I love meeting people who are just starting out as Internet entrepreneurs.
I love their enthusiasm, I get a thrill out of hearing their plans for the future, and I pick up a buzz from their energy.
They've got J-O-Bs that they often H-A-T-E. They've got every motivation they need to swap their spare time for marketing time, and they absolutely believe that it's only a matter of hard work and patience before they'll be working for themselves and doing something they love.
I try not to think about the fact that in six months' time, many of those people will still be dreaming of firing their boss, only then they'll be wondering how they're going to do it.
After half a year of earning pennies instead of piles of cash, they'll have convinced themselves that online marketing just doesn't work.
I can't blame them for thinking that way. I was in that position once. After ten months of playing with AdSense, I was netting a grand total of... $3 a day. Like many people I was ready to give up and try something else.
Instead though, I made a few changes to my ad units and blended them better into my site.
My revenues started to rise.
I made a few more changes.
My income went up again.
The results were unmistakable.
I was on a roll.
At that point, I wanted to know just how high I could go. If I was making $60 a day, maybe I could make $100.
When I was making $100, I wondered what it would take to earn $200.
When I had beaten $200, I aimed for $500 a day.
And when I sailed past that, I knew this Internet marketing thing was the greatest moneymaking invention since banking charges.
I could tell you then that the secret of my success is the strategies that I used to improve my AdSense earnings. That's true... to a point.
But what made the real difference was the fact that I was seeing my earnings rise each month.
I had momentum.
It's the momentum that makes all the difference and it's something that you can easily create for yourself.
Set yourself a goal each month. It doesn't have to be anything outrageous. It just has to be bigger than the previous month. If you made $10 last month, tell yourself that this month you'll make $15.
And tell yourself how you're going to do it.
Each month, plan to do one thing that will help you to beat your previous month's target.
If you fail, you'll have learned a valuable lesson about what doesn't work and which will improve your chances of succeeding next time.
And when you do succeed, you'll be building the sort of momentum that can take you exactly where you want to go.
It's Del.icio.us!
Furl It!
December 22, 2008 10:02 AM
How is it that you always get to hit the nail on the head, Joel?
As we launched our first, original site, we were debating on whether to go with Adsense. As it is a blog-driven, charity-based site dedicated to the men & women of the Armed Forces, we were not sure if we could find suitable companies that would advertise on our site. Any opinions? They are always welcome.
That said, we shelved Adsense for now and are opting for affiliate sales for goods, products, & services for now.
Best,
-K
http://www.for-the-troops.com/shop/
10% of after-tax revenue goes to military charities!
December 22, 2008 10:11 AM
Joel,
The only difference between you and those you fail is that they give up and you did not. Perseverance and determination are the keys to success no mattter what your goals are.
December 22, 2008 10:55 AM
Thanks again for sharing Joel.
Harry
December 22, 2008 03:03 PM
Each time I go through your content my head swells.
You make the entire thing so and also give hope to
some of us that we shall get there some day. God bless
December 22, 2008 03:35 PM
Great reflection, Joel. Thanks a lot
December 23, 2008 02:55 AM
Thanks
December 23, 2008 02:55 AM
People often see the end result, when a business is booming and making money. They did not see that once upon a time the marketer was doing the hard yards and redy to give up. Please share some more of the "hard times" Joel when you have time, thanks. People relate more to the struggle than the success..
December 23, 2008 05:57 AM
Good post Joel, that's true. It's all about taking action, getting results and using that momentum to build leverage. Repeat the cycle and continue testing and tweaking until it produces better results. But if you don't take action, you'll never know your true potential.
Terrance Charles
http://thesimplecode.com
December 23, 2008 08:20 PM
If you take small steps at a time you can achieve anything you put your mind to. It's just that the majority of people can't seem to change those bad everyday-habits and turn them into good habits. Like write an article every day, post a comment to a blog every day, interact with your facebook friends every day... it's too hard... and they give up.
But the real secret lies in each and every one of us... it's THE SECRET...
Thank you Joel for this article and Happy Holidays to you and your family and everybody around here!
Remi Vladuceanu
http://www.remivladuceanu.com
December 23, 2008 08:39 PM
Great advice Joel. You certainly have momentum. I've seen you do it. You are a powerhouse!
December 23, 2008 08:39 PM
Good stuff. Good post, Joel! Thx!
December 23, 2008 08:52 PM
Joel, it's my first time here, and I already enjoyed it.
I'm just impressed how what you wrote described me with unreal perfection; I'm still engineering my resignation plans... Lol..
Thank you!
December 23, 2008 08:59 PM
You are saying the real truth Joel. Everything starts from zero and then gradually builds up with the consistent effort and motivation toward work, or I must sincerity towards work. No one can build a high building of 1000 meters in just one or two days / month.
December 30, 2008 08:55 PM
Thanks Joel for sharing many of your secrets with us newbies. I have learned so much from your mentor ship.
I can so identify with this post. I had my biggest day ever yesterday. I am so amazed at how you can start out making pennies and then as you build more revenue streams, one day you wake up and your making dollars.
It takes work, time and a lot of patients.
I feel like I'm in Internet college everyday. I'm like a sponge soaking up all of the wonderful information that we all have available to us.
January 2, 2009 08:10 PM
Joel , hi I am new to this site
I read your ebook on adsense ,it really helped me a lot, it boosted my CTR from 0.7 to 2 , I want to increase it further... ,can you pls take a look at my blog and give me some pointers on adsense..... I would be really grateful ,its my first site and i want it to be a success,
& also the post was awesome too, any way heres my link, pls check it out:
bsnlbroadbandcheats.blogspot.com
thanks
January 3, 2009 03:19 PM
Hi Joel,
This is my first visit to your site. I am new to the internet, and I am just starting to find my way. At the moment I am being tutored by Alex Jeffrys and I am learning a lot from him.
I must admit that I have never even considered quitting. I know what I want to achieve and the only way that I am going to get there is to push forwards.
I am learning new things every day so hopefully soon I will get there.
Have a great new year.
Alan... A.K.A. Bigal.
January 4, 2009 04:14 PM
Hi Joel,
I am following you and your advice for some month now, and I cannot say how much you helped me along the way.
I still have a long route infront of me, but this post says it. Never give up.
Thanks for all Joel!
P.S. Great that you use your old Yahoo icon again ;)
January 6, 2009 07:09 PM
So true. Once you find what you want to do, do it with all your passion and never look back.
InfoESource.com