My name's Phillip Beningoso. I'm an investment professional, and I'm going to be discussing
how to open an online brokerage account. Now, the Internet today makes it very, very easy
to purchase stocks and open an online brokerage account. It's one of the main benefits of
the Internet. Let me take you through a few steps that can make this process of opening
up account at an online brokerage firm easier for you. Step one is to decide what your individual
financial needs are and how much information about stocks do you need. At an online firm
they're not going to provide much service to you, but they are going to have all that
service that you can pull from their website, such as research, and the research is is very
good at the online services today. They have many companies that provide that research,
and when you open up an account you get access to it for free. Two, decide which online broker
is best for your basic needs. You can visit a variety of different websites that can rank
these brokerage firms for you. Four great firms today are TD Ameritrade, E-Trade, Charles
Schwabb, and Scott Trade. They're inexpensive, they're SIPC insured, and they carry a wide
range of securities, and they're very simple. They have fast websites that can make it very
easy for you to purchase and sell securities. Three, is decide how much money that you want
to put inside of your new account. Again, that all depends on your needs and how much
money you have so that's an individualized question. Four, is to complete an account
application at that brokerage firm. Most of this can be done online, but again, most of
the firms require that you fill out an application and at least mail it in so they have a hard
copy with your original signature on it. Any information provided here is for general informational
purposes only and should not be considered an individualized recommendation or personalized
investment advice. Any investments or strategies mentioned here may not be suitable for everyone.
My name is Phillip Beningoso, and I'm an investment professional.