The first thing a newbie needs to understand about IM.

[GreyWolf]

A lot of people get into Internet Marketing because they've seen some sales page saying how easy it is. Often they're people attracted by the 'Get Rich Quick' idea. Once they read whats involved and maybe even give it a quick try, they decide the whole thing is a scam and give up.

You may or may not be one of those people, but either way it's worth letting you know that Internet Marketing can be easy, it can be quick, and you can get rich. But it isn't easy in the sense we think of as a 'Get Rich Quick' scheme. For some people it may be quick, for others it may take a while. For some it may be easy, for others it may take more work. For some they may get rich, for others they may just make some extra money. But whatever you're particular experiences may turn out to be, it definitely isn't a scam.

Internet Marketing is essentially nothing more than a sales profession. Getting involved in IM is basically the same thing as if you were to get involved in selling new or used cars, or you got a retail job selling furniture or appliances, or you become an insurance agent. That's true whether you want to buy or make your own products to sell, or you want to sell other peoples products to make a commission. The latter method in internet marketing is called Affiliate Marketing. Affiliate Marketing is the same thing as an Independent Sales Agent. The door to door salesman that comes to your home to sell you insurance, is nothing more than an affiliate marketer for the insurance companies.

Since Internet Marketing is sales profession, being successful follows the same rules. You have to prospect for customers, present information to customers, close the sale, and then you'll be paid.

If you get a sales job in any company the main point they teach you is that sales is a numbers game. That's just how it works. If you find one good prospect, present your information, you might still be unable to close the sale. If at that point you decide it's a scam and quit, then you'll never succeed. You have to keep finding more prospects. If you find 10 prospects, present your information, then your chances of closing the sale are much improved. If you find a hundred, your chances are even better. If you find a thousand then the chances are almost certain.

So no, Internet Marketing is not a scam. but it's also not a 'Get Rich Quick' scheme. It follows the rules of any sales profession and if you remember that then you'll have a much better chance of success.

If you've been trying and still aren't making money then you're either not presenting the information right for the offer your pushing, or you're not getting enough of the right people to your offer. So just as any other salesman would do you need to refine your process. Internet marketing works, it's been proven to work. As I said it's a numbers game. For every offer the number may be different, but as soon as you reach that right number then you'll have some success.

As long as you continue working at it then you have a chance to succeed. The only way to fail is to give up before reaching your goals.

 

[destiny0awaits]

I actually believed in these get rich quick schemes before. Lost some money on ebooks (most of which were with the same content, simply rewritten and given a different name), and a lot of time waiting to earn something decent from adsense. However i guess this experience did help me set up a few blogs that now have decent PRs.
So if you are looking for a shortcut to success there is only one: Hard work.

 

[Neo240]

DUDE YOU ROCK. Are you a philosopher or do you write books? Presenting information in a digestive way is a definitive trait of your posts.

 

[Aesthetics]

Good read. You absolutely need to know this if you want to succeed in this industrry.

Greywolf for president!

 

[GreyWolf]

I actually believed in these get rich quick schemes before. Lost some money on ebooks (most of which were with the same content, simply rewritten and given a different name), and a lot of time waiting to earn something decent from adsense. However i guess this experience did help me set up a few blogs that now have decent PRs.
So if you are looking for a shortcut to success there is only one: Hard work.

Most ebooks are sold with a hyped up 'get rich quick' sales page. People buy one, they don't get rich. Buy another one, still don't get rich. Keep buying them over and over, bitching every time that they all really just say the same thing. Then they decide it all must be a scam.

What they don't get is they're so concerned about finding a way to get rich quick, they aren't bothering to follow the instructions that are basically the same in all those books. The reason it seems like they all say the same thing is because they're all telling you how to do something that works.

The ones that are actually making money online are the ones doing all that stuff that's the same in all those books instead of looking for an easier way.

One of these days I'll finish my own ebook. You know what will be in it? The same thing in pretty much every other ebook out there. Why? Because what is said in those books is what works. Every author tries to explain it in their own way to make it easier to understand, but it all still boils down to the same thing no matter how many different ways you twist it.

