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Facts...Not Theory (How To Win Affiliate Contests)

by Steven Wagenheim
36 replies
I have been criticized often at this forum for giving my opinion about things
based on theory without providing solid hard facts to back that theory up.

So let's stick to facts.

The most recent affiliate contest for Authority Blueprint X just ended.

I came in 3rd.

Prior to that, I entered Dean Shainin's affiliate contest for Ezine Articles
Manifesto.

I came in 2nd.

These are easily verified by simply asking the people behind the contests.

I say this not to brag, but to show you how I always come up near the
top of every affiliate contest I enter.

This is what works for me time after time after time. Naturally, you will
have to test this system out for yourself to see if it works for you.

1. Get a copy of the product. If you've been approached to actually
promote it, most likely you'll be offered the product in the approach.

2. Go through it thoroughly.

3. Write a comprehensive review of the product and be honest. This is
very important.

4. Get a blog with the product title in it as well as a URL that closely
matches it. Get it online BEFORE the actual launch. Speed is critical.

5. Offer bonuses to people who purchase from you. If you don't have
your own products you can still offer your time. Make sure the bonus is
a close match to the product and compliments it.

6. Then go and market. Write articles, email your list, do PPC, whatever
you can to get traffic to your review blog. Naturally the bigger the prize
the more you'll be willing to spend to do this.

That's it. It's not rocket science and it will work.

Why does it work?

Because most affiliate marketers are lazy...period. They won't go through
all this. And trust me, it's a lot of work, especially reviewing the product.

My last review was something like 2,000 plus words.

Try this system. You might be surprised at the results you get.
#affiliate #bragging #contests #criticized #factsnot #theory #win
  • Profile picture of the author Chri5123
    Great post Steven,

    I did a similar thing with Day Job Killer when it was launched and had some good results however probably did not do enough work to get near the super affiliates.

    You are right in what you say alot of it is just good old fashioned elbow grease!

    Nice work winning those prizes!

    All the best

    Chris
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  • Profile picture of the author JayXtreme
    I can vouch for this too..

    I jump onto most launches, but very rarely do I actually give them some promo time to any of my lists.. This strategy really gets you in the thick of the search engine traffic..

    The trick is to use this for launches that are well talked about, low key launches don't get nearly enough search engine traffic for this, but the bigger ones always do.

    Peace

    Jay
    Signature

    Bare Murkage.........

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  • Profile picture of the author R Hagel
    Originally Posted by Steven Wagenheim View Post

    4. Get a blog with the product title in it as well as a URL that closely
    matches it. Get it online BEFORE the actual launch. Speed is critical.
    Just a quick note -- be careful of trademark violations here.

    For example, if someone puts out a product called "eBay Slayer" and you get the matching domain name, you'll have eBay lawyers knocking on your virtual door pretty fast. (Same thing will happen to the product owner eventually of course -- but who knows, the lawyers might find you first.)

    Now suppose instead the product is called "Auction Slayer," so you grab a matching domain name. Whew, no eBay lawyers. But maybe that's the product owner's trademark. In which case you could still have lawyers knocking on your virtual door with cease and desist orders.

    Point is, be careful with that bit of advice.

    Cheers,
    Becky
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    • Profile picture of the author JayXtreme
      Originally Posted by R Hagel View Post

      Just a quick note -- be careful of trademark violations here.

      For example, if someone puts out a product called "eBay Slayer" and you get the matching domain name, you'll have eBay lawyers knocking on your virtual door pretty fast. (Same thing will happen to the product owner eventually of course -- but who knows, the lawyers might find you first.)

      Now suppose instead the product is called "Auction Slayer," so you grab a matching domain name. Whew, no eBay lawyers. But maybe that's the product owner's trademark. In which case you could still have lawyers knocking on your virtual door with cease and desist orders.

      Point is, be careful with that bit of advice.

      Cheers,
      Becky
      This is a VERY important point to remember.....

      I usually go with free platforms for this and it pays to be aware of any problems that could arise.

      Peace

      Jay
      Signature

      Bare Murkage.........

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      • Profile picture of the author Steven Wagenheim
        Originally Posted by JayXtreme View Post

        This is a VERY important point to remember.....

        I usually go with free platforms for this and it pays to be aware of any problems that could arise.

        Peace

        Jay
        Jay, I probably should have pointed that out. I do use Blogger blogs for this
        and so far have had no problems.

        As far as a product owner having problems with you using his product name
        in your blog URL, I don't see why he would if you're making him sales and
        doing it legitimately.

