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Bibliothèque | Type de document | Numéro de cote topographique | Nombre d'enregistrements enfants | Emplacement | Statut | Réservations du document |
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Recherche en cours... South | Book | SBDC 658.8 RICH (WELLS FARGO BLDG) | 1 | Resource Center | Recherche en cours... Inconnu | Recherche en cours... Indisponible |
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Résumé
Only a few years into its popular use, the World Wide Web has already enabled thousands to set up online businesses that require a minimum of upkeep and maximum profits. The Unofficial Guide to Starting a Business Online is the cyber-entrepreneur's ultimate guide to every aspect of hanging out a shingle in the virtual world. Here's what readers get: Step-by-step advice and key information on setting up shop online, from creating a Web site to marketing and advertising big on a shoestring budget Addresses for hundreds of Web sites they can use as start-up references that would have taken hundreds of hours to track down alone A rundown of the best businesses to start online, and advice for choosing the right one Pointers on combining traditional selling techniques with Web-specific ones for the best of all possible plans!
Table des matières
The Unofficial Guide Reader's Bill of Rights | p. xiii |
About the Author | p. xvii |
The Unofficial Guide Panel of Experts | p. xix |
Introduction | p. xxi |
I In Business, Preparation Is Everything | p. 1 |
1 Making the Right Business Choices | p. 3 |
What's Involved with Starting an Online Business? | p. 4 |
Every Seller Is Welcome | p. 4 |
Every Product Is Welcome | p. 6 |
It Won't Be Easy | p. 7 |
Is an Online-Based Business Right for You? | p. 9 |
How Best to Invest Your Time and Money | p. 10 |
Which Business Ideas Are Best Suited to the Web? | p. 12 |
Forget the Fads, Watch the Trends | p. 13 |
The Growing Competition in Cyberspace | p. 14 |
Defining Your Business Idea | p. 17 |
Should You Give Up Your Day Job? | p. 18 |
Establishing Your Existing Business on the Web | p. 21 |
Be Careful What You Get Involved In | p. 22 |
E-Commerce in the New Millennium | p. 23 |
Just the Facts | p. 24 |
2 Laying the Groundwork for Your Online Business (I) | p. 25 |
Starting Your Business: Some Considerations | p. 25 |
Advantages of Self-Employment | p. 26 |
Questions to Ask Yourself | p. 26 |
Developing a Business Plan | p. 28 |
Getting Help--People and Software | p. 30 |
Elements of a Business Plan | p. 32 |
Seeking Expert Business Advice | p. 36 |
Setting Up an Office | p. 37 |
The Computer | p. 38 |
Software | p. 38 |
Printers and Back-Up Devices | p. 39 |
The Phone | p. 39 |
Other Elements p. 40 | |
Just the Facts | p. 43 |
3 Laying the Groundwork for Your Online Business (II): Financial Issues | p. 45 |
Benefits Plan and Compensation Packages | p. 46 |
A Few Words About Hiring Employees | p. 48 |
Should You Incorporate? | p. 49 |
Other Considerations Involved with Launching a Business | p. 51 |
What Needs to Be Done Before Going Online? | p. 53 |
Planning Your Business Operations | p. 55 |
Setting Up a Merchant Account | p. 55 |
Secure Electronic Transaction Protocol (SET) | p. 57 |
Obtaining a Merchant Account | p. 58 |
Financing Your Business | p. 60 |
Just the Facts | p. 63 |
4 Planning Your Site | p. 65 |
Making Your Site Look Professional | p. 65 |
The First Steps in Developing Your Site | p. 69 |
Developing Your Site's Basic Layout | p. 69 |
Choosing the Perfect Content | p. 70 |
