Before attempting to go online to promote your local business or simply to try to earn extra income, you need to have the basic tools. Without such tools, you will be having a very hard time learning how internet stuff work and establishing a good online business.
Here’s what you need:
1. A good PC or Laptop – naturally you need to own a good personal computer or a laptop. You may prefer to have a handy laptop over a PC because you can carry it wherever you go. If you don’t have one, find cheap laptops in your area that have at least the following specification:
- Processor is at least 1.8GHz
- Memory is at least 1GB
- Hard drive is at least 256Gb
If you have the budget, then it would be better if you go for higher specs. Nowadays, you can actually find cheaper laptops with more than 1.8GHz processor, 2GB memory, and 500GB HDD.
2. A reliable internet connection – off course, you can’t do online business without access to the internet. If you’re still planning to apply for internet service, try to go for DSL connections. If you’re tight on budget, there are ISP providers that allow you internet access for an hourly rate.
3. Payment processor account – a payment processor is a third-party company that allows you to electronically send and receive payments online. The popular payment processor, for now (and I hope there will be more to come), is PayPal.
PayPal is good when buying things on the internet. However, if you intend to sell physical or tangible products online you have to really be very careful in using it. More about this here: Should I Use Paypal for My Business?
For now, go and sign up for a Paypal account because you will be using it when paying for domain and webhost.