I wish I had just a dime for every hour of wasted time I have observed in my corner of the Internet marketing world in the past few years. I have beginners constantly ask me for advice and opinions on sites they have ALREADY WASTED TIME ON.

It’s sad really. They are so excited about their chances of getting rich online. That lasts for about 2 weeks usually unless I can intervene and set them on a correct course.

I just saw a beginner’s new site in a forum post he was trying to promote it in. The headline read:

BREAKING NEWS
The Guide You Need.

To Increase Energy Levels.
Loose Weight and keep it Off,
Without Dieting.
Feel Great while Enjoying the Foods,
You were Meant to Eat.

There are only about half a gillion other offers out there saying the exact same thing.

My oh my….I’d say he probably spent a good 20 hours from start to finish just learning how to create and get that site published…at least….and probably a lot more.

What are his chances of ever making one sale?

You know the answer to that.

Imagine how much further along in the process he would be had he spent those 20 hours really studying and LEARNING about niche marketing, how to get traffic, and building sites that sell.

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I know I’ve been rather quiet for the past few months; I thought I’d update you as to what we’ve been up to.

About 3 months ago Kay and I both had the urge to get back to “our roots”.

Plain and old fashioned Internet marketing is what got us out of the Rat Race in 1997. At that time we had a number of affiliate, AdSense, and retail sites in place and earning enough income so we could quit jobs in education. Then for the next 2 years we focused on creating content, packages and programs for teaching Internet marketing. During that time we niched down and focused almost entirely on our SEO 4X training package.

We created traffic systems for the SEO 4X package and are pleased with the results and the freedom those systems have provided us. With the extra time, it became a no-brainer for us to use that time to go back and work on our first love – basic Internet marketing.

In the past 3 months we have focused on building new affiliate sites, tweaking and adding to our current AdSense sites, and ramping up traffic and sales at Cactus Canyon. All the projects require search engine optimization for obtaining that all important aspect of online success – TRAFFIC!.

SEO is such a sweet deal!

We built the Cactus Canyon site in 2005 and 2006. Since then, 99% of all its traffic has been from no cost, organic search engine results. The site was ranking well in 2006 and became our cash cow which allowed us to “retire” from our jobs. The cool thing is that I did almost ZERO work to the site for the next 3 years and the traffic and sales just kept rolling in because of the initial SEO work.

Even with almost no work, the niche was small enough that the site remained ranking very well and generating continuous income month after month, year after year since then.

THAT is what I love about SEO! The work I do today is rewarded for a very long time to come.

However, we always knew Cactus Canyon had far more potential. Plus we knew from past experience that a small amount of work on niche affiliate sites can reap substantial and continuous incomes month after month, year after year.

So for the past 3 months we’ve been very focused on increasing traffic and sales to all our sites and building new ones. The truth is that we know a LOT more about SEO and basic Internet marketing than we did 3 or 4 years ago. Therefore, the focused action we’ve taken the last few months has produced very exciting results. Best of all, these results from a few months of focused work will continue flowing in for a very long time to come.

We will continue with our Internet marketing “fun” until we are ready for a change of pace again (That’s what makes working for yourself so cool!).

Plus, I’ll still be working with all my SEO 4X students. I devote a certain amount of time each day to SEO 4X and enjoy very much teaching and helping others enjoy their own online success.

With the SEO 4X program I teach the exact and proven methods we use for building our own income producing sites. The students in SEO 4X have access to my private forum, monthly teleconference calls with me, and many additional resources.

Sure, Internet marketing can be learned without help (I learned it pretty much all by myself), but the shortcuts, tips, and tricks my students learn are invaluable with respect to reduced time and frustration.

If you aren’t a student yet, watch these videos and learn more about the SEO 4X coaching program:

http://www.SEO4X.com

Dedicated to Your Success,

Steve Weber

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Many beginners think that if they choose a very large area like weight loss, making money, insurance, Internet marketing, etc.  they will at least get some “crumbs” so to speak.

NOT SO!

Remember that it’s always best to have a small slice from a small pie than NOTHING from a large one.

And nothing is what a beginner will surely get if they try to tackle a large area as their first project. The amount of time and work required in those large areas will frustrate the beginner. In fact, they will likely quit their Internet marketing endeavors entirely.

