Generate More Sales In Any Affiliate Program Part Two

Writen by Gillian Tarawhiti

Incentive Marketing, Incentive Marketing, Incentive Marketing…

It doesn't matter that there are potentially thousands of other affiliates promoting the same program because from today onwards you are going to create an unfair advantage. Today you are going to learn some of the skills to becoming a SUPER INCENTIVE MARKETER.

And to be a SUPER INCENTIVE MARKETER you need to create an UNFAIR ADVANTAGE.

The advantage that is EXCLUSIVELY available through you, and ONLY you. I'm talking about the advantage that can't be found anywhere else. An advantage that if they want to buy the product because of what you are offering, they have to buy EXCLUSIVELY through you.

For those who are getting lost, let me give you an example from the real world.

Two weeks ago I was looking for a DVD/Karaoke player. My requirements were simple; I just had one criteria, – cheap. I found two players, from two different suppliers that fit my criteria, which were exact in every way.

EXCEPT…one supplier decided to create their own UNFAIR ADVANTAGE by offered a free microphone and a couple of free DVD Karaoke discs.

Now of the two suppliers, which one would you have chosen? And on that note I need to mention here that what works in the real world, works in the cyber world.

Today, right now in fact, you need to make a list of unique and exclusive advantages why the average Joe Schmo should order through YOUR affiliate link and not one of your competitors.

It is time to think outside the square….and let me tell you, you don't need a lot of money to create that UNFAIR ADVANTAGE. To start the creative flow of ideas, let me suggest something, that you, yourself, are a hot commodity, you're unique, you have exclusivity over yourself. Think outside the square.

Ok, now the rest is up to you. Watch out for PART THREE of this SIX PART series.

I'll leave you with the saying. If you continue to do what you have always done, you will continue to get what you've always got.

To Your Online Success!

About the Author: Gillian Tarawhiti, is Founder and CEO of Community Training Centre, an Internet Marketing firm providing Online Training and Support to the new and not so new netpreneurs. Gillian is also the author of eBay Billion Dollar Goldmine and the create of the Multiple Ripple Effect System © 2004 Permission is granted to reprint this article in print or on your web site so long as the paragraph above is included and contact information is provided to http://www.ezy-money.com

Build A Thriving Home Business Fast With This Powerful Secret

Writen by Michael Senoff

A few weeks ago I got a call from guy named Peter.

Peter is a hard working guy who is desperately looking for a way to make money at home.

He hates his job, has no formal education and has no idea where to start. The only "lead" he has on what to do is joint venture marketing which he read about on one of my sites.

In other words, he likes the idea of selling business A's product to business B (and vice versa), and taking a cut of the profit -- which is what joint venture marketing is.

However, he still didn't know where to start or what to do. He didn't know how to find product owners. He figured if he could find product owners, it would be easy to find out other businesses to sell to. Plus, he was worried he had no reputation and didn't know if anyone would really take him seriously.

I told him the solution to his problem was actually very simple. And if you are looking for a fast home business to start, you can use this exact same solution I gave him, too.

Here is what I told him:

I suggested that Peter try to acquire other older products by experts in a niche he was interested in and leverage off of that person's credibility.

For example, a few years ago I found an expert on buying businesses. I saw his ad on ebay. I emailed him, talked with him and asked if I could take a whack at helping him sell his business buying system.

He said yes, and I've sold nearly $100,000 worth of that product on my site and on ebay since.

And you know what?

You can do the same thing.

Search around online, in your home town, or on ebay -- and find an expert in a niche you want to sell to. Find out if they have a product to sell -- even if it's an older one. Get the rights to sell it and then start a simple business selling it.

This is one of the easiest and simplest home businesses you can start and make money with you will ever see. It's simple, it's fast and will work for you if simply do the steps.

Michael Senoff is a sought-after Internet marketer, interviewer and business coach with more than 50,000 students on four continents. For a limited time he is giving away free over 120 hours of in-depth audio interviews with some of the richest and most successful marketers, copywriters and business experts in the world at his famous website http://hardtofindseminars.com

Valueadded Reselling For Fun And Profit

Writen by Neil Anuskiewicz

Value-Added Reselling for Fun and Profit

The Pareto Principle (also known as the 80/20 rule) states that we get about 80% of results from 20% of our efforts; conversely, we get 20% of our results from the other 80% of our efforts. Of course, these numbers are not precise but merely a rule of thumb. The key is to do more of the 20% that gets results and less of the other 80% that does not get good results. Easier said than done.

