New to IM: One website or two?

ONE.

That way you make all your mistakes with one site instead of two and can work twice as hard on it.

Just distribute the work time and you could build as many websites as you want. If you want to build another website related to the 1st one then it's another thing. In this case it's in your advantage to expand the 1st website because it has some authority already established, but this doesn't apply on all niches.

I think you should work with 2-3 niche sites because it's really hard to find what you are doing wrong, if you are a newbie, with one website. If you are working with 2-3 sites then you will see different results with the same work and then you can learn more. So, use these 2-3 sites to learn everything.

The more the better, take the plunge with the second. You'll gain more exp and you'll begin to get better and faster. I wouldn't be too concerned with two. Good luck

I think it ultimately comes down to focus. If your someone who can keep an even 'look out' shall we say on the progress of more than one project then having 2 websites should not in theory be double the work. That being said it is also dependent on the niches your involved in, your strategy for promotion and your overall goals.

I am guessing from your post that your intent is to have 2 domains so that you can age them as you have heard aged domains are better in terms of rankings and for authority. Although this is true I would not sacrifice building out one good website in a solid niche for simply having 2 mediocre websites simply because you wish to age your domains. The age of a domain is only one factor (albeit an important one) in the overall rankings in the search engines and your focus should be more on creating solid content, finding the best ways to promote your sites and gaining traffic over a period of time rather than worrying about one particular factor such as domain age. You should also note that when you start creating a good income purchasing 'aged domains' is a very good way of bypassing the problem of not having an aged domain and this option will be open to you in the future.

In short having 2 websites in 2 different niches as mentioned above may give you more scope to see how 2 very different areas perform for argument sake lets say one was in dog training and the other in IM. You could test different promotion strategies for each site (split testing) to see what works best and formulate a plan of action from there. However, I would only do this if you have the discipline to follow through. The worst thing you could do is take too much on your plate too soon and find you cannot handle it.....I think that would dishearten you and be negative to your growing ambitions within IM. Hope you manage to find the right balance

Start with one site first. That way, you can focus and monitor it. And if it succeeded, create another one. Good luck!

I agree stick to one at first until you get the hang of things and venture out after you have made progress with your first site.

I like to work on two sites at a time just so I can bounce back and forth. It keeps me from getting bored or my content from getting stale because it is all about one subject.

Benjamin Ehinger

"Finish what you started" - It's very easy to get overwhelmed in this business. Doing to many things at once will cause you to get frustrated and eventually quit.

Create a plan and stick with it... Master the skill set and move on to the next thing..

Age has nothing to do with SEO - You can start showing up in the SERPS almost immediately provided you can offer your readers value.

Heres a couple of tips:
create keyword rich articles ( add your main keyword to you title, content, and URL )
provide massive value
solve a problem
create engaging content

Give your readers a reason to want to come back for more...

Hope this helps...

Most people will tell you to diversify across many sites, but I don't feel that is wise.

As has been pointed out here, especially in the beginning, you'll waste a lot of time and resources while "learning"...

Start with one and work your way through the process. After you feel comfortable with it all, one of three things will happen:

1) You may decide IM is not for you (that's the case of the majority of the people out there so don't feel bad)

2) You will like the process, but not the results - ie, you've learned a lot but aren't making any sales

3) You have a little income coming in.

If the answer is #3, then don't go out and get another site. Instead focus on maximizing the income from your current site.

If the answer is #2, well, like it or not, you may have some issues with the niche, the keywords, etc.. or just the fact that it can take a few months for sites to mature and begin to produce in certain niches.

If the answer is #1, well, that's self explanatory...