Just as the wild west was eventually taken over by the business combination that paved the way (literally) out west with railroads and other organizational measures, we must realize that the day of the internet cowboy is finished as well.

I know this might be the time when some cowboys get up, saunter over to the saloon, and have one last shot of whiskey before they head out into the sunset. However, that way of life just does not fly anymore in business.

And it is that reason why I see the time of the combination at hand. As a former history teacher, I always thought it was uniquely interesting that the era of the Cowboys and Indians was playing out at the same time the Industrial Revolution was revving into full gear.

Two diametrically opposed groups living at such a singular time in history. I wonder if Billy the Kid ever met John Rockefeller? How poorly would that meeting go?

Before I start dreaming of that meeting in my head too much, let’s get back to the internet cowboys of today. The people that as I have said in previous blog posts want to go it alone have challenges. The fact is that you will not succeed in most industries by yourself. You need a team of people who can help you achieve your goals.

You need combination. When Rockefeller proposed Standard Oil in the 1870’s he was revolutionizing business with the idea that businesses could be separate entities. These entities would consist of everything from a few partners to large stock-holder companies with thousands of people involved. No matter, you now have a combination where a tight group of people wanted one organization to succeed, because they would all make money together.

There is nothing different today. If you want to make money you have to build relationships and form partnerships with people that you can grow with over the long term.  No one can know everything, and the people that do are stuck by themselves for thousands of hours constantly learning new information and not developing the relationships needed to sell their products.

It also means that with the right relationship there is room for more people to make money. Consider a few roles on product launches to get your mind twirling with excitement:

• Product Creator(s)
• Copywriter
• Site Developer
• Marketer
• JV Manager
• Affiliates
• Bonus Creators
• What can you add to this list?

Now, there are tools to help you launch products and be more effective at what you do? However, I can tell you from past launch experience that when I attempted to do everything by myself I made a lot less money. In fact, the first time I launched a product on the Warrior Forum my sales were pretty low, until an affiliate sent my product to his list. Doubled my sales in one hour!

In fact, my recent product (Blog Traffc Mafia) did not start selling well until I sold it during the WP conference that I did with Josh Alexander.

So, what can you do? Here is my three step, super-duper secretive process to stop internet cowboying and start internet combining.

1. Put aside your greed. Stop worrying about what percentage of the pie you get, and start thinking about how many pies you can sell at what percentage.
2. Think about what you do very well and very poorly! Write it down. Map it out! Whatever you need to do just clarify your skills and weaknesses.
3. Look for people to fill in the gaps.

That’s it?”

“Yep! That’s it!”

Now, go forth and start to connect with others who can help you end the internet cowboy as you begin your internet combining life.