Forum Moderators: phranque
Where do I get a domain, where to host it?
Uploading?
etc, etc
Everything but that last part is easy.
Then it becomes more work that you can ever imagine.
Enjoy those few minutes of goof-off time at your job? Those go away. Enjoy a sick day here and there? Those go away. You will be working 24/7.
Good luck with your project.
Where do I get a domain
1. Hit your search engine of choice and type in ‘buy domain name’. Pick one you like.
where to host it?
2. Hit your search engine of choice and type in ‘web site hosting’. Pick one you like.
uploading?
When you’ve completed 1 and 2, go to your web host’s site and pick ‘user manual’ or ‘help’ or similar from their menu. They’re all going to have different software and systems.
I know the above will sound facetious, but it’s really not meant to be. The fact is we can’t give recommendations for one company or another here, although I have seen a thread about registrars here in the last day or two – you might try reading through the domains forum. Ditto for hosting.
txbakers post is spot on. It’s a long road to surviving independently. Getting a site to practice on is step one, but you have a lot of study ahead.
Patience and dedication.
Just to add a little support, I started making web sites 3 years ago, worked day in day out after my full time job.
After one year of head in the books testing updating re-inventing myself, I manage to make my first real web site for family who are now running a very succesful business.
I then needed something for me to work on and pratice so I could make mistakes and learn. I did this and now have a nice web site bringing in the same money I was earning in my old job.
Since then I now know nearly every html tag their is, plus I am programming in Php and using Mysql databases to drive all my websites.
It seems like a mountain at the bottom but when you reach half way there's only a small hill left :)
btw, Thanks for the moral support Lasko.
I and I imagine quite a few others here started out just like you. The great thing about this medium is that you can start out small and grow upon that base.
My only piece of advice is to get that first code uploaded as soon as possible. Even if you use a free hosting service, just get it uploaded. Once that happens, the rest will seem a lot easier. The first time is the hardest.
The "search term" + Webmasterworld achieves wonders in Google.
#2 Rule: Project your expenses and revenue for at least 12 - 24 months. All revenue projections must be conservative, based upon work actually "in the pipeline" or, inflow to the pipeline projected from real world experience. If you can't meet your expenses for the first 6 - 12 months from savings and credit stop. You are not ready. Family, if you are sane, can often be that source of credit.
#3 Rule: If you are already carry debt that's a challenge to handle - forget the whole thing.
#4 Rule: Running a business is about managing cash flow. When you make money you put some away for when you aren't making any. When you are starting a business you are investing in the business, not in a new car.
#5 Rule: If you are actually any good at what you do you will get most of your initial work from referrals. If that isn't happening then either you don't handle networking and "getting out there" well or you aren't really known for your work ethic or work product. Either situation is an ill omen. Rethink your decision.
#6 Rule: About 90% of new businesses fail in the first 2 years, mostly as a function of not understanding and honoring the above rules. I know. I used to file bankruptcies for people with failed business plans when I first "went out on my own" as a lawyer.
Lots of other rules. Don't have the time right now. The above are the most important "to your survival". Other rules relate "to your success", but you don't get to go there - to the success stage - without first handling the survival stage. I've known more than a handful of lawyers that were talented - ergo "successful as lawyers" - that lacked the skills to make it on their own. They spent way too much on fancy offices and equipment and ran into cash flow problems. Had no knack for hiring support staff. Couldn't handle the details of managing an office versus "knowing the law".
Plan to work harder than you ever have for anyone else for less money per hour than you ever earned and you might have a chance. I've been self-employed and the employer of others for 15 years. I wouldn't go back.
Webber, you didn't mention any prior experience, but since you did mention needing help in 'uploading,' I would assume your knowledge is currently limited.
One thing you might consider is start laying out your plan for your new website, learn the market potential for it, promotional avenues, revenue angles, then get into the basic html development, some basic css, determine the graphics design, etc. etc. etc. - FIRST, before jumping into domains and servers.
If you have a friend that has done this before, a little 'one-on-one' would probably go a long way to get you kick started in your new endeaver.
I would venture to guess that most of the people here LOVE what they do, or they wouldn't spend the long hours doing it.
You might consider developing your business model and sample website 'off-line' to determine (1) if it makes sense, and (2) if you are comitted to the level of detail and time required to continue pursing this as a business.
If you enjoyed the process of building your first website, you are that much closer to having the independence that many of us enjoy every day.
Good luck!
>When you are starting a business you are investing in the business, not in a new car.
I'm involved in several businesses, one of them a wholesale supply house that has open accounts. From that vantage point, I've seen many dozens of businesses start, begin to prosper, then fail. One of the all-time best early warning signs of impending disaster is what we term "new chrome," i.e., the owner pulls up in a shiny new truck or SUV.
So many businesses confuse cash-flow with income --BIG difference.
>#1 Rule: Keep your overhead down. Way down.
That's THE rule. IF you can pull off starting a business with super-low overhead it is the best success-leveraging tool you can have. You're in a position to command rather than react.
Which company did you register your domains with? [webmasterworld.com]
WebmasterWorld site search @ Google for hosting [google.com]
FTP client [webmasterworld.com]
Everyone is going to have a different opinion on these topics. Your best best is to take a look @ each and see which suits your needs.
