Newbie to Affiliate Marketing

Banned 13 years ago

Originally Posted by heevyhivy

If I want to do things correctly, how do I choose between Wealthy Affiliate, or Warrior forum?

Hi - welcome to the forum.

It's not necessary to choose between them. Many Warriors are also members of Wealthy Affiliate. I'm not one of them, so I have no first-hand experience of it, but I believe that some people here have got started that way, and it's a perfectly valid approach (if perhaps a little expensive, for what it is, if my second-hand information's correct).

Originally Posted by heevyhivy

I know basic HTML & CSS

You know more than I did, when I started.

Originally Posted by heevyhivy

Is it possible to be an affiliate marketer through an alias (i.e. not using my original name)?

Yes, definitely.

I'm an affiliate marketer, involved in 8 different "niches", for which I have 8 different websites under 8 different pen-names. I promote ClickBank products, and ClickBank knows my real name (so they can pay me my commissions). I promote my websites through "article marketing" and in each niche, when writing articles, I use the same pen-name that matches the one used on its corresponding website. Many affiliate marketers do the same. (Alexa Smith happens to be my real name, but this is one of very few places online where I use it).

Originally Posted by heevyhivy

Where can I find out more about this career from a UK approved body or society?

This one I don't know (in spite of being in the UK myself). What do you mean by "UK approved"? Do you mean "government approved"? Are offline businesses like Marks and Spencer "UK approved"? Help me out with this one and define your terms a little more?

Thanks

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Timothy Nagley Banned 13 years ago

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Giani

13 years ago

Welcome to the forum.

Many people start IM business / career with Affiliate marketing, usually Clickbank. Everyone has different approach to promoting Affiliate products.

You have an advantage of knowing html / css, photoshop and musician. These will help you in IM business.

I have used both methods of promoting affiliate products: free and paid and have got success in both methods.

You can start here and can make decent amount of money.

Just a friendly suggestion, choose one method and spend good time in perfecting it and you will succeed.

.

Thanks
1 reply

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AbsolutNewbie 13 years ago

I have used both methods of promoting affiliate products: free and paid and have got success in both methods.

You can start here and can make decent amount of money.

Just a friendly suggestion, choose one method and spend good time in perfecting it and you will succeed.

.[/QUOTE

Given the vast amount of information out here, it is mind boggling. Can you be please be specific and recommend some methods?
- Thanks
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heevyhivy

13 years ago

Thanks for replying guys!!!

I've realised I was misinformed before I got here, misled to believe Warrior forum was full of angry people who are either scam artists interested in selling newbies their products or just advanced failures who dont like newbies asking basic questions. I guess theres alot of forum bashing on external platforms.

Alexa, I meant to ask, where can a beginners guide from a UK service, or atleast one trustworthy place on the internet that honestly and accurately introduces and describes what Affiliate Marketing actually is and what I need to do to get started, almost like a job profile.

For example, what does niche mean in context? Is it only used for article marketing?

Giani, where can I find free methods of affiliate marketing?

- Thanks

Thanks
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DireStraits

13 years ago

Originally Posted by heevyhivy

I've realised I was misinformed before I got here, misled to believe Warrior forum was full of angry people who are either scam artists interested in selling newbies their products or just advanced failures who dont like newbies asking basic questions. I guess theres alot of forum bashing on external platforms.

Not at all. Not everyone here is selling stuff to newbies, if to anyone at all.

I've been here for over 3 years, and in that time I've never had so much as a sig-link, and I've never, as an affiliate or vendor, sold anything to anyone in the "Internet Marketing" or "Make Money Online" arena, nor do I plan to.

Whilst there may be some seedy individuals here (aren't there everywhere?), it's completely unfair to tar the entire forum and all its members with the same brush.

Originally Posted by heevyhivy

I meant to ask, where can a beginners guide from a UK service, or atleast one trustworthy place on the internet that honestly and accurately introduces and describes what Affiliate Marketing actually is and what I need to do to get started, almost like a job profile.

There are many good sites out there with comprehensive information about all aspects of affiliate marketing.

However, good luck finding anything too "official" or accredited by a recognised body.

If you want to get started, you'll have to read up, learn whom to trust and listen to, and ask the right questions.

(Or - yes - buy a product or two recommended by those who actually know what they're talking about and aren't just trying to feed you crap, and who preferably have no financial incentive in recommending that product to you, if you're sceptical.)

Originally Posted by heevyhivy

For example, what does niche mean in context?

A niche is just a small section of a larger market.

"Learn guitar" might be a market, for example, whilst "learn left-handed Hawaiian steel guitar" might be a niche.

Originally Posted by heevyhivy

Is it only used for article marketing?

Not at all.

Thanks
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heevyhivy

13 years ago

Okay, I hear you daymokay, so if yuo dont recommend I get into click bank just yet, what do you suggest I do. Where can I find recommended afiliate technique websites, guides or forum threads that can give an outline or step outline for what I need to know, how to get started in a comprehensible way?

Again, I'm interested in free stuff only at the moment, if I can make it work free, then I can do it with putting my own money in.
I currently have a blog (and it has a niche) which I put about 6 posts on in the last 8months. But theres no traffic and Im not so sure thats going to get me my free affiliate marketing goal up and running.

