Web Biz 101

Possible Scam Site

2010-11-28T21:10:00.002-05:00

Hey all, I thought I would let you know about a site a tried a couple of weeks ago and had a bad experience with. It was called birejji.com and it's a paid to chat site. I joined and tried them out using the site for several hours. I accumulated some earnings and I logged out for the evening.

A few days later I tried to log back in to use the site again only to find that my login didn't work. I tried it several times with no success. I found a contact email on the site and sent them a support request giving them my ID number and told them the problem I was having. I got no response. I even gave them several days but got nothing. I sent another email requesting support and again got totally ignored. My account and my earnings had disappeared and they were offering no explanation whatsoever.

Needless to say, I was not very confident in the site being legitimate at this point so I thought I would post this just as a warning to others that this site may be a scam or ripoff. At the very least, they may just be totally negligent when it comes to member support or simply uncaring to member's needs. Either way, I wouldn't bother with them. They proved to me that they are not worth my time and if that's the way the conduct business, they won't be around long.

2010-11-11T15:09:00.003-05:00

2010-10-07T21:13:00.004-04:00

2010-05-15T10:52:00.001-04:00

Day by Day

2009-11-04T15:46:00.003-05:00

Working at home with an online business requires that you work a little bit (or sometimes a lot) every day to improve your business. It could be adding to your content online, writing an article, tweaking your website, optimizing your site for more traffic, etc. Every little bit helps get more visitors, more signups, more sales or whatever is making you money online.

Today I did a little bit of everything and I'm working on more. I added more content to my main website and tweaked my keyword list, updated my favorite Squidoo lens on T Bucket Roadsters and added some links from them to my website and blogs, signed up and listed my blogs at Technorati and I'm working on another article to post online at Helium or EzineArticles. What did you do today?

Hey, have you started your own website yet? Want to? Have you checked out my short lesson on html to get you started making a simple webpage? Have a look here.

2009-10-03T18:38:00.003-04:00

A Few Program Reviews

2009-09-16T09:46:00.004-04:00

A while back I posted that I was trying out a new money making program called Yuwie, a social networking site that shares their ad revenue with their users. Well, I've been a member for several months now and here's what I've found out.

As a money making program, they don't live up to expectations. When you first start out with a program like this, you expect it to be slow and you expect to not make much money at first, but after several months of using the program in a normal fashion, that is logging in several times a week, adding friends and getting a few referrals, I've not seen any increase in money. Indeed, it has paid next to nothing, so it's my opinion that it's not worth my time as a way to make money online.

Looking at their own example of earnings potential, you would need hundreds if not thousands of active referrals to make any decent amount of money with this program and the average user is not going to reach that level. Remember, they must be ACTIVE referrals that use the program on a continual basis. The average referral is going to try it, realize they will not make any money with it and probably give up on it after a month or two, so keeping hundreds of referrals active would be a daunting task. It's probably making money for the owners and people at the top but that's about it, so a good money maker for the average user it's not.

It is however, a place where you can socialize and meet people, many of which are online marketers and entrepreneurs who are also trying methods to make money online, so in that respect it can be worthwhile, but simply as a networking site, not a money maker.

One program I really like is Squidoo. I started out slowly and it didn't seem to be making any money at first but as I got going, the earnings have increased and I've been paid by them, so it's a good program well worth the effort. It has good potential and I'm going to try and steadily increase my earning with them over the next few weeks and months.

Stay tuned and I'll let you know how it works out.

New Money Maker

2009-09-06T22:50:00.002-04:00

I found another money making program that is similar to a social networking site but is set up more like a forum. It's called MyLot. You make money simply by using the site to post new discussions, reply to other people's posts or their comments on your posts. You can also make money for uploading photos and there are also tasks you can complete to make various amounts of cash. You can refer others to increase your earnings and they have a low $10 minimum payout.

If you like using forums and responding to questions and discussions, MyLot is definitely for you. It seems to be a popular program that is growing and adding new members at a good rate so it's probably a good time to join and promote to build a good referral network. Give it a try, it's free to join.

Free Survey Site

2009-08-09T12:13:00.003-04:00

I don't know if I've mentioned it here on my business blog before or not but for those of you that like taking surveys and getting paid for it, one of my favorite programs is MySurvey.

