I have had success with counting calories. You can google how many calories you need per day based on your weight and activity level. Livestrong has a good calorie tracker, which is also available as an application for a smart phone. I also like Daily Burn for my Iphone. These applications allow you to type in the food you ate and they will tell you how many calories it was, how many calories you have consumed for the day, and how many you have left. They also have workout trackers and weight trackers. You will find that you will start reading labels and being much more mindful of what you eat. The goal is to eat less calories than you burn. I lose 1-2 lbs a week when I do this.
Weight Watchers is a similar concept (tracking what you eat, burning more than you take in) but they use a points system rather than just calories. It worked well for me too. I know many people who have liked Weight Watchers online (you do not go in for meetings, just log your points online). My personal opinion is I prefer plain old calorie counting because you do not have to figure out how many "points" each food item is. Less math involved. (The points are based on how much fiber, fat and calories are in the food item).
Finally, sometimes I get sick of all the food logs and math. I have a hard time managing my weight- I have to be working out 4+ days a week plus watching my calorie intake carefully or the weight just piles on. Anyway, I have also had success in simply cutting out refined sugar and flour + white rice and potatoes.
I have heard that weight loss is 90% what you eat and 10% exercise. However, it will be a lot easier to stay "on course" if you are exercising, in my opinion. It will also boost your metabolism, give you more energy and of course help tone your body. When I have more energy, I have more willpower with my food cravings.
Good luck!