Internet and Online Business


Recent Internet and Online Business Articles

The Greenhouse Effect

By Edward O. Welles |  May 1, 2000

Gene Gage wanted a quiet life in the country where he could indulge his hobby of growing herbs. That was before he hitched his wagon to an Internet star.  Read more

Is There Gold under That There Hype?

By Christi Frum |  May 1, 2000

Business-to-business (B2B) commerce. Is it a market worth $7.3 trillion and 6.9% of the global economy by 2004? Or is it a media extravaganza promising an...  Read more

Three Simple Secrets to Making Money with Affiliate Programs

By Ola Edvardsson |  May 1, 2000

One of the most common discussions regarding affiliate programs revolves around whether it's good to send visitors away from your site. The answer is simp...  Read more

The Two Community Hosting Tools You Need

By Sue Boettcher |  May 1, 2000

Hosts need software tools to help them do their jobs. Host tools are special features that regular users don't have. Trying to host a community without ho...  Read more

Internationalize So You Can Localize Successfully

By John Mulligan |  May 1, 2000

We all know that Europe and Asia are on the road to catching up with the United States in e-commerce. Estimates vary slightly, but they all indicat...  Read more

Legal Aspects of E-Commerce

By David Adler |  May 1, 2000

There are four common ways to deliver products based on interactions that take place on the Web. This article discusses common legal needs related to each...  Read more

Denial-of-Service

By Bill Varcoe |  Apr 28, 2000

The onslaught that brought down large sites such as Yahoo!, eBay, CNN.com, and buy.com was caused by a denial-of-service (DoS) attack. It is one of the ea...  Read more

Prevent Malicious Attacks on Your Business Data

By Bill Varcoe |  Apr 28, 2000

Viruses are pieces of foreign code (programs) introduced into your system to perform unauthorized acts against your internal network. Some of the viruses ...  Read more

E-Business Revenue and Spending on the Rise

Apr 26, 2000

Hard charger technology businesses see a 22% revenue contribution from e-business Overall, a 23% rise in e-business spe...  Read more

Specify Your Technical Requirements

By Delilah Obie |  Apr 25, 2000

Different MAPs require different "gateways" on your site. These gateways are the pieces of code that transmit your customers' orders to and from your bank...  Read more

Evaluate Your Submission to AltaVista

By Lise Pettigrew |  Apr 25, 2000

First, search for your site on AltaVista to make sure that it has been indexed. Indexing can happen in just a few days but may take significantly longer, ...  Read more

Prepare Your Site for Submission to AltaVista

By Lise Pettigrew |  Apr 25, 2000

AltaVista's Scooter spider may visit your site only once every few months. Therefore, it's critical that you completely prepare your site before you submi...  Read more

Use Metatags Correctly

By Lise Pettigrew |  Apr 25, 2000

AltaVista will index your site according to its metatags. As previously mentioned, metatags are special HTML tags that provide information about your Web ...  Read more

Identify the Primary Audience for Your Site

By Delilah Obie |  Apr 25, 2000

Who will be interested in your Web site? Answering this question plays a crucial part in determining what information to include in your site and how to o...  Read more

Determine Your Web Site Goals

By Delilah Obie |  Apr 25, 2000

To ensure that your site benefits your business and its users, clearly define your site goals from the beginning. Focus on a primary function and build yo...  Read more

User-Friendly Commerce Sites

By Bob Kranker |  Apr 25, 2000

Animation, sound, video, and applets of all kinds are considered the "hot ticket" for high-tech Web sites. My question is: Do you know who your end users ...  Read more

Death and Taxes

By Bob Kranker |  Apr 25, 2000

OK, forget the death part for now. Let's talk about taxes, specifically, taxes on Internet commerce. I'm sure you all like paying taxes as much as ...  Read more

Selecting Your Fulfillment House

By Bruce Resnick |  Apr 25, 2000

Finding fulfillment in e-commerce can be very much like finding fulfillment in life: It is different for each individual and, sadly, some will never find ...  Read more

Community or Ghost Town?

