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There are a number of ingredients that go into making and growing a successful internet business, but the most important is action. As an entrepreneur you will understand that time is against you and that with each passing day your competitors are taking your potential customers and profits.

However, to make money on the internet you need to know the fundamental requirements to establish a solid online presence from which you can grow a profit pulling business…

1. A Strategy

Without establishing a strategy and business plan your business will wander around aimlessly without achieving mush at all.

It is vital that your plan is reduced to writing to ensure that it is structured and well thought out.

2. Funding

Whilst the beauty about starting an internet business is that the start up capital requirement is significantly less than other businesses, it is still wise to ensure that you have the funding to keep the business afloat for at least 6 months.

This would mean having the cash flow to provide for the following expenditure;

a. Web hosting b. Web design c. Software d. Hardware e. Office Rental, lights & water f. Telephone g. Accounting fees h. Advertising i. Manufacturing of product (if required)
j. Training courses

3. Domain Name

For your internet business you must register at least one memorable domain name, i.e. not a freebie which will hurt your search engine rankings and your credibility.

It is important spending some time researching keyword relevancy when choosing your domain name as this can have a beneficial effect as to how well your site ranks on some search engines.

4. Web Hosting

Ensure that your web host supplies you with the appropriate amount of disk space for your site and bandwidth allowance for your traffic.

For cost effectiveness you can start off with a small shared plan and upgrade as required.

Eventually you may require a dedicated server to cater for your internet traffic load.

5. Products and/or Services

If you can, choose products and services that you already have an interest in and you are knowledgeable about.

This will encourage you to remain focused, driven and motivated in promoting your business as well as being an authority in your chosen field.

6. Website Design

The perception a site visitor has of your business will be determined by the design of your site.

This means that regardless of how great your services and products are, the site visitor will not get to find out, let alone buy anything, if your site is shabbily designed and portrays a poor image.

A good idea would be to ensure that the purchasing, sign-up and newsletter processes are all automated.

7. Website Traffic

A great business concept and website will not do much for your bottom line unless you have visitors flocking to your site.

Traffic is essential and traffic generation is a huge topic on its own although you need to pay special attention to…

a. Optimizing your website in the design phase b. Ongoing website optimization c. Link building – getting inbound links d. Submit your site to the major search engines e. Submit your site to relevant directories f. Advertising g. Newsletters h. Distributing free content

8. Motivation

Your high tech site is up but nothing is happening!

This is the time when your drive and motivation is seriously put to the test.

It is even more difficult when you are working on your own with nobody to commiserate and strategize with.

However, if your business plan was detailed and thorough, keep on referring to it and it will guide you through the hard times.

Finally, always remember what motivated and drove you in the beginning and rekindle that inspiration.
The author, Mark Bellinger is a successful businessman and creator of the following websites: www.income.za.net www.internetbusiness.co.za www.onlinesynergy.za.net