Secondly, they are not even sure if what they are doing is working. That’s why small niches are so good for beginners; the feedback is much quicker. The beginner is able to see results very quickly and then knows their techniques are working.

With that quick and positive feedback the beginner can then go into larger and larger areas as they tweak and ramp up what they know works.

Also, the beginner needs to know if what they are doing does NOT work. If only poor results in a small niche are achieved, then surely attempts in a larger area will fail entirely.

Steps for Success:

• Learn the basics and build the required skills
• Find a small niche
• Market to that niche
• Wash, rinse and repeat for larger niches and areas once successes in very small niches are achieved.

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With the economy the way it is now days, there are many people interested in making extra money and/or replacing a lost income with some form of Internet marketing. Unfortunately, this increase in the numbers of new marketers also brings about an increase in the scammers.

Beginners are vulnerable to scams for 2 reasons:

1.    They don’t understand the process and fundamental requirements for earning income online.
2.     The scammers are VERY good marketers. Within their ranks are some of the best of the best when it comes to marketing skills.

I not only look at the scammers’ sales pages, I study them. They often offer great lessons on how to create well converting sales copy. Their copy writing skills are second to none. It is sad they have to use their skills in such a negative way.

Those scam offers often appears to a beginner as a “can’t lose”, “no-brainer” of a deal. They often completely guarantee your success; how could anyone fail with their spectacular offers? Making hundreds of dollars a day by next week is an offer many beginners just can’t pass up.

I wish every beginner could read this post. I’d like to tell them all there are no free lunches. There is nothing they can buy which provides fast and easy results. All beginners, who will eventually have success, must start with the basic fundamentals and acquire an adequate set of skills to build their business upon.

I have a 4 step video series that explains the steps every beginner must take in order to someday enjoy success.

The videos are free to watch and hopefully will set many would-be marketers onto the right track.

Watch My 4 Step Video Series For Online Success

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Anyone who’s been in Internet marketing for more than a few weeks realizes that making money online is a bit more complicated than they though. There are several reasons for this, but there is one main reason that I’m going to talk about today.

First of all, there are two main aspects of Internet marketing. The first one is the tangible side I like to call the “nuts and bolts” of Internet marketing. That’s just the basic foundation that everyone has to learn and understand, such as building websites, building blogs, publishing sites, learning how to use PPC, writing sales copy, the basics for affiliate marketing… and the list goes on.

Virtually anyone can learn the nuts and bolts of Internet marketing. It is one very important requirement to Internet marketing success.

That being said, there are many products that teach these basics. I sell some of those products myself in fact. Many of the products teach the nuts and bolts of Internet marketing well. However, most beginners all but completely neglect what I call the intangible side of Internet marketing. This part is best demonstrated by one of my sayings: If you show me 100 Internet marketers who are successful, I’ll show you 100 different twists on Internet marketing.

There is more to online success than just learning the basic skills!

Many people buy products from very successful marketers. Yet, very, very few of those buyers have any measurable success. Why is that?

Let me give you an example to explain. I’ve been at this now for a number of years. My wife and I have been full-time marketers, working from home on the Internet going on three years now. I consider myself a successful Internet marketer. You could stay at my house with me for a week and follow me around. You could look over my shoulder, you could videotape me, you could take notes, and you could see everything that I do on a daily basis. You could learn exactly how I make money. I could show you every aspect of my business.

By the end of the week, you would know my business inside and out. You would see exactly what I do to make money online. However, when you go back home and you begin trying to apply what you saw me doing, things won’t go as smoothly as you might have expected.

In fact, I have doubts you would enjoy any success at all if you simply tried to “copy” me.

You see, the people that are very successful have learned the tangible side of Internet marketing well, but what they’ve also done is injected themselves into the process; and here’s where beginners drop the ball. They don’t understand how vital it is to add their own unique personalities and skills and interests into the process. It’s simply not enough to learn the nuts and bolts of Internet marketing. You then have to apply your uniqueness to the process, and that’s why there are 100 different ways to make money shown by 100 different Internet marketers.

Everyone has slightly different interests, talents and personalities. The real art of Internet marketing, the science of it if you will, is how you apply your own uniqueness to the process.

