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Your Biggest Mistakes When Starting Online?

by Henry Chan
52 replies
Hi All,

I don't know if these questions have been asked before in this forum or not. But as a newbie, I think it would be helpful if I can get some opinion from you so that I know the DO's and DONT's in regards of getting started online. Please share here your biggest mistakes when you were starting out.

Thank you!
#biggest #mistakes #online #starting
  • Profile picture of the author Ed Micah
    One of the bigggggggest mistakes for a starter in the internet marketing - in my opinion - is that, most people(I mean it) don't have the ability of focusing on certain methods of making money online.

    It's just like, when you plant a seed, if you don't constantly fertilize it, water it, look after it... it's not going to grow you a tree in the end.

    And so what is the solution? Focus on "one" method, and work on it, don't expect for it to do anything for you anytime soon. If it doesn't turns out to whatever you were expecting, try to find out why, and fix it!

    If you jump around with ideas to ideas, methods to methods, don't expect a potted plant to grow into a big tree.
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    • Profile picture of the author Henry Chan
      Hi Ed,

      I think that is what I'm facing right now. Having no clue at all about where/how to start in this IM jungle. Especially with so many different methods.

      If you were to start all over again from scratch, what would you do first? I know your answer will certainly help me deciding which path I should take..

      Again, thank you for sharing!
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      • Profile picture of the author Ed Micah
        I would focus on list building with all I have.

        Have a read at this thread: http://www.warriorforum.com/main-int...0-monthly.html - follow it, focus on it, master it. Nothing else.

        Best of luck!



        Originally Posted by Henry Chan View Post

        Hi Ed,

        I think that is what I'm facing right now. Having no clue at all about where/how to start in this IM jungle. Especially with so many different methods.

        If you were to start all over again from scratch, what would you do first? I know your answer will certainly help me deciding which path I should take..

        Again, thank you for sharing!
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  • Profile picture of the author Peter Hansen
    I totally agree with Ed Micah on this!

    I believe working on too many projects is the second most common fatal mistake new IM'ers do.

    Now what do I believe is the most common mistake among new IM'ers?
    Jumping from ship to ship of different strategies, methods ad gurus.

    What should a new IM'er do in my opinion?
    Keep projects down to 2 projects at a time or at MAX 3 projects. But 2 is better.
    Stick to the strategy you already have. Do not jump to another gury, coach or method every time you see a nice promising sales page.

    oh and one last thing.....
    Don't EVER give up.....


    Let me know if I can help you Warrior to Warrior.

    Good luck
    Peter
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  • Profile picture of the author hadtic
    like most mines was the shinny penny syndrome and also not focusing on one thing. The saying is true the money is in the list so i would say pick your niche and focus on it then build your list using solo's and other techniques. Always research and do due dillegance before you buy anything.
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  • Profile picture of the author Stephen Marden
    My main mistake was downloading everything I could possibly get my hands on. I nearly crushed my computer with the weight of all the products I downloaded.

    I was overwhelmed and after months of collecting, finally removed everything and put all the files on TWO (one was not enough) external hard drives.


    After cleaning house, I was able to focus and get started in one direction. So my main mistake was, in a nutshell, information overload.
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    • Profile picture of the author Henry Chan
      Thank you all for your great advise..

      I think my first 2 projects should be finding the niche and build the list. In your opinion, what is the fastest way to build a list? Buying solo's?
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  • Profile picture of the author CalinDan
    I do like to diversify, but not all at once.

    Focus on a method, get it to work for you as best as it can... And then go and try new different things until you have yourself a few income streams.

    But my biggest mistake was NOT TAKING ACTION. That's the real business killer in IM. People tend to get overwhelmed with information overload and just buy and read stuff. Don't do that, get started on whatever comes your way first. If it works, good, if it doesn't, look for something else.

    Imperfect action > Perfect inaction (someone on the forum said this before, congratz)

    Regards,
    Dan
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    • Profile picture of the author onchow
      Great thread for those are starting out with internet marketing.
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    • Profile picture of the author Dimitris Skiadas
      Originally Posted by CalinDan View Post

      I do like to diversify, but not all at once.

      Focus on a method, get it to work for you as best as it can... And then go and try new different things until you have yourself a few income streams.

      But my biggest mistake was NOT TAKING ACTION. That's the real business killer in IM. People tend to get overwhelmed with information overload and just buy and read stuff. Don't do that, get started on whatever comes your way first. If it works, good, if it doesn't, look for something else.
      Couldn't agree more with you, Dan.

