Jana Rudisill's Internet Marketing Savvy: Affiliate Marketing eCourse

Affiliate Marketing eCourse

Part 2

What You Need To Proceed And Succeed!

Q: What are the basic required tools I need?

A: Lets take a look at what I consider the basic tools you will need to get started:

1. A fairly recent, dependable computer (preferably a windows XP or Visa) with enough ram to allow you to surf the net without getting frustrated. You can get started with an older machine but an upgrade to a newer, more powerful model as soon as possible is advisable. This is your number one tool, so it needs to be able to do what you need it to do.

2. A broadband internet connection (Cable or DSL). If you intend to build a successful business dial-up simply won't do. You can start that way but something faster should be first in your budget, or you will be going nuts with slow page loads.

3. You need antivirus and spyware protection for your computer. This is NOT an option. There are too many malicious spyware and viruses on the Internet today to leave your computer unprotected. Remember, this is your business. You wouldn't expect an off-line business to close for the night and leave the doors unlocked. Don't leave your computer without the proper protection, or your business could be "shut down" involuntarily by malicious viruses or malware.

4. Stationary and supplies – Pens, papers, file folders, index cards, lined paper for planning, a log book, and a wall mounted appointment calendar are good for starters. You may also want to have a few re-writable CDs on hand for backup files (backing up files is also not an option - ignore it and weep. Um... yes, it happened to me - Once!).

That will get you started for basics.

Moving on...

Building Your Affiliate Business From the Ground Up

Budgeting Both Time & Money

Now that you know what an affiliate program is, how it works on a simple level, and have the tools you need to get started, you need to put your plan of action down on paper.

Sit in a quiet room with nothing to distract you. Take a clean sheet of paper and a pen and sit at a table or desk in a comfortable chair. Now begins the real task of getting serious about how you will proceed with your business.

Step #1:

How Much Time & Money Can You Spare?

The first step you must take is to determine just how much time you can spare during each week, and how much money you are willing to spend on your business. You have to realize that the more money you can afford to spend on your business (consider money spent as an investment in your business), the quicker you will build your business. On that piece of paper, write down the amount of time you can devote to your business each week, and how much money you can invest in it each month.

Realize too, that you can not hope to make a go of an online business if you can not spend at least 10 hours per week on it. You should also be able to afford about $25 per month as a very minimum investment.

If you can't do these two things, you need to face the fact that you are not in a good position to start an online business. It is close to impossible to forego either of the above requirements and be successful. It isn't impossible, but most people get plenty discouraged after 3-6 months and they don't see much progress.
Free marketing methods CAN be used to build a business online, but the average person won't stick with the program unless they see money almost immediatly. They simply lose patience and quit. Don't believe the hype that claims you can market and earn tons of money in just a few minutes a day. That is not reality, that is hype, smoke, and mirrors. I promised to be honest, and sometimes the truth hurts.

If you made it through step one and are still with me, we can go on to the next step.

Step #2:

What Knowledge & Skills Do You Have?

Now we have to decide what form your business will take. Remember to match your interests and skills to your business and it will be both more enjoyable and more likely to succeed.

For example, you wouldn't open an auto repair shop just because it is a good income generating business if you didn't know the first thing about car engines. It makes no sense at all! You would go broke in a heartbeat because you spent all your money on a building and necessary tools, and now you have no knowledge of how to proceed. You will not make money until you learn how to repair cars. In other words, don't jump into something that you have NO idea about.

Choose a business that you have at least a working knowledge of. If you love to garden, you have a working knowledge of gardening. Perhaps an affiliate product related to gardening will fit very well into your business model. Always look at what you have an interest in and what you have a working knowledge of and use those in your business plans, or you will spend way too much time on your learning curve.

Learning to market online is enough to have to learn. Trying to learn the necessary knowledge required to at least sound as if you know what you are talking about on a website in addition to marketing will be an extremely daunting task. Others who know more about the subject will know you are bluffing and click away from your site. Worse yet, they can comment and blog about your lack of knowledge on the subject. In short, if you don't have first hand knowledge on a subject, don't build your business around it. Your ignorance on that subject will show.

Step #3:

Choosing Your Business Niche

Ok, now that you understand that, lets talk about where to focus your efforts. Don't be swayed by things you see advertised online. No matter how cool they look or how many bells and whistles the product may have, the big money will be in your own niche. Concentrate your efforts on a small tight arena of what you like and what you know. That defines your niche.

Charting Your Course:

So, what actually grabs your interest? Remember that paper I had you get? You are going to need it again now. Make three separate columns on the rest of your paper. In the first column, list all the things you enjoy doing. It can be anything you enjoy doing. Fishing, sewing, knitting, hunting, horseback riding, motorcycle riding, etc. That's right, these should be things you look forward to doing on your days off and during your free time.

