How did you get started to make money on the Internet?

How did you get started to make money on the Internet?

Once I graduated as Systems Analyst, I worked for several
companies in my country, developing software and different
applications, but I felt that I lacked something that was my own.
After having studied Marketing in the prestigious University of
Córdoba, and having obtained a Masters degree in that speciality, I
decided to quit my job to develop my personal project... I was sure
that I couldn´t fail. Once having acquired both the technical
knowledge and the marketing skills, I knew that I could combine both
and apply them to the Internet.
I started with small projects like web sites for friends. At first, many
of them weren´t aware of the possibilities. They saw the Internet as
just a passing fad, or something "hip", but once I convinced some of
them to create their web site, they started to understand the
potential that the Internet has to reach the whole world. After some
time of having their sites online, I received exclamations from them
like: "John, with the Internet you´ve hit it on the spot, how could we
not see this before?"
After some time of developing web sites for others, I knew it was
time to start to work on the ideas for developing my own site, my
own online company. I put all my ideas together, combined them
with the experience I had achieved developing web sites for others,
and put in motion the creation of my site. Once the site was up and
running, all I had to do was start generating traffic and wait for the
money to roll in. I remember the first cheque I received... what a
rush!! $29. That motivated me to keep on with the project of the life
that I desired.
Little by little, I learned about the commercial side of the Internet.
There was very little known at that point. Many web sites had failed,
some of them had become a huge success. So, I tried to learn from
others, what made one site successful and others not? How
could some web site owners earn millions, and others have huge
amounts of traffic, but not have a decent revenue? This and many
more questions were the ones that led me to investigate further and
further on how to convert an attractive site with traffic into a site that
would generate revenue.
The beginning was tough, it was mostly based on trial and error. We
were all learning as we went along. There was no sure formula for
5
success. So, reading, studying, comparing, making mistakes and
learning from them were the only tools we had to move along. Many
times I even thought that revenues were only for the megasites, like
Google or AOL. I was discouraged at several points, but thanks to my
faith in the Internet, and all the information available, I kept on
trying different alternatives. All the information for being successful
was right there, in the Internet itself, it was only a matter of finding it
and using it in the best way. So, I kept on trying and learning. The
eventual cheques I received started to increase little by little and
these would motivate me to keep on trying. At first, I couldn´t make
a decent living out of that, and had to rely on other small jobs to get
along. Eventually, the cheques started increasing enough as to be
able to dedicate my full time to the Internet. Now, I can´t complain...
we live very well with my family made up of my wife, two beautiful
kids and my faithful friend... my dog Bob.