New year, same old questions

There’s never a shortage of questions in our business. That’s a good thing. So basically you must carry the attitude that there are no stupid questions, regardless of the source.

So you hear this one a few times especially during the first couple of weeks into the New Year: I’m thinking of starting up a website, what should I do?

Some take a cue and bail out immediately, but I always respond with something like this: Have you bought a domain yet? Normally, this gets into a lengthier discussion but I’ve covered the territory before.

But so have many other people in the field. And luckily, I have a good reference to draw upon.

Paula Peters', The Ultimate Marketing Toolkit (Adams Media, 2009) is a good starting point. It not only provides the basics of what everyone needs to think about when starting a website such as domain names, content, web design and hosting but serves as a great resource for planning a business. That's far more important, isn't it?

Whether you want to design a logo for a business card, pick a tag line for your product line or try your hand at press releases, this easy to follow book covers the vast area quite effectively. You even get tips on newsletters, blogging and social networking.

Maybe the questions haven't changed that much, but thankfully the answers keep improving.