I've made several hundred dollars from this program and gotten several free product trials from them also. Totally free to join.

If you like making money this way, check out more paid survey programs that are free to join at my website.

2009-07-19T15:17:00.004-04:00

FREE Affiliate Program

2009-07-02T21:04:00.017-04:00

Here's one especially for anyone with a website that you can place ads on. This affiliate program is free to join and they have a large number of great info products for you to sell.

Even if you don't have a website, you can put the code into your blog, free webspace or place ads on the free classified sites.

They have great internet marketing and business products like this:

But they also have great in demand products on many other topics like these:

I started promoting these products on my websites, mini-sites and this blog and they're doing very well. The program is Low Stress Income and since it's free to join, there's really no reason not to try it.

Trying a New Program

2009-06-02T11:06:00.002-04:00

Hey all you Social Networkers, do you use MySpace or Facebook every day? Do you use it to promote your online business activities? Do they pay you anything for using their service and making them money? No? Me either...

Guess what. There is a social networking site out there that DOES pay you to use it. Yuwie will share add revenue with it's users and the more you use it, the more you can make. The more page views you have, the more money you can make so sign up, add friends and refer people to the program to maximise your income.

I'm giving it a try and if you would like to also, just click here and after you sign up, be sure and send me a friend request. Let me know you signed up from reading my blog and I'll send out a request for all my friends to add you too and you'll get a jump-start to your friend list.

Tip for SFI members

2009-04-04T09:07:00.002-04:00

A lot of people get involved with SFI but then do nothing. This is something that any member trying to build a team sees in their downline. A few "get it" and get involved in the program and do the things that they need to do to succeed. They make use of the abundant training materials available in the SFI members area and learn how to make the program work for them.

Check out this thread in the dboard where a member shares his experience with SFI and motivating his team to action.

http://www.sfidboard.com/showthread.php?t=69253

More Changes to SFI

2009-02-22T15:46:00.002-05:00

Well, for those of you that have been involved with SFI but never did much with it, the recent changes they have made to the program should have you fairly excited. The new storefront (TripleClicks) they have made is far better than the former one and looks like a winner. They have increased the number of products available for you to sell and they have added the new “garage sale” feature to the site which should bring in a whole new user demographic.

There is a new tie-in with EyeEarn that should increase signups and sales. It seems like there is more incentive for members at the Affiliate level to advance to Executive Affiliate for increased earnings potential. I will post to this blog whether earnings go up or down for me under the new plan. There are still a large number of people involved in SFI that do absolutely nothing with it so these changes will not affect them of course, but active members should see an increase in earnings.

If you haven’t checked out the new storefront I highly recommend you do so. It might be time for you inactive members to log back into the system and familiarize yourself with the changes. You may want to make an effort to work the program.

If you are reading this blog and aren’t involved with the program and are wanting to get into an online business, I recommend you take a look at SFI.

Now is the Time

2008-11-21T19:19:00.001-05:00

I’ve been noticing an increase in clicks to my website from my sponsored search engine account and a corresponding increase in the number of sign-ups coming into my downline in SFI lately. It also seems like I have been getting more new affiliates via the EyeEarn program as well.

Possibly, the downturn in the economy has more people looking for ways to supplement their income and they are looking for an online opportunity first. This is a good sign for internet marketers and affiliates looking to build their online business.

It means it’s a great opportunity for anyone trying to increase their income by building a large downline in an affiliate program. Now is the time to increase your advertising and put more ads out there. Now is the time for action.

I recommend getting into SFI now and anyone that is in SFI to join the EyeEarn program to help build your business. It’s also a good time to upgrade to EA status and one of the easiest ways to make sure you stay at the EA level is to sign up for IAHBE. It’s a great program with resources for serious business builders.

Keep on building!

For SFI Affiliates

2008-05-10T22:48:00.001-04:00

When you join an affiliate program online, one of the first things you want to do is build your own team of affiliates under you. Sometimes it's hard to get signups by only advertising your affiliate page and if you don't have your own website, you can't get any traffic from the search engines.

So what do you do? How can you advertise? Well, one of the best ways is with an advertising co-op if the affiliate program offers one. For members who join it, all of the affiliate signups are distributed to the members of the co-op. You don't have to find the best places to advertise. That will be done for you.

