Website

This is the fun part in building your online business. You can either build your website from scratch or buy download a template. Professional looking templates are available for as low as $25.

Although you may be impressed by the looks of some of these templates, please keep in mind that too much clutter, images and flashy effects can distract your visitors and hurt your business.

Here are a few tips when designing a website or choosing a template:

• Choose a simple design

• Make it easy to navigate

• Do not include many images on each page

• Get to the point, put yourself in the visitor's shoes

• Ask yourself: "Would I buy from this online store?"

• Choose colors that are easy on the eyes

• Make sure that pages don't take forever to load

• Keep in mind that many people are still running on a 56K modem which is much slower than DSL or a Cable Modem.

Remember, the look and feel of your website is the first impression a visitor gets. Slow websites tend to deter users; way too flashy websites become boring after the second visit and spending too much time trying to find your way around a cluttered web site is a real pain.

So take some time to think things through. Don't give up if you re-design your website 6 to 7 times, change colors, or the layout, this is totally normal. After a few tries and many changes you will end up with the design you've always wanted.

When choosing or designing your pages, make sure that the colors and images you choose match the type business and products you are trying to sell. You can get ideas from other websites without copying them. You can purchase royalty-free pictures from any computer or office store.