Working From Home - What Business To Do?

On a recent training call, two potential clients had the same question, "Can you really market online for 1 penny a day?"

One person was so flabbergasted by the small investment that he said, "Come on stop playing! There has to be a catch. Why would you charge so little?"

Another caller who has years of Direct Marketing experience said, "Are you kidding me? You get all of this for 1 penny a day? Do you know how much I use to spend on Direct Mail?"

He was so taken back by what he saw that he could not contain his excitement and stay quiet. :)

I don't know about you but I got tired of wasting money years ago. My goal back then was to:

1) Get targeted traffic
2) Effectively market online
3) Get support
4) Honest training

If that's what you are looking for then maybe you should check out the 1 Penny A Day Marketing site.

Hey, it's your money! Why not have it work for you!

Shawn Nelson, MSA

As I interact with people, I notice two common marketing mistakes people make that tends to inflict a lot of pain.

The first is the lack of preparation. Too often, people believe they can throw something up on the Internet and expect to get results. Or they do not have to sit down and develop a plan.

Then they find out later after wasting a ton of money and time that they could have avoided it all if they just had a road map.

Let me ask you a question, "If you can take the time to develop a plan when you take a road trip and map out your route why don't you do it for your business?"

How would you really know you are on target and headed in the right direction unless you have a set of directions to guide you?

Your road map could be a simple outline or it can have goals, objectives, strategies and time lines.

Whatever you do, make sure to have a basic roadmap for your business whether it's online or offline.

The second mistake I notice is people are not patient or lack patience.

I have had many clients who wanted quick results online and I would say to them, "It can possibly happen but how much time, effort and money are you willing to invest? And what's your time frame?"

I have found the people with realistic expectations and truly understand business basics are more willing to be patient.

For example, one client came to me and asked me to help him market online. I told him it could take six months to a year. He said, "Fine! Just tell me what I have to do."

Over the six month period, he began getting results. But after that six month period, his down line grew exponentially because of the things we put in place.

What did he do? He invested a lot of time, put in a lot of effort and he was patient. Guess what he did approximately 8 to 9 months after we met? He resigned from his job. :)

My point is simple....

....people are more inclined to invest four years of your life to get an education and spend thousands of dollars with no guarantees. There isn't anything wrong with that as I have a Master's.

But many people seem to think there's a difference with everything they do online. Can't one put as much effort into their online business as they would into their education?

The bottom line is...

....without preparation and patience, among other things, you will have a difficult time succeeding online!

Shawn Nelson, MSA
More About Working from Home

There is the perception that working from home is easy. The truth is it's really hard if you lack two important characteristics.

The first is you must be organized. I'm not just talking about planning your day or keeping your work area neat and clean. I'm talking about organizing your time properly.

You would be amazed by how much time you actually waste during the day when you work from home.

The following are a few time wasters:

1. Browsing and staying on forums all day
2. Chatting with friends online
3. Browsing for items to purchase online unrelated to your business goals
4. Talking on the phone with family and friends because you can

The second is staying motivated. This appears to be a bigger problem than I anticipated for many. Some people like the social interaction they have at work. I guess some people are really extroverts and while others are really introverts.

Personally, I can get more work done in less time when I don't have to deal with people. That doesn't mean I don't like working with people. :) The less distractions I have the better.

So, working at home keeps you isolated from physically seeing people. However, if you have a video camera you can see people via the Internet but it's still not the same.

You could also go to various business meetings in your area or get out to your local Starbucks.

Working from home can be an enjoyable experience when you know what you're getting yourself into.

Shawn Nelson, MSA
Work from Home Marketing Help

Contrary to what is often preached online, you should not spend one penny marketing anything online until you fully understand what you plan to do.

I can recall when I first started and how much money was flowing out of my account because I believed the hype.

It wasn't until 2004 that I had to make a change. I could not continue to spend money on tools and resources that promised me what I dreamed about.

