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Are you a Surfer or Foundation Layer?

1 Person Speaking Their Mind - Put In Your Two Cents!

Posted on January 15, 2009 in Affiliate Tips  

Some of you may read the title and be like what the world is he talking about today… Well today i am posing the question are you are Surfer or a Foundation Layer? Gues i should define these more so in affiliate terms:

Surfer: Some one that rides the overall current and waves. Stays on top of whats hot and tries to grab the big waves, but at times crashes and burns. But more so flows with the general direction of current things.

Foundation Layer: Builds things out for more of long term gains. Not just looking for the quick buck and not easily distracted. Usually builds out fuller sites with more unique content, puts more time into building out linking, seo etc.. not in it for short.

So what are you? Are you hoping on the latest diet offer, remember the days that you rode the ringtone wave, still trying to squeeze the last drop out of the dating wave? Or are you building long term usefull tools, usefull sites, usefull communities, usefull resources and not having to worry is google going to ban my ad because you are doing something sneaky…

Personnally i am more so a foundation layer but on occasion i pull out my surf board to ride the wive :) .

Easy Affiliate Marketing Days are over

5 People Speaking Their Mind - Put In Your Two Cents!

Posted on July 23, 2008 in Affiliate Tips, PPC  

Just as the post states easy affiliate marketing days are over. Now that doesn’t mean you won’t make money or that you can’t make GREAT money. It more so just means the days of starting up a campaign and going from zero to the penthouse is much harder. The system was easier to game and manipulate. Yes you still can manipulate the system and can get by with things, but to combat this google is updating their Quality Score more oftern.  I read many posts about the latest Google slap. I remained untouched due to it but that is only more so all my sites have moved to more legit sites and not the one page wonders that could make a killing of the past. 

As an Affiliate Marketer you need to:

1. Rake in the money while you can. If you have a hot offer milk it while you can. Can you do the same with a similar offer? Then do it!

2. Change and evolve… What worked last year doesn’t work… well at times things that worked 3 months ago don’t work.

3. Have a game plan and a end goal. Don’t just pile the money in and blow it on things that will depreciate. I mean we all want to do nothing at some point in our lives.

4. Test Tweak Test Tweak…  A/B test, ad test, copy test, site test…. the testing never stops.

With that said there is still a TON of money to be made in affiliate marketing but it takes more work.

Get the Best Payout on CPA Offers

5 People Speaking Their Mind - Put In Your Two Cents!

Posted on June 6, 2008 in Affiliate Tips, Working Online  

Tired of lame payouts? Get the bumps, Get the offers and utlimately get the cash! I will tell you how to get the best payout on any CPA offer.

1. Under promise over deliver on the offer. Don’t poke your manager for a BIG bump unless you can do something with the offer. Or if it is in a different niche you haven’t tried before tell the AM you will do the best you can and a bump would help. (I want to clarify on a big bump cause any offer you can ask for a bump and should get one of .05 to .10)

2. Get the best affiliate manager (AM) in the networks you can. If you are unhappy with your AM ask for another one. If it takes your AM to long to give you a bump or find out information on an offer ask for another one. Affiliate Managers can make or break you from being the best affiliate you can be (plus give you access to Private offers).

3. Find out which affiliate network has the offer direct. This is a little tougher but in general you can look at the base pay who has the highest start pay(this one isn’t full proof because sometimes networks set their margins low to attract more affiliates), also who can give you room to grow. Approach them and ask what they can pay you if you can do 500, 1000, or 5000 leads a day (the amount will vary depending on the type of offer).

4. Go Direct! If you are doing an offer with serious volume, why give the networks 5% to 20% as that can mean 1000’s left on the table. Hit up the company and see what they say, sometimes they don’t want to deal with you directly so be prepared to really sell yourself (remember it means more money in your pocket).

You have any additional tips you want to share about getting the best CPA offer Payout then leave a comment. Got a Question contact me or leave a comment and i will do my best to answer it.

