The internet is very appealing anyway so couple that with the number of people claiming success and the excitement can get overwhelming for a newbie.

I did it bassackwards as well, I stumbled upon Adwords so tried my hand at writing ads based on keywords and I was pretty good at it - or so I thought. With a few affiliate marketing products that produced results and many of the "How tos" in my own personal arsenal (you don't have to pay full price as an affiliate-stumbled upon that as well) I knew just enough to be dangerous.

BUT I didn't know enough to duplicate my successes. I didn't pay enough attention to the first "success" to duplicate it. I read information on the forum I was affiliated with and I'd read my "How to become the Godzilla of the Internet" ebooks and then I'd run off to implement.

I was always changing my ads and paying more for keywords and trying new products and ditching the ones that weren't profitable and checking my sales at crazy times of the morning. It was all very insane but I thought if I could duplicate the one thing I did right, I'd be in the money - at least that's what my Godzilla handbook stated.

I was in the money alright - keywords without research, from the Adwords perspective, can be very costly. I spent what I made, a couple of thousand, in 6 months . I still believe the money can be made but now the addon is I have to take the time to learn it - what works and what doesn't.

Newbies we have to take our time, and trust me I feel the nudge of discouragement when I hear 3, 6 or 12 months to get a site going in the right direction and years to get the traffic but I have to remind myself that it's actually 3, 6, 12 months or years of small wins (and failures) which means I'm AT LEAST moving towards my goal . I'm not just brainstorming my idea to death nor am I telling my goal to people that don't have a vision of their own so they couldn't possibly begin to support mine .

It's like returning to college for me. If I look at how many years I am going to be in school doing it part-time, it's almost too much . But if I only concentrate on the class I'm taking today and doing the best I can today, tomorrow takes care of itself. Just make a goal to do something today, tomorrow - the graduation - will take care of it's self. It's the whole smell the roses, enjoy the scenery thing - ya digg??!!

Besides, I'm the one that made a few thousand and gave a few thousand back in 6 months so I'd much rather pay $299 for something like SBI! and put the rest in sweat equity because in the end, in any venture business or personal, it's the sweat equity that gets you to the finish line. Everytime! Now, grant it, we may not have any soles on our shoes when we arrive at the finish line but heck we'll just plan to buy a new pair when get there.

BreLove

This thread would make a great ebook about 'tips and tricks from real people who survived the internet'. It's definitely a post that I will be saving. 3+ years ago I barely knew how to turn a computer on. I've come a long way ... I don't need help turning it on anymore, I can do it all by myself. But quite honestly, I still have a long, long, long way to go.

My advice to the novice ... Don't give up, you can do this!

Do you remember those bracelets that were really popular about about 4-5 yrs ago. A soft plastic bracelet that everyone was using to advertise everything. Well, I have one hanging from my computer ... it says LiveStrong ... that keeps me going.

If only one tip, it is tough but I would say plot everything out from research to your content all out on paper. You don't want to take a mis-step and find out later that you wish you would have done something different in a certain phase of creating or setting up your website. Doing your research from website hosting, website topic, creating content, and promoting your website with web traffic all before you begin and knowing the best thing to do in each step will save you a lot of heart-ache. A lot of new people get ahead of themselves and wish they could take steps back and do a certain thing differently after discovering new or better information. You must have a plan step by step and follow it. Doing the right research and following your steps knowing the best way to do each thing and always knowing what to do next correctly you will succeed. If I had to cite only one main tip, hands down it would be just that.

Lisa sure knows how to let others build
up some unique content...no pressures.
What a common subject topic too.

Those of us who are webmasters, experts
or authorities in some facet of the vastness
of the Internet Cosmos will generally admit
their is so much more to learn...

My Personal Catch Phrase is :

"The More You Learn..If You're Learning...The
More You'll Find Out How Much You Don't Know."

I'm a seasoned business owner, 38 long years,
I was in the delivery room to see the birth of the
Internet and have been online since it took its
first breath... so my advice may seem to be more
traditional business oriented than personalized.

Assuming our Newbie has the intentions to generate
some type of income online, understand you are
about to venture into a virtual world of complexities.

No different than if you were going to start a new
company...you should have a business plan...not
some giant Corporate Prospectus with a Proforma
Financial Statement and all the traditional Documents.

Just a very simple business plan...something that you
could pass along to someone else for a second opinion
and maybe a third a fourth and so on....

The SBA has a very good collection of checklists and
other free literature for you to read, use and apply.

In the Newbie scenario?...my first piece of advice
would be to evaluate whether you have the passion,
the experience and/or the character to pursue an
online career. Are you a Natural or need Education?

Some people are just Naturals at managing their time
and have a golden touch for finding profitable niches.

Some people are misled into believing they can do it
by purchasing the latest and greatest thing online.

Some people just are so sick and tired of their 9-5
job, they'll do anything to get out from underneath
the grind of their current JOB or Career path.

Some people are just natural born web surfers and
have latent talents just waiting to be harnessed but
may be so stubborn or proud they never go anywhere.

