Making sales online is easy, isn't it?

You've read the book, seen the ads, heard the rumors.
Making money online is easy, isn't it?

Well yes, it is. Maybe.

There are a lot of people who get seduced by the big
idea that all they have to do is sign up for an
affiliate program, throw up a quick, free website and
sit back on the beach waiting for the cash to flow.

It ain't like that.

Maybe if you have a ton of experience you can automate
everything to the point that you need to do very
little. But that isn't the road a beginner can tread.

It is said that one in twenty people who set out to
make a profit online actually manage to see a return.
Most disappear without trace after spending their,
often vital, last cent on hosting or ebooks or
programs.

But it doesn't have to be like that.

The problem is not with the Internet, but with people's
attitude towards it.

Two people can buy any of the famous 'guru's' program
on the same day. One may make a $1000 a month and think
the sun shines from the guru's every word (I cleaned
that up). The other may not make a dime and retire
believing he was scammed.

Both are wrong and both are right. It isn't the program
that works, it is the operator. Some things just don't
work for some people. Maybe their attitude is wrong.
Maybe they try to change things. Maybe they truly
believe they are following the rules, but actually are
bending a few. Whatever the reasons, these people won't
believe that the problem is with them It must be the
program. They were scammed.

In all of my talking with people who are making money,
there are three key traits that they have in common:

1. They truly believe in themselves
2. They are not afraid to change course
3. They don't give up

You have to believe in yourself to achieve anything. If
a man says he can and another says he can't, they are
both right.

If at first you don't succeed, reinvent yourself. This
is vital in Internet marketing. Test, test, test. That
is the key that unlocks the door of success online.
Nineteen times out of twenty your first idea won't make
money. So what do you do? Give up? No! Learn why and
move on.

There are many 'secrets' out there - most of them are
free if you know where to look - that will tell you how
to target your audience, which product to sell, how to
get traffic, how to write great sales copy, how to
create your own products, how to automate your
business.

But the biggest secret of all is this: you have to be
willing to learn.

I started out online less than a year ago. My
intention was to build up a newsletter, create a useful
and resource-filled website, provide an online shop-
window for my offline consultancy business, and, maybe,
make a few dollars to cover my costs.

I have achieved all of that. I don't try to, or profess
to make a fortune - that was never my intention. But
almost as a by-product of doing what I love - writing,
teaching and helping others - I generate a steadily
growing income - currently about $250 a month. Enough
to cover my costs and show a nice profit.

I've got to this stage by learning everything I can. I
read endless reports and ebooks, spend time in forums,
and, most importantly, learn from my own experiences.

Nobody can tell you how to do it. They can tell you how
they did it. You have to do the rest.