Using Color and Art | p. 76 |
Choosing the Best Fonts | p. 78 |
Types of Graphic Files | p. 79 |
TIFFs | p. 79 |
GIFs | p. 80 |
JPEGs | p. 80 |
Graphics Programs | p. 83 |
Choosing Web Site Creation Software or Another E-Commerce Solution | p. 84 |
E-Commerce Software Solutions for Small Online Businesses | p. 85 |
Microsoft FrontPage 98/ FrontPage 2000 | p. 85 |
Symantec Visual Page 2.0 | p. 86 |
Additional Inexpensive Software Packages for E-Commerce | p. 86 |
An Up-Close Look at Yahoo! Store | p. 87 |
Copyrighting | p. 90 |
Avoiding the Most Common Web Design Mistakes | p. 90 |
Using Outside Creative Talent | p. 94 |
Just the Facts | p. 95 |
II Getting Your Business Online | p. 97 |
5 Selecting and Registering Your Domain Name | p. 99 |
Understanding Domain Name Syntax | p. 100 |
Main URL Features | p. 100 |
Common Extensions | p. 102 |
Choosing Your Domain Name | p. 105 |
Being Creative | p. 106 |
Getting Help | p. 108 |
Domain Parking Is Available: Plan Ahead | p. 109 |
Finding if a Domain Name Is Available: InterNIC | p. 109 |
Getting Started | p. 110 |
Registering with Network Solutions/ InterNIC: Step-by-Step | p. 111 |
Costs of Obtaining and Registering Domain Names | p. 115 |
Registering Your Domain Name with WorldNIC | p. 115 |
When the Domain You Want Is Taken | p. 116 |
Getting Help Registering Your Domain Name | p. 117 |
Just the Facts | p. 118 |
6 Selecting Your Host: The Ins and Outs of ISPs | p. 121 |
The Costs Associated with Going Online | p. 122 |
Services You Need at Prices You Can Afford | p. 124 |
All-in-One Turnkey Solutions | p. 127 |
Getting Technical Support from your ISP | p. 128 |
Finding an ISP | p. 129 |
Microsoft-Registered Web Presence Providers | p. 131 |
The Computer Equipment You Need In-House | p. 132 |
Speed | p. 133 |
Retail Versus Mail-Order | p. 134 |
The Need to Surf the Web and FTP Files | p. 135 |
Just the Facts | p. 136 |
III An Internet Presence for Existing and New Businesses | p. 137 |
7 Expanding Your Existing Business into Cyberspace | p. 139 |
How Virtual and Traditional Businesses Differ | p. 142 |
Creating an Online Presence for a Traditional Business | p. 143 |
Converting Hard Copy Assets into an Electronic Format | p. 147 |
What Your Business Could Offer on the Web | p. 148 |
Spreading the Word about Your Online Presence | p. 151 |
Just the Facts | p. 153 |
8 Fine-Tuning Your Business Before Going Online | p. 155 |
Research--The Key to Success | p. 155 |
Becoming a Niche Marketing Expert | p. 159 |
Identifying the Needs and Wants of Your Potential Customers | p. 161 |
Beware of Get-Rich-Quick Schemes | p. 163 |
Tips for Avoiding Pyramid Schemes | p. 164 |
Twelve Common Scams | p. 166 |
Business Opportunities | p. 166 |
Bulk E-Mail | p. 167 |
Chain Letters | p. 168 |
Work-at-Home Schemes | p. 168 |
Health and Diet Scams | p. 169 |
Free Goods | p. 169 |
Investment Opportunities | p. 169 |
Cable Descrambler Kits | p. 170 |
Guaranteed Loans or Credit, on Easy Terms | p. 170 |
Credit Repair | p. 171 |
Vacation Prize Promotions | p. 171 |
Other Online Scams to Watch Out For | p. 171 |
Always Pay Attention to Details | p. 173 |
Making Online Ordering Fast, Easy, and Secure | p. 174 |
Make Building Customer Confidence a Top Priority | p. 175 |
Security and Privacy: It's Every Web Surfer's Concern | p. 176 |
Just the Facts | p. 178 |
9 Generating Revenues from Your Site | p. 179 |
Using Your Site to Accept Purchase Requests | p. 180 |
Selling Advertising Space | p. 180 |
Membership Fees | p. 181 |
Selling and Trading Online Advertising Space | p. 182 |
