Entries from March 2008 ↓

If you are looking to make money online you have to watch out for scams. There are lots of them out there and when you are just starting out it can be difficult to separate the legitimate from the scams. My basic rule of thumb is that if it sounds too good to be true it probably is.

For this top 10 list,  I have purposely avoided mentioning the most obvious scams such as pyramid schemes (or pseudo pyramid schemes like multiple level marketing (MLM)), chain letters or any other program where you make money by recruiting people rather than selling or investing in something.

I figure most of you are smart enough to figure out that those programs aren’t all they are cracked up to be. What is more difficult are programs that fall into a gray-area; they work but not to the extent claimed.

The following is a list of common make money online programs that all have some potential problems. Not all of them are 100% scams and some of them do actually work to some extent. However, the one trait they all share is that their claims fail to live up to their hype.

So, exercise caution when looking at make money online schemes that resemble any of the following. And, always use common sense: if it sounds too good to be true it probably is.

10. Paid Surveys

There are some legitimate paid survey programs, but I guarantee you will not get rich from them. Any legitimate survey program should be free to join. However, many sites claim you can make money from surveys if you first pay a fee.

I would highly recommend you stay away from any survey site that requires you to pay. You may make some money, but it will take you a long time to recoup your investment. Instead opt only for free sites.

Red Flag Claims: Fortune 500 Companies Need You!, Get Paid Up $75/Hour, etc.

9. Government Grant Programs

It is true that local, state and national governments in the United States and other countries often have free grant programs. You can usually find information about them for free online just by using Google.

However, scams have developed to try and make you pay for this free information. Spend a little time on your own and you find out everything you need free of charge.

Red Flags Claims: Billions in Free Money, Over 30 million People a Year get Grants, etc.

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Ever since I wrote about the possibility of buying a website I have been on the lookout for a site of my own to buy. My first deal fell through which was a little disappointing, but I think goes with the territory. But, I am please to announce that I actually bought my first site, well actually a blog!

Now, I am not going to reveal what it is here because I want to see if I make money from it without outside interference. I will say I spent $475 on it and I had hopped to make that money back relatively quickly through adverting deals.

However, I think I was a little too optimistic about how much some people would pay for these. I still think I will make money on it, but it is going to take longer than originally anticipated. Oh well, all a learning experience.

I am going to get back to work improving it but I just thought I would let you all know what I have been up to.

If you have bought or sold a website please share your experience in the comments section below. I know I would be very interested to know how it worked out for you.

I am not sure if this true for any of you, but I am notorious for putting things off until tomorrow. I call it the false promise of tomorrow. Essentially the conversation I have with myself goes something like the following.

Me: I should probably do some work now.
Me: Well… maybe I’ll stumble for a few more minutes.
45 minutes pass
Me: Maybe I should get to work now.
Me: But, first I’ll check my e-mail
1 hour later
Me: Maybe I’ll get some food
1 hour later
Me: Maybe I’ll do some work now.
Me: Hmm… actually I should go out for a run while it is still light out.
2 hours later
Me: I am too tired to do any work now, I’ll just do it tomorrow.

You get the idea I have lots of stuff that needs to get done and I feel like I can always put it of until tomorrow. The problem of course is that tomorrow never comes.

Lesson: If you want to be successful in online business you need to keep taking action everyday. Once you fall into the trap of the false promise of tomorrow you are far less likely to be successful.

Not sure what that says about me….  I guess we will have to wait to find out.

This has not been the best week or month so far. First, I am still having problems with my outsourcing (more on that another time). Second, I just got some unfortunate news.

As I mentioned on Monday I am or I should say I was about to buy my first website. Unfortunately, someone offered more for it than I thought it was reasonably worth, so I ended up having to pass on the deal.

I have to say I am somewhat disappointed by the whole experience but such is life. The one piece of advice I can give you out of all of this is the following. Never be afraid to walk away from a deal if it no longer makes financial sense.

Many people get so caught up in bidding on auctions that they don’t think things through properly. Have a set price in your mind what you think a website or a blog is worth and stick to it. Don’t let yourself get caught up in the emotion of buying.

That’s my advice anyway. Plus, I am sure that there will be more websites to buy in the future. It’s still is a buyer’s market out there.

I have not had a chance to post anything in the last few days because I am in the process trying to buy my first website. Now obviously, I have created many, many sites over the years but I have never bought or even sold one before. So far it has certainly been a learning experience.

I am still in the process of buying it, so I won’t give out too many details about the deal. Overall, I am spending far less than $1,000. I figure I will probably be able to make my money back within 2 months. I have found that it really is a buyers market when it comes to websites.

That’s about it for now but I will let you know how it goes as it develops.