Making money in an unconventional way...AND I DON'T LIKE IT!!!

[derh]

See if you can follow my frustrations here.....

I have 2 groups of Amazon Affiliates Sites I am testing.

group 1:

Conduit Sites (I have about 8 of them)...

I Build these sites with targeted Keywords in mind for EVERY Product Page....

I have built 1000's of backlinks to these sites.....

AND....

Many are, if not on page one of Google...are darn near close...
(my google positions are...any where from 5 to 15 for most site pages)

RECAP:

TARGETED, 1000's of backlinks (yes showing on yahoo explorer), and in decent google positions... NOT best..but getting there....

All built and promoted since December 2010....

Sounds good right....WRONG....not one of these have MADE ONE SALE!!!

On the other hand....

I have these...what I call...HAIL MARY sites (have 3)...

I use a WP plugin like Reviewazon...

and I add about 10 to 15 products to them....

NO unique content...as it is pulled from Amazon

NO targeted Keywords...

No promotion of any kind (well except for one)...so not many Backlinks...

Each product page is NOT ranked

I built them fast..and threw them out fast....why I call them Hail Mary's...

Here's the Kick in the sack....

***I've made about 25 SALES on these Stupid Sites since December***

RECAP:
No Focus...does Not follow the rules...in fact...they defy them...

It kinda Pisses me off...as this was not my intention...

The sites I spend hours (and a lot of money) researching, building, promoting....DON'T MAKE SALES...

My Crappy WP Plugin Sites...takes a few Minutes to build....NO focus...
And Make the Sales...

I really want to make my Conduit sites work.....

As I feel they are more quantifiable and I can control them better

Any thoughts as to why this happens.....????

[yukon]

To be honest my crappy looking Adsense sites make most of the $$ for me.

I have a couple of really nice looking sites with clean looking themes that rank better in the SERPs.

Still the ugly sites pull in more $$.

I really think people click more on ugly looking sites, I've never understood why, but that's the way it is for my own sites.

[iAmNameLess]

Originally Posted by yukon

To be honest my crappy looking Adsense sites make most of the $$ for me.

I have a couple of really nice looking sites with clean looking themes that rank better in the SERPs.

Still the ugly sites pull in more $$.

I really think people click more on ugly looking sites, I've never understood why, but that's the way it is for my own sites.

I have noticed ugly sites make more money as well. I don't understand either.

[oogyboogawa]

Just a thought, but it could have something to do with the keywords you're targeting. Are they buyer keywords or are they more the type of thing you would type into Google if you are just looking for information?

That's something I've been figuring out more lately. There is nothing wrong with informational keywords but you might get better results out of Adsense for those particular sites (at least worth a shot?).


I assume you're getting at least semi-decent traffic, but are you getting traffic and no clicks on your links or traffic and clicks but no sales?

[ibagayan]

Thats a pretty puzzling story you tell. I've been trolling around these forums and I've heard the same thing. People give the reason that ugly things stick out more, therefore people click on them.

Disheartening to read, but at the same time, you're luck you were able to pull those 25 hailmary's

[4morereferrals]

Quality Content is king :-)

Its freaking frustrating man i tell you ...

I was comparing some adsense sites - since im tying to make a go of that ave ...

Sites i ve spent 100's on articles graphics themes plugins et all to make it all uber adsense atteactive - authority stylie ...

18k exact local search volume and i have a double listing on page 1! and spots 9-15 for several other terms.

- pulls the long tail traffic and all - clicks - not so much - ANGER ...

then this guy shows me some crap ass , 1 post on the front page - ugly as sin pea green colored tripe bucket ... $10 a day!!!!

< 1500 exactl local and a mere $.85 cpc ... arrrggghhh ...

... its stupid ... nuts .... and maddening

I feel where your coming form dude ... ive decide

[Craigerz]

I created a crappy WP site for Ed Dale's challenge program with just some adsense links and only 1 original article. It's been doing nothing but posting the content pulled off the internet using the auto content posters since November of last year. It never got any higher that page 20. I think it's on page 25 now. I honestly have not even touched the site in about 3 months. It has 8 sales as of last check...


