Internet Marketing Courses - What's Right for You?

My last post on fish throwing … & Internet Marketing Courses generated more emails, not about fish throwing in Seattle but on internet marketing courses. Rather than reply to each email I thought there might be others who visit here who could also benefit from more information on how to select a course that’s right for you.

First. Ask yourself why are you looking at courses? This is crucial. I know. I have spent the equivalent of a small ransom on courses. As a newbie in internet marketing the thought foremost on my mind was to leapfrog over all the dull and boring stuff, get to the meat of things and start pulling in the dough. I jumped from one course to another. Good thing I still have those courses as I am now revisiting them and plumbing some good content that completely eluded me before.

Many buy courses, dig into them, find the first two maybe even three lessons easy, or at least workable. The next lesson is a bit more challenging. By the time you get to the sixth lesson – if you haven’t put the package aside for “later” by then – you find that you are now way in over your head. It’s not your fault. It’s not the fault of the course either. It’s just that you have not built your IM muscles yet. Overwhelm takes over. I know. It happened to me.

In my opinion internet marketing is just like going to school. What if as a child your parents bought a packaged course that took you from grade one through high school in the one go and worse yet, you were expected to finish it in one year or less! Disaster, right? You still had not learned how to read yet by the end of twelve months you were expected to be doing calculus and reading Shakespeare.

Internet Marketing is like that. The good news is that it does not take twelve years to be super good and even better, you can start to make money in grade one.

That is why the question of why you are looking for a course is so important. If you have been in internet marketing for a little while, speak the language and have some online experience already, then a comprehensive course is right for you. These types of courses vary in cost. Some questions to ask yourself before signing up for a course:


1. What level of internet marketing am I at?

If you are a complete newbie and don’t know affiliate from joint venture, a comprehensive course that takes you from A to Z may not be the best option for you at this time. That is why I started this blog and wrote the e.book ABCs of Blogging for Money. This is “on the job” learning. I believe that blogging is the best way to get started. The e.book is an easy to follow, hands on, step by step system that will ease you into internet marketing and help you build your IM muscles and prepare you for more serious stuff later on. Get your free copy of ABCs of Blogging for Money

2. Am I ready for the big picture?

You have some understanding of internet marketing but have no idea of what the big picture looks like. What are the different options that are available to you. Do you want to specialize but don’t know where to begin?

You may be ready for a comprehensive course. A comprehensive course will take you from niche selection, to domain purchasing, to setting up your site, to the different methods of generating traffic to your site. You will be introduced to marketing models such as affiliate marketing, article marketing, social media marketing, podcasting, video marketing, copywriting and yes, even blogging.

There are so many disciplines within internet marketing that you can never learn them all, but you do need to have a generalist’s knowledge and appreciation of them. A comprehensive course will give you step by step, practical applications to apply to a full blown site. It will also help point you towards a direction that you want to become an expert in. I have taken several comprehensive courses on internet marketing but if I was to pick one, it would be the Nitro System.

3. Am I looking for a specific skill set?

You have taken a comprehensive course and now want to be a specialist. Congratulations! You are now entering the field of where the big boys and girls play. Yes, gurus specialize. Some are great at copywriting, some are great at list building, some are great at social media. They play to their strengths and it is time you do too. Look for a course that is targeted towards the area you want to become an expert at.

4. Am I looking for software to automate some of the steps in my marketing?

You already have at least one site, have been working at it diligently and now understand that there are efficiencies you can implement simply by installing the appropriate software. When looking at software there are two options:

- Buy the software program with a one time purchase fee. Make sure that unlimited upgrades are available to you for the life of the software program.
A software program typically addresses itself to one specific action. An good example is Atomic Blogging which concentrates on driving traffic to your blog.

- Subscribe to a software system at a monthly fee. The advantage here is that the developers of the system typically include several online marketing functions in one. A good example is the F.U. Money Machine which is a fully automated system that helps you run your online business.


5. Am I looking for someone to coach me through the course?

If you have the money to pay for one on one coaching go for it. Often the coaches are contracted out and they cost in the thousands. When considering a coaching program ask:

- is the coaching course specific?
- will the coaching include technical assistance?
- how many coaching sessions are included and over what period of time?
- how long is each coaching session?
- is there additional email coaching support?
- what results can I expect from the coaching program
- what guarantees (if any) are given with the coaching program

Coaching is a tough call. Successful people in all walks of life have coaches and/ or mentors. They don’t come cheap but the trade off is that a good coach will take you to a new level of success … improved performance, increased earnings, heightened public awareness, and the list goes on. A good coach will cut the learning curve in half, but keep in mind, that a coach does not do the work for you, you still have to do the heavy lifting where needed. In my view, I think it is important to first familiarize yourself with what internet marketing is all about. An athlete does not start with a coach on day one but has already displayed some ability in a sport.

The whole question of courses is a broad one and could probably be expanded into a report or even a mini-e.book. The above is a good place to get started.

Happy Blogging!

Valentina
Blogger for Money

PS... plenty good cheese above

Quicklinks:
ABCs of Blogging for Money: http://www.abcsofblogging.com
Nitro System: http://www.nitromarketing.com/g.o/valentina
Atomic Blogging: http://twurl.nl/dmltoq
F.U. Money Machine: http://www.fumoneymachine.com