Your Affiliate Web Site Is Built ? Now What?

When I first got my web site built, I thought I finally had a presence on-line. Wrong! I soon found out that I needed someone to host my site, and I needed a domain name.

This, I found, was my moment of utter confusion. And my first thought was ? "What have I gotten myself into!?" I realized I needed the following questions answered before I could even begin my on-line journey. What do I need in a web host,what is a web host, what is a domain name and ? you mean, I have to pay for a domain name as well?

What is a Domain?

A domain name is a unique name that identifies an Internet site. Thus, if you want to do any on-line marketing you need a unique name to identify your business ? and definitely a name that identifies or relates to that of your on-line presence.

Do I really need a domain name? Yes. Why? There are several good reasons:

1. It projects a professional image

2. It's mobile ? you can change web hosts and your domain name goes with you.

3. It takes time and hard work to build your affiliate business ? if you don't have your own name and you want to move to a different web host ? all is lost because the domain name is not mobile.

There are many sites that offer a domain name service at a reasonable price. You can go to my site at www.myaffiliateplace.biz/Affiliate_Info.htm and look under Affiliate Information ? here you can get an idea how much a domain name costs.

What is A Web Host?

A web host is an ISP that offers space in which to store your own personal Web pages. They utilize a web server, which is a computer that is permanently connected to the Internet and can send out your web pages on request.

If you want a professional presence, I would suggest that you do not go with a free site. Why? With your free site, you are required to include advertisements of their choosing on your pages.

There are many web hosting sites and prices to choose from ? and all can be very confusing and intimidating when you are first looking at putting up a site of your own. So, what should you consider when choosing a web host?

What to Consider When You Choose a Web Host?

When choosing a Web Host you should consider the following:

1. Does it have customer support available 24/7?

2. How often are backups done? (You should also do your own backups as well.)

3. How much bandwidth do they give you? Bandwidth is the amount of activity on your site (traffic). The more visitors you have, the more bandwidth is used. I recommend at least 2 gigs, with an option to upgrade.

4. How many email accounts do they have? At least 3, preferably more.

5. Does it have traffic stats ? to monitor your hits, page views, and actual visitors?

6. Does it have FrontPage extensions? (If you are planning to use FrontPage).

7. Does it offer autoresponders?

8. Does it offer FTP?

9. Does it allow for upgrades? As your business grows, so will your need for more bandwidth.

10. Does it offer SiteBuilder? (If you have no HTML experience/don't have FrontPage, or no programming knowledge ? SiteBuilder can get you up and running.

To conclude, remember your web site is your business, your domain is your name, and your web host is your home ? all are important factors to your success. And to think, you only getting started!

To your success.

Vickie J Scanlon has a BBA degree in Administrative Management and Marketing. She left the corporate world as a Reports Programmer, to begin her journey as an Internet marketer. Visit her site at: http://www.myaffiliateplace.biz for free tools, articles, ebooks, Web-hosting opportunities and how to info. Visit her blog at http://myaffiliateplace.blogspot.com for updates and tips.

---

Ecommerce Marketing Plan

Concept of ServiceThe current work deals with marketing offer of... Read More

6 Steps to Attracting Black Customers Online

by Jamila White, "The E-Commerce Diva"In the rush to keep... Read More

Projecting Your Image

Whether you sell a product or merely sell time to... Read More

7 Suggestions for an i-Mom Friendly Web Site (e-commerce news and statistics)

The Internet began as a male dominated medium, but those... Read More

Choosing an Ecommerce Shopping Cart

Choosing an online shopping cart is a big decision. Unlike... Read More

How To Turn Any Product You Sell In To Residual Income

The concept of this is for you to offer a... Read More

Top Ten Qualities to Look for in an Online Pharmacy

As you may have noted, there are thousands or even... Read More

12 Easy and Effective Ways To Create Reports

1. Combine a few of your articles into a free... Read More

Delivering Information Products Through Paypal Automatically

Paypal is one of the wonders of the web. Never... Read More

Why Ecommerce is Not Ready for My Daughter or Me

As the mother of a teenage clothing fanatic I'm often... Read More

Beginner Ecommerce Mistakes

This is a short article because in the constraints of... Read More

Is Your Website Credit Card Friendly?

In my last column I discussed the process of credit... Read More

How to Generate Cash from Your Web Site

The Internet has changed the way people do business today.... Read More

Tell Site Visitors What To Do

Your site visitors make all the choices when it comes... Read More

Something new in e-commerce: the Echo System Build

How four partners build and manage an exclusive art posters... Read More

Web Store - Why Do You Need One?

Internet has opened a new era of business opportunities. Each... Read More

How to Get Free Internet Merchant Accounts

This article will show small businesses how to get free... Read More

Online Florists - Send Flowers Online When Youre In a Hurry

You did it again, didn't you? Forgot until the last... Read More

Building eCommerce Websites That Work - Part 1

You want to succeed at eCommerce? Welcome to a very... Read More

The Census and the E-Commerce Wave

Understanding business and product sales can sometimes put me in... Read More

Coupons & Rebates

Yes, it's true, coupons are not just for newspapers anymore.... Read More

How To Sell Websites Fast !

This article will explain in depth the steps needed to... Read More

Intranet Portals ? Search and Taxonomies

Knowledge Management for beginnersKnowledge Management (KM) can be defined simply... Read More

Leveraging Open Source Technology

Open Source applications can bring unique value to business owners.... Read More

What is SSL (the little padlock)?

SSL ("Secured Socket Layer") is a protocol used to... Read More

Intranet - The Benefits Realisation Plan

The Millennium ExperienceA successful project is one that delivers on-spec... Read More

Content Ever be Profitable?

THE CURRENT WORRIES1. Content SuppliersThe Ethos of Free ContentContent Suppliers... Read More

How to Boost Conversion Rates, While Lowering Merchant Account Fees!

Using an Address Verification System (AVS) when processing your online... Read More

Ecommerce Comes from Customer Satisfaction

Online shopping is convenient, but many companies whose web sites... Read More

Dont Get Ripped Off Getting A Merchant Account

Far too many people get ripped off when setting up... Read More

The Internet Challenge

In spite of the increasing attention on how the Internet... Read More

Electronic Commerce and WTO

The Internet may not be useful for all businesses, nor... Read More

Ten Reasons Why Online Surveys Are The Future of Marketing

Customers are tough cookies. They're extremely media aware and increasingly... Read More