EDIT: Just checked it again...made another sale...go figure...

[Jonathan Beaton]

Originally Posted by iAmNameLess

I have noticed ugly sites make more money as well. I don't understand either.

Ugly sites make more money because users don't like what they found and click through to another site.

Think about it.

You are searching for something and click through to a site. You don't like what you see but you see an ad targeting what you are looking for. You then click the ad.

I am however not promoting this method, it is not a great long term strategy because the ceiling is much lower. (nor am I saying this is what happened in this situation, just what I have seen happen from personal experience)

That being said, I am a bit confused. You said your ugly sites were not ranking, where is the traffic coming from?

[mandark]

I'm sorry that your junk sites are doing better than your real site.. I have had similar experiences, and I feel your pain.

Is it possible that it's not the traffic, but the content of your website which is the problem? Even if a million people view your site, if the content isn't good (bad grammar, not descriptive, etc.) you won't make any sales.

[derh]

Originally Posted by oogyboogawa

Just a thought, but it could have something to do with the keywords you're targeting. Are they buyer keywords or are they more the type of thing you would type into Google if you are just looking for information?

That's something I've been figuring out more lately. There is nothing wrong with informational keywords but you might get better results out of Adsense for those particular sites (at least worth a shot?).


I assume you're getting at least semi-decent traffic, but are you getting traffic and no clicks on your links or traffic and clicks but no sales?

My Keywords are directly connected to the products:

For Example:

I'm selling the mixer:
KitchenAid K45SS Classic 250-Watt 4-1/2-Quart Stand Mixer, White

my KEYWORD is:

KitchenAid K45SS


Because it has the highest yield of monthly searches....

So...I think my keywords are buyer keywords.....

[derh]

Originally Posted by mandark

I'm sorry that your junk sites are doing better than your real site.. I have had similar experiences, and I feel your pain.

Is it possible that it's not the traffic, but the content of your website which is the problem? Even if a million people view your site, if the content isn't good (bad grammar, not descriptive, etc.) you won't make any sales.

I don't think in my case....

My Conduit Sites....the ones I worked hard on are in my signature...

They are also a result of personal coaching...by a very respectable affiliate coach on the warrior...

[derh]

Guy's one of my conduit sites are in my sig....

Check out the Stand Mixer Reviews.....

This is based on the Conduit Method and the one I had training with.....

Please take a look and critically tell me what you think...

[TomScarn]

I can think of two reasons why this is happening..

1. Your targeted sites are not targeting those "oh so crucial" buyer keywords. If you are targeting a keyword like "free pie", you probably wont sell any pies. It's pretty obvious why you won't, no one searching for something free is going to end up buying it through your link. With that being said, I don't know your exact keywords so I can't say that this is the reason.

2. Someone already said this but those ugly sites are just asking people to click to pretty links they see. Think about it. If you're at a website which is ugly and doesn't seem to provide the right value, then you'll probably click the nice looking link.

My advice, stick with the "Hail Mary" sites if they are working best.

[derh]

Originally Posted by TomScarn

I can think of two reasons why this is happening..

1. Your targeted sites are not targeting those "oh so crucial" buyer keywords. If you are targeting a keyword like "free pie", you probably wont sell any pies. It's pretty obvious why you won't, no one searching for something free is going to end up buying it through your link. With that being said, I don't know your exact keywords so I can't say that this is the reason.

2. Someone already said this but those ugly sites are just asking people to click to pretty links they see. Think about it. If you're at a website which is ugly and doesn't seem to provide the right value, then you'll probably click the nice looking link.

My advice, stick with the "Hail Mary" sites if they are working best.

Please...

Take a look at the Stand mixer site....

I don't see that it's not targeted...then again I'm clearly biased...so

...an UN-Baised opinion might be better..

