An affiliate marketer might have all of the elements of success at their disposal. They could have all of the drive and the perseverance in the world, a clear understanding of how the business works, a great website which would really drive sales – if only anyone could find it!
No matter what else an affiliate marketer has going for them, he or she isn’t going to get anywhere unless they have one thing – traffic. If you can get traffic to your website, you have accomplished the most important task in affiliate marketing.
Getting the people who you want to see your website there is something which can be difficult, especially since affiliate marketing is a fiercely competitive business. The sheer size of the web and the number of people involved in affiliate marketing means that marketers must work very hard indeed if they are to stand out and rise above their competitors.
There are seven great ways to drive laser-targeted traffic to your website which can help anyone who has the determination to get ahead in the affiliate marketing business to do just that.
The first step to driving targeted traffic to your website is to make the most of how search engines work – they are the best way to drive targeted traffic for free, so you should certainly take advantage of what they can offer you. It is very important to have a high search engine ranking so that potential customers can find your site; using the right keywords is the way you can accomplish this goal. If your site can make it to the top of the rankings heap, it is very easy for web users to find – and this will mean much larger commissions for you!
The second step in driving target traffic is to get in touch with other site owners to ask about the possibility of link exchanges. You need to find sites which are related to your own in terms of content for this to have the best effect.
The third method is to start writing articles and other content which will spread the word abut you and your website. Readers always appreciate good content – this will more than likely make them interested in visiting the author’s website to learn more.
Fourth, there is joint venture marketing. This can be a very effective means of promotion. You partner up with other websites for a link or ad exchange. This helps both businesses to reach a wider base of potential customers.
Fifth, start your own affiliate program – if you have affiliates take care of all of the work, they can bring in a surprising amount of traffic to your site. You’ll see increased sales and affiliates and site owner alike will benefit.
Sixth, build up a list of prospects. You can contact these people from time to time and remind them about your business. Autoresponders and newsletters are a good way of keeping in touch with your prospects; every affiliate marketer who wants to make it big must do this.
Seventh, know your market thoroughly. To be able to get targeted traffic, you need to know exactly what will capture the interest of your target market. You can create a good customer base this way. When a potential buyer visits your site, let them know that the product or service is more than worth his or her time. Driving traffic to your site is a vital element of being a success in affiliate marketing. Like any other business, you should plan out every step of your strategy. If an affiliate marketer can get people to see what they have to offer, they have already won at least half the battle.
59 Comments
Tom Mansell
September 8, 2008Hi Reed,
That’s some great information there.
These tips will really help the new marketers.
Well done for posting!
Warm Regards,
Tom Mansell
Tom Mansells last blog post..A SPECIAL Thank You Message …
Pierce
September 8, 2008Thats a nice basic list. It should do for anyone to get more traffic.
Pierces last blog post..A new chance in marketing.
Michael
September 8, 2008Great advice with many strategies summarized into a great post.
This IS a great post for new marketers as Tom stated above. It’s a great blueprint to branch our from.
Bryan Hee
September 8, 2008I’m agreed with you that traffic is the “lifeblood” for affiliate marketing. Without traffic, you won’t get a single sales even you have the best products in the world or “attractive” website.
They’re two types of traffic.
1. Paid Traffic
-instant traffic and short term
eg. PPC
2. Free Traffic
-long term traffic
eg. Forum, blogs comments, articles and etc..
To Your Success
Bryan Hee
admin
September 8, 2008@Tom, @Pierce, @Michael thanks
@Bryan thanks, I agree there are definitely different types of traffic that will do different things for you.
Dennis Francis
September 8, 2008Great post.
The issue of traffic should also be analyzed from the vantage point of the intended market.
How big is the niche, how well serviced is the niche and how deep is the niche. Many new IM’s come into the market with the idea of selling their big product without knowing who really buys those products.
Reed lays out a solid and simple lesson in the basics of traffic development and management. Thanks again buddy.
