14 year old wants to start Internet business

[msmonline]

Can someone recommend a GOOD internet marketing/affiliate training program for a 14 year old kid that has ZERO knowledge of doing business on the internet. My son wants to start an internet business, but I don't want to put him on the wrong track with the wrong training. I'd also rather see him do this than stay on those video games ALL SUMMER long.

Thanks

Gary

[Stephen Root]

14 years old wants to start a business... sorry to break it to you but it's not going to happen. 14 years old can't run a business. What you can do is the get him to blog about those games he plays and monetize that. You run the business and let him do the content and he earns percentage. Teach him how to do social media promotion etc. That works great with kids.

[msmonline]

Thanks Stephen,....excellent point!

[rosetrees]

How about buying and selling on Ebay? I don't know the age limit for Ebay, so you may have to be the account holder and take responsibility. He could go to jumble sales, charity sales, closing down sales and buy stuff to sell.

Blogging is a good way of learning about pay per click, managing a site, affiliate marketing etc. But it takes time for a blog to be found.

I've a feeling someone here started a forum or site for young warriors. Can't remember who though.

[msmonline]

Thanks for the feedback Rosetrees

[JoelMatthews]

Make him a blog, and use adsense and affiliate programs, then he cant really lose anything, and for the future it won't make him have a bleak outlook on the IM business as well as teaching him some things about it for later.

[billythekid]

wish i was that ambitious at 14. Yeah i second that get him started on blogger or wordpress and plug some adsense and/or affiliates in there.

best of luck to him!

[Adrian Cooper]

Originally Posted by msmonline

Can someone recommend a GOOD internet marketing/affiliate training program for a 14 year old kid that has ZERO knowledge of doing business on the internet. My son wants to start an internet business, but I don't want to put him on the wrong track with the wrong training. I'd also rather see him do this than stay on those video games ALL SUMMER long.

Thanks

Gary

Good for you.

My three teenage sons - very high achievers at school - have all rejected the usual "human control system" route - "work" - to start their own IM businesses.

Age is not a barrier, in fact the younger the better for the following reasons:

1. They have no financial commitments to worry about.

2. They have the right, positive Mindset, the lack of which causes 97% of all would be IM'ers to fail.

3. They have no concept of failure, doubt and above all fear. They have dreams, aspirations and enthusiasm, with a success Mindset.

In short teenagers do not have any of the Mental baggage of older people.

How to get them started is another matter of course.

My sons are all phenomenal at technology, and entrepreneurial, but there needs to be a route in to IM that is achievable.

In general terms though, if any of you have kids that want to shun the human control system, and start IM - back them all the way, ignore the protests of family, friends and others and show them the way.

Give your kids the absolute Freedom they deserve, most never get, and for which they will be eternally grateful to you.

[Dally137]

This indicates that he has will to do something of his own. Good for him and you too. Don't get him to business right away. Ask him to do some research and get hold of the whole IM idea. Then he will know what to do.

[msmonline]

Wow,

You guys are awesome! Thanks for all the good feedback. Hopefully everyone with kids get something out of it!

[CPA]

Originally Posted by Stephen Root

14 years old wants to start a business... sorry to break it to you but it's not going to happen. 14 years old can't run a business. What you can do is the get him to blog about those games he plays and monetize that. You run the business and let him do the content and he earns percentage. Teach him how to do social media promotion etc. That works great with kids.

Oh really? You can't be serious.

I'm 14 and I've already made and still make thousands each month. And I know atleast 10 other 14-year olds that make money online already.

[Steve Iser]

Originally Posted by Stephen Root

14 years old wants to start a business... sorry to break it to you but it's not going to happen. 14 years old can't run a business. What you can do is the get him to blog about those games he plays and monetize that. You run the business and let him do the content and he earns percentage. Teach him how to do social media promotion etc. That works great with kids.

You made me login just to write this - jeez.

It's your kind of posts that make me shrug and lead people astray when I lurk WF every now and then.

Don't discriminate youth. I've seen some amazing young people run businesses at young ages.

In reference to a training,

Get him acquainted in the CPA Marketing game. There are lots of good offers that will cater more to his interest than selling ebooks.