The the most beautiful thing happened to me...

...I stopped advertising and my mind began to notice the ways I was generating traffic to my sites for free.

I saw people were reading the articles on my site, so I began writing more articles. Without knowing it, I was implementing some of the strategies one would use if they knew SEO.

In 2005, I learned more about SEO and began implementing everything I got my hands on. Each month my traffic increased.

I am so thankful I stopped advertising because it showed me that I could get traffic for free. More important, I realize the mistakes I made with using Adwords.

So, my recommendation is to try all the free ways to get traffic to your site before you invest a dime! Find the resources and tools that send you consistent, targeted traffic and keep it coming.

That's is not to say there aren't any good paid resources out there. I will reveal a few them soon.

Let me add if you really cannot spare the time but have the money then maybe you should hire someone to do the work for you.

Shawn Nelson, MSA
1 Penny A Day Marketing

I had no desire to get involved with an MLM/Network Marketing business. It was not my cup of tea because I could not control the product or service.

Basically, I was used to creating my own products and selling them on line, offering specials and adding bonuses and increasing prices when I desired.

However, I did take the plunge and joined a network marketing company. What I discovered literally had my mouth drop to the floor.

Many people were focused on attending meetings and conference calls that lacked substance. It was more hype and doing 3-ways than I expected.

I was used to helping people to set up a solid foundation to establish long term income with as little effort as possible.

That's when I realized there was a lack of:

1) Real Training, and
2) Serious Support

Not just for the MLM I was in, and they were good, but it appeared to be across the board based on my discussions with people.

I can tell you from experience that if you plan to do anything online you will stand out from the crowd if you provide those two things in abundance.

Take a look at how my partner and I are doing it. Heck, attend one of our webinars and see for yourself.

See, I'm new on Squidoo. While I had an account it laid dormant for a while as I was just too busy doing other things. Plus, I didn't feel I needed to use it.

However, I kept hearing people talk about it but I could not get motivated to spend the time here.

So, what changed?

I had a purpose and Squidoo seemed to fit right in to my plans. And here I am.

But a funny thing happened...

...a day after I put up my lens it disappeared. I had everyone and their momma visit my page and no one could get there.

Of course the conspiracy theories started to run through my head. :) But it did not make sense to me.

We did have our MySpace page removed when we uploaded a business video! Could it have been a glitch? Who knows!

In any case, now that I can finally see my lens the content will keep coming. I have so much to share and not enough time to do it.

Just so you know, I'm actually in the launch phase for a site that will help so many people to finally get results online.

You cannot believe how happy and excited I am right now. Can't wait to get to the training tonight and help more people. ;)

Shawn Nelson, MSA
Get Results...Not Hype

I am running into a roadblock that's going to hurt a ton of people. Every time I tell them about the penny a day site they look at me like I'm crazy.

Even on the webinar last night one client mentioned how a cohort was baffled that we could be helping people to get results on line for just a penny a day.

When asked why she thought it was weird she said, "I bet you as soon as they get you in for a penny they will raise the price."

Sorry to disappoint her but the price will not be raised!

There is the notion that the more you pay for something the better it is. While it may be true in some areas in this case it's not! You get your money's worth and more for a penny a day.

Heck, many people are paying $100 and $200 a month for what we offer for a penny a day. Oh well, I guess it must be worth it since it costs more! :)

The truth is people have been conditioned to pay more than they have too in order to effectively market on line. Those days are over!

If you are one of the companies sucking people dry while making promises you cannot keep...watch out! We will slowly take your clients and help them get results for just a penny a day.

Frown upon us if you like but remember you read it here first!

Shawn Nelson, MSA
Working from Home

When I heard the news of YTB International considering moving to a franchising model it caught my attention.

People began asking me questions and I realized I should put something up to provide some insight as to why YTB franchising may not be a bad move.

Visit the YTB Franchise Operations Plan post to read more.