How can we better apply the Pareto Principle in our business life? One obvious application is for us to focus our energy on what we do best, while simultaneously leveraging the efforts of other firms who are doing what they do best. We already naturally do that to some extent. If we are in sales, we generally do not do the accounting for our firm too. If we are an accountant, we do not design the software we use.

How can this concept be extended beyond the simple division of labor, and help us maximize revenue and profits? The key is to continue to do what you do best, while simultaneously leveraging what other firms do best. If you are a Web designer then continue to focus on designing. If you want to expand into other product or service lines, do not try to re-invent the wheel. Instead, find a good firm to partner with, and resell their services under your brand. They do the work; you reap the profits.

For example, a Web designer might enter a relationship with a firm that develops permission-based email marketing services. In the interest of full disclosure, I should mention that I work for EZ Publishing, the creator of the StreamSend email marketing service. This means that I can engage in shameless promotion, while at the same time help you by illustrating the Pareto Principle using an example I know very well.

The key to all this is to find an extension of your business that is a natural fit. If you are an accountant you do not want to extend your services to include pizza delivery. You would only expand your business in ways that make sense to you, and that enable you to build on what you already do well. Whatever you choose should also enable you to leverage your current client base. That is, it should be a service that your current clients are likely to want. You can find out what your clients want by talking with them, and even conducting formal surveys.

We find that Web designers often find synergy in reselling permission-based email marketing services because it fits the criteria outlined above. They have a client base for whom they have designed websites, and for whom email marketing is an appealing marketing tool.

Web designers mostly do project work which is great, though they often earn limited monthly recurring revenue. Reselling permission-based email marketing offers them an opportunity to earn more recurring revenue and more revenue per client.

Web design firms usually offer value-added services on top of the email marketing services, such as designing graphics and HTML email templates. Email marketing services typically serve as a foundation for these value-added services.

Firms that specialize in marketing services and consulting often sell the permission-based email marketing services along with marketing consulting, design, copywriting, and production. Often email marketing is just one component of an overall marketing plan - though the marketing firm often also sells email marketing services as a standalone, self-service product to earn passive recurring revenue.

The next step toward expanding your business in this way is to do some research on what your clients want. Then pick a service you want to sell and find a good partner in that sector. Try some experimentation, as not all reselling efforts will work well or fit with your business model. Do not be afraid to jettison reselling arrangements that do not work well after a reasonable time. Try something else.

For more on the Pareto Principle (80-20 rule), I recommend Richard Koch's The 80/20 Principle: The Secret to Success by Achieving More with Less or his other books on the topic. He explains how the 80-20 rule works, and how you can use it to achieve more both in your business and personal life. It really does work.

Neil Anuskiewicz is the Marketing Manager of EZ Publishing. In addition to developing custom web applications, EZ PUblishing is the creator of the StreamSend Email Marketing permission-based service. The firm also has an active email marketing reseller program.

Free But Powerful Ways To Make Money From Adsense

Writen by John Woon

Many in the internet marketing scene are making handsome income from Google Adsense. This includes not only established and well known websites but also relatively small sites and blogs. As the ads are related to what your visitors are looking for on your site i.e. they match the characteristics and interests of the visitors with your content, there is a way to both monetize and enhance your web pages.

Hence, AdSense gives website operators the ability to make money from their websites by displaying Google Ads. When your website visitors click on a Google Ad, you gain income from that click. Providing high quality content to attract your visitors is key to making money with AdSense.

There are now many sale pages in the Web offering their services on how to increase your income through Google Adsense but most of them charge some fees. However if you spend some effort to look around, you could chance upon some sites giving free tips and advice. The following are some of the things you could study for your own purpose:

1) Where you place your Adsense unit on your web page could be very important. There are a few possibilities.