      I believe that if you ask 100 Internet Marketers, 95 of them will tell you that this was their biggest mistake.

      That they did NOT TAKE ACTION!I did the same thing too. Used to buy all kinds of WSO's, products, software etc and never made any money in my first 5 months.

      When i realized what i was doing wrong, i started making my first few dollars.

      Don't give up on your dreams and goals.Persist on them and you will succeed.

      Dimitris
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  • Profile picture of the author techbul
    My biggest mistake is that I didn't take action sooner. Whenever you read a method on a forum and think "I can't make money out of it" or when you come up with an idea just to find out later that there is somebody else doing it - DON'T QUIT! Do it better than the competition, and you will be fine
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  • Profile picture of the author Henry Chan
    Wow! Really learn a lot from you guys here!

    I see that NOT TAKING ACTION was the biggest mistake one ever did when starting online, and I think it still IS.. So, how did you guys finally make up your mind and started to take action? What motivates you?

    At the moment I choose Affiliate Marketing as my entry point in IM career. I give myself 30 days to do everything I can to earn my first money online. If I'm success, I will share with you whatever my system/step is. Not as a WSO, but as a lesson for us to learn from..and hopefully I can get your critique and advise to improve my performance..

    Wish me luck.. :-)
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  • Profile picture of the author fin
    Not focusing on one website.
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  • Profile picture of the author yossi yagudaiv
    hey i think there are 2 main mistakes

    1) information overload - too much information. ''I want to know everything i can ! i have to know everything !!! ''

    my answer : stick to 1 formula of success and 1 micro niche !

    2) people don't understand that to be the best you need to know only the basics (there are no tricks) - you need a stage (website) and viewers (traffic) !!! that is all !

    People think that all the big gurus know some secret trick to make it online - no !!!

    stage with good content + viewers + viewer action = money !
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  • Profile picture of the author denysapu
    Agree with yossi yagudaiv, most beginners will be very tempted to bid from either side which are invite you to generate thousands of dollars with the Internet. But it will only take a lot of time with no results if you do not focus on one of them.
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    Don't worry be happy!

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  • Profile picture of the author BlueOak
    my biggest mistake was trying to do too much at once. I would start a good project then after it was going ok I would pick up another. I had a lot going on and none of it was perfected because I never had time to do it all. I got what i asked for and each project only made a few dollars a month instead of a few hundred.

    If I could do it over I would pick one project, then make one of it and perfect it till it was a success. I wouldn't even do multiple things in the same project (build a dozen sites before the first is perfect in hopes of making more money - DON'T DO THIS!!).

    Also, this: http://www.warriorforum.com/main-int...ey-online.html
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  • Profile picture of the author Bemito
    Hello,
    Yes you must be focused at the very beginning.Get your interest straight and understand what you want.If you are interested in internet marketing try to see which model you really want to follow.Are you using affiliate marketing,or packaging info products for sale online?.Once you are decided,half of the problem is solved.There are many internet based businesses you can actually engage in legitimately.I recently researched and made an awesome discovery of more than. 150 internet based businesses you can actually engage in legitimately for a lifetime steady income stream.
    Be reminded though that whatever model you choose to adopt,the most important thing you may need to do is learn how to build a profitable list in that niche.You have a lot to learn in this regard but it is all fun and for profit.
    Bemito
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  • Profile picture of the author Leslie B
    My biggest mistake was not starting a list much sooner. The size would have been WAY bigger if I had done that right from the start instead of two years later (for my service based business that is)

    Leslie
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    Taking it one day at a time!
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  • Profile picture of the author IMAdam
    Hi Henry,

    My biggest mistake, as it seems for many, the lack of focus on one thing. I remember ranking my first site and never did anything with it. Had I focused on it, I could have grown it, created a list and possibly sold the site for some good $$$ had I wanted to, but at the time I just got bored and drifted off to other things that seemed more "fun" and "faster."

    The truth of the matter is, the boring and repetitive tactics that WORK is what will make you the most money, in addition to positioning your self.

    Adam
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    • Profile picture of the author Brad Berry
      DO focus on one method of IM, its a jungle out there, you don't want to get lost after spending so many resources in many method at once.
      DO learn from mistake, once your method is taking too long for a result, evaluate it, know your mistake, remake your strategy.
      DO brave, take the risk, aim big or no aim at all.
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  • Profile picture of the author DerekGann
    My biggest mistake, I was running after fast money without any skill.

