A dot com domain is best but if you have a Canadian business dot ca will work just fine. A dot ca domain will be cheaper when you must renew it in a year or two.
Try and keep your domain name short and easy to spell.
Try and keep your new domain unique and brandable and reflective of the type of business you are starting.
Leave some room for expansion if your business direction changes or you add new products.
Before you register your domain research to discover if any other business has been registered using the same or similar name.
Email Setup
Depending on the tools your business requires I suggest using Office365 or Gsuite.
Sticking with one of the two top providers will reduce the possibility of technical down time. Your business communication is the most important thing.
Office365 comes with the full Office tools Word, Excel, Outlook….
Gsuite has comparable tools that are web-based. These tools help you sync your documents by signing into the Gsuite website. This can be helpful when working on multiple computers.
Gsuite has a lower price per user so can save your business a lot of money.
There are many tools available for migrating email platforms from one to another if you decide to switch.
Keep your business email and your personal email separate. In the event of a legal action, you do not want to hand over personal email for discovery.
Use your business email account for signing into as many accounts as possible. In the event an employee moves on you want to control all your business accounts. You don't' want a past employee signing into accounts related you're your business and customers.
Password Management
Having a password management system like LastPass will allow you to create and share complex passwords. When you are conducting business, you must keep your customers information protected.
It is a best practice to use a unique password for each account. When an application is hacked the hackers tend to release the information on the dark web. If you use the same password for stuff like your email or other accounts, they can easily be compromised
Phone System
IVR (Interactive Voice Recording) i.e.. Hello, thanking for calling Teky Support. If you know your party's extension, please enter it now. Press 1 for sales, 2 for accounting, 3 for the general voicemail.
A business should have a phone system setup. Having a business phone line will help keep business calls and personal calls separate.
You want your customers calling your business line and then being transferred to your employees, the last thing you want is your customers calling a past employee looking for support. That would be a recipe to give your customers away.
Using a sip solution like can be cost effective and give your many tools that are easily setup like call recording, call forwarding, as well as voicemail being emailed, lastly setting up automatic hours of service stops you from receiving calls after hours.
Call recording may feel like you are spying on your employees, but you must keep in mind they are speaking with your voice and auditing that they are doing so professionally with the correct information you want to relay to your customers is important. This is a great opportunity for creating training material and correcting employee's mistakes.
Using call forwarding you can have a customer call your number press an extension and have the call go to any mobile phone.
Voicemail is a great tool to help avoid missing important information from your customers. This will allow you to stay focused on what you are doing instead of answering every call.
Webpage
Building a website may seem difficult and expensive and complex but, it does not have to be.
Most sites start out as a template. Google webpage templates and look around. If you find something that fits your requirements. Start thinking about filling in the blanks, pictures, and wording. Take your time and get it right. Your website is your online salesperson. It must give all the information your customers need to pick you.
Google Adword is a tool you can use to drive customers to your business. When your customers google your product, you want them to find you. Google Adword is something that has you grow you should consider hiring someone or a firm to handle this for you. There are some complexities that if you make a mistake, you can waste your money.
CRM
Every business should have a CRM (Contact Record Management). When you only have a few customers keeping everything in order is easy, but as you grow thing can get out of hand quickly.
Keeping track of your products that are being sold will give your business insight on what products are selling well and what ones need some work.
With a good CRM you will be able to retarget your customers and ask for future business.
Having a CRM does not need to cost a ton of money, depending on what scale you are looking at there are many free options, IE Zoho or Suite CRM.
Social Media
Setting up a good social media environment can help your customers find you and read reviews about your business.
In the event you receive a bad review it is imperative that you respond respectfully even if they are not respectful of you. If someone is a jerk online other people will see. If you respond professionally your prospective clients will see that.
Social Media may also be another tool you consider hiring a firm to manage.