For those of you that are already SFI Affiliates and are interested in building your team, I absolutely recommend that you sign up for the EyeEarn program.

It's an inexpensive but very effective way to get affiliate signups. Once you join, you will receive affiliates from the co-op advertising every month that you stay qualified and the only cost is the one time purchase of the EyeEarn kit. It will more than pay for itself with affiliates on your team and I can personally tell you, it works.

Log into the members area now and sign up for your starter kit.

Free Advertising

2008-05-02T16:02:00.002-04:00

If you have your own website or are just using personalized pages provided by affiliate programs, you need to get traffic to your page to build your business.

One way to do that is with free online classified ads. For SFI members, pre-written ads are available in the members area for you to use. Simply copy and paste the ad with your affiliate link in it.

Here is one classified site that I use to get traffic to my website and blog: Ablewise Free Classifieds

There are many more ad sites available. Just do a search for "free classifieds" at your favorite search engine.

Advertising Tips

2007-11-24T18:51:00.000-05:00

I'm sure a lot of people out there that get into online affiliate programs are unsure of how to promote the program they just joined. There are a lot of ways to advertise online including free or paid classified ads, paid email, banner ads, traffic exchanges, etc. The thing that a lot of people forget though is offline advertising. By that, I mean buying ads in your local newspaper or community flier, using pamphlets or handouts and other means to promote your business other than the internet.

One of the first things you should do after getting involved in any program is to get some business cards printed up with your affiliate link included on them. You can even design and print your own on your computer. There is software specifically available for this and you can get business card stock at any office supply store. You can even get your own business cards printed free by going to VistaPrint. Carry some with you at all times and hand them out whenever the opportunity presents itself. You can also post them at some community bulletin boards. I would also include one in any mailing you do, like paying your monthly bills. Just throw a card in the envelope with it. You want to get your affiliate link out there so people go to the site to sign up and/or make a purchase.

Business cards are a good way to advertise with very little cost and are a good way to get started promoting your business. For the SFI program you can order cards and fliers directly from them that are ready made to promote that program. You can find them in the affiliate store when you log into the members area.

To your success!

Jerky Direct Distributors

2007-11-24T18:29:00.000-05:00

I just wanted to mention a word here to those of you that have joined the Jerky Direct program. The opportunity is growing and with all the new products being added, it's getting easier and easier to make money with this program so be sure and keep promoting. For those of you that haven't gotten into this program yet, you should take another look at it, www.mj.jerkydirect.com. The program now offers supplements, personal care, skin care, and home care products in addition to their great jerky.

What to do next

2007-11-10T18:02:00.000-05:00

I've decided that I am going to post information here to help the members that have signed up in the SFI program. A lot of people sign up for a program that want to make money online but they don't really know what to do next or what steps to take to succeed so I'll be periodically posting tips and pointers as to what you need to do.

Those of you that have signed up in this program should have confirmed your membership by clicking the confirmation link in the email they sent you after you joined. If you didn't get the email (maybe is was blocked by your spam filter) you can confirm by logging in and following the directions in the members area. You will want to confirm your membership to receive important information and updates from SFI and also communications from me because I sent out emails through the SFI system as well.

The next step you should do is to complete "Smart Start" which gives you a lot of information and direction. After that, I would recommend that you spend some time checking out the members area and all the products that SFI has to offer. You should log in every day for a while to become as familiar as you can with how to navigate and find what you need on the site.

Stay tuned, there is more to come.

Surprising

2007-08-06T10:31:00.000-04:00

I've just been looking at my traffic to my website and the number of signups I am getting in some of my affiliate programs and I'm really surprised. I guess I shouldn't be though... I do show people that they can get started in there own online business for free. That is what most people are signing up for, simply that it's free. Then they never do anything to actually use the business to make any money. I guess they not only want free but they want to do nothing also and expect to make money. Gee, I've been looking for that magic business all my life but I haven't found it yet...

The fact is that you will actually have to work your business to make any money. I show people how to get started and I'll help and coach but people have to make an effort to succeed. I can tell the ones that will succeed right away. They sign up and learn as much as they can and then apply what they have learned to build their business and move it into profit. These people are far outnumbered by the other sort that sign up hoping they will somehow make money from someone else's efforts. This isn't a problem other than these people just won't achieve anything and I hate to see people fail simply because they didn't make an effort.

