I wish I would have known...

Curious for those of you who have been working at home for awhile...when you look back, what do you wish you would have known then that you do now?

That Rome wasn't built in a day!
Well, I "knew" it then but the point is understood now - 20 years later.
Bit by bit, inch by inch, that's what makes for success in the long run.
Never give up and you'll reach your goal.

The importance of staying focused and not chasing rabbit trails. There are so many different "sounds good" type things that turn out to be a waste of time and a complete distraction from what is really important - building a solid business.

It took a while to develop a sense for what's a worthwhile use of time and what isn't, but once that radar is honed properly, you can avoid a lot of frustration and really become much more productive.

Blessings,
Angie

The real money is in driving traffic to your own products.

While affiliate marketing can generate an income stream for marketers, the earnings are always a small percentage of gross sales. But, for the same effort in marketing and promotion, you can earn and retain the lion's share of the revenue you generate on products you own outright.

But that's not all! There are other benefits to be gained, such as:

- opportunities for joint venture relationships​

- growing your own customer lists​

- advancing your influence in the marketplace​

- replicating your success in different niches​

And the surprising truth is, it's really not that difficult to develop your own products. What's more, you don't even have to create them yourself, if you prefer not to.

Hermas

I would have learned how to build a list sooner and concentrated on paid traffic methods. Free traffic works but it takes a while..

Initial inhibition is actually a healthy component because it causes us to impose restraint on unfamiliar actions so that we may first examine the risks and rewards more closely. It can sober the mind, sharpen the perspective and make us more deliberate and thoughtful.

And since our "natural" comfort level is nothing more that the aggregate of the initial inhibitions we have overcome in our lives, I'd say you are headed in the right direction.

Hermas

I wish I would have known more about SEO. There was a lot to learn about creating sites and blogs, getting traffic, etc. But learnings about all of that is surely worthwhile.

Building a list is very important rather then trying to close someone on the first time that they see the product that you are promoting. That's one thing.

The 2nd one is that promoting regular affiliate programs that pay you a one time fee is a waste of time and money. Since I started in late 2002, if I would focus all my efforts on programs that pay a 2 tier or on a multi level like online MLM, then my income would be just huge today.

I can change that but I learned my lessons.

Have to agree with the above poster. I never realized just how important it is to build a list. Yes, the initial legwork required in building a list can be time consuming and difficult; however once you get past that hurdle, the benefits of having a list far surpass most of the other methods of making money online!

- You have constant traffic at your beck and call; you don't chase traffic, you just click a button and send your list your recommendation.
- Your list is going to believe in what you say because they opted-in to receive email from you; this means your list marketing will convert better than just marketing to a cold prospect.
- The list trusts you, and trust is the most important thing to have between you and your customers; it creates a relationship! You can send free products/eBooks to your list to warm them up, then hit them with up sells etc to maximize your sales.

I am practicing this technique now; had I known 5 years ago, I'd be much further than I am now. But onwards and upwards only!

How straightforward it is to make money on Amazon and other affiliate programs.

1. Choose a product you can easily right about
2. Minimum 300 words (include your affiliate links)
3. Has low competition using the Google keyword tool
4. Is relatively new and/or has a good feedback score
5. Use a feed + pinging service for quicker indexing

Blogs like Wordpress and Blogger are ideal for this either paid or the free option and if you've done the necessary keyword research and are promoting the right products then, you have a better chance of getting to page one on Google for the relevant product phrase and achieving lots of targeted traffic.

Mark

That's so true. I am saying this to myself quite often. But then I say it's better sooner than never

I wish I had known that I should have started earlier, rather than being hesitant way back when. In addition, I agree with Happy, that staying focused is crucial to your success. Make a good plan and stick to it. And Hermas' contribution that you should create your own product is priceless!

I wish I could have seen the bigger picture, instead of chasing short term results.

Whether you have your own product or affiliate, inhibition is still going to be a factor because we always think it's going to be harder to do something technical if we don't know about it. If you want to do it then do it, it's okay to make a mistake, mistakes lead to success if you don't just give up. Never doing it results in no results. Make no mistake, making money on the Internet is technical. If I really wrote a list of all the things I wish I'd known when I started that I didn't know then and do know now, it would be more like a novel. I learn something new everyday. Here's two pieces of advice for everyone who wants to make money on the Internet. Get training and continue to do it forever! Download every Ebook you can get your hands on and then read them. If they have information you can use extract it and put it in word document that you can update constantly named appropriately so you can find and access them on a regular basis. Someone somewhere is publishing one right now with access to new resources that we can all use and if you don't take time to find out then you just won't know!

I wished I would have known get rich schemes don't work and wished I knew the web business is like any other business what you put in is what you'll get out

That there really is a difference between marketing to those who are working at home and providing SEO services to real brick and mortar businesses. When you promote for the larger companies who pay bigger money, there's a different mindset.

The real money is in the list! Well I heard it all the time, but really didn't understand it or decide to do it. So if you are getting started focus on lead generation. Build your list! The money will always be in the list! Well I should say the relationship you have with your list! Provide great content and the money with follow!

I wish I would not have focused so much on other's telling me how it must be done. I didn't realize at the time that just because some say there is only one right way, it just isn't so. When I started, many told me the only way to make money is to have your own site and build that list everyone speaks of here. I spend months agonizing over this as I was still a newbie. The autoreponders alone had me pulling my hair out.

I gave it up and did what I was good at, article marketing and squidoo and blogs. I do very very well. Money is not an issue in my life anymore.

I just recently started my list and have a real live website and forum, so am about to reach another level. I have no regrets for saving this project for 3 years, lol. Now I know so much more and can apply it.