How much? We haven’t added up the numbers exactly, but we were both each under the $100 mark. It turns out that we were both a bit hesitant to throw money recklessly at media buys/PPC without testing the waters slowly at first. And two weeks just isn’t long enough to get real data. Another factor we had not planned on is that some platforms take quite a while to approve your ads.

So what else did we learn?

1. The 2 week window may have been too small for relative newbies to the PPC game who have done better at the slow-building game of SEO and traffic generation.

2. PPC is an incredible challenge for newcomers, particularly with the variance in rules that the different platforms have. It takes more than a few days of repeated testing to figure out what works and what’s allowed.

3. Two weeks can be a surprisingly short period of time! This is especially true when you’re trying to squeeze in something new into your life on top of the other things that you can’t toss out.

4. On a positive note, setting yourself goals such as this makes you move. A lot faster than you may have thought possible. Look up BHAG for some more inspiration.

5. If any PPC gurus are reading, we’ll give you our idea for what we think is a clear cut opportunity (for free even!):

Produce content or a product that illustrates and explains what works on the major PPC platforms and what’s allowed. For example, a recently submitted ad to Facebook, adCenter and PoF all pointing to the same landing page got widely different results. Facebook rejected it, PoF accepted it, and adCenter didn’t generating any impressions.

A big old book/site of examples that work/don’t work would be incredibly useful. Facebook didn’t even give me a reason. Google doesn’t either. That’s pretty frustrating.

How do we feel about our little contest? Worth it or a waste of time? Sure, we lost money, but we learned valuable lessons that will be with us when we perform similar experiments in the future. Yep, the cliched lines about the road to success being littered with failures and mistakes are true. So get out there and fail!

So I got my site up and posted about it on a few forums, submitted it to Google Webmaster Tools, did some basic SEO and then I launched a few different PPC campaigns to push traffic to my offer. I’m not going to say what it is or link to it from here, because I don’t want to pollute the data just yet. If you find it, that’s ok.

PPC can be a tricky game nowadays, because Google can snap their fingers and kill your account even if they just assume you’re trying something unethical. And other platforms don’t drive enough traffic and/or are really slow at reviewing and approving your ads. For example, despite over 400 keywords in Microsoft’s adCenter, I’m yet to get even an impression. I may be doing something wrong, so I’m about to shoot them an e-mail.

I’m generally frustrated by online advertising as a low-spend small fish for 3 main reasons:

1. Ad platforms don’t really care about the folks spending $10/day. Can’t say that I blame them. From a bottom-line point of view, it makes sense to pay attention to your bigger spenders.
2. Although they have laundry lists of guidance for both your ads and landing pages/products, it still boils down to the objectivity (or lack thereof) of a human. I’d much rather a computer did the approval based on very ‘digital’ parameters, and then you could know the answer to #3, which is…
3. You never know why the *@&$ your ad was disapproved. It’s a pass/fail test. If you fail, then you can go back and continue shooting in the dark.

Well here’s hoping that some of these platforms read and address some of these concerns. I’m looking at you, Google, Facebook, & Microsoft. I also put up an ad on PoF (free dating website, Plenty of Fish) and so far I like that they’re pretty realistic about ads and what people advertise. It’s tough trying to be the ‘good guy’ broker.

I’m almost wish I had millions to spend on TV instead. At least I could talk to an exec and find out what was wrong with my ads.

Well back to the drawing board. After all, if I’m going to make any sales in the next few days, then advertising has to be on my list, because SEO takes a lot more time.

[We should probably clarify though. Our main venture, gadget blog Gizmos for Geeks, has been profitable almost since day one, with income coming in mainly via affiliate sales and advertising. However, we haven't turned a profit from straight up Internet marketing, the kind where you're pushing either your own product (usually of the electronic variety) or someone else's via SEO, word of mouth, e-mail marketing, PPC or other advertising.]

Well this post isn’t about to say that we’re about to throw in the towel. Actually, just the opposite! We still have hope that success can be had in this biz. One of us has come up with an idea that will hopefully push us to get over what we think is that initial barrier. And that brilliant idea is … a friendly competition! And we aim to be as transparent about our methods and results as we can be.

