Watch as I turn a $100 investment into Thousands - A Broke College Student's Journal

[kuzzmedia]

Hey Jay, I was curious about your free pdf, but when I tried to download it, it won't let me expand the zip file to read. idk why. I don't usually have problems opening zips. I am curious to read.

[James Colin]

Hi, I'm following your journal also.
But it seems you don't have a clear roadmap, I say that from reading your different posts.
Do you have a roadmap established? A plan? Or is it just to do more of everything like before?

[Belle]

I am loving this thread, Jay! You are inspiring me to the point where I may start one of my own!

Hey Jay!

You are inspiring.. and tenacious.

Just wanted to chime in here and mention.. you are seoing your videos right?

JamesWedmore.com is an awesome authority on video marketing. He has a $100. course (which is well worth it) but I'm sure if you look around his site, you'll find free video seo advice.

It made a huge difference in how many times my videos were seen when I started seoing them

darlene

Hey, thanks for this. I knew there had to be something people were doing to optimize their YT video views!

[Jay]

Hey Jay, I was curious about your free pdf, but when I tried to download it, it won't let me expand the zip file to read. idk why. I don't usually have problems opening zips. I am curious to read.

Oh, you can ignore that link. It's some really, really old project I was doing two years ago but I gave up on it. I'm going to be putting my website in the signature soon but I want to wait until everything is done

[Jay]

Hi, I'm following your journal also.
But it seems you don't have a clear roadmap, I say that from reading your different posts.
Do you have a roadmap established? A plan? Or is it just to do more of everything like before?

I'll be honest - I don't have a clear road map. I'm just building up my website whenever I have free time, and this can change day-to-day so I'm never able to have a good writing schedule. But I'm not fretting about it because as long as I'm doing SOMETHING I'll be moving.

I know it's not the best strategy, but it is one that is working for me so far. I don't have a deadline and I'm not desperate at the moment

[Jay]

I am loving this thread, Jay! You are inspiring me to the point where I may start one of my own!

Yes, I highly recommend you do one like this! It's good so that you can always keep yourself in-line. I find that when I don't do journals I just forget about it. At least now I feel obligated to update every 2-3 days.

[Jay]

Keep it up, Jay! Lovin' your updates.

Thank you, Lisa!

[Schnappi]

Welcome to My Journal!

This is a journal for documenting my struggles and triumphs with my website. I have been trying for the last 4 years to make an income online, but have failed time and time again. This time, I'm going to do the right thing and make my dream come true so I can help my family get out of debt.

My Story

For the last four years, I've been trying to make any amount of income. I was a desperate teenager who needed money - not for myself - but for my family. We were broke, heavily in debt, and there was barely any food in our house to feed three growing teenagers. My parents worked long hours and did the best they can, but as the thought of college expenses start creeping closer and closer to reality (I was the eldest child), I knew I need to do something to help with the finances.

Around my sophomore year (2010), I discovered the online money-making platform. I used the internet for academic research and for recreational activities, but I never knew a person could make so much money online. I heard about Whateverlife and that teenager making over a million dollars a year, and this started getting my gears working. Could I be the next Whateverlife? Could I make money online, too?

The Research and early Success

So for the next year, I did extensive research about making money online. I made sure to keep this as a secret project from my parents (I was imagining their faces when they get that surprise check in the mail!). Once I thought I was ready, I started writing hundreds of articles on revenue-sharing websites (content farms were, at the time, the best new thing for income).

Initially I made $20 my first month for only writing about 10 articles, which was absolutely fantastic. I had done the math in my head and if I had written 100 articles, I could make enough money to buy at least two weeks of groceries for my family every month!

Google Panda Update

Unfortunately, my optimism was short-lived. Before my second month, the dreaded Google panda update happened and almost all my traffic diminished. Gone. Poof. And so, cursing myself for being so young and not discovering the online platform sooner, I tried other things. Completing online offers, doing countless surveys, participating in PPC, and even participating in blackhat activities like Ponzi schemes.

Between juggling with High School work and doing these online activities, I was making only $50 or so a month, and I was spending up to 6 hours AFTER school working on these online activities. I was a miserable person and I was very frustrated, and I was wishing that I would find success sooner or later.

Google Adsense

At around this time, I heard about Google Adsense, and I thought that this was it. This was the program that was going to get me rich! I joined a revenue sharing website that allowed Google Adsense, and I made my ads run on there.

Unfortunately, I didn't keep any eye on my account and I was banned on Google Adsense. Apparently, someone was fraudulently clicking on my ads and it was enough to get me kicked out of the program. And this SUCKED SO BAD FOR ME because I had JUST reached $100 on the account. I didn't really know how good of a program Google Adsense until it was gone - there was just simply no better version of Google Adsense.

Fast-Forward To Now

4 years later, I am 19 years old, in college, and I'm making less than $100 a month from survey referrals. I decided in December of 2012 that I would invest in a website and use what I know to make my dream happen. I don't exactly know for sure what works online, but I do know what DOESN'T work, and in some ways that's even better.

Because I'm a person who stays on track by documenting things, I'm going to be keeping a running journal on WebsiteBabble.com. Ever since I discovered Lisa back in mid-2012, she has been such an inspiration to me, so what better place to document my success than at WB? I've also done a similar journal for my weight loss and I received amazing results, so why not for making money online?

I know this has been a long post and I do apologize, but this is something that I need to do for myself in order to make things happen. Thank you for reading and good luck to your own websites!

Jay

Hi Jay Chow,
First of all, Thanks for your sharing! an d I also want to ask you some questions! How do you find the way to begin your business and do you have the confidence at beginning of your business? If I also want to start make money, do you have some suggestions?

