So, you want to know the secret to internet marketing success? Who doesn’t! Obviously we would all like to know that special trick which will lead to magical millions while we sit at home, watch t.v., and pet the family dog. Unfortunately, life doesn’t work that way and neither does the internet. However, all hope is not lost. There actually is a real-world, no-tricks-up-our-sleeve, honest-to-goodness secret to internet marketing success (it’s not what you think it is). But before we can discuss that secret, we first need to understand the general principles which are essential to succeeding both in life in general and online in particular. As such, I’ve listed what I think are the six most essential principles to doing well on the web (afterwards we’ll get to the secret).

The six principles of internet marketing success

Internet marketing success requires time
If you want to succeed online then you are going to have invest the required amount time necessary to succeed online. There are many people out there who are looking to "get rich quick". That can actual help you, for it means that while they are busy wasting their time, you can be productively using your time. Time is a precious commodity, use it well and you can succeed. Use it poorly and you can watch other people succeed.

Internet marketing success requires effort
Like time, effort is a readily available commodity at your disposal. Take advantage of it. If you are prepared to work hard and intelligently you can gain an advantage over all of those people who are either lazy and/or inefficient.

Internet marketing success requires a financial investment.
I hate to break it to you, but success online costs money. Perhaps not as much as success offline, but it’s not free. There will be costs and you should be prepared to pay them. On the other hand, there will be a million and one different offers promising you internet success and you will have to carefully navigate them. Some will be worthwhile, some essential, and others a rip off. Learn to tell the difference.

Internet marketing success requires knowledge and skills!
Time, effort and money on their own are insufficient to create success. You need to know what to do with your time, effort and money and you need to have the requisite skill to apply your knowledge. In other words, you will need to obtain the requisite knowledge and skills necessary to succeed online. What is worth noting is that this knowledge and skill will make your time, effort and money significantly more valuable. Knowledge and the ability to apply it allow you to properly and profitably channel your time, effort and money. This is where you can start to gain a significant advantage over your competition. The more you intimately know your customers, products, services and industry the greater that advantage will be.

Internet marketing success requires thought and creativity
Creativity is the monkey wrench in the notion that there is some sort of “trick” to internet marketing success. The fundamental flaw with the idea that there is a magic formula is that it doesn’t acknowledge the fact that the internet is a dynamic system, constantly changing and evolving. The creative personality which seeks new and better ways to apply his/her knowledge and skill takes full advantage of the ever-changing reality of life online. For the creative mind, dynamic means new opportunities and possibilities which (s)he is eager to take advantage of. Yesterdays truths can easily become tomorrows myths. Therefore, instead of static thinking, internet marketing success requires you to be constantly abreast of what is going on and looking for new and different ways to take advantage of new realities as they materialize.

Internet marketing success requires social and networking skills
The interent is built upon relationships, which means that internet marketing success is also built upon relationships. If you form strategic and mutually beneficial partnerships you will find that you are able to tap into the time, energy, money, knowledge, skills and creativity of other talented people on the web. This allows you to tap into new, previously unreachable markets. It also allows you to offer new products and services which previously you couldn’t even consider.

So there you have it, The Secret To Internet Marketing Success. Now, with that all said, we are ready to discuss the ultimate secret to internet marketing success. The ultimate secret is to apply these general principles to your particular situation. You need to sit down and figure out how much time, effort and money you are able to dedicate to your online venture. You need to determine what knowledge and/or skills you need to succeed and figure out how are you going to acquire those skills? You are going to have to learn how to "think like the internet", which means adjusting your logic to the logic of marketing online? And finally, you will need to form intelligent partnerships and relationships designed to help you succeed online. This is the ultimate secret to internet marketing success — being aware, accepting and being prepared to apply the general principles of internet marketing success to your particular online situation.

This tutorial written by:
Moshe Morris
President of SEMBasics
Chief Research Analyst at Internet Marketing Initiative (www.internetmi.com)