1.1) Top Left corner - Depending on whether your site content usability or your Adsense ad revenue is more important, you may consider putting your ad unit here while putting your site navigation on the right hand side or vice versa. Some simple pages are known to be created solely to monetize that page through Google Adsense. In this case, the choice of left and right doses not really matter.

1.2) Top of the page – This is the best position as it is where the visitor's first impression or attention is drawn. Before he could scroll further down the page, we hope that he would click at the ad here!

1.3) The space at the end of the page i.e. following the main content - the reason for this is that we want to prompt further clicking here at the ad after the visitor finishes reading your main content and is leaving the site or looking for the next thing to move to. If the page is long, you can also consider putting ad units some where in the middle of the content.

2) You should take note that more ad units do not guarantee higher revenue. According to Google, ads with higher CPC (Cost or Pay Per Click) are having higher display priority. In fact, if there is lesser ad units in the page, most of the ads displayed would have higher paying rate.

3) Color of the ad is important to attract the attention of visitors. Some believe that it is best to blend the colors of the ad (ad title, border, background, links and text) with those of the main page.

4) To ensure that you get more clicks on the Adsense ad, you have to drive as much traffic to your site as possible. One way is to start writing articles and distributing them to ezines, article announcement lists and article directories. It is not too difficult to quickly build a strong list giving your sites a lot of visibility and exposure to potential visitors.

5) Make full use of your out going e-mails by putting your "signature" file at the end of each of your e-mails. Do not ignore this simple step and underestimate the power and potential effectiveness of this simple email signature. It could be one form of viral marketing because if your emails contain interesting and useful messages, they could get forwarded over and over again.

6) Take part in active discussion groups or forums. Any messages, questions, comments you leave in these forums are yet another route through which you could drive traffic to your Adsense page because of your signature file. Also, you would find a lot of new ideas in the forums on how to improve your Adsense income.

7) Exchange links with other websites to ensure that as many links as possible are pointing back to your own site. Better still, try "One-Way Linking". Although reciprocal links are useful, one-way links without you having to link back is more convenient and give faster results.

8) Post your site in thousands of online directories for free. There are many sites in the Web that allow you to add your site to their directory for free. The following are some examples:

http://www.dmoz.org/add.html
http://www.stpt.com/directory/addsite.htm
http://www.elib.org/how_add.php

Copyright © 2005 Sung-Liang Woon http://www.johnwoon.com

About The Author: John Woon (Sung-Liang Woon) is a Latex Consultant with about 30 years of experience.

1) Multiple Internet business opportunity SECRETS: http://easyhomebiz.blogspot.com

2) Hypertension and the Heart: http://hypertension2.blogspot.com

3) Diabetics' Valuable ONE-STOP Guide: http://diabetics-guide.blogspot.com

Affiliate Programs A Not That Easy Start To Your Own Online Business

Writen by Elena Fawkner

"Where is all the help I'm supposed to get. I have been buying ezine and classified ad builders and signing up for Echecks and Virtual credit cards. In the meantime I have no business and no ads set up. When does all this happen? Let's go here. I spent all day on this. I'm running out of time."

I kid you not, this is the sum total of an actual email that hit my inbox this week. Not only did I not know this person from Adam, this was the first and only email I had ever received from her and to this day, I have no idea what she's talking about. Presumably, she signed up for one of the affiliate programs I promote from my site and was asking, in her own inimitable style, for my help. Although I am always ready and willing to help anyone I can, this is most definitely NOT the way to go about asking for it. Needless to say, I let her know what I thought of her approach in NO uncertain terms.

The attitude displayed in this person's email to me (and she is by no means an isolated example) exemplifies why so many people fail to make a success of their online businesses. Leaving aside the utter rudeness of the approach, notice the impatience, the expectation to be up and running in a day, the HURRY, the apparent belief that real world principles such as courtesy and good manners don't apply online (they do). Think this person is going to last the distance? What kinds of tactics do you think she is capable of resorting to in pursuit of the almighty dollar?

So, let's take a realistic look at affiliate programs, what they can and can't do for your business and how to maximize your chances of creating a successful, long-term business with them.

WHAT IS AN AFFILIATE PROGRAM?