Thanks
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Alexa Smith

Banned 13 years ago

Originally Posted by daymokay

-I dont see any reason why you can't be successful using alias names

You mean Mr. Straits and yourself might have other identities, too? Shock horror ...

Originally Posted by daymokay

-I received coaching from 2 american mentors not a UK approved (if this exists) and their main focus was building a list

You were certainly well served, there.

Originally Posted by heevyhivy

I'm interested in free stuff only at the moment

There's (literally) only one problem with that, as an approach: it would be a huge mistake to use a free autoresponder, and quite a big mistake to try to build any kind of affiliate marketing business for long without an autoresponder.

Originally Posted by heevyhivy

if I can make it work free, then I can do it with putting my own money in.

This may be a self-defeating proposition, Heevyhivy: it may be that without an autoresponder you can't "make it work free".

Originally Posted by heevyhivy

I currently have a blog (and it has a niche) which I put about 6 posts on in the last 8months. But theres no traffic

Well, there are a thousand threads here on traffic generation you can read.

(You already realise that 6 posts in 8 months isn't worth talking about, right?).

And I'm sure there'll be a lot about it at "Wealthy Affiliate" too, and you've joined that, you say?

Have you tried using the forum's search function to identify threads in the Main Marketing Forum which have the word "Traffic" in their titles?

There's a lot to learn here, and spending some time experimenting and learning how to use the search function can be hugely valuable - really.

Thanks
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DireStraits

13 years ago

Originally Posted by Alexa Smith

You mean Mr. Straits and yourself might have other identities, too? Shock horror ...

Ssshhhh, don't tell anyone I'm actually Mark Knopfler: I'll have newbies left, right and centre squeezing me for startup capital.

(Plus, that whippersnapper in the avatar is way cooler than me and draws in all the chicks.

)

Thanks
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myob

13 years ago

Originally Posted by heevyhivy

I've realised I was misinformed before I got here, misled to believe Warrior forum was full of angry people who are either scam artists interested in selling newbies their products or just advanced failures who dont like newbies asking basic questions.

Dapper is as dapper does.

My real name is Jim Edwards, and you will find folks to be real friendly, helpful, and honest here.

First, I would highly recommend you buy my book Turn Words Into Traffic (turnwordsintotraffic.com)

This really draws in the chicks.

It's only $39, available through Clickbank, and shows how you can get thousands of new visitors to your website... Fast!

This simple traffic machine creates an instant avalanche of free website traffic ...and no, it ain't involving pay-per-click, spam, ffa links, banners, "safe lists", complicated search engine tactics, classified ads, or any other crazy traffic scheme!

And you can't lose with my 100%, ironclad, 8 Week Money-Back Guarantee. Get it today!

Includes truckloads of free bonuses ... whiles supplies last. Hurry, buy NOW!

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Alexa Smith

Banned 13 years ago

Originally Posted by myob

This really draws in the chicks.

Not to mention the checks.

(Shhh ... I told you not to mention the checks ...)

Originally Posted by DireStraits

I'll have newbies left, right and centre squeezing me

Sorry; political comment isn't allowed here. Not even for squeezers/squeezees ...

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larkykid

13 years ago

Originally Posted by Alexa Smith

I'm an affiliate marketer, involved in 8 different "niches", for which I have 8 different websites under 8 different pen-names. I promote ClickBank products, and ClickBank knows my real name (so they can pay me my commissions). I promote my websites through "article marketing" and in each niche, when writing articles, I use the same pen-name that matches the one used on its corresponding website. Many affiliate marketers do the same. (Alexa Smith happens to be my real name, but this is one of very few places online where I use it).

Hi Alexa, does that also mean when you're promoting to your list, you have the 8 different pen-names in your autoresponder? I haven't used an autoresponder yet, so wanted to get a bit more insight into the whole list building process.

Thanks
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Alexa Smith

Banned 13 years ago

Originally Posted by larkykid

Hi Alexa, does that also mean when you're promoting to your list, you have the 8 different pen-names in your autoresponder?

Yes; exactly so.

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larkykid

13 years ago

Originally Posted by Alexa Smith

Yes; exactly so.

Also, do you use a generic paypal email address for all your payments in case a customer from any of the 8 niches wishes to pay using paypal from the clickbank order page or do you actually set up 8 paypal accounts to take payment? I thought maybe payment always shows as your primary email regardless of how many extra email addresse's you've added to your paypal account.

Thanks
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Alexa Smith

Banned 13 years ago

Originally Posted by larkykid

Also, do you use a generic paypal email address for all your payments in case a customer from any of the 8 niches wishes to pay using paypal from the clickbank order page

ClickBank is a retailer.

If customers buy a product from ClickBank, they pay ClickBank, not the vendor or the affiliate. They can pay ClickBank by credit-card, by European debit-card or by PayPal.

ClickBank then pays vendors and affiliates separately - but not by PayPal.

Originally Posted by larkykid

or do you actually set up 8 paypal accounts to take payment?

No - you're allowed only two PayPal accounts in your own name: a personal one and a business one. You can't open PayPal accounts in pen-names. (You can open in them business names, I think, as long as the business is a separate legal entity with its own bank account, and so on).

You don't actually need a PayPal account at all, to deal with ClickBank.

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larkykid

13 years ago

I was getting confused as to how it all linked together, so thanks for clearing that up. Probably one reason, not bought anything from clickbank for ages.