[yukon]

Originally Posted by derh

Guy's one of my conduit sites are in my sig....

Check out the Stand Mixer Reviews.....

This is based on the Conduit Method and the one I had training with.....

Please take a look and critically tell me what you think...

That stand mixer WP-theme is the theme I updated (look at the CSS header)

I found a hacked link in the theme from a WSO, that was the only thing I found wrong on that Amazon WSO. Looks like he passed the WP-theme on to the rest of the people he worked with.

[thebitbotdotcom]

I hate to say this, but my experience has been that the quality is what brings traffic and the crap pays the bills...

[derh]

Originally Posted by yukon

That stand mixer WP-theme is the theme I updated (look at the CSS header)

I found a hacked link in the theme from a WSO, that was the only thing I found wrong on that Amazon WSO. Looks like he passed the WP-theme on to the rest of the people he worked with.

You found a hacked link?????

Can you please clearly...sorry not a computer guy

Is something illegal in my theme...

The theme...isn't a premium or bought theme...anybody can download it for free...

[yukon]

Originally Posted by derh

You found a hacked link?????

Can you please clearly...sorry not a computer guy

Is something illegal in my theme...

The theme...isn't a premium or bought theme...anybody can download it for free...

No, not on your site, your theme is good to go.

I did that Amazon WSO when it first came out, & I told Michal about a link in his theme that he was running about the theme having bad links (spam) in it.

Your running the clean version of the WP-Theme, so your ok.

When that WSO first started I fixed the theme & sent Michal the clean version that you are running now.

[derh]

Originally Posted by yukon

No, not on your site, your theme is good to go.

I did that Amazon WSO when it first came out, & I told Michal about a link in his theme that he was running about the theme having bad links (spam) in it.

Your running the clean version of the WP-Theme, so your ok.

Okay..ya had me worried

Ya micheal is awesome...still helps me today...

That's why this is frustrating...

His way is the prime way...

my crappy Reviewazon sites are the easy way...and make my sales..go figure

[Craigerz]

After looking at your review sites here's my take:

Usually, when I want to make a purchase over the internet and it's something I want to read reviews about, I go to the retailer site, and THEN open a new browser window to search for reviews. I've never clicked through a review site and purchased something I was reviewing.

That's just my 2 cents...for what it's worth.

Also, your sites are competing against other sites that review consumer goods, correct? So they aren't really competing in the same product micro-niche as the products being reviewed, correct? So for say, portable generators, you aren't competing with portable generator retailers on the first page of google, you're competing with product review sites on the first page of google, right?

Just my 2 cents...I could be wrong...

[paulgl]

Quality is not king when it comes to amazon products. The trick
is to make a page that is easily found by buyers, not looky-loos.

A page that attracts buyers will get a sale more often than one
that provides boat loads of good information. If I want to buy
fuzzy bedroom slippers, I don't want to know the pros, cons, reasons,
history, or any other such nonsense. I'm looking for the product.

That's why online retailers take the top spots by default. Google
wants to send people to sites that make sales. Have you seen the
item page in nextag? Lousy to the IM eye, but sweet to a buyer.

Adding to the mix is that some products attract more buyers. Some
products attract more readers.

Paul

[Jeannie Crabtree]

I would suggest you hyperlink Kitchenaid Professional 5 Plus in the first paragraph or two
instead of the click here to buy at the top and put that hyperlink Kitchenaid Professional 5 Plus at the bottom as well.

People speed read. Your Click here to take advantage and view original review here may not push their button as much as a link to the actual product they are looking for.

Look at your other pages and sites. What keywords they search with needs to be hyperlinked for them to follow through on that keyword.

Jeannie

[derh]

Originally Posted by Jeannie Crabtree

I would suggest you hyperlink Kitchenaid Professional 5 Plus in the first paragraph or two
instead of the click here to buy at the top and put that hyperlink Kitchenaid Professional 5 Plus at the bottom as well.

