It's hard enough for some people to do network marketing in a face-to-face world. In fact, entire books have been written on the subject of networking and network marketing. Most internet businesses that people become involved in these days are actually home based internet businesses that require a strong network marketing component for success.

Since many people new to the home based internet business network marketing world have little or no idea where to start, here are 5 tips to help you get going.

1. Networking sites
2. Forums
3. Online organizations
4. Provide a service
5. Write articles

NETWORKING SITES: Sites specifically intended for networking have been around for a long time. One of the earliest of these was Yahoo, which had groups, profiles, and personal websites. In the last few years, other sites specifically offering the opportunity to network have emerged. There's AdlandPro.com, DirectMatch.com, and MySpace.com to name a few. The drawback here is that most of the people on the site are there to network in their own interests, so it tends to be a seller selling to seller world. Try to find some service or point of interest that allows you to put yourself up as the interesting item, and that may lead others to investigate your program or product.

FORUMS: There are forums about almost anything, including networking. Many people at forums related to your area of business will often have new members looking for help with questions. Regularly visiting these sites and respectfully and accurately answering questions will raise you in the esteem of these visitors.

ONLINE ORGANIZATIONS: There may be organizations online that relate to your subject area or even to other areas in which you are interested. Just as joining a local community service group or interest group gives you a chance to interact with those who might be interested in your product or service, joining an online group may do the same.

PROVIDING SERVICES: Many websites and internet businesses attract a great many visitors by the simple expedient of providing a free service, free information, or something else of value. For example, many sites offer a free newsletter which allows the business to provide a valuable gift to the visitor over an extended period of time. This allows the business to place its product or service in the visitor's field of vision time and time again. The regular delivery of this valuable material creates a feeling of trust in the consumer while the repeated exposure to your product or service encourages a purchase.

WRITING ARTICLES: Somewhat similar to the above, an informational article can provide an opportunity to expose your expertise, trustworthiness, and your home based internet business to the readers. While you can simply create a site where you post your own articles, there are sites, such as EzineArticles.com which will post your articles for others to read and perhaps copy to their sites or ezines...with a link to your business embedded, of course. Other sites, such as SubmitYourArticle.com can broadcast your article to several sites where this can take place.