I think some are afraid of the fact that they have to make sales. This scares a lot of people but it is really the only way to actually make money. This is the very nature of business. You sell a product that people buy and you keep the profit or commission on the sale. I can see the ones that realize this by the number of signups I have in the Jerky Direct program that requires you to buy some product every month to be a distributor, compared to the free signup to SFI. Without fail, the people that sign up for the paid program also sign up for the free program and they are the ones that start working the free program too. About 98% of the people that just sign up for the free program don't actually do anything with it and never even sample the products that they have to offer.

I'm sure others that work these programs have noticed this also, but I find it interesting...

I'm back

2007-06-20T20:32:00.000-04:00

Well... even though I didn't stop my online business activities, I have been away from my blogs for a while. I've been pretty busy with life's challenges lately, including losing my Uncle and my Father and along with a few other things... well suffice it to say, I haven't had as much time as I would have liked to keep up with things...

So... The great thing about an online business is that it keeps going on autopilot to a certain extent and I have been steadily getting signups to my affiliate programs and my survey sites. My Google Adsense and Helium accounts continue to grow, so things are on looking better all the time.

I think I need to update my allwebsuccess website though. It has been static for too long and a website needs to be constantly evolving and changing. I have some things to add and some things to change so that's coming very soon.

I have some ideas for other websites too and I want to get them going soon also. Just not enough hours in the day...

IPTL NOW LOOKS LIKE A SCAM SITE

2007-01-14T23:18:00.000-05:00

I have been trying to log in to my account at It Pays To Learn and it now appears as they have dumped the existing members log in ID's and their accounts and made it impossible to log in. The new login page tells you to enter your email address and ID number. It also says the old ID numbers are no longer valid and that they sent out new ID numbers which is not true. I never received anything from them at all, not even any kind of email explaining the changes that are being made on the site.

When I entered my email address to try and get a new log in ID, it said that my email address was not in their database which means they dumped it. I followed the directions to have them send a new ID number like it says and it doesn't work. I tried it 5 times and the email never gets sent. They haven't paid what they owe me and I don't think they will.

The landing page has signup offers and there appear to be quizzes but you don't have to log in to use them so I highly doubt that they will pay anything to anybody. It looks like the program is on it's way down the tubes.

IPTL used to be a good program but it looks like it's now just another one that has turned into a scam. The "new owners" have taken a good program and ruined it.

IPTL under new ownership

2007-01-08T21:45:00.000-05:00

I logged into my IPTL account a few days ago and found out that they are under new management. This can be good or bad, I haven't found out for sure yet. They are making some changes to the site, so I can't really tell what is going on at the moment. The links are gone to check my cashbank and quizbank which makes me a little suspicious and I'm pretty sure I went over the payout threshold yesterday and I didn't receive payment today. Under the old management they would pay within 24 hours without fail so this is not a good sign. Maybe they are just too busy doing their updates to the site and things will get back to normal once they are done, I don't know.

I'll update when I have more information.

Great Program

2007-01-08T21:25:00.000-05:00

Following up on my last blog, this program is a good one. It's not a free program to join as you need to commit to a monthly delivery of product, namely beef jerky, but it's very affordable at only $12 per month. At first I thought it was kind of expensive but as it turns out, it's the same price that they sell jerky for at my local grocery store. That means you pay the same price you would at local retail but you get it shipped right to your door (shipping is free) AND you can make money with it through the affiliate program. You can also buy it even cheaper in quantity if you want to sell directly.

I got into it to try it and I bought a double order of $24 on the initial order and it was so good, it was gone in a couple weeks. Once my son tried it, he was hooked. We both think it's the best we've ever had. It's not shoe leather tough like a lot of jerky is and it tastes great so I don't know if the minimum order will be enough. Might have to order a little extra now and then. I'm anxious to try all the different flavors too.

Hey, if you're looking for a great product to sell that your customers will want to buy again and again, give it a try. http://www.mj.jerkydirect.com

2006-12-09T22:30:00.001-05:00

Web presence

2006-12-03T20:35:00.000-05:00

I have been trying to increase my "presence" on the internet lately. Since I started my second website, I have been exploring a few more unconventional ways to increase traffic to them. Having a website doesn't do you much good unless you can get visitors to it and then convert the visitor to a buyer or signup.

