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Can you really make money online? There are thousands of online marketers who are pitching products which claim you can, but if you believe rewards will come from simply buying an e-book or attending a seminar, you’re destined for disappointment.

First and foremost, an online business is a business. There are no short cuts to success.  Business ownership is not for everyone. It requires dedication, hard work and the ability to overcome disappointments.  If you have the drive and willingness to work, then an online business is a wonderful place to start. There is little to no overhead to get started, the hours are flexible and you have access to a global market. 

First consider what type of business you want to own.

Are you interested in developing and selling your own product? Your product may be an e-book, homemade cookies or garage sell finds.  With any tangible product you will need to consider inventory and shipping costs into your business model.  E books are favored by entrepreneurs because there is demand for informational products and they’re easy to distribute. You may need to invest in publishing software or hire a ghost writer, but the expense is nominal compared to cost of developing other products.

Are you interested in selling products for others?  Affiliate programs allow you to market and distribute a wide range of products. Companies such as Link share or Click bank have a diverse selection of merchants who pay commission for products sold from your site. Commissions range from pennies to hundreds of dollars, depending on the products offered.  This is a nice alternative for business owners who don’t have the means or desire to manufacture and ship a product.  Instead, you can spend your time marketing your site to generate traffic and converting visitors into buyers. 

Do you just want to do your thing and collect money from advertising?  Any one who has a website or blog is probably familiar with Adsense.  This is Google’s advertising model which allows merchants to bid on key words.  Website owners then display ads on their site and each time an ad receives a click, the site owner receives a commission, usually a few cents.  You can find niche markets that pay more than pennies per click and then Adsense really makes sense. Yahoo and MSN also have pay per click advertising, but the number of merchants who are buying ads is a small percentage of Google’s offerings.  Few people make a living from Adsense alone but it is a nice supplement to other income. 

No matter how you plan to make money online, you need to drive traffic to your site.  Article marketing is a great way to build links and your relevancy with the search engines.  You want hundreds of links pointing to your site as an authority site. 

For example, if you are selling an e-book for dog training, you want to be an authority for various search terms people will use to find dog training, such as

How to housebreak

Puppy training

How to stop chewing

Obedience training

Dog training at home

Dog training tips

Dog trainers

This is where the hard work really comes in.   Writing informative articles that give just a taste of what you have to offer is the best way to find your customers.  YES, you can really make money online, but it won’t be overnight and it won’t be effortless.

Article writing