Here are the ground rules:

• We each get $250 to start off with to do with as we please. We picked that amount because we thought it was a fair amount that a newbie could afford to invest. Any less, and you should re-consider whether you want to be in business, any business really.
• Contest would run for 2 weeks starting in earnest on Mon 22 March 2010.
• We can reinvest the money if we want during the 2 week period.
• We have a week (starting Mon 15 March 2010) to do some prep work – reading/education, basic research, pick the offers that we’re going to promote, do a little promo of this venture
• No blackhat stuff
• Blog our results right here on Untethered Dreams at least every 2 days if not more often.
• We’re not out to ruthlessly crush each other. After all we *are* business partners. So that means that if one of us discovers some kick-ass way to advance our  campaign, we’re going to share it with the other during the contest.

Winner is the one who makes the larger profit. We both lose if neither one of us turns a profit.

What’s the prize?

• Straight up cred!
• Loser buys the winner a copy of Gary Vaynerchuk’s book “Crush It!”. BTW, we had a chance to meet with Gary a while back at a conference and were floored to meet a super successful guy who took the time to speak with a couple of peons, and was 100% genuine in his desire to see us succeed. If everyone had a Gary giving us a pep talk daily, we’d all be gazillionaires in no time.
• Knowledge. Experience. We’ll know a lot more this business after this laser-focused experiment, and whether or not we want to continue, or retire and look elsewhere for our Internet millions.

- Doug & Khalid

ASW ’09′s keynote was given by Gary Vaynerchuk who is the star of Wine Library TV and Director of Operations at Wine Library in Springfield, NJ as well as one hell of a motivational speaker. The keynote is well worth watching, but only if you want to be inspired to make money.

Streaming .TV shows by Ustream

Click the image for a jump to Dilbert’s Official Site.

The first thing you need to ask yourself is, are you meant to be a corporate worker or are you meant to create something and go it alone? There is no shame in being a corporate worker. Working for someone else can help provide a good life and provide stability with benefits.

With that said, if you want to be in charge of your future you might be a candidate to start your own business. For instance, have you ever been part of a “reduction in force”? At most companies you could be part of a layoff even if you are a top performer and contribute towards the success of the company! If you’re on your own and lose your job, there’s no one to blame but yourself. Others start their own business so they can be in control. I know I’ve been frustrated by decisions made by several executive staffs over the years and feel I have a better business acumen than these leaders of industry. Another reason people start their own businesses is for the freedom of schedule and location. Afternoons are terribly non-productive for me but most companies require you to work core business hours which are usually 9a-4p. With this schedule, half my workday is forced into time where I really have issues concentrating and working through tasks. In addition to working during non-productive time, most people must work in cube farms which are made to save money but not to create a productive environment. Personally I believe if you can get your work done by their deadlines, I don’t care when or where you do the work. While you may hear corporate-types convey the same words, the sentiment is quite different. In most corporate settings your superiors know when you get to work and when you leave and watch your timecard like a hawk. If you can do your job in 30 hours working from a Seven Mile Beach or The Graveyard Beach on Grand Cayman… why does corporate not allow it? Probably because I know quite a few people who would take advantage of the situation.

While I’ve been lucky in the corporate world and have only been laid off once (the next day I started as a contractor making double the pay for less responsibility and I received a 3 month severance so I was not too torn up) and I have had bosses that for the most part allowed me to work a slightly modified schedule because they saw me as a performer, I still have not had total freedom in work schedule and work location and I’ve definitely had issues with executive decisions that simply did not make sense.

Starting my own business is more about Freedom than making money.

The second most important decision you must make is when to start your own business. As kjh mentioned, there is no right time and you can’t derive the correct timing from some formula in a Start Your Own Business book. You have to weigh your experience, faith in your ideas and abilities, your money situation and responsibilities.

This tends to create a paradox… young people tend not to have responsibilities and are able to live on less while older people have gained the necessary experience to be successful in business. I’m definitely caught in this paradox.

Now that I’m older and feel I have the experience to start my own business, I have responsibilities including a mortgage, car loan, wife and baby girl. Here’s where I get personal… being financial conservative, my largest barrier to entry into self-employment is the risk to actually make the jump. My fears include failure which would lead to not being able to live up to my responsibilities which would affect my wife and baby’s lives. If making the jump only could affect my life and not theirs…

As you can tell from my personal experience, choosing the right time to start your own business is a very personal decision. Currently I’m comfortable building a business in my spare time every night after work and on the weekends. While I am frustrated with the lack of time I am able to allot to personal business ventures, hopefully this blog will become a roadmap of a successful formula that can help others in similar situations start their own business and earn their freedom.

