All of the above are very good tips, but I would like to add a couple more...
1) - Reference books are very important, and in some cases very expensive, especially so if you buy them and find out they are in a collecting field in which you have no interest.
2) - In a mid term - long term time span, you will end up needing the books, but at entry level while you are dabbling, finding your feet.... a forum should suffice
3) - Imperial is a very wide field indeed, are you going to start collecting medals but also land up with uniforms? Are you going to start collecting documents and land up with a Minenwerfer in the basement? All been seem and done.
4) - My guess is that the average collector shuffles into Imperial for a look. Starts dabbling.... as he dabbles his intrests begin to crystallize.... maybe he decides to collect medals for all the german states that were awarded at Company level and avoid the really high stuff, maybe he decides to collect Saxon and Bavarian Medals. maybe he decides to collect saxon awards AND documents, maybe he decides to collect only complete groups to Hessen...... there are many ways of approaching it.
5) - My suggestion would be, swim in the shallow end for a while... do not yet spend BIG money on items or books that may end up having nothing to do with what you end up collecting. Get some cheaper general books and dabble in the more comman items until the lightning bolt strikes and shows you the way you want to go.... it may be collecting the highest orders of all the states, and you will need the most expensive medals and all the books.... or maybe you decide to collect small groups to the Hanseatic states and it will be cheaper and you can avoid the huge money books.
6) - for a dabbler in the shallow end trying to decide his way, I think the forums and collectors groups are the best way to go. There are a number of good forums out there, most people gravitate to the one that suites their needs best, Hopefully you will choose ours, if not, at least come back and visit and show where the road led you.
All thebest
Chris