Internet Marketing

So it’s your dream to learn how to make a living online so you can
quit your job and say goodbye to your boss and your 9-5 job. But
before you can actually make that giant leap you need to make sure
you’re ready. So that leads you to ask the question: When will I be
ready to leave the comfort of my regular paycheck and my regular
(ie guaranteed) working hours.

You know that it’s exciting to be able to make a living online.
It’s great to be able to set your own hours and to be able to be
your own boss. But there’s also a downside to leaving your 9-5 job
and making a go of it on your own.

It is scary to know that you’re guaranteed that you will make a
specific amount of money every week or every two weeks. It’s also
scary to think that there’s a possibility that you’ll leave your
current job and you simply won’t be able to do it – you won’t be
able to make it on your own, online. It is scary.

Because of how scary it is, and because the fear is real, many
people give the advice that you have to be absolutely ready to
leave your 9-5 job. You have to already have a proven method of
making money. You also have to have a “safety net” of at least 6
months of salary saved up. In addition, you should have all your
debt paid down too. With the six months of savings and with no
debt, you have plenty of time to fail and still be okay.

That sounds like a safe plan, right? It’s good that you’ll be able
to afford to fail. It’s good that you’ll basically be planning to
fail.

Or is it?

Think about it. Is it good or bad to plan to fail? This one’s a
no-brainer. It’s bad to plan to fail. Of course it is.

So why then would you want to plan to fail when you’re about leave
your job? Why would you want to say your “ready” when all you’ve
done is set things up so that you can fail?

For this reason, there are a growing number of people out there who
say that you shouldn’t have a “safety net” ready when you leave
your job. These people will tell you to go ahead and jump and your
net will appear.

The thinking behind this line of logic is if you can’t afford to
fail then you will find a way not to fail. In other words, you’ll
find a way to be successful. On the other hand, if you have that
safety net there, if you have a cushion to allow for failure, then
you will use that net; you will use that cushion. If you want to
start actually making it online from the outset then you better
make yourself succeed from the outset.

Of course when you are ready to take that leap is ultimately up to
you. You do need to have a proven way of making money, no one
disputes that. But whether you need to have a safety net or not is
something that not everyone agrees about. Whichever scenario you’re
more comfortable with, whichever way makes more sense to you, is
the way you should use to decide when you’re ready to quit your 9-5
job.

After you leave your job, one thing you’ll need to considered is
your taxes. Although you can save a lot of money in taxes having
your own business, you have to do it the right way!

click here to get the help you need

To Your Success
Cody Moya

Tags: business opportunity, internet home business, online marketing, small business, internet marketing, internet opportunities, work from home, online business, home business, work at home

Home Business

The short answer to this question is…yes. However, few things in life are so cut and dry. Joint venture partnerships can be entered into with anyone. It can be with your neighbor next door who has an affiliate business, or with a person you’ve only read about who lives in another country. Due to the variety of joint venture partnership possibilities a legal agreement many not always be needed.

Here are a few pros and cons to signing a JV partnership legal agreement.

Pros:

-Everything is spelled out. A joint venture partnership legal agreement will leave no room for interpretation, miscommunication, errors or frustration. Absolutely everything from who handles what task, to how profits are tracked, to how each partner gets paid can be detailed explicitly. This means there will be no questions halfway through the project about who handles the next step or what profit percentages were originally agreed to.

-Less stress. When everything is clearly detailed and written down, it can take the stress off of the relationship and allow the partners to work together more amicably, and to be more productive. This can be particularly important when you’re working with someone for the first time or you have concerns about the partnership.

-Checks and balances are outlined. A legal agreement makes it possible for checks and balances to be put into place and to be followed through on. For example, if one partner is handling the marketing of a joint venture product and the payment of the profits, the other partner should have a system that enables them to keep track of the sales. That way there is no uncertainty about whether each partner is getting paid fairly.

-Payments are defined. People tend to get caught up in the money. A legal agreement will define who gets paid what, when and how, so that there is no uncertainty, resentment or questions.

- In the event of a disagreement, a legal agreement gives you recourse.

Cons:

-Trust. A legal agreement can start things off on the right foot, but in some circumstances it can start things off on the wrong foot. It can create a sense of mistrust.