        But I guess anything is possible.
        Signature
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        • Profile picture of the author madison_avenue
          Originally Posted by Steven Wagenheim View Post

          Jay, I probably should have pointed that out. I do use Blogger blogs for this
          and so far have had no problems.

          As far as a product owner having problems with you using his product name
          in your blog URL, I don't see why he would if you're making him sales and
          doing it legitimately.

          But I guess anything is possible.
          Good post Steven.


          Igibbon

          I think the point about coming second in the affiliate competition is important to make as it provides some validation. Why would anyone want to read about the strategy of someone coming last in a competition?

          If you are using a blogger blog or other similar free platform then you are using a trade name(or similar sounding) as a sub-domain which is perfectly legitimate.
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        • Profile picture of the author R Hagel
          Originally Posted by Steven Wagenheim View Post

          As far as a product owner having problems with you using his product name
          in your blog URL, I don't see why he would if you're making him sales and
          doing it legitimately.
          Sure, you can make someone a boat load of money. But they can still sue you for infringing on their brands, trademarks, etc. That's because some business folks pour a lot of time, money and effort into cultivating a certain image -- and they don't want other marketers (even their own affiliates) to reflect that image in a different way.

          That's why some marketers require pre-approval before you can join their affiliate program. They want to project the right image. If your site doesn't fit with their image, you won't get approved.

          Let me give you an example...

          Imagine if I decided to promote Pastor Rick Warren's book, "The Purpose Driven Life." Imagine if I included the product name in my domain name. Now imagine if my review said things like, "This is a f#ckin' awesome book!! You gotta get your hands on this sh#t!"

          Maybe I have a loyal bunch of subscribers and I make a boatload of money for RW.

          Do you think he'd just shrug and say, " Well, she's making me a lot of sales."

          Heck no.

          His BRAND is much more valuable to him than any amount of sales I send him. So he's going to shut my site down, because he doesn't want anyone to think that my site is in any way associated with his book.

          Doesn't matter if I make him a millionaire (again). If he's more interested in long-term gains, he'll send out the lawyers to get me to relinquish the domain name. That way he can control his branding and image.

          cheers,
          Becky
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          • Profile picture of the author Steven Wagenheim
            Originally Posted by R Hagel View Post

            Sure, you can make someone a boat load of money. But they can still sue you for infringing on their brands, trademarks, etc. That's because some business folks pour a lot of time, money and effort into cultivating a certain image -- and they don't want other marketers (even their own affiliates) to reflect that image in a different way.

            That's why some marketers require pre-approval before you can join their affiliate program. They want to project the right image. If your site doesn't fit with their image, you won't get approved.

            Let me give you an example...

            Imagine if I decided to promote Pastor Rick Warren's book, "The Purpose Driven Life." Imagine if I included the product name in my domain name. Now imagine if my review said things like, "This is a f#ckin' awesome book!! You gotta get your hands on this sh#t!"

            Maybe I have a loyal bunch of subscribers and I make a boatload of money for RW.

            Do you think he'd just shrug and say, " Well, she's making me a lot of sales."

            Heck no.

            His BRAND is much more valuable to him than any amount of sales I send him. So he's going to shut my site down, because he doesn't want anyone to think that my site is in any way associated with his book.

            Doesn't matter if I make him a millionaire (again). If he's more interested in long-term gains, he'll send out the lawyers to get me to relinquish the domain name. That way he can control his branding and image.

            cheers,
            Becky

            Point well taken. Yes, any affiliate can abuse any product and cause some
            major problems. I get that. My post was meant only to show a legit
            tactical way to sell somebody's product.

            If the owner doesn't like your site and demands you take it down, then
            by all means do it. Don't look for trouble.

            So far, I haven't had that problem because I work within the bounds of
            what I consider common sense.

            Yes, I know...common sense is a relative term and not everybody is going
            to adhere to the site owner's expectations. Some will be very strict and
            others will not care. So you need to handle this on a case by case basis.
            Signature
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          • Profile picture of the author jasonl70
            Sure, you can make someone a boat load of money. But they can still sue you for infringing on their brands, trademarks, etc. That's because some business folks pour a lot of time, money and effort into cultivating a certain image -- and they don't want other marketers (even their own affiliates) to reflect that image in a different way.
            well, unless you are causing confusion in the marketplace, there might not be any legal issues here at all.

