TIPS ON SOFTWARE Please, please, please.... put system requirements right up front! I'm a MAC user and nothing is more frustrating and disappointing to actually start downloading a great piece of software only to find out it is for a PC! And if you're not developing your software for MAC... just take a look at Apple's quarterly report - you'll see that Macs are gaining in popularlity. If you don't build it - someone else will!

IF YOU'RE SELLING SOMETHING Get a real email account.... and a real web site - a professional one with your own domain name. I'd be more inclined to take you seriously if you take your business seriously.

SPELL CHECK No one is perfect.... but at least take a few minutes to proofread your work... after all, if you claim to provide a great product or service and you have typos in your emails or web site.... well, it just blows your credibility as a professional. The biggest culprits I see are.... you / yours, their here

COMPATIBILITY Please check your pages in Netscape and Explorer! Tables work differently in each browser - incorrect coding can make your site virtually invisible in Netscape! And those CSS stylesheets with very small type... sometimes I can't even see "l"s on a Mac in Netscape and type is so small that it is impossible to read. Please test your site on both platforms and with both browsers.

I hope that information above will inspire you to check out your web sites and make any changes that may be necessary. We can all make web a better place!

6. "There are so many companies out there selling what I am selling Who will ever buy from me?" This is true, but there are also a lot of consumers out there and if you target your web site correctly you will see better results than 70,000 other web site owners.

7. "A web site takes months to set up " This is not true at all! Unless you are a big corporation and have tons of information to put online, it could ; only take 10-15 days to have your business web site up and running. And if you have been a computer user for a while, you could have a web site within less than a week!

8. "You need to be a computer guru to make your web site" Not at all! All skills you need is a basic word processing skills and using Internet at least 3 times. If you know how to use a mouse and a keyboard - you are ready to make your web site.

9. "The number of ways to market a web site is limited to banner or button advertising " The truth is, I can think of at least 100 different ways to promote your web site. Just to start with, how about writing your own newsletter, posting on targeted forums, exchanging links with other web site owners in your target market, creating joint ventures with companies who target same customers as you do and selling to their mailing list. And don't forget offline promotion - your business cards, direct mail, local newspapers Of course, you can't do it all. The best marketing strategy is focusing on 2 or 4 methods at a time, finding out what works and ruling out rest.

10. "Web site design is very expensive, I just don't have that kind of money to take out of my business and spend on a web site " Actually, I am paying only $5.95 a month to have my web site. So if you make it yourself, no matter how much you sell a month - you will still be in profit.

Yes, I know. You are very busy. You don't want to learn a whole new skills. You are thinking, if only someone could teach me how to do it, I would listen.

But trust me: this is only way to be in total control of your web site, and never have to think if someone is ripping you off.