The topic of this post is all too common - you will have seen it discussed many other places and probably on TUK before too. The base idea is the same, but I’ve had a few instant messenger conversations over the last few days so thought I would reiterate the point.

Every single day, I get at least one conversation (usually multiple ones) on instant messenger that go something like this:

XYZ: hey jason, i want to start a blog. how do I do this?
Me: well first you’ll need a domain, which you can get at GoDaddy - after that you will need hosting (I can give you free, basic hosting if you need it)
XYZ: cool - how do I get the domain?
J: create an account at GoDaddy. use the coupon code OYH3 to get your .COM at $7.15
XYZ: oh… it costs money?

You get the idea. Too many people don’t want to spend, but want to earn.

Time is money. Although you can do a lot of stuff yourself, if you learn how to design, code and write - there are some things you need to spend on. You can survive by just spending on a domain and hosting in the beginning, however if you want to advance your online business you need to buy various other things, things that will leave you better off.

Don’t have the money? That is a load of nonsense. If you can afford computer access, you have the ability to make the small start up capital that you can invest.

The reason 90% of newbies do not make the necessary funds is because they are lazy.

There, I said it. Sorry for the newbie bashing, but it is true - I was lazy myself.

Two ways that you can make money without needing any startup capital are:

Freelancing

Yes, I know. Writing articles is boring; so is design if you’re not into it.

However, both of them can make you money - a couple articles or a couple logos and you have the $10 you need for your first domain. Anyone can do this, but few do. The excuses come out - “I can’t write” etc - learn.

The second way is forum posting - if you can’t write articles, a good idea is posting on forums and making money for it. Unlike article writing, this may be a little more fun - the pay is not spectacular, but one hour is enough to make your first dollars online.

A good place to start out for beginners is Forums First - I used them when I was starting out. They paid $0.15/post when I was using them, which means that you’d need 67 posts for $10 (which pays for your domain). If you are a forum posting whore like me person that is able to type fast, you can easily do the posts required in half an hour - so one hour pays for your domain as well as your first two months of hosting at Hostgator (use the coupon code wordpress to get your first month at $0.01)

I’ve just given you a way to make your first little start up capital - you have no excuse now. Obviously I don’t recommend you use forum posting to make a permanent living online, but it is great for getting the first $xx you need to start up.

Once you have a little to play around with, you can move on to bigger things like flipping websites, and once you have a little more capital you can move onto things like building a list and whatnot.

Now, I wouldn’t have written this post without a little personal experience - here’s three things I’ve bought in the last few days and how I expect to benefit from them.

Generic Minisite Templates

I picked up a few minisite templates (more than twenty variations) from Minisite Templates Pro (check this link to get a discount - I get nothing from this). I do not usually buy WSOs but this one was hard to turn down as I had been looking for different sales page templates. They also have a cheaper version at IM Templates which costs $7 (the above cost $17, but has more templates).

I could have worked around developing a template for myself in an html editor, but this was a lot easier. I made back my spend on than more than 20x within a day, so it was a worthwhile investment. :)

Custom Minisite Template

I’ve always wanted one of these, so as business had been going well I treated myself; I had a minisite template created by E Cover Ninja (ping me on msn and I’ll give you details for a huge discount if you are interested).

I wanted the minisite created for my Earners Guide - no, this is not an eBook but it is what I will be using to launch my list off (see the below point). It came with an eCover so if I ever want to launch something I can. I’m also thinking of launching a forum off /forum, only for making money and whatnot (whereas BP is for blogging) - I might be buying a vBulletin license and maybe another custom template depending on how things go ;)

You can check out all the graphics created at Earners Guide - well worth the price I think, especially as I’ll be getting an opt in graphic made too which will make things a lot easier. Coupled with the below, I think I’ll make back my investment fairly quickly…

Aweber Autoresponder

I finally signed up for Aweber today - after waffling about it for ages. As some (hehe) say, the money is in the list - I do think that it is easier to run a list rather than a blog, as well - it is more personal and easier to build subscribers etc too.

I will be releasing that Craigslist guide I talked about - 100% free for all those that sign up. I’m thinking of possibly offering resale / reuse rights to it - what do you guys think? I’ll update here when that kicks off, of course.

I paid for a full year of Aweber up front - I will count this a failure if I do not make at least 50x my initial investment by the end of the first year. I do think that is certainly possible - as long as you offer value and do not spam, people will listen to you and I aim to offer a lot of the former and none of the latter.

Is your lack of funds holding you back in your business? What purchases have you made recently that you think will help you out?

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