Irregardless...I've found one axiom to hold true in
about anything someone may wish to pursue...if they
want to get the best edge for success...

Plan to succeed by using a successful business model
If you fail to plan...you plan to fail...simple as that..!!

Take the time to evaluate yourself, your skills, your
business strengths, your weaknesses, your passions.

Write these things down...and keep writing and reading
over what you wrote...take some time to put some of
your personal thought into this exercise...don't wing it.

Again, get that evaluation checklist from the SBA Docs.
You may learn much about yourself...and don't get all
disgruntled either...when you see weakness...just put
that into a category for later review...you may want
to pursue further education in that area or connect
with a specialist...you may find a joint venture partner
that could lead to much bigger and better opportunities.

Take your time in self evaluation..make sure you're cut
out for this Internet Work stuff...you can be trained...!!

I spent more than a few months just planning, learning about software options, researching other sites and asking plenty of questions.

You are never going to know it all, making mistakes and adjustments are the norm.

So my advice would be:

Do it.

Do it even through you don't feel you are 100% ready to do it. This is an evolutionary process, just try to keep improving and working at it.

Thank you so much everyone for your input, I am in a transition phase and it's helping a lot. One thing is certain: it's fun.

1) Have the right mindset

2) Realize in the beginning, this will be a lot of work.

3) No matter what obstacle you experience, there is a solution.

4) Find an online mentor that you trust and who is showing you step by step the process of learning how to make money online.

5) Continue until you succeed. If you have the determination and passion for this and look at your journey as a business, you will not want to give up. Only 3 percent of people actually fulfill their dreams they set out to do. Be the 3!

__________________
http://www.creatingawebsitebusiness.com

Advise to a newbie Webmaster or Blogger would be to first of all gather as much information as one could get. Many times I find people doing mistakes which were unintentional and it puts a certain 'reputation' to them for a long time to come.
Secondly,never give in to the temptation of having your site being 'SEOd' by a person,firm or company which promises something like 1000 links in a day or something. This may be most probably Spam exercise and it would do more harm than intended good.
As a newbie give yourself benefit of being a newbie.Many things will come to you much easier than you ever thought them to be. Just keep focused and enjoy the wonderful 'www' !

I would advise him to be consistent in uploading his web page as well as ensure the authenticity and reliability of the content he posts. These 2 can make a real difference .

I can't say that I've been successful yet, but I'm still here trying; so I'll give a tip that hopefully can help keep newbies (like myself) motivated.

Take pride in even the smallest of victories. I have barely made any money, but the handful of comments that my site/something I've written has genuinely helped someone make me feel warm and fuzzy inside.

Similarly, celebrate when you go from no visitors to even just a few; it's going to be a long haul so celebrate all the small victories along the way instead of waiting for a big one at the end of the road. Without the positive reinforcement, you might not reach the big victory at the end.

Lots of good information on this thread. Newbies have a lot of solid information on this forum. Lots of great tools and posts that really help the online newbie.

But my tip is a little more motivational in nature.

What is inside of you? Do you give up easily? Do have other interests at heart. You can't win at anything without researching, working out, learning how to become number one in whatever niche field online or offline business will require thick skin. You must be able to bounce back.

You will have to become better at reading, writing and socializing with the online world. Sitting around watching countless reality TV re-runs or just surfing the Internet looking for more products to purchase online only slows down the process.

Plan, Research and motivate yourself over and over again.

Paul
Peace Out

__________________
Paul Guzman
Free Gardening Information|Good Content Websites|Get Your Free Traffic Ebook

The best advice I could offer a "newbie" is to look for good educational material...learn how to do something before jumping in and trying to "do" something. When possible, utilize free resources and e-books. Until you know what direction you might want to go, there is no reason to spend a fortune on programs or books that may or may not be of use to you. (The first book I studied was the e-book Honest Riches, by Holly Mann and then I found a true wealth of information in the many free E-books from SBI.)

~Look through forums, such as this fine one!, and other work-from-home type forums. Find contributors who offer genuine advice and guidance, and learn from what they share.

~Don't overwhelm yourself by trying to follow every "guru" out there.

~Look online for honest reviews of whatever program or resource you are thinking of trying or following.

~Once you find the course you want to study or follow, do as SBI suggests and "put your blinders on". Work one program at a time...and take your time. Sometimes those old adages are spot on...haste makes waste!

Eventually baby steps grow into strong leaps and bounds!

~Annie

__________________
~Honest Ways To Make Money Online-The journey that led me to SBI!
~Free Research Tools, Free Affiliates E-Book and Free "How To Write Better Content" E-Book
~When You Are Ready To Take Your Passion To The Next Step

I must say that I just gained a whole lot from this thread itself I am a newbie without a doubt! But I just gained a whole lot of information in such short time to help me along my journey! Thank you! You're the greatest group of people that I've ever seen!

I face a lot of difficulties in planning and doing research for my website. I really don't know what to do first. After I read all the advice, I know I should focusing collect contents first. Thank you very much for all seniors! ^_^

I like this section! I read many times!