- Steve

[Treece]

My daughter started her business when she was 12 and she is 17 now. Kids can certainly start businesses, but need a mentor and someone over 18 who can handle the legal aspects. Many sites, such as eBay, do not let minors have accounts. Kids can not legally enter in contracts by themselves, although they can certainly earn money and pay taxes.

The biggest problem I've seen with kid bloggers is that they have to get traffic just like the rest of us and as we all know, that's often the hardest part.

Another option would be to pull your child into your existing business. Hiring your child to do internet tasks is a great way to learn on a live business. I teach my girls new things on a regular basis. Recently, I showed one how to do Yahoo answers - she loves it. She types amazingly fast, relates to the audience she is answering to, and has learned to incorporate helpful links that benefit the reader AND her business. Hiring your kids also has great tax benefits.

[Dave777]

Definitely correct! Teen entrepreneurs are Growing at a faster rate than most want to believe. There's some Great Teen Success stories all over the internet. Uninformed warriors should probably Google and study a good number of the Many interesting business models out there...

With family support Tons more will continually evolve as the internet becomes an adult itself. A little food for thought from my swipe files which just happens to include a few warriors...
Top 20 Young Internet Entrepreneurs Under 21
16yo High School Kid Makes $6,500+/Month - Limited Firesale @ 98% Off!
Conversations With a Teen Entrepreneur - Entrepreneur.com
Teenage entrepreneurs
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/28/jobs/28teens.html
http://blogs.openforum.com/2009/06/1...it-like-it-is/
Teen Podcasters CEO Interview

Dave

[Adrian Cooper]

Originally Posted by CPA

Oh really? You can't be serious.

I'm 14 and I've already made and still make thousands each month. And I know atleast 10 other 14-year olds that make money online already.

Good for you.

I know plenty of teenagers who do as well.

Teenagers make much better IM startups than older people

For the reasons I mentioned.

Any teenagers out there - ignore the oldies and their ego's Show them how it is done.

Age is nothing to do with it - it is all Mind. Teenagers have the right Mindset for business.

[VegasVince]

Originally Posted by Stephen Root

14 years old wants to start a business... sorry to break it to you but it's not going to happen. 14 years old can't run a business. What you can do is the get him to blog about those games he plays and monetize that. You run the business and let him do the content and he earns percentage. Teach him how to do social media promotion etc. That works great with kids.

Are you serious, dude?

That's gotta be about the most closed minded response I've heard in this joint in quite a while.....

To the OP....have your kid study a warrior in this very house named David Wilkinson. (google his name)

He started out when he was 12.....and the kid is a marketing friggin' machine! He's now 15.....and ask the legendary Frank Kern about him! Cuz he'll vouch for him too!

Learned about David from another Warrior named Jason Moffatt...and the kid blew Mo away...and that's hard to do...cuz JaMo doesn't impress easy.

I've spoken to David before and he's the real deal.....put out some of the best video primers I've ever had the pleasure of learning from....and he's 25 years my junior.

So to come out and say a kid can't do this...is flat out crazy. And what would you base a statement like that on?????? Cuz the facts don't back you'se up, jack!

I suspect David makes more money then most of the critics, cynics, and naysayers who can't believe a kid that young might be smarter then they are.

I have no ego problem...telling anyone who cares to listen...the kid is smarter then me...about a whole lot of things!

He's smarter then a lot of peeps in this house....makes more money then most here too....so don't believe for one second it can't be done....cuz he's not the first, only, or last teenager to have made serious bling in this industry.



xxx Vegas Vince
Legend.

[zoobie]

There are many kids that can successfully run a business. For example carlob cab... Stanley Tang, and all lot others... What he might need to have is a business mind set rather than technical area on how Internet marketing works. Things like your products USP, what makes people buy, copywriting kind of thing are much more important factores than the methods of generating income/traffic in the Internet..

[AlfredKo]

14 years old is still young.
There's just so much things to learn; language, design, programming, management etc.
At such young age, build him a strong asset or foundation and he/she will survive for life.

You can ask him to work for you during the weekends or manage some of your projects.
Or throw him some video tutorials to create some minisites, landing page for you while learning php.
Once he graduated later, he'll become a BEAST, armed with skills and business knowledge.

And video games ain't bad either.
Those who played video games are generally more creative and "think outside the box", in a way hehe.

