Master Affiliate Marketing - 7 Ways To Take Your Earnings To The Next Level

 By: James Simpson

It's a fact that affiliate marketing is one of the quickest ways to get a web business up and running. After all, you don't need a website, you don't need a list and you can start advertising someone else's product just 5 minutes from now.

And the great thing is you really can make money by doing it. But the truth is, if you are
making money from a particular product you're promoting in this fashion, you're almost certainly leaving money on the table.

To explain why, we need to look at your average affiliate marketing strategy:

-- Pick a product to promote with a high affiliate payout ($50 or more)

-- Set up a pay-per-click campaign to promote your affiliate link

That's it! Those two steps are what the vast majority of affiliate marketers do. And that's why 95% of all affiliate payouts are made to just 5% of the people doing the marketing... because those top 5% are doing far more to earn their commissions than just a simple PPC campaign.

You need to understand that if you're fortunate enough to be making money from the product you're promoting just by doing those 2 basic steps, then it's almost a racing certainty that you're missing out on a mass of additional income.

Let's look at how you could increase your commissions and future related sales on just one product you're already making money from:

1. Build a 'name squeeze' page to capture your prospect's name and email address. It's a fact
that virtually all product sales are made after the customer's fifth visit to the website.

If you're not capturing your prospect's details, how are you going to make sure they go back to the sales page using your affiliate link? To greatly improve the chances of this you can set up a 7-series autoresponder to automatically send your lead additional information and reminders about the product they're interested in. This approach will keep the product fresh in their mind.

2. Build a website reviewing the product you're promoting, including a newsletter to catch your prospect's details. You can give full details about how the product will solve your prospect's problems, giving an impartial review of the features and benefits with some real-life results.

The newsletter will allow you to keep in touch with your prospects in the same way as the name squeeze page method.

3. Offer additional bonuses for buying through your affiliate link. This gives your prospect a reason to buy from you, especially if they know you're going to make a commission from the sale.

The important thing here is that your bonus products are related to the product you're selling. I mean, there's no point advertising a bonus book on 'how to make your parrot talk' if your initial product is about training dogs to perform tricks.

4. Create video tutorials on how to use the product you're promoting. This works especially well when you're promoting a software product. You can show people how to get started as quickly as possible without them having to read the manual.

The vast majority of people learn visually, so they're much more likely to use your videos than read the manual supplied with the software. You can even tie this in with option 3; give your prospect free training videos if they buy through your affiliate link.

5. Make your own product to cross-promote. It can be an add-on to the product you're promoting as an affiliate. Again, you could easily offer it for free or at a discounted price if they buy through your affiliate link.

6. Promote related products via email. This works by creating an 'A ' Grade list out of your newsletter and squeeze page sign-ups, i.e. the people who have actually gone on to buy the product you're promoting.

It's a known fact that people who have a proven track record of buying online are more likely to buy from you again. You can easily recommend to them a related product that will further enhance their original purchase, resulting in more affiliate commissions for you.

7. Tie all of the above together. You don't have to use just one of the methods above. Use all of them.

Create a name squeeze page, build a review website with newsletter, add some bonuses to your affiliate link, make some video tutorials, develop your own related product and promote other affiliate products via email to the lists you've built with your name squeeze page and newsletter.

But before you do any of this, make sure you're promoting a product that sells. After all, spending your time doing all of the above for a product that is poorly supported, doesn't work properly or has a high refund rate is going to be time wasted.

Author Bio
James Simpson is an internet marketer and product developer. Currently he is producing 'how to' videos, showing how to properly use and benefit from XSitePro, over at www.xsitepro-videos.com

Article Source: http://www.ArticleGeek.com - Free Website Content

Choosing an Affiliate Program

A popular choice in getting started for generating income online is through affiliate programs.

If you are looking for tips on what to consider when choosing one, then read on

By: Kevin Sinclair

What should you consider when choosing an affiliate program? You need to think about two key things: what business are you in and what can the affiliate program provide to your customers.