No better Time then Right NOW!

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Posted on May 29, 2008 in Affiliate Tips, PPC  

There Really is no better time then right NOW!  Why do I say this, no not because the economy is the best, its not because there is soo much money to be made (even though there is), it is because if you don’t do it right now someone else just might.

Look at it this way so many of us get lists of the top performing offers or even those higher up in earnings we get first dibs on offers but how many times have i gotten that info and done nothing with it. Then 2 weeks later those offers are rocking on the network and then i am trying to play catchup against the competition when i could have been a front runner. So get it promoted right now.

Some tips to help you get new offers going right now!

1. Turn off your AIM, Gtalk, YIM etc… (yes turn it off till you get the new offer up)

2. Don’t check your email for 4 hours. (Yes this would kill some of us but honestly if it is that urgent you should have good enough connections with your AM they will call you)

3. Start doing research. Use all your free tools or paid tools to do other site research and keywords. (don’t let it stop here, I know at times i fizzle out after research and don’t push thru to get it live)

4. Get the page/site designed. If you have a designer start them working on designs while you do your research, if you do the designs yourself unless you are a quick designer find someone that can do the designs for cheaper than what it is costing you time wise (remember time is key).

5. Write 5 ads for the campaign. Do your ads blend in to the other ads or do they stand out?

6. Actually this should come up after your research, Get a domain name. Try for it to be one target and as short as possible.

7. Get the site design up and get your campaigns going.

8. Check back in about an hour or two how is the campaign going? make any tweaks.

9. Turn your IM’s back on feel free to check you email and know that you didn’t postpone and on offer that can make you some $$$.

I hope this helps some of you get more campaigns going. I know when i am struggling to launch new campaigns either cause i am too busy with other things or just because i have gotten lazy/complacent with earnings doing these things help a lot.   Do you have any tips for getting new campaigns launch leave a comment.

Affiliate Spring Cleaning

1 Person Speaking Their Mind - Put In Your Two Cents!

Posted on March 19, 2008 in Affiliate Tips  

Everyone knows as spring approaches it is time for some spring cleaning. Same goes for the affiliate side of things. In spring I look back see what has worked what hasn’t and what needs to change. Some tips for spring cleaning.

  1. Check Existing Campaigns (Are they still making good ROI? How is the ad copy (try something fresh and new), Is your page outdated? (Check out the competition & Compare)
  2. Check on your payouts on offers. (Is the same offer available for higher on another network or direct?)
  3. Check for other similar offers. (if your credit offer is doing well look for other credit offers to promote or split test with)
  4. Check you current Setup. Is it time for a new PC, new monitor, New servers to handle the massive traffic?
  5. Check Yourself. Are you being the most efficient you can be. Can you hire others to due the same tasks for cheaper? Have you rewarded your self for you hard work? (Vacation, New Car etc..)

Those are a few of my thoughts on affiliate Spring cleaning any suggestions of your own?

Affiliate Marketers can Learn From Hillary and Obama

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Posted on March 3, 2008 in Affiliate Tips  

Yes you read that title correct Affiliate Marketers can Learn From Hillary and Obama. While i am not turning this blog into a political sounding board there are many things Affiliates can learn from Hillary and Obama some good some bad. So here goes.

What Affiliates can learn from Hillary:

1. Sometimes Your Associations can hurt you or help. For instance… no one will forget her husband and what happened with him in the presidency. Same applies for affiliates, if you spamed or provided bad leads… your networks and managers will take this into account when new offers come out. Just like if you rocked offers with quality leads they will come running back to you.

2. Show your sensitive side… Hillary did this by crying… But as an Affiliate Marketer you can do this by giving something back or giving an incentive… Incentives are GREAT when done properly. I have ran offers where 50% or even 90% of proceeds went to charity… what do you know they performed well.