[VegasVince]

Originally Posted by AlfredKo

14 years old is still young.
There's just so much things to learn; language, design, programming, management etc.
At such young age, build him a strong asset or foundation and he/she will survive for life.

You can ask him to work for you during the weekends or manage some of your projects.

And video games ain't bad either.
Those who played video games are generally more creative and think outside the box 'in a way'.

Yeah...kids are all dumb...and certainly not smart enough for the IM world... and chicks should be barefoot and pregnant etc etc.

Un-frigging-believable.....that we're living in the year 2009.....and this is still the mindset of many.


xxx Vegas Vince

[Sully Chaudry]

There's no reason why a 14 year old can't start a business, there have been several examples of younger kids doing very well in business, I think it's just a matter of preparation and helping them with things they can't do until they're 18.

[Treece]

Note, the original question was for a reference guide on affiliate/internet marketing basic enough for a kid to understand.

Suggestions, folks?

[Zach Booker]

Like Vince said it's ridiculous,

Let me let you in on a tiny secret, the very sucessful people in the IM field don't learn design or programming or even managment. (Keep it on the DL, that's kid talk for down low btw)

To the OP I'm 15 and started when I was 13-14ish.

In the online world there really is no age barrier and I don't exactly advertise that i'm 15 due to people like AlfredKo.

Anyway I currently make more per day than what most kids make per month working at Wendys all summer. (Yeah I know what a ****ty place Wendys is to work at. )

If your child truly takes an interest in business than internet marketing is right up his ally.

Your main concern should be maintaing his social life so that he isn't always glued to the computer(It's hard when you know how much money there is to be made). For example I work monday to friday very hard, but than don't check e-mails or anything on the weekends. And the beauty of it is that internet marketing makes you enough money to have the biggest parties all year round.

Anyway it should be up to him if he wants to give er a go or not. (Cause it won't work if he's not totally inlove with IM

Zach

Originally Posted by AlfredKo

14 years old is still young.
There's just so much things to learn; language, design, programming, management etc.
At such young age, build him a strong asset or foundation and he/she will survive for life.

You can ask him to work for you during the weekends or manage some of your projects.
Or throw him some video tutorials to create some minisites, landing page for you while learning php.
Once he graduated later, he'll become a BEAST, armed with skills and business knowledge.

And video games ain't bad either.
Those who played video games are generally more creative and "think outside the box", in a way hehe.

[ramone_johnny]

Originally Posted by Stephen Root

14 years old wants to start a business... sorry to break it to you but it's not going to happen. 14 years old can't run a business. What you can do is the get him to blog about those games he plays and monetize that. You run the business and let him do the content and he earns percentage. Teach him how to do social media promotion etc. That works great with kids.

We dont need chicken littles here.

Regardless of age, he has every right to try. Succeed or fail, he should be congratulated for having this mindset so early in life. I certainly wish I had.

I would strongly suggest, seeking a mentor, one who can touch on various aspects of doing business online, and not just the techie stuff. If you cant find a mentor, get your son along to as many internet marketing seminars as possible. This strategy alone has really fast tracked my progress over the last few months, and many have been free to attend.

Best of luck.

[traxmaker]

I've been doing a LOT of research trying to figure out just exactly what I want to do with myself online and had an idea, but didn't know how to get kids involved, your son would be the perfect person for this job. Get him all set with a blog, grab a few NICE HIGH converting affiliates, I believe Maxbounty and CPAStorm would do him justice. These companies pay a few bucks per each survey answered, email submitted etc. And you know those teens all want to know, "What their Ninja Name is", "What Drink They Are" etc. If he can get his friends to his blog doing those surveys, then they will tell their friends and their friends will tell THEIR friends... you know the pattern

[igorhelpsyousucceed]

Your kid can definitely start of by reselling stuff
on google like my wife's sister does(she's 14)

You can also get him a copy of Perry Marshal's
Adwords course. Which for a -14 year old would
be pretty good.

Igor

[Zach Booker]

Not sure if I'd start off in PPC. It's a very quick market and you can easily loose thousands quickly.
Maybe something more like article marketing, blogging, etc. Something to build the cash reserve up so she/he can play around with PPC.

