Doing Internet Business as an Internet Marketer
When you hear someone say they are interested in “doing internet business” they usually mean they want to become an internet marketer so they can make money online with an internet marketing business. I don’t know why, but for some reason, internet marketing is almost always immediately associated with “selling stuff on eBay” or getting into some money making scheme, but doing internet business does not mean those things!
Internet Marketing is an entire industry and eBay is just one business model, or type of business within that industry. Much like the automobile has different business models like car dealerships, auto repair shops, and other such businesses within it, the internet marketing industry also encompasses a variety of business models to choose from. Internet marketing is basically just a way of doing internet business by marketing goods and services online as opposed to doing it over the phone or through traditional offline advertising methods.
When first exploring the world of internet marketing, many new business owners can become overwhelmed at the amount of information that is out there to teach them about doing internet business. The main problem most newbie internet marketers encounter is not being able to decide on a course of action and building a solid internet business on it. This problem is compounded greatly by all the hype in sales pitches of marketers promising to turn everyone who buys their product into the next internet millionaire.
While many of the stories of this happening to everyday people are true, the fact is that most people will not get rich from their internet business. However, making a good living as an internet marketer is a very real and reachable goal for most people who are willing to put in the time and effort needed to succeed at doing internet business.
Most new internet marketers get lost in the maze of internet business opportunities and other ways to make money online that are out there. So it’s very important to find a solid internet business model and then stick to it until you are making a profit. Then, you can branch out a little bit once you have “learned the ropes” of the internet marketing industry.
Doing internet business can be fun, exciting and extremely profitable, but without sticking to a plan, most internet marketers will jump around between business models and opportunities trying new techniques, tactics, systems and strategies until they decide to give up. Don’t do that!
How Do You Know When It’s Time to Quit?
How do you know when it’s time to quit your day job? I have met quite a few full-time internet marketers who always ask me why I fly across the country to seminars to hang out, only to go back to a 9-to-5 day job the next day. Despite averaging $10,000 per month income this year, I know it’s not time for me to quit. So how do you know when you should quit your job?
The very first thing you need to do is separate your day job and your internet income. It’s easy to say you average $10,000 per month (like I do) when a portion of that is from your day job income. Find out if you can really live without that day job income… deposit your paychecks DIRECTLY into your savings account instead of checking. Do not let yourself touch this money.
If you can keep this habit going every month for a year, it means not only did you survive for a year on your own, but you have a year of income to support you during those slow months.
Don’t forget about health insurance. The LACK of health insurance is the number 1 cause of bankruptcy in the United States. Not mismanagement, not the economy, but lack of health insurance. You might have complained about your day job taking $500 or $1000 out of your monthly paycheck to give you healthcare, but if you are self employed and are uninsured, you can easily run up a $10k or $20k medical bill if you get very sick, need an operation, or get hit by a car. Do not risk it, and do not risk your family, by being without health insurance.
Most of the full-time internet marketers I’ve interviewed have a secondary income stream to fall back on. Some at least have part time jobs, some still live with their parents, others are retired and still receive half-pay from work. Others support themselves by doing away with NECESSITIES… they fail to pay for health insurance, or the rent instead of owning a home.
It’s easy to chase the dream of doing less work for the same amount of money, but if you are still young and able-bodied, why not do a tiny bit MORE work by staying at your day job, and get your house paid off early? Fill up your retirement fund by age 30 or 40? You will be a lot happier if you maintain a normal life now and stick to your regular activities, so you can goof off later in life.
About the author:
Robert Plank, internet marketer, PHP programmer, and 23 year old homeowner, made an average of $10,000 per month every month in 2008. Check out his marketing ideas worth STEALING at: http://www.robertplank.com
Make Money Online by Combining Craigslist and eBay
Today I want to tell you about a very simple and relatively quick way to make money online by combining eBay and Craigslist. You won’t get rich from it but you can certainly make some extra money to pay bills or take a vacation!
As you probably already know, Craigslist is one of the most popular websites in the world. It receives millions of visitors per day so it’s no wonder why internet marketers have swarmed to it in order to get a piece of that traffic.
Then we have eBay, which is also one of the largest and most successful websites in the world. And with the incredible amount of traffic to this site, the same can be said about internet marketers trying every which way to make money from it.
But check this out…
The simple money making method that I am about to explain could be done by anyone with internet access and a little bit of ambition, even someone who doesn’t have a clue what internet marketing is, because it really doesn’t have anything to do with what we typically call “internet marketing.” If you have ever bought something and later sold it for a higher price (or thought you could have), then you’ll definitely see where I’m going with this in a minute!
You see, Craigslist has a presence in every major city and most surrounding areas, and people often sell stuff on Craigslist to get rid of it fast, and a lot of the time they sell it for less than it’s worth. Everything from desks to computers and just about anything else, Craigslist seems to be the first place the average person goes to unload their goods. One of the main reasons is the fact that it’s free. Not only is it free, but it’s very easy to list things in a quick and efficient manner. Bottom line: there are many, many deals to be found on Craigslist!
Now, back to eBay – what’s the one place you check when you’re looking for that hard to find electronic gadget, rare piece of jewelry or something else you can’t seem find anywhere else? Ebay, of course!
See where this is going?
Here’s how it works… All you have to do is scour through Craigslist (the best deals are usually found in the electronics section), and look for things like IPods, IPhones, laptops, video game systems, and other similar items. Typically, if you come across one of these items, the person selling it is just trying to get rid of it fast and make some money back on it. They will almost always take a lower price than what they’re advertising, which is usually pretty low already. As soon as you see a good price on something listed on Craigslist, it’s time to head over to eBay.
Once you’re on eBay, click on “advanced search”, and once you’re in the advanced search section, check the box that says “completed auctions”. Then type in the product that you found on Craigslist for a good price, and see if they’ve been selling on eBay, and for how much on average. If the price is consistently higher on eBay for that item, and it looks like plenty of them have been sold, then you have a potential money maker!
For instance, let’s say you found a new laptop on Craigslist, and you’ve negotiated the price down to $300 cash. You then head over to eBay and find the same type of laptop is selling like crazy for $425 each on average. Right there you have a chance to make about $125 profit. This can be done over and over again on many different items!
What have we learned here?
Find items to buy low on Craigslist, then turn around and flip them on eBay for a nice profit. There aren’t a whole lot of people doing this yet, and if you live in a small to mid size city, you might be sitting on a goldmine. This can be a very quick and easy way to make money online!