I often run across new niche site builders who cry and moan about Google or cry and moan about BANS or whine and complain about Adsense or clickbank or whatever the target of the day may be. I usually ignore the rantings but occasionally I will entertain someone and try to help them or find out what the issue might be.

Inevitably when I dig a little deeper it is almost always someone who thinks that making money on the internet is easy, that they can just buy an ebook, throw up a website or two and the money starts rolling in. When it doesn’t start showing up by the dump truck load, they look for excuses. The blame is placed on almost anything or anyone OTHER than where it belongs and that is right on them.

Realistic Expectations

It is usually a case of not having realistic expectations, which is an unfortunate side effect of all of these wonderful internet marketers we have in the world that convince people how easy it is to become a millionaire. When they fail to hit 100k in the first month then they think they are a failure because everyone else seems to have done it.

All I can say is bullshit. Most of these internet marketers are driving around in a clapped out Dodge Caravan or something like that, I would doubt too many of them actually own the Ferrari in the picture, no matter what they claim.

I think it is critical that a new niche site builder have some realistic expectations as to how much income they can make online. I haven’t done a study on this of any kind so bear with me as I pull numbers out of thin air but I think realistically if you were to make somewhere between 10 and 20k in your first year that would be great and probably better than 98% of your peers.

It would certainly be possible to make more than that, especially if you have the skills to develop your own product but I am speaking of niche sites like BANS and Adsense type sites here. If you put in the time, effort and energy then anything is possible but I would say 10k is a decent target for your “average” niche site builder who puts in 5-6 hours a week working on these sites.

Unrealistic Expectations

I ran across a BANS user in the forum today who claims to have been working on his BANS sites (four of them) for close to a year now and has yet to even earn back the investment in BANS. Wow…Immediately I thought something has GOT to be wrong with this guy, he certainly sounded like he was sincere and truly wanted to make them work. I mean an entire year on only 4 sites, he must be dedicated right?

Wrong!

After the thread developed it turns out this guy has yet to know how to get backlinks, has no content on his site at all, is using the out of the box BANS templates and was whining that he barely even had an hour or two a week to spend on his sites.  He claimed to not even know how to get backlinks…..after a YEAR!!!

If you don’t have more than an hour a week to dedicate to this endeavour then don’t do it. You will not be successful and you will fail. So don’t bother.

If you expect to earn 10,20, 50 or even 100k a year building niche sites then you are going to have to find the time. I work 50-60 hours a week at my day job and usually am on the road 3 days a week. I find the time to unpack my laptop at night at the Hampton Inn and work on my niche sites. I am often working until 2 in the morning writing content and developing sites, because I am dedicated to my business.

Business?

Niche Sites are a Business

Yes I use the term business. If you expect to be successful then you MUST invest as much time, effort and energy that a business owner would invest in a brick and mortar business. If you know anyone that owns one they can tell you that it isn’t easy. It’s a LOT of work and can drain you if you are not prepared for the investment.

If you are smart and work hard then the huge investment in time will be worth it as your empire grows and becomes self sufficient. I am working hard now so that I won’t have to later. Every time I build and develop a niche site, it becomes a little cash register out there working for me. A cash register that requires minimal upkeep and maintenance.

I put as much time into planning my week as any business owner. I write an outline every Sunday of what I want to accomplish for the week and the plan to get it done. Will this work for everyone? I don’t know, myself I am a list person and I have to have a checklist otherwise I wander all over the place and usually end up reading blogs all night.

I don’t want anyone to misunderstand what I am saying here. It is not hard work if you compare it to someone working construction in Georgia in July. Making money online using BANS is fairly easy if you are smart enough to pay attention to the few people on the forum who do know what they are talking about and willing to invest the time to learn the fundamentals of SEO.

You can build the prettiest BANS site on the planet but if it doesn’t rank well in the SERPS then it’s going to be a pretty site that makes you NO money.

Conclusion

I guess this turned into more of a rant post than anything else. I didn’t intend it to be that way but I simply despise the false expectations that are foisted upon the masses by Internet marketers. You aren’t going to make 10k dollars this weekend or 5000 dollars a week without a lot of work. I mean a LOT of work.

If you are looking to make a few extra bucks to pay the bills then BANS sites are perfect for that. I think almost anybody could make a few hundred bucks a month. If that’s what your goal is then what are you waiting for, 1 or 2 decent sites and you could easily make this much.

If your goals are much loftier than that then you will need to take a more structured approach to your niche site building if you are going to achieve a full time income. You will also need to invest more than an hour a week…I guarantee it…..regardless of what some slick willy marketer will tell you.

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