Online Profits

People across the globe are seeking online profits - anything from online typing to online data entry to online affiliate marketing ... and any other way to earn money online.

Even if you know how to avoid the get rich schemes, you could still find yourself caught in a whirlwind of internet business ideas ... spending lots of money and getting nowhere.

Avoid the two biggest, most expensive mistakes

The first most expensive, time-consuming mistake you can make when exploring how to make money at home is:

#1: The Frantic Factor - A sense of urgency based on emotional issues, which is why so many rational, levelheaded people fall victim to work at home scams. Our judgment is impaired.

-I just got laid off of work.
-We can't afford daycare but I need to help with the bills.
-Social Security or Disability income just isn't enough.
-I desperately want to stay home with my children.
-I hate my job.
-I'm commuting 50 miles a day.
-I'm deeply in debt. I've got to pay off my credit cards.
-Or, for a whole host of reasons ... I need money NOW!

For 99.99999% of you, the internet or a work at home opportunity you might find there is not going to solve your immediate problem. I'm willing to bet that you'll end up spending money on the internet that you don't really have and wasting a whole bunch of time in the process. You'll still have the same problem you started with! Ouch!

Instead, pursue how to make money at home "on the side" as a more permanent, long-term solution. Treat it like a business decision where you consider various options, weigh the pros and cons, and verify the facts ... not an emotional one where you are drawn by hope or excitement.

Depending upon what type of opportunity you choose and how committed you are, plan on 2 to 6 months minimum to enjoy a profit. If you are one of the exceptions who makes "$500 the first hour" or "$5,000 in six days" or whatever the sales website says ... great! Fantastic!

But don't ever count on it no matter how good the sales letter is, how many amazing testimonials there are, or the proof of earnings that show a very few people making big bucks out of hundreds of people just like you.

I'm not saying it can't happen ... I'm saying it probably won't happen as quickly as you'd like or at all if you don't take the proper steps for success.

Here is the second most expensive, time-consuming mistake when exploring online profits:

#2: Sidetrack Trail - You come across an opportunity that looks good and you invest. For this example, let's say you've decided to set up an affiliate Google AdWords campaign. In a nutshell, what you do is become an affiliate of your chosen products, create advertisements in order to promote the website(s) of these products, and when someone clicks on your ad and purchases the product, you get paid a commission. You don't even need a website or your own products!

This works, by the way. I purchased this very product and I am making money. But you won't ... not if you get sidetracked and work on the "free bonus website" that comes with the training materials. Because then you'll have to pay for hosting, learn how to set up the website, promote it, and manage it. And that's a whole new project!

And the whole point of this affiliate Google AdWords campaign investment was to make commissions on other people's products so that you don't have to deal with having a website and your own products. Save that bonus website for later consideration.

But wait ... you learn that you can become an affiliate of this very program you are still trying to make money with! They will give you your very own "Review website" to help you promote it for great commissions. So now you are sidetracked trying to figure out how to get that set up. It shouldn't take long, after all. Nearly everything's been provided. Never mind following through on making money as the product describes first ...

And you're tempted ... sidetracked ... even further! As you search for the best products to promote in your new AdWords campaign, you come across some very interesting offers. Gee, instead of promoting an eBook opportunity through your affiliate Google AdWords campaign - you could buy it and try it yourself! You could be making money selling eBooks AND create an AdWords campaign!

Hmmm, maybe you should have your own website after all ... even though one of the reasons you bought the AdWords product originally was because you wouldn't need a website ...

STOP!

What happened to your initial investment in an affiliate AdWords campaign?

After two weeks, you've dropped another $100 in products, you've got six different projects going on, you're feeling the stress of making something happen as you plunk away at the keyboard at 2 a.m. ... and you've got two AdWords campaigns going that have made you a miserable $12.42.

And you think, "Well, obviously this affiliate Google AdWords thing doesn't work. What a waste of money." You drop it and move on.

Guess what? It does work! You got sidetracked!

Another example, paid surveys, leads to other offers of focus groups, mystery shopping, getting paid to eat out and more. Soon, you are spending hours a day managing all of your emails (you have to read them all so that you don't miss an opportunity, you know!) and other tasks that don't earn you a dime.

You've purchased a software program that helps you complete your surveys faster and that "Special Report" about how to answer in a way that qualifies you for the higher paying surveys. And you've been signing up with Mystery Shopping providers too.

You see, you'll get bombarded with very tempting tangents to your goal ... before you even really gain experience and know if this Survey idea is going to work out for you!

Two months later, you get your first check in the mail for $25. You didn't focus on or follow through with the initial decision of making money with surveys. You got sidetracked.

This is the last example, to make sure I've driven my point home ...

Offline home businesses run into the same complications. Let's say you are launching a secretarial service. My eBook tells you that all you need are business cards, an informational flyer, and postcards to spread the word and gain new customers. You are ready!

But, when you order your business cards, Bob the local printer guy says, "Oops! You forgot to list your business website on your cards."

Surprised that Bob the printer guy even noticed, you say "I don't have a website".

Bob frowns. "Oh. Well, these days every business should have a website. If you don't have internet presence, you won't be considered legitimate or professional."

So, you run home and start working on a website, which leads to getting a nifty autoresponder system so you can follow-up on email inquiries from your new site, which leads to the idea of writing an e-newsletter for prospects you don't even have yet because you didn't follow through with your initial plan for business start-up!

Every time you get sidetracked, it costs you money in one form or another and slows you down.

Make a commitment to your chosen investment. As you run into other opportunities or interesting tangents along the way, and you will, keep notes and list website URLs so you can refer back to these gems of information later.