Not Quite Sure What I'm Doing

Are asking how to grow your list? or need help with your website? Ask direct questions to get direct answers

What niche are you in?
What is your blog?
What do you do for traffic?
What do you sell?

You need to give a lot more detail about what your business is and what you have done so far.

Hard to give advice knowing nothing about what you do.

Well I know in order to grow my list I need subscribers. I can't get subscribers without an opt-in form of some sort on my website. Is there a way I can funnel clicks from my CB links to my website for them to subscribe before the get to the actual product I am advertising? Or do I need to have the traffic first then advertise later?

You can visit my blog at igalaxytab.com although I must warn it is basic as hell.

You are at the stage where you should just be reading and not asking vague questions. Where you are at is typical of someone just a month into it.

Drop that domain name though. It's a copyright infringement and you could easily lose it.

Forget everything the snake oil salespeople have sold you about how to make money online. It is crap, and the only thing you will make going down the road you are on is headaches.

There is nothing magical about IM. You still have to fill a human need in order to sell something.

Figure out what that is (that you really want to sell), then find others who are selling it successfully and study them.

Once you feel comfortable understanding their strategies and models, then go about figuring out how you are going to do what you want to do.

It will be a lot easier that way. Once you have truly defined your goal, the rest is just details.

Right now, you are flailing like a fish on land.

Hi Jed,

What is it you're doing? Like what niche, specifically?

I could garner a bit from your website but I'd just ask: are you really in love with what you do? Like, is it your passion?

So much lack of clarity, confusion and struggle comes from trying to get before you give. Like, you may be attempting to get good with afffiliate marketing but the sales, and the clients, and the customers, all those folks show up and dollars pop up when you become really, really good at creating helpful content through blog posts, videos, eBooks, etc. Get down the content creation by working a niche you love to work. Connect with pros in your niche by promoting them, by helping them out. Comment on their blogs. Build bonds.

In time, you'll kill it online; in a good way

Ryan

I'd say you're lacking focus. It's normal for someone new gettinh all swamped with all these info on how to monetize your blog. If I can share two important tips that would be:

1. focus on one task at a time until you're doing it well enough.
2. Identify which of the task is making you money or at least getting you much closer to making one and focus on that.

Blogs on their own won't really make you money... they are tools used to facilitate whatever it is you have to offer the world.

Think of a blog as your office, or storefront. It is where people can find you at work.

So, what is your job? What will they find you doing? Because what is up there now is certainly not anything they will feel inspired to initiate a working relationship over.

Use the blog to establish yourself as the subject matter expert in your chosen field. Write about it, educate people on it. Give lessons, tutorials, checklists. Make videos. Connect with your audience. So that when they do find you, they'll make the mental connection that you are somebody they want to do business with, even if they are not quite ready to do that today.

Give insane value on whatever it is you are passionate about. If you can connect with that audience, you will find the business opportunities start to materialize.

so since it seems unanimous that i must start anew....whats the best method to do so?

No coding is necessary to be good at IM

This is what your mental map should look like

a)How to choose a market

b)How to choose a product

c) How to generate traffic

Although this is a simplistic response, you have to recognize what exactly you are having a problem with in order to get more specific help

Go to the WSO section. Find something with good review. Purchase it and take action.

Taking action is the fastest way to learn.

Cheers,

C.G.

First order of business for you: use a theme other than the default WP theme, add categories, a menu, logo, and featured images for your posts

Well, first of all, what the person above just said. You're using the default theme, and let me just say it doesn't look good at all. So, google around for a while, in search of a theme with a bit more color to it. Also, if you're looking to monetize, you might want to look for a theme that is flexible when it comes to adding banners and such, that is if you don't really know how to code and modify a theme by yourself, to your liking.

I am new to IM myself.

Here is what I did.

1. Sign up for ClickBank or a similar service.
2. Look at the categories that ClickBank has to offer.
3. Write down the categories that you are interested in.
4. Filter down those categories to ones that can tie into your blog.
5. Now click on each filtered category and study the promotions that are being served.
6. Find a promotion that you are actually passionate about. For example. I am a health and fitness nut. So when I find health/fitness products. I enjoy researching and writing about them. So write about an affiliate product that you are actually passionate about.
Include your affiliate link in the article you write. Add your own personal touch to the article.

NOTE: I am new to this myself. You have to have patience with this stuff.

I hope this helps.

You are going to find that if you are looking to make money online, you are going to need a product or service to sell. Since you mentioned affiliate marketing, then you're talking about someone else's product to sell, which is fine. You just have to pick one, and I'd suggest something with a recurring payment option and/or high ticket items, or else you'll be spinning your wheels trying to sell thousands of copies of some product for a $20 commission. A blog can be used to drive traffic to your chosen product - but it sounds like you need to do some research on what it is you want to sell first. So first, find a product that sells then build your blog around that.

