This intro has been put together with beginners in mind, if you already have a website thats already running wordpress then just quickly go over the content here and skip ahead to the second lesson.  If you’re new to business building or want to establish a new brand this this will serve as a good primer to get you started.

Okay it’s time to build the next mega brand…YOU INC!

Now, ultimately your brand should summarize who you are, what your company stands for and where you want to be.

Here are a few things to consider to get you started

While the complexities of building a brand could never be completely covered on one page the answering the following questions is at least a move in the right direction when it comes to naming your site:

• What is the mission you have in mind for your company?
• What are the long term benefits and planned features of your products or services?(i.e. continuous innovation)
• What do want to come to mind when your customers and prospects think of you or your company?
• What positive attributes do you want them to associate with your company when your name comes into conversation?

Again these tips are only the beginning, but they should  give you a road map to follow.

So let’s Give Our New Empire a Name Shall We?

The following  resources  should help those of you having problem finding a domain name that POP’s (pun intended) get started.

Basically each tool works like this:

1. Enter in a primary keyword
2. Enter secondary keyword
3. Press go!!!

Each one of the tools are free to use and can help of you find yourself at a loss for words.

1) StuckDomains.com (click image)

2) Dot-o-mator (click image)

3) Nameboy.com (click image)

For those of you who want to explore naming your business a little more you can check out  Sam Horns book pop here. (sponsored link)

For registering domains theses days I typically just use Dynadot or  Godaddy.com  You can visit Godaddy  here and pick up a new domain for under 10 bucks (sponsored link)

After you’ve decided on a domain name it’s time to get our website set up and ready to go.

For hosting I use hostgator because they are scalable and reliable.  With over 6 yrs with the company on various domains -  I’ve never had any major problems, and certainly none that couldn’t be fixed with a simple phone call.

Plus hostgator uses Cpanel which allows for easy management of my hosting account.

If you don’t already have hosting you can get it from host gator here.

Now for installing the canvas for our new masterpiece…Wordpress.

It’s really a simple process when you have cpanel on your hosting account.

In the following video we are going to upload wordpress to our servers and I’m going to walk you through a few of the basics of the platform.

Next step…learning the basics of visual desing and image editing with gimp.

Want to be successful in business? Then get a role model…final answer.

Seriously, learning what the big boys (and girls) in your chosen industry are doing to interact and hold on to their audience can make your life a whole easier as well as make things run a helluva lot smoother when you decide to actually enter your market with profits on the brain.

When you break it down…an engaged audience sticks around longer, which gives them more time to notice one of your advertisements and click on them if that is your business model.

If your business model is publishing information products, or running a membership site, then a more engage audience sticks around on your site longer, which gives them more time to get to know you and eventually begin seeing you as an authority which gives them more of a reason to check out your product.

So why not go check out how the majors online players in your industry are engaging their audience on a regular basis. It’s free and can give you plenty of ideas.

Okay , now get out your pen and paper to take some notes, because in the following video I’m going to take you with me as we try to figure out what it really takes to become an internet icon, and I bet it’s a lot less then you think. [click to continue…]