Those looking for guidance on how to start a home based internet business ask many and varied questions, such as: How do I actually get started? What do I need? What are the basic requirements? Where should I look? What should I search for?

This article discusses three important basic requirements for starting a home based internet business.

1. Your Own Website and Domain Name When considering starting a home based internet business it is really important that you register your own domain name and get your own website. Did I hear you say why? Because that is the only way you will have total control over your own internet business.

You need to be in a position where you can choose the design of your website, choose what programs or services you want to promote, optimize your site with your chosen keywords for the search engines and are free to make any changes to your website.

A good reliable hosting company is the first thing to look for, so here are some important features to look out for:

* It is not advisable to go for the cheapest hosting company you can find. * Find out how long they have been in business and if they have a good track record. * Establish if they are offering you enough space to allow for the growth of your business in the future. * Is the support good, quick and friendly? * If you have any special requirements be sure to check out the features offered.

As a domain name gives you your own unique home on the internet do spend time thinking about it before registering it. Use words that relate to the theme of your internet business and keep it short so it is easy to remember.

2. An Autoresponder is your Silent Salesman

An autoresponder works for you 24/7. As you will have worked hard at driving targeted traffic to your website, you need to have a way to be able to communicate with your website visitors in the future. By offering your visitors the opportunity to subscribe to your free newsletter that will be delivered automatically by your autoresponder, will be the way to capture their email addresses and build your opt-in list.

Therefore a reliable autoresponder is important. It is a good idea that your subscribers are required to confirm their subscription to your newsletter by clicking on a confirmation link as this will help protect you from spam complaints.

When searching for an autoresponder here are some important features to look out for:

* You need instant reliable delivery * Unlimited message length * Unlimited message changes * Powerful personalization features * Smart tracking features * A password protected online control panel * A built-in anti-spam filter * Database access to manage your subscribers * Powerful mailing list management features * Automatic cleaning of your mailing list with hard bounces being removed automatically * Support by email, phone and a forum.

3. Products You need to have high quality, in demand products to sell on your website. You could consider starting off by joining reputable free affiliate programs and sell other people's products for a profit just by placing adverts, banners and links on your website.

Do a search for affiliate programs that pay generous commissions for top quality products that are in high demand. Simply by providing the link to the product from your site, you will earn a generous commission every time a sale is made.

4. Finding what you need You may be wondering how to find these basic requirements for starting a home based internet business now that you know what you need,

It really is not difficult you just need to have time to do the research. Start off by doing a search on your favorite search engine using words such as:

* Web hosting * Domain names * Autoresponders * Affiliate Programs

Go the first page of the results returned to you and look at each company to see if they offer what you looking for and make a note of those that interest you so that you can return to them later on.

Go through your short list and investigate them more thoroughly. Search on the internet for forums related to each topic and ask questions about the companies and programs you have an interest in. This way you will get good feedback on how the companies perform from those that have actually had experience with them.

You should now be in a position to make a final choice from your short list of the hosting company you plan to use, where to register the domain name you have chosen the autoresponder to install and the products you have chosen to market and you are ready to build a website and start a home based internet business.