No matter what business you are in, the largest investment you make will be customer acquisition. If you have your own product, and have acquired a base of satisfied customers, then single product affiliate programs could work very well for you.

However, if your business is acquiring customers for other businesses, that is, purely affiliate programs, then a better choice for you could be affiliate programs with multiple products or services. This will help you to capitalise on your investment in customer acquisition.

The key to choosing successfully is to ensure that the affiliate program offers products that meet the needs of your potential customers. Coupled with this is the need for the products to be high quality and for the supplier to provide excellent customer service. Remember, your credibility is on the line every time you refer someone to buy through your affiliate relationship.

Some of the other factors I consider when evaluating affiliate programs include:

Is the affiliate program a reputable business? You can check out a business you are considering a relationship with in variety of ways. Talk to the Better Business Bureau in your local area or a similar body. In addition, I find web sites that monitor affiliate programs to be worth looking at. The best I have found is Associate Programs www.AssociatePrograms.com. Allan Gardyne pulls no punches and tells it as it is.

Does the program enable you to share in the lifetime value of the customer? Great programs will give you commissions on all future purchases of the customers you introduce. This is where the real profits are. These types of programs, in effect, allow you to partner with the supplier.

Does the program reward you for introducing other affiliates? This type of program is commonly referred to as a two-tier program. Often your customer may become an affiliate also and you will be rewarded for this.

Is the supplier interested in your success as an affiliate? The top affiliate programs engage in a process of coaching or information sharing to help you succeed. Affiliates are provided with regular newsletters outlining what is working for successful affiliates and providing updates and details on new products.

Is the commission reasonable? Commission rates on commodity products such as books and CDs are low. This is because there is very little margin in the products due to competition. Look for products that have a commission rate of 15% or more that are not commodities - that way you will be better able to recoup your customer acquisition investment.

Are statistics provided? The higher the level of statistics provided, the better off you are. This will enable you to measure the success of your marketing efforts and to determine the best places to invest your marketing dollars. Insufficient statistics is a sign that the affiliate program is not sufficiently interested in your success.

Are new products being developed regularly? To get the full value from lifetime commissions, new products need to be introduced on a regular basis. Without this, lifetime commissions can be worthless. Also, look for consistent high quality in new products introduced.

How frequently are commissions paid? The more frequently commissions are paid, the better off you are. Good quality affiliate programs will pay you monthly. In some situations, commissions are not paid until a certain level is reached. If the program you are considering has this requirement, check how many sales need to be made before the level is reached.

Have you read the affiliate agreement? This is a key area that you should look at. Some affiliate agreements are totally in favour of the supplier. Others are more balanced. Some agreements restrict your ability to promote similar products from other suppliers. Most agreements have anti-spam provisions. Look for agreements that are fair and that do not stack everything against you as the affiliate.

While there are other factors that can be considered when choosing an affiliate program, following the suggestions above will help you to make superior business choices that will lead to long-term success.

Author Bio

Article by Kevin Sinclair, CPA, of Personal & Business Success Resources. Visit his website at www.business.ksinclair.com.

Article Source: http://www.ArticleGeek.com - Free Website Content

8 Invisible Risks In The Online Home Business Industry

Although this article is five years old it interestingly remains equally relevant today. Jon Allo really called out some risks to be aware of

When you start an online business it does involve more than putting up a website with a few products on it and then sitting back waiting for the money to magically start rolling in. So, if you want to start an online business from home, what are the risks that you need to look out for?

When you start an online business there it is more than producing a website with a couple of products on it and then waiting for the money to start rolling in like magic. So, if you want to start an online business from home, what are the risks that you need to watch out for?

1. Believing You'll Get Rich Quick.

Starting your own online business takes time, effort and resources. What you put in, is what you get out. There is no such thing as a 'get rich quick' system where you can do a few minutes work each day and earn millions in a matter of weeks.

2. Being Regarded As A Spammer.

Everyone on the internet has an email address that they check regularly and email marketing is one of the best ways to stay in touch with potential customers. But it is important that you get somebody's permission to send them emails, or else your online home business could be labelled as a spam.

