Marketing Informations

One thing that has kept many a would be entrepreneur on the sidelines is the high startup costs that can be associated with starting a business. Raising the thousands or tens of thousands of dollars it takes to get a business up and running can be intimidating, and many people are uncomfortable with this level of risk.

Fortunately, the barriers to entry are considerably lower on the Internet, and this is truly one of the most important reasons that web based businesses are so popular with small business owners.

When it comes to setting up a new paid membership web site, there are a number of fixed costs that need to be considered. These initial startup costs include:

- A good computer. At least one computer will be needed in order to create your web site. If you already have a good computer it may suffice. Otherwise, a good computer should cost about $1,000.

- A good workstation or desk. A quality workstation or computer desk should run you between $50 and $150 depending on where you buy it and what features you choose.

- Incorporation costs. It is important to incorporate your business to protect yourself from liability and maximize your tax benefits. The process of incorporation typical takes from two week to a month to complete, and the costs should be between $100 and $200.

- Registering your domain name should be around $20 to $25 per year.

- The software costs will probably be the largest startup cost for your new paid membership web site. It is important to create a list of all the software you may need, and to look for free alternatives whenever possible. Some software you will probably need include a quality software package, such as Dreamweaver or Front Page, with which to design your web site, an office suite like Microsoft Office, and perhaps a database package for complex sites. It is important to choose good software, and to make sure the software is legal and properly registered. The software you choose will be a cornerstone of your business, so it is important to choose good packages that are widely accepted and widely used.

- You will also need to purchase encryption and security certificates. A certificate for a secure socket layer runs about $300 and is available from VeriSign.

- If you can design your own web site, you may be able to save some money. If, however, you decide to have the web site designed by someone else, you can expect to pay between $150 and $500 depending on the complexity of the design.
After you have your paid membership or subscription based web site up and running, there will be a number of ongoing costs that must be paid every month. One of the main advantages of a paid membership web site is that it makes it easier to budget for these ongoing costs. Instead of relying on often unsteady advertising payments and affiliate income, you will have a good idea of how much money will be coming in from your membership base, and you will be in a better position to handle ongoing costs such as:

- Web hosting services – the web hosting services are a major ongoing expense of running a web site. For most small and medium sized web sites, you can expect to pay from $30 to $150 per month.

- Merchant accounts – banks charge a monthly support fee and a fee for credit card transactions processed on your web site. These ongoing costs usually amount to no more than $50 per month, and the increase for each additional paid subscriber is very small.

- Monthly operating costs – these monthly operating costs include things like salaries for staff members and payments for any business loans.

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