Catching Fish

Hey there, since there is no shortage of threads here every day by
those who are new and eager to learn about making money online, I
thought I'd write up something that might be helpful to new members.

Now I'm by no means an authority on IM, but nonetheless I'd like to
share my thoughts with you. When I joined this forum, I was really
excited to start on my own journey. What follows is a summary of
what I've learned so far.

First, if you're thinking that you're going to be able to make money
online without putting in any effort at all when you're starting out,
then you might as well forget about it right now because you have to
put in a lot of time and effort when you are starting out.

Whenever I go through the Making Money section and read about a
method, I always try to compare the method with fishing, because it
becomes easier for me to understand the method when I try to relate
to it in terms of fishing, which is one of my favourite hobbies.

A good fisherman knows the best places to fish in. So the next time
you're reading about a method, think of the lake as being the niche.
The two most important questions you then need to ask yourself are:

1. How many fish are there in this lake?
2. How many any other fishermen are already fishing here?

If there are many fishermen on the lake then that simply means that
the method I'm reading is most likely heavily saturated. But you have
to compare this with the number of fish you think there are in the lake
(the niche).

Because if there are, then there's every chance that you are going to
succeed provided that you're using the right hook (more on this later).

Now that you've found a lake where you want to fish, it's time to check
your equipment. This is where the "Internet" part of Internet Marketing
comes into play. What you need is a fishing rod. Think of this as all the
tools that you need to be able to fish, whether it is a domain, a website,
etc.

This is also where I see many who are new to IM make their many of
their mistakes. I certainly did when I was starting out. You can spend
a thousand dollars on a high-quality fishing rod, but if you don't know
where to fish or more importantly how to fish, you're going to lose
your investment.

So it's important to remember that you don't need a fishing rod with
all the bells and whistles to begin your IM journey. In fact, it's better
to start with an ordinary fishing rod in the beginning.

Another point here is that if you have technical skills such as web
development, you can -build- your own fishing rod. And if you are
really good at it, then you can build and sell your fishing rods to
others.

But once again, understand that there's no magical formula that'll
turn you into an expert fisherman just because you have a thousand
dollar fishing rod in your hands. It's only part of the equation.

Second, there's an expression in English: "hook, line and sinker"
This is where the "Marketing" in Internet Marketing comes into
play and personally, this was the hardest part for me to grasp,
because before joining BHW, I had abysmal marketing skills.

Let's talk about these in the reverse order.

Now that you have your lake (niche) and your fishing rod (tools),
you need a good sinker. Essentially, if you don't have a sinker,
your hook is just going to float on the surface of the look, or it's
going to take ages to sink down to where the fish are.

Imagine that, you with your fishing rod sitting on top of your boat
in a beautiful lake full of fish. And here you've cast your line but
your hook is just floating on the surface. Gosh, doesn't that make
you feel stupid?

Think of the sinker in terms of your SEO skills or your skills to make
yourself known to the fish in the lake. If you don't have a good sinker,
then you're not going to a catch that many fish at all. So whenever
I'm reading about a method, I try to think about how good the sinker
is that the OP is using.

An important point is that you need to make sure your sinker is going
sink down to the depth where the fish you want are swimming. Think
of this as being the difference between driving general traffic to your
site as opposed to targeted traffic. What you want is to be visible to
the fish that -you- want. Those fish that you know are going to be
attracted by your hook.

Next comes the line itself. If you get a hold of a big fish, then your
line might break when you're reeling that sucker in. I like to think of
the line as being the means of monetization that is being employed
in the method. For example. Adsense, PPD, PPI, CPA offers, etc.

So basically, if your fishing line is not suitable for the fish you are
trying to catch, you're going to lose those fish even if they initially
bite on. I learned this the hard when I was trying to monetize adult
traffic using CPA networks whose offers had nothing to do with what
my fish were after. In hindsight, it seems a like a silly mistake, but
at least I learned a lot about how the horny fish swim, so to speak.

Finally, you need a hook. And not just any hook, you need a hook
with bait on it that's going to be absolutely irresistible to the fish
you're after. And this, my friends, is the hardest to master of all,
and one that I'm still learning about. Your hook and the bait on it
is going to be what's going to get your fish to bite.

And for me, this is also the most fascinating aspect of IM, because
I get to learn about what makes us tick. It offers an insight into the
psychology of human beings. Your only limitation here is going to be
your own conscience. For example, you can a make boatload of cash
in certain specialized areas of the adult niche, but on the other hand
will you be able to sleep at night knowing what you're doing?

This is where you find out whether you are a wolf or a sheep. And I
really hope that as you're done reading this and stare at your own
reflection in the screen, that you see yourself as a wolf. Because I
like to think that I am in the company of wolves on BHW, and not
fucking sheep.

With that said, do you really feel like posting one of those "Hey, how
do I make some $$$?" threads? I should think not.

See you on the lake, partner.

HAHA weird... I worked as a fisherman on a Norwegian Longliner for 15 years, and now doing internet marketing...coinsidence..? I think not..hehe