3. Selling Poor Products.

One of the easiest ways to start an online business is with affiliate marketing where you sell other people's products or services. But not all products are created equally so make sure that before you start selling anything that it is a reputable and quality item.

4. Critics And Naysayers.

Friends and family do not always make the best business advisers. They can also undermine your efforts, whether it is deliberate or not. Separate your online home based business activities from your family and friends and look to join an online community of compatible entrepreneurs for assistance with your business.

5. Overwhelm.

There will be times when it can seem like there are too many internet home business opportunities to choose from and too many new things to learn. To avoid overwhelm, take some of the pressure off of yourself. All of this information you need to digest is not going anywhere. It's going to be here tonight, next week, and a year from now.

6. Poor Quality Traffic.

Every online home business needs traffic but traffic is nothing without conversion. So driving traffic is fine, but without a good conversion environment from a market that wants to buy, it's a waste of time and money.

7. Slow Website Loading.

The average person will give your page about 7 seconds to load and after that, they're gone to one of your competitors. The faster computers getFind Article, the less patience people have. Make sure your online business is hosted on server that guarantees fast load times.

8. Trying To Do It On Your Own.

The online business world is competitive and it is vital to keep up to date with the latest technology and you have to know what works and what does not work. Invest some time and resources in learning from others who have gone before you and had success.

Article source: http://www.articlesfactory.com/articles/ecommerce/8-invisible-risks-in-the-online-home-business-industry.html

5 Steps to Help You Build an eCommerce Store

In need of a reminder of how to get started in E-Commerce?
Susan Friesen gives us a great guide to get going

Let me know how you intend to get going (or how you first got started)


If you have decided to take the plunge and set up a web-based shop, starting an eCommerce business can be a rewarding venture but it can also be a stressful one. Here are 5 steps to starting an online business that will help make the process clearer and less stressful.

Your Guide to Starting an Online Business

Whether COVID-19 pushed you to pivot from a brick-and-mortar store to an online environment, or you’ve decided to take the plunge and set up a web-based shop, starting an eCommerce business can be a rewarding venture.

From 2017 to late 2019, approximately 28.1 million Canadians made purchases online. That’s a lot of people who are landing on webpages and whipping out their wallets if they like what they see. 

But there’s more to the process than buying a domain name and loading your site with products or services. There are technical aspects to navigate and content to consider.

Do you DIY with a website builder or hire a pro? Should you stick to SEO or focus on paid ads too?

As a small business owner, I’ve helped many clients create successful online companies. So I’m sharing this five-step guide to starting an online business with you to make the process clearer and less stressful.



1) Figure out what you want to sell.

If you’ve already got an established store, this might be a breeze. But if you’re just starting an eCommerce business and are focusing on products, you’ll need to think about what you’ll offer, and where you’ll get it from.

The first thing in figuring out what to sell and in what form is to ensure it’s relevant to today’s consumer. COVID-19 has made consumers much more in tune with their spending habits. Ensure there is a consumer first and foremost who is willing to spend their money for the product you aim to sell.

Next define how you want to sell your products. Here are just a few of the options:

Business-to-consumer (B2C): This is the most common business model, with many different approaches. Basically, you sell to the end user, but there may be a third party acting as a middleman (think Amazon).
Direct-to-consumer (D2C): From design and manufacturing to sales and promotions, the company does everything. Dollar Shave Club is a good example of a D2C business who started small and grew using this model.
Subscription service: Books, clothing, organic produce, baby gear...I could go on and on. Nearly every industry out there has harnessed the power of subscription services to deliver cost and time savings to customers on a regular basis.
Dropshipping: Rather than having to stock a warehouse full of products, when you sell a product on your site, you’re essentially purchasing the item from a third party, who ships it directly to the customer.


2) Buy a domain name.

If you already have a business name, this part could be simple. However, you’re not going to get a short and sweet dot com name unless you lay down big bucks. And you don’t want a domain name that runs five words long or is difficult for customers to remember (or spell).

