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Learning How to Make Money Online

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When you begin learning how to make money online you must first have goal. Without a clear goal in mind you will find it difficult to set targets, and without targets you will find it more difficult to make money. That is why all businesses have a gaol and set regular targets that are the subject of business plans.

It has often been said that a failure to plan is a plan to failure, and nothing could be truer. As a simple goal, decide how much money you want to make in your first year. You could be silly and decide on a million dollars, but you are unlikely to achieve that, so be realistic: say $75,000 in your first year.

You can then break that down into monthly amounts, starting small and increasing each month, which will give you the basis of your targets. You should then plan how to meet these monthly targets. That is a good sound basis of a strong business.

However, you now have the problem of how you are going to make that money. There is a large number of ways in which you can make money online, some of the most popular being|:

1. Creating your own product or service.

Perhaps you have a skill or specialized knowledge that others will pay for. You might be a children’s entertainer or a hypnotherapist. Perhaps you can write en eBook about breeding dogs, or make a video series on maintaining your own car.

I know of one person that made a fortune by making series of short videos of how to carry out simple household maintenance tasks, such as changing an electrical plug, changing a tap or faucet washer, and even putting in a new sink and laying a carpet. A simple idea, yet something that had a massive customer base. Think of all those women living alone, or even guys that don’t know why a screwdriver has a flat end.

Think of what you are good at, or what you have knowledge of, and work out a way of packaging that knowledge or these skills in a way that would sell. I am a good writer, and make money online writing articles to help others to promote their websites.

2. Sell somebody else’s product

If you are unable to produce a product of your own, then sell somebody else’s. Everybody trying to learn how to make money online has heard of affiliate marketing, even if they don’t recognise the word. Affiliate marketing is selling a product for somebody else in return for a commission.

If that product can be delivered electronically - by email or downloaded - then that commission could be 50% or higher, since there is no replacement cost. Unlike a tub of vitamins, an eBook or software application doesn’t have to be produced again once it has been sold, so the vast majority of the selling price is profit. You can therefore be paid more for selling it. 50% is about minimum for such items, and some go as high as 75% or even 80%.

3. Others

Among other ways of making money online are multi-level marketing (MLM), where you recruit others to sell products for you, you receiving a commission on their sales, buying on eBay, and selling the same items for more than you paid for them, buying items in bulk when they are in high supply, and selling at a high price when they are scarce (e.g. certain toys at Christmas time), and many others.

Each of these ways of making money online has one thing in common: you have to learn how to go about it and how to promote whatever it is that you are doing. Even your eBay business has to be promoted by means of your ‘product description’.

Most businesses need a web presence, either as a traditional website or some other presence on the web such as a Squidoo lens or participation in social networking. They might also need software, and knowledge of how to use it, and knowledge of how to attract traffic - potential customers. Without customers, your business will fail.

This is where most people begin to fail. In fact 99 people out of every 100 that try to earn a living online fail. They fail for one of 4 reasons:

1. Lack of Planning

They did not have a clear objective in mind and did not plan properly. The started their business on shaky ground and looked on it as a hobby. They fell into one of the main traps of working at home: worked part-time, and took time off whenever they felt like it rather than set out the daily tasks needed to meet their targets and work until they were completed.

2. Lack of focus: Information Overload

They did not focus, and jumped from one program to another. They had too much information, and were unable to give any one method of making money online the time to work for them. They tried too much at one time and so failed in everything.

3. Lack of Perseverance

They gave up to soon. It takes time to build up a successful online business. Except for a very fortunate few, there is no ‘get rich quick scheme’. Making money online is hard work, and those that persevere tend to succeed. Most don’t!

4. Lack of Knowledge

This is the least reason for failure. There is no need for lack of knowledge in the internet age - everything you need to know is out there, yet many people try to do it themselves without getting the information they need. Learn from the work of others: do not reinvent the wheel. Trite, I know, but true nevertheless.

