How can I make money on the Internet? Good question!
Monday, September 29, 2008
Just last week my brother asked me how he could make money on the Internet. My answer was this: There's lots of ways to make money on the Internet, and there's even more ways to LOSE money on the Internet.
Scam artists are just waiting for you
That's because there are so many scam artists just waiting for inexperienced people to respond to their "make money fast" schemes. These scam artists are very, very good at persuading unsuspecting folks to sign up for their program. And because it's so cheap to set up a website, the scam artists can have very convincing looking websites that make them look more legitimate than they are.
Internet business requires high attention to detail
The other thing that I told my brother is that all Internet businesses require a lot of work before they start making money, and a lot of attention to detail to maintain that success.
ATTENTION TO DETAIL - something that my brother and I both know is not his strength.
My brother's an idea person, a big picture thinker. Details bore him. At the very least, my brother would need to learn how to outsource (hire other people) the detail work. And for him, even doing that would require too much attention to detail.
Are you suited to an Internet business?
If you are the type of person who lets mail pile up, or can't be bothered to check bank statements to make sure all the charges are accurate, and if the idea of analyzing statistics makes your eyes glaze over...then an Internet business probably isn't for you.
Because by definition an Internet business requires paying attention to details.
Think about it - what is the Internet? It's all about information. So if you're going to have an Internet business you're going to be dealing with information - lots of it.
And you'll need to turn into a bit of a computer nerd
You're going to need to learn at least the basics of html (that's the gobbleygook code that makes up webpages), search engine optimization (that's how to get your websites ranking high in Google), and social media (that's stuff like Facebook and Twitter).
But the good news is that if you do have good attention to detail, and if you're willing to put in long hours over a period of a year or more to learn the ropes, you can start an Internet business with relatively little money (compared to a bricks and mortar business).
It doesn't take a lot of money to start up, but it's not a get rich quick thing
Wendy Peirsall from Sparkplug.com says that although anyone CAN make money online, not everyone WILL make money online, because making money on the internet takes a long time to learn, and most people give up because it can be extremely frustrating.
So, where do you start? Wendy gives these pointers:
- Pre-packaged programs only work as much as you can customize it and make it unique and your own. Even then, techniques that work for one niche won't work in all niches.
- Be wary of any "system" that promises instant results (especially anything that sounds like a get-rich-quick scheme!)
- Knowing the basics of html, SEO (Search Engine Optimization), social media, and traditional marketing and sales are a must.
- Every business is made stronger by specializing in a tight niche. Know your audience and stick to it.
