If you want extra cash every month, you have to read this. You can start a part-time or full-time business simply by developing an affiliate network on the Internet. You will enjoy the comfort of working at home and be your own boss. However, this will take lots of determination, persistence, communication, and organizational skills to achieve success. Let me share with you the secrets of building your own affiliate empire with little or no start up cost.
Before you start you affiliate empire, you have to learn "who you are". Yes, this sounds weird, but you will appreciate learning who you are. What this question leads to may surprise you because if you are doing something that you really enjoy, you will do whatever it takes to wake up early or stay up late to get things done. Trust me. You will because you love what you do.
Once you know who you are and what you are passionate about. Now, you can narrow your "circle of interests" to golfing, traveling, reading, knitting, sewing, eating, drinking, driving, diving, or anything you name it. List out the top 3 of your favorite sports or hobbies - write down one idea on a piece of paper. And, you have three pieces of paper with three favorite things that you love to do.
Go to your favorite search engine (Google, Yahoo, MSN, and others) to search for the keywords on each piece of paper. For example, you search for "travel". You will find a list of websites. Try "discount travel" or "world travel". Visit these websites and see if they have an affiliate program that you can join for free. Yes, these affiliate programs are usually free. You don't need to pay a dime to join because you are doing a good thing for the company. You are going to help them to promote their website and bring in new revenues for them. Write down these websites and commission structure on the paper. Compare the payouts and find your favorite affiliate program. Sign up one or two affiliate programs only. Otherwise, you will have tons of emails drowning you in your Inbox. Now, pick one product in the affiliate program. This target product should give people unique value or help them to solve a problem. Once you determine your target product, you are ready to go.
Whether you have little or no money to start your business, here are three easy ways for you to become a super affiliate:
1. No Budget Approach: Start at zero dollars by searching through your "circle of friends", including your family, high school friends, college friends, co-workers, employers, neighbors, and many other people whom you have met and know in the past three years. Create an email list if you have their email address. Otherwise, create a phone list with name and where you met them. Create a one-page sales letter or promotional flyer telling them why this target product is great for them. List out all the benefits in point form. Send out this warm message to your circle of friends. You are not cold calling. You are simply telling them how much value you want to give them. If you have picked a great product that you believe in, you will feel good promoting it. Follow up with them by a phone call. Basically, you need to touch base with your prospects at least 3 to 7 times to close a deal. Never give up. Keep trying. This is the most cost-effective way to start your business with no cost. When you make your first few transactions, you are ready to switch to a low budget approach.
2. Low Budget Approach: Set up a niche website that promotes your target product. A niche website means that you will attract buyers with special interests. For example, someone who is looking for a specific thing, like Hello Kitty, Superman, Wonder Woman; or, a specific solution, like growing hair on a bald head, toning muscles on arms and legs, and losing weight after having babies. Developing your website is easy. If you have good computer and Internet skills, you should just set up your own website with good sales copy. Setting up a website will cost you $100 to $500 a year. There are many cheap web hosting solutions out there, but every additional web tool you want is a new add-on cost. So, choose wisely. Ideally, you want to have the ability to set up a website in 10 minutes, and have the freedom to manage it anywhere around the world with just an Internet connection. When you have your website up and running, you are ready to promote your target product to your online visitors and earn some cash.
3. High Budget Approach: Promote your niche website is the key to success. However, it costs time, money, energy, and resources around you. You should budget your money wisely to minimize risks and maximize profits. Online advertising can drain you lots of money if you don't know how to track and measure return on investment. The ultimate goal is for you to build your own contact list or mail list which you can use it time over time to sell your prospects or members on various products in your niche interest. For instance, you may start selling hockey cards. You grow your contact list in a few months and start adding on new products like hockey board games. Just an idea. Remember your mail list is your gold fountain with running water. Focus. Focus on building your mail list with name and email addresses. You can use search engine keywords (e.g., Google Adwords). Or, you can just gather leads through different networking events in your local community.
Becoming a super affiliate is a number game. You have to focus on two variables: product price and market reach. When you have a high ticket item, you don't need to sell as many to earn handsome cash commission. When you have a low ticket item, you will have to sell many to earn the same amount of cash commission. It is your choice to determine what type of product and price range you feel comfortable in selling. If I can make couple hundreds of dollars in one transaction, I think it's great because it saves me time and effort.
In terms of market reach, you will be successful only if you can reach lots of prospects who are interested in your product. This means you have to determine in learning whatever you can to promote your website to target customers and close the deals with bonuses or unconditional guarantee. You need to learn how to write the best sales copy, how to keep your website up and running, and how to manage your own accounting. When you become a super affiliate, you can hire a web assistant and an accountant to assist in all these tasks.
Take a minute to visit http://www.globalmcn.com and learn one of the most affordable web solutions and one of the best super affiliate programs in the world.
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Copyright © 2005 Dr. Vivian Lee, Global Marketing Communications Network, Inc.
Dr. Vivian Lee is the founder and CEO of GLOBAL MCN (http://www.globalmcn.com). She writes, coaches, consults and speaks about best practices to accelerate growth and success. She likes to inspire individuals and organizations around the world with value, balance, and trust. Her goal is to empower you, enhance communication, and enrich life. She is an expert in bridging the gap between the East and West, as well as the digital and real spaces in the 21st century. She has a Ph.D. in Organizational Management, major in E-Business; a M.B.A. in Marketing; and a B.Sc. in Biopsychology. Her research interests include Competitive Intelligence, Internet Marketing, and Cross-Cultural Communication.