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Like any business endeavour, you need to plan, you need to research and you need to go about your chosen business systematically, with
right tools and right information. The main tool, one most people will have as their first an only impression of you and your product or service, is your website. How can it simply be an 'afterthought' or a hastily thrown together page with no thought as to how it appears to those who may visit.
A reasonable imaging option usually comes with most operating programs. They have their limitations, of course, but until you can invest in something more elaborate, these programs can be used to put together a reasonable header or logo. Goodness, website templates, some of which are not too bad, are free! There's no reason why anyone shouldn't be able to come up with, at least, a presentable website (mine are certainly not works of art, but I believe they are 'presentable'). Of course, in order for someone who has no experience online, they will need to include a little html or php knowledge in their 'research' phase.
Content and and concentration on specific keywords and phrases is critical if anyone wishes to have a chance in Search Engines. How to right decent copy and simple knowledge about what methods to use to attract or to not 'put-off' your audience is as important however, so many tend to go into an online business without, it would seem, much of a grasp of any of this.
There are numerous forums that new webmasters can go to for friendly advice from those who have been at it for years and a home business with a website has to have a 'webmaster', like it or not. I've had people say to me that they want to get into an Internet home business but they don't want to bother with learning about html etc. My advice to them in this case, is to forget it, unless you have hundreds to pay for someone to build your site and then to maintain it. It's not as if you need to be able to write html 'freehand'. The programs, which are again, available with most operating systems Make task quite simple, with a small understanding. But you have to have that, at least.
My advice to those who want to do it properly is to look at websites that are involved in same type of home business. Do research, read about Internet home business and/or affiliate marketing until your eyes water. God knows there's enough material online to last anyone for a million years. Disseminating worthwhile can be a chore, but remember, this is your BUSINESS you're talking about, not a part-time dalliance, or at least it shouldn't be.
Like any other endeavour, be it business, hoby, sport or otherwise, you will only get out of it what you put into it. You'll find that those who have been successful in an online home business, are those who have learnt value of knowledge, information, know-how, call it whatever you like. Many successful home businesspeople have had slow and inauspicious beginnings, just like most of those who are hard at it now, but they made it with this knowledge and by applying it to their home business.
Stephen Brennan is the author of "The Affiliate Guide Book" - The definitive guide to becoming a successful Internet Affiliate (at little or no cost). Available at http://www.ebooks.online-plus.biz. He is also webmaster and content advisor for OnlinePlus.biz - Your Home Base Business and Affiliate Center - http://www.online-plus.biz.