Affiliate Programs | p. 187 |
Selling Software or Other Downloadable Goods | p. 190 |
Charging Visitors for Access to Your Site | p. 192 |
Just the Facts | p. 194 |
IV Promoting Your Site | p. 195 |
10 Promotion Is the Key to Success | p. 197 |
The Importance of Promoting Your Online Biz | p. 198 |
The Target Audience | p. 198 |
Defining Your Target | p. 198 |
Reaching Your Target | p. 200 |
Promotional and Advertising Opportunities Available Online | p. 202 |
Internet Newsgroups and Mailing Lists | p. 204 |
Internet Mailing Lists | p. 206 |
Paid Online Advertising Versus Promotion | p. 208 |
The Ins and Outs of Banner Advertising | p. 209 |
Banner Ad Trades--The Ad Barter System | p. 213 |
Press Release Distribution | p. 215 |
Online Chats | p. 220 |
Why You Should Avoid Using Spam | p. 220 |
Taking Advantage of Traditional Advertising | p. 222 |
Just the Facts | p. 223 |
11 Tapping the Power of Internet Search Engines and Portals | p. 225 |
Internet Search Engines and Portals | p. 225 |
Understanding Search Engine Lingo | p. 227 |
The Web Directory Aspect of Certain Search Engines | p. 228 |
MetaTags | p. 229 |
What a MetaTag Looks Like | p. 230 |
Help New Customers Find You | p. 232 |
Search Engines: the Next Millennium's Yellow Pages | p. 232 |
The Most Important Search Engines | p. 234 |
Registering Your Site with the Search Engines | p. 234 |
Getting Help with Registration | p. 235 |
Paid Advertising Opportunities on Search Engines | p. 238 |
Planning Your Banner Ad | p. 243 |
Banner Ad Creation Tools and Services | p. 245 |
Just the Facts | p. 246 |
V Improving and Analyzing Your Site | p. 247 |
12 Making Your Site Look and Sound Great | p. 249 |
Plug-ins | p. 250 |
Adobe Acrobat | p. 250 |
RealAudio/RealVideo/RealPlayer | p. 252 |
QuickTime 4.0 | p. 254 |
Shockwave | p. 254 |
Chatting Within Your Site | p. 254 |
Beware! Not Everyone Uses Plug-Ins | p. 255 |
Creating and Using Animated GIFs | p. 256 |
Live Webcam Broadcasting | p. 257 |
Using Java Applets and Other Graphic Technologies | p. 259 |
Should Your Site Use Cookies? | p. 261 |
Paying Attention to Download Times | p. 264 |
Giving Visitors Something of Value | p. 266 |
Free Online Web Site Design Help | p. 267 |
Think Before You Act | p. 268 |
Just the Facts | p. 269 |
13 Analyzing Your Site | p. 271 |
The Web Site Checklist | p. 272 |
Determining How Your Site Is Perceived | p. 275 |
Soliciting Comments and Feedback from Visitors | p. 277 |
Keeping Your Site's Content Fresh | p. 278 |
Just the Facts | p. 279 |
VI The Experts Speak | p. 281 |
14 The Experts Share Their E-Commerce Knowledge and Experience (I) | p. 283 |
Sandy Bendremer--ISPs and Web Host Providers | p. 285 |
Neil Cohen--Ad Sales Services | p. 295 |
Christopher Hadden and Todd Matzke--Web Graphic Design Programs | p. 302 |
Just the Facts | p. 306 |
15 The Experts Share Their E-Commerce Knowledge and Experience (II) | p. 309 |
Brent Halverson--Software to Create and Manage Your Site | p. 310 |
Brian Jamison--Services for Larger Companies | p. 314 |
Tim Brady and Paul Graham--Turnkey Services | p. 320 |
Just the Facts | p. 333 |
16 Successful E-Commerce Entrepreneurs Speak Out | p. 335 |
Cara France--ArtisanGifts.com | p. 337 |
Mark Giordani--LefKey | p. 347 |
Chris Gwynn--Niche Marketing | p. 354 |
Ken Young--1-800-Flowers | p. 364 |
Just the Facts | p. 370 |
A Glossary | p. 373 |
B Resource Guide | p. 377 |
C Recommended Reading List | p. 385 |
D Important Documents | p. 387 |
E Important Statistics | p. 399 |
F How to Contact InterNIC | p. 401 |
Index | p. 405 |