Choose a product or offer to promote and niche to target (or vise versa).
Choose a way to present your information (website, article directories, etc.)
Get prospects (properly targeted visitors) to your presentatipn (SEO, PPC, email, or whatever)
Get enough prospects (traffic) and you'll make some sales.

Go back and read through almost any of those ebooks you bought in the past. Try to understand what they are actually explaining, and then actually follow through on it. There's a reason why they're all explaining basically the same thing. The part they're explaining that's always the same, is exactly what most affiliates are doing to make money. But to make what they're telling you to do work, you actually have to do the work.

When doing so, just disregard the hype they used to sell their book to you, and remember instead the point made in my original post. Affiliate marketing is a sales job. To make it work you have to keep at it. It's all a numbers game, you probably won't make sales on your first try. But keep at it, refine what your doing, and eventually you probably will. For some people it might happen right away, for others it will take longer, but treat it as a profession and eventually you can succeed.

 

[destiny0awaits]

Most ebooks are sold with a hyped up 'get rich quick' sales page. People buy one, they don't get rich. Buy another one, still don't get rich. Keep buying them over and over, bitching every time that they all really just say the same thing. Then they decide it all must be a scam.

What they don't get is they're so concerned about finding a way to get rich quick, they aren't bothering to follow the instructions that are basically the same in all those books. The reason it seems like they all say the same thing is because they're all telling you how to do something that works.

The ones that are actually making money online are the ones doing all that stuff that's the same in all those books instead of looking for an easier way.

One of these days I'll finish my own ebook. You know what will be in it? The same thing in pretty much every other ebook out there. Why? Because what is said in those books is what works. Every author tries to explain it in their own way to make it easier to understand, but it all still boils down to the same thing no matter how many different ways you twist it.

Choose a product to promote and niche to target (or vise versa).
Choose a way to provide your information (website, article directories, etc.)
Get prospects to your see your information (SEO, PPC, email, or whatever)
Review or presell to get better conversions. (articles, email, or whatever)
Collect your money.

Go back and read through almost any of those ebooks you bought in the past. Try to understand what they are actually explaining, and then actually follow through on it. There's a reason why they're all explaining basically the same thing. The part they're explaining that's always the same, is exactly what most affiliates are doing to make money. But to make what they're telling you to do work, you actually have to do the work.

When doing so, just disregard the hype they used to sell their book to you, and remember instead the point made in my original post. Affiliate marketing is a sales job. To make it work you have to keep at it. It's all a numbers game, you probably won't make sales on your first try.

I am not saying that these ebooks were useless. As i said, thanks to them i now have a decent experience. But they were promising to earn $500 during the first week, which was obviously a scam, to me at least. Honestly, i didn't expect to earn that much, but i did expect a decent earning.

Thankfully, while working as a freelancer i met someone that guided me properly and i now own my own small online company. I am still kind of a newb but to me that was a huge step considering that i only started working online 18 months ago and i now have 7 people working under me.

 

[atif4ever]

hats off mate..

you give such a nice and mature tips..

i am new here,so it helps me a lot

 

[NapsteR]

Most ebooks are sold with a hyped up 'get rich quick' sales page. People buy one, they don't get rich.

Couldnt agree more on this. When I first searched about IM all found was just ebooks saying earn $2000 daily in overnight...

I thought it was impossible and left them. Some of the products were actually good. But they oversold it with catch phrases.

 

[Nexusx2]

Great read, thanks for sharing this. Starting IM has a big learning curve and there is a lot of research involved. Even before promoting an offer.

 

[GreyWolf]

... they were promising to earn $500 during the first week, which was obviously a scam, to me at least...

Yeah, that was why I made the thread. Books like that are usually overhyped. It isn't really a scam though, because the method they're explaining really is how to make money online. The problem is the sales page gives unrealistic expectations and so people get discouraged and don't follow through. Most likely someone really can make $500 per week, but for most that isn't going to happen the first week.

Same thing happens in the media. Watch an infomercial for a making money program and they hype it up as well. In the case of television though it's regulated by the FCC and so you'll see those disclaimers scrolling along the bottom of the screen that say things like "these earnings are possible but not typical".