One way to increase exposure is to get your website URL listed in more places where people will see it. I have been putting more banner advertising out there and I have seen a few more visitors from that. I have also started writing some articles on Helium.com and the ones I write about business that are related to my website, I put my URL in the article or at the end. This is a very good way to indirectly advertise your website. You can write articles for ezines or newsletters also and at the end of the article put a small bio about yourself and include your website URL.

I found Helium.com a short time ago. It's a website for anyone that wants to write basically. The entire website it comprised of articles written by the members. It looks like you can also make a little money for writing articles for them also but I am still evaluating that. Basically, they have advertising on the site and every time an article gets read, they display ads and they share the ad revenue with the members. If you have popular articles that people want to read, you can make a little money. Key word here so far is "little". So far I have made about 69 cents in about 3 weeks so I don't think I'm going to get rich but my main goal is to get a little exposure for my websites. I can't really endorse it yet as a viable source of income yet. Too soon to tell. I don't like to endorse anything until I have actually gotten paid at least once and they don't have an affiliate program yet so you can't really build any residual income. If you would like to check out my writing though, feel free. Here is a link to all of my articles: http://www.helium.com/user/show/28349

Here's a tip for those of you that are trying to get people to your affiliate page or program to sign up or if you have your own website. I was printing some return address labels the other day on my computer and I thought that it might be easy to make a small label sized ad that I can stick on the outside of my outgoing mail. I printed some simple ones that say:

Make Money Online!
www.allwebsuccess.com

and

FREE Online Business!
www.how2profitonline.com

I can stick them on the outside of any outgoing mail I send out and anyone that handles the mail will see it and just might jot it down and visit my website. It's just another way to get my URL in front of people. I want people to go to my website but you could use an affiliate referral URL also and send people right to your program signup page. Try it.

To your success.

Here's a copy of an article I wrote for Helium.com

2006-11-14T21:14:00.000-05:00

A lot of people out there are looking to get into some business to make a little extra money or go all the way and become financially independent. The problem is, finding a legitimate business opportunity (biz op) that you can make work to accomplish your goals. Here is a little information that may help you in your search to distinguish a legit biz op from a scam.

I have seen a lot of websites that accuse some online businesses of being a scam because when you have a website that claims to "reveal the scams", it helps them get traffic to their website. I saw one that claimed that the "get paid to take surveys" sites were almost all scams. Of course, further down on the page they tell you to join the survey sites they recommend and that they were the only honest ones and they were the ones that charge a fee to join. (The very ones that are the scams!) Unbelievable...

When it comes right down to it, there are lots of scams on the internet and there are also a lot of legitimate businesses too. It is up to everyone that wants to join one of these businesses to check it out for themselves thoroughly before they join. It is not all that hard to decide if it is a scam or not. Here are some tips to help you check them out:

1. Here is the number 1 rule: If it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is! I bet you've heard that before. Well, it's still true. In other words, if they promise you will make loads of cash for doing nothing or next to nothing, it is not true. There is not any legal, legitimate business that will pay you lots of money for doing nothing. Period. End of story.

2. Read the terms of service (TOS) at each site. Every legitimate business opportunity will have a link, usually at the bottom of the page to read the TOS. It should tell you what is involved with getting paid and what you have to do to make money. If there is any "fine print", it will be here.

3. Is the biz op free to join or do they charge a fee to join? If it's legit, then it is probably free to join. If it costs money to join, then you need to take a close look at why it costs money. If they are selling you a starter kit or something that you need or will help you get started in your business it could be legit. If they are just charging a membership fee to join, then it is very possibly a scam and/or pyramid scheme and you need to investigate further.

4. This is a very fine point and something to look at very closely. How do you make money in the biz op? Do you make commissions for selling products or services or do you get paid to get others to join up and pay the "membership" fee. If you get paid commission for sales that's fine. You can even get paid partial commissions on people you get to sign up if it's commissions on SALES. Most multi level marketing (MLM) businesses do this and it's fine. However, if they are simply paying you to get others to join, then it is probably a pyramid scheme. They use the fees from new joins to pay the existing members and this is illegal. Don't get involved with it.

5. Look at how long the company has been in business. I personally tend to trust ones that have been in business for several years and are still strong.