    But after couple of week I understood that I am brooked and got the point, I have no skill.
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  • Profile picture of the author cbader
    Yeah, my biggest mistake was trying to do too many different things.
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  • Profile picture of the author Yadira Barbosa
    Mine was to learn so much about everything and doing nothing.
    I spend thousands of dollars in ebooks because I always had the feeling that I need to learn more about "x" matter and I don't implement any of all the stuff I learn.

    It's better to take action, even with all the limitations you think you have and then implement what you learn.
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  • Profile picture of the author ceenote100
    The biggest mistake starting online is buying into the lie that there are one-push button softwares that will automatically make you thousands of dollars in no time.
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  • Profile picture of the author Michael Ten
    I don't think that I've had enough success to be able to competently assess what my biggest mistake has been.
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  • Profile picture of the author Fleki
    Biggest mistake:

    Starting out in IM niche. Teaching people how to teach people to teach people how to sell an ebook about teaching people how to sell an ebook.

    You are dealing with people who are spending much more money than they are making. You'll hardly ever get rich doing that crap.

    Once I got into other things, dealing with people that are bringing in tens of thousands of dollars in revenue each month, it wasn't so hard to convince them to give you $20 per month for a membership to your blog.
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  • Profile picture of the author carlo_sim
    Biggest mistake when I started:
    1.Building too many websites
    2.Not building a list
    3.Getting into a niche that I'm not interested in
    4.Not using social media as a traffic source

    Here's a good plan when you are starting:
    1.Get into a niche that you are really interested in
    2.Focus on that niche
    3.Build content and get traffic
    4.build a list
    5.get the trust of your audience
    6.BE CONSISTENT
    7.Slowly monetize
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  • Profile picture of the author nmb
    My biggest mistake was not concentrating on ideas and strategies which were working and trying to build too many sites too quickly.
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  • Profile picture of the author JackCronfield
    Start small and gradually build your business. Don't expect to earn $10,000 in your first month.
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  • Profile picture of the author Jackson Tan
    Biggest mistake is not building my own list and also losing focus on the way when building the IM biz~
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  • Profile picture of the author SomeRandomBadger
    Lack of focus was definitely the problem for me. When I fixed that, I still think that progress would of been a lot quicker if I applied my chosen method to just one niche though, rather than a few different ones.

    Pick your method and stick to it. Then pick your niche and stick to it.

    Diversification is important of course, but you need to get your ducks in a row first with a single method/niche IMHO.

    Cheers.
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  • Profile picture of the author johnben1444
    Not thinking of what i will do for my business rather i was thinking what can my business do for me.

    It was just a case of misplaced priority for me but happily, i overcame that with a better vision and commitment towards success.
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  • Profile picture of the author Gerald Arno
    Banned
    The by far biggest mistake is to believe that anything outside yourself will bring success.

    Too many people are on the rush to get the next big thing that will avoid to get their hands "dirty". People who avoid to get their hands dirty are the ones who never breakthrough.

    The best thing you can do is to work on the most challenging tasks at any time because here is where you make most of your money.
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    • Profile picture of the author aprilm
      100% echoing of what everyone else said about not sticking to one thing. My biggest mistake was thinking that Internet marketing was a quick money solution, when in reality, it takes long hard work and lots of patience.

      When you're first starting out,Warrior Forum can be the best place to be and the worst place to be at the same time. It's great for learning methods and techniques, but some of the people here give you the false illusion that you can make a quick buck with no work.

      When I first became a member here I was totally addicted to buying WSOs because they all seem to promise riches beyond y our wildest dreams with a click of a mouse. So one of my biggest mistakes was buying into all that.

      One of the best decisions I made here, however, was joining the War Room. Lots of generous Warriors give their WSOs away for free there. I think that was the best 37 bucks I spent here at Warrior Forum.

      If you an focus on ONE method at a time, stick to that method even when it seems you're getting nowhere, and stay confident that if others can do it so can you, you will be light years ahead of where I was when I first started.

      Also, no matter what you decide to pursue......build a list! Start early on that because it is true what they say around here ... The money IS in the list!