An affiliate program (also known as a reseller, associate, referral or partnership program) is essentially a revenue-sharing arrangement whereby you, the affiliate, receive payment from the owner of a product or service that you promote on their behalf.

Affiliate programs are an excellent way for the new internet entrepreneur to start an online business.

TYPES OF AFFILIATE PROGRAMS

There are various types of affiliate programs.

The most simple involves you, the affiliate, placing a banner ad, graphic or text link at your site which is linked to the site of the business you are promoting. This link is coded with your unique affiliate ID so that the site visitor is recorded at the target site as having originated from your site, thereby allowing you to be credited with the sale.

Payment is generally a fixed percentage of the sale value (commission) or "pay per click", where the affiliate is paid a certain amount for every time a site visitor clicks on the link at the affiliate's site, whether or not a sale is made.

The more sophisticated affiliate programs are multi-tier and allow the affiliate to earn commissions not only on the traffic they directly refer to the target site but also a proportion of sales generated by their sub-affiliates.

BENEFITS OF AFFILIATE PROGRAMS

The greatest benefit of affiliate programs is that when you are just starting out in your own online business you don't have to worry about creating your own product or service. You just promote someone else's and get a share of the revenue pie for your efforts.

You also don't have to concern yourself with warehousing, transport or logistics headaches. All of this is handled by the business whose products/services you are promoting. All you need concentrate on is driving traffic to that business's website. This means that a high proportion of your revenue is profit.

The owner of the product/service is also responsible for collecting payment, customer service and the myriad other details that come up on a day to day basis in running the business.

DISADVANTAGES OF AFFILIATE PROGRAMS

The main and obvious disadvantage of affiliate programs is that it is the owner of the product/service who earns the lion's share of the profit on the sale.

You're working on commission. You will NEVER earn by way of affiliate program commissions as much as you can earn by way of profits from producing and selling your own product/service.

As a result, affiliate programs represent a high opportunity cost when you consider what you could earn if you instead channeled the time and energy you spend on promoting affiliate programs into creating and promoting your own product/service.

For this reason, it does not make sound business sense to rely solely on affiliate program income for the longer term growth of your business.

Instead, think of them as a way of dipping your toe in the water when you're first getting started, and a nice little sideline once you've created your own product/service. Do NOT build your business around affiliate programs with the intention this will always be the backbone of your business. You'll be stunting your own growth if you do.

CHOOSING THE RIGHT AFFILIATE PROGRAMS FOR YOUR BUSINESS

So, keeping in mind what affiliate programs can and can't do for your business, let's turn to what you should look for when choosing an affiliate program or programs to promote in your business.

=> Synergistic Products/Services

First off, and this is a cardinal rule, only promote those programs which will allow you to create synergies with your site. This means selecting programs that naturally complement the subject matter of your site and that will therefore be of interest and relevance to your site visitors. This will ensure your prospects (ie your site visitors) are pre-qualified which will result in a relatively higher conversion ratio (the ratio of visitors to purchases) than would be the case if your traffic is untargeted (which will be the case if you promote unrelated products and services from your site.)

=> Quality In All Things

Keeping the need for synergy uppermost in mind, look for quality programs first and foremost. The last thing you want to waste your time, money and reputation on is a shoddy product or service. There are just too many quality programs out there to settle for anything less.

=< Stability of Company

Look for a company that's been around for a while and that's reputable and stable (both financially and in its management). Any reputable company will have full contact details readily available so do your research.

=> References

Look for testimonials and references from other affiliates. If the company you're interested is not forthcoming when it comes to putting you in touch with other affiliates, move on.

=> Affiliate Agreement

Look for a professional, considered and detailed affiliate agreement (contract). This shows that the company is serious about its business.

Watch out for exclusivity clauses and other restraints. Some affiliate agreements will require that you not promote competing businesses' products and services. This is not to say you should avoid such agreements. As a general rule, it is your interests not to promote competing programs anyway. Just be aware of what the agreement says on the subject to avoid getting yourself into hot water.

Look also for an agreement that treats spammers harshly. This protects not only the company but other affiliates as well. The last thing you or any other reputable affiliate needs is to have your reputation and the reputation of the product/service you are promoting besmirched by these sorts of tactics.