-Not always necessary. A legal agreement isn’t always necessary. If you’re working with someone whom you are comfortable with, whom you have worked with before, or whom you’re friends with, then a legal agreement may not be necessary. It is fine to simply write down what each person will take care of and how you’ll split the profits and go from there.

If you choose to use a joint venture agreement, you can find many legal forms online. Simply type “Joint venture agreement” into your favorite search engine and you’ll have plenty to choose from. Some of the forms are even free.

To Your Success
Cody Moya

Tags: internet marketing, home business, home based business, adsense, make money online, work from home, affiliate, Entrepreneur, small business, internet opportunities

Home Business

Small Business

It’s amazing and unfortunate that many website owners inadvertently put up barriers that discourage site visitors from actually doing business with them. This is especially true for people with brick-and-mortar businesses who are trying to build an online presence and who do not yet understand the differences between online and offline marketing.

If someone walks into your local storefront, especially if they’ve had to drive to get to it and drop a few coins in the parking meter, they’re at least partly committed to spending some time in the store. They either want something specifically, in which case you’re nearly guaranteed to make a sale, or they think your store probably offers what they want, so they’re willing to spend the time to look around.

In either case, your friendly staff, attractive promotional displays and compelling sale prices can influence someone to make a purchase, even if it wasn’t what they originally came for.

This seldom happens online. Your nearest competitor is only a quick Google search away, a new website visitor may have little or no solid reason to look around your site, and it often happens that you lose a would-be customer in the click of a mouse.

That’s why it’s important for website owners to remember that you need to put the most important, most compelling, most commonly-requested information right up front, preferably on the home page.

This is the exact opposite of a physical storefront, where you can put your sale items in the back of the store and count on people walking past the new merchandise to get to the clearance racks. Online, a visitor to your website will not spend any time looking around unless they can tell immediately that you probably have what they’re looking for, whether that’s information or designer handbags.

You must also consider the fact that website visitors need more overt assurance as to your company’s legitimacy and trustworthiness than visitors to a physical storefront.

Someone who walks into a local store is subtly and sub-consciously bombarded with all sorts of sensory and intellectual cues that reassure them (or not) that it’s safe to do business with this particular merchant. A store that is clean, well lit, intelligently laid out, with merchandise that fits the price being asked and helpful salespeople is more likely to be profitable than one that is not.

These factors are less visible online. Most would-be website owners realize that a site with blinking fonts and inconsistent navigation is a visitor turn-off, but still miss the mark by failing to reassure potential buyers. They neglect to include information on shipping, returns, privacy, guarantees and other store policies in a prominent location, which makes the customer uneasy and less likely to make a purchase.

One last tip for the storefront-owner-turned-website-owner, and that’s to remember where and when site visitors come to your website. Many of your site visitors log on from work, or late at night, or when the kids are napping - and their first panicked impulse is to click away from your site if they’re immediately greeting by loud music or an audio message from the company president. Those site add-ons can add value, but should be optional.

These differences between online and offline storefronts are among the most ignored. Paying attention to them right from the start can help make sure your website is as profitable as you dreamed it could be.

To Your Success
Cody Moya

Tags: work at home, online business, online business opportunities, business opportunity leads, make money, home based business, internet home business, work from home, business opportunity, adsense

Home Business

Small Business

It is important to develop the business model for your paid membership or subscription based site carefully. A paid membership site can be a real money maker for the smart web site entrepreneur, but it is important to do it the right way.

It is important, for instance, to choose a good niche market that you feel is underserved. It is important to provide content that it either very difficult to find, or, better yet, available nowhere other than your own subscription based or paid membership web site. Niche markets lend themselves very well to the paid membership model, but it is important to choose your niche wisely. Many people have found success by focusing on providing information on a subject in which they have personal expertise.

How you set up your paid membership web site will have a significant impact on your revenue stream, so obviously the business model is an important decision. It is important to determine which revenue streams you will use for your new web site, and to plan the site accordingly.

For instance, you may want to include some targeted advertising or quality affiliate links on your web site. This can produce additional revenue streams in addition to that provided by your base of paid members or subscribers.

