Some questions from a want-to-believe IM
I've been using the web for many years now, but have recently come to the point in my life where the 9-5 grind is getting me down. I'm self-taught in website design (just the basics but enough to get by and tinket without needing a point and click package) and for the last few months I've been looking around these forums, which started out from a discussion with a friend about "how people make money online".
I have a few observations/questions which you may or may not like to comment on.
Basically, it's to do with the methods cited. At its heart, I can distill the wonderful information people have posted here into logical steps. E.g. Adsense. Find niche market ("post-baby slimming") from a bigger market ("wieght loss"), use google tools to find long tail keywords, create a free blog with a couple articles such as How To, and put adsense on the page. As traffic comes, tweak headers, colours, links, positioning to increase STR. Or affiliate products like clickbank or amazon, do basically the same but provide links to the affiliated product. Other suggestions than relying on keyword terms to bring traffic are article submission, X per day helpful comments on a community forum covering topic. Or build a site from scratch, get articles, members and self-generated content, whatever. Etc.
Questions:
1) Is there much of a difference between using free websites such as Blogger... than your own domain + static page or blog?
2) Audience. I don't remember the last time I EVER clicked on an ad banner. Or bought something through an affiliate link - in fact it's probably never. I find it hard to believe that so many millions of website users out there are so naive as to click a website like slimming-down-post-baby-weight.com or a blogspot URL when, to me, they are SO obviously geared towards selling something. I think average internet users are getting smarter. So the cynic in me wonders how these awful "sales letter" type websites actually make people part with their cash... or what look like spam/advert sites make people actually buy something... or click on a link. No one that I know would ever do this. Yet there are loads of you on here, and all over the web, who say "yes, the average internet user really is that naive".
3) There seems to be some major backrubbing going on. I've been reading a LOT of threads on here (I only signed up today though) and how can a newbie like me tell when a recommendation for a product or service is a genuine one, rather than I'll scratch your back recs?
Finally - I really want to give this a go. But I'm worried in case it's just one big con! So.. my last question:
4) Did you have the same doubts as me at first? What about your friends and relatives when you tell them what you "do"? What point did your opinion turn into "hey this is working!".
I hope to continue to learn (I've signed up for the Newbie University, which looks good) and I will update in 6 months, if only for my own record of "6 months experience as an iM newbie" to help future people.
Roger Davis
Roger Davis
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