Saturday, May 24, 2008
Copyright © David Barker.
This is one of my articles that was published in www.ArticlesEngine.com on 29th Feb 2008. It has some basic comments that will always apply to "newbies."
A lot of affiliate marketing programs offer complete marketing systems that claim to give the new marketer all the knowledge they need to succeed. The good ones certainly are comprehensive and easy to follow. The problem is that no one education system can successfully answer in advance all questions or problems that may arise for a newcomer to internet marketing. Once the E-book or audio file is downloaded, the newcomer is going to require clarification on some issues at the very least. Affiliate marketing may be the easiest and cheapest way to succeed on the internet but it can still throw up occasional challenges for some one starting out.
A family member or a friend may be regarded as a computer expert but there are potential traps to watch out for if you intend to use such a person.
The first thing to acknowledge is that the person you have in mind may be extremely busy. If they are a computer programmer, software developer or have any technical job in the I.T. industry then they may be very focused on their career. In addition they may be working on their own projects in their spare time. On top of that they may be in hot demand from all their friends and family to fix problem computers. Also, they may be knowledgeable in their field but they may not be interested in affiliate marketing.
How close is the relationship? A spouse or life partner may be more willing to help than a casual friend but don't assume anything. They may have the best intentions but they may be busy too. You may consider to offer a return favour if your support person is a friend or casual acquaintance.
The important thing is to not abuse the good will of your family and friends. They are more important than business success. They should be one of the reasons for your quest for a successful business. By succeeding in such a great business as affiliate marketing you can show the people you love the way to success.
This is why I recommend that you choose a high quality program that offers after sales support of some kind. 'Phone or chat lines are good but this may increase the cost of the program and not many affiliate programs can offer this sort of service 24/7. If you are with a good program run by genuine people interested in helping you succeed, then a support ticket system should be sufficient. If the records of your questions and the replies you receive are retained on the website under your affiliate number then that is a bonus as you can refer back to them for those technical details and you don't have to worry about them being mixed up with your other emails.
David Barker is a home based internet marketer and shares his experience on affiliate marketing.
To check out the "Automatic Money Machines" go to http://www.AffiliateMarketingOptions.com
Feel free to distribute this article in any form as long as you include this resource box.
About the Author:-----------------------------------------------------------------
To find the best Internet Affiliate Marketing Programs and
opportunities so you can work at home visit:
http://www.DavesAffiliateMarketing.com-----------------------------------------------------------------
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Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Creating quality backlinks and search engine optimization with the same keywords go hand in hand with giving your site a good search engine ranking for those keywords. The following are some important points to remember. (notice I only wrote "some." Search Engine Optimization is a topic too large to be fully covered in one blog post.)
Get good professional advice on how to optimize your site to your keywords, so that you are well inside what is considered acceptable by the search engines. That way you will not get accused of "spamming." If in doubt, err on the side of caution. commissioning a professional service is a good option for a lot of "newbies" if the budget allows it. Again I caution that you choose the service wisely. How many independant people have been satisfied using the same service? I am not talking about testimonials that appear on their website. This is where some internet affiliate marketing programs have an advantage. There may be a forum associated with that program that have other affiliates contributing. Be sure that it is a genuine recommendation and not someone trying to plug another service they are an affiliate of.
Once your site is optimized then you can start adding quality backlinks. By quality I mean links from sites that have a good Google page rank. Submitting to directories is one example. Picking a directory with a category that matches your product or service allows you to submit your site and description. Stick to the rules of each particular directory regarding submitting your site. Each directory is different but they usually don't allow adcopy or self promoting language. However the effort is worth it when you are accepted to as many as possible.
Writing articles and submitting them to ezine directories is another great way to get backlinks. If you use a good article submission service, then your article can end up being distributed to hundreds or even thousands of websites. Again I caution to stick to the guidelines and do not cross the line of what is considered spamming. If it is done right and done often, you can end up with thousands of sites with your articles on them with links back to your site.
These methods are more time consuming than those I wrote about in part 1. They also take longer to be effective because usually you only start receiving adequate traffic when you are listed on the first page of the search engines. This takes time if your target keywords are very popular, ( and of course unpopular keywords, or those no one searches for, are not worth pursuing.) The great advantage is that once you hit the first page of Google, Yahoo etc., you then end up with highly targeted traffic. Potential customers who are searching for your product or service, (keywords.) After all that effort not only do you receive highly targeted traffic but it does not cost anything, exept the time you have put in and the time it will take to add those quality links. The more work you put in the higher up that page you may go.