[Jay]

Hi Jay Chow,
First of all, Thanks for your sharing! an d I also want to ask you some questions! How do you find the way to begin your business and do you have the confidence at beginning of your business? If I also want to start make money, do you have some suggestions?

Jay Chow, haha.

I'm sorry, but I'm still a beginner so I do not think I am qualified to answer those questions :X. Perhaps in the future when I start making significant income, but for now you can ask loads of other people I just don't want to give you false information if it doesn't (or hasn't) applied to me.

[Jay]

Tuesday, February 5, 2013

I finally got to 21 subscribers, and I'm actually getting comments on my channel now. This makes me happy because some days I feel like I'm just talking to a wall. Also the subscribers that I'm getting are the types that don't have any videos and are subscribing to me PURELY for my videos and not for personal reasons, like reciprocation or advertising, so I'm very happy about that.

Haven't worked on my website the last 2 days I'm sad to say. I JUST finished my practical today and I did fairly well on it so I'll have more time this week do finish some articles.

I wonder if I should post my Youtube channel on here or in my signature. I feel silly talking about my Youtube Channel and not having it listed anywhere...

[Schnappi]

Tuesday, February 5, 2013

I finally got to 21 subscribers, and I'm actually getting comments on my channel now. This makes me happy because some days I feel like I'm just talking to a wall. Also the subscribers that I'm getting are the types that don't have any videos and are subscribing to me PURELY for my videos and not for personal reasons, like reciprocation or advertising, so I'm very happy about that.

Haven't worked on my website the last 2 days I'm sad to say. I JUST finished my practical today and I did fairly well on it so I'll have more time this week do finish some articles.

I wonder if I should post my Youtube channel on here or in my signature. I feel silly talking about my Youtube Channel and not having it listed anywhere...

Naja, how can I get to know your Youtube? And It is free for everyone or ?

[Jay]

Naja, how can I get to know your Youtube? And It is free for everyone or ?

I have posted the Youtube video in my signature, and yes it is free you can watch my videos if you'd like.

[emvy548]

Good effort but not much traffic!

Do some keyword research before you make any more videos. Look for long tail keywords that have low competition on Google and make videos which you can title and name by those keywords. Write a 500-word description for the video, again with the keyword and some related keywords, and put a link to a website on which you promote a related product, whether yours or an affiliate product. Or link to a website with Adsense on it and/or an opt-in form with which you can build a list of subscribers. In the tags field, put your keywords again using quotes for each keyword phrase.

Build back links to your videos just as you may do for a website. Comment on blogs and forums, and share the video on Facebook and Twitter. Google favors YouTube and you will start getting a horde of traffic if you follow these steps, and make some decent money as well :-).

[Jay]

Good effort but not much traffic!

Do some keyword research before you make any more videos. Look for long tail keywords that have low competition on Google and make videos which you can title and name by those keywords. Write a 500-word description for the video, again with the keyword and some related keywords, and put a link to a website on which you promote a related product, whether yours or an affiliate product. Or link to a website with Adsense on it and/or an opt-in form with which you can build a list of subscribers. In the tags field, put your keywords again using quotes for each keyword phrase.

Build back links to your videos just as you may do for a website. Comment on blogs and forums, and share the video on Facebook and Twitter. Google favors YouTube and you will start getting a horde of traffic if you follow these steps, and make some decent money as well :-).

Thank you so much for all these tips! I have no idea how to do SEO for Youtube so I'm going to save this comment somewhere and utilize it when I'm ready

For now, I'm just using Youtube to build a reputation and to lose weight. This is my primarily goal. Once I have lost weight and showed the Youtube community that I'm not a fraud, then I'm going to promote products that worked for me. I'm thinking of promoting my primary website but as of now it is not completed.

I was banned from Adsense unfortunately so I'm going to have to do affiliate marketing or promote products... :/ it's a shame really. And I think because I was banned from Google Adsense I also cannot participate in the Youtube partner program. But I'm not sure. Can anyone confirm this for me?

[emvy548]

For now, I'm just using Youtube to build a reputation and to lose weight. This is my primarily goal. Once I have lost weight and showed the Youtube community that I'm not a fraud, then I'm going to promote products that worked for me. I'm thinking of promoting my primary website but as of now it is not completed.

If it's just a pastime it's fine, but nothing motivates more than a few hundred dollars hitting your account ;-)

I was banned from Adsense unfortunately so I'm going to have to do affiliate marketing or promote products... :/ it's a shame really. And I think because I was banned from Google Adsense I also cannot participate in the Youtube partner program. But I'm not sure. Can anyone confirm this for me?

That's correct. But hundreds get banned by Adsense everyday I guess and many may make mistakes inadvertently but Google does not forgive. I know many super marketers who got banned as well. Sad part is that many people who used to rely solely on Adsense and earned thousands of $$ each month were banned suddenly and lost their entire income overnight. So the silver lining in your case is that you may have learnt a lesson early!

Not to worry though. Start diversifying your income right from the beginning and do affiliate marketing with various income streams e.g. Amazon, Clickbank, Shareasale, Commission Junction - but next time be thorough with their TOS...lol...so that you can always stay on the safe side. Build your own websites and drive enough traffic - once you have ample traffic monetizing your site is easy.

You don't have to use YouTube exclusively either - why stay at risk with one site? Try Dailymotion and Viddler - their videos rank well too and unlike YouTube you can buy a channel at Viddler when you have some money to spare.

Again, putting up videos without having any viewers is like publishing a book with no one to read them. So post links to them in as many places as you can - of course don't spam, instead add some value wherever you go and you'll find visitors to your videos steadily increase.

.