I usually always pay for a product by paypal, and it would say you have made a payment to "seller name" and their email address. But, these purchases would have been direct or maybe a WSO. Therefore, sometimes you see a different name from the one you thought you were buying from.

Guess, it confirms the point you really need to be in there doing it so that you understand things properly.

Thanks
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Alexa Smith

Banned 13 years ago

Originally Posted by larkykid

I usually always pay for a product by paypal, and it would say you have made a payment to "seller name" and their email address. But, these purchases would have been direct or maybe a WSO. Therefore, sometimes you see a different name from the one you thought you were buying from.

Sure - yes. If you buy a WSO or anything from a vendor directly, you'll see the name on their PayPal account after you've paid (which can be their own name, or a registered business name). If that doesn't match the name on the site from which you bought, then the name on the site could have been a pen-name. But with ClickBank you get anonymity (other than from ClickBank themselves, who really do need your real name, or at least a name in which you have a bank account, to send your checks or pay directly to your bank account).

And the same with Ezine Articles, if you submit articles there: you can have as many pen-names as you like within one author account, without the readers being able to see any connection between those, too ... but your author account has to be in your real name (only EZA's staff will see it), per their terms of service. Not that they send money ("chance would be a fine thing") but you do sometimes get an EZA pad of paper, pen, mug and mouse-mat from them.

Thanks

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Angelman

13 years ago

Originally Posted by heevyhivy

Thanks for replying guys!!!

I've realised I was misinformed before I got here, misled to believe Warrior forum was full of angry people who are either scam artists interested in selling newbies their products or just advanced failures who dont like newbies asking basic questions. I guess theres alot of forum bashing on external platforms.

I am new to this game too, and I have had a hard time sifting through the information about Internet Marketing online. Initially, I think it's only natural that people make assumptions about it being full of scams and not a legitimate way to make money.

I found myself starting out being almost 100% sceptical, to slowly chipping away at that percentage to the point where I am now fairly convinced that there IS a way to make decent money online legitimately.

I put a lot of that new found confidence down to this forum, I have been a lurker rather than a poster up to now, but it has been really refreshing to see people talking honestly and openly about this industry, and not just spinning a whole load of fluff about it.

All information, good and bad is what will convince you that this has the potential to be a legitimate way to make money. I think it is important to have a period of research and learning, but as many other say on this forum, be aware of information overload - by all means spend time learning, you have to "get" some of the concepts before diving in - but once you have a fair idea of what you want to do, it will be time to dive right in. I'm reaching that stage now, but its taken a few weeks/months of hanging around this forum to get there.

Good luck in your endeavours!

Thanks

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gazraz101

13 years ago

Welcome to the forum

I am from the UK as well

I have some info about affiliate marketing from wiki..

Affiliate marketing is a marketing practice in which a business rewards one or more affiliates for each visitor or customer brought about by the affiliate's own marketing efforts. Examples include rewards sites, where users are rewarded with cash or gifts, for the completion of an offer, and the referral of others to the site. The industry has four core players: the merchant (also known as 'retailer' or 'brand'), the network, the publisher (also known as 'the affiliate'), and the customer. The market has grown in complexity to warrant a secondary tier of players, including affiliate management agencies, super-affiliates and specialized third party vendors.
Affiliate marketing overlaps with other Internet marketing methods to some degree, because affiliates often use regular advertising methods. Those methods include organicsearch engine optimization, paid search engine marketing, e-mail marketing, and in some sense display advertising. On the other hand, affiliates sometimes use less orthodox techniques, such as publishing reviews of products or services offered by a partner.
Affiliate marketing—using one website to drive traffic to another—is a form of online marketing, which is frequently overlooked by advertisers.While search engines, e-mail, and website syndication capture much of the attention of online retailers, affiliate marketing carries a much lower profile. Still, affiliates continue to play a significant role in e-retailers'marketing strategies.

Finding a good affiliate program can be a bit hit and miss, most pay in $, and with the exchange rate what it is roughly half of what you earn in $ so you would need to work harder.

When you do find a program, stick with it for the long term, build up reputation on forum and blogs, it all helps in the end.

I hope this helps you

Thanks
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Damian Kitchen 13 years ago

i'm only a month into my I-M career and from the UK myself.

-I dont see any reason why you can't be successful using alias names
many others have done it. 1 springs to mind Chris X (if thats a real name i'd be surprised)

-Warrior forum is amazing place for a newbie, and you have already made 1 great contact in Alexa (Amazing I-M mind and successful)

-Most Affiliate Marketers promote Clickbank products to start with then move onto amazon and CPA offers. (if your a newb like me i wouldnt get into that just yet - easy to get confused)

-I received coaching from 2 american mentors not a UK approved (if this exists) and their main focus was building a list which is what i am currently trying to do to get my affiliate business off the ground(my personal choice)

-Keep visiting warrior forum at least once a day there is a ton of information here for newbs like us.
- Thanks
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johnapo

13 years ago

As with everything there are wealthy and power affiliates and others that don't get a cent.
People also are educated nowadays and skip the affiliate commission or try to deal with the creator of the product/service directly (i saw that live).

