Its not how much you spend but how you spend it

Trying to Buy Success

How often are you purchasing ebooks, strategy guides and software to build you IM business? Are you spending cash hand over fist in pursuit of an ideal approach to implement your business idea? Do you find yourself hitting the BUY NOW button day after day, believing that you're about to find the missing link in your moneymaking chain?
If you're spending a fortune on your business, you're not the only one. Many IMers are on the buy-buy-buy-and-buy-some-more treadmill.
Those spending habits have a logical appeal. It's perfectly reasonable to purchase new products and information to refine your already-successful business. Investing in new materials to stay on top of a quickly developing industry is reasonable. However, there is a problem with running on the BUY NOW treadmill if you're not making any money.
Buying new tools to stay ahead of the games is very different from desperately making purchases in hopes of finding base-level success.
You want to spend your money the smart way. You want to avoid being the serial buyer whose efforts only add to his or her debt.
Making Smart Purchases

So, how do you avoid becoming the wrong kind of serial buyer? It starts by building a rock-solid foundation. If you strip away all of the details, tricks, options and creative new ideas from Internet marketing, it's a simple proposition.
You must have a product you can sell. You must have a way to sell the product. You need to bring traffic to your the site you'll use to make sales.
That's it. All of your efforts should relate to one of those basic needs.
As such, you need to focus on building strength in all three areas. Everything you buy should support your efforts to work on one of those three factors.
Before you start reaching for details, tweaks, adjustments and tricks, you need to develop your core means of making online money. Once you have the basics in place, you're going to start making money. Then you can start experimenting with new ideas and products.
How to Build Your Foundation

You can start building that money making foundation without going broke in the process. Here's what you need to do.

• Get a smart, big picture understanding of Internet marketing. You need to learn how things work from someone who's spent time in the trenches.
• Focus on ways to boost traffic. As noted, traffic is one of the three keys to a solid foundation. It's arguably the most important component. Until you have adequate traffic, you won't be able to find out if your products are attractive or if your copy is converting. You need to get people to your site as soon as possible.
• Find a source of ongoing assistance. A good ebook can be helpful. A video can be invaluable. However, there's nothing like developing an ongoing connection with a coach or mentor who has a history of success and a willingness to show you the ropes. Quality ongoing coaching makes the learning curve less steep and prevents you from wasting time, energy and resources on things you don't need.
• Don't overexpose yourself. You want to meet your objectives without risking significant losses. Look for opportunities to secure the right information at a reasonable price. Find a small business coaching opportunity that doesn't require a fat up-front commitment and that doesn't lock you into a multi-month contract.