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Where Do I Start Making Money and Where Does It Come From?
==> When Do I Start Making Money And Where Does It Come From?
I received an email during the week from a reader of a recent article
"The 10
Most Popular Myths About Running A Home-Based Business Online".
That article was, I admit, something of a vent which was long overdue
and it struck a chord with many readers who wrote in to let me know that
it described their experiences to a T.
One Internet-experienced reader wrote: "People
ask the most amazing questions, such as 'I put up a web site. When
do I start getting money and where does it come from?'"
Amazing but true. I kid you not, I get emails like this all the
time. They're what prompted the article in the first place. So,
in this article, rather than venting, I'll be a little more constructive
and actually answer the question: Just how exactly DO you make
money on the Internet?
1. The simplest - join an affiliate program (hell, join
LOTS of affiliate programs) and spend your time and money advertising
and promoting it to drive traffic to the you-beaut self replicating
website every other affiliate gets. A la Amazon.com.
This is a VERY inefficient way of trying to make money online.
And it will cost you a fortune before it yields a return. If it
ever really does. If you're VERY lucky, you MIGHT just cover your
costs.
(If you don't know what an affiliate program is, read "Affiliate
Programs ... A Not THAT Easy Start To Your Own Online Business"
at http://www.ahbbo.com/affiliateprograms.html.)
2. Create a content-based website, get traffic to it and
use it to promote your affiliate programs. The trick here is to
sign up for affiliate programs related to the subject matter you
choose for your website. The idea is that, by creating a content-based
website, you will attract targeted REPEAT traffic, thereby increasing
the odds that someone will buy one of your affiliate program products.
This is a MUCH better option than #1. and will save you a fortune
on advertising.
3. Create a content-based website, get traffic to it and
use it to sell your own products. Anything that can be delivered
digitally is a good bet - software, e-books etc.
4. Do #3. above and establish your OWN affiliate program
so other people can also sell your product in exchange for a commission.
Be sure to give them a you-beaut self-replicating website in case
they're following plan #1. Hey - just because it won't pan out for
them doesn't mean you still can't get the benefit of their hard
work. After all, if you have several hundred affiliates, that's
several hundred sales for you if each of them only makes one sale.
And best of all, your army of affiliates is each spending a fortune
on advertising so YOU don't have to! And just think what a valuable
learning experience all of this is for them. You went through it
so why not them, right? In fact, they'll probably end up THANKING
you one day!
(OK, I'm getting a LITTLE facetious here, I admit. Back to being constructive
...)
5. Create a content-based website, get traffic to it and
make your site visitors pay for access. You have to give them SOMETHING
for free, of course, but keep the goodies on the top shelf.
6. Publish an ezine (electronic newsletter) and when you get 1,000
subscribers, start charging for advertising.
7. Do #6. above and create a website "home" for your
ezine and include links to your affiliate programs/own products.
8. Do #7. above but make it a content-based site with stand-alone
value with the intention of converting website visitors to ezine
subscribers. Then revisit #6. Increase your advertising prices as
your subscriber numbers increase.
9. If you have some special skill or training that you are
employing in an existing business, create a website as a brochure
for your services and attract business.
10. Do #9. above but make it a content-based website with
the intention of converting site visitors into clients.
11. Join a network marketing company, create a content-
based website to attract qualified leads and then link to your network
marketing company's website.
12. Do #2. through #6., #8. and #11.. ALL of them. At the same
time.
These are several of the main ways of making money on the Internet.
I'm sure I'll receive mail letting me know of other obvious methods
that I've overlooked. But you get the idea. Note that not a one
of them involves slapping up a website and then sitting back waiting
for $20 bills to spew forth from the CD-ROM drive. ALL of them require
hard work in order to yield a return so, if you're one of the growing
army determined to "make money with your computer", decide
how you're going to go about it, roll up your sleeves and prepare
to work.
© 2002 Elena Fawkner
Elena Fawkner is editor of A Home-Based Business Online ... practical business
ideas for the work-from-home entrepreneur. http://www.ahbbo.com
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