3. Don’t Flip Easily… Hillary has flipped on a few subjects… Should you flip in Affiliate Marketing… it depends… I always test… even when the payout seems lower you should test the same offer on another network sometimes they will convert better… or maybe the one company is skimming and the other isn’t or its the system is better at tracking, who knows either way this flip could put more money in your pocket.

What Affiliates can learn from Obama:

1. Your Message doesn’t have to be different… Just promoted in a different manner… Obama has promised change… Many have done this in the past but why does he get more promotion due to this (think about the Yes we Can Video). What we can learn as affiliate marketers is … so what there is 1000’s others with the same message or offer… take that message or offer and put a spin on it… promote it with more gusto and it just might work.

2. While there are supporters of all the candidates Obama’s seem to work a little harder and push a little more… As affiliates you can learn that some of the best publicity isn’t your own but from your supporters (buyers and users) find ways to get them to help you promote your product.

3.Cross Gaps…. Obama has done this by appealing to all races… As affiliates you can do this by cross promotion just because an offer is geared towards dieting… why not cross promote it to just women or to stay at home moms, or maybe to the working women… Don’t just target the main audience, reach out across the gaps and you wil be surprised of the result.

So there you have it a few things Affiliate Marketers can Learn from Hillary and Obama… While i don’t feel this is all inclusive, it should give you some ideas… You have some ways affilaites can learn from any of the candidates (repub or Dem)? Leave a comment.

Landing Pages are Key to Making it in Affiliate Marketing

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Posted on January 3, 2008 in Affiliate Tips, Landing Pages  

People ask me and in the various forums all the time – “Do I need a Landing Page?”. While you don’t need a landing page, 98% of the time i can make a campaign better and convert more with my own landing page than a direct link. Here are a 3 main reasons why a Landing Page is Key to really making it in affiliate marketing.

1. You control the content.

  • Helps with keyword/phrase stuffing
  • Placement of words and phrases for adwords quality score
  • Inform the user or just push the user to the page
  • Highlight the big points of the offer (Free Shipping, 20% off, Free Trial, Completely Free etc..)

2. You control the spin of the product. Let’s face it while some of the offers own page rocks, some just plain suck and are just a form to fill in, this is when your Landing page is critical to presell or get the user ready to hand over their information.

3. You can split test content, images, text, links.  Remember you want to split test an offer that is on several CPA networks. You will be surprised in the difference of conversions, sometimes even the lower paying network will convert better. It’s wierd how it is always different, which is why you should split test the links. Also try different landing pages and see which ones get you more clicks onto the offer page but also which ones get you the converts.

I personnally almost always use a landing page and can attest it works! Do you use landing pages?

Are You Planning for Failure?

4 People Speaking Their Mind - Put In Your Two Cents!

Posted on December 6, 2007 in Affiliate Tips, Working Online  

Are You Planning for Failure? Sounds like a stupid question but it really isn’t. What i mean is in those times you fail or in those times of downturn are you planing for them incase they come. Here are some tips that can help you through those failing and downturn times. (downturn could mean an offer gets pulled, or traffic tanks etc..)

1. Are you diversified? Are you reliant on just one offer or just one website? If so you are setting yourself up.. you need to diversify try promoting a new offer or website.

2. Have you saved anything? With the world of online marketing there are great months and there are bad months. The key is in the great months you don’t go blow all your money (on Fancy Cars and Vacatons, but do have some fun you did earn it) but put some aside for those months when things aren’t so hot. Nothing worse then living the high-life and 6 months late you are selling all your stuff so you can eat. I have seen it happen to people.

3. Do you have a plan to succeed? More than just enjoying what you are making now and where you are at, but do you have a plan to succeed in the future or do you just plan to ride that single wave… me personnally i catch as many waves as possible.

4. When you do Fail (not a downturn or offer pulled) but just cant seem to get some offers to work. Try learning from them just with every success you can learn from every failure. Maybe you found there wasn’t as much traffic as you thought or maybe there is so much traffic but people want what you are offering for free and you are selling it.

