hi,

complete newbie intends to set up a site to sell photos.

since i have very limited experience and knowledge on ecommerce + very limited budget, i intend to take advice from forums, start with open-source software and prepare to fall down and get back on my feet.

so... firstly... domain name?
i am based in the uk and my target customers will, for the moment, be from the uk. and i am inclined to buy a ".com". so,
1. can i go to a site not based in the uk to purchase a domain name? is this going to have any bad effect to the domain name?
2. lawrence mention server location somewhere at the forum, do i need to consider the server location or any other factor when consider buying a domain name?

thank you.

I think that if your targeted market is UK you should consider purchasing a co.uk domain. I'm saying this because the local top level domains are usually judged as more trustworthy. And yes, if I were you I would like to order a hosting plan which is provided from a UK webserver, because this is another factor when Google will calculate the geolocational results. Beside this advantage there is another aspect which can play role in the future and this is the support. If you order hosting from a company located in the USA you need to keep in mind that there is a huge time difference.
Good luck!

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thanks Bagi Zoltán.

a second issue is SSL certificates.

for a start-up e-commerce site, which one shall I use?

or to put it differently, what are the factors I should take into account when consider getting a SSL certificate?

thanks.

Get good recommended brand i.e.
Comodo or Geo Trust
I use
http://www.completessl.com/complete_ssl.php

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firstly, thanks dezina for your message and recommendation.

secondly, you mentioned "good and recommended brand". but i am confused. are SSL certificates like washing machines, some allow you to quick wash, some have delay timer, etc.?

or, put it another way, what does a good SSL certificate consist of?

you might have realised i am repeating the same question asked in my previous message. the reason is, i would like to learn more about good elements of good SSL certificates and compare different brands, though i may end up getting the one you've just recommended

thanks again.

SSL certs have different security levels.. more you pay,
higher the level.. one I recommended should be fine for
your needs...
EXAMPLE..when using Googlecheckout, you have to use
SSL cert acceptable to Google..
again, one I quoted is acceptable..
Seach Google for SSL Certificate levels.
You should find lots of info to explain your query.

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thanks dezina, will go and have a look and probably come back with more questions.

the subsequent question is on payment merchants. for example, paypal, worldpay, "verified by visa", etc.

my current impression is, each of this will charge you for your customers making payments to you through them.

do some of them make a monthly/annual charge and/or commission charge when a payment goes through them?

does any of them come with any SSL certificate?

does any of them allow your customers to pay using debit, credit, maestro, solo, visa electron or do you have to co-ordinate with visa for visa cards to be elegible for use on your site, paypal for people who want to pay using their paypal account, so on and so forth?

is there anything i need to know about certain SSL certificates and payment merchants, e.g. X payment merchant does not work with Y SSL certificate?

thank you.

If you use paypal you can still accept cards etc, I think paypal pro allows customers to do so without opening a paypal account but you will need to check this out and the fees and cost per transaction etc.
Worldpay will allow you to accept most major cards but you will need a merchant bank account, different than your business account. You can apply for one through worldpay but it is more expensive.You also wait on average 4 weeks for payments to hit your account.
I would start with payapl initially until you are up and running and apply for your merchant bank account. Shop around for the best deal though.

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thanks tinkerbell - especially with pointing out that merchant and business accounts are in fact different from each other - i will go exploring and probably back with more questions.

now, back to domain names.

there seems to be many many sites that offer one to register domain names. and i take it that as long as you register a valid and not-yet-used name with one, others will not be able to register the very same one anywhere else, is that right?

a second question here is, is the main difference between the sites that offer domain name registrations the price?

also, are there any "phishing sites" that claim to register domain names for you and yet only with the intention to take your card numbers and personal details?

lastly - for the moment - what are other things i should know when i want to register a domain name?

thank you.

Always use reputable registrar for domain names
i.e. co.uk - 123reg.co.uk, .com - namecheap.com

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