Some years ago in one of my early bands we all got the itch to record some of our songs. At that time the cassette was still a hot item and tape was still the standard in professional studios.

Just to get a feel for what we were doing and a rough idea of what we sounded like, I set up a cheap cassette recorder and used a mixer as an “interface” of sorts so that I could use 4 microphones to record instead of just using only the one that could plug directly into the tape recorder.

I used 2 microphones for the drums and 2 for the rest of the band. Frankly it was a train wreck but for the time period it was bearable.

As a result, the bass player, also known as the financial backer, decided that I was now an engineer. Okay I admit for knowing nothing about recording I did get a balanced sound. But it was no where near the desired quality. He of course concluded that was only because I was using inferior equipment. Which did have an impact on the quality, but believe me I was guessing the entire time.

Yes I knew what it should sound like and I had a general idea of what needed to be done but that is often times a far cry from getting the results you set out to get or want.

Anyhow, we were now not only going to record our first LP, but we were going to do it ourselves! No kidding. Previously mentioned genius/money man calls me one afternoon and asks if I can come over early before rehearsal. I get to our jam room and there is a brand new 8 track multi track recorder in the room.

3 months later in our story, I finally figure out how to work the machine and we record a demo. It sounded slightly better than the recording I made with a junky portable recorder. “This couldn’t be” my friend repeated to himself over and over. To make matters worse I met this guy who was a techno geek and he actually knew how to use this machine. He came by one night and we knocked out a few songs. And it sounded noticeably better than the slightly better tracks I got. The lesson learned?

We should have used the $1000 spent on machine on studio time instead of doing it ourselves. The other lesson was I’m not a sound engineer. Although as a side note, I have gotten better with recording on computer software. But back to our discussion.

Often times in life, we pay for things we could do ourselves. Now we have self serve gas stations for example. But seriously folks, doing it yourself is commendable, educational and rewarding.

However there are the times when doing it yourself is not always the best thing to do. See above story. You see in that case, we had a specific goal that required us paying for a reputable service. We ignored that fact, well not all of us did, but I don’t want to point fingers 25 years later. Nevertheless, we ended up throwing money away by trying to save it.

So here you are with your web page and you just aren’t getting the traffic you want or need to earn the income you realistically were seeking. Maybe for now your in over your head. No, you are not stupid and there is plenty of free information and marketing tools to avail yourself of. “But it’s not working” you say.

You are at an impasse, the proverbial cross roads. You need to decide what your immediate goals are. Do you want to master the Internet and then earn some money or earn some money while mastering the Internet?

Most of us would probably choose the latter, making money while learning. Either is great by the way. Why not examine the possibility of paying for help?

Let’s take something as rudimentary as applying keywords for SEO (Search Engine Optimization) purposes. The fact is although seemingly easy, keywords play a huge role in SEO. And there are plenty of free sources for help. But maybe you are not ready for that or maybe you don’t have the time for that right now. After all you probably have a “day job” and other responsibilities. Your Internet venture is just starting or building. Or maybe you are so new, you wouldn’t even know where to begin to do a keyword finding search.

You have got your site up and running but it is sputtering and lacking activity. Now is the time to swallow the reluctance of spending a few bucks and find qualified help. And it doesn’t have to be the most expensive service or the first one you discover. Take a little time, ask around, and find yourself someone who knows the SEO game. Negotiate a fair fee and let them do what they do. If you are calculating and patient it will pay for itself in no time.

If your motivation is purely for fun, educational and self improving than go ahead and try and do it on your own. I mean even in my music story I shared with you I had fun trying to accomplish our goal on our own. But in the end it wasn’t productive or cost effective. (It was misguided though)

Is it that time to pee or get off the pot? Is your clock ticking? Or are you spinning your wheels while fighting an uphill battle? Then maybe it’s time to realize it’s okay to pay for help.

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