Ask Experts Questions for FREE Help !
Ask
    wewed100606's Avatar
    wewed100606 Posts: 228, Reputation: 36
    Full Member
     
    #1

    Feb 4, 2008, 01:24 PM
    Starting a Web-Based Business
    I have an idea for an e-business, but I have no idea how to estimate start-up costs for this idea. I am wondering if anyone can give me some ballpark figures on developing a website and hosting this website. I know this is vague, but since I have never started one of these business I don't know what information to include. I WOULD LOVE for you to ask any questions that might help you give me a better answer. I am looking for some dialogue and to do some information gathering at this point to see if this idea is even feasible. Look forward to talking with someone who knows what's going on :)
    N0help4u's Avatar
    N0help4u Posts: 19,823, Reputation: 2035
    Uber Member
     
    #2

    Feb 4, 2008, 01:40 PM
    I have been trying to figure the whole thing out myself
    So far...

    I know you have to include certain catchy key words for the search engine. The more popular the words are to the search the closer to the top of the list your site gets.

    This place Online Stores .com - buy flags, flagpoles, tea, teapots, gifts, safety equipment & kitchen gadgets. is suppose to be helpful. I went to one seminar but couldn't make the next which cost $20. And they tell you about getting to the top of the search engine there.
    I think for them to train, learn drop shipping, help build it up, and be connected to them it costs around $2,700.

    Search engine ranking tool uncovers your top 1000 search engine placement positions in Google search engine

    drop shipping - Google Search
    Drop shipping

    If you are going to use a third-party (Paypal, etc.) to receive payments? If you're using a third party, they generally have their own shopping cart systems that they want you to use and that are the best to work with their system.
    wewed100606's Avatar
    wewed100606 Posts: 228, Reputation: 36
    Full Member
     
    #3

    Feb 4, 2008, 02:00 PM
    Thanks for the info, but not really applicable to my business idea. SEO will not be as intrigal as with e-shopping sites. My site will provide a service advertised through other mediums, but the service will be provided at the website. I plan on having my own secure payment system.

    The system I will be using and the model I would think this business would look most like would be a lendingtree.com or an insurance brokerage site.

    Thanks for the help though!
    abrudtkuhl's Avatar
    abrudtkuhl Posts: 2, Reputation: 1
    New Member
     
    #4

    Feb 4, 2008, 08:45 PM
    Are you looking to give quotes of some kind?

    How do you find your business like that of Lending Tree or an insurance brokerage?

    If you can answer a few basic questions for me I can help point you in the right direction to get this done for as little as possible.
    Fr_Chuck's Avatar
    Fr_Chuck Posts: 81,301, Reputation: 7692
    Expert
     
    #5

    Feb 4, 2008, 09:04 PM
    IF you can design your own web site, then you just buy a site, We own our site
    Unity Catholic Church
    And it costs us about 10 dollars a month, it is not fancy, but if we were a expert web designer or had a good program,

    A company can pay several 100 dollars a month to have someone do basic maintaining of a site, to 1000's of dollars depending on how much work you need to do on the site.

    So if you can do your own web design, it wlll cost very little, if you can't then it will be in the 1000's for professionaly done sites.
    Helpman's Avatar
    Helpman Posts: 39, Reputation: 2
    Junior Member
     
    #6

    Feb 5, 2008, 02:47 PM
    On the Secure payment issue We can help with establishing a Merchant account
    wewed100606's Avatar
    wewed100606 Posts: 228, Reputation: 36
    Full Member
     
    #7

    Feb 5, 2008, 03:00 PM
    Quote Originally Posted by abrudtkuhl
    Are you looking to give quotes of some kind?

    How do you find your business like that of Lending Tree or an insurance brokerage?

    If you can answer a few basic questions for me I can help point you in the right direction to get this done for as little as possible.

    I wouldn't say I am looking for quotes, as I understand those are difficult to give without literally knowing the ins and outs of the business planned. I am more looking for a ball park for what I would spend and maybe the best way to go about hosting and maintaining such a site.

    I do envision the company actually having its own webpage management and IT department at some point, but not at initial start-up.

    As for why it would be similar to a lending tree or insurance borkerage is that is more or less a brokerage type site.

    You would have customers on the front end paying to get the information and then companies on the back end paying to get those leads. So, front end customer friendly with secure payment options, back end would be information capture and relay to third parties with automatic billing to the third party.

    If that doesn't make sense let me know. I am trying to give as much detail as I can without giving away the business idea... for obvious reasons ;-)

    More questions fire away!
    wewed100606's Avatar
    wewed100606 Posts: 228, Reputation: 36
    Full Member
     
    #8

    Feb 5, 2008, 03:04 PM
    In other words the site would be like this.

    Customer pays $5 to get their desired information and inputs there personal info.

    This lead is processed for compatibility with third party providers.

    The lead is forwarded to compatible third parties.

    The receiving third parties are billed $1 for the lead.

    Really a simple idea, but there needs to be drop down menus for the different information the customer may be interested in and I want it to look very professional and be user friendly from both ends.
    NewtonFletch's Avatar
    NewtonFletch Posts: 1, Reputation: 1
    New Member
     
    #9

    Jan 2, 2012, 02:32 PM
    Someone mentioned drop shipping, which I am not a fan of. It's a great way to get disconnected with your customers and let your business fail. See Tony Hsieh's book. I personally recommend using a green business like ParcelPool to ship your packages. They do <a href="https://myib.com/">cheap and quick shipping</a> while maintaining quality. Just remember that a close relationship with your customers will help you be more likely to succeed.
    cmeeks's Avatar
    cmeeks Posts: 754, Reputation: 64
    Senior Member
     
    #10

    Jul 19, 2012, 07:32 AM
    If you are dealing with money or personal info a ssl cert will be needed, not a big deal bt they cost. Also you will need serious vetting on anyone who buy info from you, remember Facebook and Google have millions of users and can qualify leads by search or post made by users. Hosting is another issue if you are using ssl you should use a dedicated server.
    stephanymayer's Avatar
    stephanymayer Posts: 4, Reputation: 1
    New Member
     
    #11

    Feb 20, 2013, 11:16 AM
    Before deciding the start-up factor cost, you must take care of your website. Because website is the primary source for your online e-business and without the help of website e-business has no real application. For more Web Design - Website Design Tutorials, Articles and Free Stuff

Not your question? Ask your question View similar questions

 

Question Tools Search this Question
Search this Question:

Advanced Search


Check out some similar questions!

Starting up a home based internet business [ 1 Answers ]

I am seriously concerning opening a home based internet business from my home in MS. I am new at this and have lots of questions. How do I get a tax id? How do I handle sales taxes? Can I do this as a sole proprietor ro do I need an LLC? Any help and suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Web Based Email [ 3 Answers ]

Is there any free web based email that I can use with Outlook Express? I downloaded some FreePOP thing and it still doesn't work. If it is possible, I would appreciate it if someone would walk me through the steps to make this work. Thanks in advance :)

Web based communication [ 2 Answers ]

I am looking for a way for two people to have instant communication over the internet without installing any software. MSN2Go or something similar would be ideal but unfortunately we are prohibited from using IM by our sysadmin. A solution to this problem would be an inhouse web-based IM/chat...

Web Based Sent Mail [ 5 Answers ]

Hi. I've been using web based email using SMTP and all of the sent mails have been stored on the server. Is there a way to download those sent mails from the server into the "Sent Items" folder of Microsoft Outlook 2000 SP-3? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance.


View more questions Search