Have you seen headlines like the one above? Sure you have. Seems like every time I turn around there is another program promising I'll earn a thousand or more per day with no work using simple automation.

By now most people reading this article know the vast majority of those programs are pure hype. Their business is based around selling a marketing system or information packet that is practically worthless. Yet you'll have to get past their pages and pages of BIG promises and pay $3,000 or more to join -- just to find this sorry truth out for yourself.

That's an expensive lesson!

I've been involved in many programs and have talked to others who have participated in more. A little research reveals some very clear TRUTHS about online business opportunities:

1. Your program MUST sell a REAL product or service. A lot of the most popular business opportunities in the past few years have sold flimsy services that were more "wish" than reality. In the end, the company soon folded when members became disillusion or regulators shut down the program for being a money scheme.

Insist on joining a program that has real products. It's even better if those real products are wanted by real people REALLY bad. Anytime there is a sizeable group of customers who crave the product you sell, you'll make good money.

2. Look for a program with an affordable entry fee. Entry costs range from nothing, to $14, to $1,500 and even up to $3,000 and more. Usually the commissions you earn will be far bigger if the program costs more to join. But it will be FAR harder to get others to join under you. It's one thing to tell your prospect they will make money by joining a $14 program, it's far harder to get them to join if they first have to pony up thousands.

3. Make sure you have a REAL way to market your program. Many programs come with a built in marketing system. Here are some of the more popular marketing systems. All are easy to do and work well when done correctly.

Many programs use pay-per-click search engines, blogs, and FFA pages to drive traffic to their web sites. Prospects leave their information and are contacted by either members or a sales team that handles the initial sale pitch.

Other programs teach you a number of standard marketing techniques, then leave to you to pick the strategies you're most comfortable with. These methods can range from giving your pitch to people you meet in everyday life, to sending letters to prospects from a list, to getting interviewed on radio, to writing articles for the Internet. All these methods have earned thousands and millions for those who knew how to use them.

4. Finally, make sure the program you join offers a healthy commission. No doubt you've found it takes work to sign up new members. You'll want to earn a nice check with every member you enroll. Also insist on a company that pays quickly and isn't always deducting fees from your checks.

You CAN earn $1,000 to $4,000 per day simply working in your spare time on the Internet. The key is not to fall for much of the baseless hype and insist on a solid program that offers these REAL features I've described.