Its true, there are many ways to create a successful website. However, I want to let you know how I go about it. This method is simple and very general, will work with most niche type websites.

1. Start with a blog - This is a great way to get started. Nothing is easier that loading up a wordpress theme and having a website full of good content within weeks. Blogs are also cool because they will do two things for you: get incoming links and returning visitors. If you do it right, you will be in search engine results in no time. Focus on a few keywords at first, don’t try to dominate your niche just yet.

2. Add on a forum - Once you have enough people coming and visiting your blog it might be time to give them a place to engage in discussion with each other. Turn your site into community rather than a place that they go to just to see what you have to say. At this point the users will be generating content which will end up helping you get more traffic and new users as well.

3. Monetize - Once you have a big website that comes up in the results for many searches in your niche, its time to think about either selling a product or putting up advertisements on your site. I like a combination of Adsense, affiliate sales, and possibly your own product (if you have one).

By doing it in this order you will allow your site to grow and expand naturally. Another great thing about this technique is that its very inexpensive. The only costs will be your hosting and maybe a good forum script.