Small Business Projects/INTERNET

Table of Contents Introduction................................................................................................................ xvii Project 1: Getting Connected for the First Time........................................................ 1 If you’ve only surfed the Internet from a public library, or if you’ve just bought your first PC, and are wondering what to do next, this project is a good place to get started. It will take you through the process of signing up with a standard dialup Internet connection. Cable modems, DSL and other options are all explored in Project 12, later in the book. Every other project in this book assumes that you have access to the Internet, so if you don’t have a connection, you should complete this project before you get started. You could actually do some of the projects in this book without your own computer and Internet connection, but most of them will be much harder, and many of them will be completely impossible. 1. Investigate the options 2. Sign up 3. Set up your email account 4. Start surfing Project 2: Managing Customer Email.......................................................................... 7 Email is everywhere. Chances are you’ll find an email address on nearly every business card you see. So what happens when you add your email address to your own cards and stationery? Good email management can make your organization look more professional, and more interested in your customer needs than many others out there. Many businesses – small and large – fail to manage their email properly, and it costs them their good reputation, orders, and even customers. In this project, you’ll lay the foundations for good practices with your customer email for years to come. It’s less about technology and more just about what is considered to be good manners in the electronic world. 1. A word about “spam” 2. “Netiquette”