A basic rule of thumb that applies in this type of marketing is the same as they say for casino. The safest method to win at a casino is when you're the casino owner. Translate it to the affiliate terms and you will see what i mean

Thanks

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uebomoyi

13 years ago

I would start off making money through service websites like Fiverr or odesk and then once I have a sufficient amount of money- say about $150-$200, I would then invest in Aweber, a squeeze page, and maybe a blog and then I would start driving traffic to my squeeze page. As my list would grow, I would then start to market products that would help them after I had provided value to them. It's quite a bit to learn but it's worth it in the end. This is basically how every internet marketer makes their money. It's the same formula I've been told time and time again so don't be afraid to give it a try out.

Thanks

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erob

13 years ago

Hi I just started affiliate marketing myself a few months ago. I too took advantage of lot of free info from ebooks and tutorials. I have learned that most of the things you really need to know can be found there.

Thanks

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Wiz Khalifa

13 years ago

why not lose sleep? whats sleep anyway? if you are not prepared u shouldnt be in the game in the first place man

Thanks

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Shannon Herod

13 years ago

Here is my quick start guide to affiliate marketing (if that exists)

First, you obviously need some tools of the trade. So, I would suggest going out and grabbing hosting and an autoresponder first. You can get hosting at Hostgator for as little as one penny to start. I personally use Getresponse from my autoresponder.

Next, you need to find a niche. This is where most new people get hung up. They spend weeks or even months trying to find the perfect niche. My suggestion is to go to Amazon, pick a product to get started.

That way you start learning the process.

As you learn the ins and outs of affiliate marketing you will start to see what works and what does not work. You will see what products convert better than other products. My only suggestion on picking Amazon products is make sure you are selling a product that is $100 or more. Also, you want to mix in smaller items so you can get smaller sales to increase your affiliate commissions.

Your best bet is to find a mentor or a great program to follow to get you started on the right track. When it comes to affiliate marketing I think the best person to learn from is a dude named Andrew Hansen. He taught me how to do affiliate marketing way back in the day "when it comes to Internet years anyway".

He just-released an affiliate course called Unstoppable Affiliate and it is a great program to get anyone started in affiliate marketing the right way.

Talk soon,

Shannon Herod

Thanks

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kerilsawyerr

13 years ago

Welcome to affiliate marketing! My company, New Billionaires, is currently launching the Create Marketing System and looking for affiliates. We have approached "heavy hitters" like Frank Kern and Eben Pagan. Please search in Google for the Create Marketing System and you will find us!

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nicolas simpson

13 years ago

well this is a very good forum where you can learn a lot about affiliate marketing and other internet marketing endeavors. you do need money when starting out as a fresh affiliate marketer so that you can advertise and make speedy returns. You need to play smart and not just spend your money here there and every where.

i wish you all the best...

Thanks

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imback

13 years ago

Warrior is a great place to start a paid membership website is a great place to start understanding the lingo and get direction.

ACTION will get you results!

Chad

Thanks

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C A Perez

13 years ago

Heevyhivy,

Looks like you have most of the answers you were looking for except for that Jim Edwards guy (response #16)that I thought I saw lurking in the shadows last weekend at the carnival. It may have been my imagination....

1) You certainly have a lot more experience than I had when I started three years ago.

2) I did use an alias in the beginning. But now I don't bother. I figure if I can't or wouldn't sign my name to an article, it's not worth publishing. I'm know there are valid reasons for pseudonyms, but many are to hide embarrassment.

3) I didn't realize Affiliate Marketing required official UK approval.

In any case, there are many compatriots here that I'm sure will offer to help. And, there are other forums you can visit.

Carlos

Thanks

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Damian Kitchen

13 years ago

hey heevyhivy

sorry i may have confused a little in my earlier post. Most people move onto CPA and Amazon once they are past the Newbies stage.

I'm still at the newbies stage so i'm using clickbank offers and listbuilding.

If your looking to earn money without spending money you will probably have to try and get into Article Writing or Forum marketing in your niche as well as updating your blog posts more regularly and search the warrior forum for post relating to SEO or FREE traffic methods

Thanks
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heevyhivy

13 years ago

Okay, I've looked around this forum and read all the posts here and checked the links posted within them too.

I have some more focused questions now.

1. Alot of the forum has two suggestions for wanabee IMers. Version A: Dont rely on just one source/strategy for income. Version B: Follow only one strategy through for the long term until its made you income.

If I need to give myself direction, which of these disciplines do I need?

2. I'm considering this because I find this interesting and because above all, I want to make my own hours, be able to socialise at evenings, be able to take sick days whenever my health plays up (because I have many helath problems that are just make it really difficult to cope), take vacations whenever I like (not necessarily as many as I like, as long as theyre completely detached from business in any shape or form for the duration).
My income goal is, enough to sustain doing all the above things for most of my life, possibly even move to USA, if I make enough to be afford medicines there.

This is all about hapiness, not slavery (slavery to me is when I can't find time to socialise/go out on dates/actually live my life). I'm not after cars and gadgets and mansions. I just want what doctors get, but without the slavery.

a. Are ALL of the above things an achievable goal?

3. I want to do this with affiliate marketing, I'm not here to start up a new business to sell manufactured products online. I'm 23, unemployed, have partial university experience. I have specialist knowledge in Music, Digital Imaging, Film, and possible fitness.

How much money do I need to set aside?

Thanks
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Alexa Smith

Banned 13 years ago

You're getting easier to reply to ... today I can offer answers to all three of your questions!

Originally Posted by heevyhivy

Version A: Dont rely on just one source/strategy for income. Version B: Follow only one strategy through for the long term until its made you income.

