Build Your Business The Way That I Did In 1995

September 28th, 2009 | Posted in General, Personal | by Michael Hobach

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Back in 1995 I wrote a business plan for a new Internet Business. The business plan outlined a wonderful Internet Service Provider (ISP) business that had the potential to grow into a huge company….

I had big plans – I presented my plan to local business owners, investors, friends and family. The initial startup cost was near $100,000.00 – which was a very conservative amount considering all of the hardware and network infustructure.

So many thought that the Internet was going to be a passing fad – I was told 'Like Pet Rocks!' Can you imagine?

After a while I sat down with my wife and got her to agree to let me purchase one server and some software to see if this was all I said it would be… she agreed! I formed the company as a 'C' Corporation – this would allow me to protect myself and more importantly, to offer stock to potential investors.

It wasn't long – just a couple of months, when I began to see the potential and I put plans into action to fund this venture privately… and to quit my job of 9 yrs – Sr Project Engineer in Research & Development.

(It all started here – click on the image to the left to see when I really started online with ARIN.)

So I cashed in my $40,000 – 401k, and used several credit cards to fund the startup. A total of about $100,000.

Within the first year or so I needed more money to grow the business. You see we were growing at a rate of about 140%/yr – it's near impossible to sustain a brick & mortar business at this rate…. but I had a plan – I started looking for investors to put some needed cash into the business. I was able to raise about $40,000 between 6 private investors. Not a lot, but it helped…

You see this business requires a lot of equipment. The equipment needed to be purchased before the customes came online. So I was investing $10k at a crack to put on new customes.

Eventually I needed almost $1 million to continue with this growth – this was in 2000. I had become friends with two guys who could put this kind of money together, and I set up a meeting with them. I will tell you that this isn't something that I would suggest just anyone undertake. The meeting got me about $200,000 – but I had to give up a good chunk of the company stock that I owned. I gave in and it all worked out…

I won't bore you with all of the details, but today my 31 yr old son runs this company and it does several million in sales each year.

So my point is that if you really want to make money there is a right way to do it… not everyone is able to handle this – today this company is approaching 15 yrs old. It is a wonderful accomplishment for me and for my son continuing on.

To your continued success…

Michael Hobach

Tags: 401k, American Registry, Arin, Brick, Business Owners, Business Plan, Credit Cards, Customes, Fad, Friends And Family, Initial Startup, Internet Business, Internet Numbers, Internet Service Provider, Isp Business, Mortar Business, Pet Rocks, Private Investors, Project Engineer, Provider Isp, Sr Project, Startup Cost, Two Guys

How To Make Money Online

September 14th, 2009 | Posted in General | by Michael Hobach

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I’ve been trying to figure out just how to convey all of this information to you. If you’ve been following me for any length of time you know that I just write – what I feel and I really don’t hold much back!

So let me start with the obvious stuff you’ve been bombarded with and why you might be skeptical of the whole concept of making money online…

What’s being beat into our heads

I’m sure that you have heard a lot about affiliate marketing, or article marketing or a number of other concepts for making money online. I’m sure you have seen these new malls that are springing up online supposedly to sell things that everyone is buying anyway… and I’m sure you have seen the Internet version of so many MLM / NM companies…. Right?!

I’m here to tell you in simple terms how to make money on the Internet…

Are you ready to know the simple truth about making money?

I bet you are!

Before I come right out and say it I’m going to attempt to get you to think… I do believe that too many people are stuck – they can’t seem to think outside of what they already know to be true. In other words, if you talk to friends and family you will probably hear them talk about getting a raise… or getting a new job… or maybe a second or third job! That is because that is how they were raised to think – maybe you think the same way.

Ok – first let me tell you that anything and everything that YOU buy or pay for is available at a wholesale price – or it is available from someone / someplace (on the Internet) where they pay you a commission through their affiliate program when someone buys their product or service through your efforts.

You are thinking right now – yeah Mike I know that and next you are going to suggest that I buy something at wholesale or through an affiliate link and then try to sell it on my own web site… Nope! Not what I’m suggesting at all.

Actually I just want you to understand that pretty much anything you can think of has some way of making money from it’s sale.

Someone has to buy something before anyone makes money!

Here is a concept –

You can only make money when someone buys something…

Simple concept right?

So now I’m going to throw something at you again…

If you can only make money when someone buys something then wouldn’t you want to be involved in promoting something that a whole lot of people are spending their money on?

Ok – now you are thinking that I’m about to push to you some specific product that is in high demand…

The truth is that there is no one product or service that by itself can fulfill this need!

I’m confused Mike – what are we going to sell or promote? How are we going to make money online?

Well not so fast – we have a lot of things to talk about first…

For now I want you to think about something that you bought recently that you just had to have! Something that others are buying as well – maybe family or friends suggested this item or service – but the point is that you got online and did some research and then bought one.

Think about the process of finding it…

• How did you look for it?
• Where did you go?
• Did you use a search engine? Which one?
• Is it only available from one company or do many have it?

Start a journal of what you are doing – log search phrases, vendors, where they show up in the search results, etc.

Remember that there is no one product or service that is better than another to make money online.

Remember that there are trends – could you have made money selling rocks when Pet Rocks were the craze? You bet – without even trying!

Remember that what you have to sell may not be what people are buying – to make money on the Internet you must find a product that has people already looking for it – and in mass!

Remember that everything that people are buying has the possibility to make YOU money.

Ok – give me your thoughts on this – don’t ask me to explain this any more than I already have here! Please!

This site is setup to give you, or anyone, the opportunity to find something or some way to make money online.

IMPORTANT NOTE!

I am receiving Emails from those on my list here who think that they have the ultimate way to make money online. To be honest – I don’t want to hear about them. Most are MLM or Network Marketing um… schemes – been there, tried that – doesn’t… I’ll explain next time! Just don’t send these URL’s to me!

To your continued success,

Michael Hobach 

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