This is a reference website for tools that make operating online easier. The companies recommended here are reliable: I've used them all. And the best part about them is that the tools ar eeither free or can pay for themselves. That is, you can recommend them to a few associates and earn enough to cover your own costs.

Websites

1. Planning—When planning a website, first decide exactly what you want your site to do. Do you want it to describe, recommend, represent, sell, or build a mailing list? Most people think a page can do lots of things. It can do only one thing well. A site, on the other hand, can do several things—one per page.

After you're clear on your objective, find several sites that do what you'd like your site to do, or look like you'd like your site to look.

Then sketch a layout. Identify what each page should contain. General topics such as welcome, about us, mission, products, order here are a good place to start. Though every page could conceivably be linked to every other page, certain ones will have a progression, such as desserts links to both cakes and cookies.

2. Buy a Domain Name—Secure a domain name as soon as possible. Three factors should be weighed: relatedness, brevity and typability. Relatedness means, Does the domain name indicate what the site is about? Typability asks you how hard will it be for your prospects to enter your URL into their browser bars? (You may also want to register common typos and have them point to the same site, e.g. wheelalingment.com.)

3. Put Up a Page—Post a page as soon as possible that describes what the website is or will be. Include significant words that will be used when the website is complete, such as "wheel alignment tutorials" or "arthritis diagnoses, treatments and cures." Your online start date will be linked to when the website was first posted, even if it is incomplete. Phrases like "under construction" might help your prospects understand what they see, but are red flags to spiders (the robots that crawl the Internet looking for new content). If you want to be a little fancier, get a free banner like the one above.

4. Get a Hosting Account—You don't have to buy a huge hosting account until your website and traffic (including uploads, downloads and mail volume) grow. Start small but with the features you need. Grow in size as your business grows.

5. Outsource Site Building—Do what you do best and let others take care of the rest. If you want a custom banner, website design, someone to implement your design throughout all of the pages,, need articles written, or need you site updated, you can choose from over 100,000 freelancers doing just that at bargain prices at Rent-a-Coder.