Expert: Michael Bali - 8/19/2008

Question
Hi,

Two questions -

1. I am thinking of starting an Internet-based business, but I don't have very much money to get it started. What is a cheap way to start a website that utilizes PayPal, and other electronic payment methods? How do you do this? I am hoping there is a way to meet in the middle: not too expensive, but not too difficult to use, either. I don't know ANYTHING about making a website.

Answer
Hi Kristen,

There are many ways to go about doing this. There are many turnkey solutions that will allow you to get started on your Internet-based business. I am not sure what your budget looks like but first you need a domain which will run you about $10 per year. Next you need to Host your website. There are many hosting companies that offer free hosting. http://www.110mb.com/ is a free hosting company. However, I recommend using a more reliable hosting company which will run you about $40/yr. Go with godaddy.com or the hosting company of your choice. Again I highly recommend a paid hosting company because sometimes free hosting companies can make your website go very slow. Next you will need a turnkey solution. This will run you about $20-$80. Depending what type of business this is I suppose you will need a shopping cart of some sort. You will need to research on google or yahoo about "turnkey websites". Turnkey shopping cart solutions will allow you to configure your payment gateway such as paypal straight from your website. Almost all solutions have a backend which means you can login to your website and configure it. www.dotcombuilder.com is a popular turnkey solution website. You can purchase a monthly subscription for about $30.00. You can always cancel after you have downloaded your website. Once you download the website you like you then will have to either get a web developer to insert the site onto your hosting account. I know this can be a little overwhelming but I am hear if you need any help with that. There are always some instructions that come with the turnkey so dont worry. :)

In total you will end up spending $70 to get started with your internet based business.

I hope this helped. If you need any more information let me know.

Thanks,

Michael Bali
http://www.servusys.com