Will someone please explain the difference between forums and blogs, and those who claim they can earn income?
I have opened up a new site called SpecialHomeProducts.com, and am now being INUNDATED with all kinds of offers from every direction regarding ways to MARKET this site…everything from selling eBooks, to reselling other’s products, to posting articles on directories and to forums! Can anyone explain what methods are scams and which are not in these areas? For instance, right now, there is a VERY Big following for one called Get Google Ads Free.com, which claims Google Adwords can be used with their "secrets" if you buy their ebook and follow their instructions, and you won’t have to pay the usual pay-per-click rate if you follow their 128 page ebook of how to do so. (You have to pay up front just to get the ebook, first, of course!)
How do we know who to trust, and who not to? And on forums…are they strictly just designed to discuss topics on the net, or can one make money using them to promote a site? Same thing with article directories…are they just for articles, or promos?
Ok to answer your first question, a forum is a place where people come, such as a discussion group where you can discuss topics from making money online, to scrapbooking and such. There are forums on just about anything out there. It’s pretty much a free for all. What I have learned from my years of marketing is that many forums are niches, and sometimes you can find sub-niches within forums. It is a great place to target people within your niche.
A blog on the other hand is your niche, and your personal take on a niche. a blog is your live journal of what you want to write on. People can visit your blog and comment on what you wrote there, and you can also input more by allowing people to also write on your blogs as well. Many people use blogs to get into the web 2.0 community.
There are many different ways to market a site, and it all depends on what is your overall outcome of where your market is. Thus the word, marketing.
You won’t learn everything overnight, but a great place to learn is from a great mentor.
Richard
http://www.paycheckkiller.com
The quick version-
Forums are message boards.
Blogs are chronological post websites. (Think, online diary or journal for example.)
It’s really not necessary to purchase anything to get started making money online. I make a substantial living with AdSense and affiliate programs through Commission Junction and even Amazon.
Before you purchase anything, research. Everything you need to know is available online- FREE.
I’m launching this site now: http://www.adclickology.com
I was inspired to create the site after being approached by countless fraud victims who spent hundreds or even thousands on these "work at home" programs.
Also, http://www.problogger.com is a great resource by an incredibly ethical and successful blogger, and http://www.webmasterworld.com is another great one.
A good rule of thumb: Don’t trust people who want to take your money.
Everybody wants your money, and the best way to avoid wasting it is to NOT SPEND IT.
Do NOT chase the "free google ads" promoters; see my article at http://www.MarkWelch.com/affiliate-arbitrage.htm which explains why most people who try this strategy LOSE money. (Try searching the Google AdWords Help forums, to find many posts from folks who’ve lost a LOT of money — sometimes thousands of dollars — and mistakenly believe that Google "tricked them" when in fact the con was by a promoter.)
My experience is that there is not any information in any of these "ebooks" that is not available for free online. And many of these are snake-oil salesmen and con artists who sell you one package just to try to upsell you on the next package. Of course, I haven’t read them all, since I don’t flush my money.
Check around, on sites like WebMasterWorld.com and ABestWeb.com, for FREE advice and tips about how to promote your site, and how to use AdWords effectively if that’s something you decide to risk.