If I need to give myself direction, which of these disciplines do I need?

When starting off, you need version B if the strategy you follow exclusively happens to be a good, solid, reliable one which works for you. You need version A, to increase your overall chances, if it isn't. Unfortunately there isn't a way of knowing that, beforehand.

There are two main issues, here. First, whatever course you follow, you have to do a lot of different things and get all of them "right"/"working" and when something doesn't work and you don't make any money, it's often by no means clear "where the wheel came off". Difficulty in identifying mistakes makes them hard to correct. Secondly, however simple it is in concept, the execution isn't easy. Nobody's born knowing "how to do internet marketing"; people need guidance. And when you're just starting off (and needing the most guidance) you're least able to tell "information" from "misinformation", myth from reality, and good advice from bad advice, because you lack the judgement to distinguish, which comes mostly with experience. So that makes the learning-curve tricky to negotiate. Just being realistic, here.

Originally Posted by heevyhivy

I just want what doctors get, but without the slavery. Are ALL of the above things an achievable goal?

For some people, yes. Some internet marketers - a very small percentage - earn far, far more than their doctors (and have almost invariably worked pretty hard for it, but probably not as hard as going through med school, I think). But the median income among doctors is of course incomparably higher, almost by definition, because the majority of internet marketers earn almost nothing.

Originally Posted by heevyhivy

How much money do I need to set aside?

Very little. $200 would be a luxury.

I started off spending about $50.

I then completely wasted 3 - 4 months, not knowing what I was doing at all, and earning very little indeed.

I then re-started, spending another $50/$70 (I can't remember exactly) in the process, and two months later was earning - by my standards then, as a student - a full-time living (about $3,500/$4,000 per month). That turned out to be the beginning of a solid, reliable, growing business from which I now regularly and reliably earn far more than that.

There are, probably, some business models in IM for which "available capital" is more relevant, but for me, as an affiliate marketer/article marketer, having another $5,000/$10,000 to spend - at any point - wouldn't have made the process any quicker, and wouldn't really have made the income any higher, either.

I'd urge anyone starting from scratch NOT to try "investing in something" as a way of bypassing the necessary learning-curve. It's so easy to envisage how people can lose all their money that way, by not knowing what they're doing. And not to "outsource stuff" you have no idea about. Oursourcing successfully is a specific and difficult skill-set to acquire. It requires trial and error, experience and judgement. All the accidents are out there, just waiting to happen.

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heevyhivy 13 years ago

Wow, I think this might be my favourite forum already. Thank you Alexa, I'm beginning to feel even more confident.
A few eleborations so you dont get the wrong idea about what I'm saying.

1). I can easily afford $200, but not a year's worth of salary as some threads have suggested. I always save money within reason. I'm more wiling to pay for the education, if it's relevant and generally considered lucrative enough to meet my goals by others who have tried it.

2). I'm not necessarily after doctor's £100k per year, just want to afford aspects of their lifestyle that I mentioned above. As much as I love Music & Film, I left those industries to live a full life.

The question remains about whether my need to achieve such a lifestyle is realistic...
- Thanks
- 1 reply
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- C A Perez 13 years ago
  
  heevyhivy,
  
  "The question remains about whether my need to achieve such a lifestyle is realistic... " Undoubtedly, it is, if you want it bad enough and you pay heed to Alexa's comments and advice.
  
  I have been doing this part time for three years. I am retired so I am not here as much for the income as for the joy of writing. Some of my sites make money,others do not.
  
  With your youth and some staying power, internet education, a little luck, and irreplaceable experience (sweat equity) you can achieve your goal.
  
  I would follow version B until you got it to work well ( at least to your satisfaction) and then venture onto experimenting with new income streams.
  
  Carlos
  
  Thanks
  
  1 reply
  
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  Nick Lawless 13 years ago
  
  Hi Heevyhivy,
  
  1) I don't think you need to choose between the 2. You can use both. Warrior forum is awsum and great to meet genuinely good people!
  
  2) People buy from those they know like and trust so maybe consider using your real name and building a brand around your name with integrity and trust as the defining elements. Eg: Your a real person standing behind the products you promote.
  
  3 (and also 1) - where to start and where to get more info? I flew to UK and met a successful internet marketer called Alex Jeffreys. I'm currently on his coaching program. He lives in the UK and is very approachable. He largely makes money by creating his own products and then setting up an affiliate network to promote. If you just want to promote other products the advice he gives is the same. He also offers lot of free advice.
  
  I don't think you necessarily need to pay for a UNI type course. I kinda think our culture has conditioned us to believe we need a degree to be successful. There are many ways to learn, both free and paid.
  
  Good luck and let us know what you decide to do... I'd be interested to hear your path!
  
  Thanks
  
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AbsolutNewbie 13 years ago

Alexa,

I am a newbie as well to this entire concept of IM. I am so so confused! I have read several posts and, often times, in reading them, I am directed to a name or product each offering the world to you. Then I am lost with no direction in sight.
In your comment above, you speak of starting off small. According to me, you were making an excellent earning few months into it. I would love it if you became my mentor and guided me through this process step by step for a fee? Will wait eagerly to hear from you. Thanks.
- Thanks
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anthony2

13 years ago

Originally Posted by heevyhivy

Hi, I'm a 23 year old UK citizen.