Zach

Originally Posted by igorhelpsyousucceed

Your kid can definitely start of by reselling stuff
on google like my wife's sister does(she's 14)

You can also get him a copy of Perry Marshal's
Adwords course. Which for a -14 year old would
be pretty good.

Igor

[traxmaker]

Originally Posted by Zach Booker

Not sure if I'd start off in PPC. It's a very quick market and you can easily loose thousands quickly.
Maybe something more like article marketing, blogging, etc. Something to build the cash reserve up so she/he can play around with PPC.

Zach

My exact thoughts and also the reason I've not been "man enough" to jump into the PPC field yet. I'm certainly brave but I don't like losing money, especially when my goal is to MAKE money. I think I'm more of a man to wait until I know enough to succeed at it then jump in blind and drown.

[mediasamurai]

Your kid is really ambitious. That is so nice. You can make him learn about article marketing or maybe all about blogging. I'm sure he will learn a lot and at the same time he will save money for the summer! Good Luck to your kid.

[Stephen Root]

Guys, 14 years old can't run a business and I didn't meant that as a bad thing. First, you have to have adult for the legal mumbojumbo and second, cashing few thousand dollar CPA or Adsense check isn't really a business. When you reach over a certain point in internet marketing it's a whole different ball game where you have to have your ducks in order to survive. With more money comes bigger investments.

It's kinda funny when you read my post and after you read the responses. People are responding to things I never actually wrote.

Did I say he doesn't have right to try? No. I said he can't run a business. Did I suggest how he could try? Yes I did. I even suggested a niche the boy would like, blogging about games he play while his dad takes care of the business side of thing. Business side equals financial handling & planning where I think many 14 years old lacks experience.

What I said was that 14 years old can easily start with blogging about things he like while somebody does the stuff inside a business that 14 years old just can't do.

Just as a friendly advice that you should really read the post if you are planning to write negative reply. You can save yourself from that "oops" feeling.

[Zach Booker]

Originally Posted by Stephen Root

Guys, 14 years old can't run a business and I didn't meant that as a bad thing. First, you have to have adult for the legal mumbojumbo and second, cashing few thousand dollar CPA or Adsense check isn't really a business.

I doubt when the OP said 'Internet Business' they meant a full blown business, he simply meant a way for his child to earn extra money. And there are ways around the Legal 'mumbojumbo' with the assistance of your parent or legal guardian co-signing an account. Same with stocks and even your personal bank accounts.

Originally Posted by Stephen Root

.Did I say he doesn't have right to try? No. I said he can't run a business. Did I suggest how he could try? Yes I did. I even suggested a niche the boy would like, blogging about games he play while his dad takes care of the business side of thing. Business side equals financial handling & planning where I think many 14 years old lacks experience.

We all start at the same basic stage, as a 'newbie'. What does an 18 or 21 year old have that a 14 year old doens't? Maybe slightly more "real world" experience, but what other way to gain experience than by entering into the IM field. Personally the route you said he should take, I think, will take a lot of time and he'll just make pennies.

And he'll get frustrated and give up due to the amount of time being put in and the amount of money that he's making.

Originally Posted by Stephen Root

What I said was that 14 years old can easily start with blogging about things he like while somebody does the stuff inside a business that 14 years old just can't do.

I still don't understand why the child can't handle the 'business side' with the help of his father. That seems better than simply letting the Dad do everything and leaving the kid wondering what all this 'finance stuff' is, right?

Point being, I see where your coming from. But this kid isn't gonna immediately have a 5 figure business.

If when I started you told me i'd be forking over 35% of my earning for taxes, having to pay hundreds in tracking and hosting costs every month, and being slapped by Google and instantly loosing hundreds(Just happened the other day) I would've said, "okay maybe this internet marketing stuff isn't right for me."

You learn as you go, and as you grow so does your knowledge of finance and business management.

Just because you don't know exactly how to run your internet marketing business doesn't mean that you shouldn't try and than learn as you fail and succeed.

Zach

[JakeRhodes]

I'd suggest like others above me that they start off with a blog, that way they can create content about a subject they are interested in and they're more likely to stick to it.

Open up an adsense account for the blog and maybe look for a few products on clickbank that they can promote on the blog.

