Tweet

Home Based Business - Don't Get Lost in the Internet Jungle!

Written by: Paulette Sherb

Article Overview: Home based business on the internet can be as dangerous as stumbling into the jungle unprepared. You would never dream of going into a real jungle without preparation and a competent guide. A jungle is filled with unfamiliar plants, animals and reptiles. Many of the species indigenous to a jungle are fierce, deadly creatures, and yet, the jungle lures people into its depths just as entrepreneurs are lured to find the best home based business. The Internet and its opportunities are as diverse as any jungle habitat. The Internet doesn't have live creatures lurking in the shadows, yet it can be as fierce and unforgiving as any jungle when you are uninformed and unprepared to travel though its diversity. The same applies to home based business.

Home Based Business - Don't Get Lost in the Internet Jungle!

Home based business on the internet can be as dangerous as stumbling into the jungle unprepared. You would never dream of going into a real jungle without preparation and a competent guide. A jungle is filled with unfamiliar plants, animals and reptiles. Many of the species indigenous to a jungle are fierce, deadly creatures, and yet, the jungle lures people into its depths just as entrepreneurs are lured to find the best home based business.

The Internet and its opportunities are as diverse as any jungle habitat. The Internet doesn't have live creatures lurking in the shadows, yet it can be as fierce and unforgiving as any jungle when you are uninformed and unprepared to travel though its diversity.

Entrepreneurs have made and lost fortunes on the Internet. The promise of riches without any effort draws the unsuspecting into the most unlikely money making schemes. Unfortunately, for those misguided souls who believe the "get rich quick or we will do it all" for you hype, the only people making any real money are the people who come up with these schemes.

Home based business on the Internet is still the best opportunity available to the average person. The growth of the Internet has exploded world wide and anyone who has an internet connection has access to a global marketplace. Online business is the most cost effective way to start a business. Despite the scammers and the con artists out there trying to separate you from your hard earned money, there are many legitimate home based business opportunities available online.

The truth about Internet business, or any other business for that matter, is there is no free ride. If you want to build a successful business online, you have to pay the price. That doesn't necessarily mean money, but it does mean that you will have to work at building your business. People will often equate low start up and overhead costs and the vast potential of the internet with low or no effort.

Traditionally, starting a small brick and mortar business will cost you a minimum of $100,000.00 just to open the doors. Advertising, stocking the shelves, employees and maintenance costs added to the start up costs makes traditional business unattainable for most people. Still, if you put that kind of money into starting a business, you would definitely do everything in your power to make that business successful.

Many companies have taken at least a portion of their business to the internet. Affiliate programs have grown out of the distributorships and traveling sales routes of the past. Affiliate companies offer you a very cost effective way to have your own business, without all the headaches of traditional business and at a fraction of the cost.

Typically start up cost is under $5000 to start an Affiliate Business. Monthly costs are typically tied to product purchases. Essentially, the ongoing cost of owning a business is using the products that you are selling. The Affiliate Company has a mission to sell their product. Essentially, as a business affiliate, you are a customer who has the ability to sell the products and earn a commission for moving their product.

An affiliate program generally has everything you need to get started with your business, often the same day you start your affiliation. Traditional business can take up to a year or more to get started. A well drafted business plan with step by step process is essential to a traditional business. The same is true for an internet business although most people who become involved rarely develop their own business plan.

Many affiliate companies promote their business to entrepreneurs as turn key business opportunity. A turn key business is promoted as an instant business with the implied potential for instant riches. It's true that that you get everything you need to get started: products to sell, websites, promotional materials and company support. Most companies will ship the product you sell direct to your customers or business affiliates.

What they don't tell you is that once you have made your decision to affiliate and you turn the key, you have to drive your business! Most new business owners have little or no knowledge about how to promote their business. As an affiliate business owner you will have all of the company tools at their disposal and probably get some tips on how to use them.

The biggest downfall of any affiliate program is everyone else who is a business affiliate with the company has exactly the same tools. You are in direct competition with everyone else who has joined that company as an affiliate business owner. No matter how nice your website or how good the promotional material you receive, there is nothing to distinguish you from everyone else.

In order to be successful online, you have to be better and more visible than everyone else. Enter SEO, the stalking tiger of the Internet. Search Engine Optimization or SEO is a collection of marketing techniques designed to get your websites seen by the people who are looking for your product or service. The Internet has its own protocols and you need to learn them if you want to achieve any measure of success.

For those who sign on with a company expecting money to fall into their hands, learning that they have to promote their business on a consistent basis is a rude awakening. Not only does it require work, it requires time for the work to bear fruit. Many will just move on to the next get rich quick opportunity only to find, again and again, that success eludes them.

We have become a disposable consumer society. The craftsmen of yesteryear took pride in their crafts and built their products to last a lifetime. Our values have changed with the advance of technology. By the time products, especially technology, reach the marketplace they are already obsolete. Prices have decreased considerably for many items and it is more costly to repair than to replace.

Internet business is a fraction of the cost of traditional business. Instead of capitalizing on the exceptional business opportunity that the lower costs afford, Internet business is treated like disposable business. When unrealistic expectations are not met the business is blamed and it's on to the next best promise for riches.

Not all Affiliate programs are created equal. Each program has its own way of compensating the sale of their product or service. Regardless, every business needs customers to survive. Do your research before jumping in with both feet will save you a lot of frustration and heartache. Once you have satisfied yourself that the company you are interested in has a viable product and a fair compensation plan, it is time to really look at what it will take to market the products.

