You Don't Need Your Own Product

By Alice Seba
Posted Wednesday, December 29, 2004

A successful online business can be built at reasonable cost. Don't have a product? That's okay. A topical affiliate site might be the answer for you. This means you take your passion or hobby and turn it into profit. You don't keep inventory; you don't have to deliver or ship products; you just maintain your web site & enjoy being with your family. Even if you do have a product, you many want to consider filling out your web site with other affiliate products that relate to your site's theme.

I'm sure you've seen some grossly blatant affiliate sites with banners everywhere & pop-ups that just won't stop popping. These are not the way to make money - they just end up being kind of offensive.

Like I said, take your passion. For example, say you are really into photography. You don't have to be an expert, but since you are passionate, you will have a good knowledge base. You'll be surprised at what you learn from building your site around this idea. Include photography tips and articles. Build a newsletter and have your readers make submissions. Give your customers a reason to come to your site - outside of purchasing your products.

You will make commission from the affiliate programs, but don't simply paste banners on your site - you need to include these products (whether it be cameras, software, courses, books, magazine subscriptions etc.) in the context of your site. Do editorials on the various products and services - that way people will already be interested in the product before they click on the links.

Yes, you will likely spend some money promoting your site, but you can certainly do it on a budget. There are numerous free ways to promote your site. Just think of the money you save in gas, postage, paper and time by having an online business. The time alone is worth it!

About the Author
Alice Seba is the creator of (http://www.internetbasedmoms.com), the online home-based resource center for work at home moms. Receive great tips on building your Internet Business right into your email inbox by subscribing to her newsletter.