About the Author:-----------------------------------------------------------------
To find the best home based business ideas and
opportunities so you can work at home visit:
http://www.DavesAffiliateMarketing.com-----------------------------------------------------------------
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Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Starting a home business does not have to cost a lot of money. The internet has made it possible to start a low cost business that, with hard work full time or part time, can bring in a good income.
In fact there are many aspects of an online business that are free. One option is choosing a service business. With a service business a person is not going to have an inventory they have to maintain or the upfront costs associated with that. One point to keep in mind is that the service should be something that can be done completely online, such as writing services or advice services. This will ensure it is something that can be done with no investment.
It is also important to network. Networking will draw in business and get the word out about the company. A person can easily network with those who may need their services. It works like word of mouth advertising.
There are a lot of free services that a person can use, as well. If they feel they must have a website then a free website can work. However, with a service business a person can usually use someone else’s website and use them as an affiliate. You can even sell other peoples products and services without your own website by operating as an affiliate and referring your customers to other websites.
There are many websites offering free or low cost classified ads. Results vary depending on the product or service you are offering. Many internet marketing gurus warn that this method is a waste of time but I believe that if you keep your investment to a minimum, then it provides valuable experience for the internet marketing "newbie." Even if they don't make a profit from that sort of advertising, it promotes a change of thinking for the average beginner. They have to start thinking about advertising copy and what works and what doesn't bring in sales.
For a lot of products the most cost effective method of generating sales can be through methods such as article marketing and search engine optimization. I will explore these themes in part 2.
Dave Barker,
www.DavesAffiliateMarketing.comwww.AffiliateMarketingOptions.com
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Friday, May 2, 2008
Most people do not understand why it is so challenging to work at home. Unless a person has attempted to seriously build an online business from home, they cannot know the difficulties. Outlined here are the five biggest challenges to working at home. These issues can jeopardize any chance of success as an affiliate marketer unless they are recognised and addressed effectively.
Challenge #1
Time
A home based online business will give you complete "time" freedom. This makes it imperative that you manage your time efficiently. It can be easy to let time get away. It is also easy to underestimate how long a task or job will take and not allot enough time to get it done. It is important to develop a schedule for both work and free time.
Challenge #2
Boundaries
Many times family and friends do not take working at home seriously which can lead to problems with boundaries. It can be hard to tell someone ‘I am working’ and actually get them to understand and accept it. Family tend to assume you have time to go to the shops and pick up urgent groceries, pay overdue bills and run other errands. I know my family still do. To help with boundary issues a person should set aside the hours they want to work and make that clear to their family. Errands should be limited to a set day every week. Also an area in the home should be set aside that is specifically for work. When in the work area no personal phones calls or interruptions should be tolerated.
Challenge #3
Too much independence
Working at home is about freedom, but being too independent can lead to problems. Everyone needs interaction with others. One of the perks of working outside the home is interacting with other people. When a person works at home it can be easy to withdraw into that world and forget about the outside world. Networking is a huge part of working at home success and this includes online businesses. Every person who works at home needs the support of like minded individuals who are facing the same challenges. Online forums are good but human interaction provides support from a different perspective.
Challenge #4
Not switching off.
Having a "normal" job that you commute to has one advantage. It is usually easier to switch off when you have finished work. You arrive home and mentally you can disconnect with your job. This is not so easy with an online business working at home. Even if you have a separate office in the home, just walking past it can prompt your mind to things you need to do later or tomorrow. When you are just starting out you can be mindful of your lack of profits and the financial pressures. This becomes easier to overcome as profits start to roll in. Again, it comes down to setting boundaries. Only this time it is setting them within yourself and not letting stress take hold of you 24 hours a day. Hang in there. It is worth it.
Challenge #5
Lack of support
As mentioned before, sometimes family and friends will not be supportive. It is common for them to not believe a person is really working and that they are just messing around. In the early days my wife accused me of spending my time on this "hobby" instead of working a paid job. The way to combat this is to show them what is going on. A person should show what they do, how much money they make and make it clear that this is a real job.
These five challenges will be faced by most people who work at home. They are challenges that can be overcome, though, so they should never lead to a person giving up. Challenges will strengthen and teach important skills needed to survive in the work at home environment.
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