If you want your online business to succeed, you have to give it your own twist, not follow someone else like a blind sheep. Despite what Internet marketing gurus tell you, you will not likely be lying on beach any time soon just by following their methods.

As with anything, there are those few (very few) who will leap into forefront with a new idea or a new angle on an old idea. Then along come rest of us, and like blind sheep, we follow these gurus, expecting to reap exactly same rewards. It doesn't work that way.

First, we are no longer unique in marketplace. The particular guru we're following got there first.

Second, we aren't selling same product or service as our guru. Even if we're selling Internet marketing ideas, and so is our guru, we still have our own unique perspective on it. I hope we do, anyway. Otherwise, we're not going to have anything worthwhile to offer. If we're just carbon copies, people might just as well buy from our guru.

Third, we are never going to follow our guru's advice word-for- word or step-by-step. You and I will do it differently even if we've bought same "Business in a Box." If you apply yourself more than I do, you'll do better. If you buy advertising all over 'Net and I try to get along on a shoestring, you'll do better. You'll claim method works; I'll say it's bunk.

Or maybe I put my own twist on our "Business in a Box" and I make a killing while you're left with modest results. Now I claim it works, but you claim it's over-rated.

Are you getting picture?

Making money on Internet is not an exact science. It's more of an art. There are some basic principles that you must apply, but following every Internet guru around like a blind sheep will likely bankrupt you before you figure out your own secrets to Internet marketing. (Then you'll be next guru!)

Here are seven basic principles to follow. If you accomplish these, your success is guaranteed.

1. Find your niche market. We have lots of resources for finding your niche market on our web site: http://www.ablewebs.com/internet_marketing.htm#niche.

2. Make sure your niche market spends money on products or services like yours. This is a very important piece of research. If your target market doesn't have money to spend or doesn't spend money on that kind of product, pick a different product to market!

3. Build a mailing list. How? Capture email addresses on your web site, write an ezine, purchase opt-in subscribers.

4. Advertise. Where? Online classifieds, ezines, list services, print media. Put your URL on everything you send out whether it's in paper or digital format. Here are some ideas: http://www.ablewebs.com/newsletter1.htm#tips

5. Track ad results carefully so you know what's working. Use a spreadsheet, or purchase software designed for this purpose.

Any layers that can be trimmed in process of getting an item or service to consumer lowers final cost to consumer. That's why I am a member of "Sam's Club." I can buy many items I use every day at near wholesale prices. I am a member of many other buying clubs for same reason.

I'm sure many of you look at cost of goods and services on-line and wonder if you can 't reduce price by getting them wholesale too. You wonder if you can't cut out middleman. The answer to that question is often yes, but path is filled with dangers.

What is keeping you - and me - from buying more things wholesale on-line? When I look at a services such a domain registration or web hosting, answer is either ignorance or fear. I'm very comfortable with my current web hosting arrangement for example. I get very dependable service and a price I am happy with. Yet, like many of you, I often wonder if I shouldn't be using a cheaper service.

Actually, I know that I can host domains on my own dedicated server for as little as $1 each per month, and in some places for much less. I know this because I've been contacted by big web hosting wholesalers. However, this is not an area I want to venture into at this time. An acceptable reason for me right now is that I don't want to get involved in technical end of things. I have a friend in hosting business and he thinks it's a nightmare at times. All of customer service calls for his bargain hosting drives him crazy.