I had a very similar experience when I first started online. I started thinking you have to be good at every aspect. So spent four months learning HTML coding. But like all businesses you can not be good at every aspect of your business. You need to specialise and outsource the parts your not so good at. Try fiverr, you can get an squeeze page created for $5-$10, which to me is not worth learning how to do it yourself.

In my opinion the best way for you to make it online is to find a good coach that will keep you on one path. That's personal opinion and you can obviously do it yourself, but you have to find one strategy and keep working on it.

No, do not go anywhere near the WSO forum.



Start at the beginning, ( a novel concept, I know) which is learning how to get, retain and convert prospects into buyers and repeat buyers.

In short, learn email marketing.

Hi,

I'm going to be BRUTALLY HONEST here because I know what
threads like these will lead to for YOU and that is.....

.....INFORMATION OVERLOAD!

You're about to digest a LOAD of different opinions, views, facts,
methods, strategies on what you need to do next.

You're head will be spinning after digesting all this information.

And you'll be scratching your head wondering which way to turn next.

So my advice to you is:

1. Pick one mentor/coach whoever who can HELP go from point A
to point Z.

2. Work with a mentor who GETS you and your situation.

3. One that can develop a plan to help reach your goals.

4. One that will work with you and FORCE you to complete each
task/step/assignment until it gets DONE.

All this will give you a clear, concise and simple path to follow so you
can finally end the confusion, get on, live life on your terms and start
living the flexible and freedom filled lifestyle that the internet can give to
you.

Good luck,

Gavin

Hi OP, good for you, you are taking action! This is how it all starts.

However, if you are planning on making money with your blog, then the first step is to get some really good content on it for your readers first.

Making money in IM is about learning how to 'convert' website traffic. Blogging is considered a FREE method of marketing that offers value up front (your give) and an opportunity to make money from that (your get) after.

So in truth, blogging is not really free at all because it will cost you time, effort and skill sets in order to reap the benefits that comes from professional blogging.

This is a skill that takes 'consistent' work on your part to just get going.

So here's a 3 step plan just to get you going:

1- Create valuable content.

2- Tell others - get eye balls from people in your target market to actually see your content. This step can be harder than creating the content itself.

3- Traffic: Nothing starts without traffic, even leads. You will need to learn how to become a professional marketers who can 'create' your own marketing well.

This is not the whole process (just the beginning). Hopefully you don't get too overwhelmed by this point in time.

Take it one baby step at a time. Read other threads just like the other posters above said to try and get your head rapped around these ideas.

Traffic is the key. You could have the nicest site ever but without people seeing your offer it is pointless. Pick a traffic method you like. Master it and then you can drive people to whatever page you want

Jedisith,

Do you actually know how to sell something?
Do you have real world experience in selling something?

Sales in my opinion is one of the most helpful skills that you need in running any business; and
Other things like advertising and blogging and copywriting are just ways to reach prospects, and make them pay attention to the value that you're offering, and compel them to buy the value of whatever you're selling ...

Here are examples to illustrate my point:

• When you promote your blog's opt-in offer across offsite locations and even in offline places where your target buyers hang out -- You're essentially trying to sell the value of your opt-in offer. You're trying to compel people to pay for that value with their attention and time ...

=>> So, do you just pick people at random, in equally random places, at equally random times, and show them whatever value you're trying to sell, and compel them to pay with their attention and time?

=>> No. Whatever you're selling to get a piece of their attention and time should be specifically crafted for a particular group of people, who hangs out in certain places at particular times, so as to search for and talk about specific things, which are relevant to whatever you're offering. This is in order to grab the attention of as many people as possible in that specific group, to effectively entice them to pay with their time, and to compel them to do what you want them to do, which is to go to your blog's opt-in copy ...

• When they read your opt-in copy and the rest of your blog -- You're essentially trying to sell the overall value of your opt-in offer and the rest of your blog. You're trying to show them that you know what you're saying and whatever you're saying has value for them. You're trying to convince them to trust you enough and to compel them to pay for that value with their names, emails , mobile numbers and so on ...

=>> So, do you just create opt-in offers with random value for random people, and show them your blog's content about a random variety of topics, and hope that you convince some of them to trust you enough and get the value you're trying to sell by paying with their attention, time, first names, emails, mobile numbers and so on?

=>> No. Whatever you're selling to get their attention, time, first names, emails, mobile numbers, etc. should be specifically crafted for a particular group of people, who wants a specific set of benefits, which can be provided by the value of whatever you're offering. This is in order to grab the attention of as many people as possible in that specific group, to effectively entice them to give you their time and to trust you, and to compel them to do whatever you want them to do, which is to get your opt-in offer by paying with their first names, emails, mobile numbers and so on, and to share and talk about your opt-in offer and blog content across their social networks, blogs, face-to-face meet-ups with their friends and so on ...

