When I first tried to make money online, I thought I was already behind.

I’d read stories about people who “launched” something over a weekend, or set up a few links and woke up to commissions. Meanwhile, I was staring at a half-finished website, confused by terminology I didn’t understand, and wondering why nothing I did seemed to move the needle.

If you’re just getting started with affiliate or online marketing, that feeling is probably familiar. Not failure exactly—more like standing still while everyone else seems to be jogging past you.

This post isn’t about how to get rich online. It’s about how long it actually takes to get started in a realistic, lived-in way, based on years of slow progress, wrong turns, and small wins here at LeasedAdSpace.com.

What “getting started” actually means (and what it doesn’t)

One of the biggest problems beginners run into is not knowing what “started” even looks like.

Most people assume it means:

• Earning your first commission

• Having traffic coming in every day

• Feeling confident about what you’re doing

In reality, getting started online usually means something much quieter:

• Understanding what affiliate marketing actually is

• Choosing one direction instead of ten

• Publishing imperfect work

• Learning what doesn’t work through experience

For me, the first few months were mostly about unlearning assumptions. I thought effort would equal results in a straight line. Online work doesn’t behave that way.

You can spend weeks setting things up and feel like nothing is happening, then suddenly realize you understand more than you did before. That’s progress, even if it doesn’t show up in your bank account yet.

The early phase: confusion disguised as research

Most beginners spend far longer in the “research” phase than they realize.

I did it too. Reading blogs. Watching tutorials. Switching between platforms. Convincing myself I just needed one more piece of information before starting.

The truth is, this phase feels productive because it’s safe. You can’t fail if you haven’t actually put anything out there yet.

But this is where a lot of time quietly disappears.

In affiliate marketing, you don’t really understand how links work, how traffic behaves, or how people make buying decisions until you’ve actually tried. Reading about it helps, but it doesn’t replace doing.

For most people, this stage lasts anywhere from a few weeks to several months. The longer it goes on, the harder it becomes to break out of it.

Setting things up takes longer than anyone admits

There’s a lot of technical friction at the beginning, even with simple setups.

You’ll likely need to:

• Choose a niche (and second-guess it)

• Set up a website or platform

• Learn basic terminology

• Understand how affiliate links actually track

• Write content that feels awkward at first

None of this is difficult on its own, but it adds up. Every decision feels heavy because you don’t yet know which ones matter.

One mistake I made early on was constantly rebuilding instead of moving forward. New themes. New layouts. New ideas. I thought refinement would fix my lack of results. What I needed was consistency.

For most beginners, the setup phase alone can take one to three months if you’re learning as you go—and that’s normal.

Why early results are usually slow (and why that’s not a red flag)

Affiliate marketing is delayed-feedback work.

You might write something today that doesn’t help anyone until months later. Search engines take time. Trust takes time. Even understanding your own voice takes time.

I remember publishing posts that got zero clicks for weeks. At the time, it felt pointless. Looking back, those posts taught me how to explain things better, how to spot fluff in my own writing, and how to be clearer.

Early on, your job isn’t to earn. It’s to learn how the system responds to your actions.

Most people who quit do so right before this learning compounds into something useful.

Common beginner mistakes (and why they happen)

Here are a few mistakes I see repeatedly, and made myself:

Chasing shortcuts
When progress is slow, it’s tempting to look for something faster. New tools, new systems, new promises. This usually resets your progress instead of accelerating it.

Overcomplicating everything
Affiliate marketing works best when it’s boring and clear. Beginners often assume complexity equals sophistication. It doesn’t.

Comparing timelines
Someone else’s “six months in” is not the same as yours. Different hours, different backgrounds, different expectations.

Quitting too early
Most people stop right after they’ve done the hardest part: starting without clarity.

These mistakes don’t mean you’re bad at this. They mean you’re human.

The mindset shifts that actually helped me move forward

Progress didn’t come from working harder. It came from thinking differently.

The biggest shift was accepting that this is a long-term skill, not a quick project. Once I stopped expecting immediate returns, I made better decisions.

Another shift was focusing on usefulness instead of cleverness. Writing for real beginners instead of trying to sound impressive changed everything. Clarity beats creativity when trust is involved.

Finally, I stopped measuring progress only in money. Understanding my audience, seeing someone stay on a page longer, or getting a genuine email response became signs I was doing something right.

What a realistic timeline often looks like

Everyone’s path is different, but here’s a rough, honest outline based on experience and what I’ve seen from others:

• Months 1–2: Learning basics, setting things up, lots of confusion

• Months 3–6: Publishing consistently, little to no income, growing understanding

• Months 6–12: Small wins, clearer direction, occasional commissions

• After 12 months: Momentum starts to feel real, but still fragile

This isn’t a guarantee. It’s just a pattern. Some people move faster. Many move slower. The ones who last are usually the ones who stop rushing the process.

Reducing friction without chasing miracles

One thing that does help is removing unnecessary barriers early on.

If you’re stuck because the technical side feels overwhelming, using a simple, done-for-you setup can make sense. Near the end of my own learning curve, I came across Plug-In Profit Site, which is essentially a pre-built affiliate website that removes a lot of the setup friction for beginners. It doesn’t solve everything, but it can shorten the time it takes to get something functional online.

Tools like that are optional. They don’t replace learning or effort. They just remove some early obstacles.

If you feel behind, you probably aren’t

Most beginners underestimate how long this takes because they’ve been shown unrealistic examples.

If you’ve been working at this for a few months and feel like you’re moving slowly, that’s not failure. That’s the process.

The real question isn’t “How fast can I make money?” It’s “Can I keep going long enough to understand what I’m doing?”

From where I sit now, the people who succeed online aren’t the most talented or the most confident. They’re the ones who stayed when things felt dull, confusing, and unremarkable.

If that’s where you are right now, you’re probably closer than you think.