Even if you're looking for an offline job you might answer a job ad for a commission based sales position. They'll usually post a pretty decent annual salary for the position, but unless your a seasoned sales professional you probably won't make that much yourself. If you're in the USA you can go find your local Kirby Vacuum dealer and they'll usually hire just about anyone on the spot as long as you have a car. They'll tell you that you can easily make a $1000/week. What they don't tell you is you'll have to go do sales demonstrations every day and most likely you won't even make a single sale for your first week or so. For most people they end up spending more on gas than what they ever make because they just give up. Of the ones that don't give up right away, most never reach that $1000 a week mark even after a few months and so eventually they give up as well. But it isn't really a scam. There are people that make $1000 a week and even more, but it isn't a guarantee and most people that try it don't make it.

I agree with you though it would be better if they didn't hype it up so much. Just let you know upfront that you can make money, but how much will be different for everyone. In other words 'don't quit your day job' yet. lol

If they did that they wouldn't make as many sales though, so don't expect to see the hype go away from sales pages anytime soon.

 

[itsmekapz]

Thanks dude! I was about to give up the thing. Now I will think again

 

[elcorillord]

Excellent post, I think I'm going to reconsider IM

 

[Georgi]

Good reading for the newbies ..

 

[beazt]

Excellent post as always. I think another reason why people fail so often is that they try their hand on methods which does not suits there personality type. When you are in the IM game for the long run, it is important to find a method which not only makes you money, but also makes you happy doing it.

I have personally left and moved on from methods which were making me good money, but I just not liked doing them and it felt like too much labor.

 

[alendj]

they are selling you the dream... i agree that many people wouldn't give up so quickly if the sales pages was actually realistic with earnings, but who would buy money making guide that actually requires you to work, and expect your first 50-100$ in a month or two...
just like in every sale you have to point out good things otherwise you're losing customers. anyone with at least some useful brain should know that nothing is pink in this world and especially online world, but if you keep looking for negatives you will always find them and you're doomed to fail in everything.

 

[knowledgeblast]

Nice read, this will help a newbie avoid many pitfalls if they take the time to read it and take action.

Nice going.

 

[Avid Learner]

Very good post, particularly for noobs who have not been "around the block" IRL, and so don't "smell a rat".

What you do here (and on other posts) is cut through the bs and give people a realistic picture - that can only be good, hopefully saving many from wasting time and money.

Respectfully, though, we have different definitions of "scam". If someone promises (and heavily emphasizes) certain results, but the average joe buyer won't ever achieve the results (even after a solid "college try"), then it is beyond simple hype and is a scam in my books.

Just because some of these "products" sold to would be IMers have one or more of the following implicit in their approach:

• Choose a product or offer to promote and niche to target (or vise versa).
• Choose a way to present your information (website, article directories, etc.)
• Get prospects (properly targeted visitors) to your presentatipn (SEO, PPC, email, or whatever)
• Get enough prospects (traffic) and you'll make some sales.

Does not mean it is not a scam. No different than selling an ebook on getting rich investing with no money and having the following implicit:

• Determine a method for evaluating a stock's intrinsic value
• Find two stocks: one that is below its intrinsic value to buy a call, one that is above its intrinsic value to sell a call
• Calculate the ratio of call sells to cover call buys for zero investment and execute the transaction
• Watch the money roll in as the the first stock rises in value and the second stock falls in value

It is what a segment of professional investors do every day (in one variation or another). So, it works. Problem is, the average joe is likely to lose his shirt trying this himself.

Scams intentionally oversell and knowingly under deliver, or understate key factors like effort, costs, and risks.

Scams typically play to people's ignorance, greed, or desperation and often "require" more than one level of "buy in" to get "all the secrets". As such, much of what falls for IM advice on the WWW is scam, even if some of the underlying processes "work".

IMHO, anyway.

What is great about this post (and many others on BHW) is that it (and the community) helps one sort through this more readily.

Bravo!

 

[shaike]

thank you for the information , increased my motivation !

 

[ankitladia]

I have decided to land into this market, and visiting BHW regularly. I have been reading various posts and not very much sure what to start with, I am totally new to this thing,

 

[yashpranjale]

Very helpful for a newbie like me.