Originally Posted by Stephen Root

14 years old wants to start a business... sorry to break it to you but it's not going to happen. 14 years old can't run a business. What you can do is the get him to blog about those games he plays and monetize that. You run the business and let him do the content and he earns percentage. Teach him how to do social media promotion etc. That works great with kids.

My bro runs a wordpress blog and is 15 yr old. Though he doesn't make any money off it right now, he is learning a lot of business principles.

[ZTsJourNeY]

Originally Posted by Stephen Root

14 years old wants to start a business... sorry to break it to you but it's not going to happen. 14 years old can't run a business. What you can do is the get him to blog about those games he plays and monetize that. You run the business and let him do the content and he earns percentage. Teach him how to do social media promotion etc. That works great with kids.

I totally disagree with you though. There are so many teenagers having great success lately.

There is a 14-year-old Singaporean kid who has been raking in millions by creating his very own social networking platform.

Kids nowadays are AWESOME!!

[Stephen Root]

Originally Posted by Creative Thinker

My bro runs a wordpress blog and is 15 yr old. Though he doesn't make any money off it right now, he is learning a lot of business principles.

Like I said few posts above, I think that's the right way to go.

Zach Booker,
If 14 years old really can do all the accounting and EVERYTHING related to running a business, hell yes give him those things to do, brilliant way to learn. But I still think that for the most 14 years olds it's so damn boring they won't do it properly. But instead if dad does all that, think about how much fun the boy can have while earning and doing something he likes.

All business related tasks should be outsourced in my opinion. It's good to thing to learn in the beginning even I suggest you learn how to do basic accounting so you don't get screwed.

[Treece]

Blogging Starter Pack: Blogging For Small Businesses

Bum Marketing

Are two possible places to start.

[waken]

Originally Posted by Stephen Root

14 years old wants to start a business... sorry to break it to you but it's not going to happen. 14 years old can't run a business. What you can do is the get him to blog about those games he plays and monetize that. You run the business and let him do the content and he earns percentage. Teach him how to do social media promotion etc. That works great with kids.

Wrong! wrong! It might not be you or me but there are exceptional people out there..Check this out..

About Carl Ocab | Make Money Online with a 13-year old

[ZTsJourNeY]

Originally Posted by Stephen Root

Like I said few posts above, I think that's the right way to go.

Zach Booker,
If 14 years old really can do all the accounting and EVERYTHING related to running a business, hell yes give him those things to do, brilliant way to learn. But I still think that for the most 14 years olds it's so damn boring they won't do it properly. But instead if dad does all that, think about how much fun the boy can have while earning and doing something he likes.

All business related tasks should be outsourced in my opinion. It's good to thing to learn in the beginning even I suggest you learn how to do basic accounting so you don't get screwed.

Hi Stephen,

Business is not all about accounting or something similar to that. A 14-year-old kid who can run a business successfully doesn't mean that he needs to know all the "business" technical stuff or jargon or whatsoever.

That just simply means that this particular kid has an extremely powerful kind of mental/concept to run a very successful business.

Furthermore, no one in this world will run a successful business without "outsourcing" though. We all know "outsourcing" is one of the most important parts to success.

No offense Stephen, I just wanna clarify the things.

Cheers.

Zach

[Stephen Root]

Originally Posted by waken

Wrong! wrong! It might not be you or me but there are exceptional people out there..Check this out..

About Carl Ocab | Make Money Online with a 13-year old

Come on, how many people are like Carl? I know about Carl and lot's of other "kid genius" type of people. It still doesn't change the fact that your average teenager isn't going to do accounting properly for example because it's so damn boring. I was doing business with candy in the school when I was 14 but accounting, no way.. I just liked the extra money.

Originally Posted by ZTsJourNeY

Business is not all about accounting or something similar to that. A 14-year-old kid who can run a business successfully doesn't mean that he needs to know all the "business" technical stuff or jargon or whatsoever.

That just simply means that this particular kid has an extremely powerful kind of mental/concept to run a very successful business.

Furthermore, no one in this world will run a successful business without "outsourcing" though. We all know "outsourcing" is one of the most important parts to success.

No offense Stephen, I just wanna clarify the things.

Cheers.

Zach

No offense taken and you are absolutely right. But I still say that it's probably not the best thing to offer for 14 years old when you can offer him much easier way.