Dennis Franciss last blog post..The magic of long tail keywords…
Nahid
September 8, 2008Agree with you on all the free methods of traffic generation mentioned, I would also like to add Social networks and forums traffic too. These can also be very rewarding.
http://www.explodeyourtrafficnow.com
Nahids last blog post..Learning the eBay “Lingo”
normz2
September 8, 2008The information is pretty much all the same. You have to keep working on it. norm.
Kenny Ritchie
September 8, 2008Great starting point Reed
I think the term free can be very misleading.
If you are willnig to work hard, network find some social networking partners that are likeminded and are looking to the long term.
Nothing in affiliate marketing is free. Even if you broker a deal to find jv partners are you promising a mailing at some time in the future? either tacitly or over the phone.
Posting in forums, digging article’s stumbling sites, commenting on social sites so your profile isn’t spammy all takes time.
Taking time to understand the nature of each community and how to interact to produce the greatest benefit for yourself.
(Yes the best source of traffic and free in the sense you don’t have to get your wallet out to do it… but you must be realistic and commit a certain amount of time, energy and potentially money to these sources to derive the best results.)
Kenny Ritchies last blog post..Is your signature file rubbish?
William Beck
September 9, 2008Hi Reed,
This is a great article which covers really good points of establishing
your web site to start climbing SER. Once your website starts climbing
the rankings a person has to KEEP DOING what they have been doing!
Willy B
http://www.my-family-money.com
damon
September 9, 2008Good info… for 2004!
Davion | Secrets Of Affiliate Marketing
September 9, 2008As usual, some practical, down-to-earth tips that rock!
Thanks buddy!
Ivan Marin
September 9, 2008AND YOU DAY MY LIES AND DECEPTION?
admin
September 9, 2008@Dennis I agree with you we really need to research our markets we go into if we plan to make real money
@Nahid you bring up good points social networks and forums are definitely powerful ways to get traffic
@normz2 it’s tried and true and good old fashioned hard work or outsourcing of techniques/strategies that work for others can work for you
@Kenny there are plenty of JV’s out there that wouldn’t require a reciprocal mailing. For me the best traffic has been JV’s and I’ve found the other methods to be too difficult to get the same amount of results that they provide.
@William yes once your web site gets good rankings for a few keywords it can rank higher for others that’s a great point
@damon it worked in 2004 and it still works today… try it.
@Davion thank you
@Ivan and how are these tips which work lies and deception? I’m not proposing you will have a sports car overnight like a lot of marketers will.
Adnan
September 9, 2008I agreed with your view.
It is like Just take care of your traffic business and your money business will automatically take care off.
Keep the good work.
Sandi Baker
September 9, 2008Reed;
I agree with your list. Those are important steps to follow.
Another person wrote about social networking which is also to be included.
I would add blogging to that list as well.
admin
September 9, 2008@Adnan traffic is only part of the equation you need to make sure the traffic converts (makes sales) if you can get the traffic to convert and are building your list then you really have a nice business
@Sandi thanks, yes those are valid points to include.
Ehsan Hashim
September 9, 2008Good Info, what stated here make sense alright.
Good for the newbies.
irfana kirmani
September 9, 2008Reed, What next?
Chris Imamshah
September 10, 2008Great post Reed. From my experience Content = Traffic so the more content ( quality and relevant) an Affiliate Marketer ( or any marketer for that matter) publicizes on the internet with links back to their site the better for them to drive traffic.
Thoroughly enjoying your blog posts.
Thanks,
Chris
http://www.fastinternetmarketingtips.com
admin
September 10, 2008@Ehsan thanks
@irfana stay tuned 🙂
@Chris I agree the more content you have pointing to you the more traffic you can get from the search engines. Oftentimes people will mention a forum post I did or a video or an interview with me or an article I have online when they call or email me.
