Do You Have A General Question? Ask Steve!
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I will then add your question to this list and answer it.
How long does it take to begin making money online? There is no simple answer to that question and it depends much on your current set of skills. I have a great article here which answers that question in detail.
Are there any systems you suggest for making money fast online? There really are none. Any offers that promise quick and easy money are at best over-hyped and at worst nothing but a scam. Internet marketing success first requires that you understand and know how to implement basic online marketing principles and skills. This part takes time; it is a learning process. Remember that many people spend 4 years learning a career in college. Internet marketing success does not take 4 years, but it can’t be achieved in a month or two either.
I’ve been posting ads now for weeks. I’ve posted hundereds of them and have not made any money yet. Can you help? It sounds like you have bought into one of the many “data entry” scams. You will have no luck at all posting your affiliate links to free classified sites. If you mean you are posting ads to Google AdWords, that is even worse becasue that is costing you money! AdWords is a VERY tough method to learn and not where beginners should start with Internet marketing. Now days, it is extremely difficult to make money with affiliate products unless you have your own website which you can direct traffic to.
What about using templates for my site? Here’s my standard answer for that one: IF you already know how to build sites and you want to take a shortcut with a template, that may be OK so long as you look out for bloated code and create all original content. However, if you are using templates as a means of skipping past the learning process for building sites, they won’t work well for you. The main reason is that you still will have to edit the templates and work your own content and offer into them. You’ll still need to know basic web design. Too many beginners think they can purchase a “template package” and then throw up a dozen sites very quickly. I only wish Internet marketing was that easy!
Should I add Google AdSense to my site? If your site is already selling your own products, I say no to adding AdSense ads. Why distract visitors from the real reason for the website. Also, I think having AdSense on a site which sells your products cheapens your offer. If your site has affiliate products, you may consider adding AdSense. But if you are already selling affiliate products on the site successfuly, usually your affiliate potential is greater for the site than your potential from AdSense.
Should I have a blog or a regular website? Both blogs and “regular” websites can be successful. For example, StevesClassroom.com is a WordPress blog and CactusCanyon.com is a simple, static website. The answer really depends on how the site will be used. Also, I like for my clients to make that decision based upon their needs and not whether or not they have basic web design skills. Beginners often choose blog formats because they don’t want to learn simple page design. This can work, but I don’t suggest handicapping one’s self by failing to learn simple page design. Additionally, in many cases it works quite well to incorporate a blog into a static site…that way you can enjoy the benefits of each.
What’s an easy way to add a shopping cart to my site? I am a firm believer in not putting the cart before the horse in this case. Sure, you could put a very robust shopping cart solution onto your site. But not only is the learning curve there fairly steep, there will be costs involved. In most cases the cart itself will have a monthly charge (1shoppingcart.com for example). Also, in order to take credit cards with such carts you will also have monthy merchant account fees. Instead, I suggest all new sites begin with a simple (and free) PayPal shopping cart. Sure, you may perhaps lose a few sales if that’s the only option you offer. But now days many people have PayPal accounts and PayPal does offer a “pay by credit card” option for those without a PayPal account. Once your site is making a few sales per day, then you can look at your options for using a more robust solution.
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