My dad also did bankruptcies. (as a lawyer)
I have to say that from trial and error Rule #1 is by far the most important.
My wife started a business about 3 years ago and immediately jumped into advertising (around $400 per month) with almost no return, but plenty of encouragement from the ad company!
We dumped the ads after around a year (when we started tracking the website referals, and calls) worked on improving our SE rank, and her business increased over 400% in about 6 months! (Not that this is typical, but her business is perfect for this type of advertising)
By the way, we expect to be clear of our advertising debt in about 6 more months. It's brains, not money, that will get a business going.
#1 Rule: Keep your overhead down. Way down.
I really like this Rule. I been thinking along these lines [webmasterworld.com]
Any pointers on how much to keep the overheads down?
Any ballpark estimates on how much it costs for maintaining a typical small website? (excluding labor costs)
with appreciation
#1- Never hire if you can subcontract. Payroll is the A#1 drain, besides being a PITA.
#2- Never rent a tool or service if you can afford to buy. As a rule of thumb, if the current job will pay for 1/3rd of the cost of ownership of the tools needed for construction, I buy the tools.
#3- On the internet, just about everything you need can be found for free or nearly free. DIG around (But if it's shareware, PAY the guy a buck!)
#4- Recurring charges are your enemy. A batch of odds and ends at $40/mo adds up.
Ballpark:
I usually tell small businesses that, excluding labor, they should be able to own a domain and find a host for $25/mo.
Any ballpark estimates on how much it costs for maintaining a typical small website?
Hosting costs.
Your time.
Computer and any absolutely essential commercial software (Windows so you have notepad will do it :) ).
For a startup, I think if you spending any more than that, apart from an advertising campaign with proovable ROI, then you're wasting money.
Well maybe a tracking package, but thats it.
http:*//hotwired.lycos.com/webmonkey/
--
good luck.
basically i am rooting for a niche market in gifts. the gifts are exotic and relatively cheap($10-20). But i have seen a very few mom&pop kinda stores on this segment. So i am wondering if anyone does have these kind of stores or they are integrated into major gift shops.
I searched in google and found a very few stores with online sales. I went to amazon also, and in ebay i found people bidding on like 30 products out of 150 displayed.
Any other way in which i can see if there is any perceived demand for the good, especially in US?
Thanks
Tell me if it works out, maybe I'll follow you...
Thanks, Deejay. I now know that the host will provide me with the info needed.
Do you guys think I'd better work on my site first? And when it's done, I can decide whether to go on with it and find a domain and a host.
WBF
I knew a little about web design when I started less than a year ago. It really is not that hard once you dig in. I started designing my site in April 03 and had published it to the web by the end of March 03.
It was just a simple site with 7 distinct pages and a fixed navigational bar on the left side, but it boosted my confidence by getting it uploaded and working.
I learned everything I needed by searching for tutorials and just experimenting. Full disclosure: I was comfortable working with graphics prior to web design and was very familar with how various file formats like .gif, jpeg...etc. behaved when merged with other documents.
Good luck and just remember to dig-there are a tremendous amount of good "free" resources on the web. Most of the stuff I payed for early in my endeavors turned out to be useless once I learned by doing.
Wow Doctor Who, what's your secret?!?
As I stated before, I was very familar with graphic design software and I believed this helped. I was also familar with how local computer networks worked and was surprised at how similar a hosting server was to the systems that I was already using for business applications.
Designing web sites is not my main business-I am an organizational consultant by trade and just wanted to learn enough to do my own site. It has turned out to be so theraputic that I am starting to do web design for business associates and non profits. I never realized just how enjoyable it was.
Oh its so nice to hear everyone saying the same feelings I had when I first started a few years ago.
3 years in the game, and I am php programming, on-line database management with Mysql, designing web sites, and now reselling hosting packages.
What ever you do, don't feel like you are too small to learn.
Just keep going and everything will fit into place.
By the way my 80 year od nan has just got a laptop and sent an email. Never too late!
Just remember these words:
We all make mistakes as the Darlick crawls out of the dustbin! :)
The thing is that starting a web business is so cheap, it's a lot cheaper than starting any other business.
I'm just starting myself, and managed to find domains at $7.99 and a host for $19.99 for unlimited domains with a bandwidth limitation.
At the beginning I'm doing everything myself - design, writing - but am hoping eventually to subcontract.
The writers and "staff" (well all one of them) work on a profit share basis. Hosting and domain is paid for by another company of mine, also on a profit share basis. I'm a DIYer and have all the tools I need written by myself such as keyword research and log analysis. This leaves my working hours as cost. And I feel they are well rewarded as long as I make some money.
So far the site performs exactly to my forcast, which is HIGH above my expecations.
If you have the know how you can keep costs down, WAY down.
I have yet to spend a cent on advertising and the like, and after 6 weeks since starting I recieve over 1000 well targetd organic visitors.
I hope I can do the same thing again with a different project, only then will I know if it's worthwhile. So think about what you REALLY need to do your work, and which things will benefit you the most. Do those first.
SN
