You have come to the Rat Race Escape Project I expect because you want something more from your career, some other more fulfilling and profitable way to make the income you want.

You need to know - What is a successful online business so you can give it a go - Yes?

I hope so cause that's what we are all about, creating Super Affiliates!

Like those uber successful online marketers you may have read about. You know the ones that are making 5 figure a month incomes and more.

So read on my budding entrepreneur and we will wade into a formula for your success.

Can affiliate marketing get you where you want to be?

In a word YES! Affiliate marketing is a proven formula for online business success, there is no if's or but's - it is proven to work and it can work for anyone.

I know this because as a member of Wealthy Affiliate I talk to the people who are doing it right now. I see the success stories from thousands of real people, like you and I, making incredible amounts of money, working their own hours and building their online empires.

I have been inspired to do the same and earlier in 2018 I made a start on my own online business using affiliate marketing to get there.

I only wish I had known about it years ago but now that I do I am going to share the love with you.

3 important decision you need to make

OK so we know affiliate marking is a successful online business and I'm guessing if you have read this far you are keen to make a start.

Before you jump into creating your first website take just a moment to ask yourself a few questions so you can be sure this form of online business will work for you.

How will you learn what you need to be successful?

If like me when I started you have no real clue what affiliate marketing is that's no barrier to success. You can learn everything you need to know to build a successful business.

The internet is a marvellous thing, one we will harness to build our businesses but also where you can get a thorough education in just about anything you need to know.

I'd probably go so far so to say everything you could ever want to learn you could on the world wide web.

But you need to know where to look. When you are just starting out in any field or career you don't know what you don't know. So you don't know what it actually is you need to be learning to make a success of it.

And here's where I can help you.

Rather than try to search around Google, cause really will you even know what it is you should search for and what each individual skill you need is, you can join me where it is all laid out for you in a structured, task oriented way so you learn in logical steps and start building out your online business right from the word go.

If you would like to learn more about the platform I am with, my secret weapon if you will, and what I am using to build my online business empire, click on the button below to access my comprehensive How To Guide.

This has everything you need to know about making money online, plus a couple of sweet bonuses including free websites and free training.

How committed are you to make this work?

Is this a hobby or a business? There is no right or wrong answer to this question but you need to get it clear in your head just what it is you want out of a successful business and how committed to making it work are you. REALLY!

Are you just thinking it'd be nice to start an online business, and you could perhaps do it for a few hours each weekend and earn a little extra pocket money?

How will you know you have a successful online business?

What will it take for you to consider yourself as successful? Time to set some goals both long and short-term so you know what it is you are working towards.

Is it money?

Let's be honest here we all want and need a certain amount to live the lives we want too, and there is nothing wrong with that.

Money can be a great motivator - just ask anyone who doesn't have enough!

So your money goal might be an amount of money you need to escape the rat race. I know I need a consistent amount of $5,000 each month to be able to quit my full-time job.

I have a timeline to reach this goal and it keeps me moving forward each day because I know if I do the work now I will reach my goal in the time I need too.

Or you might just want some extra spending money each month to perhaps save for a holiday or just because you want to eat out at fancy restaurants more often or perhaps afford to buy your kids the newest gadget they have been pestering you for.

Have a think about what amount of money you would be happy earning and by when.

Is it recognition?

There are a couple of lists produced each year highlighting the Top 10 female bloggers - I want to be on one of those lists!

Once again this is a big goal and I have an expectation of how long it will take me to reach that goal and what I need to put into place on a monthly basis to work towards that.

It is also in keeping with my money goals so they dovetail together and don't work against each other.

Wanting to receive recognition from your peers can be a very motivating goal for some.

Do you have a burning desire to be recognised in your field of endeavour?

Is it a lifestyle?

I am at a stage in my life where I don't want to work for someone else. I have done this for many years, and my job in a nutshell is to make my boss look good.

Up until about 12 months ago I have actually been very happy in this role and took great pride in knowing I was helping him achieve which in turn helps the business.

Then one day I woke up and thought why am I doing all this work every day to help him and the business get ahead, and yet I am not moving forward?

Wouldn't it be smarter to do the same amount of work for myself?

Wouldn't it be fantastic not to have to answer to anyone else? Or have anyone telling me what, how and when to do my job?

Wouldn't it be great to set my own hours of work, to build a business that could continue to work for me even when I want to take a break?

