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Thu, 01 Mar 2007 16:57:29 -0500

How to select the best web hosting package for a small business

Thu, 01 Mar 2007 16:57:26 -0500

How to select the best web hosting package for a small business
By Ron Thomas

Too many choices can be confusing and lead to what some have called “the paralysis of analysis.” One tool that may help you hone in on what you need is to isolate the key features and benefits important to you.

If you are considering marketing your product or service on the internet, there some basic aspects to mull over. The key decision on selecting the best web hosting package for a small business company must, at minimum, contemplate the following Top 10 Elements to Consider When Selecting a Web Hosting Package:

(1) - What are amount of disk space & bandwidth is available?

Will you need to run images, audio, video or scripts on your site? If so you will need at least 400 megabytes of space available. A multimedia web site will need at least 25 Gigabytes of bandwidth

(2) – How much technical knowledge is needed to implement hosting features?

Unless you are well versed in html, you will want to steer clear of minimal packages that leave to you figure out complex code, and skimp on training.

(3) – Is there flexibility to integrate your own branding and logos, etc?

Beware of cheap, cookie cutter-copy cat templates with an image that will reflect poorly on your fledging business.

(4) – To what extent will web based functions and activities be automated?

Will you be able to make rapid, formatted responses to customer inquiries?

(5) – Does the Web Hosting Package include room for growth?

Maybe you’re not ready for all of the possible bells and whistles now, but isn’t it nice to know that when you’re ready to use a web based video, the capability is already there, not an added cost add-on.

(6) – What level of technical support, anti-spam and virus protection features is available?

Look for evidence that the host will screen for viruses and employ email filters to keep you from being buried with spam. There’s nothing like a spam or virus attack to shut the system down and temporarily change your work priorities, not to mention the impact on potential customers trying to get through or receiving your infected messages.

(7) What is the primary target market of the hosting company?

Does the company appear to cater to the need of small business and home business owners? A company that’s can put itself in your place will anticipate your needs better and grow with you. Otherwise you may be "just another customer."

(8) - Does the hosting package include catalog and online payment processing options?

You will want to capture customers when their interest is hot. Making their purchase fast and convenient is a must for any small business. See how many add-ons, if any, are necessary for you to accept payments online.

(9) – How much do the web hosting features facilitate marketing efforts?

In other words, does the package offer access and channels to a variety of marketing tools such as blogs, forums, ezines search engines, and classifieds. Are there added value features which increase the utility of your sight such as calendars, polls and surveys?

(10) – How much will it cost?

Last, but not least to be considered in your analysis is cost. We wanted you to first have the perspective of what the best web hosting package would look like. Now consider your budget and your goals. Great web hosting packages are available and you could spend anywhere from $25 to $100+ for some of the features mentioned.

Selecting a small business web hosting package is no small decision. The hosting platform is the foundation from which your business undertakes its quest for customers and income. Don’t make a quick decision based on a cheap price that’s dangled in front of you. A little homework is well worth the effort. You’ll be glad you did.

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Ron Thomas has been engaged in internet marketing since 2002. Ron believes that the web is the great equalizer, providing the vehicle for anyone to launch a new small business and be successful. He likes the hosting tools and resources available at http://homebizh.thirdsphereplus.com/

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Thu, 16 Sep 2004 14:23:08 -0400

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Quick Steps for Selecting and Securing a Domain Name

Thu, 16 Sep 2004 10:59:55 -0400

Quick Steps for Selecting and Securing a Domain Name
Copyright 2004 - Cathy Carlton, KickTheEmailHabit.com

So you're ready to take your business online, right?
You have the perfect business name, a great product or service and you're ready to go. Good! The good news is that it is really not difficult these days to establish a website, but there are some things you need to consider before you jump in and secure a domain name.

The domain name is your online identity. It's the address people type into their browser address window to get to your website. Before you get your stationery and business cards printed, you'll need to know your domain name.

You may already have a business name picked out.
Isn't that good enough?

The answer ? ....a resounding maybe!

There are many things to consider and many steps you "should" take when choosing and securing your domain name:

1) What is the purpose of the website?

If you have a single business for which you want to establish an online
presence, you need to consider things like your current business name,
the type of product or service you offer, trademarks, domain name availability
for that single business. If you are building a portal site, meaning a site
which will serve as a doorway to other existing websites, maybe replicated
sites for your network marketing businesses, that's a bit more complicated.
You'll need to read through the naming criteria below and find the best
fit to cover most of those products or services.

2) Business Name

If your business name is important to you, that's fine. Customers who know your business name can find you online more easily that way. If you have filed a DBA (doing business as) license with your county, you're safe for the area you serve. That doesn't mean that nobody else uses that business name anywhere else in the world. You'll still need to check whether the name is a registered trademark and determine whether the domain name is available. Read the steps below before you secure the domain name that matches your business name. If it's in your budget to do so, you may also want to consider securing some more generic domain names and redirect them to your site.

3) Your Product or Service offering

Ideally, the domain name you choose should reflect the type of product or service you offer. For example, CathysCreations.com may sound snappy, but it doesn't tell anyone what product or service is being offered on that website. CathyBeadSupply.com, however, helps define the type of service and products I offer. I could drive it down further and go for CathysGemstoneBeads.com if I really wanted my name in the domain name, but GemstoneBeads.com is more generic.

