Internet Marketing & Home Business Articles and Reviews

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That internet marketing has a steep learning curve is not a position with which many people would argue.  To a novice, the range of skills that are needed to run a successful online business can appear incredibly daunting.

So why is it that so many who attempt to break into this field, give up; not near the beginning of their journey when the mountain of knowledge that must be climbed seems insurmountable, but months or even years later when their abilities and experience in internet marketing has never been greater?

Could it be, that the internet marketing niche has its very own “Uncanny Valley”?

If you’re not familiar with the term, the Uncanny Valley is
a term that is used to explain the eerie and revolting nature of realistic looking, humanoid robots.

Uh-oh!  Tenuous link alert?  No, really, bear with me.

 The theory goes that as humanoid robots become more detailed and life-like, their resemblance to humans comes ever closer.  But, at a certain point in the progression, only a little way before becoming indistinguishable from the real thing, the humanoid robot’s resemblance to a living, breathing human, plummets.

At this point, the robot appears LESS human and, worse, becomes something creepy, unnatural and… well… uncanny.

If you then continue to make the robot appear MORE human, it isn’t long before the sinister quality fades away and it begins to appear more lifelike.  If we were to continue on this course, on outward appearances at least, it would eventually be impossible to tell it apart from the real thing.

The reason this phenomenon is called the Uncanny Valley is clear once you plot it on a graph comparing how many life-like qualities a robot has, against our emotional reaction to it.

Click The Graph to See a Larger Version

What is unusual about this graph is that, once the resemblance has plunged into the nightmarish depths of a Doctor Who episode, shortly afterwards, the progression recovers.  The result is a narrow, but deep valley (hence the name).

Usually when something is made more detailed, or improved, its effectiveness at accomplishing its purpose increases.  The rate of increase may vary, but to improve something and, at some point, start to see it become LESS effective, is hard to comprehend.

For example, if you make a painting of a cat more detailed and more accurate, it increasingly resembles its subject.  It doesn’t, at some point, suddenly start looking like an alien.

If you constantly increase the amount you eat, you will steadily increase in size.  There isn’t a point on the scale, where overeating suddenly causes drastic weight loss.

If you exercise and train regularly, your stamina will improve accordingly.  There’s no drop-off point where exercising suddenly makes you become weak and unfit.

The Uncanny Valley effect, is most definitely not a common event.

So does this mean that the Uncanny Valley is unique to robotics?  I doubt it.  And it was in trying to come up with other examples, that I - inevitably - began thinking about internet marketing.

When we start out, we know virtually nothing, and we’re aware of the fact.  As our knowledge and experience grows, our comprehension increases and our abilities improve.  After a time, we become familiar with so many different aspects of internet marketing and their role in online business, that we become confident and more adventurous.

Surely the goal of early retirement is only a few more points on the graph away.

But this is often the point where people get stuck.  Despite progress appearing to be inevitable, the success of the business begins to level off.  It can remain at this point for some time, but not indefinitely.

Sometimes the remaining pieces slot into place and the success of the business resumes its upward course.  But more often that not, the person will work harder and harder and attempt more and more different approaches, until things become unmanageable.

And that is the point where I believe the Uncanny Valley of internet marketing begins.  Profitability starts to taper off and, unless something changes, the plunge continues.

Click The Graph to See a Larger Version

The key difference with this graph is that once someone reaches the bottom of the uncanny valley, it ISN’T a given that they will come out of the other side.

The contrast between the earlier success - resulting in excitement and euphoria - and the current struggle to keep going, is so stark that many people will just give up and assume they’re not cut out for the life of an entrepreneur.

Maybe, they’re right.  Because some refuse to give up and seem destined to reside in this hole forever.  But, happily, many do climb up the other side and gain the satisfaction of watching their business grow, and grow, and grow…

If you agree that this phenomenon exists, then it seems sensible to consider why it occurs and how it can be conquered.  But, in reality, there probably isn’t a single, fundamental answer to the question.

Ask ten successful internet marketer’s what the difference is between the successful online business owners and those that constantly struggle to keep their head above water, and you’ll probably get ten different answers.

And all of them could be correct.

If you don’t mind me sharing my opinion (and it’s my blog so I guess I’m going to either way - lol)…

Some time ago, Rich Schefren crystalised one of the key difficulties that online business owners face, by creating an in-depth list of everything that needs to be put into place.  When viewed in these terms, the challenge seems overwhelming.

I think there’s something to that, but I’m more inclined to see this as a case of trees and wood.  As in not being able to see one for the other.

Emails, forums, videos, eBooks and seminars, teach us so much about so much, that standing back and seeing the big picture becomes harder the MORE you learn and the MORE experience you gain.

It can reach the point where you’d need to stand so far back to see the whole, you would be in danger of losing your business over the horizon.

Put another way, what good does it do to have a strong grasp of a hundred different elements of internet marketing, if you’ve no idea how to put them all together?

It would be a little bit like getting a jigsaw puzzle and feeling good because you managed to take all the pieces out of the box and turn them the right side up.  It’s a good start, but you’re nowhere until those pieces start to fit together.

Most info-products focus on very specific areas of internet marketing, and there’s nothing wrong with that.  But at some point, you need to learn how to put all these different skills into a logical sequence and then carry them out correctly.

Internet seminars are a good place to start with this.  Listening to ONE person, lecture about how their business works, can be very eye-opening.  But the real gain here is talking to individuals privately, and learning how their business REALLY functions.

Even better, is learning how they structured their business to get it to where it is today.  You may hear about one or two key decisions, that you’ve never before considered.  A satisfying “Aha” moment can soon follow.

For me?  Well, lately I’m becoming increasingly convinced that outsourcing IS the silver bullet.

In the context of the above, outsourcing aspects of your business allows you to take away some of those trees and get a clearer perspective again of where your business is, and where it’s going.  Time is freed up to spend on worthwhile development, as opposed to just trying to keep things moving.

Take a look at your business honestly, particularly taking into account what’s happened over the last couple of years.  Is your business REALLY going in the direction you want it to be?

If not, and you’re just keeping your head down and working harder, this is a sure indication that you’re plunging head-first down the Uncanny Valley.

If you want to climb out of it, you’re going to have to get sufficient perspective to see what’s holding you back.  And then the guts to do what must me done.

But that’s just one point of view.  If you want to know how this approach is working out for me, then I suggest you watch the space.

In the meanwhile… tell me your point of view.

Why do you think the Uncanny Valley of Internet Marketing exists, and what must me done to climb out of it?  Post your comments below.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, August 26th, 2008 at 1:28 pm and is filed under Articles, Home Business, Internet Marketing, Outsourcing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.