Advances in technology always bring new opportunities. The internet is no exception for it offers many excellent income producing opportunities–for the scam artists. When I was younger, you could make lots of money working from home just by stuffing envelopes or by selling small ads in the back of magazines. As I got older, multilevel marketing schemes were all the rage. Today, thanks to the internet, and with very little effort, you can rake in thousands of dollars a month in no time at all simply by signing up as an affiliate and putting up a web page. Sit back, wait and let the dollars roll in. Yeah, right.
As the saying goes, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Recognize the reality. While it is true that some people can make money very quickly from a new business idea, the fact is that to make any kind of decent money from a business, you have to put in the hours and you have to do the work. You have to put in the time if you ever want to make a dime.
Am I saying all affiliate marketing programs are scams? No. I am saying that if you want to make money as an affiliate, first realize and accept that you can earn some serious money, but not without commitment and effort on your part. Is this a business or a hobby, a part time interest?
If it’s a hobby, then whatever you do is enough. But if it’s a business, act accordingly. Identify your niche. Find products to sell. Promote yourself online. Work at it consistently, every day. Nothing happens unless you make it happen.
Once you make the commitment to go forward, approach the business in the appropriate way. Do some research. Make a plan. Where do you start and what do you need to know? Here’s a few things you should consider:
What type of affiliate program? There are a lot of programs out there, promoting different types of products, paying different commissions, targeted at different markets. Who do you want to reach? What type of product would those people want?
How much will it cost? If you pay someone to become part of their affiliate group, club or network–whatever they call it–who is really benefiting? A lot of the affiliate programs I see don’t cost anything to join, so why pay to become an affiliate? Maybe later on, when you are actually making money and can afford to pay for something, and IF there is a really good product with proven income potential, it MIGHT be worthwhile paying. Remember, though, this is a business, and a fundamental principle is, whenever possible, use earnings, not savings, to pay for expenses.
When do you get paid? Most programs pay on some regular schedule, i.e., every week, every month, etc. Some pay you regardless of how much you earn while others only pay you once you have accrued a certain level of earnings, say $100.
In the next post I’ll discuss some of the more detailed aspects of affiliate programs you should consider as well. Until then, go ahead and get started. It doesn’t matter how much you do as long as you do something. Here are specific action steps you can take:
- Buy a spiral bound notebook to use for jotting ideas and taking notes.
- Make a list of the types of products that are of interest to you. If you have no interest in your product, then eventually you will find your business tedious regardless of how much money you earn.
- Make a list of the people who would buy your product. On a clean page, write “Typical Customer” on top, then make a list of the person’s characteristics: age, gender, income level, occupation, hobbies, etc.
- Check out some of the websites of affiliate programs. There are many, but to start I recommend you try ClickBank which is one of the largest and most popular.
[...] the rest here: So You Want to Be an Affiliate? [...]
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Thank you for your comments. As to blogging, I can’t offer a comment on that. I don’t use blogger. Instead, I use WordPress on sites I own. I do this because I wanted to only use my website name on my blogs
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We should get in touch. Are you an active user on top social networking sites like Digg, Facebook, or Stumble Upon? If so, what is your username so we can get in touch to share ideas.
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Currently, I just post to Facebook and Twitter whenever I post a new post. The other sites I have to learn more about and use. I’m either Bruce Kaufmann or BKaufmann57 most places.
Email contact is bruce@bkaufmann.com
Are You Mapping Your Business on Google Yet
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Thanks.
T. Saunderson
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