~ Foreword by Dr. John Rutledge ~
~ Acknowledgments ~

P R E F A C E
~ Why an Online Business, and Why Now? ~
~ Difficult Choices ~
~ Viability Resolved ~
~ Facts about Online Work ~
~ Generational Gaps ~
~ Knowing You Have What It Takes ~

PART I
DREAMS TO DOLLARS

C H A P T E R 1
What Kind of Online Business Is for Me?

~ The Brainstorming Challenge ~
~ Determining if Online Work Is Right for You ~
~ Turning Your Passions into Dollars: the Brainstorm ~
~ Earning Residual Income ~
~ To Work or Not to Work: Additional Ideas to Keep in Mind ~
~ Selling Ad Space ~
~ Working for Someone Else But Reaping the Rewards ~

C H A P T E R 2
An Online Business

~ The Answer to Life Balance? ~

C H A P T E R 3
Getting Started

~ How Do I Get Started? ~
~ Deciding What to Sell ~
~ Choosing the Right Type of Online Business ~
~ Streamlining Your Business ~
~ Making Your Business Legal ~
~ Which Comes First—the Domain Name or the Business Name? ~
~ Registering the Domain Name ~
~ Finding a Web Host ~
~ Finding a Web Designer or Developer ~
~ Electronic Commerce Explained ~
~ Choosing a Payment System ~
~ Choosing the Right Merchant Vendor ~
~ What About Affiliates? ~
~ Fees ~
~ More Tips for Getting Started Online ~

PART II
SETTING THE RIGHT TONE FROM THE START

C H A P T E R 4
Setting Boundaries and Flexibility

~ Keeping Home, Work, and Clients Separate ~
~ Setting Your Boundaries and Knowing What Will Work ~
~ How Your Job Might Affect Your Personal Boundaries ~
~ Screening Clients ~
~ Setting Familial Boundaries ~
~ Choosing a Passive or Active Role ~

C H A P T E R 5
Technology

~ What You Need to Get the Job Done ~
~ Internet Access ~
~ Phone Service ~
~ Computers ~
~ Disaster Recovery Planning—a Must for Any Business ~
~ Organization Systems and PDAs ~
~ Cell Phones ~
~ Voiceover Internet Protocol (VoIP) ~
~ Unified Messaging ~
~ Conference Phones ~
~ Wireless Headsets ~
~ Ergonomic Workstations ~
~ Instant Messaging ~
~ Electronic versus Traditional Fax Systems ~
~ PDF Converters ~
~ Scanners ~
~ Printers ~
~ Backup Internet Providers ~
~ Wireless Access Points ~
~ Virus Protection ~
~ Anti-Spyware Software ~
~ Anti-Spam Program ~
~ E-Mail Accounts with In-Box High Limits ~
~ Office Suites ~
~ One Web Architect’s Office Setup ~
~ A Green Office ~

PART III
A ROAD MAP TO SUCCESS

C H A P T E R 6
Setting Your Price

~ Determining What to Charge ~
~ Lurk in Public Places—Get the Scoop! ~
~ Consider an Accountant’s Point of View ~
~ How You Can Lower Costs for Goods—and Lower Prices, Too ~
~ Keep Track of Costs ~
~ Business-to-Business Sales ~
~ Price Like an Entrepreneur ~

C H A P T E R 7
Unique Ways to Sell

~ Different Strategies for the Online World ~
~ HTML Tags ~
~ Pricing Strategies ~
~ Understanding the Impact of Price ~

C H A P T E R 8
Advertising

~ Your Online Business in a Global Market ~
~ May I Have Your Attention, Please? ~
~ Traditional Advertising Methods ~
~ Client and Business Partner Gifts ~
~ Pre- and Post-Web 2.0 ~
~ Audience Profile ~
~ Connections with Established Businesses ~
~ Online Advertising Methods ~
~ Newsletter Advertising ~
~ Word-of-Mouth Advertising ~
~ Maximizing Sales ~
~ Articles ~
~ Traditional Promotion ~
~ Buying Mailing Lists ~
~ Contests ~
~ Ad Rotation and Faces ~
~ Order Deadlines and Advertised Price Increases ~
~ Trial Memberships and Upgrades ~
~ Stating the Benefits—and the Testimonials ~
~ Press Releases ~

C H A P T E R 9
Social Networking

~ Creating a Buzz in the Web 2.0 World ~
~ Using Social Networking Tools ~

C H A P T E R 10
Where to Work

~ Working from Home or an Office ~
~ Benefits to Working from Home ~
~ Downsides to Working from Home ~