4 Memorable - Easy to Remember

While all of us aren't good at coming up with MEMORABLE names, we can make it easier for others to remember our domain name by:
* keeping it short
* avoiding symbols and hyphens
* avoiding cute abbreviations, like 4u or b4
* using actual spelling of words (beads vs. beadz)
* avoid profanity or obscene language
* be aware what the domain name looks like in all lowercase!
Why? Because that's how it will be displayed!
(Ex: CosmicRap.com might not be the best choice for promoting my best synthesized Rap music creations!...maybe my worst! The first 'C' and the 'R' in RAP will not be capitalized when displayed in browsers and search results, so be careful!)

5 Avoid Brand Name / Trademark Violations

Using a major name brand or registered trademark should be strictly avoided. For example, even if you found the domain names available, you wouldn't want to use AVON.com or MaryKay.com or Goodyear.com. Those names are registered brand names and/or trademarks and the registrants can sue you for infringement (unauthorized/illegal use) of the mark. If in doubt, here is a free trademark screening site: http://nameprotect.com/cgi-bin/FREESearch/search.cgi
NameProtect.com also provides monitoring service to protect your business identity should you choose to register it. Find out how to register a TM at:
http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/tac/doc/basic/index.html

6) Remember your ABC's

Many directories still list in alphanumeric order, so take this into consideration to stay on top. Be aware that many directories recognize those blatant attempts to stay on top using numbers and will drop any numeric values at the front of the name and drop you down to the first alphabetic value. For example, 123ZZZ.com might be a cute sleep disorder treatment domain name. It's certainly easy to remember, but those directories that drop numbers will list you in the Z section.

7) In Use?

Next, check to see if the domain name you want is already in use.
Just open your favorite internet browser (Internet Explorer, Netscape, Mozilla, etc) and enter the domain name in the address field. If the domain name comes up with a live site, you're back to square one. If you receive a not found error or default to a search engine of some kind (be careful of these...spy ware runs rampant and some try to force you to set your homepage to their site...just say no!), the domain is either not active or not registered. If that's the case, keep reading.

8) Check Availability
Okay, you have the perfect domain name. You have ascertained that it does not violate trademarks and that there is not a currently active website attached to it. Now you can check availability. You can go to WildWeaselDomains.com and perform a Domain Name Search.

9) Dot Com or bust!

ALWAYS shoot for the .com. First of all, .com is the most widely recognized extension on the web AND many browsers and search engines will default to .com when an extension is not explicitly provided. I typically register the major extensions, .net (networks, intranets, member sites), .biz (business identity/info), .org (groups, clubs organizations), .info (info site) and .US (US country level) when I register my domain just to avoid someone trying to take advantage of my hard work or, even worse, trying to impersonate me or my business! I simply redirect all of these to my .com so potential visitors don't receive the dreaded Not Found error and move on to another site.
(Hint: If you have a website and a newsletter or blog, you can use the .com for the website URL and the .net to shorten the blog or newsletter URL.)

Name recognition can be as important as brand recognition online, because there is no face-to-face contact to help establish a trusting relationship with clients. Consider registering YourName.com and establishing a one-page information site where people can learn more about you. Just be careful not to get too personal and never provide official pictures, account information signatures or other information that might make it easy for someone to use the site to steal your identity.

Now the really fun part starts – designing, developing, hosing and uploading your website!

One final word of advice - The "Build it and they will come" concept does not work anywhere except in the movies. Once you have registered the domain name, secured hosting and have your website up and running, your work is just starting. Driving targeted traffic, that is, people who are actually likely to want and buy your product or service, is an ongoing effort. Promote your website by including the URL / domain name on your business cards, on your stationery, in online and offline directories and advertisements, on your packaging, mailing labels, promotional items and, of course, in all of your online advertising. Make it a point to include your business information in your email signatures, even to your personal contacts. They're consumers too!

Good luck in your online endeavors!

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About the Author:
Cathy Carlton has been publishing online for more than over three years. She is webmaster for seven websites and, sole publisher/founder of Carlton's Corner newsletter (site: CarltonsCorner.com, news: CarltonsCorner.net) and co-founder / co-publisher of Kick The Email Habit (site: KickTheEmailHabit.com, news: KickTheEmailHabit.net). She also operates WildWeaselDomains.com, where you can search for, register and host your domains. Learn more about Cathy and her online offerings at CathyCarlton.com,

==========================================================

REPRINT/PUBLICATION TERMS:

You may reprint this article free of charge providing you adhere to the following rules. If these rules are not acceptable to you, please do not reprint this article:

* You do not normally pay authors for their articles

* Articles must not be edited in any way. It must be published exactly as shown.

* SPAMming is strictly prohibited. This article should only be emailed to fully opt-in lists.

* If used on a website or blog, all url's and email addresses must be live hyperlinks.
Below is the HTML code to use to accomplish this.

Convert Text URL to hyperlink:

Copy/paste this code and replace the text "ENTER URL HERE" with the url for which you are creating the hyperlink. Please take care not to include any extraneous spaces or characters or the link will not work.

Convert Text EMAIL ADDRESS to hyperlink:

Copy/paste this code and replace the text "ENTER EMAIL ADDRESS HERE" with the EMAIL ADDRESS for which you are creating the hyperlink. Please take care not to include any extraneous spaces or characters or the link will not work.

* Please send a courtesy email acknowledging use of this article, including a copy of the email newsletter or the precise url where the article is posted to the author at:
mailto:cathy@kicktheemailhabit.com

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Sun, 29 Aug 2004 18:05:36 -0400

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