Don’t rush it!

If you are at school and deciding on your future career, or hating the work you are doing and picking a new profession, you would not just take a day or two and then fling yourself into an opportunity that you know nothing about. Would you?

Well – the same is true of working online. One of the most common causes of failure is grabbing at something that looks appealing, (usually the prospect of easy money) paying money out (maybe) and a few weeks or months later finding that it totally does not suit you and that you have made no money at all. You then spend time searching frantically for another ‘golden’ chance to make some cash while blaming the company that you have just ditched.

Sadly, this can become a self-perpetuating cycle and we have ended up with a group of  bitter individuals who make it their mission to dismiss the Internet as a place of crooks, fools and failure. They write reviews in which they blacken reputations and on occasion,  destroy companies that are doing OK.

These individuals are not at all connected with honest reviewers, I hasten to add. Honest reviewers do a great job. They announce any conflict of interest and present unbiased opinions about the product they are critiquing.

Truthfully, there are scams out there. Make no mistake. The colour of scams ranges from deep black to a genteel shade of grey, but yes, they are definitely out there. However – your not making money does NOT automatically mean that you have been involved with a scam company.

Choosing trustworthy business partners is all important

I am an Affiliate Marketer, I sell products on behalf of my business partners and I earn a commission. This type of business may not suit you at all, but it is what I do.

Often, the main problem when deciding  to do something online is a lack of understanding of the ‘first steps’ you need to take for example, choosing a suitable business model.

Questions will revolve in your head…

  • What is involved in working online
  • What sort of opportunities are available
  • What skills do I need
  • Where do I go to learn
  • What business model should I choose?

Then, after some research.

  • How do I get around my lack of tech know-how?
  • Can I make money with a blog?
  • What is internet marketing all about?
  • Can I make money on-line? I’ve tried everything before.
  • What about leads?
  • Do I really need a list?
  • It’s all just so confusing.
  • Is it my age?
  • I do not know anything about social media

Confusion does reign and the way to work around this is to find some way of resolving each of your queries one by one.

  • You can do this by working with someone who has already gone down the path and who can advise you on an informal basis. These are often known as ‘sponsors’, or friends.
  • You could choose business partners that offer training or coaching in their particular system.
  • You could look for a mentor – someone you can trust who has proven success in the industry.
  • Or you can bang on by yourself getting information from YouTube, the internet and a variety of other sources, who may well know nothing much at all.

I chose to work with a business partner who offered coaching and instruction to their members.

Even this plan did not fully work out for me. My first  partner did not, at the time, have a decent coaching program. I was not comfortable with my experience of it and, as it turned out, I did not have enough money to sustain the necessary advertising or to purchase the traffic needed to bring in leads. I was never advised that I would have to find money in quantity to maintain the program, which I now realise was a real flaw in their recruiting. They have now disappeared into the ether.

However, I know people who actively participated and who did extremely well indeed. I fully intended to return one day and pick up the reins once more but sadly, that is not now possible.

My present partner produces on-line courses at the upper level and in various niches. Our mission is to provide education for business people who wish to succeed in their own profession, using the internet to enhance their position. We specialise in offering training in Entrepreneurship and our courses include units covering personal development, mind-set, goal setting and money management along with the digital marketing skills our clients require. The primary course you offer is based on the Business Model known as Affiliate Marketing, which can be applied to many projects and products.

Start Your Search Here

Meanwhile, here are two different solutions for you to investigate. Take some time and decide if you feel one resonates with you. These are trusted and well-tried programs that I know well and if I can help you by answering any questions you may have please do not hesitate to contact me. If you decide they do not suit you, there is no problem. We can point  you in other directions to find other opportunities that may be more to your liking.

The Four Percent Group and Elite Marketing Pro are the two programs I support and both, in my opinion, are honest, straight-forward and provide good training and support for their partners.

A word of caution, though. These programs offer ‘systems’ – ways of doing things that experts have tested and found are successful.

If you have some experience, it is really easy to fall into the trap of thinking, ‘Ah – I know about that. I think the way that ‘Bill’ taught me is better!’ and off you go on your own path.

To be brutally frank, and speaking from personal experience, having this attitude is one of the most common reasons for failure.

So – if you are not inclined to follow instructions, you may need to change your way of working, at least until you see some success – then you will have the confidence and expertise to change the system if you decide it needs it.

To quote the Founder and CEO of Four Percent:

Systems Work. People Fail.