If You Need Buyer's Either Way, Why Become an Affiliate?

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Maybe I'm missing something here, but what is the advantage of getting into affiliate marketing when you still need a list of buyer's just like you would if you were creating and selling your own products...?

I mean, I realize that you don't have to put the time and effort into creating products if you go that route, but seriously, wouldn't it end up paying off to have your own and keep as much of the profits as you wanted?

It seems like both product creators and affiliates need to have lists to sell stuff, so I guess I'm kind of failing to see the motivation for getting into the latter.

What benefits am I missing?
#affiliate #buyer
  • Profile picture of the author Alex Blades
    when you still need a list of buyer's just like you would if you were creating and selling your own products...?
    You don't need a list of buyers to be an affiliate marketer. You can build easy to rank websites, and build enough to make as full time income. You can even use PPC for faster results.
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    • Profile picture of the author Devin X
      Banned
      Originally Posted by ashloren View Post

      Maybe I'm missing something here, but what is the advantage of getting into affiliate marketing when you still need a list of buyer's just like you would if you were creating and selling your own products...?

      I mean, I realize that you don't have to put the time and effort into creating products if you go that route, but seriously, wouldn't it end up paying off to have your own and keep as much of the profits as you wanted?

      It seems like both product creators and affiliates need to have lists to sell stuff, so I guess I'm kind of failing to see the motivation for getting into the latter.

      What benefits am I missing?
      Both business models require list building. In fact, every business model requires list building. (including a buyers list)

      The difference here is that a lot of people don't have skills to produce their own products, so it makes sense to just promote relevant affiliate offers instead. Plus, you're not restricted on what you promote your lists as either a publisher or an affiliate. As long as it's relevant and your subscribers find it helpful or interesting, they won't fuss about whether you created it or not.

      Am I making sense? I apologize if I'm not...it's been a long day.

      Originally Posted by Alex Blades View Post

      You don't need a list of buyers to be an affiliate marketer. You can build easy to rank websites, and build enough to make as full time income. You can even use PPC for faster results.
      I have to disagree with you. It's not easy to rank pages, and it's not very sensible to try direct linking, which is what you're talking about. Plus, why the hell would I use PPC without building my lists? That's a waste of money, dude.
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      • Profile picture of the author wolfmmiii
        Originally Posted by TheRealDudeman View Post

        Plus, why the hell would I use PPC without building my lists? That's a waste of money, dude.
        Waste of money???

        If I spend $100/day on PPC and earn back $200, how could that ever be construed as a waste of money???
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        • Profile picture of the author Alexa Smith
          Banned
          Originally Posted by wolfmmiii View Post

          If I spend $100/day on PPC and earn back $200, how could that ever be construed as a waste of money???
          It could arguably be considered a waste of money relative to someone who did the same, earned the same $200 and also built a further business asset (list) out of it at the same time, which can then produce further, future income?

          (Please appreciate that I'm not for a moment suggesting that you could or should do that - and obviously I don't know enough about your business to suggest anything like that! I'm - literally - "just saying" that the fact that something's profitable doesn't necessarily, in itself, prove that it's the optimal course of action: it could still, relatively speaking, be a waste of money, couldn't it?)
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          • Profile picture of the author wolfmmiii
            Originally Posted by Alexa Smith View Post

            it could still, relatively speaking, be a waste of money, couldn't it?
            A waste would imply no return. I don't see any case where a 100% ROI (which is very doable) would ever be considered a "waste".
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            • Profile picture of the author Alexa Smith
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              Originally Posted by wolfmmiii View Post

              A waste would imply no return.
              Ah, ok - if you take "waste" as meaning "no return" then you're right.

              (I'd include "smaller and/or shorter-term return than you could have had from the same outlay" as falling within the meaning of "wasteful". Our apparent disagreement is only a semantic one).
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            • Profile picture of the author Lucian Lada
              Originally Posted by wolfmmiii View Post

              A waste would imply no return. I don't see any case where a 100% ROI (which is very doable) would ever be considered a "waste".
              A waste could also imply a difference of earnings between two different approaches, even if the ROI is 100% for the less profitable one.

              If you were to make, over the long-run, $300 for every $100 invested in PPC with list building, then it would be a waste not to build a list and make instead $200 for every $100. In this case waste would mean a smaller profit.

              Also, selling to people who already bought is always easier than to someone who didn't. (Think about oral sex. :p )
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        • Profile picture of the author Devin X
          Banned
          Originally Posted by Alex Blades View Post

          who said anything about direct linking? I sure as hell didn't
          When the OP is asking about the relevance of list building within AM, and you're responses are about ranking pages and making money by doing that and PPC...and you're offering this as an alternative to list building...that's direct linking.