Ideally, you use your company name like we did, with a dot com—or a dot ca if you’re in Canada. There are a lot of other TDLs (Top Level Domains) to consider such as .net, .co and .org but strive to get the revered .com as your primary domain if at all possible.



3) Build an eCommerce store

From incorporating branding into your layout to loading products/services, there are so many things to consider when you’re starting an eCommerce business, including:



Your shopping cart software. Shopping carts can be built with a variety of coding languages including ASP, PHP, JavaScript and HTML. They can be provided by a 3rd party service provider (such as Shopify) or installed in your Wordpress website like WooCommerce to avoid monthly fees.

Choosing the best shopping cart software requires a lot of pros and cons analysis of each choice. Many times the choice depends on your needs, your budget and the desired functionality.
The visuals (copy and images). How your store looks and feels to the shopper has a significant impact on whether they will trust making a purchase from you. Moreover, how each of your products are described along with using professional-looking photos can make or break a sale if not done properly.
Installing a Secured Security Layer (SSL) Certificate. This keeps your website secure and is mandatory in today’s online commerce environment. Even Google will favour your site’s search ranking if it detects an SSL installed.
Your shipping model. If you’re selling physical products, you need to decide how they are going to get into the hands of the purchaser. Are you sending customers items directly? Or are you using a third-party? Will you offer free shipping, or ship internationally? Do you want the shipping automatically calculated on checkout or will it be a flat shipping rate?
Your payment gateway. Are you going to accept only credit cards, or debit cards and PayPal too? Will you use a hosted gateway that takes people off your site to pay, then redirects them back, like our client Ripping Vintage Packs? Or is an integrated payment gateway more your style?
This is where it is so worth it to hire a professional web development company. You won’t have to spend your time Googling “SSL Certificates” or trying to set up shopping cart software. Learn how much cheap SEO and website design really costs you here.



~~~~~

READ: 3 eCommerce Challenges & Solutions for Tough Times


To call these “tough times” may be a bit of an understatement to you, or perhaps you’ve pivoted your marketing strategy nicely and aren’t negatively affected by the COVID-19 crisis.

There’s no arguing this pandemic has led to increased internet traffic as people work, socialize, and entertain themselves online.

That’s why I’m sharing 3 eCommerce challenges and solutions to help you maintain and even grow as an entrepreneur during this crisis.

Read more here.

~~~~~



4) Focus on SEO

Did you know that SEO has the highest ROI of any online marketing tactic? Despite this fact, many small business owners build their sites with very little consideration of how the search engines see their content.

SEO means doing keyword research to discover the keywords that your target audience is using to find what they need.

Your SEO strategy will be focused largely on on-page techniques like keyword-rich content and meta tags.

5) Create valuable content

Your customers don’t just want to see pages and pages of products, or a one-liner selling them services. They want you to be a trusted expert who can provide them with everything from useful tips to reassurance that their credit card info is safe.

Content marketing is an ongoing process. If you want to please your target audience and the search engines, you’ll need to be regularly posting articles, blogs and videos that are valuable to your audience.



No matter what your small business model is, you’ll need to keep testing and tweaking after you build an eCommerce store. You’ll want to dive into your data to see your customers’ behaviour, like:

Are they spending time reading your carefully crafted content?
Is there a broken link that’s causing people to abandon their shopping carts before they’re finished buying?
How many of your website visitors are converting into customers?
Of course, there’s a lot more to starting a web-based business than what I’m able to cover here! From promoting your business on social media to creating paid ads to drive traffic, you’ll want to have a marketing strategy in place as you move forward. But this guide to starting an online business will help you lay a solid foundation for a successful eCommerce site.



To your business successFree Reprint Articles,

Susan Friesen

Article source: http://www.articlesfactory.com/articles/ecommerce/5-steps-to-help-you-build-an-ecommerce-store.html

How I Started My ONLINE BUSINESS With LESS THAN $100

In a  week when I have featured entry tips into online stores, this video from Lyn Allure sets out some of the basics to get you going
Lyn Allure's video has received many comments from different perspectives.

She takes a very personable approach. How do you feel you could use her framework?

