Internet
Home Business - It’s Not That Easy!
by Stephen Brennan
|
|
I’ve written before about the
amount of email I receive in the form of link exchange requests.
There’s no need to go into it all again but suffice to say, with
seven websites with varying subject matter and content, I get my
fair share of these requests by both email and through
Linkmarket.net, the link exchange scheme in which I am a member.
I mention this not because this is about the link requests, but
about the opportunity that all these requests present to view
hundreds of other websites each week, mostly newer ones and
mostly home business or affiliate oriented.
In order to make a decision whether to link or not, I will look
at each website, not only the PR and traffic ranking, but the
basic appearance and layout will give me a reasonable insight
into how serious they are, how much they have researched and
planned their website and consequently their whole approach to
their home business. I find this method is a reasonable means to
predict if the website will still be around in six months and
whether the owner will still be online at all.
I am sorry to say, while spending at least 4 - 5 hours a week at
this activity, I'm disappointed at the amount of people who are
literally 'throwing' a website together without any apparent
planning (or basic knowledge about how to actually go about it).
The number of websites I see, which have clearly no chance of
serving a home business purpose at all, is staggering. What's
more staggering is what some people seem to view as 'viable'.
Lack of content (and I mean none at all) and no organised effort
to concentrate on any keywords or phrases at all, let alone a
subject, are the most obvious and numerous. There are many
sites, which are simply one page, that's it. The page will
contain two paragraphs on how "you've come to the right place to
get..." whatever it is, then a few totally unrelated banners and
'obvious' affiliate links and perhaps a Google Adwords box.
Don't get me wrong, my purpose here is not to bemoan the quality
of these hastily prepared and ill-equipped websites, nor is it
to lament the failing abilities of those that have attempted
them. My purpose is to impress on these people and others
planning the same route that home based business, in any shape
or form online has to be treated like any other business
endeavour. Would these people put the same lack of effort and
planning into the signage for their 'bricks and mortar'
business? |
|
No matter how
many times you read that home business is easy and there's
millions to be made so quickly with so little effort or
knowledge, I'm afraid it's not true! I so often see the words,
"no knowledge or effort necessary" and then the figure per month
or year that you can (or WILL) earn. It's possible, but only
WITH the right knowledge and effort.
Ask anyone who has spent more than six months online, trying to
earn a dollar (not necessarily an income) and they'll tell you
that you can't expect to be successful without at least some
basic knowledge and a fair bit of effort. Of course, there are
those who have been lucky enough to strike something at the
right time, in the right place and manage to be hugely
successful in a short period, but these are few.
|
|
|
Like any business endeavour, you need to plan, you need to
research and you need to go about your chosen business
systematically, with the right tools and the right information.
The main tool, the one most people will have as their first an
only impression of you and your product or service, is your
website. How can it simply be an 'afterthought' or a hastily
thrown together page with no thought as to how it appears to
those who may visit.
A reasonable imaging option usually comes with most operating
programs. They have their limitations, of course, but until you
can invest in something more elaborate, these programs can be
used to put together a reasonable header or logo. Goodness,
website templates, some of which are not too bad, are free!
There's no reason why anyone shouldn't be able to come up with,
at least, a presentable website (mine are certainly not works of
art, but I believe they are 'presentable'). Of course, in order
for someone who has no experience online, they will need to
include a little html or php knowledge in their 'research'
phase.
Content and concentration on specific keywords and phrases is
critical if anyone wishes to have a chance in the Search
Engines. How to write decent copy and the simple knowledge about
what methods to use to attract or to not 'put-off' your audience
is as important however, so many tend to go into an online
business without, it would seem, much of a grasp of any of this.
There are numerous forums that new webmasters can go to for
friendly advice from those who have been at it for years and a
home business with a website has to have a 'webmaster', like it
or not. I've had people say to me that they want to get into an
Internet home business but they don't want to bother with
learning about html etc. My advice to them in this case, is to
forget it, unless you have hundreds to pay for someone to build
your site and then to maintain it. It's not as if you need to be
able to write html 'freehand'. The programs, which are again,
available with most operating systems make the task quite
simple, with a small understanding. But you have to have that,
at least.
My advice to those who want to do it properly is to look at the
websites that are involved in the same type of home business. Do
the research, read about Internet home business and/or affiliate
marketing until your eyes water. God knows there's enough
material online to last anyone for a million years.
Disseminating the worthwhile can be a chore, but remember, this
is your BUSINESS you're talking about, not a part-time
dalliance, or at least it shouldn't be.
Like any other endeavour, be it business, hobby, sport or
otherwise, you will only get out of it what you put into it.
You'll find that those who have been successful in an online
home business, are those who have learnt the value of knowledge,
information, know-how, call it whatever you like. Many
successful home businesspeople have had slow and inauspicious
beginnings, just like most of those who are hard at it now, but
they made it with this knowledge and by applying it to their
home business.
** This 'Author's Resource' must be published intact with links
active when copying or publishing this article **
|
|