One of the most powerful and effective ways to create a winning business model for the paid membership web site is to purchase a business license for such a site. This kind of licensing agreement can provide the web site owner with everything he or she needs, including all the content and the information for which his or her base of subscribers has agreed to pay.

The license agreement is a great way to get the new subscription site business model up and running with as little fuss as possible, and it is a great way to keep that site up and running as it goes forward and makes money month after month.

You can get turnkey paid membership website business at my Private Label Wholesaler website

Click here get turnkey paid membership website

To Your Success
Cody Moya

Tags: work at home, online business opportunities, home business, online marketing, internet opportunities, home business opportunity, work from home, business opportunity leads, make money online, internet business

Home Business

Internet Marketing Articles

Small Business

Work from home

Action tip today is something close to my heart, because it’s a mistake I made literally from day one, and even after my business began to be successful, I didn’t realize what I was doing until late 2004 when I was profitable, but also burned out, tired and trying to do a million things at once.

My first site that you’ll probably hear about a lot throughout this, as that’s where I learned the majority of my lessons over the years, was an all singing all dancing site that serviced customers like no other. It was packed with tools, packed with scripts, live customer support, guides, tutorials, reviews and more. And you know what? That very site never brought in more than $5000 per month in profit for me at it’s peak. I could have hired someone to go ahead and manage it for me, but instead, I went and closed it down.

Why the hell did you do that? Everyone started screaming at me (especially my long term contacts that had been with me from the start) My response was I’ve learned a lot, and I now know I can still offer that kind of quality, do half the work, enjoy life a lot more and make a whole lot more money in the process.

Of course they had a good laugh, I got the normal reactions about how stupid I was to be doing what I was doing, but you know, here I am in 2006 earning twenty times that amount after just two weeks of a product launch and a month of previous work.

So here’s my advice to you directly from what I learned. Aside from you shouldn’t listen to people who have no clue about what you’re doing and why you’re doing it (even your loved ones may unintentionally hold you back, you go for it!), my number one point here is this: Don’t take on more than you can handle. If you find yourself working all hours of the morning, find yourself looking at the clock at 2am when everyone else is asleep or out having fun, or relaxing, you’re working too long. Look at what you’re doing and ask yourself, is it worth it? Not from your customers point of view, or your families point of view, but yours. After all, you’re not putting all this work into your business so someone else can take advantage of the rewards you’re working hard to get right? If they want it, they got to go through it all and get it. If they don’t, they don’t want it enough. This is all about you now.

Are you working too hard for too little in return? I know that feeling well.

If the answer is yes, you have two choices. Choice one, is quit. If you can’t take the heat, get out of the fire. Of course that means giving up your hopes and dreams for the future and working a job until you’re 60 (Unless you’re in the UK like me, then it’s about 106 now, I lost count). But you don’t want to do that right? Glad to hear it. You have another choice.

Change what you’re doing. If it means some as small as taking longer breaks, or something as big as restructuring your whole business simply so it’s less work for you, so be it. You can’t be successful unless you’re in it 100% all of the time. That takes a lot out of anyone. If you’re wondering why everyone else is such a hard worker and so successful, let me let you in on a little secret here.

The successful people work hard to learn about how to be successful. Once they learn, they work smart and begin to work less hard and be more successful.

That’s how you can always tell you’re rising up the ladder: When the work- load eases off, but you find yourself being more successful. Then you have space to learn something new, take things to the next step, work hard, learn, refine, and again you have space to learn something else and so on.

See what I’m getting at? It’s like a circle and development, of progress and if you’re constantly working your hardest and have no space to move, then you’re doing something wrong, because you have no space to move forward. Make space today. It’s either that, or stay as you are now forever.

Take it slow, one step at a time, and you’ll progress much faster than if you try to climb the ladder in two big steps, not to mention you’ll be a heck of a lot less tired while doing it. I’ve seen this at every stage of the development of my business, and you know what? This is big.

Every single successful person I know has taken this into account, put it into action, understands it, uses it, and would give this as their success making piece of advice if someone were to ask. I have never met a successful person that hasn’t mastered this. That’s how big this is.

