Can you REALLY make money online now?

[jedha]

I have been learning IM now for just over a year and I know it takes some skill and knowledge, which is what I have been overloading my brain with and trialling many skills in order to learn. However the more I learn about keywords, SEO, etc the more clear and yet confused I seem to get.

Now I think that it may be impossible to make money online now in this era. I can't seem to find a profitable niche where I am sure there is enough traffic, not too much competition etc. Maybe years ago when people like Lynne and others got online, before the internet was swamped with information. But now it seems you need a whole team working together to make any progress! Given that of course there probably are plenty of people making money online and maybe I'm just not 'getting it'...

I know there is not a definitive answer to the above question but can anyone give me hope in answering that question honestly and realistically given the current state of internet marketing, the internet and everything else. Can you REALLY make money online now?

Cheers:):)

[jamessamy]

Jedha, it is not easy to make money online but if you put your mind and passion together definitely you make money online. Lynn always says we need to do it and don't let things place in order my itself. Work on what you love to do and read Lynn's post on how to make money online. You will sure make it.

[angienewton]

It's definitely not impossible to make money online. Affiliate marketing takes time though so it's not going to happen overnight. I would just get started though because you are always learning and sometimes can learn and never do anything.

One of my niches is weight loss/fitness and I believe is one of the most competitive but you have to just find a way to to 'niche it down' for instance, the audience that I try to reach most is women over 30 who have more than 100 lbs to lose. It's not that I don't share info or connect with others out of that tight niche but the more focused you are, the better.

There is plenty of room for newbies to come online and be successful.

[KateS]

Angie,

How do you monetize that blog? Do you use adsense, clickback, affiliate offers? Are you physical product oriented or information oriented?

Any insight would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks,
Kate (PS. I'm not in that niche because that isn't a passion of mine, but I'd love to have an understanding of whether people are keeping their monetization efforts very focused, or more broad with multiple options for the people that land on their site.)

[angienewton]

Kate,
I do affiliate marketing over various sites.

Adsense is something I haven't really learned much about so it hasn't worked yet for me. As for Clickbank, I haven't promoted much from there because I like to have personal experience with the products before I promote them.

All my sites are different though, I monetize them all in different ways.

[Lynn Terry]

YES, it is still possible to make money online "in this era" :)

I just registered a new domain yesterday for a niche affiliate site, and often do this under a pen name (without the credibility of my real name). I would not be registering domains and setting up sites if there was no money in it. ;)

If you want a quick crash course, a serious A-to-Z guide, grab http://www.affiliatestarterguide.com/private47.htm (that is a private link, and is only good until tomorrow - Tuesday June 14 at 6pm Eastern). The course is normally $197 and delivered monthly over the course of a year, but using that link you can download the entire course at once for only $47. Good stuff, very step-by-step with how-to details.

If anything it's better NOW than it was 10+ years ago. There are so many more people shopping online, and so many more merchants to work with. The numbers just keep getting better and better!

[Lynn Terry]

Kate,

I like working with physical products, such as patio furniture or collectibles. And services such as Netflix and travel. But I incorporate information products in too - often free downloads like comparison guides or how-to guides.

[Val B]

It took me a long time to start making any decent money in IM. It was only after I narrowed my focus to one niche that I really enjoyed, that things started rolling. For me, I needed to believe that the content I was creating was valuable and not just more Internet clutter. Focusing on keyword research and consistent content creation makes a big difference. Much of my traffic comes from long-tail keyword searches. That may go away someday, but it still works right now.

Best of luck to you.

[Lynn Terry]

The web is made of content so I think we're all safe with quality content marketing. :) I've been using it (with longtail strategy) successfully for years now - through many updates & algorithms!

[Lynn Terry]

Welcome Ron :)

Yes, and Yes. I often use private domain registration for affiliate sites/blogs under pen names. And I do set up social media accounts for those pen names. The same as any author that writes under a pen name.

[jedha]

Thanks everyone for all the positive replies to my question. I was not intending to give up on IM but I just really wanted to know if it was still possible in today's world.

I've joined Lynn's Elite members so I'm really going to nail down and start working!

:)

[angienewton]

Awesome to have you in the elite group. Looking forward to getting to know you!

[Lynn Terry]

Welcome to the Private Brainstorming Group, Jedha :)

See you there!

[sonatanna88]

Hi Lynn
Yes it is possible to make money online but could you please guide us as to how to defend ourselves from being hit by Google Panda and if we are hit how to come back stronger.
Atleast 7 sites of mine from page 1 number 1 have landed in no mans land and fallen south wards which has also hit my earnings and also mentally and morally too. This being so despite using unique content and using no tools what so ever


Sona

[sonatanna88]

Hi Elite Members

There is no answers to my above mentioned query


Sona

[Lynn Terry]

Hi Sonatanna,

I just returned from an unplugged vacation, so I'm a bit slow catching up :)

You said you were using unique content and no tools. How did you promote the site, and what is the primary source of your backlinks? The more you can tell us about the setup and promotion, the better...

[sonatanna88]

HiLynn

Thanks for responding

Yes i used unique content submitted articles to ezinesarticles.com and built profile links. Must have submitted around 25/30 articles and did profile links every day 5 each for 4 months leaving out Sat and Sunday

Sona

[sonatanna88]

Hi Lynn

After 5 month i was on top on page 1 and getting lots of traffic and after the Google Panda in May/ June i was down


Sona

[Lynn Terry]

Hi Sona,

You definitely need some variety in your link building. That's the most important element - both in anchor text, and in link types. The article directories took a hit in that update, so you should do some other content marketing: guest blogging, hub pages, squidoo lenses, social media updates, directory listings, etc.

[sonatanna88]

Thanks a ton Lynn for your response


Sona

[lorak]

The first thing you’ll want to do before you can start cashing in online is find a niche market you can make some money in.
The next thing you’ll want to do is keyword research. Keyword research will let you see how many people are searching for the words online that are related to your niche. To make money online you must have a website.
I got started making money online this same way.
lorak