This question was put to me last week, and while it was simple enough for me to answer at a seminar, it was also thought provoking and occupied my mind for much of the journey home. This is because by far the bulk of information I receive in my mailbox each day is related to making money on the Internet.
How many times have you seen Websites, e-mails, and newsletters start their headline with the following words:
How to Make Money...
...and continue with words like, 'on the Internet', 'from your Website', 'with your eBook', and so on. It seems like the Internet is packed with teachers who want to tell you how to make money from their $7 eBook, with their free 5-part e-mail course, or by using their $97 software that is endorsed by the name of every 'guru' that ever had a Website.
I find it amusing that these people all support and endorse each other's products, and because on this topic I am a complete cynic, it only tends to drive me away. It is like those products that are supported by images of income statements, which on their own mean nothing. Hell, one multi-national just submitted an annual report that showed income in excess of $50-billion. The sad detail that the guru's never include, is that this same large company, on that same vast income, made a LOSS of over $3-billion!
You see, it is quite simple to have an annual six or seven figure income from selling your product on the Internet; you just have to spend enough money in marketing and promoting it. All too often, the expenses are larger than the income, and the Website does not work. This is frequently why the gurus require the 'free' sales from their vast following of affiliates, because without them their products would lose money.
These Are the Facts
In every single business-occupation you can mention the structure is remarkably similar, from the millions at the bottom of the pyramid working for little or no gain, all the way up through the ranks of better-paid workers to the very top, where the multi-rich enjoy the bulk of the benefits.
The affiliates marketing a guru's product to their circle of friends may sell a few and earn some extra pocket money. If the affiliates have a Website and they have collected a list of thousands of names, they may earn enough to enjoy a weekend holiday. While the guru with 50,000 affiliates will pocket a million or two from simply mailing out his new 'killer' product. The guru will keep churning out more killer products.
This principle of 'for every one who succeeds, tens of thousand fail' is true in every walk of life. In sport, there are a handful of extremely hard-working virtuosos at the top and earning tens of millions each year. For every author who writes a bestseller and earns millions, there are hundreds of thousands struggling to buy the next meal. In politics, religion, sport, and business there are just a handful at the top and a multitude supporting them at the bottom.
This is a fact of life.
How Big An Income Do You Want?
If you are a gammy-handed, five-foot high tennis player, you are never going to become Roger Federer's successor as the best in the world. Similarly, who and what you are can determine the level of success you might enjoy in the business world; and more especially at making money on the Internet.
I am not qualified to analyse the characters of those people who profess to be making millions a year on the Internet, but I do know this: You require a killer instinct if you want to get to the top.
Sadly, this is also true in whatever vocation you select.
The person who lays down his coat over a puddle for a woman to cross safely and dryly, is only going to get a wet coat, or beheaded like Sir Walter Raleigh. The greater the prize, the greater the killer instinct required to win it. The level of income you decide you require, can determine exactly what you must be prepared to accomplish along the way.
Up to £10,000 a Year
You can earn a nice little profit on the Internet each year from just a few hours work each week. This is income is made in all the ways you will have read about a hundred times a year and more, in articles, newsletters, eZines, and Websites. You create or find something to sell and you find people to sell it to on the Internet. At any one time, there are over a hundred million people surfing the Web, and you only need to sell one or two items a day, or week, depending upon the price and profit.
You can happily earn this kind of income without any shenanigans or lowering of your high moral standards and you will sleep happily every night.
Up to £100,000 a Year
You are now going to have to put in some serious effort and prepare for long and hard hours at work, while you develop your marketing plan. The higher up the scale you aim, the more you must put in; time, money, and effort are all going to be required.
It is possible to earn this amount of money each year from selling other people's products as an affiliate working on commission. If you are not a writer or software developer, then that is perhaps your best route to success. Success, at this level is easier to obtain when you own the product you sell, so perhaps you can consider have somebody write or create your 'dream' product(s).
The higher up the scale you aim, the more you are going to rely upon the sales efforts of others and the larger your customer prospect base. The two may overlap, because if you have steadily built a list of tens of thousands of prospects, it is more than likely that many of these will also be on the lists of your affiliates.
This is not a bad thing, because it exposes them to your message more often, and this can lead to more sales and profits. Make sure that you recruit productive affiliates.
Up to £1-million a Year and More!
You will need to own some extremely useful software, or a library of information eBooks, together with an active and productive affiliate base in order to attain your sales objectives. It follows, that the larger your affiliate base, the greater your list of potential customers, and subsequently the higher your chances of success.
This is where your killer instinct must come to the fore, because you are in the 'take no prisoners' territory, when you aim this high.
One of the best copywriters in the business must write your advertising and sales copy, because your investment is going to be big. You cannot expect to make a seven-figure income from an investment of few thousand on a Website.
Your attention-grabbing headline must be followed with a glowing description of your products and services, which in turn must be supported with credibility; this is usually in the form of 'income statements' and 'testimonials' that endorse your message. Finally, you must offer the best guarantees your copywriters can create. Oh, I almost forgot the obligatory list of free gifts that will accompany your own product; we are all aware that the vast majority of people surfing the Web are intent on looking for free content, and if the gurus are right, the longer your list of freebies, the higher your conversion rates.
Why do I Need a Killer Instinct?
You may well be asking what the killer instinct has to do with the above, and the achievement of your target of earning a seven-figure income. The answer is quite simple...
From my observation, made after a lifetime of meeting and working with people at the top of their chosen pyramid, the killer instinct occurs when achieving the objective is more important than products, services, employees, associates, or customers. When attaining success is more important than how it is attained.
Therefore, to return to the theme of this article, it is possible to make money on the Internet, but the amount you can make each year will depend upon such variables as your starting capital, your products & services, your marketing plan, your team of experts, your affiliates, and of course your killer instinct.
© Copyright 2007. Brian Hunt. All Rights Reserved.
Brian Hunt http://www.PowerBusinessPublishing.com
The author of this article is Brian Hunt, who has been writing, publishing, and marketing books and articles on business and leisure related subjects for the past seven years. He is a highly successful person with a broad depth of sales and marketing experience in various fields gained over many years in business. In addition to his publishing business, Brian works as a consultant for selected clients wishing to expand their marketing presence online.
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