Big Picture Inquiries

Hey everyone,

I'm brand new to internet marketing and instead of asking "how do I make money online?", I thought I would be more detailed and specific in my search for knowledge and help.

I've spent the last 2 days reading about the massive field that is IM and trying to make some sense of it, build a big picture of it and figure out what direction and actions to take.

I've compiled a list of topics and questions concerning what I've learned and read about so far and present it here to you in the hopes of getting some feedback and creating a healthy discussion.

I hope that this thread can be of use to many newbies - current and future. Although creating wealth is not a niche that I want to explore at first, I plan on keeping a journal of my progress in IM and perhaps could eventually write a comprehensive guide of the basics and specific "what to do" and "how to's" that might help a lot of people.

I plan to work 4-5 hours a day from here on out to build something with the intention of eventually not ever having to have a job again.

I certainly don't expect anyone to answer everything here but any help, advice or feedback to these questions would be so very much appreciated

1. First action plan

I've come to realize that there are many possibilities and ways to do IM. I can be pretty susceptible to "paralysis by analysis" and trying to be perfect and so one of the first things I wanted to do was find a straightforward plan of action to complete. I figured even if it doesn't get much in terms of results, I'll at least be on my way and will learn some of
the essential skills along the way.

I came across these two threads ...
which basically say to...
-Pick a niche through research on click bank etc and choose keywords with the help of market samurai/google analytics
-Do research to create content to help that niche
-Create a site with either a squeeze page or that sells products
-Drive traffic to the site

a)Do you think this basic outline is a good place to start for a first project to test the waters and learn some skills?

b)Squeeze page vs directly selling products (affiliate or your own) on the page that you drive traffic to.

SirTom's thread stresses the idea of building a list, providing them lots of content and building a relationship so that you can sell to them later but in ShutupAndEarn's thread he simply found some CPAs, ranked his sites on yahoo/bing by creating content and profited.

Which do you think is better? How important is building a list vs having a really good website that sells the product/s?
Should one try both building a list and having some sites where you just drive traffic to them and hope people buy?
If one works in multiple niches, should he/she have a list for each niche or one master list?

c) What other actions might you recommend a newbie be doing right away in order to learn and work towards getting results?

2. Doing work vs researching?

I think it will be important for me to keep reading and learning but it's probably even more important to start DOING. Assuming I have 4-5 hours a day to put towards this, what percentage of the time should be spent researching and learning vs working and putting ideas into practice?

3. Is blogging and creating content necessary or can one just get good at driving traffic through something like PPC and having a webpage that sells well? Are both ways possible or is one much better than the other?

4. Investing money

Although I'd rather start without investing too much, I'm happy to invest in the things that are necessary and the ones that will be very helpful. Where do you think a newbie should invest their money?

a) Domains and hosting seems necessary
b) Software? What software is the most helpful and necessary?
c) Joining the war room on this forum. Is this something worth doing now or would it be better to wait until one has more focus?
d) Sales training and books? What are the best resources?
e) Anything else?

5. 1 on 1 mentoring

Do you think this is a good idea for a beginner? Is anybody offering these services? I know I'd be interested in getting help from someone and would be willing to pay for it.

6. Articles

I see the term tossed around so much and I wonder if it has a specific meaning or does it just mean anything written about anything?

Any examples?

7. Content

What do you think is the best way to acquire content?
Write it?
Buy it?
Rewrite?

What should one be looking to do if they are focused on writing their own quality content? What is the main purpose behind having the content?

What should a site look like in terms of how the content is laid out? How many pages? Articles on each page?

8. Content laws?

I definitely want to say away from anything illegal or unethical but when it comes down to it, anything you have learned and then written about you acquired from another source originally.
What are the rules regarding posting things like CNN videos you came across? Other people's pictures, articles or videos? Anything that you didn't create yourself?

9. How specific should a niche site be?

EverythingAboutVision.com or LasikSurgeryReviews.com

Does it depend? What does it depend on?

10. Any other comments about the big picture and what one should focus on in the beginning?

I know this is a long and somewhat rambling list of questions and I really appreciate any feedback.

Am I on the right track asking these questions?