On the second column, list all of the things that you are experienced in. You can draw from courses taken, work experience, child care, hobbies, etc.

The third column will be the resulting answers you get from asking your friends and family what they think you are good at doing.

Anything that seems to have found its way into all three columns is a good fit - your niche - that you should research a bit more and seriously consider as a focus for building your affiliate business. You are now well on your way to a good start with a business you have a talent for and an interest in.

Basic Tools of the Trade:

Q: What are the two basic tools I need?

Tool #1 - Your Own Web site

A: There are two basic tools that you will need to get started. You will need a website and a way to gather subscribers.

Q: What is the importance of my own website?

A: The website will be your Online Office. No matter what niche you choose to use for your online business focus, your website will be your foundation for the rest of your business. It is here that you will add your content that people will be searching for on your niche subject. If you have properly optimized your site, people should find your website by doing a "search" for a keyword related to your niche subject (more on this later).

Q: What is all this fuss about content?

A: A word about content here: Do not slap up a page full of affiliate links and banners and call it your business site. These are commonly referred to as "link farms" and are frowned upon by search engines. They will not add your site to the search results when someone does an organic search. Your site must offer some informational content on the subject. Never use your business to "push" products. Give people who search for your niche subject a reason to stay and read some relevant information, or they will click away and never return!

You can direct them to a related affiliate program that you have decided to use by presenting it as a recommendation or a product review from someone who has provided relevant information on the subject. They are much more likely to visit the affiliate page if you have proven that you can offer good advice or information.

Q: Why is the web hosting company I use Important?

A: Your web site must be hosted on a reliable and stable hosting site. If you are uncertain, you can ask for a recommendation. I will provide some recommendations at the end of this lesson. These will be based on my own use of them in the past, as well as ease of navigation and use.

So, a web site of your own is one tool you can not do without if you want to be taken seriously as a business.

Tool #2 - A reliable Autoresponder

Q: Why is an autoresponder so important?

A: The second tool you need is a way to get people to market to. This is done by using an opt-in form that directs people into your autoresponder. This is a tool you can not hope to survive online without.

I know, some websites (inexperienced marketers do this a lot) have a "bookmark me" link at the top of their sales page so that people can ad them to their computer's bookmarks to visit later. Seriously, how many times have you gone to your bookmarks and visited all the pages you bookmarked? If you did, can you remember why you bookmarked it in the first place? Yeah, I thought so...

Bookmarking is great, don't get me wrong, but they may never come back for a look. Capturing their contact info doesn't take that much longer, and once you have that, you can send them info any time you want until they "unsubscribed".

For this reason, it it is very important to capture their name and email address (that is the minimum info you need) so you can add them to your subscriber list. The best way to do this is to offer something of value in exchange. You can offer a free eBook, an eCourse on your chosen niche, or a free trial of some kind that is related to your niche (if you have that option open to you to offer them).

Once you have them on your subscriber list, you can use it to your advantage in many ways. You can send them an "alert" about a blog post on a related niche subject, or inform them of a special deal you just found, or just send free tips on your subject. That way, they will remember you, your site, and the fact that you feel they are important enough to you to let them know about these things.

The most important thing to remember here is: Develop a relationship with your subscribers. If you just keep sending them hype and links to products that will earn you commissions, they will unsubscribe quicker than you can blink an eye. I know, be cause I personally have subscribed to a list and the list-owner kept sending out emails that looked like solo ads that advertised products. He never send tips, information or anything but ads. I unsubscribed in just three days! I had received about five emails from this person per day. All were ads. Just don't do it or your subscribers will leave quicker than rats off a sinking ship!

Q: What kinds of autoresponder do I need?

A: There are two kinds of autoresponders on the Internet: Free and Paid The Free ones are usually ad suported. In other words, you have to put up with ads being put in with your messages to your subscribers. This has two distinct drawbacks. You look unprofessional and your subscribers may be distracted by the ad that isn't yours. So, you are basically paying for a subscription by helping sell someone elses stuff and losing your sale to them.

The Paid autoresponders are usually good. There are only one or two that I would consider and I will add a recommendation to a couple of them at the end of this lesson. But...I found an alternative that is both free and has no ads in it. The only catch is that you are limited as to how many autoresponders you can have with the company as a free member, and how many messages you can store to be sent out in the sequence.

The upgrade for a lifetime of use is so cheap that anyone can afford it, and that is what I use the most. Unless you are familiar with setting up an autoresponder, it is a bit of a learning curve to set up the first time. Once you have mastered it however, you will be very pleased with the results. You also get a lot more than the autoresponder with the upgrade, so take a look and you will wonder how they can offer this! I have personally spoken with the gentleman who owns it, and can say that he is honest and reliable, and the service is top notch! Check it out by clicking the banner below and see what I mean!