To Your Success
Cody Moya

Tags: internet marketing, small business, affiliate, work at home, business opportunity leads, work from home, adsense, home business opportunity, internet business, affiliate program

entrepreneur tips

Home Business

Small Business

Work from home

You created a pretty web site displaying the crafts that are your pride and joy, now what? There are many tricks you can use to promote your new business and show the world your crafts.

- Build a mailing list! It’s one of the best ways to get new AND return customers when you deal online. Give the option on your site, when they make a purchase, on your flyers at craft fairs… the possibilities are endless. Once you have a customer list, you can send reminders, rebates, exclusive products and more. Just don’t overdo it or people will come to see your mailings as spam.

- Use search engine optimization techniques to improve your search engine rankings. A higher ranking means a better exposure, so you’ll get more traffic and sales. A full explanation on this is beyond the scope of this article, but there are many good articles on this if you search on Google.

- Crafts malls like Etsy are a good way to promote your own website. You get exposure, credibility, and a sale or two if you’re lucky! Don’t forget to put your website address anywhere it’s allowed, and to build your mailing list when you make a sale.

- Likewise, you can try selling a few pieces on eBay, and collect the email addresses of your buyers. You will only be allowed to put your website address on your About Me page, but with the traffic you can get on eBay it will most likely be worth it.

- If you have deep pockets, you can always buy Google Adwords keywords. What are they? They are the ads that will show up on Google search when you type specific keywords. You have to be pretty careful with this one to attract the right kind of traffic (the one that will buy), but it can pay off in the end.

- Link exchanges and top lists are slower, but can help. You get links to your site, which can help your Google rankings, exposure, and the occasional sale. Every little bit helps!

- Forums are another more subtle way to gain links and exposure, but can be a great way to improve your credibility as an expert. Just put your website link in your signature and post ahead, but don’t forget to check if this is allowed by the forums moderators.

- And finally, track your results. There is no point in posting ads everywhere if you don’t know which one is working. You can then concentrate on the very best.

And don’t forget the most important thing, enjoy your craft!

To Your Success
Cody Moya

Tags: internet business, make money online, online business opportunities, home business opportunity, business opportunity, internet opportunities, Entrepreneur, home based business, adsense, affiliate

Home Business

Small Business

Work from home

One thing that has kept many a would be entrepreneur on the sidelines is the high startup costs that can be associated with starting a business. Raising the thousands or tens of thousands of dollars it takes to get a business up and running can be intimidating, and many people are uncomfortable with this level of risk.

Fortunately, the barriers to entry are considerably lower on the Internet, and this is truly one of the most important reasons that web based businesses are so popular with small business owners.

When it comes to setting up a new paid membership web site, there are a number of fixed costs that need to be considered. These initial startup costs include:

- A good computer. At least one computer will be needed in order to create your web site. If you already have a good computer it may suffice. Otherwise, a good computer should cost about $1,000.

- A good workstation or desk. A quality workstation or computer desk should run you between $50 and $150 depending on where you buy it and what features you choose.

- Incorporation costs. It is important to incorporate your business to protect yourself from liability and maximize your tax benefits. The process of incorporation typical takes from two week to a month to complete, and the costs should be between $100 and $200.

- Registering your domain name should be around $20 to $25 per year.

- The software costs will probably be the largest startup cost for your new paid membership web site. It is important to create a list of all the software you may need, and to look for free alternatives whenever possible. Some software you will probably need include a quality software package, such as Dreamweaver or Front Page, with which to design your web site, an office suite like Microsoft Office, and perhaps a database package for complex sites. It is important to choose good software, and to make sure the software is legal and properly registered. The software you choose will be a cornerstone of your business, so it is important to choose good packages that are widely accepted and widely used.

- You will also need to purchase encryption and security certificates. A certificate for a secure socket layer runs about $300 and is available from VeriSign.