Wouldn't it be lovely to work from a beautifully set up office at home, looking out across a picture perfect landscape, maybe with a little creek flowing through it and my horses grazing on lush green grass in the background.

Oh sorry I got a little caught up in my lifestyle goal there!

But you see lifestyle is not just being your own boss it is everything that goes along with that.

What sort of lifestyle do you want? Think big because if you set your sights low you might get there but will you truly be happy?

So take a few minutes to think about your goals.

You don't need to sit down and write out the goal and break it down into smaller chunks at this stage - you can click here later and read my Goal Setting Theory for that.

At the moment just dream big and give yourself some real motivation.

How do I start?

OK so now you have some motivation to really get this thing happening. You have decided how much time you are willing to commit and what goals you want to achieve by creating this online business.

As I said earlier in this article I strongly encourage you to sign up for a Starter Membership on the platform I use.

I won't rehash it all here as you can read it in the Guide - click on the link down below and check it out now.

You can check out all the details about what you get with the platform, how it will help you build out your website and you can sign up there to join the rest of the Rat Race Escape Crew as we work together and provide each other with support to build our online businesses.

I will not be suggesting any other program or platform to start an online business because this one is simply the #1 online hosting, training and web building platform on the internet and you don't need anything else. It really is that simple!

AND just quickly it is FREE to join as a Starter Member and check it out for yourself with no strings attached so why wouldn't you give it a look?

How long will it take?

Good question my impatient friend! You make me smile because I said exactly the same thing, but just hold your horses for a second and I will reveal all.

How long has it taken you to get where you are now? And if you do nothing how many more years will you still be doing what you are doing now?

We are talking here about a long-term sustainable business, not a fly-by-night dodgy scam.

I am hoping you do actually want to build a reputable business, one that you can happily put your name too and are proud to say I built this.

Like a bricks and mortar business an online business takes time to build momentum.

All businesses need customers, in the online world we call these customers traffic. When a local business opens it's doors it probably doesn't have many customers, it needs to build a reputation and remain open long enough to build a customer base to make it sustainable.

Do you know most small businesses close within 2 years because they run out of money while they are waiting to build their customer base. It's expensive to keep a bricks and mortar business open each week with rent, staff, stock, overheads, franchise fees etc.

We don't have those overheads thankfully, which means anyone can start an online business but we still need traffic.

You get traffic for an affiliate marketing business through search engines like Google, Bing & Yahoo.

Here's a little story that was told to me when I first started.

When you launch your website it is like going on a blind date with Google. Google doesn't know you at all, you have never met and Google is going out on a limb by even agreeing to go on a blind date with you.

To start off with Google is probably not going to trust you too much, why would he (we will call Google he, but you can substitute for she if that works for you), he doesn't know anything about you.

 
As time goes on and you produce content for your website, Google starts to understand what you're all about, you have provided information and he can start forming an idea about what you like.

Stuff like your hobbies, how you make a living, and how knowledgeable you are about things.

Google starts to feel a little more at ease with you, he starts to trust you a bit more.

6 months down the track, you have spent quite a bit of time with Google, gone on lots of dates together, you might even be holding hands at this stage and he likes your stories a lot (web content) and he trusts you fully now.

So as with any relationship it takes time to build the trust and create authority in your chosen field BUT once you do Google will be your partner in business and you will have a strong and powerful ally who loves your work and promotes you at every opportunity.

OK lovely story Heidi so what you are saying is it'll be 6 months till I start making money and my business becomes successful?

Well no, that all depends on how committed you are to grow your business. If you only produce two blogs a month for 6 months (that's 12) you won't have given Google much to go on and he will still not know who you are and what you are really into.

BUT if you produce two blogs every week for the same period (that's now 48 blogs in 6 months) you have massively increased your chances of success and sped up the process exponentially.

If you don't work, it won't work; but the harder you work the faster it will come and the quicker you will see the dollars.

Shall we begin?

Affiliate marketing is not a get-rich-quick scam, it is for those who wish to build a long-term, legitimate business that will provide you passive income for the rest of your life.

Hopefully I have answered your question - What is a successful online business?

Are you ready to join the rest of the Rat Race Escape crew and become a Super Affiliate, build your prosperous, rewarding online business and take control of your future?

It's easy, simply click on any of the Guide buttons thourghout this blog and join me from there.

Would you like to talk about successful online businesses? Leave me a comment below and we can start the conversation.

Of course if you found this blog helpful please feel free to share the love by using our social share buttons just over there on the side of the page.