            Many po'd consumers have launched "___ sucks" sites using some companies name in the domain, and those that don't buckle under from the threats of lawyers seem to be able to keep their sites up and running.

            And these are much more harmful to a business vs an affiliates 'cheerleader' review site.

            Of course, they don't really have to come after you for trademark issues - they can just kick you out of their affiliate program.

            At the end of the day, people vote with their pocket books.. if someone dropping the f-bomb helps sales, and assuming you don't have a moral issue with it, it would probably be silly to make a big deal out of it - particularly if no one in the market is confusing this person with the company itself. Afterall, in this fictional case the market does not agree with you. (you, as in the fictional business owner concerned with this scenerio).
            Signature

            -Jason

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  • Profile picture of the author Ron Douglas
    Originally Posted by Steven Wagenheim View Post

    1. Get a copy of the product. If you've been approached to actually
    promote it, most likely you'll be offered the product in the approach.

    2. Go through it thoroughly.

    3. Write a comprehensive review of the product and be honest. This is
    very important.

    4. Get a blog with the product title in it as well as a URL that closely
    matches it. Get it online BEFORE the actual launch. Speed is critical.

    5. Offer bonuses to people who purchase from you. If you don't have
    your own products you can still offer your time. Make sure the bonus is
    a close match to the product and compliments it.

    6. Then go and market. Write articles, email your list, do PPC, whatever
    you can to get traffic to your review blog. Naturally the bigger the prize
    the more you'll be willing to spend to do this.
    Good post. From your results, which "go to market' step generated the most sales? Was it emailing your list, PPC, or articles?
    Signature
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    • Profile picture of the author Steven Wagenheim
      Originally Posted by Ron Douglas View Post

      Good post. From your results, which "go to market' step generated the most sales? Was it emailing your list, PPC, or articles?
      Ron, the numbers are pretty well spread equally between the 3 but in
      fairness, I have to do much more work for the articles and PPC part than
      the list part, which requires maybe 1 or 2 emails at most.

      So to be fair, while the results are equal, the time and effort for each are
      not.

      So you have to weigh that into the equation.

      Point is, even if you don't have a list, if you market the hell out of the
      product, you can do very well with this formula.
      Signature
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  • Profile picture of the author LegitIncomes
    Originally Posted by lgibbon View Post

    You're kidding right?
    Oh geez...I don't know why you and Steve can't get along.
    You don't agree with him for whatever reason, that's fine...just let it be.

    I thought it was very useful advice myself. I don't think he was saying it to brag.
    The fact that he comes in 3rd, 2nd, etc...in the affiliate competitions backs up the advice he is giving.
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    • Profile picture of the author Steven Wagenheim
      Originally Posted by Josh Kulp View Post

      Oh geez...I don't know why you and Steve can't get along.
      You don't agree with him for whatever reason, that's fine...just let it be.

      I thought it was very useful advice myself. I don't think he was saying it to brag.
      The fact that he comes in 3rd, 2nd, etc...in the affiliate competitions backs up the advice he is giving.
      Josh, while I appreciate the support, my arguing days with people are
      over. Everybody is entitled to their opinion and now I just shrug it off.

      It provides for a much calmer life.
      Signature
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    • Profile picture of the author Chris Hunter
      Originally Posted by Josh Kulp View Post

      Oh geez...I don't know why you and Steve can't get along.
      You don't agree with him for whatever reason, that's fine...just let it be.
      I know. He's always doing this crap with no proof of his own to even contradict Steven.

      It's so old.

      I thought it was very useful advice myself. I don't think he was saying it to brag.
      The fact that he comes in 3rd, 2nd, etc...in the affiliate competitions backs up the advice he is giving.
      It's really good info and I've seen Steven use it in action.

      It obviously works, so I need to start taking notes!
      Signature

      Ok, sure. You can follow me on Twitter - http://twitter.com/Chris_Hunter ;)

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  • Profile picture of the author JLRuffin
    It is good to hear that you did not merely say find a good product and promote it with excellent key words. Obviously, if you are going to make a "big splash," you have to do something special to get ahead of the crowd. Usually this requires one's due diligence and hard work at the onset.
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  • Profile picture of the author TimG
    Steven,
    Funny you should mention this because I was doing a bit of, shall we say "article marketing intelligence gathering", and I noticed this was a method you had utilized a few times which led me to belive that it must be working for you or you wouldn't waste the time involved with setting it up.

    Appreciate the confirmation and I would also be interested in the same information that Ron asked above in his post in terms of which "go to market" step provided a majority of your sales.