Zane
September 11, 2008Reed
awesome steps , I would added them to my newsletter 😉
admin
September 12, 2008@Zane great thanks
undiagnosed
September 13, 2008It takes time but a little bit of advertising everyday makes a huge difference. Great tips thanks for sharing !
admin
September 13, 2008@undiagnosed I agree advertising can make a big difference if you are testing and tracking and have an offer that converts well with bought traffic
Fabian Tan
September 14, 2008Hey Reed,
This is an awesome list to get started with. Some of my main traffic generation activities come from this list (think JV’s, think article marketing!)
Great list 🙂
Fabian
http://www.ExplosiveTrafficSystem.com
Nan Woodward
September 14, 2008I have to agree wholeheartedly with your comments Reed.
Driving traffic is a work unto itself. Personally I think it is the hardest to effectively do.
Knowing your market is key along with the traffic issues.
thanks for another great article Reed.
Clare
September 14, 2008Your comments really help me a lot as a beginner. Thanks Reed.
W. Pat Peters
September 14, 2008Good basics Reed.
I also like to make short videos using a free version of Camtasia and/or my little webcam.
Using Windows Media Maker [comes pre-installed on XP]is also alot of fun. Transitions, credits,etc. I then upload the videos to 15 or 20 video sites. Get some traffic and backlinks too.
W. Pat Peterss last blog post..Search Engine Stuff
Alex - How To Build A Website
September 14, 2008Great article if I may add so.
I constantly state that the online world doesn’t care about flashy pretty web sites. The ugliest site that gets tons of visitors can make money online.
Those seven tips are remarkable, and one which every successful marketer lives by.
Alex
http://www.how-to-build-website.com
admin
September 15, 2008@Fabian you are a tremendous success for just about anything I can post on this blog. If you guys are looking for someone who knows his stuff check out what Fabian is up to.
@Nan yep traffic and conversions are probably the hardest thing for most people the answer to that problem is joint ventures and split testing
@Clare glad to help
@W. Pat videos can be good, it’s nice to see you having success with them. For me they don’t generate a ton of traffic but the traffic seems to be very high quality as I’ll get phone calls or emails from people who have seen them.
@Alex thanks, I agree ugly sites make money just look at Google, Yahoo, FaceBook etc… they are pretty ugly yet make a fortune.
Domingo Arenal
September 15, 2008Hi,
This is a typical Reed article – a great one. The “mantra” money is in the list is a proven principle embraced by every savvy marketer.
And having a targeted list is almost an assurance of cash coming into your pockets.
However, to create the list we must have traffic. And believe me! You know that everything comes down to your ability to generate traffic to your web site. Period.
So if you want to make a lot of money then you absolutely must know how to create a lot of traffic.
Regards and more success,
-Ding
For tons of targeted traffic
http://tinyurl.com/67a6zr
Pitogo, Quezon, Philippines
admin
September 15, 2008@Ding thanks I agree. I have a feeling we will be making a transition to list building articles at some point as it seems to be a recurring theme for us to mention 🙂
Afam Uzoechina
September 15, 2008Hello Reed,
I don’t how else to express my happiness when I find these post.
With the ever increasing cost of PPCs and other paid advertising costs which don’t even qurantee conversion.
Its really time we start looking at other options that are open to us.
Thanks
http://www.free-trafficsecrets.com
Afam Uzoechinas last blog post..How To Improve Your Search Engine Ranking
luca
September 15, 2008Hey Reed,
I’ve been doing alot of research on internet marketing and all the seasoned marketets tell you that the money is in the list, however traffic is the only way to build a list.
Beginners with not much of a budget can get traffic for free but must also realize that it takes time. Once some money starts coming in then we can utilize some payed advertising methods. The frustrating part is waiting for the results of your hard work to materialize
http://www.reachsuccessonline.com
Luca Di nicola
admin
September 17, 2008@Afam I completely agree my main source of traffic that makes me money is joint ventures if I were you’d I’d learn a lot about that.
@luca I agree that can get really frustrating, if I were starting over I’d look into participating in JV giveaways to build a list.
David Braybrooke
September 18, 2008Just to expand on your third step Reed, writing articles, I would highly recommend that any aspiring article writer heads straight to Ezine Articles.com!