And in general, what are you people trying to tell me here with all your "you are wrong" posts and links to some kids making money? How does that help the thread starter? Is his kid one of these kid geniuses? Could very well be and time will tell but let's just assume he's just a normal kid wanting to make few bucks online ok?

[twinmom]

My 12 yr old son is very driven to have his own business! He's actually got several projects going and works on all of them every day. He's had some setbacks, but he is thriving on it the learning experience. Here are some of the things he's working on to help you with some ideas for your son:
--He's got 2 blogs he's working on (get Steve Crooks' guide about blogs and adsense - pm me if you aren't familiar with it and I'll find the link)
--He's teaching himself game programming
--He's writing an ebook about one of the games he plays online (complete walkthroughs with screenshots)
--He's great to outsource work to (and cheap - LOL), except don't mention 'backlinks' to him - he takes off running

He hasn't made much money yet (just a few dollars on Adsense) but I have no doubt that he's learning some very valuable skills. He can set up a wordpress or joomla site easily, he's developing his critical thinking skills, his writing skills, and learning about money in the meantime.

I homeschool him (and his twin brother), and we already have plans to continue his entrepreneurship into the school year, as part of his "curriculum". :-)

[waken]

Hehe.. Rich Dad hires professionals to grow his business and yet he knows little about all those academic stuff but still a boss to the so-called professionals.

Originally Posted by ZTsJourNeY

Hi Stephen,

Business is not all about accounting or something similar to that. A 14-year-old kid who can run a business successfully doesn't mean that he needs to know all the "business" technical stuff or jargon or whatsoever.

That just simply means that this particular kid has an extremely powerful kind of mental/concept to run a very successful business.

Furthermore, no one in this world will run a successful business without "outsourcing" though. We all know "outsourcing" is one of the most important parts to success.

No offense Stephen, I just wanna clarify the things.

Cheers.

Zach

[Sheryl Polomka]

Does your son need to learn from an ebook or program or could you mentor him yourself? I think a good place to start is to start him off with a blog. Get something he is really interested in and yeah it could just be the stuff he likes - pokemon, skateboarding, anything really. Show him how to monetize it with Adsense, Clickbank or other affiliate programs.

My oldest son is 11 and has his own blog, he doesn't update it much, he isn't too eager anymore about it, but it's there when he gets the urge to blog he does. He has made a few clickbank sales and thinks it is great when he does.

He also helps me create websites sometimes, of course I go in and make sure they are all ok, he just helps with creating the templates. If he helps me on a website then I give him a percentage of the profit for that site.

I guess it all depends too on just how dedicated he is or is it a phase that he might grow out of quickly? Have you shown him some of the different areas of Internet Marketing and is there anything he has shown an interest in?

[ZTsJourNeY]

Originally Posted by waken

Hehe.. Rich Dad hires professionals to grow his business and yet he knows little about all those academic stuff but still a boss to the so-called professionals.

Yeah, that's just all about "how you think" and "how you do" things though. In fact, everyone has a very different kind of perception.

[Webtigerz]

Wow...I wish I could get my kid into actually wanting to work....hehe

[TheOneAlberon]

I read something about a 13 year old kid that's making a killing on the interent. He borrowed money from his mom or something. I don't know if it was all hype to sell more e-books. I had a look at some of the material and it was really neat so it might have been a hoax all together.

Start with clickbank and a blog. Should be a quick and easy start.

[Sully Chaudry]

This is a good trend ... the fact that younger people are interested in entrepreneurship.

When I was growing up I was never taught anything about owning my own business. I was always taught by my parents and others that going to college and getting a professional job was the only way to make a lot of money, and that anything else was ridiculous.

I think it's just a trend that we are seeing; more and more people are starting to believe in their own creative abilities and are starting to try out different side projects while working in their jobs.

And the younger people find it easier to catch on to this mindset because they haven't yet been taught what's wrong (if someone else hasn't got, so in many ways its easier for a younger person to learn about online business, because their minds are like a sponge.

[HappyCommando]

Originally Posted by CPA

Oh really? You can't be serious.

I'm 14 and I've already made and still make thousands each month. And I know atleast 10 other 14-year olds that make money online already.

Good for you and your 10+ friends. Would you mind answering the question for our fellow Warrior so he may better direct his son to achieve his dreams?

