[ NOTE: This post applies to Work At Home Dads too ]

A large number of my clients and followers are either work-at-home-moms or are working toward that goal.

I probably don’t need to detail all the benefits a stay-at-home-mom enjoys; I know how greatly my family life improved when my wife was able to remain home.

Things were MUCH easier and MUCH less stressful for the both us (and we did not even have small children at home).

Plain and simple, when both husband and wives go off to work all day, things can be stressful. Add a child or two or four, and the stress goes up exponentially!

Beginning an Internet business is perfect for stay-at-home-moms! I suggest that any income earned from online ventures be thought of as “extra money”. A family’s financial situation should be stable enough to support the family without depending upon future online income… at least for a while anyway.

It takes time to build a successful Internet business, and the stress of feeling “under the gun” to produce an income creates negative energy which will greatly hamper success.

Here are a few reasons why Internet marketing is perfect for stay-at-home-moms:

• There is very little risk involved in getting started. One can begin a website and be successful with VERY little money.

No other business offers as much potential with such a limited downside! (CactusCanyon.com, our retail business is where we began our success online; it was started with a domain name, $3.95/month hosting, and a case of products costing $200!) • An Internet connection is required of course, but most families already are paying for the connection anyway. Dial-up will work, broadband is better.

• Internet marketing offers a flexible schedule. I realize stay-at-home-moms are limited with spare time…especially if they have younger children. However, imagine trying to build the online business while having a full time job outside of the home! A mom at home can always steal away 15 or 20 minutes here and there…sometimes maybe an hour or so at nap times!

• Any goal is achievable (I like this part best). Whether one’s goal is a few hundred dollars per month or a few thousand or more per month, Internet marketing makes it entirely possible. Be aware though, the initial learning process is still about the same. Also remember that the first $100 of income is the toughest…it gets much easier after that!

• The Internet is here to stay. The rewards of building an online business while the kids are home will continue growing long after they’ve left the nest!

Nothing about Internet marketing is difficult. However, there are many pieces to the puzzle; this aspect of online marketing is what scares many people off. At first these many pieces are simply vague concepts which can easily rattle anyone’s self-confidence.

It’s at this very point where the vast majority of beginners make the fatal mistake of trying to skim over the basics and then fall for a get-rich-quick scam. Many of the scams promise instant riches with little work and even less experience. I try my best to educate people about these.

No one who is successful in Internet marketing became that way with a “system” they purchased. Knowledge is what allows success. Please remember the old saying: If something sounds too good to be true, it is! There are no shortcuts to success.

How a Stay-at-Home-Mom Can Get Started:

First:
Reading and studying is the first step! There are many websites, forums, and blogs where successful people are ready and willing to help you…like right here! Right away the beginner is severely handicapped by her lack of Internet marketing knowledge. The first step toward success must deal with this knowledge gap.

Before attempting to “find something to sell”, before starting to build a website or picking out a domain name, before opening an eBay store, before all else, one must insure they have a basic education of Internet marketing concepts.

Next:
Continue reading and studying, but now begin working on skills. First and foremost are web design skills. Beware of claims that a website is not needed for success.

Yes, it is true; some people are able to make money without a site. However, I can’t emphasize enough how important simple web design skills are.

It is EXTREMELY difficult to make money online without the ability to create landing pages and at least small websites (or blogs). My wife and I would be at a job right now if it were not for our web design skills!

Start by simply creating a hobby site.

It does not matter if the site is related to a future business; just have fun with it while learning. The object is not to make money right away, remember. Web design skills will be part of a solid foundation for future success!

Continuing On:

Continue reading, studying and learning web design skills (this process never stops). Another must-have skill is SEO – Search Engine Optimization. Traffic is the key to any successful Internet business. Although there are other methods for driving visitors to websites, nothing beats having a site rank well in Google and Yahoo! SEO skills can ensure free advertising in the search engines.

Otherwise, site owners face an uphill battle of constantly working for traffic; it is far easier in the long run to use SEO to rank well in the search engines.

Putting it All Together

More than likely the first idea will not be one which eventually makes your money. Actually, it is very unlikely it will. That is what makes Internet marketing so great! It is very easy to run with an idea, see the problems with it, tweak it or simply start with a new one.

This is how it works with Internet marketing; “fail fast” and learn from the tests (we like to call it “testing” and not failing).

It is very important every beginner understands this aspect of Internet marketing. All successful Internet entrepreneurs have far more “failures” than successes. The good news is that a “failure” doesn’t hurt much monetarily and the successes can be substantial.

Finding a Niche

I go into great detail in my products about what makes a great niche. There is quite a bit to it, but most important is that the beginner has knowledge of the niche area and finds the niche interesting. This is important because content creation is necessary. Content is king on the Internet and it is far easier to spend time creating website content about a subject which is interesting and when a knowledge base for it may already exist.

On must understand the criteria for choosing a potentially successful niche. This is not a guessing game. There are no guarantees, but we like to be reasonably sure we have a chance of profiting with a give niche before plowing the required work into it.

One major mistake beginners make is to think too broad. Promoting a very broad area is simply not practical with beginners’ skills. In other words, being successful with a site about babies is simply impossible; that is too large of area with too much competition. However, a niche site about “baby allergies” is very doable! I spent some time doing keyword research in the area as a matter of fact.

Here is an idea a work-at-home-mom could take and run with if she has some interest and knowledge of the area.

A quick look shows that if proper SEO techniques are used, these keywords could prove very successful at driving traffic:

“baby allergies”
“baby allergy”
“baby food allergies”
“baby food allergy”
“baby milk allergies”

Considering the numbers of searches each month for these keywords, along with the number of competing sites, it would not be difficult for a site on that topic to rank well. This is just one idea I use as an example.

There are thousands upon thousands of niche areas just like this waiting for someone to profit from (not just about babies!..but about dogs, nutrition, headaches, gardening, cooking, and the list goes on and on and on!)

Always remember that narrowing the area down to a small niche within a larger topic is the key.

By the way, some may be asking, “How could I make money with a site like that?” Remember, getting traffic is the key. Almost any site with traffic can earn money. For example, simply creating an information site and having Google AdSense on the site will produce an income. How much simply depends upon how many visitors the site receives. There are many ways to make money with a site…once the traffic arrives!

Leave your comments below…I’d love to hear from you!

Tweet This Post