The reason why I say this is that they are widely recognized as being the #1 free article submission service in the world!
If your Ezine Article/s are accepted then you are awarded ‘Expert Author’ status, an accolade that you can mention proudly on your website!
Article marketing can be a huge source of free traffic and for many is the number one method that they use to generate more visitors.
If somebody publishes your Ezine article on their website, your link will be visible at the bottom of the piece and can indeed be a source of a lot of traffic for you!
I also have had some success with using Traffic Exchanges in order to build visitor numbers; these site are much maligned by some but they shouldn’t be overlooked by any serious internet marketer!
I know that Reed and his business associate Guido N. use Traffic Exchanges at times to promote their products. Being on the number one team ‘LogiSurfers’ on the fastest growing online business community exchange, Trafficera.com, I can honestly claim that this site has netted me a lot of visitors. With some effort put in with your marketing, it is possible to rank highly on a site like Trafficera and improve one’s marketing visibility and presence! I am positioned near the top 20, out of thousands, in the member’s list on the site and receive many free bonuses and rewards every week by being so!
Thanks for reading and may you receive large traffic numbers to your sites!
Regards,
D. Braybrooke.
David Braybrookes last blog post..Join Trafficera.com for FREE Today!!
Bryan Hee
September 18, 2008Traffic is the most important factor to determine success or failure of online business. No Business=No Sales!
Check out 247 powerful techniques that anyone can use to generate endless amounts of traffic now!
To Your Success
Bryan Hee
admin
September 23, 2008@David good tips, thanks for sharing.
@Bryan I agree with you if you don’t have traffic you won’t have a business for very long.
Carl
September 25, 2008I agree with your last point. You must know your market thoroughly. Just getting traffic will not help unless you are able to provide them with what they want. You need targeted traffic and you need to know exactly what they want.
Carl
http://parentinghelpme.com
Carls last blog post..The Smart Kid…
admin
September 25, 2008@Carl yep it’s much easier to make money by targeting a specific demographic and giving them what they want.
Anthony Harris
September 28, 2008Reed,
I’m sorry to have to say that your other contributors are too ready to congratulate you, because there is a serious weakness inherent in one of your steps that appears to have escaped their notice.
You open your post with the statement that an affiliate marketer might have all the attributes required to ensure success, but still fails because no-one can find their site. You go on:
“No matter what else an affiliate marketer has going for them, he or she isn’t going to get anywhere unless they have one thing – traffic. If you can get traffic to your website, you have accomplished the most important task in affiliate marketing.”
We wade through the earlier recommendations, and as we approach the halfway point, you say:
“Fifth, start your own affiliate program – if you have affiliates take care of all of the work, they can bring in a surprising amount of traffic to your site. You’ll see increased sales and affiliates and site owner alike will benefit.”
Notice the words, “If you have affiliates…” This is where the difficulty arises.
Well, if you’re already relying upon other affiliates, and you’re still getting no traffic, then they’re probably having the same problems (unless they’re bone idle). So there’s no point in engaging yet more, because the process is potentially self-defeating.
It’s clear that your advice here is flawed.
With respect, I believe that instead, you should advise your readers to contribute a gift to one of the many giveaways running throughout the year, and build their list that way. Then it’s classical leverage all the way…do the work once, and get paid for it (in traffic) over and over again.
I strongly suggest your readers substitute this route for the current step #5 in their traffic-getting efforts. That’s why the giveaways thrive…because they work!
With kind regards,
Anthony Harris
P.S. My sites http://www.SenseiAnthony.com [blog] and http://www.netprofitsinsight.com are down just now [moving to a new host]. Bad timing I guess.
admin
September 28, 2008@Anthony giveaways can be very good, in fact a lot of my list has come from running giveaway events. However affiliates can be a very strong marketing strategy and yes it would require some work to get them going but you can build a very large business just off of affiliates/jv partners and never advertise.