- If you can design your own web site, you may be able to save some money. If, however, you decide to have the web site designed by someone else, you can expect to pay between $150 and $500 depending on the complexity of the design.
After you have your paid membership or subscription based web site up and running, there will be a number of ongoing costs that must be paid every month. One of the main advantages of a paid membership web site is that it makes it easier to budget for these ongoing costs. Instead of relying on often unsteady advertising payments and affiliate income, you will have a good idea of how much money will be coming in from your membership base, and you will be in a better position to handle ongoing costs such as:

- Web hosting services – the web hosting services are a major ongoing expense of running a web site. For most small and medium sized web sites, you can expect to pay from $30 to $150 per month.

- Merchant accounts – banks charge a monthly support fee and a fee for credit card transactions processed on your web site. These ongoing costs usually amount to no more than $50 per month, and the increase for each additional paid subscriber is very small.

- Monthly operating costs – these monthly operating costs include things like salaries for staff members and payments for any business loans.

You can get turnkey paid membership website business at my Private Label Wholesaler website

Click here get turnkey paid membership website

To Your Success
Cody Moya

Tags: affiliate, internet business, adsense, Entrepreneur, home business, home business opportunity, business opportunity leads, affiliate program, online marketing, work at home

Home Business

Small Business

Work from home

Starting a home business has been one of the biggest growth industries in the last decade. There are thousands of new business owners entering the online arena everyday.

No matter what type of business product or service you choose to participate in, there is one and only one starting point.

The only place to be starting your new home business is, in your mind, more importantly your mindset.

It is imperative for you to know the Who, What, Where, When and Why’s when considering starting up a home based business. No matter what type of venture you may choose, if you cannot answer the five W’s you will greatly hinder your chances of success dramatically.

Let’s take a look at the five W’s individually.

WHO. Who are you doing this for? Is it for personal gain and notoriety, family obligations or maybe to help a friend in need. If you do not clearly know and understand who you are doing this for, you will have a very difficult time maintaining the motivation to achieve the level of success you desire.

WHAT. Do you clearly know what is you that want to achieve? Is it to attain financial independence? Contributing to your retirement plans? Is it to put a down payment on a new house? Do you want to be able to quit your job, or do you just want to be able to purchase those big ticket items you have always yearned for?

It is crucial to know exactly what it is you wish to achieve. You have to be able to close your eyes and picture in your mind, down to the finest detail, what your life would be like once you achieve success. If you don’t truly know what it is that you want, it is almost guaranteed that you are not going to get it.

Achieving success comes from knowing precisely what it is you want. Then next step is to set goals that are specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and time based, better known as S.M.A.R.T. goals. To learn more about goal setting just do a quick search on your favorite search engine, there is a great deal of information available.

WHERE. Research is the key here. There are countless ways and places to set up a home business on the internet. What is most important here is to keep a level head and an open mind while doing your research to determine your chosen field.

Sales pages are finely tuned to trigger impulses and emotions to get you to buy now, this very second. Fight those urges to click that order button, step away from your computer for a moment if you have to.

Take the time to actually study what is being offered. How much is it going to cost you? Is it a one off, monthly or yearly cost? What is the actual product or service that you are receiving, and is there something else out there that may better serve your needs.

It is highly recommended that you never hit the order button on your first visit. Take a look around and do some comparison shopping, or window shopping if you will. If the original offer was the best you can always return and purchase at a later time.

A quick example. Let’s say you find that perfect ebook with resale rights and you just have to have it, and the cost is $97.00. Try this out first. Type the ebook’s title into your favorite search engine. You may be pleasantly surprised to find the exact same title for as little as $5.00 maybe even less with the same resale rights. Remember that the first offer you see may not always be the best in value for your dollar. The internet is extremely competitive.

WHEN. Knowing when to launch your business is where many marketers fall short. Ensure that your business is completely ready to go. Test everything before your launch. Check your webpages for loading time, grammar and spelling. Do all the pages and links work properly? Test your newsletter. Does your autoresponder send the messages when they are supposed to go out? Are the messages formatted correctly? Do those links work? Is the payment and delivery system perfect?

When setting up your business try to keep your mindset as if you were the customer. Would you purchase this product or service? Would you subscribe to this newsletter? Is there value being offered? What makes this product or service stand out from the rest? Until you can answer these questions with conclusive statements, you are not ready to launch.

Always keep in your mind, your name and reputation are always at stake. Online purchasers have very little tolerance when things go wrong.