I need to research what exactly Affiliate Marketing entails, and how practical it is to make a living without losing sleep.
What kind of money I need to set aside as an absolute beginner to make this a primary source of income.
I was on thestudentroom co uk and stumbled upon WorkAtHomeNoScams com as one of its listed career resources. This led me to Wealthy Affiliate I have since, been trying to research this 'university', and came across alot of confusion and scams by people whose reputation is vague to me.

1. Where do I start?
If I want to do things correctly, how do I choose between Wealthy Affiliate, or Warrior forum?

My experience:
I know basic HTML & CSS, and used to make wrestling fansites, which never actually got published due to lack of free servers at the time. I'm a photoshop user for 11years. I've studied film and photography, and I'm a musician since 2 years old.

2. Is it possible to be an affiliate marketer through an alias (i.e. not using my original name)?

3. Where can I find out more about this career from a UK approved body or society?]

Heevy

if you looking to make money using affiliate marketing then you should
study affiliate marketing masters like Ewen Chia and Rosalind Gardner.

thats where i got my start from studying those two affiliate marketing
gurus.

ewen chia- InternetMarketer.com presents "Internet Success Formula"!

rosalindgardner- Make Money Online with Super Affiliate Rosalind Gardner

Thanks

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Stephen Lessey

13 years ago

Please, save yourself the frustration and info overload and know how to write effective copy 1st.

This is the MOST important skill. You should check the copy writing section and then learn how to write headlines, email copy and then you will have skills to make some serious money in no time.

If you skip this part you will always be chasing products looking for a quick solution and quick sales...which in most cases will leave you disappointed, because you don't know how to persuade people into buying anything from you.

Once you have the basics down you can start affiliate marketing. It doesn't even matter who teaches you how to set things up because you will know exactly how to make people buy your product. All that other marketers will do is teach you the technical stuff.

Hope this gets you started

Thanks

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nicoledeal

13 years ago

While I don't have time to read very post here "Dire Straights" made a good point about niche marketing in response to your question. you must look closely at the competition for any product/service you offer. there are millions of people competing for online attention, and if you cannot compete for the keywords they are using to find a particular product/solution, you are not going to get the free traffic you need. Wow, that was a very long run on sentence, my apologies. Research your keywords carefully, you will not likely compete against the experienced big dogs for mainstream products.

Thanks

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Christine2011

13 years ago

Yes, I agree...learn the basic first about Affiliate Marketing

Thanks

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Profolegy

13 years ago

Welcome to the Affiliate marketing Arena
The first thing to do is to start building an email list.
Start your blog and have a squeeze page on it to do this.
Cheers Bruce.d.Stewart

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heevyhivy

13 years ago

Hello everyone, I have had a long week of hard work. I have researched keyword theory from a wordtracker book (50 techniques...), and had a free website review from British Telecom about my current web blog. They think I should devise a paid subsciption service to my blog website, but then they are treating my blog as a standalone business, not really anything to do with me as a affiliate marketer :s

I then took Anthony2's advice for the article marketing side of my affiliate marketing goal and conducted a google trend keyword search and found strong niche (above 50,000 global hits per month with low competition).
But then again thats a free keyword search, so I might be very wrong. Yet I'm confident because when I typed that magic keyword in google search, it comes up with only 3 websites that are vaguely relevant to the keyword.
I really hope having an article niche will give me leverage to my actual goal to make money via affiliate marketing, because otherwise I could be wasting time :s

Now I'm going to take Stephen Lessey's advice because since he used the bold tag on his advice (must be important) and study copy writing.

Thanks
1 reply

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heevyhivy 13 years ago

So, it's nearly a month since I started learning about AM.
I went onto study all of Affilorama's free tutorials (it was the first full comprehensible place I could learn about this beast).
I finally know what all the words mean and feel like I know so much now.
Sadly, after finishing 2 days ago, I realised that most of their articles and guru interviews took place nearly 4 years ago

Since I've literally typed out a complete personal process guide based on Affilorama's tutorials, is there a way I can find out which techniques/resources are no longer worth the fight, it would be so easy to be able to simply delete the techniques/resources off my personal process guide?
- Thanks
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purplecone

13 years ago

Hi, and welcome to Warrior Forum!

When you start you will either have to spend money or time. Money to purchase hosting and domain names, and pay for graphics, and other necessary items like articles. OR you need to spend your time, create your own sites, write your own articles, and design your own graphics. Or a combination of both.

If you don't have the money, or don't want to spend it right now, try earning some money through the aforementioned Fiverr or ODesk or ELance.

Another alternative is to use the free Web 2.0 sites such as Squidoo.com and Hubpages.com to build your foundation. After you start making some money from these, you can branch out to create your own sites. (Squidoo has lots of lens (their word for web pages) that teach how to make money online.)

What is the best way to achieve your goals? That's a good question. Ask 10 different successful Internet marketers, and I suspect you will receive 10 different answers. Everyone follows some of the same general steps, but beyond those general steps there are hundreds, if not thousands, of different ways to legitimately make money online. The trick is to find the one that works best for you.

One thing to remember, though, is that even though you own the writing you do and put on the free sites, you don't own the site. If the owner decides to quit and close the site down, there isn't anything you can do. Each site will have a terms of service agreement that you must follow, or you can lose your hard work. Always back up everything you put on someone else's site. Back up anything you put on your own hosted site, too--servers do fry occasionally, and you don't want to loose everything.