If you want to earn your freedom, here’s a homework assignment: grab and read a copy of Tim Ferriss’ book The 4-Hour WorkWeek.

But when is that ‘right time’? Is there such a thing? No. Like any such major life decision, it’s very personal and specific to you. Your situation is different from ours – your finances, social life, aversion/comfort to/with risk are all different. What if you have a family (wife and/or kids and/or even extended family responsibilities) and a mortgage, auto loans and other financial commitments? This is a very important question that may take some time to make. It’s not to be rushed.

However, having said that, this may be an itch you need to scratch, because you will remain unsatisfied until you do. You will constantly wonder and think about what could have happened. You will go to your grave wondering ‘what if’. Any motivational speaker worth his/her salt will tell you to take the leap. After all, you only have one life to
live.

‘Older’ types that have been in a corporate culture most/all of their lives tend to advise others not to take such chances, but to leave it to youth. Youth that don’t have any financial or family commitments. We don’t agree with that. Despite the proverbial inability of old dogs to learn new tricks, we say humans have the ability to adjust at any age. The mass buzzing with billions of neurons between their ears can achieve anything.

Now there are some basic guidelines that will be true for most people. Sit down and work out your month to month financial obligations (rent/mortgage, insurance, loans, utilities, food, entertainment, etc.). Don’t underestimate. Then ask yourself how long you’re going to give yourself for your shot at your own business. 3 months? 6 months? 1 year? Be sure to tie this to a realistic estimate of how long it will take to build your business up to a level that can sustain you financially. Now, ask yourself how you’re going to fund this. Will it be out of your savings, a loan, or perhaps angel and/or venture capital?

As two budding entrepreneurs ourselves, we’ve wrestled with this very idea for a few years now, and we’ve been slowly drifting to the (inevitable?) conclusion that if we wait for the perfect time to take the full plunge, we’ll never do it. There is no ‘perfect time’.

If you would like some additional inspiration as well as very solid mechanics on how to go about transitioning to a shorter work week based entirely on your income from an online business, we recommend Tim Ferriss’ book The 4-Hour WorkWeek. The first third alone of this book is quite inspiring even if you decided not to go this route, as it has ideas that are worth considering.

His story started in October of 2005 when he built a community blog site called BlogLouisville. Starting as a hobby, his thirst for knowledge pushed him to learn and become an expert in web design. As his skillz grew he was asked to design and consult on a couple of web sites which opened more and more doors. With additional contacts and skillz his business boomed with 3-5 emails per week from various people seeking his services every week!

Here’s a quote from his bottom line:

Obviously, I wouldn’t be sitting here singing the praises of an entrepreneurial lifestyle unless I felt like it offered distinct advantages.

• Freedom: If I need to take care of personal stuff at 2 pm, I’m on it like white on rice. If I want to go play golf, I’m so gone. I know that I’m going to take care of everything, and not having to worry about someone else coming down on me for doing things however I see fit is, well, priceless.
• Motivation: Most intelligent people I know suffer from burnout. Spend too long on one task or at one job, and it’s bound to hit you like a ton of bricks. If this happens in a corporate setting, you could be in danger of losing your job or not getting that raise come annual review time. On the other hand, if you work for yourself, you can devote your time towards learning something new if you experience burnout.
• Money: The guy you call “boss,” who incidentally wears a monkey suit every day to work, says that this year, you’re worth a 5% raise. Who the hell is he, anyway? Who is anyone, for that matter, to tell you what you’re worth? This seems like a ridiculous concept to me. Each day, you go out and determine how much you’re worth. You determine it by producing, by learning, and by creating more value in your life and your work.

While those points above might speak to you, I know something that definitely will. In the first four months of this year, I have earned more than I did in the first six months of last year. That may not be mind-blowing, but consider this: I literally dropped everything in my old life and completely started over in August of last year. Seriously, I ran from it like it was the plague.

The only thing I took with me was a little bit of money and the idea that I was going to forge a better life for myself.

Nine months later, I have what is essentially a new outlook on life. I’m free; I’m happy; and I feel like I can do anything I want to do. Now, wouldn’t you give up your corporate health insurance for that?

Thanks for the great personal experience and inspirational post Chris!