I have been a student and junior consultant in the field of Internet Marketing for several years now.  For a long time ( all the way back to 1999 ) I saw the internet as the place where I knew I wanted to be in business.

I wanted to start something but didn’t know what.  I tested the waters on Ebay while having a web page built.  Both endeavors cost a bunch of money but I did learn a little about e-commerce and I came to realize a very nice tax break.

Now that I understand the tax savings end of it, I don’t know why everybody doesn’t have a home business.

Well, actually I do know why.  It usually comes with the problem of having a passion for something while having no idea of how to market it.  Or, like with my case, having a passion to start something on the Internet but just not knowing what.

I was fortunate not to have lost my shirt while I experimented with reselling DVD burners, Mp3 players, and assorted gadgets.  What I learned was, nothing falls faster than the prices of electronics, especially while they are sweeping across the internet.  The other thing I learned was to not try and sell something that is readily available down at Target.

So, what do you sell.  I came to the conclusion from running auctions on Ebay, that this becomes a lot of work and it is very risky. And when I hit my peak, I was only netting an extra $100 per week.

While I enjoyed the extra money, it did little more than keep me in lattes.  In my defense, I do have a pretty expensive espresso habit.

From what I could gather, the ones that are making big money on Ebay are collectors that know the true value of their collectibles.  Guys that don’t mind getting up with the sun to hit the yard sale way before anybody else.  While I can appreciate these go-getters, that just wasn’t me.

Reselling at auction can also be a bit like gambling because there is always the chance that you have overpriced the product and you end up re-listing it.  Worse yet, it might not sell the second or third time.

My last foray into this market saw me stuck with a closet full of Seikos and having to dump them below cost to keep from eating them.

So, what did I learn.  I learned that if you are going to sell consumables, you don’t want to be responsible for a garage full of inventory.  That is where the beginners in Amway get beat.

Amway is the grandaddy of home based businesses and I think the main reason that most Amway businesses fail is that they require that you stock a volume of product in order to maintain an active account.  The stuff piles up and pretty soon your friends and family aren’t returning your calls.  Sound familiar?

I do believe in their home business model though.  Where I would do it differently is in a couple of ways.  One, Instead of product, I would sell memberships to a buyer’s club or service like Melaleuca.

They only  require that you purchase 35 points of products each month which you consume yourself. (you don’t resell product)  It might sound like a chore or burden, but I do love the products and can honestly recommend them.

This business comes with a very low entry cost and very low risk since the products you buy through the club are as good or better than the ones in the store and fact is, you have to buy these consumables anyway.

They include things like dish soap, laundry soap, and vitamins.  There are well over 400 items and I will eventually show you how you can earn a stream of residual income by just changing stores.

That brings me to the other change in the way I would recommend to do a home business.  Most home based businesses, from Mary Kay, to Herbal Life, to Pampered Chef have you inviting people to a home meeting.

Nothing against those of you who like hosting these events.  I just find it a bit pedestrian to throw Tupperware parties for only a handful of guests.

Folks, we are in the information age and that is what I want to deal in and that is what I want to help you deal in.  If I am selling a product, ordered, processed, and delivered over the internet, why would I want to only limit myself to selling locally.

In the next few segments, I am going to introduce to you a product that is revolutionizing the field of Internet Marketing, specifically something called Permission Based Video E-Mail Campaigns.  This might sound foreign to you but stick around and prepare to be blown away.

Until next time…