    Respectfully,
    Tim
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  • Profile picture of the author Steven Wagenheim
    Originally Posted by lgibbon View Post

    You're kidding right?
    No Les, I am not kidding.

    The only way I can have any credibility with what I share is if I back it up
    with proof.

    I'm sorry if you see it differently.

    You're certainly entitled to your opinion.
    Signature
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  • Profile picture of the author jasonl70
    My last review was something like 2,000 plus words.
    this is a good point..

    I just started getting into doing the review thing. I put a page together with just a brief review for a product I liked. I pretty much based this approach on what I saw on those pages with multiple reviews.

    I got over 100 visitors, and zero sales.

    So I invested the time in doing a thorough review with screenshots, etc., and replaced the original page with it. I'm now getting a sale out of every 20 or so visitors.
    Signature

    -Jason

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    • Profile picture of the author Chris Hunter
      Originally Posted by jasonl70 View Post

      So I invested the time in doing a thorough review with screenshots, etc., and replaced the original page with it. I'm now getting a sale out of every 20 or so visitors.
      Dude, that's awesome!

      Way to go!

      And great tip!
      Signature

      Ok, sure. You can follow me on Twitter - http://twitter.com/Chris_Hunter ;)

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      • Profile picture of the author Steven Wagenheim
        Oh, and just for the record...I sent these people my review to look at for
        themselves so they could see exactly how I was promoting their product.

        If they had any problem with anything I was doing, I would have either made
        the changes or decided not to promote the product if the restrictions were
        too severe.

        So like I said, handle this on a case by case basis. If you're not sure that
        what you're going to do is going to be approved, run it by the product
        creator.

        Thanks to those who pointed this out.
        Signature
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  • Profile picture of the author Keith Kogane
    If I wanted to try this, what are the places where you find out how to get involved in these JV launches and contests before they begin?

    Forgive my ignorance, but it's just not an area I've dabbled in much.
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  • Profile picture of the author Steven Fullman
    Steve,

    As a subscriber, I saw (at least some) of your promotion first hand.

    I liked the way you approached the review...overall good product, but
    with some flaws. Not hypey.

    I also found your follow-up interesting. "The launch was a disaster, these
    guys should've known better..."

    I didn't buy it...I'd already grabbed it from the WSO they ran a couple of
    weeks ago.

    But, I enjoyed your approach, and I'm not surprised you were one of the
    top affiliates.

    Cheers,
    Steve
    Signature

    Not promoting right now

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    • Profile picture of the author Steven Wagenheim
      Originally Posted by Steven Fullman View Post

      Steve,

      As a subscriber, I saw (at least some) of your promotion first hand.

      I liked the way you approached the review...overall good product, but
      with some flaws. Not hypey.

      I also found your follow-up interesting. "The launch was a disaster, these
      guys should've known better..."

      I didn't buy it...I'd already grabbed it from the WSO they ran a couple of
      weeks ago.

      But, I enjoyed your approach, and I'm not surprised you were one of the
      top affiliates.

      Cheers,
      Steve

      Steve, I was extremely honest with my approach to the whole thing, which
      I am sure cost me quite a few sales. But I'd rather that than sugar coat
      things and end up with pissed off buyers.

      This is why I promote so few products. Most stuff that crosses my desk
      makes we want to scream.
      Signature
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      • Profile picture of the author Steven Fullman
        Originally Posted by Steven Wagenheim View Post

        This is why I promote so few products. Most stuff that crosses my desk
        makes we want to scream.
        Ah, so you've read some of my reports then...
        Signature

        Not promoting right now

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      • Profile picture of the author Kunle Olomofe
        Originally Posted by Steven Wagenheim View Post

        Steve, I was extremely honest with my approach to the whole thing, which
        I am sure cost me quite a few sales. But I'd rather that than sugar coat
        things and end up with pissed off buyers.

        This is why I promote so few products. Most stuff that crosses my desk
        makes we want to scream.
        I hear you Steve! Any chance we can see some reviews you've made?

        It would make it much easier to copy a style that works (with the honesty angle expertlyembedded).

        Cheers and thanks for the tips. Very solid.

        Originally Posted by Steven Wagenheim View Post

        This is why I promote so few products. Most stuff that crosses my desk
        makes we want to scream.
        It's probably another reason you do so well... you do it rarely enough for it to count. Too often many people rush to promote everything they are asked.

        When I was doing email marketing full time, I treated my list with so much respect I never promoted anything unless I was blown away by it myself or I created it myself. The result? High conversions always beyond even my own expectations.