6. Look for online forums and talk groups that discuss online businesses and find out what other people are saying about the biz op you are considering. Don't believe the hype at the website or given to you by someone trying to get you to join. You can also do a simple search at any of the major search engines using the business name as the search term and you will be surprised at how much information comes up.

I guess I will sum this all up by advising you to not only look for a legitimate business but you also have to find one with a product or service that YOU BELIEVE IN. 99% of all businesses that have the potential to get you that financial independence will involve selling. Either a product or service, but it WILL be selling. If selling turns you off and you don't want to do it, then online business is not for you. Probably being in business for yourself at all is not for you. If you are OK with selling then you MUST find something you believe in. If you don't, you won't be successful selling it. It's that simple. If it's a great product, you will find it easy to tell people about it and it will be easy for you to sell and success will be much easier to achieve.

To your success,
MJ Miller

If you found this article helpful and would like more information, please visit http://www.allwebsuccess.com

I love getting checks in the mail.

2006-09-27T21:50:00.000-04:00

Well, I got 2 more checks this week for doing surveys. I just love it when money arrives in my mailbox. The only thing better is getting money directly in my bank account but either way is good.

My referrals into SFI have slowed down this month so I think I will buy into the ad coop they run again for next month. The results were good last month so it's advertising dollars well spent I think.

My Google Adsense dollars are adding up from my main website. I only have one website and my two blogs with adsense on them so I really need to get some other ones on the net. I have a couple of ideas for other websites and have started working on one. I hope to have it online in a few weeks.

To your success.

Money here, money there

2006-08-30T20:50:00.000-04:00

Just pluggin along. The machine keeps working. I have been getting a new affiliate almost on a daily basis for the last 2 weeks or so from the Eagle Coop at SFI so for those of you on my team, if you want an easy way to add affiliates to your T-Net, this is a good investment. I didn't do it for a long time wanting to go my own way and advertise on my own but once you make the decision to use paid advertising, this is a good way to go. You take advantage of the powerful advertising machine that is in place and getting results. Unless you are a super marketer, this will get you the quickest results to grow your business.

On the survey front, I have taken several paid surveys over the last few days. I added over a hundred points toward payout at one site and I just took a 15 minute survey today for $5 at ACOP. Hey, every little bit counts.

I'm still doing a little GPTR email too but this is getting to be a waste of time since it pays so little. It's just not as popular as it was a couple of years ago so downline growth is way down and the people that are still around aren't really participating like they once did. I still hang onto a couple of the programs that I still have an active downline in and have resigned from all the rest.

Growing the business

2006-08-24T20:15:00.000-04:00

I am continuing to try new methods of advertising and getting hits to my website www.allwebsuccess.com with mixed results. I have been trying Yahoo's paid search results listing and while I have been getting some hits from them, I don't seem to be getting any results as far as conversions. That is, people that sign up for my programs after they get to the website. I think I will put the account on hold soon and pursue other methods for a while.

For getting signups to my main affiliate program, (SFI), I have tried their advertising coop and it has netted a dozen or so new affiliates. Not bad. I think I will try it again maybe in a month or so. If it keeps paying off, I will use it every other month maybe in place of other paid advertising and then use my own advertising in between.

I'm still puzzled by the fact that very few people are signing up for the paid surveys. This is the easiest money one could ever make and yet nobody is taking advantage of it. I found another site that is saying paid surveys are a scam and then on the very same page, they try and hawk a survey service that you have to pay to join. They try and get you to sign up for a program that they just got through saying was a scam. Unbelievable... Of course they try and say that their program is the only honest one. Yah right... Most of the sites that you see trying to get you to sign up are the ones that ask you for money to join their "service" that gives you the programs that pay. Well, you can find out the information FREE at http://www.allwebsuccess.com/surveys.html and all the programs listed there are FREE. FREE as in NO COST. Get the idea? DON'T pay anyone for the opportunity to get paid for surveys.

To your success.

Getting paid for surveys

2006-08-08T20:11:00.000-04:00

I have been surfing around the net lately looking at other sites similar to mine and personal websites that are hyping one program or another and I have come across a few sites that are discouraging people from joining paid survey sites. I think I am going to contact these webmasters and ask them what bad experience they had that would cause them to have this opinion because I have personally never had a problem with any of the paid survey programs I am in and advertise on my site. I have never had a problem reaching the payout level and have always gotten paid promptly whenever I have requested payment.

