a solid customer following, you can always branch out and add other products to your website, or add another niche section to your website.

Confirm Your Domain Name is Available

It's getting difficult to secure a good domain name because of the sheer millions of domain names already registered. You can check to see if the domain name you want is available at HostMonster. Down and on the Left is an area entitled 'I Need a Domain'. Enter the domain name you want and click 'Next'. They'll check to see if the domain you want is available, and if it isn't they offer up a selection of alternatives. If you want to stop here, just close the page. You aren't obligated to register a domain at this time.

Register your Domain Name

If the domain name you want is available - go ahead and register it, don't wait. It could be gone by tomorrow.

HostGator
With one Unlimited account, you can set up as many domains and websites as you want. HostGator offers VPS hosting, domain name registration, and is a 'green' company which I like because they are environmentally friendly. Their Control Panel makes it easy to install many programs with one click - including WordPress.

Hosting Connecticut LLC

- Woman owned company
- In business since 2003
- Personal Customer Service
- Domain Registration and Website Hosting
- Discount on multiple year Domain Registration

visit Hosting Connecticut LLC

Not Ready to Think about an actual Website Yet?

You can stop at this point until you're ready to actively begin either building your website, or you're ready to hire a website designer / developer.

Website Hosting

You won't need a Hosting account until your website is actually being built. There's no sense in paying fees for Hosting until you actually will be using it.

Website Planning

There are many elements that require consideration when planning for a website, such as:

over all design, structure and color scheme
site must be built with organic SEO optimization practices
keyword analysis must be performed for your specific product base
which shopping cart, merchant account, and hosting company is best for your online needs

These are literally hundreds of website designers, but not all create websites to perform for their clients ... they just build them, collect their money from you, and go on their way.

You don't want to build a site now yourself, or hire a web designer to build it - only to have to build it again in a couple of years.

Why would you have to build it again in a couple of years?

If a website isn't constructed with a solid foundation - it's going to eventually implode. It's best to take time upfront, and make sure it's built properly with organic search engine optimization imbedded on each webpage. This way, no matter how many times the search engines change their algorithms - your site will still rank well within search results.

It's also extremely important you choose the right method of accepting credit cards, a user-friendly shopping cart system, and have everything coded properly, so you won't lose online buyers before check-out.

We've built ecommerce websites for over ten years, plus we have extensive knowledge and experience with hosting, search engines, merchant accounts, and the retail side of business.

If you'd like to schedule a Consultation session to discuss what your website needs / goals are, just contact us via our Online Contact Form. We'll give you specific information about how to accomplish successful online sales, and which programs are best suited to your website needs.

You Might Also be Interested In:
Business To-Do List Making Your Business Legal Branding Your Business The Business Plan	Why Businesses Fail Business Resources & Equipment Bookkeeping and Taxes Advertising and Promotion	Over 100 Marketing Ideas Customer Service Tips Gift Basket Assembly & Pricing When to Expand Your Business