Affiliate Marketing - It's a Wonderful Life
By Rosalind Gardner
Posted Monday, August 9, 2004
Summer is over, and I'm on my way home.
I'm about to embark on a 4 or 5 day road trip from Toronto back to my home near the Rocky Mountains in Alberta.
The drive is about 3,500 kilometers (2,175 miles), but that's no problem in 'Cheshire', my fine German automobile. Mercedes' are incredibly comfortable. ('Cheshire' is so-named for the month-long grin that I wore after I got her.)
I'll be home long enough to catch up with friends, do some hiking, and get my year end business paperwork to my accountant.
After that I'll be off to British Columbia to buy another home.
Then back to Toronto for Christmas... followed by a warm weather vacation in January or February, and maybe the IAFMA (International Affiliate Marketing Association) cruise in April.
What's all that got to do with Affiliate Marketing?
Everything!
It's a good life.
No, it's a WONDERFUL life! and I thank both my lucky stars and the powers that be for the Internet and Affiliate Marketing.
If not for Affiliate Marketing, I'd probably still be an air traffic contoller, working godless hours and wondering how much longer my health would hold out.
Aargh. Bar the thought.
Being self-employed with an Internet business is SO much healthier and much more fun!
Basically, I just build a site, set up the pay per click advertising accounts then sit back and watch the checks arrive month after month and month.
Who would have thought business could be this simple?
OK, granted, I know it doesn't seem 'simple' when you're just starting out.
To build SUCCESSFUL affiliate sites, you have to decide between a full ecommerce package like SBI, or whether to build sites yourself using an HTML editor or pre-made templates.
Then you've got to choose a profitable niche, and find relevant affiliate programs.
THEN you'll have to choose between 2 dozen or more ways to get traffic to your site.
And because you know that it takes 7 exposures before people will buy from you, you also have to learn how to bring your visitors back to your site - again and again.
Phew!
Like anything, when viewed as a whole, the process may seem overwhelming.
But really, learning how to make m*ney with affiliate programs is like anything else you've ever learned.
You won't learn everything overnight, and you won't get get rich qu1ck. But if you take things one step at a time, your site will be earning fifty, one hundred, or five hundred per month and maybe much more, before you know it.
And that's when things get exciting! When you know how it's done, you can build many more sites, and earn much, MUCH more m*ney.
So what's the problem?
Why do so few folks make money with affiliate programs?
Well, for most of us, the hardest part is just getting started.
The biggest difference between those who achieve success online (or off), and those who do not, is ACTION.
Successful people DO.
If you REALLY want to learn how to make money online, you must decide that's what you're going to DO and then DO it.
Motivate yourself.
Really FOCUS on what you want - a new car, a new house or the ultimate adventure vacation.
Next, get an instruction manual and do what it says.
Do EVERYTHING that it says.
Before you know it, you'll be building sites with your eyes closed, earning more than you ever dreamed possible and buying the estate right next door to mine... or even farther UP the hill.
Do it! and keep working at it!
I'd love to have you as a neighbor.
About the Author
Rosalind is a recognized expert of affiliate marketing. Her ebook, the "Super Affiliate Handbook: How I Made $436,797 Last Year Selling Other People's Products Online" is a Clickbank #1 BestSeller and has received rave reviews from top Internet and Affiliate marketers.
Check it out at:
(http://superaffiliatehandbook.com)