          Originally Posted by wolfmmiii View Post

          Waste of money???

          If I spend $100/day on PPC and earn back $200, how could that ever be construed as a waste of money???
          Hmmm, it might have something to do with the fact that you probably could get more money from the same customers who gave you that initial $200, you know? I'm talking about the whole backend sales thing that only works if you're building your list. But hey, some people are happy with the one time purchases.

          All I'm saying is that it is more sound to funnel people into your lists, especially when it is costing you money to receive those leads. Failing to do so is not smart, no matter how much you might make on the front end. You know what I'm saying?
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          • Profile picture of the author Alexa Smith
            Banned
            Originally Posted by TheRealDudeman View Post

            All I'm saying is that it is more sound to funnel people into your lists
            I've found this, certainly. My perspective is that for affiliate marketing, most of the long-term income comes, collectively, in three ways ...
            • by branding myself/my pen-name, establishing credibility and trust as a "recommender" of products and services, to people who buy them on the strength of my recommendations
            • by making repeated sales to the same customers, who trust me more and more every time they buy something I've recommended (because I don't let them down)
            • by keeping traffic returning to the site/sales-page/whatever (because very few people buy anything at their first visit, so I need a way of keeping them coming back, which means "regular contact with them")
            Without my lists, I can't do any of those three things.
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          • Profile picture of the author wolfmmiii
            Originally Posted by TheRealDudeman View Post


            Hmmm, it might have something to do with the fact that you probably could get more money from the same customers who gave you that initial $200, you know? I'm talking about the whole backend sales thing that only works if you're building your list. But hey, some people are happy with the one time purchases.

            All I'm saying is that it is more sound to funnel people into your lists, especially when it is costing you money to receive those leads. Failing to do so is not smart, no matter how much you might make on the front end. You know what I'm saying?
            It's a valid argument. However, "waste" wouldn't be the right word.
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  • Profile picture of the author wolfmmiii
    Originally Posted by ashloren View Post

    What benefits am I missing?
    I was a Platinum Powerseller for eBay in another life (moving $40K in merchandise a month) and I can tell you from first-hand experience, the big advantages of affiliate marketing are:
    • the fact that you have no customer service requirements
    • no inventory to maintain
    • no shipping/receiving issues/costs to deal with
    • no customer feedback to worry about (like you do on eBay or Amazon)
    • lower cost of entry
    I'm sure there are more that I'm forgetting but they are the ones right off the top of my head.

    Tom
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  • Profile picture of the author Alexa Smith
    Banned
    Originally Posted by ashloren View Post

    what is the advantage of getting into affiliate marketing when you still need a list of buyer's just like you would if you were creating and selling your own products...?
    Hi Ash, I think it's quite subjective; for what it's worth, my own main reasons for preferring to be an affiliate are these ten(!): http://www.warriorforum.com/main-int...ml#post7962879

    Originally Posted by ashloren View Post

    wouldn't it end up paying off to have your own and keep as much of the profits as you wanted?
    I think it does for some people, yes. I strongly suspect that it wouldn't, for me.

    Originally Posted by ashloren View Post

    What benefits am I missing?
    For me, several of the bigger benefits I've mentioned above can more or less be grouped together under the heading "flexibility", I think. To me, that feels a really big issue. It is subjective, I think, but I really don't imagine for a moment that I'd have been able to earn what I earn as an affiliate by having developed my own products instead. And I think I'd have enjoyed my work a lot less and have encountered a lot more problems along the way. I respect that other people will say the opposite, of themselves, though - and they're probably right, too.

    One can do both, of course ...
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  • Profile picture of the author surgematrix
    Financial responsibility just like you stated. Some don't have the financial capability to create their own product. In my opinion, finance is the major issue why people go with affiliate program rather than creating their own products.
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  • Profile picture of the author Alex Blades
    I have to disagree with you. It's not easy to rank pages, and it's not very sensible to try direct linking, which is what you're talking about. Plus, why the hell would I use PPC without building my lists? That's a waste of money, dude.
    It is easier than ever to rank websites since most of the higher ranking ones have been hit by panda. Also who said anything about direct linking? I sure as hell didn't

    You need a landing page when it comes to PPC or better yet a squeeze page to capture the email first
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  • Profile picture of the author Paul Marcoux
    I use affiliate marketers for gross sales. Its better on the back-end regarding finance.
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    • Profile picture of the author Jill Carpenter
      It's a totally different responsibility between being an affiliate and being the product owner.