People speed read. Your Click here to take advantage and view original review here may not push their button as much as a link to the actual product they are looking for.

Look at your other pages and sites. What keywords they search with needs to be hyperlinked for them to follow through on that keyword.

Jeannie

Thanks Jeannie....

So, put the hyper in the actual paragraph....instead of a stand alone link...

I will put that in...can't hurt

Wow...That's why I love this community...great stuff guys...always valued!!!

[Lee MacRae]

Okay... a lot of people are going to jump all over me but I believe a lot of this content is king stuff is just crap in a lot of instances.

Type in credit cards and Google returns websites from companies wanting to give you credit cards. Most of these sites have very little content. Try it with car loans or home loans and the same type of websites dominate the SERPS... sites with little content.

Now search for "what is a credit card" or "what is a home loan" and you get all kinds of "content" sites.

The question is... if you want a credit card... or a home loan... do you want to read a bunch of information on it or do you simply want a credit card? Google seems to assume you want to buy or get something unless you type in a phrase that suggests otherwise.

Try it with "used cars" or "oak desk" and you usually get websites wanting to sell these physical products at the top of the search results. Other than Wikipedia links, you seldom will get websites filled with a ton of content on the first page. Yea, you will get some but not as near as much as Google would like you to believe.

When you're typing in physical products Google always seems to look at them as buying keywords. If Google was really so concerned with making sure that "content is king" why don't they go through and manually penalize any website in the top of the search results that doesn't have a lot of information? They sure kick the crap out of any little guy making a "thin" adsense site! Google seems to be a lot more concerned with the need for "quality content" when it comes to adsense than other types of websites. They may go through and kick the crap out of "thin" affiliate sites every so often but the search results are still filled with websites that want to sell and not provide a lot of information.

My crappy websites do better as well because I think if people are looking for reviews or information they are not necessarily in a buying mood. If you have a great review website then you might be able to convince somebody or presell and get them to buy. I have built websites with a lot of great information at the front [just like Google said to] and people still seem to enter indexed pages with just a few words and a "buy button"...and they do!

Call me crazy but I think there's a lot of Google propaganda out there!

[netlexis]

Originally Posted by derh

Thanks Jeannie....

So, put the hyper in the actual paragraph....instead of a stand alone link...

I will put that in...can't hurt

Wow...That's why I love this community...great stuff guys...always valued!!!

After Jeannie's comment, I went back to look at the site and I realized what was missing for me. That call to action, like an Amazon style button. On those other sites where you're using the the Amazon plug-in, there a "click here" or "buy here" button, right. Of course, this is just my two cents because I'm trying to figure all this out, too.

[derh]

Originally Posted by netlexis

After Jeannie's comment, I went back to look at the site and I realized what was missing for me. That call to action, like an Amazon style button. On those other sites where you're using the the Amazon plug-in, there a "click here" or "buy here" button, right. Of course, this is just my two cents because I'm trying to figure all this out, too.

To me...your right...you would think BIG call to action buttons should work....

But from the beginning of my IM journey....Everybody told me to NOT use buttons...because they don't convert as well....

Strange I know but....Conversions are higher when you use text links...

Funny Ol' World

[RustyF]

Originally Posted by iAmNameLess

I have noticed ugly sites make more money as well. I don't understand either.

I've often wondered about that. If you make it ugly and provide AdSense will they click them just to get away? Maybe....

[JackPowers]

Took a look at your mixer review site and a few thoughts:

The site is pretty boring looking, looks too much like a blog. Either invest in a better theme/header/graphics or strip it down to a plain one column page. Basically, there's nothing on your site that makes me want to stay for 2 seconds. Look unprofessional. I always include a custom header for micro sites.

