That's a question I had to answer for myself after a few years of working very long, hard hours on Internet, vigorously pursuing any program that offered me opportunity to financial freedom.

After a few years of unrealized dreams, I decided to step back and really study superhighway.

One of questions I asked myself: was this web working against me (at time it appeared that way), or was it that I did not understand it or it's requirements for getting me to my destination. So, I began to research.

As I studied various changes on internet over a five year period I realized that, This Internet Is Changing And It's Changing Fast! From my research I also discovered that those who were making money and loads of it through internet, all had a few things in common.

The one that I want to talk about today, is by far most important! It's A Must!

If you are attempting to succeed on Internet for long term, them you must begin to build your internet presence. And first step in doing so is in getting you own www.yourowndomainname.com.

Having a domain is not mandatory to gurus and exempt for those working affiliate programs or promoting any type of small start-up business endeavor. No! it is mandatory for all, if we are to steak a place on this superhighway.

Having your own name domain identifies you uniquely from any other and establishes your place on superhighway. A Domain Name Is Of Extreme Value And Essential To Your Online Success! and not having one would be like committing web suicide for your business.

Free web sites are no longer effective. They not only do not look professional, but rank much lower with most major search engines and some search engines restrict them.

The average internet user is: intelligent, college educated, has a Visa/MasterCard, seeks instant gratification and is anxious to do business. They too want in on this gold rush. But, they are reluctant to spending their money where there is not a solid sense of established credibility.

How did I generate such an awesome review of my web site? Simple--online research. Online marketing and promotion is time consuming. You can spend several hours just submitting your url to search engines. If you’re going to devote all that energy, you’d better make sure you have a site that’s user friendly. After all once visitors have arrived, your first goal is to keep them there.

When I decided to build a web site to promote my novel “Rumors of War,” I researched other book sites. I found three main types--author driven, book driven and fan driven. Starting with Yahoo.com I found “Angela’s Ashes” by Frank McCourt among web pages at Simon & Schuster’s site. Same with Harry Potter series, I found J.K. Rowling’s books at Scholastic’s site.

The goal of my web site is to use Internet to help build an audience for my current and future books. Since I’m relatively unknown, readers aren’t going to come searching for me. The best way to discover new authors is to read their books.

While searching I noticed that movies are always promoted by title. That got me thinking, if I’m putting my book title in front of hundreds of pairs of eyes every day, then title should be my domain name. I purchased rumorsofwar.net.

Coming up with content was easy--cover image, plot summary, reviews, sample chapter, ordering information, and a page about author. I kept style and graphics simple. It’s a web site about a book. Readers are accustomed to black print on a white page, framed with an attractive cover. The banner and side bar are colorful, but same on every page so visitors know they’re still at my site while they’re bouncing around.