Without a doubt, knowledge is your most valuable marketing tool. It is the essential and necessary element needed to succeed in any marketing venture. This holds especially true for Internet Marketing.

The right marketing knowledge will save you time, money and a whole lot of stress.

But where does one acquire such knowledge? Where does one find the necessary information you need to market successfully online? And just HOW does one go about acquiring such knowledge?

Internet marketing is a relatively new field. The Internet itself is a relatively new phenomenon, created within the living memory of most of the people reading this article. Most of its now common features... search engines, online stores, email, websites, blogging... are all new inventions for our glorious cyber age.

Take for example, one of the Net's major players Google; it has only been crawling and searching the Net since 1998 -- who would have believed an 8 year-old could wheel so much power and influence?

Other players such as Amazon, Yahoo, Ebay, MSN... are all just new kids on the block when compared to the long history of marketing.

Like any industry, business or field of study, Internet Marketing has produced its own experts. People who have mastered the art of web marketing from first-hand experiences, lessons learnt and drawn from the trenches -- the most trustworthy of all knowledge. Valuable knowledge they can use again and again to market their wares online.

This knowledge has become a valuable marketing tool for those who have mastered the skills of the trade. It can quickly turn any website into a profitable endeavor, producing income 24/7/365.

Nor should this knowledge be seen as anything magical. Knowledge in any field can produce wealth; think of all the fine craftsmen and artists of old who had to learn a skill and knowledge to produce great priceless pieces of art. Think of the cabbies of London who must acquire the Knowledge of the routes around London in order to make a living.

For that matter, think of any modern profession and you will have to acquire the proper knowledge in order to practice your trade or profession. Internet Marketing is no different. You must acquire the skills and knowledge to market successfully online.

But the question still remains, where does one acquire this knowledge, the real marketing tool you need to succeed online?

One source would surely have to be the experts. Who else will know the answers but the present day Top Internet Marketers? But who are these people? What are their names?

If you surf the web, no doubt you have come in contact with these marketers. Directly or indirectly their handiwork is everywhere. Their ideas, methods, and marketing techniques have influenced most of the sites on the web.

Many of better known ones even have mentoring programs to train and teach their protgs. Acquiring the knowledge could just be a matter of hooking up with one of these so-called marketing gurus.

Where are these elusive creatures hiding? Who are they?

If you're new to Internet Marketing, one good place to start is this site: www.gurudaq.com, it lists some of the major marketers on the web. All these Internet Marketers have opt-in lists and ezines which you can join to get first-hand tips and advice.

Make sure these names has some significance to you: Marlon Sanders, Yanik Silver, Neil Shearing, Ken Evoy, John Reese, Rosalind Gardner, Joel Comm, Jim Daniel, David Vallieres, Willie Crawford...

Many of these Marketers have their own info products which you can purchase to gain more knowledge. Many also have free guides, reports and articles you can learn valuable information from. Most have websites choked full of valuable marketing information, yours for the taking.

One of the saving graces of the Net -- it is a vast storehouse of our collective knowledge. We can access that knowledge anytime, anywhere... one large reservoir of marketing knowledge can be found in the online marketing forums. Here are the Top Forums:

Anthony Blake's Entrepreneurial Success Forum - www.ablake.net/forum/

Michael Green's How To Internet Marketing Forum - www.howtocorp.com/forum/

Associate Programs by Allen Gardyne - www.associateprograms.com/discus/index.php

Willie Crawford's Discussion Corner - www.williecrawford.com/cgi-bin/index.cgi

Jim Daniels CyberMarketing InfoBoardOne - www.network54.com/Forum/184615

Lesley Fountain's Friends In Business Board - www.friendsinbusiness.com/board1/

If you need direct, hands-on Internet Marketing training manuals, try the free Masters Courses offered by SiteSell.com: Net Writing, Action Guide, Affiliate Marketing... are all covered in these excellent handy guides. You can find a link to these free manuals at the end of this article.

Don't forget the pioneers of marketing in general, try to get your hands on copywriting and advertising tips/advice/techniques from marketing Masters of the past: Claude Hopkins, John Caples, Robert Collier and Vic Schwab. Many of their methods can be directly applied to online marketing. Many of their marketing methods and theories still cast a ghostly reflection in all of today's Internet Marketers.

Keep in mind, studying any trade takes some time and effort on your part. So do your homework -- study the Masters, past and present! Acquire some of their knowledge, learn some of their skills and yes, model some of their marketing methods and techniques in your own online marketing.

Persevere, examine, harvest and digest the wealth of knowledge that's yours for the taking. Cram if you have too, but acquire as much marketing information as you possibly can. Then apply that knowledge to your own online interests as you would any other marketing tool.

Then the next time you're tempted to buy some expensive piece of marketing software -- go ahead and buy it! But if you have done your homework and studied all your marketing lessons, you will know that knowledge is the one and only marketing tool you will need to succeed online.