      And affiliates have more options overall - they are free agents.

      There is a point I think where you hit and decide you can evolve to be a product producer/owner.
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  • Profile picture of the author Alex Blades
    When the OP is asking about the relevance of list building within AM, and you're responses are about ranking pages and making money by doing that and PPC...and you're offering this as an alternative to list building...that's direct linking.
    Now you are putting words in her mouth, she thinks you need a list to get into AM, and I said no you don't. You are reading to much into the comments.

    you still need a list of buyer's just like you would if you were creating and selling your own products
    Some people don't like the idea of building a list, and that is fine, it's their choice. There is nothing stupid about making a profit, it's just better to maximize your profits.
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    " I knew that if I failed, I wouldn't regret that.
    But I knew the one thing I might regret is not ever having tried. "

    ~ Jeff Bezos

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    • Profile picture of the author Devin X
      Banned
      Originally Posted by Alexa Smith View Post

      I've found this, certainly. My perspective is that for affiliate marketing, most of the long-term income comes, collectively, in three ways ...
      • by branding myself/my pen-name, establishing credibility and trust as a "recommender" of products and services, to people who buy them on the strength of my recommendations
      • by making repeated sales to the same customers, who trust me more and more every time they buy something I've recommended (because I don't let them down)
      • by keeping traffic returning to the site/sales-page/whatever (because very few people buy anything at their first visit, so I need a way of keeping them coming back, which means "regular contact with them")
      Without my lists, I can't do any of those three things.
      Very well, said.

      Originally Posted by wolfmmiii View Post

      It's a valid argument. However, "waste" wouldn't be the right word.
      LOL okay, how about "prudent"?

      Originally Posted by Alex Blades View Post

      Some people don't like the idea of building a list, and that is fine, it's their choice. There is nothing stupid about making a profit, it's just better to maximize your profits.
      Ok, I just don't want the OP getting confused.
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  • Hey Ash, for either side of the debate (affiliate v.s merchant) one would be able to come up with a large lists of pros and cons. Personally, my business runs as a merchant first, and as an affiliate second. It does not have to be an either/or choice, and you can certainly decide to be both.
    Our products are sold via affiliates who spend the time, energy and funds promoting, advertising, building their own review pages, writing articles, making promo videos, emailing their lists, etc, and in turn for their commissions, they help us to grow our buyers list. (see how that works? ) Having then built that buyers list, (via the affiliates efforts) we can then still turn around and choose to be an affiliate and "recommend" other related products to that list, after we have sold our own. I guess that has worked for me online for close to a decade, and I also know of full time affiliates in here who prefer to remain an affiliate and this suits them fine.
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    • Profile picture of the author KitschWitch
      For me the choice is about enjoyment and motivation. Life's too short to spend lots of time on things that don't blow your hair back.

      At the moment I'm a vendor and an affiliate and I'm glad to have had experience of both sides. For the moment I'm focusing more on being a vendor since it's the product creation and the interaction with my audience that I'm interested in right now. I have ideas and strategies that I want (even need!) to share. Money isn't a strong motivator for me, I just need enough income to live on.

      If money motivates you, you'll still do better spending your time on something you like and know about, than with something that you're not really interested in. And as time passes, it will likely make even more difference to enjoy what you're doing so you can get up in the morning and look forward to your day. Both for the sake of your sanity and your wallet.
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  • Profile picture of the author CyberSorcerer
    Well I'll give you a couple ways I used in the past for affiliate marketing ideas.

    First I had a bad experience with doctors misdiagnosing me so I started studying up on the subject and became pretty knowledgeable. So getting an idea one day I figured how many other people had questions, etc about misdiagnosis and checked the keyword seaches on Google Keywords Tool and thought there was enough traffic to get a little somethin, somethin out of it.

    So I put up a Blogspot site on misdiagnosis and used their builtin Amazon tool to promote a couple books. Worked out very well and I made a few bucks that got me extra money for partying.

    But if I was just starting out it would be extra money for a $10/month hosting account and $10 domain. Now I have my start..

    The second way I made money and built a list is by offering PLR. This worked out pretty good too. To this day I still do this a few times when I find a good PLR product that I can use Blogspot and Amazon together on.

    Actually wait let me get the URL to my misdiagnosis Blogspot. It hasn't done much in a long while but it's probably still up. I believe a few pages should still be up because I didn't take all of it down.

    Malpractice and Misdiagnosis there you go if any anyone is interested in what I did.

    Notice also I don't use Blogspot's default themes. Always try and make your sites look different from others.

    As always hope this helps out.
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