Unless you have learned how to market online there will be a learning curve. Advertising on the Internet has to cater to people and the search engines like Google. Getting your information to your customers is generally managed by having the search engines give your information as a choice when someone looks for your product.

Working with a team of like minded individuals can make your experience online much less frustrating. Working with a team means you can benefit from the skills, knowledge and expertise of the team. Working with a team doesn't mean you work less. Working with a team means participating and contributing to the team effort with the skills you possess. Learning the skills you need for long term success is an ongoing process made easier with a team. Working with mentors will keep you and your home based business from getting lost in the Internet jungle.

Related Articles
  Profitable Online Business Ideas and the Recession Part 2
  No Passion , No Business
  Guide To Start Your Home Based Business
  What is the best way to develop my sales skills?
  Business Opportunity in the Internet Jungle

Article Tags: average person, best home based business, brick and mortar, business online, competent guide, con artists, deadly creatures, free ride, global marketplace, hard earned money, home based business, home based business opportunities, jungle habitat, legitimate home based business, legitimate home based business opportunities, lurking in the shadows, money making schemes, overhead costs, real money, scammers



Related Forum Posts
Re: Who inspired you to start? - Hi Evan, I was inspired by Mr. Bill Gates ever since I was a student learning Computers. But I was motivated for Internet as my Business, when I read his book "The Road Ahead" in 1995. It was in this book that Gates laid out his vision of an interconnected world built around the Internet. Based on the premise that life will be transformed by the convergence of inexpensive computing and inexpensive communications, Gates drew from his experience at the center of the personal computer revolution to give insights on the growth, evolution and impact of technology. I had always looked up to Bill Gates as my idol. When I read this book, it made me more focussed on Microsoft and Internet, The Internet was one of the upcoming things in this time. So I took over to the Internet as my primary business. Regards,
Books for Women Entrepreneurs - There's a thread for good books in the Resources folder, but it doesn't target books for businesswomen particularly, so I figured I'd start such a thread here. It doesn't matter how successful you are in your business - it's always possible to learn something new. In subsequent posts I give Table of Contents and brief descriptions for various titles - most of them devoted to the businesswoman - and sometimes a review. If anyone else has read a review, or has read the book and found it useful, please comment! 1. The Old Girl's Network 2. Mother's Work 3. The 7 Greatest Truths About Successful Women 4. Pitch Like A Girl 5. Workplace Warrior 6. Treasure Hunt: Inside the Mind of the Modern Consumer 7. Contingency Planning & Disaster Recovery 8. She Wins, You Win 9. Napoleon On Project Management 10. Why Good Girls Dont' Get Ahead, But Gutsy Girls Do 11. Comeback Moms: How to Leave Work, Raise Children, and Restart your Career even If you Haven't Had a Job in Years 12. The One Minute Millionaire 13. Talking From 9 to 5 14. Soloing: Realizing Your Life's Ambitions 15. 101 Best Home Based Businesses for Women: Everything You Need to Know About Getting Started on the Road To Success 16. Work With Passion: How to Do What You Love for a Living. Revised and Expanded 17. Fail-Proof Your Business: Beat the Odds and be Successful 18. Confidence: How Winning Streaks and Losing Streaks Begin and End 19. Women Don't Ask: Negotiation and the Gender Divide 20. Millionaire Women Next Door: The Many Journeys of Successful American Businesswomen 21. Start Small, Finish Big: Fifteen Key Lessons to Start - and Run - Your Own Successful Business 22. Rewired, Rehired or Retired: A Global Guide for the Experienced Worker 23. The Martha Rules: 10 essentials for achieving success as you start, build or manage a business 24. The Essentials of Entrepreneurship: What it takes to create Successful Enterprises 25. Net Ready: Strategies for Success in the E-conomy 26. The Promotable Woman 27. Leave The Office Earlier: The Productivity Pro shows you how to do more in less time and feel great about it 28. The Work At Home Balancing Act: The professional resource guide for managing yourself, your work, and your family at home 29. Secrets of Six-Figure Women
Elevator Pitch in 10 Words - "Winning Business Design For Aspiring Entrepreneurs Based On Their Idea"
Re: How do you budget your life? - Here is my financial management categories for today: 15% Long Term Savings; 10% Home Expenses; 45% Business and Marketing charges; 10% Friends (Meeting); 20$ Scientific and Law Books. But this will change when it is August or September. Orxan
Lipstick Jungle & Cashmere Mafia - Has anyone been watching these shows? I have been watching Cashmere Mafia and really enjoying it, until I watched Lipstick Jungle last night. Finally - a show that really reflects what successful women are having to deal with! your thoughts??


Share this article with your friends. Fund someone's dream.

Leave a comment below or share on the left and you'll help support entrepreneurs in Africa through our partnership with Kiva. Over $50,000 raised and counting - Please keep sharing! Learn more.

Tweet

Newsletter

Get advice & tips from famous business
owners, new articles by entrepreneur
experts, my latest website updates, &
special sneak peaks at what's to come!

Name:
Email:

Popular Articles

Executives and Elevators Perfecting That Pitch

Common Sense Stress Management

3 Health Insurance Misconceptions

Suggestions

Email us your ideas on how to make our
website more valuable! Thank you Sharon
from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for
your suggestions to make the newsletter
look like the website and profile younger
entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez.