When you are looking for a great way to earn a living that will let you take it easy at the same time, you will find that there is a good reason that so many people are being drawn to affiliate marketing. Of course, the problem with so many people getting involved with this sort of program is that there is more and more competition, and you may find yourself worrying about the best way to make sure that you get the attention that you need. If you are in a place where you are working with a major merchant, how can you compete with dozens of people who have the same zone or the same website that you do? The truth of the matter is that this is completely possible, so make sure that you think about what you need to do to stay in business and profit!
First, remember that you have to have your own website. You are not getting very far without a good one and you’ll find that this is an important part of your professional career. Another thing that you need to keep in mind is that people come to a website in order to buy and if they are thwarted, they can easily leave. Make sure that you have an URL on your site that will point your visitors to your page quickly and easily.
Keep in mind that you should have your own ad created. Many affiliate marketers will use the same ad tow or three times and because of this, they all end up looking alike. Take the initiative and ask the merchant if you can make your own ads. This is a great way to make sure that you are standing apart form the crowd. You’ll be able to encourage people to look and stay, and you will find that you have plenty of options that will let people realize how important and how varied what you are offering is.
The third thing that you need to think about is that you need to think about how to set your website apart when it comes to products. Remember that by offering products or services that you can’t get anywhere else, you are going to give your customers a very good reason to stick with what you have to offer. When you are looking to make sure that you stand out, you need to make sure that you know your demographic very well and that you can be a leader when it comes to giving them what they want on a consistent relationship.
The fourth step to standing head and shoulders above the rest is that you need to think about what you can do in order to have a real relationship with your customers. Just like with any other business, your customers are your bread and butter and you want to give them the best service available. Remember that you should never sell them a product that you wouldn’t buy yourself, so do some testing. This will let you sell a lot better than you could otherwise, and you will also find that this will let you give your customers an important amount of support that they might not be able to get otherwise. Remember that you should be totally honest about the product, both with flaws and with advantages. If you have the misfortune to discover that you were supporting a scam, stop, tell your customers and tell them what they have to do to get their money back. This helps you keep your integrity should the worst happen.
If you make a mistake, confess and make it better right away. Make sure that you are are picky about what you choose to put out there. When you are working with Clickbank, you may be tempted to start marketing anything that looks good, but when you focus your efforts and give your customers real quality, you are going to be able to stand out as a reliable niche market.
Remember that you should also look at a product in how it will make your customer feel. Is it going to satisfy them in a way that other products won’t? Remember that you are working for the customer, not necessarily the merchant, and you will find that you can get some real trust and some customers will give you their lifetime devotion.
There are many different kinds of businesses that are coming out all over the world in thousands of different niches. They are all fighting and clawing to the top and you will find that you need to think about what you can do to stand out. This isn’t going to happen all at once or even soon, but with hard work and determination, you can put yourself exactly where you need to be!
24 Comments
Bruno Auger
November 1, 2008I think thats why most affiliate marketers get discouraged quickly. They don’t relise that you do need your own website to promote things and just promote a standard affiliate page that everyone has already seen.
Its also cool if you can bundle some other products to give away as a free gift entice them into buying what your selling. I’vee sen alot of people redoing PLR products and redesigning ebook cover to make them uniqur products of their own.
Bruno Augers last blog post..Connecting through Social Networking
Gimme A Dream (Wynn Currie)
November 1, 2008This is an interesting article. I hadn’t thought too much about standing out from the competition and assumed that the copy from the merchant was professional and therefore the best. Actually, I had been told by one merchant that because he was a professional in the market, his copy was the best. I didn’t verbally question him, because I wasn’t looking for conflict. I was learning.
Gimme A Dream (Wynn Currie)s last blog post..HAPPY HALLOWEEN, EVERYONE!
Ronald
November 1, 2008I would really like to know how to make my blogs stand out.
Wayne Bell
November 1, 2008This article has served as motivation to my wife and I over the years and I’m hoping htat it may do the same for others.
Regards – Wayne
* 5 Qualities For Affiliate Marketing
More and more people these days are turning to one
of the most popular businesses around – the business
of affiliate marketing. In this business, there are
no bosses, deadlines to meet, or piles of work that
have to be finished by the end of the day. In
order to succeed, you only need the necessary
tools.
There are basically five things you can’t do without
if you want to make it in the business of affiliate
marketing. Below, you’ll find each quality you’ll
need.
1. Desire to learn
The first quality you must possess is the desire
to learn, coupled with the willingness to be
trained. Treading through unfamiliar territory
is tough indeed, especially if your lacking the
right knowledge. This is a combination of the right
frame of mind, coupled with a strong work ethic.
When starting out, you’ll need to be willing to
keep your eyes and ears open, using the experience
of others to learn more as you go.
2. Invest time and effort
The second quality you must have is the willingness
to invest time and effort in helping your business
grow, even if you don’t see immediate results. Even
though weeks may pass without hearing good news,
it’s very important for anyone who wants to get
their foot in the business world.
3. Determination
The third quality you’ll need is determination. If
you want to make it in the world of affiliate
marketing, you must possess to push yourself
forward. The ability to push yourself to greater
heights will determine what type of future you have.
4. Discipline
The fourth quality is self discipline. If you
teach yourself to work everyday with all of your
heart and soul, you’ll be that much closer to
reaching your goals and making your dreams come true.
5. Optimism
The last quality you must have is optimism. Bad
attitudes should never discourage an affiliate
marketer from pursuing their dreams in order to
make life better for themselves or anyone around
them.
The attitude you have towards the business should
always be good, because you’ll have to realize that
you’re the captain of your ship and your the one
steering it towards destiny.
If you put the above tips to good use, you’ll go
farther than you ever thought possible in the world
of affiliate marketing. You’ll need these qualities
to succeed, as affiliate marketing can be a cutting
edge career. With the above qualities, you’ll do
just fine in the industry.
Health, Happiness And Success
Wayne & Susan Bell
BELL’S HOME PROFIT NETWORK
“Searching The World To Bring You The Best Online”
http://bellshomeprofitnetwork.synthasite.com/
Terence
November 1, 2008I suppose this article is really about standing out among the pack of internet marketers promoting affiliate products, which is a tough way to make money for newbies.
I prefer to promote non-internet marketing products as the competition is less fierce.
Build a niche website with plenty of quality articles and do reviews of affiliate products in that niche. This has worked for me and many others.
By the way, I write lots of my own articles so that they are unique or use good ones provided by the affiliate product publisher.
I am not a fan of outsourced articles as they tend to use stilted English 🙂
Terences last blog post..Michael Rasmussen’s Get More Buyers – Review
Terence
November 1, 2008On occasion I have told some merchants that their products are not up to scratch or the sales page is amateurish. One thanked me for my feedback and had his ebook rewritten because of it.
So, don’t be shy to give honest feedback where needed. It helps to build a relationship with them.
Terences last blog post..Michael Rasmussen’s Get More Buyers – Review
Timothy Millar
November 1, 2008Hey Reed, I totally agree with you on this subject, You must stand out in a crowd,you must get noticed whether good or bad,hopefully good,
sometimes controversy sells!Make a name for yourself and the rest will follow. Say hello to
the family Reed, Timothy Millar
Timothy Millars last blog post..Why Article Marketing is Better
normz2
November 1, 2008Good article. It has everybody thinking. Some of the comments are very worth while. I do not think that I could improve very much on any of them.
tmobil8
November 1, 2008Greetings Reed, Thomas Richmond here, HPPY HALLOWEEN Buddy! Thanks fo rthe info, and yes whatever looks good to you dont go for it lol, decide the best of the crop that will pull in your customers and please if you can write an atrical about it and use that for sign ups! It is good to have your own website too, it keeps you ahead of the pack.
Arthur Webster
November 1, 2008Hi, Reed,
All that you say here has been borne out over centuries of commerce.
It’s called stating the bleedin’ obvious but in this day and age of institutionalised ignorance the bleedin’ obvious has to be laid out.
You did a great job of it.
Arthur Websters last blog post..Samsung HP-R5052 50 plasma TV $ 1000
Barry
November 1, 2008Sound advice once again Reed, thanks.
I personaly find it difficult setting out a decent landing page to keep customers interrested in the site.To me, writing an article is scary.Many people I have spoken to do not enjoy reading a lot of script on a site.
Should one then be using plenty graphic and banners or will that not be suitable for SEO?
Regards,
Barry.
Peter
November 1, 2008Hallo Reed,
some of your commentators think that affiliate marketing is a business that is running for itself, they can sit in a lawnchair and wait for the money. When it does not come there is a lot of whining cause they had given money into blatant saleslists where they where assured to make huge money. They don’t care about the costs for setting up the website find the competent hoster and pay month over month for subscriptions on the wrong ones when their biz starts running. They have no plan.
The 5 items of Wayne Bell could be summarized into one sentence If you have no OPTIMISM, No Ability to learn, No self Discipline and only a dream not being a clockworker any more when you start affiliate marketing then you should get out. If you can’t stand the heat please leave the kichen.
Reed you stand inside.
sincerely Peter
Peter
November 1, 2008hey reed, I mean the kitchen (If you can’t stand the heat please leave the kichen) to add to my comment the sentence “”” My reputation grows with every failure”””
sorry Peter
PV Reymond
November 1, 2008Hi Reed,
You touched a very important point.
When it comes to Affiliate Marketing you have a lot of people promoting the same product you are promoting, and it is difficult to make money.
You can have a website, you can build a list, etc, but it doesn’t finish here because most affiliates are doing this.
You have to think why people should buy from you and not from your competitors. You have to figure out a way to stand out from your competitors.
You have to study them and come out with something more powerful, something that your prospects appreciate and something that helps them to move forward.
You can give away bonuses, coaching sessions, etc. The point is to do more than your competitors and that your prospects see that you are adding more value than anyone else.
Thanks,
^PV Reymond
http://www.pvreymond.com
Slavica
November 1, 2008I don’t think i can make money doing an affiliate marketing.I have been involved in many of them, no problem i keep them yet,even i made my own web sites on their products, posted classified ads, submitted to search engine, had more then 900 visitors and nothing.
Something is wrong.By doing affiliate program you don’t make money/except a fey marketers maybe/,it serve more like a promotion for their products and your role is to make Traffic-not to make money.Only,people need to say that,it is not wrong especially for beginners,who learn,get some products for free.
So, Affiliate Marketing is not a way to make money.I write ,because i like books and reading and think ,I’m doing it the best.
My choice is self improvement,writing abstracts on my favorite masterpieces.Have two e-books and believe they are great and useful to self improvement and how to stay Young.
Find yourself in a field you like best,you can write,or to choose copywriting,Health,Sport, Home…what you are willing to,make a product on your own,or put free articles you get everywhere online,maybe connect with a company offline and more….
Slavicas last blog post..Long Live Witches
Asher
November 1, 2008Hi Reed,
That’s a useful article that you posted about being a good affiliate marketer and being a good affiliate marketer means better potential profits.
Asher
MoreMoneyToSpend.com/blog
Ashers last blog post..Success University: 30 New Courses Added To Learning Center in 12 Days
michael.f
November 1, 2008I agree you should consider who you are speaking to on the web. The other prominent factor is 90% of the people on the web don’t know how to market. So you mentioned this in your last blog, you always have to have a target. I think you working for both sides, you are the meat in the sandwich, on one hand the customer may be interested in the product but that should not be the issue, if you have focused properly, they should be calling you. On the other side the merchant may be a affiliate so you are the meat in the sandwich.
admin
November 2, 2008@Bruno thanks yes a lot of people would have greater success if they differentiated themselves a bit.
@Wynne for the newbie it’s hard to make something better but with testing and tracking you can make a better page.
@Ronald a combination of taking an interest in your readers, writing content that they want (not what you want), the right plugins and a great design can help a lot
@Wayne it’s a good article
@Terrance it’s great to see you having success in a non-internet marketing related niche. Keep it up!
@Timothy yep once you stand out it’s a lot easier to make sales
@normz2 it’s nice to see all the commentary on this blog 🙂
@Arthur thanks
@Barry I actually don’t worry about SEO. I figure if my content is good enough enough people will link to me and people will naturally find me.
@Peter thanks yes a lot of people need to work on their mindset in order to have success
@PV great points
@Slavica Stop right there… If you don’t believe you can make money then why are you here? You need to change that attitude right now or nothing I can do will help you
@Asher thanks
@Michael yes if your marketing is strong enough that they call you or email you that’s great. One of my businesses (JV Brokering) is strictly referral based and it’s very nice to have people approach you all the time.
delords
November 3, 2008Thanks Reed for the article.
The part i want to emphasize on is the one of building a good relationship or trust with your customer or leads.Let them know all they want to know and find possible ways of answering their questions also request them to ask you questions too so you can help them on them, building trust with them will keep them active on your list and they can easily buy any product you offer to them.
delordss last blog post..
Jussi Koiranen
November 5, 2008Great points once again
Ray Cassidy
November 8, 2008The advice in this post is absolutely sound, even if the English is a bit dodgy! Sorry, I’m an ex teacher and things like that jump out at me. What I didn’t spot in this post or recently, was anything about the importance of the hosting service you use. I looked at most of the commonly recommended ones when I was starting out and was about to bite the bullet with Host4profit, when I stumbled across IX hosting. Not the cheapest – not the glitziest, but blimey the support is excellent. Sorry this is a bit of a bald plug, but the post above just coincided with me trying “outsourcing” for the first time with a local community website I am developing.
My web page man has used “a Fast, Well Known Hosting Company” for some time and while he hasn’t had any significant problems in the past, an issue cropped up, his website was taken off-line within 2 hours of him being notified of a payment hiccup. He resolved his mistake (a payment card had expired); asked the company to get his site up again and the support service virtually washed their hands of him, even though he hadn’t done anything outrageous and had resolved the payment issue within about 6 hours of being notified. He’s UK based so he didn’t see the email till the following morning.
By contrast, he was well impressed when he needed some technical info about a weird sounding application called ioncube from my web hosts. Via instant chat I had some russian sounding guy called Vlad on the job and he had installed the application on my domain before the conversation was over! Now that’s worth paying for! In fact this is such a good company, I think I’m going to put this note up on my own blog, later today.
(I’m not entirely sure if it’s allowed, Reed but I’ll stick my affiliate link for IX here so people can check it out for themselves. Just chop it if you’re not happy to carry an extra link at this point as the link can also be found on my own blog).
All the best folks,
Ray
(LINK REMOVED- ADMIN)
admin
November 9, 2008@delords agreed trust is very important in business success
@jussi thanks
@Ray nice to hear you found a host that will take care of you
UK classifieds
May 2, 2009Hi there,
I’ve come across this UK classifieds website claiming to fight spam and scam ads. I don’t know if they manage to do this successfuly but they have a positive feedback on digitalpoint.com reviews (that’s how I found them). Anyway, that seems to be a good start in fighting scams on the Internet. btw, what do you think, will they change the world somehow? LOL
UK classifiedss last blog post..Legitimate&Well Paid Assembly Career from Home (London)
russ from.www.classadsuk.com
July 1, 2009thanks for an very enjoyable read
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