=> High Commissions

Promoting someone else's affiliate program necessarily requires that you divert traffic away from your site and towards someone else's. Make sure you're properly compensated with a high commission structure. And be sure to set up your link so that when the visitor clicks on it, a new browser window is opened for the target site. This at least keeps your site in front of the visitor so they can go back to your site once they've finished at the site your link has taken them to.

=> Lifetime Commissions

Look for affiliate programs that will credit you with not only THIS sale but all other sales the customer may make in the future. Many programs are set up so that the customer is identified as "yours" so that when the customer returns to the target site in three months time, the sale is recorded as having been generated by you.

=> Residual Commissions

Include programs that offer residual commissions in your portfolio. Good examples are webhosting services, autoresponder services and the like where customers sign up for a continuous service that requires periodic, regular payments. You receive periodic, regular commissions as a result.

=> Tracking of Commissions

Look for programs that allow you real-time access to your stats so you can keep easy track of your commissions.

=> Reliability of Payment

When checking with affiliate references, find out what the business's record is on paying out commissions. If they're slow or there appears to be a pattern of problems, keep looking.

=> Frequency of Payment

Make a note of payment schedules too. Some programs pay weekly, some monthly, some quarterly. Some only pay once you accumulate commissions of a certain amount. None of these arrangements are necessarily good or bad in and of themselves. Just be sure you know what to expect.

=> Programs that Require Payment Up Front

Two words: MOVE ON!

=> Affiliate Support

Finally, take a look at what support the business offers its affiliates to make sales. Do they provide resources such as sample ads, banners, logos and the like? Do they provide useful advice about maximizing your sales? A good affiliate program provides affiliates with a LOT of support in these areas.

MAKING MONEY FROM AFFILIATE PROGRAMS

OK, now you know what to look for in an affiliate program. Here's how to maximize your sales of those products and services and, therefore, your commissions:

=> Get Your Own Website

No ifs, no buts. DON'T rely on the you-beaut self-replicated job the company provides all its affiliates. Link to that site from your main site.

=> Get Your Own Domain Name

This presents a much more professional image. Many people won't give the time of day to a business that thinks so little of its prospects that the owner won't shell out 70 bucks for a domain name. So mean business and look like it.

=> Get Traffic To Your Site (Duh!)

As a rough guide, you will need at least 500 targeted unique visitors a day to your site to make reasonable money from affiliate programs.

=> You Must Have A Site That Will Attract Repeat Visitors

If your website is nothing more than a splash page consisting of little else other than banners for umpteen different affiliate programs, forget it. Your site must be worthy of your visitor's time and interest before you can even begin to think about converting that visitor into a paying customer. So create a real site with real content that will keep them coming back for more.

=> Personal Testimonials

A personal testimonial will result in more sales than a mere link or advertisement. So take the time and trouble to write a personal endorsement of the product or service you are promoting. And, of course, it goes without saying that in order to write a personal endorsement, you must know that of which you speak. NEVER promote a program you haven't first purchased yourself. If you don't think enough of your program to invest in it, how do you expect to persuade others to?

=> Promote With Your Sig File

Include a link to your site in the signature of every email you send.

=> Promote In Your Own Ezine

Finally, if you're not already publishing your own ezine or newsletter to stay in touch with your site visitors, start. It's a great way to promote not only your site but also the affiliate programs you promote from your site.

MAKING SERIOUS MONEY FROM AFFILIATE PROGRAMS

The only way of making SERIOUS money from affiliate programs is by creating your own product or service and recruiting affiliates to sell for YOU.

The affiliate program phenomenon is one of the Internet's true success stories. It provides a toe-hold for the would-be internet entrepreneur to begin a real, live business of his or her very own. But the real beauty of affiliate programs lies not in what they can do for you, as an affiliate, but what they can do for you, as a recruiter of affiliates for your own program. By all means jump on the bandwagon and start promoting other people's products to get your start. But don't wait too long to start developing your own product line. There is a ready-made salesforce numbering in the millions ready and waiting to sell it for you.

About The Author

Elena Fawkner is editor of the award-winning A Home-Based Business Online ... practical home business ideas, resources and strategies for the work-from-home entrepreneur.

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