C H A P T E R 11
Growing Your Business

~ Identifying Additional Opportunities and Making Lots of Money ~
~ Choose Between Web Versions 1.0 and 2.0 ~
~ Try Community Sharing Instead of Unidirectional Marketing ~
~ Build a Foundation for Growth ~
~ Take What You Have and Make It Bigger ~
~ Take What You Have and Find New Target Audiences ~
~ Offer Customization ~
~ Offer Bulk Discounting to Resellers ~
~ Take Referrals Seriously—and Pay for Them ~
~ Know What Your Customers Think ~
~ Talk to the Bloggers ~
~ Sell Complementary Goods ~
~ Offer SME Consultations ~
~ Consider a Sales Team ~
~ Offer Newsletters That Can Be Forwarded ~
~ Get Your Site to Click with Your Audience ~
~ Use Podcasts ~
~ Make Shopping a Snap ~
~ Optimize Your Site ~
~ Rethink Social Advertising ~
~ Be Flexible—the World Is Always Changing ~
~ Strive for Constant Progress ~

C H A P T E R 12
Avoiding Pitfalls

~ Eliminating Gotchas in the Online Business Place ~
~ Plan Your Work and Don’t Rush ~
~ Keep the Focus ~
~ Be Open about Errors ~
~ Market Test Products or Services ~
~ Be Specific ~
~ Make Sure You Have Enough Money ~
~ Heed the Warning Signs ~
~ Don’t Start Off Cheesy ~
~ Maintain Relationships ~
~ Don’t Sell Your Lists ~
~ Advertise ~
~ Use Checklists ~
~ Price Right ~
~ Don’t Hold Inventory ~
~ Don’t Extend Credit to B2B Customers without Checking their Credit ~
~ Watch Your Cash Flow ~
~ Cover Your Business’s Behind ~
~ Don’t Be Afraid to Say No ~
~ Be Sure You Are Fully Committed ~
~ Don’t Be a Spammer ~
~ Know How You Will Begin ~
~ Know Where to End Up ~
~ Provide Substance ~
~ Don’t Waste Money ~
~ Make Your Website Viewer Friendly ~
~ Know Your Rank ~
~ Avoid Common Web Development Hazards ~
~ Provide Quality Customer Service ~

PART IV
EXPLORING OPPORTUNITIES

C H A P T E R 13
20 Online Jobs for Everyone

~ Get Started Today ~
~ Accounting and Financial ~
~ Administrative or Clerical ~
~ Artistic ~
~ Call Center and Customer Service ~
~ Education, Teaching, and Tutoring ~
~ Healthcare and Medical ~
~ Legal ~
~ Medical Transcription and Coding ~
~ Nonprofit ~
~ Technical and Web ~
~ Translation and Linguistic ~
~ Writing and Editing ~
~ Project Bidding Sites for Freelancers ~
~ Sometimes the Best Ideas Are the Craziest Ones ~
~ Filling Your Own Needs ~
~ Final Quotes from the Trenches ~

C H A P T E R 14
Another Option to Try Before You Buy

~ Following the Virtual Employee Trend ~
~ Online Job Hits ~
~ Burgeoning Money ~
~ eBay Success ~
~ Top Talent ~
~ Increased Productivity ~
~ A Growing Work Force ~
~ Figuring Out What to Sell Online ~
~ Telecommuting from a Home Office ~
~ Becoming a Virtual Employee ~

C H A P T E R 15
Avoiding Scams

~ Identifying and Staying Away from Online Hornets’ Nests ~
~ Opportunity Scams ~
~ Dotcons ~
~ Other Types of Scams ~
~ How to Protect Yourself ~
~ Other Internet Fraud and How to Avoid Complaints in Your Business ~

A F T E R W O R D

~ Moving Forward ~

APPENDICES

A P P E N D I X A

~ Resources for the Online Business ~
~ Marketing ~
~ Business Planning Resources ~
~ Press Releases and Media Inquiries ~
~ Social Networking Sites ~
~ Monitoring your Click-Through Rates ~
~ Web Marketing Today Resource Room ~
~ Free Advertising Network and Text Link Exchange ~
~ Banner Exchange Sites ~
~ Google AdWords Guide ~
~ Affiliate Networking ~
~ Checking the Validity of Sites ~
~ Reporting Internet Crimes ~
~ Usability ~
~ Search Engine Sites ~
~ Great Places to Buy Computers ~

A P P E N D I X B

~ Online Business Checklists and Tips ~
~ Occupations Requiring State Licenses ~
~ Products Requiring Permits ~
~ Sales Tax Permits ~
~ Government Agencies for Certain Careers ~
~ Ten Tips for Blogs and Podcasts (FAQ) ~

A P P E N D I X C

~ Important Terms ~

A P P E N D I X D

~ Fast Forms ~
~ Documents and Applications ~
~ Spreadsheets ~

A P P E N D I X E

~ References ~

G L O S S A R Y

~ Business and Financial Terms ~
~ Index ~