Starting an ISP Company

The business of providing Internet connections to paying customers as an Internet Service Provider (ISP) can be lucrative if done with care and planning. According to a 2006 study by the Pew Internet & American Life Project, 73 percent of Americans use the Internet regularly. This step-by-step tutorial will help give you the basics to get your own ISP company online with ease.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Servers
• Routers
• Modems
• Cables
• Physical location for the business
• Starting capital
• Buisness banking accounts
• Telephone access
• Personal Internet access for initial research
• Domain name (URL)

1. Decide whether your business is appropriate for your geographic area. These days, with the availability of high-speed Internet from phone and cable providers, you may have trouble getting your foot into customer's doors. Unless you live in an area underserved by high-speed providers or are catering to a very specific niche of Internet users, you may have trouble keeping your virtual doors open.

2. Get your business ready. Register with the federal government, your state, and if applicable, your city/county for any licenses and employer ID numbers. Register the domain you will use---as a business providing online services, your website will be an essential piece of starting your business. Establish a business banking account, and if possible, a business merchant account that will allow you to accept credit card and account draft payments.

3. Acquire your billing software. There are numerous out-of-the-box solutions designed specifically for ISPs that are affordable and will make invoicing easy and profitable. Regardless of which product you choose, you will want to be able to track your accounts receivable, accounts payable, invoices, customers, usage, overages and checking register.

4. Find your "backbone" provider. They provide connections between your location and the Internet (your "local loop"). They usually charge a set-up fee and a monthly fee, and the charge will depend of how many T1s worth of Internet access you feed to your customers. Shop around for the best prices among backbone resellers and distributors.

5. Buy your servers, routers and network. Your servers are where all the "magic" that you sell to customers happens (DNS--domain name system, email, Web access). There are several brands and platforms that you can use, so research them well.

6. Choose your physical location well. Security is one of the hottest words on the Web, and it related to the security of the servers that handle customers' information as well. You want to pick a location that you can afford, of course, but choose the most secure location over any other factor.

7. Join the national groups for ISPs (see Resources below) and network with other ISP owners. It's a great way to find out more about upcoming trends and legal issues, and to gain customer leads.

8. Market and advertise.

Tips & Warnings

• If you are not a skilled Web designer or developer, consider hiring one to create your website. Having a clean, professional looking website is key to attracting new customers, who are not only buying your Internet services, but a sense of expertise with the Web. When you are starting out, use a backbone provider that will include Usenet feeds via NNRP (Network News Relay Protocol) as part of its package. Not having to run your own Usenet servers in the beginning will save you a lot of money and hassle.

Resources

• Sample ISP business plan
• the Wireless Internet Service Providers Association
• U.S. Internet Provider Association

Who Can Help Sponsored

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