Before you purchase any training for Internet marketing, read all the free information you can and make sure you understand the basics. Travis Sago has a free training program that he calls 'Bum Marketing.' You can find it by typing "Travis Sago bum marketing" into Google. You will have to opt in with your email address, but Travis mostly sends stuff that you will find interesting. And you can always opt out later.

After you understand bum marketing, then you have a foundation to start learning other methods.

Best wishes in your IM journey~

Linda

[ 1 ] Thanks
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myob 13 years ago

There is one book I bought years ago that has been principally the main factor which increased my annual earnings substantially. And I continue to recommend it as a near exact model of what has been discussed frequently by many of the successful marketers. As mentioned previously (in post #16) "Turn Words Into Traffic" by Jim Edwards remains my number 1 step-by-step recommendation in response to your OP.
- Thanks
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greenowl123

13 years ago

Hi, and welcome !

There are lots of free resources if you know where to look.

Create free blogs on weebly, livejournal, typepad, hubpages, squidoo, blogspot, etc. For a free auto-responder to grow a mailing list, Imnica is great. You can get free traffic by posting ads on free classified sites, like craigslist, backpage, and many others.

Submit articles to ezinearticles, articlesbase, goarticles, etc. for more traffic. Upload videos to YouTube for more traffic.

Also get traffic from Twitter, Facebook, Digg, and other social network sites.

You can get MRR and PLR ebooks on Tradebit or even for free by searching Google, and resell them using Paypal or Alertpay.

Or sign up to Commission Junction, Clickbank, Amazon affiliate program, etc. Adsense is a good way to monetize also, and is especially easy to set up on blogspot.

All of this will take time, so be patient and persistent. I recommend bum marketing at first so that you learn the ropes, so to speak. I also will recommend Rob Fore, as I think he is a very honest and knowledgeable marketer.

Good luck !

Thanks
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heevyhivy 13 years ago

Thanks purplecone, myob and greenowl123,
but I think I phrased my new question really badly, right now I'm only asking which techniques from 4 years ago are generally considered dead?

I'm talking about the mainstream ones - Web 2.0, SEO categories. (Not the WSO bulk strategies). Just to ensure I don't waste too much time on the things that nobody really consideres to be effective at all anymore?
- Thanks
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tamalanwar

13 years ago

Hello my English friend, this is TA. I started like you back in 2007 or so, I knew how to create HTML pages but did not know how to publish them on the web. I used some free platforms to start.

Then I started to blog and make money. Back then there were lots of opportunities in paid to write reviews. I made lots of good money, invested back into the website.

Then I started working as a freelance wordpress designer. I earned lots of money. But I always wanted to automate my income. This is why now I am building my niche sites side by side.

You will learn lots of info, but the main concept here is:

GET TRAFFIC >> CONVERT TRAFFIC

You build your sales funnel and setup your email marketing mechanism. Then you drive traffic with free websites. Get people into the list and convert them.

I wish I knew the potential of lists back then. Use aweber(when you have money), they are expensive but worth it.

Thanks
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heevyhivy 13 years ago

Guys please, my question is different from topic title. Please read it before replying, otherwise you're only wasting valuable time and I appreciate how precious it is.
- Thanks
- 1 reply
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- Azarna 13 years ago
  
  If you set up any websites with things for sale you MUST put your full contact details on them (British law). So if you are using a name other than your real one you will need to have notified HMRC of the name you are trading under.
  
  I am an English woman, new to these forums and this specific field of IM, but an experienced online merchant and a published author. (so not totally ignorant of some of this stuff, I hope)
  
  When I signed up here, and it asked for a user name, I originally typed my first name. Already taken. My surname is VERY singular and stupidly awkward to spell and say. So I used my old World of Warcraft name (yes, I am a geek) because it has proved to be unique and therefore handy in the past.
  
  I didn't really think about the name as anything other than how I would log in, I suppose. I now wish I had used something more 'real' as I am a very transparent and boringly normal person, with nothing at all to hide :-)
  
  I am Deborah, btw
  
  Thanks
  
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Nathan2525

13 years ago

Originally Posted by heevyhivy

Hi, I'm a 23 year old UK citizen.

I need to research what exactly Affiliate Marketing entails, and how practical it is to make a living without losing sleep.
What kind of money I need to set aside as an absolute beginner to make this a primary source of income.
I was on thestudentroom co uk and stumbled upon WorkAtHomeNoScams com as one of its listed career resources. This led me to Wealthy Affiliate I have since, been trying to research this 'university', and came across alot of confusion and scams by people whose reputation is vague to me.

1. Where do I start?
If I want to do things correctly, how do I choose between Wealthy Affiliate, or Warrior forum?

My experience:
I know basic HTML & CSS, and used to make wrestling fansites, which never actually got published due to lack of free servers at the time. I'm a photoshop user for 11years. I've studied film and photography, and I'm a musician since 2 years old.

2. Is it possible to be an affiliate marketer through an alias (i.e. not using my original name)?

3. Where can I find out more about this career from a UK approved body or society?

- Thanks,

Heevy

It's weird I just made a post about this but...

1. The best course I have done on Affiliate marketing was "Super Affiliate Guy" it's taught by a Clickbank Top 100 Super Affiliate. It will get you up to scratch in the shortest time possible.