Maybe they made the mistake of joining one of the sites that make you pay for information on paid survey sites and they didn't come through, I don't know. I don't recommend anyone pay into these programs that say they will make you rich doing surveys if you only pay them $30, $50 or more for the "inside information". These sites are basically charging you for information that you can get for free if you just look for it. http://www.allwebsuccess.com/surveys.html will show you several programs you can join for free and you can email me for invitations from several more companies and they are all legitimate, free to join and they will pay you.

It's also a possibility that these "disgruntled" people actually bought into the hype that they could get rich taking surveys. You won't. You CAN make a few bucks for spending a little time now and then answering questions on your computer. Just last month I reached payout level on 3 survey companies and requested payments totaling over $45. Not a fortune by any means but it's easy money.

If any of you out there have had some sort of bad experience with paid surveys, give me a shout and let me know about it. I am always on the lookout for good information whether it be on a good program or on one to stay away from.

In the mean time, I'm going to keep taking surveys and keep cashing checks!

Name change

2006-07-29T13:40:00.000-04:00

I changed the name of my blog this morning. I wanted something shorter and catchier so "Can I make money online" is now Web Biz 101. That also fits the theme of my website www.allwebsuccess.com where the main idea is showing even the most computer illiterate how they can get started with an internet business.

I am working on a new webpage to add to the site so that's what I'm going to work on today. It's going to be a tutorial for my SFI team and new signups so they have an easy reference for what to do after they join. I think a lot of people join that program or any affiliate program for that matter and then don't do anything. I think they read the info on how you can join free so they do it just because it's free but then they never put forth any effort so become successful. It's a shame too since it's such a great program and fairly easy to work. I actually think that there is such a large amount of educational information and help available in this program that some new members get overwhelmed and don't know what to do first or what direction to go. That is why I am going to publish a tutorial page to try and give them a plan of action to get them on their way. I see so many people join and then do nothing and if they would just put forth a little effort they would see some results and then get energized to succeed. They just need that push in the right direction. Hopefully, this will help so I'm going to get working on it.

Business is getting better

2006-07-28T22:32:00.000-04:00

Well, things continue to improve with my business. I set a few goals for this year and I'm continuing on course to achieve them. I have decided to increase my advertising budget and I am getting better results. I still use all the free advertising methods like the free online classifieds and some other methods but they have limited scope and I want to speed up the process and try methods I have never used before and see what happens. I have definitely seen increased traffic to my website though. I am thinking of starting another website also. I have registered several domains so I may as well use them. I will post the link here when I get it online.

For those of you that follow my website and this blog and are still wondering if you can make any money doing this stuff, I logged into three of my survey sites today and requested payments for a total of $42.50 which isn't a lot of money but when you consider all that I did was sign up free and take a few surveys online, it's not bad. Consider also that it's only one of the ways I am making money online. As I say on my website, no single thing is going to make you rich but set up several income streams and they can add up to a more substantial sum.

I am presently sitting in my living room typing this blog on my laptop and watching a story on 20/20 about a young black man that started in business when he was 6 years old and made his first million by the time he was 14. Simply amazing but it shows what one can do when they put their mind to it. One of the concepts he stated was that comfort is the enemy of accomplishment. That's really true when you think of it. You can't be a success by doing nothing. Believe me, I know. I've started many things including my internet business without having the commitment to make it succeed and it went nowhere. I have changed that and am putting forth new effort and it is paying off. My goal is to have my business built to a 6 figure income in within 3 to 5 years. Stay tuned.

Moving right along

2006-06-28T19:29:00.000-04:00

The beautiful thing about an internet business is that things happen without you even knowing it. I just love to open up my email and find out I have new prospects and new affiliates joining my programs. I also found out I am at payout level in a couple of my survey sites so that's more good news. My business is growing steadily and it's a wonderful thing.

It's amazing how when you start to apply yourself, you can make things happen. I didn't always. When I first got involved with this thing, I believed the hype and thought I could make the quick buck by joining the programs that promised the world. "Do nothing and make millions", you know. I joined this and that and every other program that I thought looked good and didn't do anything but spin my wheels. I didn't go broke but I didn't build anything either. I started my website and then didn't do much with it. I idled for a couple of years. I got discouraged and lost interest. Then after going through some major changes in my personal life, I got "revved up" again and got back into it. I made up my mind I was going to do what it takes to make my business a success. I completely re-designed my website and started trying a few other things like adding Google adsence and doing some paid advertising for the SFI program and I'm getting results.