How to Find Products to Sell on Amazon: The Ultimate Guide

Amazon is one of the most well known companies in the world today.
It is also one of the best places to build your ecommerce business around.
But what about product selection for effective selling?

Dale Harris has investigated this and his article gives some great tips. What do you think?

When was the last time you were scrolling through Amazon looking for something to buy? There are loads of different options and an almost unlimited amount of products selling on this giant global marketplace.

But deciding what are the best items to sell on Amazon can be a nightmare with all this choice.

If you have a business or are looking to earn some extra cash as an Amazon seller, here’s all you need to know about how to find products to sell on Amazon.

1. Know Your Market

The most important aspect of selling online is knowing your market. You need to understand who you are selling to and what products they purchase.

When you understand this you can start to understand your competition and how you can conquer them.

One way in which the market can be divided up and the traditional way it has always been done is by country. An American customer might not necessarily purchase the same products as a British person or an Indian customer. A product that sells well in one of these markets might also not sell at all in another.

However, the rise of the internet and hyper-communication through social media has broken down these barriers to a certain extent. 

If you are selling for the female market – for instance, beauty products – then there are ethical concerns you need to consider about the ingredients that are used in the products and whether they were tested on animals and are vegan-friendly. Some countries also have different regulations on what chemicals are allowed into the products.

2. Sell Great Products Not Cheap Junk

It is easy to think that selling cheap products at low prices is the easiest way to make a quick buck on Amazon. But this couldn’t be further from the case. Customers are savvy and will soon stop purchasing a product if they feel it is inadequate.

Furthermore, most customers use Amazon’s review system to leave reviews of products for future customers.

Instead, you should focus on sourcing or even creating your own great products to sell on Amazon. You should do this even if you have to charge a higher price than your competitors.

Customers are willing to pay a higher price for a product if there is a clear justification or it offers something special and unique. You can easily generate excitement around these products with a clever marketing strategy. 

3. Choose a Product That You Can Market Well

Customers don’t always buy the product based on purely practical considerations. Often people buy a product because they are buying into the vision or the lifestyle that the product represents.

This is often down to clever marketing. The best products are ones that can be marketed well. Often they are simple and it is obvious what they do. 

Apple is a clever example. Ostensibly, their products are laptops, smartwatches and cell phones. But they cleverly marketed these products, suggesting that owning all of these products together is a lifestyle choice.

Those who own them can use them in tandem to have an easier and more fulfilled life, able to be more productive at work as well as in the gym and during exercise routines. Simplicity is the key to Apple’s message even though what they are selling are extremely complex products.

4. Do Some SEO Keyword Research

Another way in which people access products is not always through Amazon itself but through affiliate links and blogs and websites that have been Search Engine Optimized.

If you’re struggling to get your head around this then be sure to hire a company that specializes in amazon seo services might be of use to you.

Using an SEO keyword research tool you can help you see which products and keywords are currently ranking highly on Google. Once you have established what products are popular you can start to see where products that you want to sell might fit in.

Remember though SEO does take time.

Once you know where the products fit in terms of Google and which keywords you want to target you can then start to think about ways of increasing its profile on Google which will then lead to increased traffic to its Amazon page.

You can pay blog owners to include an affiliate link to your product along with the keywords that are likely to boost its ranking on Google and you can also extend this to social media as well, hiring influencers to help you.

How to Find Products to Sell on Amazon? Marketing is Key

The key to selling great products on Amazon is not just product choice but also great marketing. By creating a buzz around your product and ensuring that you are selling a lifestyle or a brand as well as the product you can start to build a loyal client base.

On top of this, you can then start to grow this audience through SEO. By ensuring your product ranks highly on Google you can increase the traffic to your product.

Part of SEO is also reaching out to other brands and websites to see if they can include an affiliate link to one of your products in their own blogs or content. Of they will want a small fee for doing this but it can be rewarding.

Finally, social media influencers can also ensure your product as a strong following on Instagram, Facebook, and even Pinterest.

If you are interested in learning more about how to find products to sell on Amazon or the best items to sell on Amazon be sure to check out the rest of our site.