Learning the tangible aspects of marketing is simply not enough. After that’s learned, the real challenge, and this is the most difficult part of Internet marketing, is figuring out your own special map to success.

People spend too much time with the nuts and bolts believing that they simply haven’t figured out a “system” yet. They keep looking for a process for success. They keep looking for a secret method. And they keep looking for THE magic formula. But they keep looking in the wrong places.

I’ll give you a really good example. When we began Cactus Canyon, we knew almost nothing about Internet marketing. I knew very little about SEO. I didn’t have any gurus that I followed. I didn’t have any mentors. I didn’t’ have anyone helping me.  I had no marketing background whatsoever. Yet, we built Cactus Canyon and it became successful in a relatively short period of time. Looking back, I understand now why we so easily found success in spite of knowing so little.

We put passion and our uniqueness into it! We had an old dog that we loved very much who had arthritis problems. We found a product that really worked for him. We simply shared that information and the product in a very personal way and we connected with people. Folks responded very well to our web site. We had very high conversion rates. And the little bit of SEO I knew drove people to the site, and because we had that passion for helping dogs with arthritis, it just worked.

It really was just that simple.

You can’t buy this aspect of Internet marketing success. There is no product which supplies it. You can’t make it up or fake it. You won’t find it “Out There” anywhere. It is inside you right now already.

You have to make that connection from within yourself. YOU have to find your place in the process. It won’t matter how many info products you buy or how many conferences you attend. All that matters is if you can tap into and use what is already there inside you.

I wish it was so easy that you could simply follow the nuts and bolts directions.  I could just tell you, “Do A, B and C and you’ll have success.” Unfortunately, it does not work that way.

I can’t do this part for you. The best I can help you is by simply pointing out how important this intangible aspect of marketing is.

You have to learn and apply the “nuts and bolts” in a way that completely meshes with everything that makes you unique.

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Most Internet marketing “gurus” offer great products for intermediate level marketers. However, by and large the gurus’ information is basically worthless to beginners who don’t yet have a solid foundation of skills.

Success requires building that solid foundation first! Worse yet, the guru is all but inaccessible for simple questions and answers; this support is something beginners desperately need access to at first.

That is where I come in. I have a teaching background and truly enjoy helping beginners achieve their dreams online! I remember the excitement I felt when my wife and I first began having success. Nothing beats having the dream of quitting the Rat Race come into focus!

If you’ve taken my Crash Course already, you know your first steps are: – Choosing the correct niche – Correctly researching keywords – Learn proper SEO techniques (search engine optimization) Remember, don’t spend a minute of time on your new site until you complete the above!

Those must be done correctly or any work on your site could very well be wasted! My future newsletters will offer much insight to the process. However, if you are ready right now to focus and jump-start the process, there is no quicker or more effective way than with a qualified mentor.

My clients have a definite advantage with my personal coaching calls, private access forum, and large resource library. Time is money and they choose to build a working and profitable business as soon as possible.

Before you spend a dime for any product or system, spend a few days taking my Free Course. It may very well save you time, money, and frustration!

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I think it is safe to say that 99% (at least) of would-be Internet entrepreneurs give up long before they get to the point of making just $100 per month.

Why is it so difficult?

Let me begin by pointing out that it is MUCH easier to go from $100 per month to $1000 per month than getting to that first $100 per month milestone. That was the good news. The bad news is that the first $100 mark can be a real hair-pulling experience!

When you finish reading this post, Watch My “Getting Started” Videos Here.

There is simply so much to be learned in order to produce a steady income of just $100 per month. Just learning to build a site can be quite a hurdle! Then there are all the marketing techniques which must be learned and put into place. These can take months (most beginners want this to happen in days, so they are not willing to go the distance).

Ah, but once that income is around $100 per month or more, the winds will change and become far more favorable to the marketer. In order for this to happen, successful systems and/or methods must be in place which produces the income. When those systems and methods are working, it is then just a matter of expanding on them.

It is far easier to tweak a working system to make it better than it is to come up with the system in the first place.

How to find that initial system that works: There is no magic formula which fits everyone. It is simply a matter of trying again and again and learning from mistakes.

Unless one quits, the only possible outcome is success!

One of the best Willie Crawford publications ever is this 200+ page book written by 20 of Willie’s members. 20 different marketers detail how they began making their first $100 per day online…very interesting and VERY motivational.