2. Yes, you can use a pen name if you like.

3. Surround yourself with super affiliates. Unfortunately the UK body is about 20 years behind. I know many people making money from affiliate marketing.

It's not a get rich quick scheme. You will have to study business, sales and marketing and put consistent effort in but It's absolutely doable.

Thanks

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steven sanderson

13 years ago

Find a market first before anything else, and research that market deap, take your time, are your prospects attainable, can you get to them in a cost effective way, FREE is obviously best !!
What problems can you solve for your market, what emotions will you be able to utilize to maximum effect to create sales.
This part of your online business creation is the most important part as far as i am concerned, if you dont have an attainable market, you dont have a business, so save yourself time, and take time now !!

Thanks

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IntrntmarktbeginnerinUK

13 years ago

Hi I am a newbie myself and also based in UK. One thing I can see is that there is alot to understand and guidance from the right source is definately handy. But thats like finding a needle in the haystack right ?

For me, I HAVE managed to find a needle in the hay stack, that too based in UK.

check out best-internet-marketing-strategies.co.uk and see for yourself.

I have signed up myself and have found it to be a godsend.

Am I making any money ? To be honest.....no. I am beginning to see how it will come though ie I need to understand the whole thing from the right source. Traning is something that is going to be ongoing....especially when it come sto generating TRAFFIC....

I guess generating traffic is what I need to work on and nail.

Let me know what you think......

Thanks

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steven sanderson

13 years ago

Sounds great,
Please check out Your Online Biz Academy !! You can find us on Facebook, i think you may be quite surprised !!
Let me know if you require any help

Steven Sanderson,
Your Online Biz Academy.

Thanks

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Jmon

13 years ago

Hi i just read your post my advice would be do a little more reseach on the net about affiliate marketing because it is a great way to start to make money sites such as clickbank are awesome to promote valuable products also it seems like you have a lot of experience i would suggest to find a mentor who is a little bit more experience and learning from them.
Best of Luck

Thanks

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Brad789

13 years ago

Heevey - Brad here.

I have a few newbie suggestions for you to consider. Number one - PUT YOUR WALLET AWAY for now.

I have been a Wealthy Affiliate Member and can speak from personal experience. It was not all bad - but should have been better. I worked very hard in their program for almost a year. I found their material schizophrenic and tough to keep organized.

The original authors have apparently "moved on" to something that was more interesting. I discovered too many "unknowns" providing posts and web slide shows.

I got out to save my money. I moved through the internet for nearly four months and found Chris Farrell Membership. He has free hosting and a terrific team.

I have had two personal emails from Chris and a number from Jeff the Web Guy - his chief of support. You can find my post on my blog - but I had nearly 100 posts on my blog and BANG - it simply disappeared! What do you do - the backup was not working then.

Chris' team is not responsible for "helping" desperate bloggers - but they chose to help me and saved me - in just 16 minutes.

I am an absolute fan of their work.

Having said that - I have found good solid training with Chris. I have learned a lot about web pages, squeeze pages, filezilla and kompozer.

My experience has taught me one thing - PUT YOUR WALLET AWAY until you do some solid research. There is a whole host of free stuff on the internet that will help.

I am also a huge fan of the Internet Business Mastery team. Jay and Sterling are exceptional. They may have the best all-around program on the internet. They have over 135 FREE podcasts on ITunes that may help you form your own decision on the direction you want to take.

Were I to start on the internet today, I would go to Internet Business Mastery PodCasts (a quick ITunes search will find them) - listen to every podcast and also search key materials. I listened to them to and from work and on trips - the material is exceptional and chock full of useful, timely information.

Pat Flynn at SmartPassiveIncome.com is another highly exceptional internet blogger. He gives a monthly income report on his blog that may be inspirational for you.

Another one is Yaro Starak (though he is taking a break the end of this month). But the reason I mention him is that Yaro offers a free ebook called Blogging Profits Blueprint that has everything you need to make some key decisions about where you may want to go. The point - it is free - just leave your email.

Finally, I read that you may be a student. If so I think you have a ready made product in each of your classes. I have suggested to others - take good notes in your key classes. Marketing, business, insurance, statistics etc.

Go home at night and do a blog post of your notes for that day. At the end of the class make an ebook of your notes for that class. Some courses lend themselves to consistent notes from term to term. This has worked for a number of students.

I also used the approach in school. I used a bunch of prior class notes from those who took the class before me, and passed my upgraded notes on to students following me. Now I realize the value I may have left on the table.

Another benefit - you will have to really know your stuff to post it on a blog. My learning style was reinforced by retyping all my class notes. This reinforced learning turned out to be the real value of my work on the notes. I ended up graduating in the top 20% of my class. Not bragging just saying the concept worked for me and may work for you too.

One last thing - I used some affiliate links to get you to the right locations from this post. I see absolutely no sense in making you hunt or search. I take you to be mature and able to make your own decisions. I am quite sincere - PUT YOUR WALLET AWAY. Use the free stuff to do your homework first. Then make up your own mind. I am not interested in a sale - just in helping you find what I wish I had found on my first entry into the internet.

Hope it is worth your time to consider as well.

Best of luck - let me know if you make an ebook - I will be your first download!

Cheers - and Prosperity to you!

Brad

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Newbie to Affiliate Marketing

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