5 Things an Internet Entrepreneur Must Do to Survive the Internet Business World

"I feel I'm able to serve my customer by knowing what she or he wants. One of the ways I'm able to do this is through my website, and email: people give me great ideas, tell me what they want, what they don't want. It's really instrumental, and helps me stay in touch with people." --Kathy Ireland

There are millions upon millions, if not billions, of websites and blogs out there on the internet these days. Needless to say that there is quite a bit of "noise" out there. Everyone is vying for attention and major corporations are beginning to realize the power of the internet - more so the power of blogs as marketing venues. This online business world can seem a little intimidating if you are a newbie. How do you make your way around this virtual world? How do you get your business noticed? More importantly, how do you survive once your online business is up and running?

Through my experience of launching a myriad of websites, I've discovered exactly what an online internet entrepreneur must do to sustain longevity:

1. Find a mentor. I never fully realized the power of a mentor until recently. A mentor can help you get through those rough patches when you feel like it's time to just throw in the towel. A mentor keeps you motivated and we all need that once in awhile, believe me! Your mentor doesn't even have to be someone you personally know or have met. Just find someone who expresses the same values and business ethics that you do. Find someone who fuels your energy and makes you want to keep on going.

2. Network with like-minded people. Now, there's a right way and a wrong way to network. I've been reading all kinds of information and tips on social networking and one of the things people encourage you to do is visit other blogs and leave comments. Well, this is good advice, but how many times have you visited someone's blog, left a comment, and then left their blog never to return? I used to experience something similar to this when I attended local networking events. People would shake your hand, introduce themselves, hand over their card and then be gone forever.