Studies have shown that you usually have thirty seconds or less to grab your visitors attention. If there is nothing of great value, your potential customer will simply move on and probably never come back. Be completely ready when launch time comes. On the internet first impressions are paramount.

WHY. One of the most important questions to ask. Why am I building this business? Why will my customers buy from me? Why is this the best product? Why did I choose this web hosting company? Being able to answer any and every possible question about your business will give you the knowledge and the tools to build your website as well as your compelling sales pages to perfection.

Asking yourself why will clearly give you the right answers to provide your future subscribers and customers before they need to ask.

Keeping the five W’s in your mind throughout the planning, preparation, testing and launch phases of your business will provide you with the greatest chances for success. You owe it to yourself and to your potential subscribers and customers.

Your mindset is what is going to make or break your business, after all everything starts with an idea.

To Your Success
Cody Starting a home business has been one of the biggest growth industries in the last decade. There are thousands of new business owners entering the online arena everyday.

No matter what type of business product or service you choose to participate in, there is one and only one starting point.

The only place to be starting your new home business is, in your mind, more importantly your mindset.

It is imperative for you to know the Who, What, Where, When and Why’s when considering starting up a home based business. No matter what type of venture you may choose, if you cannot answer the five W’s you will greatly hinder your chances of success dramatically.

Let’s take a look at the five W’s individually.

WHO. Who are you doing this for? Is it for personal gain and notoriety, family obligations or maybe to help a friend in need. If you do not clearly know and understand who you are doing this for, you will have a very difficult time maintaining the motivation to achieve the level of success you desire.

WHAT. Do you clearly know what is you that want to achieve? Is it to attain financial independence? Contributing to your retirement plans? Is it to put a down payment on a new house? Do you want to be able to quit your job, or do you just want to be able to purchase those big ticket items you have always yearned for?

It is crucial to know exactly what it is you wish to achieve. You have to be able to close your eyes and picture in your mind, down to the finest detail, what your life would be like once you achieve success. If you don’t truly know what it is that you want, it is almost guaranteed that you are not going to get it.

Achieving success comes from knowing precisely what it is you want. Then next step is to set goals that are specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and time based, better known as S.M.A.R.T. goals. To learn more about goal setting just do a quick search on your favorite search engine, there is a great deal of information available.

WHERE. Research is the key here. There are countless ways and places to set up a home business on the internet. What is most important here is to keep a level head and an open mind while doing your research to determine your chosen field.

Sales pages are finely tuned to trigger impulses and emotions to get you to buy now, this very second. Fight those urges to click that order button, step away from your computer for a moment if you have to.

Take the time to actually study what is being offered. How much is it going to cost you? Is it a one off, monthly or yearly cost? What is the actual product or service that you are receiving, and is there something else out there that may better serve your needs.

It is highly recommended that you never hit the order button on your first visit. Take a look around and do some comparison shopping, or window shopping if you will. If the original offer was the best you can always return and purchase at a later time.

A quick example. Let’s say you find that perfect ebook with resale rights and you just have to have it, and the cost is $97.00. Try this out first. Type the ebook’s title into your favorite search engine. You may be pleasantly surprised to find the exact same title for as little as $5.00 maybe even less with the same resale rights. Remember that the first offer you see may not always be the best in value for your dollar. The internet is extremely competitive.

WHEN. Knowing when to launch your business is where many marketers fall short. Ensure that your business is completely ready to go. Test everything before your launch. Check your webpages for loading time, grammar and spelling. Do all the pages and links work properly? Test your newsletter. Does your autoresponder send the messages when they are supposed to go out? Are the messages formatted correctly? Do those links work? Is the payment and delivery system perfect?

When setting up your business try to keep your mindset as if you were the customer. Would you purchase this product or service? Would you subscribe to this newsletter? Is there value being offered? What makes this product or service stand out from the rest? Until you can answer these questions with conclusive statements, you are not ready to launch.

Always keep in your mind, your name and reputation are always at stake. Online purchasers have very little tolerance when things go wrong.

Studies have shown that you usually have thirty seconds or less to grab your visitors attention. If there is nothing of great value, your potential customer will simply move on and probably never come back. Be completely ready when launch time comes. On the internet first impressions are paramount.