By Heather Duggan |  Apr 25, 2000

We've all seen them - empty message boards, ancient posts, unanswered questions - the vast desert of unused discussion spaces. If the Internet is the new ...  Read more

All about Title Tags

By Jill Whalen |  Apr 25, 2000

We have previously talked about the basics of search engine optimization . Now it's time get down to the meat! I...  Read more

Tailor Your Web Site to Your Target Audience

By Nancy Ging |  Apr 25, 2000

Everybody says your business needs a Web site. But why? And where do you start? Here's an overview of the basic process and guidelines to help you be an i...  Read more

Checklist: Submit Your Site to AltaVista

By Lise Pettigrew |  Apr 25, 2000

AltaVista is one of the most popular search engines on the World Wide Web. It has an easy submission process and usually indexes sites within just a few d...  Read more

Should I host my own Web server?

By Bradley D. Brown |  Apr 24, 2000

Information Technology mentor Brad Brown responds to the following question from an inc.com user: I plan on starting up two d...  Read more

Where to Put Keywords on Your Site

By Fredrick Marckini |  Apr 24, 2000

Search engines list sites based on keywords that you can embed in your HTML code. Below is a list of different places in your site where the placement of ...  Read more

Types of Search Engines

By Fredrick Marckini |  Apr 24, 2000

Key to improving your Web site's rank in the different search engines is to understand the basic criteria by which search engines index and then retrieve ...  Read more

What Is a Software Spider?

By Fredrick Marckini |  Apr 24, 2000

A "software spider" is an unmanned program operated by a search engine that surfs the Web just like you would. As it visits each Web site, it records (sav...  Read more

Understand AltaVista's Search Methodology

By Lise Pettigrew |  Apr 24, 2000

AltaVista focuses on keywords and metatags. Keywords are words in your Web page that are used to create an index that best describes the contents of your ...  Read more

Track Returns by Product Line to Determine Problem Areas

By Jennifer LeClaire |  Apr 20, 2000

You will get returns. Welcome them. They provide an opportunity to fine-tune your sales and delivery machine, making a one-time customer into a loyal, rep...  Read more

Return Damaged/Faulty Products to the Manufacturer

By Jennifer LeClaire |  Apr 20, 2000

If damaged or defective parts and products are covered by manufacturer's warranty, return them immediately to the manufacturer. Provide notice of the prob...  Read more

Assure Customers You Will Fix Any Problems

By Jennifer LeClaire |  Apr 20, 2000

"This will be fixed" is the mantra. This will be fixed because we care about you, our customer. Remember always to acknowledge receipt of a customer compl...  Read more

Acknowledge Receipt of Complaints Immediately

By Jennifer LeClaire |  Apr 20, 2000

Acknowledge receipt of every complaint immediately by e-mail. Your first contact should be an e-mail message (or phone call, if the complaint warrants it)...  Read more

Explain Exactly How You Will Remedy the Problem

By Jennifer LeClaire |  Apr 20, 2000

It's vital to explain in writing to your customers exactly what will be done to fix a problem and when. Here is a template you can use to create an e-mail...  Read more

Understand Merchant Accounts and Their Fees

By Delilah Obie |  Apr 20, 2000

To accept credit cards, you must establish a merchant account, which is a special bank account for handling the revenue (and fees) from credit card transa...  Read more

Evaluate Alternative Online Payment Methods

By Delilah Obie |  Apr 20, 2000

Credit cards still reign as the leading method of payment for online purchases, but other payment options are available. Your product and your customers' ...  Read more

Determine the Fee Structure that Maximizes Your Profit Margin

By Delilah Obie |  Apr 20, 2000

Not every product sells in the same way, and not every merchant account provider (MAP) charges you the same way. Choose a MAP that suits your business. Be...  Read more