Limitations of The Internet
By Stephen Spry : Filed under Beginning
If you can believe the mail that comes in every day offering “Great Work at Home” opportunities, it seems that anyone be successful on the Internet.
The simple answer is…. NOT everyone can do it, whether they’re plugged in to the Internet or not!
The key to running a successful home-based business is much more a personal thing… and how you respond to those key personal issues will ultimately determine your success or failure.
Like any business tool, the Internet has its own set of limitations you must be aware of, if you have any chance of succeeding… or maybe even just surviving…
Sure… the Internet provides extra opportunities and the potential market for your product or service may be huge, but using the internet is not a guarantee for success.
The Internet is a very good means for you to communicate to potential or existing clients and do the research necessary to prepare client reports and projects and to market your product or service.
It may even make some things easier or more interesting to do.
However… there are quite a few limitations you should be aware of…
- Attracting people to your web site is a very slow, tedious process – search engines can take up to 3 to 6 months to start reporting your site.
- once people arrive at your site, you have about 15 seconds to create some sort of favourable impression, or you will never see them again.
- if they do return, is there anything new to attract their attention, or the same old stale stuff they saw last visit?
- people change email addresses like crazy – if you keep a mailing list of any sort (and best if you run an “opt-in” one) you can expect around 10% of your addresses to bounce every time you send an email.
- things can change so quickly on the Internet, that you do need to devote a reasonable amount of your (precious) time to keeping up to date with things.
- do something wrong – i.e. get the wording wrong in a communication to your mailing list – and it may be impossible to “fix” any damage caused to your reputation.
So… when choosing who you get to advise you about your Internet presence, make sure you don’t get the wrong type of person…
These are big hurdles but there is also help out there. If you are on a shoe string budget then the amount of work can be tremendous. Take is slow and get it right otherwise you will have to keep correcting mistakes.
There is a lot of money to be made, but make sure your the one making the money. This does not mean don’t spend, you will have to spend to succeed and there will be a learning curve. Once over the learning curve you should be fine. Get professionals that can prove their worth .
I would have to agree with Scop, the hurdles are big, but it only takes time and patience.
I think this post is awesome as it will generate awareness that things on the Internet just don’t ‘happen’
I think this website is bitter by using intensifiers like “never” and “very”. A point can be made without making things sound so negative which can offend people who are trying their best to get a website up and running. Limitations can be stated without using blunt language to portray the point of the limitations. I agree that people need to know about these things to be able to make their website a success but this will put more and more people off with negative comment like this.
Hi Soph. Thanks for commenting… I’ve often been told that I’m too negative at times, so it’s something I’m working on. So let’s address that right NOW…
Success online IS certainly possible! I can’t get more positive than that!
I’m “living proof” that someone can make a full-time living online… and I have been doing it since 1995 even.
But… and isn’t there always a “but”…
Success is only possible if you put a lot of the right sort of effort, research and work into it!
Unfortunately, far too many people are taken in by all the sales hype accompanying a disproportionate number work online “schemes”.
The promises of huge “lifestyle” changes with the “freedom” that you apparently “deserve” are HUGE motivators for most people to sign up for one “system” after another… after another… on a never ending search for the “magic button” that will change their lives…
The “reality” is that there is no magic button, and most of these people are being let down in a big way…
So, at times, we do need to be a little “blunt” in attempting to bring people back down to earth.
Cheers
Stephen