You can do site updates weekly, monthly, or quarterly. Work out a special rate with your designer for this when that person does your original site design.

3. How much will it cost to host your site?

You can expect to pay a monthly fee to a hosting company to host your site. Some companies only quote a quarterly rather than monthly fee, so you'll need to translate that into a monthly cost.

Typical fees range from $9.95-19.95/month. I use http://www.realmarketing.com for $9.95/month for AttractClients.com, and Stoco.net for $10.95/month for Private Practice Marketing.com. I'm very happy with their services. Stoco.net is loaded with useful features, unusual for that price.

Your hosting cost will increase if you want extra services like a shopping cart or secure server, for example. These items can increase your cost to $45 or more per month.

There are many Web hosting providers that are willing to provide hosting starting with 50gb of web space. You can also compare different Web hosting providers on these sites: www.webhostdir.com, www.hostfinders.com, www.hostindex.com, www.hostsearch.com, and www.findahost.com.

Ask friends and colleagues for recommendations for good hosting services.

4. How much will it cost to create headlines and text for your site?

I recommend a simple source because it gives you straight information that shows you how to write copy for web.

Writing copy for web is totally different than writing for print media. So even if you are a good writer, your copy will not attract visitors unless you know how to write specifically for web.

Get single best downloadable ebook that teaches you how to do it and gives away copywriters' secrets. This very affordable ebook will really teach you how to Make Your Words Sell. Learn how to do it yourself for about $20. See: http://myws.sitesell.com/mia123.html

When you learn how to do it yourself, you realize two major benefits:

1) Save cost of hiring someone each month to keep your site fresh and updated.

2) Save cost of hiring someone when you decide to add new sites later on.

Best of all, you KNOW how to do it, anytime!

In short, don't expect to create headlines and text with impact unless you use a good resource.

Words are very important online and text must be written in a way to have impact during those 1-2 seconds that you have to get a visitor's attention.

Without right headlines and text, that visitor is gone with a click of mouse.

5. How much will it cost for a merchant account?

You'll need a merchant account if you're serious about doing business on web. A merchant account enables you to accept purchases online.

Merchant accounts have a number of fees and here are some guidelines:

Monthly statement fee $15 - $25

Internet gateway software $25 - $50

Annual fee $25 - $50

Discount rate 2.0% - 3.0%

Per transaction fee $.30 - $.50

As an alternative, you could set up an account with ibill at http://www.ibill.com or paypal at http://www.paypal.com. Check their sites for detailed information. Some people say that overall ibill and paypal are less expensive than merchant accounts but you'll need to compare "apples to apples" based on your business needs.

There you have it! Plan your budget based on your basic needs and remember, leave a cushion for unanticipated expenses, like those "bells and whistles" you want to add to your site after you're online a while.

I wish you abundant success and much joy as a new web owner!

I know it is important to differentiate yourself from competitors, but it doesn’t mean you have to put this and that, to make it looks fabulous. People tend to look for simplicity, all of us are lazy, of course!

Simple does not mean easy! I never say you should join get-rich-quick scheme that promised you to make an easy money!

Many people started their own online business by thinking about joint venture, search engine ranking, website and product image, affiliate program and how to pay commission, how to handle refunds and complaints.

It’s not wrong to thing about them, but keep in mind that, those factors cannot make you rich. So don’t spend most of your time on secondary factors, it does not play an important role in beginning.

One thing you need to remember, it is truth for any business, “You make money when you make sale!” Everybody sell something and they get money in return. So, your next question should be “Then, how to make sale?”.

Some people spent 50% to 70% of their budget to build a good looking, dynamic, flash website. That is disaster if you invest likes that! You might think that a fancy, beautiful website will create a good, first impression. You are right, but first impression is not first priority to market your product!

The first thing is “Who gonna see it?” Of course, now you can realize that advertising is key to your success! How can people purchase your products when they don’t know you’re existed?

That’s it! That’s so simple when you want to make money. Advertise it to people, check feedbacks and after that you’ll know what you need to improve!

Don’t fall in these trap – guru trap – because you don’t need to be a guru to get rich online, just make sales!

Don’t wait until everything is perfect, it won’t! So, you are better get start on what you plan to do. You will learn from your experiences anyway.