How to move your Idea, Art, or Enterprise to the World Wide Web!
Here you will find a list of things I discovered about creating a business on the web over almost 10 years of publishing the Art Deadlines List online.
What do I want to create? How do I create it? You can start by reading this.
Using Your Computer
Do you know how to use your computer?
The real test is if you can HELP SOMEONE USE A COMPUTER. Start here
with How to help someone use a computer.
Domain Names
WHO ARE YOU? This is your brand name on the
web. Your name - johnsmith.com (or any quirky name that uniquely
identifies your focus: kidsbooks.com, snowshoes4u.com, etc...). Do you
need your own domain name? Absolutely. click here to see if
your choice is available... (also known as Whois)
Writing
You will have to write something about your
art/product/yourself for your web site (readers). Here's some
information about things to consider when Writing for
the Web. And then there's Find Your Voice.
Mailing Lists
There is no substitute for a mailing list
to tell people about what you are doing. Its a cheap (even free),
simple, and fast way to deliver information about new products,
services, newsletters, etc. If you are selling fuzzy toys on the web,
then, somewhere, there are people who want to know that. They want to
know about new fuzzy toys. They want to know about discontinued fuzzy
toys. They want to know about the value of their antique fuzzy
toys. They want to know
EVERYTHING about fuzzy toys. You can keep them informed about
everything fuzzy-toy via a mailing list. Every email address you get
is like a piece of money. HOW to get them? DO NOT put your relatives
and friends on your fuzzy toy email list. Here's how I do it... Every month, when I mail a
list of artist opportunities to this list, some of them convert to the
PAID/PREMIUM edition--which means they send me money. Your newsletter
can do the same. Just make sure people decide to place themselves on
your list using something like the Topica (free) OR Constant Contact, opt-in method.
Is your site easy to use? Does
your site load quickly? Pretty much everything you ever wanted to know
about the customer experience on the web can be found at Good Experience.
How many clicks
before a viewer/browser/buyers finds
your content interesting? That number shoud be one for an artist
producing any kind of visual image, spoken word, or performance. Your
subscribers/buyers/readers should be able to find useful information
on your front page. If you are an artist with images to present,
DON'T make somebody click 3 or 4 before they can see a sample
of your work. The web is a Darwinian Puppy Pit (trademarked) for the
attention deficit disordered. Which is to say that web winners are
those who manage to keep a viewers eyeballs on their site the
longest. Having to click disrupts viewing/reading. The rule is:
something interesting after every click!
Search Engine Submission
Selfpromotion.com is the first web-based
service that I ever paid for. SP has a free and paid version. The
paid is well worth the money. Read it, use the free or paid version,
and thank your lucky stars you found it! Please NOTE: if you subscribe
to the paid version of this service, then I get a 10% commision on
whatever you pay. More about this below in "How I Make Money With
the Art Deadlines List".
Once you establish a web page and have an email list, you are going to get... EMAIL! Perhaps LOTS of email. I do. Many of those emails can be answered with standard responses. I have a list of standard response email messages.
(That's What I Want) How do people send me money? Check or money order are the most obvious. PayPal is the online payment system I use. Most people now pay for subscriptions and advertising with PayPal. You can start learning about PayPal by clicking the icon:
Once you've set up an account, consider making your first use a contribution to the Art Deadlines List for all this useful advice. $2, for example, is not an unreasonable amount.
Here's a list of individuals and organizations that have advertised on the Art Deadlines List. If you are considering advertising on the ADL, then look at some of these ads as a guide to writing your ad.
Blogging
EVERYBODY must get Blogged Here's some places to start: