We have briefly reviewed the three phases of starting a home-based, Internet business. Now let’s see if we can make the process easier.

The first thing to be clear about, is that when we talk about an Internet business, we’re talking about Internet marketing. It does not matter what industry you’re in, because no one makes money unless they are able to convince people to buy what they’re selling.

It makes no difference whether you are Joe and Mary Smith who work out of their spare bed room, or whether you are Amazon, Ebay, Google, or Yahoo! Your job is to deliver a message to a group of people - “Use this product or Service…”

So, you are a marketer. Wrap your mind around this, get used to it, and let’s start moving forward. There is a learning curve involved here. That means that you will need to struggle a bit, “learn the ropes” and develop an understanding of what an Internet marketing business is all about.

It does not matter what you hope to sell. Your first job is to build an audience. There are a few different ways to do this. We will get into those in later posts, but right now we’ll simply stick to the “big picture.”

Without an audience, you are not able to deliver a message about a product or service. That means that you can invest a lot of time, money and effort in developing or acquiring products and services, and still not have a business!

On the other hand, if you have an audience but no product or service you still have a viable business. Once you have an audience, you can sell marketing messages from other marketers. The most common example of this are all those little advertisements you find on web sites.

Many web sites have a large audience, but offer no product or service of their own. To generate revenue, they sell advertising to other marketers who either lack an audience or who want to expand beyond their current audience.

The first step to building a successful online business is developing an interested and responsive audience. Forget about all of the gimmicks being sold in e-books, because those are largely designed to help others build their audience. As you develop your business plan, focus your initial efforts upon building a responsive audience.

We will begin discussing different methods of doing this in later posts.

-Chris

September 10th, 2007 by Chris | No Comments »

I correspond with many people who tell me that they want to start an Internet business from home.  Most of those folks have no real intention of starting a business, however.

From experience, I find that there are three basic stages when it comes to home-based-Internet businesses.  These stages are a natural progression that starts with curiosity and ends with a plan.

Stage One: Investigating The Possibilities 

The first stage is investigative.  You do not yet really know much about making money on the Internet, but you are curious about the possibilities.  Perhaps you have heard the myths about automated profit machines churning out cash while you sleep, or you like the idea of commuting to work in your slippers with your cup of coffee in hand.

The bottom line is that you are considering the possibilities of starting an online business and are now taking those steps necessary to learn more about what is involved.  You are likely spending a fair amount of time visiting web sites, reading e-books, and you may even purchase a course that promises to teach you the “secrets” of a successful online business.

You are vulnerable during this stage, because the Internet is still a mystery to you and you do not yet have the ability to spot the scam artists or recognize real opportunity when it presents itself.  This is the time when many online marketers are eager to get their message in front of you, because they thrive on seducing the novice would-be marketer.

Stage Two: Tinkering With The Possibilities

You have read a few e-books and subscribed to a membership site or two, and you are now ready to “jump in” and make some cash.  You might try selling affiliate products on Google Adwords, writing articles for others to publish, or participating in any of the thousands of “business opportunities” marketed on the Internet.

Here is a dirty little secret.  Most of the material out there teaches you how to build some body else’s business.

It is a real neat trick.  You simply write an e-book about how to make thousands selling affiliate products, teaching your readers a step-by-step process to marketing that very same e-book.  They spend their time  and their money marketing your product and building your business.

The unfortunate reality is that most people do not progress beyond here.  Most fail to turn a profit and eventually become discouraged.

Stage Three: Running Your Own Business

The third stage, the one most do not reach,  finds you focused on building your own business.  You may still market affiliate products or participate in a network marketing program, but your eye is focused on the goal of building your own business and not simply on delivering customers to others.

Those who succeed here tend to be disciplined, tend to have well defined plans, and typically commit those plans to writing.  They have probably been scammed once or twice, but they have persisted in their efforts and have achieved profitability.

Hopefully, I will be able to offer you some guidance as this blog develops and help you avoid some of the traps that await you.

To your success!

-Chris

September 9th, 2007 by Chris | No Comments »

Yesterday I shared how I got my start with Internet marketing. My “day job” at that time, and still today, is practicing law in Southern California.

Once I realized that Internet marketing was going to be a part of my life for the foreseeable future, I decided that it was important for me to “hit the books” and figure out what legal mine fields lay out there for me. With a little work and a bit of luck, I hoped to avoid unnecessary liabilities.

As I learned more about about Internet law, I became surprised at home many web sites and other online marketing materials were actually violating U.S. law. Granted, a lot of those “little guys” will never suffer any real penalty for their ignorance and laziness. However, if you’re serious about this business, it makes sense to learn how to play by the rules.

So, here’s the deal…

I am hoping to not only share my Internet marketing insights with you. I would also like to help you learn how to run an Internet business that is on solid ground both ethically and legally.

Let’s be a bit smarter, a bit more savvy, and build a profit machine that will feed us for a very long time to come.

To your success!

Christopher Smith, B.B.A, J.D.

September 4th, 2007 by Chris | No Comments »