Getting Started With Online Business: A Step-by-Step Framework for New Entrepreneurs [LNIM140 Transcript]

If you have been struck by lightning and suddenly realized that online business is a thing, but you have no idea where to start, this episode is for you. Mark lays out a clear four-step framework for getting started online: identify a business model, find a guide, invest wisely, and focus through to success. Whether you are brand new or stuck in the early stages, this roadmap will help you navigate the overwhelming landscape of online business.

What You'll Learn in This Episode

• The major online business models and how to choose the right one for your personality
• Why following one mentor is better than chasing multiple gurus
• The trade-off between investing time and investing money when learning
• Why “start to profit” focus is the single most important success factor
• How to use the Wayback Machine as a research and content strategy tool
• Why freedom in online business means choosing your responsibilities, not escaping them

Episode Summary

Mark opens with a powerful reframe of what “freedom” actually means in online business. Everywhere he goes, people say they want freedom. But freedom does not mean freedom from responsibility. It means freedom to choose the responsibility that you desire. Every successful online entrepreneur Mark knows is working hard. The difference is they chose the work they are doing, and that makes all the difference.

The tech tip segment introduces the Wayback Machine at Archive.org. Mark uses it to look at a 2008 SEO article from Search Engine Journal that is still ranking today because the publication keeps updating it. The takeaway is threefold: the Wayback Machine is a powerful research tool for seeing how websites have changed over time, the 55 SEO Tips article is still a solid resource, and regularly refreshing your own old content is one of the best SEO strategies available. Google rewards content that is maintained and kept relevant.

The main segment responds to a question from Shawn in the Late Night Internet Marketing community: “How do you get started online?” Mark breaks it down into four steps.

Step 1: Identify a business model. Mark walks through the major options: blogging, virtualizing an existing service, affiliate marketing, creating digital products, ad revenue from content, eBay reselling, ecommerce and dropshipping, Amazon selling, and more. Each model has different strengths and weaknesses. If you hate being on camera, YouTube is not for you. If you hate writing, blogging is not your path. The first task is to understand the options well enough to pick one that resonates with who you are.

Step 2: Find a guide. Once you have chosen a business model, find one person, two at most, who is currently successful at doing what you want to do and who is teaching it. Follow that person closely. Mark uses Amy Porterfield as an example: if you want to create and sell online courses, she is doing it at the highest level and teaching the process. But if you want to build an ecommerce store, she is not the right guide. Avoid the temptation of multiple gurus across multiple business models. Find someone you know, like, and trust, and commit to following their path.

Step 3: Invest wisely. You can invest time or money, and the choice depends on your situation. Following free content from your chosen mentor is a valid path, but it takes longer and comes with the emotional cost of uncertainty. Buying their course trades money for time and typically increases your probability of success. If you are bootstrapping on zero budget, the free path works. If you can afford to invest, the paid path is almost always more efficient.

Step 4: Focus through to success. This is where most people fail. They start a project, hit the messy middle, get distracted by a new opportunity, and abandon the original project. Mark borrows Lynn Terry's phrase “start to profit” to describe the discipline of working on one thing until it generates revenue before moving on to the next shiny object. For part-time entrepreneurs especially, scattered focus is the number one killer of progress.

Mark closes with his personal recommendation for beginners: affiliate marketing. It does not require creating your own product, handling fulfillment, or managing customer service. You are simply creating content and driving traffic. It builds slowly but teaches you the foundational skills of content creation, SEO, and audience building that transfer to every other business model.

Key Takeaways

• Freedom in online business means choosing your responsibilities, not avoiding them
• Understand the major online business models before committing to one
• Choose a business model that matches your personality and strengths
• Find one mentor who is currently succeeding at what you want to do and follow their path
• Invest either time or money. Paid courses trade money for speed and reduced uncertainty.
• Focus on one project from start to profit before chasing the next opportunity
• Affiliate marketing is a strong starting point because it teaches core skills without product creation overhead
• Regularly update your old content to keep it ranking in search engines

What's Changed Since This Episode

Mark recorded this in May 2017, and while his four-step framework is still exactly right, the landscape of available business models and learning resources has expanded dramatically.

New business models have emerged that did not exist in 2017. The creator economy has exploded with platforms like Substack for paid newsletters, Gumroad and Lemonsqueezy for digital product sales, Circle and Skool for paid communities, and Patreon for subscription-based content. Many creators now build businesses that combine multiple revenue streams: a free podcast or YouTube channel for audience building, a paid newsletter for recurring revenue, and a digital product or course for higher-ticket sales. The lines between business models have blurred, but Mark's advice to start with one model and master it before diversifying remains essential.

AI tools have dramatically lowered the barrier to entry. In 2017, creating a blog post meant either writing it yourself or paying a freelancer. In 2026, AI assistants like ChatGPT and Claude can help with content drafts, SEO research, email sequences, product descriptions, and business planning. This does not mean the work is done for you, but it means that a solo entrepreneur working nights and weekends can accomplish in hours what used to take days.

The mentor landscape has shifted. Many of the gurus from 2017 have pivoted, retired, or been replaced by a new generation of creators. The principle of following one proven mentor remains sound, but the specific people worth following have changed. Look for mentors who are transparent about their results, show their work publicly, and are actively building the kind of business you want, not just teaching about it from the sidelines.

Affiliate marketing remains a strong starting point, though the specific tactics have evolved. Content-driven affiliate sites now need to demonstrate genuine expertise and first-hand experience to rank in Google, following the E-E-A-T guidelines. Thin affiliate content that simply aggregates product specs no longer performs. The best affiliate marketers in 2026 create genuinely helpful content based on personal experience and testing.

Resources Mentioned

• The Wayback Machine — see how websites looked in the past
• 55 Quick SEO Tips (Search Engine Journal)
• LNIM140 Show Notes — How To Get Started Online

Related Episodes

If you found this episode helpful, you might also enjoy:

• LNIM140 — How To Get Started Online (companion show notes)
• LNIM139 — Blog Content Ideas
• LNIM136 — Procrastination Tips: Overcoming Fear

Listen and Subscribe

Listen to Late Night Internet Marketing on Apple Podcasts or subscribe at latenightim.com/internet-marketing-podcast/. Have a question for Mark? Call the digital recorder at 214-444-8655 or drop a comment below.