[Katie Byrd]

Originally Posted by msmonline

Can someone recommend a GOOD internet marketing/affiliate training program for a 14 year old kid that has ZERO knowledge of doing business on the internet. My son wants to start an internet business, but I don't want to put him on the wrong track with the wrong training. I'd also rather see him do this than stay on those video games ALL SUMMER long.

Thanks

Gary

Hey Gary,

My older kids (15 and 13) have been helping with my online business for the past few years. I started them out with simple tasks like social bookmarking, uploading blog posts, answering simple support emails, directory submissions, rss submissions, etc.

After I felt confident they knew what they were doing, I offered their services out to a few online friends. I'm sure you can imagine how the kids felt about instant money in their paypal accounts!

My son would still rather plant himself in front of his xbox, but he has a long list games he wants to buy and he knows he's not going to get them without working. Desire is a great motivator. :-)

Personally I think it's a mistake to overload kids with all the details of "running a business." My goal is to get them to make the connection between offering a valuable product or service and the money in their pocket.

Now back to your question...

If I wasn't training my kids myself, I'd consider signing them up for Amy Bass' Niche Blogger - http://www.thenicheblogger.com/. From what I've heard, Amy does a great job of teaching the basics.

Hope that helps,
Katie

[Sam Smith]

Here comes some personal experience.

14 is really young. I started a *REAL* online business at 17. (Not internet marketing, which IMO is maybe a little easier than having real inventory etc. and dealing directly with customers). I know that there's a big difference between 14 and 17, etc. but I still have some experience to share.


That business had a lot of positives, including being financially better than the jobs all my friends had, but it stressed me out a lot and distracted me from some perhaps more important things. One big positive is that it taught me that money doesn't always come from working for the man, but from anywhere you can see an opportunity -- and that's a really valuable thing to experience.

I don't know. Maybe at 14 you should just... be a kid? But if he really wants to do it... well, young people tend to have a big advantage in perspective and energy and to be more on the pulse of young trends.

Plus there's some scope for a good story, headline, etc.

A few things though...

1) I quit my child business in very unfavourable circumstances. I was getting death threats because people were impersonating me to scam customers. NOT cool.

Given the age, I would definitely get him to use a pen name.


2) Financially, you should be willing to set up the accounts etc, if any are needed.

[MizzCindy]

I think it's fabulous that a 14 year old wants to start his own business! He's shown a willingness to try something a bit more outside the norm and that's a gift. Many people immediately assume any path that doesn't include a J.O.B. isn't worthy. Those folks are often completely blinded to any other possibility. So good for your son!

An excellent and free training resource (video based) for him would be the 30 Day Challenge. It's a comprehensive training program that covers tons of great information. Both you and your son can sign up together so you'll see exactly what info he's getting.

Here's the link: http://www.thirtydaychallenge.com

Good luck to your son!
Cindy

ETA - The actual challenge starts on August 1st, but right now it's preseason. That means they are posting a bunch of training videos about the tools used during the actual challenge. After signing up, you can download and/or view the videos at your leisure.

HTH!

[AlfredKo]

OK LOOK, there's 2 separate issues.

I see people trying to defend the young kids here.
NOBODY here doubt or condemns the young teens' ability to do internet business.

There are smart people all over the world, and of course anyone can earn big money without any computing knowledge. We all know Bill Gates didn't actually code the Windows OS himself, did he? But if he knows nothing, can he manage the company & his team of programmers?

My advice is made for parents to control your child for a balance between business & life.

A young child need to enjoy his teenage life. When a young child becomes rich or financial independent, generally he/she will not persue higher education because it's no longer needed. He will not get a job and work for someone else as well. Later at the age of 30, he will soon realized that time has gone past like that and he misses a big part of his life, his youth or campus life.

I am sure you guys can relate to this. When you're SO DIFFERENT, NONE of your friends understand what the HECK you're doing; CPA + PPC + CPC + Split Test + Aweber + CTR + comment spamming + Cookie Stuffing...and....whatt?? All they know is Ebay. You can be RICH....but that does not mean you're happy enough, socially. Sooner or later, you will realize money is not everything.

I am speaking this from my personal experience.
And I know a few very successful marketers feel the same way.