WHY. One of the most important questions to ask. Why am I building this business? Why will my customers buy from me? Why is this the best product? Why did I choose this web hosting company? Being able to answer any and every possible question about your business will give you the knowledge and the tools to build your website as well as your compelling sales pages to perfection.

Asking yourself why will clearly give you the right answers to provide your future subscribers and customers before they need to ask.

Keeping the five W’s in your mind throughout the planning, preparation, testing and launch phases of your business will provide you with the greatest chances for success. You owe it to yourself and to your potential subscribers and customers.

Your mindset is what is going to make or break your business, after all everything starts with an idea.

To Your Success
Cody Moya

Tags: home business, home business opportunity, work at home, work from home, online business opportunities, internet opportunities, internet home business, online marketing, home based business, make money

Home Business

Small Business

Work from home

For anyone who wants to earn more money than they’d ever get with a day job, then the only real answer (besides winning the lottery) is to start their own business. Of course, starting a business can be very costly, something that puts starting a traditional business out of the reach of many people.

However, there is an alternative, and that’s starting a business from home. There are several different alternatives a person can choose from, from coming up with a completely new idea and concept and creating their own products, to joining an existing MLM type business, to starting an online business.

Lately, a huge number of people have been lured by the idea of making their millions on the Internet, but the sad fact is, few of them ever make a decent living, let alone a fortune, online. Why is that? Many online opportunities are promoted as being very simple, and easy enough for everyone to do. If that were truly the case, there would be a lot more online success stories today than there are!

One problem people have is too much choice. There are so many different opportunities and ideas, that they try and run with the lot, and end up falling quite heavily, simply because without focus a business is doomed to failure. Another problem is that many people really don’t have any idea about running a business, and don’t think about their home business as they would a real, traditional business.

If you really do want to start a work at home business, and aren’t afraid to put in a lot of time and effort (especially in the beginning) there are a few important things you need to know to set you on the right path.

Firstly, watch your expenditure. An online business can be one of the least expensive businesses to run. Most people already have the basics they need to get started (a computer with an Internet connection). However, the problem comes when they actually start looking at online businesses and means of making money. Suddenly they’re confronted with a million and one different products ALL of which are supposed to guarantee success.

Many people spend hundreds, or even thousands of dollars, very quickly when they’re starting out in the world of Internet business, and soon find that most of it was money down the toilet. To avoid this, you need to work out what it is you’re going to be doing online and create a plan. There are numerous ways of making money on the Internet, including: eBay and other auction sites, affiliate marketing, Adsense (and other contextual advertising), as well as marketing your own product. Once you know what it is you want to do, then find one very good resource, and stick to it, The hint here is to do a bit of research first, and get honest reviews of any product before you purchase, rather than letting a sales letter induce you to purchase another worthless product.

The next thing you need to focus on is how you’re going to build your business. Most online businesses start with a website (and although there are plenty of sites that promise you don’t need a website of your own, anyone who wants to make a long term living online will need a website). You then need a step-by-step plan you can follow, and you need to be able to follow it! One of the best things about working from home is also one of the most problematic, and that’s the fact that you can work your own hours. Unfortunately, if you’re not able to discipline yourself you may find that the hours actually spent in front of your computer aren’t enough. It helps if you can work out a day to day plan of exactly what you want to accomplish each day, so that you know you’re on the right track.

Finally, it’s worth remembering that a work at home business, even an online one, will require a certain amount of dedication and effort before you’ll be rewarded with results. It’s not a matter of whipping up a quick website and waiting for the money to start flowing in, and if anyone tells you it is, odds are, they’re lying! Be prepared for months (even years) of hard, consistent work, and you’ll reap the rewards, but fall for too many get-rich-quick schemes and promises and you’ll be back to your day job before you know it.

To Your Success
Cody Moya

Tags: work at home, Entrepreneur, internet business, online marketing, business opportunity, adsense, internet marketing, internet opportunities, internet home business, online business

Home Business

Work from home

Yuck! A hedgehog…

Not the most glamorous of all the beasts to compare yourself with, for sure. So how did the lowly hedgehog become the mammalian mentor for us all?

