DO

1. Take your time reading through all the information provided, before starting.

2. Read my matched betting diary.

3. Familiarise yourself with the matcher spreadsheet. You need MS Excel on your computer.

4. Set aside a matched betting starter budget. You can start with as little as £50.

5. Sign up to Betfair

6. Place your first set of bets only when you feel comfortable with the concept and when you are sure you have the correct numbers.

7. Keep a record of your bets - best in a spreadsheet that adds up your profits as you got along, and helps you track your funds.

8. Keep a record of all betting accounts opened.

9. Set up a new hotmail or gmail account and use this to receive emails from betting companies. There are a number of promotions that offer further free bets after the initial account-opening offer, which are sent to your email.

10. (Optional) set up a new bank account solely for matched betting, it allows you to monitor better how much free money you receive.

DON'T

1. Ever risk money that you cannot afford to lose, or ever deviate from the matched betting principles.

2. Rush in without understanding the principles.

3. Expect this to be a get rich quick scheme. Such schemes simply don't exist.

4. Think you will do best if you don't tell anyone that you do matched betting.

4. Feel discouraged if it takes you quite a while to grasp the concept - it takes time, but is definitely worth the perseverance.

5. Confuse matched betting with traditional betting or gambling.