Not enough opportunity for the quick clicktrough. My personal experience says long reviews don't convert much better than short ones. Again, my experience, is that it's better to make each page VERY simple in what you want to achieve. ONE goal which is not consumer information but click through. Amazon's site is supposed to convert, get them over there the fastest. In other words, make the product images center and a big BUY HERE or READ MORE button along with a price tag. Or make a matrix that briefly lists and compares differences.

Long reviews are for Clickbank products imo. Some people will say otherwise, but I've should espresso machines worth $5,000 with nothing but a product image to a shop and a call to action.

Last, I would stay away from items that are easily available everywhere. Let's face it, a mixer can be bought everywhere and isn't expensive enough to save money on. An Italian espresso machine or wet shaving kit is much harder to find.

I did the same mistake earlier on, don't go for everyday consumer goods, they won't sell.

[junilerick]

I understand your need to make quality sites as I can get a little OCD with these kinds of things myself. Making crappy websites is almost like living in a messy room and it can feel really draining. I guess what you need to take from this is figure out your priorities. Are you in this primarily to make money or eye candy? Just my two cents.

[mscee]

Originally Posted by derh

See if you can follow my frustrations here.....

I have 2 groups of Amazon Affiliates Sites I am testing.

group 1:

Conduit Sites (I have about 8 of them)...

I Build these sites with targeted Keywords in mind for EVERY Product Page....

I have built 1000's of backlinks to these sites.....

AND....

Many are, if not on page one of Google...are darn near close...
(my google positions are...any where from 5 to 15 for most site pages)

RECAP:

TARGETED, 1000's of backlinks (yes showing on yahoo explorer), and in decent google positions... NOT best..but getting there....

All built and promoted since December 2010....

Sounds good right....WRONG....not one of these have MADE ONE SALE!!!

On the other hand....

I have these...what I call...HAIL MARY sites (have 3)...

I use a WP plugin like Reviewazon...

and I add about 10 to 15 products to them....

NO unique content...as it is pulled from Amazon

NO targeted Keywords...

No promotion of any kind (well except for one)...so not many Backlinks...

Each product page is NOT ranked

I built them fast..and threw them out fast....why I call them Hail Mary's...

Here's the Kick in the sack....

***I've made about 25 SALES on these Stupid Sites since December***

RECAP:
No Focus...does Not follow the rules...in fact...they defy them...

It kinda Pisses me off...as this was not my intention...

The sites I spend hours (and a lot of money) researching, building, promoting....DON'T MAKE SALES...

My Crappy WP Plugin Sites...takes a few Minutes to build....NO focus...
And Make the Sales...

I really want to make my Conduit sites work.....

As I feel they are more quantifiable and I can control them better

Any thoughts as to why this happens.....????

Can you tell me which plugin you use that is like reviewazon?

[TomScarn]

Originally Posted by derh

Please...

Take a look at the Stand mixer site....

I don't see that it's not targeted...then again I'm clearly biased...so

...an UN-Baised opinion might be better..

Derh,

I checked out the pages you have listed in your signature (any chance you used Dan Brock's program?) and you are completely right. It appears that you are targeting some good keywords. I also checked out the rankings for one of your posts and it's on page 1 (#9) and the keyword gets about 1,300 searches a month. With this being said, I don't believe that it is the quality of traffic to these sites that's affecting your sales. My suggestion may be to input a "Buy Now From Amazon" button next to the ratings system. The text links look nice but it doesn't entice the visitor enough to get a click (unless you're getting a high CTR but no sales - then its either a Amazon problem or you're presale just isn't working). Make sure that you highlight the selling points of the products too. e.g. Highlight and underline all texts like "Save 33% now on Amazon.com".

Hope this helps and good luck!

[TomScarn]

Originally Posted by derh

Please...

Take a look at the Stand mixer site....

I don't see that it's not targeted...then again I'm clearly biased...so

...an UN-Baised opinion might be better..

Originally Posted by RustyF

I've often wondered about that. If you make it ugly and provide AdSense will they click them just to get away? Maybe....

Have you ever done this? I sure have. That back button just isn't as close as the adsense ad