• When your subscribers get the value of your opt-in offer and the value of your follow-up emails and the value of your new blog content -- You're essentially trying to prep them up to willingly supplement that value with benefits provided by your affiliate products, which you'd be trying to sell to them in your promotional follow-up emails, which they'd be paying for with their money ...

=>> So, do you just give your subscribers random content with random value through your opt-in offer, emails and new blog content, pick affiliate products at random, recommend those affiliate products at random, and hope that you convince some of them to understand the value of your opt-in offer and emails and new blog content, enough for them to understand that your affiliate products can supplement that value with more benefits for them, and convince them to willingly pay with their money to get that supplemental value?

=>> No. Whatever content you're giving your subscribers, and whatever affiliate products you're trying to sell to them, these should be specifically crafted for a particular group of subscribers, who wants a specific set of benefits, which can be provided by the value of whatever content you're giving them and whatever affiliate products you're trying to sell to them. This is in order to grab the attention of as many people as possible in that specific group, to effectively entice them to trust you, and to compel them to do whatever you want them to do, which is to buy your affiliate products and talk about the value that you're giving them in their face-to-face meet-ups with their peers, across their social networks, in their own sites / blogs, etc.

That's it for now. Cheers!

Hi Jedisith

As you've probably already gathered you're going to get sorts of differing opinions about what to do and how to do it when you're first starting out. I also still consider myself a 'newbie' after 2 years and trying various avenues.

I'd say forget about learning html etc. for the present, you don't need that to get started. By the look of your blog you need to do need help with its appearance. There are numerous tutorials about this on youtube etc. I agree with others who have suggested changing your domain name. You could have it reflecting the nichhe you are interested in or have your own name.

1. Decide WHAT it is you really want to do - e.g. affiliate marketing - what niche? What are you really passionate about or what do you know a lot about?

2. Get yourself a really good mentor - preferably someone with an empathy and practical advice for newbies for starters. For example Google Chris Farrell who is excellent with really basic stuff. I learned a lot from him in the beginning and 'no' there is no affilate link in my post.

3. Like with any business you need to establish yourself and people need to get to know, like and trust you before theyare willing to part with their hard earned dollars. For example, are you going to establish yourself by branding yourself?

4. Spend time on learning, read others blogs, participate in forums and online FB groups and don't focus on immediately on making money but rather on giving value to others. Remember you are establishing a business and there is no quick overnight success way of doing this.

All the best on your online marketing journey

Alayna

Take time to educate yourself in IM.

Stay focused on one plan of action.

Don't be afraid to invest in your business.

Don't be afraid to fail and make mistakes.

Don't be afraid to invest in yourself.

What is your blog URL? Which niche have you targeted?

I'm giving you some general tips as I don't know anything about your blog. You need to give us more information.

• Get a professional theme for your Wordpress blog
• Hire a logo designer for a professional logo
• Install essential plugins like Akismet, SEO by Yoast, WP- Super cache, SI Antispam, Pretty link lite etc
• Basic SEO
• Write high quality, targeted articles of about 1500+ words each
• Share your articles on social media site
• Try to build quality backlinks for certain keywords.
• Comment on Dofollow high PR and DA websites
• Write 3 guest posts on high traffic blogs in your niche
• Target long tail keywords
• Build your email list using an easy tool like Sumome.com
• Build a quality email list
• Set RSS to email via mail chimp
• Use call to action buttons in your blog sidebar
• Always use images when you share in social media site like twitter
• Write an e-book and give it away for free - It can help you build a massive email list as well as help you earn commissions.
• Don't run behind the highest paying affiliate
• Choose 1 product which is used almost by everyone. Example hosting
• Promote the affiliate program if you are using the product or service
• Give value, build trust

Hi,
I hear your pain. The best advise I can probably give you is: Do Not Try and Do Everything yourself. In this day and age, there is really no need to learn ruby, HTML, python, etc. and forget about everything having to be perfect. Utilize Odesk, Fiverr and outsource what you can afford to outsource. Instead, focus on the skills you need to make the money such as traffic generation, putting a sales funnel into place to build your list, social and video marketing. Not knowing what niche you are in....do you know your target market? Do you know where they hang out? What is the problem they need to solve and develop a report or whitelist or ebook around it as a free give-away in exchange of their email. Again, the creation of the report/ebook can be outsourced on Freelancer, or Odesk. Or, as an alternative you could try and find a PRL product on the topic. I hope that helps.