5. Don’t Give UP!   Plain and simple people try and fail in the online world everyday the beauty of it is that the online world has such LOW startup costs compared to Brick and mortar businesses.

6. You don’t have to go it alone. While in partnerships all the reward isn’t yours but with a team or partnership you can go much further than you could on your own. The key is to put people around you with great skills in where you lack. (Disclaimer WORK everything and i mean everything down to how many bathroom breaks a day … ok well maybe not that detailed… but you don’t want to do a partnership come to find our later your partner always takes off the full month of Jan to go skiing)

Hopefully this has helped you to get your mind thinking… do you have a tip of how to plan for times of failure or even how to plan to succed? let me know by leaving a comment.

The Online Marketing Bottle Neck is…… You!

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Posted on November 15, 2007 in Affiliate Tips, Working Online  

After much thinking and contemplation I realized that at times for myself and many times for others that are getting started, that the bottle Neck (the slow down, The constricting point) is often ourselves. Let me explain.

As online marketers 98% of us like to be in control and are huge statistic FREAKS. I can’t go an hour without skimming through statistical reports of ROI, CTR, EPC etc… but this can also be our down fall. Take a step back and look at it this way.

1. What is the most important thing that you and only you can do?

2. What can I hire someone esle to do for me cheaper than I can?

a. Building Keyword lists (maybe not a person but a tool)

b. Ad Copy (maybe not a person but a tool)

c. Landing Pages/sites

d. Offer/product research (maybe not a person but a tool)

e. Tool for running and analyzing reports.

3. Scalability – Its hard to grow being a one man show.

4. Short & Long Term Profit – Maybe you dont want to grow and are happy with where you are at. But if you aren’t you have to look at both Long Term and Short Term profit and both are PROFIT.

So are you a bottle neck for your online marketing? If you are find a way to move yourself out the way so your business can grow.

What it takes to make it BIG in online marketing

10 People Speaking Their Mind - Put In Your Two Cents!

Posted on October 26, 2007 in Affiliate Tips, Working Online  

People ask me all the time how i got into doing what i am doing and how i became a player in online marketing. So i figured i would provide a little insight.

1. It takes focus! – it is easy ESPECIALLY when you work online to get distracted by emails, instant messages, fun sites (that can kill a lot fo your time). So stay focused, If need be don’t check your email during the day, turn off any instant message clients so you can accomplish the tasks at hand. In affiliate marketing don’t get overwhelmed by the number of offers just go after a few and target those untill you make them work.

2. It takes perseverance! – You have to be the type of person that even though you are losng money you keep trying. Even when Google Delists you, you keep trying. You can’t give up in online marketing, as it is constantly changing there are new battles daily with victories and defeats you have to be able to take both in stribe.

3. Don’t get Complacent! – Yes its great when that offer starts earning you a 100 or 1000 a day but don’t get too happy and just sit back.  Cause that offer or campaign can be pulled tomorrow or your rankings can take a dive… what then?

4. Network Network Network – Don’t be a shy fly on the wall. Network with other earners and online marketters. Send them an email if you feel brave (don’t make it lame and say oh i think your awesome can your teach me your ways (these go directly to spam!)) also don’t ask the typical questions be creative. You would be surprised cause as online marketers we love to interact with people since we lack it due to online work. Attend conferences that will help you make contacts. (For affiliate marketers affiliate Summit is the best, it is for the Marketer not just huge companies with big pockets)

5. Have Fun! – If you don’t have fun you will end up wanting to quit this work quicker than a burger flipper at MCD’s (don’t even think they have burger flippers anymore).

6. Be Creative – While you can make money by reading and trying to copy other people to really make $$$$$$$$$ you need to be creative with your approach, its not that hard you just have to try to be different… sometimes the ideas take off sometimes they fail but thats part of the fun.

7. When you start making it don’t be afraid to expand!!!!!!!

You have a tip to help people make it in online marketing leave a comment.

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