While the type of online home businesses varies to great degree, the best home businesses all have a few things in common. Here are ten basics of every successful home based internet business:

Good Website Design
If you are going to have a home based internet business, then you are going to need a website.  While there are some really good tools for helping you design a website yourself, a professional knows how to use purposeful design to draw your reader’s eye as well as map it properly for the highest level of visibility.

A Good Domain Name
Your website needs a name and URL that is as closely related to your business as possible – one that gives insight into what it is you are providing.  It should also be something fairly memorable – something people will easily associate with you.

A Reliable Web Host
There are a lot of factors that need to be taken into consideration when selecting which web host to go with.  Are the servers virtual or dedicated?  Will you be able to upgrade?  What is the bandwidth? Is there good customer service? To make the best and most informed choice, spend some time researching what makes a good web host and read through customer reviews before signing a contract.

Legal Issues Proactively Addressed
From the moment you decide to start a home based internet business you need to start paying attention to legal issues – registration, licensing, etc.  This will prevent any unforeseen difficulties in the future.

Provision for Secure Payment
A business is defined as an entity which exchanges goods and/or services for money.  Therefore, no matter what your online home business, you need to provide a secure and reliable way for your customers to pay you.

Effective Promotion
The best home businesses know how to promote themselves effectively.  The better the promotion, the more traffic that generated.

SEO Savvy Websites
Online home businesses depend on good use of SEO for visibility, but remember that when it comes to optimizing a site for rankings, the results achieved through a quality site far outweigh that achieved through SEO overkill.  When a site is organized and presented properly and includes quality copy, the SEO will come naturally.

Consistent Marketing
A good marketing strategy is imperative for the success of any home-based business.  If your (potential) customers cannot find you, then you will not be making any money.

Opt-in Lists
An opt-in list is a mailing list that requires your customers to actively agree to receive emails and news. When you are starting an online home business, having an opt-in list helps you develop a customer base.  Once the customer base is established, it will help you find new customers and help ensure old ones keep coming back.

Track Conversion Rates
The best home businesses have counters to tell them how many visitors their site receives as well as tools to show how many of those visitors are converted to sales.  With that information at hand, the site can then be tweaked to help improve the numbers.