Demo Accounts

• Many brokers allow you to trade using a demo account before investing real money. This is very helpful if you are a beginning investor as it allows you to become acquainted with the process of investing without risking money. These demo accounts follow real market prices and record your positions, profits and losses just as a real account would.
  
  

Automated Trading

• Some trading platforms allow you to implement automated trading strategies. To create an automated strategy, specify buying and selling criteria and then backtest the strategy on historical price data. While a good backtesting result does not guarantee future success, it indicates a potentially profitable automated strategy.
  
  

24-Hour Trading

• With the advent of online investing and trading, many electronic markets trade around the clock. The Chicago Mercantile Exchange's Globex platform offers 23-hour a day trading on many different futures contracts. Also, the Forex market trades continuously throughout the week, opening at 10 PM GMT on Sunday and closing at 10 GMT on Friday.
  
  

Mobile Access

• Many brokers make online investing even easier by offering mobile trading access. Through mobile access, you can trade the markets on your mobile phone. This is useful if you are constantly on the go, but still wish to invest on a daily basis.