Use whatever training courses are available out there. It could be expensive, I know, but there are ways to learn all you need to know without spending a lot of money.

It is important that you do not fail for any one of the above reasons because they are all avoidable. It is a shame that so many dreams are shattered for a lack of planning, focus, commitment and perseverance, and a lack of knowledge. All are avoidable.

Stretching the Marketing Budget: Social Networking

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Warp speed marketing. It may not be of Star Trek impact but there’s been a shift occurring in consumer behaviour that has been driven by the massive adoption of broadband over the past three years. We’re an “always on” consumer society a fact which has, in turn, dramatically increased the presence and use of social networks.

No coach, therapist or consultant would be unaware of the degree to which social network have completely changed the way people communicate and keep in touch. It would be natural therefore to make them part of their professional lives. Indeed there is a good case for using social networks pro actively as a means of enhancing business. They can be a valuable marketing tool as marketing budgets come under pressure due to weak economic conditions.

This “always on” capacity means that existing and prospective clients are using the internet today as their preferred research and information sourcing tool - and for social networking.

Check your own behaviour: what is the first thing you do when someone tells you about a new show that’s coming to town? Want to go and see Leonard Cohen in concert: Google “Leonard Cohen in New York”? It’s that simple and it’s that obvious. And if you went to the concert and enjoyed it, you’re going to tell your social networks about it.

If you are not moving toward a more transparent relationship with clients, and a more outward marketing focus then you are not changing with the times and will be left behind.

In the personal development industry, more and more professionals today are making at least token efforts, adopting the latest in Social Networks in order to be seen to be a contemporary, relevant and a vital resource.

Stretching the marketing budget

Due to the current economy, there are clear restraints on marketing budgets, so free social marketing is a great alternative. Coaches, therapists, consultants are presented with a strong case to get involved in social sites like LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube.

This should not be a knee-jerk reaction - “I must get into social networking! What do you want to get out of these efforts? Set specific goals and strategize. Is it to increase business by a specific number of clients? Increase visibility? Sell more products or services?

1. A professional should at least be involved in the largest social networks, belong to forums and have at least one blog. Each of these internet strategies is a way of positioning yourself and your business to the world. For the strident, innovative marketer there is the opportunity to create a video, or indeed multiple videos that are subject matter driven. The social network site should also respond to questions or problems or start a discussion.
2. You also need a profile page on Facebook. It will tell readers about your business, the people and its product and services. If people join your Facebook group, there should be an expectation that they will spread the word virally through that person’s newsfeed.

Your website is a brochure to the world; this is an expansion of it. The principles are the same: people Google for information or people log on to your website. The Facebook network is another network, more social in origin but, increasingly an important business communications medium.

The time challenge

“It’s not easy being popular,” said one GenY fashion designer referring to the 300-plus names he has listed as ‘friends’ on FaceBook. For a professional; it can be just another item on the ‘to do’ list. You put all those (social network) icons on your email, your website, displaying; advertising the fact that you’re a member and inviting a click or two. But here’s the challenge: readers have a high expectation that sites will be refreshed and updated often and on a regular basis.

Some professionals simply will not have time for this, yet the responsibility is overwhelming, so someone needs to do this. Answer? Delegate or get a VA (virtual assistant) the newest ‘resource’ for busy professionals. This employee needs to be a content producer, presenting current data, information, or video for weekly visitors to the site. There needs to be meaningful content put forward.

And here’s why it matters:

* MySpace has over 185 million users, split evenly between men and women 14 to 34 years old. Twenty-five percent of them are in the U.S.
* FaceBook has over 110 million readers, more women than men. The majority of these users–80 percent–are under 30 years old and half of all FaceBookers are located in the U.S., Great Britain and Canada.

LinkedIn users have an average age of 41, and 26 million readers. Men make up 64 percent of the audience. Their average household income is $109,000. Twitter has 3 million readers, two-thirds of whom are men 18 to 34 years old.
December 2009
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