Wayne Bell
September 29, 2008Another great article for beginners and all marketers looking to increase exposure, popularity and traffic. I recommend your readers also check out an article called “Importance of links”. It can be accessed at:> http://waynesusanbell.wordpress.com/2008/09/14/importance-of-links/#comments
There is also a link to “BHPN” where anyone can post a Link for Free.
To Your Health, Happiness And Success
Wayne & Susan Bell
BELL’S HOME PROFIT NETWORK
“Searching The World To Bring You The Best”
http://milliondollarlinks.synthasite.com/
admin
October 3, 2008@Wayne thanks for posting a link to another article that may be helpful to our readers.
Felix Makmur
October 8, 2008Great advices here on getting targeted traffic, Reen. Maybe I can also add other methods to attract traffic, such as setting up Squidoo lens, blogging, joining forum and also social bookmarking. But still there are couples of good tips here that I can apply.
Felix Makmurs last blog post..7 Simple Methods to Attract Avalanche of Targeted Traffic to Your Website
admin
October 8, 2008@Felix great tips, thanks
Ari Lestariono
October 30, 2008Hi Reed, nice thought of traffic, especially exchange links, is it possible we can exchange links?thanks in adavnce bro
Ari Lestarionos last blog post..Onions: Different Taste for Each Season
Dale Kydd
October 31, 2008Hi Reed,
A heap of great tips from all and everyone worth implementing.
Kenny Ritchies, Domingo Arenal and Luca’s comments are worth a second read.
One point I want to make here is that if a newbie is getting affiliates then they are getting traffic other wise how are they getting the affiliates? Come now who is slipping here.
I have not seen anyone mention emails if you get them then they can receive them from you.
No cost just time and this is the hardest part for newbie’s time and effort put in to their business but mostly PATIENCE. Do it the best way you can and get comments on your efforts alter in response to these. Follow good honest advice like you get in here and you will succeed but it will take time.
Thanks
Take care
Dale
Warren Brown
November 6, 2008I find that writing articles and by creating a network of websites and blogs as well as Squidoo Lenses is a great way to get Heavy Traffic to your sites.
Regards
Warren
revenue
November 15, 2008well i definitely agree with points say above , no traffic = no sales, traffic are the most important part to our business online
revenues last blog post..Professional Trade Show Exhibits From Gilbertdisplays
seho song
November 15, 2008These are great tips, article is probably the essential tool for the marketing online
Pat Gunning
November 24, 2008Traffic is the life blood of every business. It is what supplies you with the prospects needed that give you the opportunity to make the sale.
But take it from Reed and don’t pass up on the most important step in the process…
…and that is brand yourself!!!
Make you the reason that they come back. products come and go but you will always be there so become the expert and give plenty of free advice to your prospects and customers.
This is what makes Reed successful, it is what makes us successful and it will be what makes you successful too!!!
dan vervondel
December 16, 2008Thanks Reed,
Great summary.
Indeed, one needs a plan to grow traffic and to grow ones business.
In this article,I appreciate this direct step-by-step approach. I will have a further look into the different steps.
Cheree
January 4, 2009Reed,
What a great post! Not sure how I missed this one before. (Your side bar is a nice feature!) You are so right — it isn’t just TRAFFIC that we need, but laser-targeted traffic. If all you’re concerned with is the number of hits you can get, chances are, these won’t be responsive hits at all. You may get a conversion or two from the sheer quantity, but I think our time is much better spent getting traffic that is already “tuned in” to what we have to offer.
Cheree
http://blog.WealthBuildersSite.com
Cherees last blog post..WebProsperity Freedom Compensation Plan
eurosaros
January 7, 2009Great post Reed! I agree with that… that’s also what I’ve encountered as the biggest problem in my internet marketing venture. Sometimes it’s much easier to loose money than to earn it if you are using other paid types of advertising. The free ones like what you’ve mentioned are really the best!
eurosaross last blog post..How to become a successful online intrepreneur
robert santos
February 28, 2009That is really great. Gathering people with the same interest is really good. Thank you for expanding my knowledge.
robert santoss last blog post..Globe drops iPhone 3G Price by Php4,000
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