I'd like to say that to all of you that read this and are in an any affiliate program. It doesn't matter which one. If you WORK the program, the program will work for you. Fact is, a lot of people join a program or two and then never take the time to learn how to work it or they just don't put forth the effort to try and then they think it's a waste of time. They drop out or just remain inactive. It will never work for those people and truth be known, they are probably not the type that truly wants the independence of being their own boss. They just don't want to get out of their comfort zone. It's just easier to keep going to work every day and drawing that paycheck every two weeks. Any of you feel that way out there? Anybody out there really truly LOVE their job? Not me. I dream of the day that my entire income is as portable as my laptop. Run the business from anywhere with an internet connection and I can live wherever I want and travel anytime I want. Hmmm, I think I'll go do some more advertising. Bye for now.

Hey this really does work

2006-06-16T22:40:00.000-04:00

It seems to be a little sporadic as far as getting survey opportunities but here lately I have been getting them every day. Must be the busy survey season. Today I got 3 invitation emails, qualified for 2, took them and made $10 for a few minutes of my time. No bad, especially since I am sitting here with my laptop in front of the TV relaxing with a cold beer. Can't do that at a regular job.

Got a newsletter update from my favorite affiliate program(http://www.ezinfocenter.com/3907003/FREE if you are wondering) and it looks like they are planning some major improvements to the program in the very near future. It's one of the reasons I like this program so much, they constantly improve and add to it so there are new ways to make money with it all the time. I am seriously considering ramping up my advertising for this program this year. I want to try out some more unconventional methods and see how they work. For those of you that are in this program, let me know how you are doing with it.

Happy marketing!

Another day, another referral

2006-06-15T20:55:00.000-04:00

Didn't do much today to promote my online business but I made a little money. Got paid for taking a couple of surveys and also got a new referral in my favorite affiliate program. That's one of the great things about an online business. Once you get it set up and have a website, it works for you whether you are actively working it or not. Things happen while you are not even paying attention to it.

I always tell people that they can start their business without a website of their own since most affiliate programs will provide you with a webpage you can advertise with and build your downline but eventually, anyone serious about making it online will make the jump and get their own site. There are just so many more income streams you can open up with your own site.

I'm sure a lot of people are afraid to do it because they don't know how or they think it will cost a fortune but it's really pretty easy to do and the cost is minimal. My site cost's me less than $100 per year for domain registration and hosting. Definitely worth the cost. I learned all the steps to make a basic site, upload it to a server and get it on the web in one sitting, so it's simple enough that a person with average computer knowledge can do it easily. You don't have to know HTML programming either although it does help when it comes time to add more complex components into your web page. You don't need it to start though and basic HTML is easy to pick up. I have several links on my website where you can learn HTML for free. So, anybody out there that's hesitant to start their own website, fear not! If you need help, just ask and I will answer any questions I can to help you get started.

Anybody out there have their own website already where they are promoting their online business? Let's hear about it. Post your link so we can take a look. I don't mean your affiliate links either. I don't want to see those posted here, but anyone that has their own domain name and their own website, you are welcome to post your link.

Good evening,
MJ

2006-06-13T12:27:00.000-04:00

The answer to the question is YES. It is possible to make money online. Can the average person do it? Yes again. How much can you make online? That's the big question. It's easy to make a little money online. It's a little harder to make a lot of money online and even more rare to make a fortune online. Sort of like it is with any business, be it a regular brick and mortar business or a business run only from the internet.

A lot of the challenges of making a profit in an internet business are the same ones for a conventional business but you also face a few other ones unique to being online. I run my own website, http://www.allwebsuccess.com, designed to show newcomers how to start making a little money and then progress further and build a steady income online and I started this blog as a compliment to the website and to be able to comment and get feedback from people who want more information or are just curious.

I don't profess to be a guru or any kind of expert in how to get rich because I am not getting rich. I am however making some money and I can at least help some who want to give it a try too. So I will be posting my thoughts and any experiences (good and bad) I have in this arena and I invite your comments and questions.