Opening an account with our service doesn't require much more than filling out an application form. You fill it in online and pay in a minimum sum of, say, £100 via a debit or credit card.

You may already have an account that you'd like to transfer from a full-service broker or an offline bank. There's likely to be a simple transfer form you can fill in to do this.

When you're buying or selling a shares you'll usually be asked to identify it by keying in its EPIC code (a unique two-, three- or four-letter code for each listed company).

Don't worry if you don't know the EPIC for the company you want to deal in. There will be a lookup facility where you can type in the company name that will return the nearest matches. If in doubt as to which one is correct, it's best to speak to your broker.

You will then usually be asked if you want to buy either a particular number of shares, or a particular monetary value of shares. You'll get a price quote, at which point you'll have 15-30 seconds (the most exciting bit of online trading!) to make up your mind whether to buy or sell. If you go for it, then you will receive confirmation of your order seconds later -- at which point you press PRINT! Always make sure you get yourself a hard copy of your transaction in case of dispute later. You will be sent a contract note confirming the details of the transaction.

You can, if you wish, set a limit price. This means you can specify a set price above which you will not pay, if you're buying shares, or below which you will not accept, if you're selling. The Motley Fool Share Dealing Service offers this via Tradeplan. This charges £2 every time you set a limit price, but if the shares are eventually bought or sold, £2 is taken off the commission for that transaction.

Whether you specify the use of Tradeplan or not, the service is obliged to find you the best price possible for your transaction that is available at that time.

It is also worth considering the time of day at which you deal. The London market is open from 8am to 4:30pm but, if you're just starting out, it's safer to deal between 9am and 4pm. Outside of this time slot, the volume of trading going on can be rather low. This means that the spread between the price at which you can buy and sell shares will tend to be wider, so it may cost you more to buy a share. Prices can also be volatile around this time, especially in the case of smaller companies.

Finally, it is obviously extremely important to key in the correct information! Once you've confirmed your deal you don't have a cooling off period in which you can cancel without cost. So take extra care and make sure your trade is correct before you push the 'Buy' or 'Sell' button.

Next article: Safe And Secure Share Dealing