After all (and no offense to all you hedgehogs out there), it appears to be nature’s accidental cross between an armadillo and a porcupine — slow moving, methodical, prickly and not all that bright.

The fox, on the other hand, is…well…FOXY! A quick-witted, sleek, fast and agile predator, the fox seems to have the attributes that we can easily imagine we share? (And even if we don’t, we pretend.)

Why compare a hedgehog to a fox anyway? It all started with ancient lines of poetry that were found from a fragment of verse by Greek poet Archilochus which says:

“The fox knows MANY things, but the hedgehog knows ONE big thing.”

One thing! And that’s a good thing?

What about Renaissance men like Leonardo Da Vinci? He’s one of the exceptions to a very perplexing rule according to Jim Collins, author of the classic business best-seller “Good to Great”. He picked up on the ancient hedgehog vs. fox comparison in his book. All top level CEOs he says are very hedgehog-ish.

He tells this story:

“Day in and day out, the fox circles around the hedgehog’s den, waiting for the perfect moment to pounce… (The emerging hedgehog) waddles along, going about his simple day, searching for lunch and taking care of his home.”

While minding his own business, focusing on vittles, the hedgehog wanders right into the path of the fox. Sensing danger, he rolls up into a perfect little ball, becoming “…a sphere of sharp spikes, pointing outward in all directions. The fox, bounding toward his prey, sees the hedgehog defense and calls off the attack…Each day, some version of this battle between the hedgehog and the fox takes place, and despite the greater cunning of the fox, the hedgehog always wins.”

The hedgehog ALWAYS wins!

Think about this: Are you a hedgehog, or a fox?

Your answer holds the key to whether you’ll be successful in business or life!

Nobody wants to be a hedgehog. Admit it. How boring is that?

He doesn’t see much of the world. He’s too focused for that. He doesn’t learn all the latest hunting tools and tricks because his world view is boiled down to just what he needs.

In “Good to Great,” a terrific book by the way, Collins says the hedgehog “reduces all challenges and dilemmas to simple — indeed almost simplistic — hedgehog ideas.”

“For a hedgehog, anything that does not somehow relate to the hedgehog idea holds no relevance.”

Ever known anyone so focused that they could only pursue a single goal? Ever known anyone so focused on that goal that nothing else mattered?

Think about Olympians. Even thought the Winter Olympics may be a distant event to us, there’s a 10-year old girl somewhere who gets up at 3:30 every morning to practice figure skating compulsories for four hours before school. The Winter Olympics is all she thinks about.

And NOTHING else matters!

Foxes on the other hand, “pursue many ends at the same time and see the world in all its complexity. They are ’scattered or diffused, moving on many levels.’”

Multi-tasking with too many balls in the air at once already, we’re asked to do more and be more. Our bosses want us to be busy, working hard, doing as much as possible.

Yet the fox “who pursues many ends at the same time” NEVER wins!

And the guy who gets the promotion or has the very successful business is the one who focused on fewer tasks and did them well.

That was one of Collins’ points — instead of demanding too much from employees and executives; we should demand one BIG thing.

Think this doesn’t apply to you? Wanna bet? You’re an employee or an executive — or both — if you’re self-employed. And just because you may wear many hats doesn’t get you off the hook either. Focusing on the hedgehog ideas even when you’re doing the grunt work is the key to your success.

Okay, so it’s good to be a hedgehog.

How do we become one if we’re a fox by nature?

It’s simple. You act as if…

What would the hedgehog do? He’d focus on hedgehog ideas. Don’t know what your hedgehog ideas are? Sure you do. You’re just not focusing on them. This will help:

1) What six things are vital to the success of your business this year?

2) Narrow it down to three — two’s better

3) Make ‘em BIG

4) Focus on those only

5) Nothing else matters

Make this part of your soul. Eliminate everything that is not helping you focus on your goals.

Keep working at it and some day you’ll be a hedgehog too.

To Your Success
Cody Moya

Tags: work from home, internet business, business opportunity, affiliate, online business opportunities, internet opportunities, home business, make money, Entrepreneur, small business

Home Business

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