Click Here To Read More!

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In my business I deal with many Internet marketing beginners and those who have yet to make much (if any) money online yet. These people are my target audience and I have gotten to know them very well in the past few years. I’ve seen many beginners progress and enjoy success online.

Unfortunately, for every one who succeeds there are many others who don’t. Those who simply quit blame their failures on any number of things.

Excuses I have heard from beginners:

They weren’t smart enough.
They didn’t have enough time.
Their spouse would not support them.
They couldn’t afford a web editor or even hosting.
They chose the wrong niche.
Their computer is not fast enough.
No one would hold their hand enough.
They started Internet marketing too late.
Their country does not support PayPal
…and even their stars were not aligned correctly!
Yes, I have heard it all.

But you know what? All those excuses are just excuses. There is ONE thing lacking in all those who have excuses – A BIG ENOUGH DREAM! Whether it be Internet marketing or a brick and mortar business, your dream had better be big enough to beat down every last excuse.

All successful Internet marketers had that little voice spouting excuses in his or her head in the beginning; it’s just normal human nature. But if the dream is big enough, every single excuse fades away. The dream needs to be so large that you TASTE IT! You must live and breathe it every day. No, I don’t mean you have to work 24/7.

For those who succeed, the dream is never far out of mind. After reading this, if you know beyond any doubt your dream is “big enough”, congratulations! Success is already guaranteed for you. However, if you question the size of your dream, perhaps you simply cannot get past feeling overwhelmed with all there is to know and learn
in this business. That’s where I can help. Beginners handle this in different ways.

All you need right now may be a clear path shown to you. Internet marketing is not paint-by-numbers, but it does require a connect-the-dots mentality for
combining a number of skills and principles into a profitable business. I remember how difficult this process was when I began Internet marketing some years back.

I could have eliminated many of the dead ends I hit had I been able to ask questions and brainstorm ideas with a mentor experienced in Internet marketing. With my business, I combine my passion for Internet marketing with my love for teaching. My goal is to help you enjoy the level of success and lifestyle I have been able to achieve.

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A while back I had a client ask what I thought about a company he found in his city who was selling ready-made AdSense sites for $250. They guaranteed that the sites would earn $100 to $150 a month.

Giant red flags waved before my eyes.

Why would anyone sell a website which would earn $100 a month for just $250? This company was either run by scammers or people with no business savvy.
The sites would make at least $1200 over the next year. Yet, the company would sell them for $250. Something was very wrong.
I asked the customer if he could send me some samples of sites they had made.

He did and here was my response to them:
—————————————————–

Hello,

Ok, here’s the deal. Those guys have ripped off article content for all the blog posts that I checked. You can simply input one of those domains into copyscape and see for yourself.
I say “ripped off” because they did not even follow the guidelines of the article directories by listing the authors’ names.

By rights, those article directories and authors can demand that be done or the content removed.
I found several articles from ezine articles which were copied word for word. I know ezine articles very well. They will not publish an article unless it is original.

Therefore, I am positive all the article were copied from the directories.
However, even forgetting all the above, no matter where they got the content, it is all duplicate content! Those would never be ranked well.
And further….the SEO for those articles is all but non-existent.

Do they promise you original content for yours? And optimized well?
And by the way, those are just WordPress templates. It is just copy and paste; $250 each is way too high.
Heck, I’ll have those made for you all day long for under $100 and even host them for you for free with my reseller account.

Of course I won’t guarantee you $100 a month because doing it like that won’t make $100 a month…not with the duplicate content because they will never rank well.
I am glad I could give you a heads up on this.

Steve

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I just had a guy send me a link to his “website”. He wanted to know how he could drive traffic to it. It turned out to be one of those “turnkey websites”.

I wish every beginner out there could hear me right now.

THOSE KINDS OF “SITES” DO NOT WORK!

The only people making money on those are the people selling them to unknowing beginners! I could make a fortune doing that; but how could I sleep?

Those sites are nothing but duplicated content…duplicated over and over and over again across the web. And we all know about duplicate content and how it ruins any chance of a page ranking well.

Again, this is just another shortcut which beginners think will give them a head start.

There are no shortcuts to all of this.  Any website for sales which had great potential would cost many thousands of dollars…not $39.95

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