The Virtual Woman: A Woman's
Weekly Guide To Cyberspace
Small Business Big Online
Launching a small business, as some of us have experienced, is no small feat. And recently, whether or not it's because of the media coverage of all the start-up company success stories, questions from Virtual Woman readers have been pouring in. If you've had questions about being your own boss or charting a new career path, read on. Your questions just might be answered. If not, write to me. As any of you who know me, I live to hear my email box ping!
Dear Virtual Woman:
After having my daughter
and attempting to go back to work full-time, I've
become incredibly frazzled. It's gotten to where I want to start researching
for the best work-at-home opportunities, but where to begin? Is there a site
out there that could point me in the right direction?
- Caroline M., Mill Valley, CA
Dear Caroline:
Juggling a newborn baby and a career can be tough, and when you're stressed it's like juggling with one hand behind your back. Solution? Bizymoms.com (http://www.bizymoms.com/). Seemingly a sparse web site, Bizymoms.com has a few pearls of wisdom every working mom could use-from work-at-home-moms to women who are trying to weave family and career together. Once on the site, scroll down to the bottom and click on the link "ideas and opportunities." There are over 250 ideas to get you started on a possible career to start from home. Good luck!
Dear Virtual Woman:
I have had little success
winning bids from the Federal government, and I'm
beginning to feel paranoid like there is a good old boys network set-up
keeping me out. Where can I learn more about procurement and how to get
in-the-know to start winning bids?
- Beth Arnesson, Washington, DC
Dear Beth:
The Online Women's Business Center, one of my favorite resources (http://www.onlinewbc.org) is the perfect place to start. At the center's homepage, click on the "Procurement Place" icon in the left column. You'll be taken to an article that addresses women businesses and the Federal government, "only 2% of those contracts are awarded to women-owned businesses." More importantly, this article leads to tips and tools you can use to successfully compete in the federal marketplace.
Dear Virtual Woman:
Just when my small business has grown
from one (me) to four people, in an actual office (not my basement) the countdown to
Y2k has me worried. How do I know if my day-to-day business will be impacted by the
Y2k bug?
- Eve R., Middlebury, VT
Dear Eve:
Congratulations on expanding your business! Now how to protect it from the Year 2000 computer bug: go to Y2k Women (http://www.Y2kwomen.com) to prepare yourself and your computers for the turn of the century glitches. The site is dedicated solely to the issues surrounding Y2k, and it provides a plethora of information to help you tackle it. You may also want to check out ThirdAge's piece on Y2k (http://www.thirdage.com/tech/y2k.html) It's brief, to the point, and really enables you to get your hands around the potential problems of the Y2Kcomputer bug fast and easily.
Dear Virtual Woman:
I make my own candles,
and for the past five years I've been peddling them
to various distributors, but with the evolution of the web, I want to start
selling online. Before I launch into creating a new web site, I want to
find out about e-commerce mainly to nail down the basics. Where should I go?
- Cynthia, Raleigh, NC
Dear Cynthia:
Try SmallOffice.com (http://www.smalloffice.com) Click on the "Sales & Marketing" link in the left column, then select the "ABC's of E-Commerce" article. This article gives an excellent overview of e-commerce and links to take you to other helpful resources.
Happy Surfing!
Find these links and more at WWWomen.Com (http://www.wwwomen.com) the web's largest search directory of topics for women online. Email the Virtual Woman with your Internet questions or send snailmail to: WWWomen.Com, Attn: Virtual Woman, 3701 Geary Blvd., #325, S.F., CA 94118. Copyright, 1998. WWWomen, Inc. All rights reserved.
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