There are many self-proclaimed "gurus" out there that claim
you do not need much money to start off your internet
career. This often leads new marketers into believing they
can make a fortune online with only a twenty dollar
investment.
Of course, there are the "rags to riches" stories to catch
your eye, but I have found that the average successful
online marketer started with a few thousand dollars to
"play" with. Comparatively speaking, this is a very low
amount to invest in your business, whether it's located
online or in a more tangible brick and mortar building.
The average cost to start a brick and mortar business like
a small espresso and coffee shop will cost in the upwards
of $15,000 for the equipment alone. If you find the right
online business you will spend anywhere from $800 to $2000.
Yes, you can make some money working 8 - 12 hours a day
with a coffee shop but imagine making huge amounts of money
24 hours a day on autopilot.
You have probably heard the old cliché it takes money to
make money. Well I have found in my experience that this
statement can be both true and false in online marketing.
Now you may be asking, "How can this statement be both true
and false?"
Let me show you:
The only ways to invest in your business with Money and
Time.
Here are a few ways to invest: Your Money - Here dollars
and cents is how you will build your business. Pay Per
Click - Buying keywords that people searching the internet
type in when they are looking for a solution to something.
You can expect to pay anywhere from a few cents to $2 - $3+
a keyword. Depending on how you set up your campaign you
can spend anywhere from $200.00 - $1000+/month. Banner
Ads - Placing banner ads on web sites that already achieve
high rankings in keyword categories that want to target.
If a website owner has a good amount of traffic they may
charge you anywhere from $150 to $500/mo to place an ad on
their site.
Print Ads - Purchase display ads in magazines and
newspapers that target readers in your market. Good sales
copy is a must. It is hard to say exactly how much this
will cost due to a number of variables. Variables such as
the size of ads, circulation, color and location to name a
few...
Classified Ads Under Your Chosen Business Category- Very
effective for targeting people who are actively looking for
solutions. You can buy classified advertising in bulk
through services like nationwide newspapers - or you can
buy individual papers on a city by city basis.
I recommend purchasing in weekly classifieds rather than
daily, you will get longer ad placement for your dollars.
Most classifieds charge by number of lines in your ad. A
decent range is $2.00 - $5.00/ line.
Buy Leads - Buy names, phone numbers, and email addresses
of people who want to find know about your product or
service. There are all sorts of leads to choose from
varying from 'real time' to aged leads.
Results depend on the quality of the lead and your ability
to sound like a real person. Depending on the service you
can pay anywhere from $100 for 1000 to $30 for 100 leads.
Direct Mail - Works well but can be expensive. You can
obtain leads and use direct mail as a follow up. Your
production and sales copy is critical. With companies like
Adswift you can print and mail postcards for as little as
.49/card. To get response from a customer it may take at
least 5 - 7 contacts by direct mail.
Billboards - If you have the money and want a person'
undivided attention as they drive to their jobs every
morning (and then return every afternoon) you might
consider a billboard. Typically, some markets can get you a
large billboard on a major artery for $1,000 for 30 days.
Rates depend on market size and traffic.
Radio Advertising - Buy radio spots and have them
professionally voiced. It is cheaper to buy times late at
night, but buying a 'day' package that gives you a bit of
every listening period can be good too.
Cable TV advertising On Listings Channel - Like the radio
spots, but this time with TV. You can expect to pay a
little more for the commercial you produce, but the cost
per spot is typically quite reasonable if you advertise in
something like the TV listings that scroll up and down the
page.
Your Time - Trading your dollar to invest for time
Press Releases - You can do unlimited press releases
online. Prior to the release of your product or service
you can submit a release to several sites getting the buzz
out. 2-3 hours
Blogs - Blogs are frequently updated 'web journals' that
are maintained by people who specialize in something. Blogs
talk about and openly discuss specialized themes like
making money online - or stay at home moms online. 1-2 hours
Article Marketing - In its simplest form, this is
advertising where you can write short, unique, relevant
articles related to whatever you want to talk about: making
money online, how to make money online, the 7 dangers of
marketing online, etc. 30mins - 1 hour.
Forums - On line forums are basically online discussion
groups or chat rooms or bulletin boards that have a
following with various people. Forums can be a great way to
brand yourself as an expert in a subject, or build
credibility with people who frequent a particular forum..
The key to success is making a great contribution and
building online relationships with the other people who are
part of the forum that you join. Takes some time - but can
be well worth it 1 - 2 hours
Video Marketing - Marketing yourself online with video.
Have you heard of YouTube? Enough said. 2 - 3 hours
Free Online Classifieds - There are a ton of free online
classified areas on the internet. Typically, you get what
you pay for. You have to post in a lot of them to get any
kind of result. 2-3 hours
Craig's List - Craig's list is a network of online urban
communities featuring free online classified advertisement
in a endless number of areas including jobs offers and biz
ops. There are classifieds from several hundred cities on
Craig's List worldwide. It has been said that they get
about 9 billion page views each month - and about 25
million Americans use it each month. You can target by area
or by city. 2 - 3 hours.
Squidoo - Squidoo is kind of like a wiki, only when you
create a page (called a lens) you are the only one who can
edit it.Then you split the profits from the money made by
that page . You can use it to create almost any kind of
page. 1 - 2 hours
Social Networking - Social networking is the grouping of
individuals into specific groups, like small rural
communities or a neighborhood subdivision. It is very
popular online because unlike most high schools, colleges,
or workplaces, the internet is filled with millions of
individuals who are looking to meet other internet users
and develop friendships and business relationships, too.
possibly even contacting them. Sites like Face Book and
MySpace fit into the social network category. 1 - 2 hours
So you can see that there is no such thing as a low or no
cost online business. You can either choose to invest
money or time.
Pick your poison. It is completely up to you which one you
decide.
----------------------------------------------------
Ron Seawood is an experienced marketing consultant online
and offline. As a former marketing consultant for top
insurance and financial service companies, Ron now uses
acquired skills to help fellow entrepreneurs start and
build their businesses. Want to know the secrets of how
heavy hitting online marketers earn 7 figure incomes? Get
your free 5 day mini course that pulls back the curtain!
http://www.7figuresblueprint.com/
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