      Good luck!
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  • Profile picture of the author TheBlueWizard
    My biggest mistake was when I realized just how possible and infinite the possibilities of making money online were (upon seeing my first dollars via adsense income) - I would 'dream' of how life was going to be with this new set of financial freedom...

    And I completely forget or half a**'ed the 'work' part of everything, and questioned myself why 'haven't I made it yet?"...

    In internet marketing, you are on your on. You need to be completely in tune with yourself, and with reality in order to truly be successful.

    Most importantly, remember that the startup entails working hard every single day.
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  • Profile picture of the author anuj291
    concentrate on one niche and go all out ... dont try to buy WSO !!
    just concentrate on making money and dont skip from one program to another
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  • Profile picture of the author Aaron Autrey
    For me:

    1) Not focusing on 1 thing
    2) Not building a list
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    The good thing about this business is that "People don't succeed cause they aim too high and miss, no, they aim too low... and hit. Most people don't aim at all." (Les Brown)

    Not us... Not marketers. We live far above mediocrity. Always keep this in mind at all times..

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  • Profile picture of the author dadhere
    It wasn't until I got a mentor. 3 yrs and nothing. The month after getting one I made my first thousand.
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  • Profile picture of the author IMSince2003
    Biggest mistake: not building lists in my niches from day 1. Second biggest mistake: spending too much time doing things that were not adding to my bottom line.
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  • Profile picture of the author TerranceCharles
    One of my biggest mistakes was NOT building my list sooner! If I was building my list when I first started IM - I would've had atleast 1.2 million subscribers by now Like many, I started jumping from program to program, creating many different websites that didn't go anywhere, and then I finally created my first product in 2009 and it was on from there!
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  • Profile picture of the author Nexstair
    What i think most of newbies dont do enough research.They just see a market lucrative and get in without having some research and even sometime they dont have suitable skills for target market.
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  • Profile picture of the author dalegolden
    My biggest mistake was to think that there should be a shortcut of SEO through which my website will get a thousands of visitors overnight. That is why I was searching for the secret and was not really interested in learning the basics of SEO. What a fool I was
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  • Profile picture of the author firethewild
    I thought it would be easy. It is not. I thought I will make a quick buck. Well, it took time.
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  • Profile picture of the author blillard
    I agree with most of what was said above, but for me it was this.

    Not having a plan of attack from the beginning (Fail to plan, plan to fail)
    Not having the focus needed to concentrate on that ONE plan
    Not giving yourself enough time to carry out that to actually see RESULTS (Giving up too fast)
    Listening to all the noise surrounding the industry when something new came out unless it directly helped what I was currently working on
    Not being open minded
    Learning how accept failure and figuring out why it failed and making the needed changes to get it to work.
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  • Profile picture of the author marketwarrior06
    Banned
    To join some crappy network and working for them for more than 4 months After loosing thousands of $ I got the perfect track. I think its important for everybody to make mistakes
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  • Profile picture of the author Allissa
    Banned
    My biggest mistake was trying to figure everything out myself, rather than getting a personal Coach to help me!
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  • Profile picture of the author TheBishop
    The problem I struggle with is getting distracted.
    I don't have a problem coming up with new ideas and that is my problem. I get excited about a new idea I have and spend unnecessary the researching it that I could be spending working on my main project.
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  • Profile picture of the author mmntv
    1. List. List list list. List list list list.
    2. Focus!
    3. Don't buy stuff. Save your money and use it for solos, paid traffic and/or advertising. Then use it to outsource and scale. Not accumulate e-products.
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  • Profile picture of the author jamesrich1
    My biggest mistake as a marketer when I came online was doing too much learning and not enough action.
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  • Profile picture of the author RedShifted
    Biggest mistake was spending too much time on this forum (it was a blessing when I was a newbie that quickly turned into a curse). Second biggest mistake was giving up too soon. The second I stuck with something for a few months, and failed repeatedly, but didn't give up, I began to succeed.

    -Red
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  • Profile picture of the author David Braybrooke
    Biggest mistake: I didn't make a start on anything. Too busy reading, researching, Googling, fretting, buying marketing books ... playing Angry birds. Enough already!
    Half the fun of online marketing is trying out different methods to see what you enjoy and what you are actually good at. There is only so much 'good advice' you can take. Expect to stuff up a bit when starting out, but learn to fail quickly, get back up and try another method, right away!
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  • Profile picture of the author milliondream
    My biggest mistake is not studying all im method before choosing the one that I have skill or like to focus on.
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