Article source: https://www.articlecity.com/blog/how-to-find-products-to-sell-on-amazon-the-ultimate-guide/

How To Make Extra Money During Covid-19 Lockdown - Consider Affiliate Marketing

Back in April 2020 Gerard Mohamed wrote this article on using your lockdown time to get into affiliate marketing. By the end of June many countries were starting to come out of lockdown

Would you take his call to action at the end of the article?
Do you agree with his sentiments? 

The Coronavirus lockdown is changing every aspect of the world. In particular, people are realizing that formal employment will not be a future certainty and thus looking at how to make extra money during Covid-19. Massive job losses are certainly looming and alternative professions or additional revenue are now being looked. Most at risk are freelancers, contract workers and just about anyone one else with current and future cash flow challenges.

There are many professions that you can ultimately choose, but not all of them have an exceptional money-making potential. Everyone is yearning towards financial freedom, but most people don't put in the hard work to get it. Being an affiliate marketer is like picking any other profession, but the good part is that you don't have to work set hours in a confined space. As an affiliate marketer, you decide what needs to be done and you have complete reign over your company.

That's right, it's not a job nor a project handed to you from a company, it's a real business where every single rule is clear. You give the outcome to the product owner by making sales or leads and earn an income for what you do. This could be your perfect cushion to counteract the negative effect of Covid-19 job losses and reduced formal incomes.

If you have constantly considered getting into internet marketing, but didn't for numerous reasons, maybe you should reconsider it and get into it now. There aren't any other businesses that can compare to the easiness that affiliate marketing has. It can provide the financial freedom that you crave and get you to your goals if you know exactly how to do it correctly. In this article we will examine a few tips that can help you as an online marketer. Of course, there are many methods to achieve this, but these few suggestions will get you on your way.

• When you have identified your preferred affiliate products, make sure that you are exercising some degree of caution. Your reputation relies on the types of products that you choose.

So if you choose products just because of the high commissions, you will have to live with your choices. Do your homework and due diligence to choose products that your prospective clients will truly like. If possible, try out the product yourself, so that you are completely satisfied with it before recommending it to others. When you are confident that it is a quality product, you can advertise it knowing that it does not have any hidden blemishes or flaws.

• The entire affiliate marketing model is based upon honesty.

During the uncertainty and volatility of Coronavirus, it is essential that your marketing efforts are built on trust. You as an affiliate trust your product owners for the commissions you earn, while your prospects trust you for recommending the right products. It is vital therefore, that you realize how trustworthiness and successful affiliate marketing depend upon each other. When you become a source for trust to your prospects, you'll end up making many more sales and build a business that actually deliver results.

The only way that you will have a heads up on your competition is by gaining the trust of your targeted audience, so do all that you can to gain trust. As long as you continue to learn and put your knowledge into practice, your abilities as an affiliate marketer will grow, along with your earnings. You will have to put what you know to the test.

• The main thing is to take steady action, and not to get discouraged by setbacks.

There will be times when you will want to quit, but that's when you actually stick to it until you see results coming in. Under the threat of a potential global recession, it is important to have a plan B, that earn you extra money during the Coronavirus lockdown period.

Still looking for a reputable source of extra money during Covid-19 Lockdown? Stop being misled by online crooks who know nothing about Marketing During Coronavirus. Simply go to https://coronaviruslockout.com. This site will give you the plain facts on proven Work From Home programs to supplement reduced earnings from layoffs and job losses.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/10276162

�� Make Money From USA Products �� (NOT Chinese Products!) - Ethical, Non-...

Sarah on the Wholesale Ted channel makes some interesting points about sourcing products from non-Chinese suppliers.
Her focus is on the USA

Where do you source from? Where will you source from next?

[How To] Find Winning Products During Quarantine - Dropshipping 2020

How do you find winning products at any time, let alone during the 2020 quarantine?

Are dropshipped popular product sales a part of your e-commerce business?

If so, how do you decide which products to promote or how to set your pricing?


Watch this super informative video to learn more