        My list got so few promo emails (because there were so few products ever worth promoting) that when they got any they jumped to see what was up, if I was promoting it then it was something NOT to miss. The "rush" of orders always reflected their feelings.

        Anyway this is a very important point Steve has raised---no matter if the owner is a "friend" or "guru" never sell out to make a sale--you'll lose money (and friends who were not really your friends to start with) but you'll keep your integrity 100% intact and sleep better at night. At least that's the way it works for me.

        Cheers,

        Kunle
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        • Profile picture of the author Steven Fullman
          Hi Kunle,

          Here's Steve's review of Authority Blueprint X.

          Authority Blueprint X Review

          Cheers,
          Steve

          Originally Posted by Kunle Olomofe View Post

          I hear you Steve! Any chance we can see some reviews you've made?

          It would make it much easier to copy a style that works (with the honesty angle expertlyembedded).

          Cheers and thanks for the tips. Very solid.

          Kunle
          Signature

          Not promoting right now

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          • Profile picture of the author Kunle Olomofe
            Originally Posted by Steven Fullman View Post

            Hi Kunle,

            Here's Steve's review of Authority Blueprint X.

            Authority Blueprint X Review

            Cheers,
            Steve
            Thanks SteveF!

            Wow. I see why you (SteveW) made more sales as an affiliate, this is an awesome indepth unbiased review. Totally professional and unlike the many so called "IM reviews" that you see everywhere. This review makes me want to buy this--if I do it will definitely be through SteveW's link.

            Again great post.

            Bookmarking this now to learn from it.

            Cheers,

            Kunle
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            • Profile picture of the author Steven Wagenheim
              Originally Posted by Kunle Olomofe View Post

              Thanks SteveF!

              Wow. I see why you (SteveW) made more sales as an affiliate, this is an awesome indepth unbiased review. Totally professional and unlike the many so called "IM reviews" that you see everywhere. This review makes me want to buy this--if I do it will definitely be through SteveW's link.

              Again great post.

              Bookmarking this now to learn from it.

              Cheers,

              Kunle

              The review that's up there right now is not the original. It is minus the
              section on the bonuses. I have removed that because the contest is
              over. As a matter of fact, I am thinking of taking down the blog altogether
              since I probably won't make many more sales just on the review alone.

              So as I said above, the bonuses are probably the most important part for
              making the sale...sad to say.
              Signature
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              • Profile picture of the author Kunle Olomofe
                Originally Posted by Steven Wagenheim View Post

                The review that's up there right now is not the original. It is minus the
                section on the bonuses. I have removed that because the contest is
                over. As a matter of fact, I am thinking of taking down the blog altogether
                since I probably won't make many more sales just on the review alone.

                So as I said above, the bonuses are probably the most important part for
                making the sale...sad to say.
                I see what you mean Steve, but I'm known to act opposite to most, so I'd buy WITHOUT bonuses too

                Also, you might be surprised many will buy who don't know or care about the mass promo appeal, I wouldn't take this down if I were you (Unless you don't need the extra cash and who does't right?), Anyway it doesn't cost you anything (it's on blogspot) to keep it up.

                By the way, your review comes up no. 7 on page 3 of google search results for AUTHORITY BLUEPRINT X REVIEW no quotes. Not great but not bad either.

                I would leave the page. Besides anything it is a great piece of content to leave out there for others who may find this months, even years later.

                And just as an after thought...

                Why not add on a fresh set of bonuses and leave it on autopilot? Just a thought but might not be worth the trouble, depending on factors you decide are important to consider (or not consider).

                Cheers,

                Kunle
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  • Profile picture of the author Chris Hunter
    Steven,

    Did you win any prizes for these two contests that you placed in?

    Just curious.
    Signature

    Ok, sure. You can follow me on Twitter - http://twitter.com/Chris_Hunter ;)

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    • Profile picture of the author Steven Wagenheim
      Originally Posted by Chris Hunter View Post

      Steven,

      Did you win any prizes for these two contests that you placed in?

      Just curious.
      Yes, I did Chris, but I'd prefer to keep the details of the prizes private.
      Signature
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      • Profile picture of the author Chris Hunter
        Originally Posted by Steven Wagenheim View Post

        Yes, I did Chris, but I'd prefer to keep the details of the prizes private.
        I understand, Steven.

        I think that I'd want to keep receiving a poster of Desperate Housewives signed by all of the actresses to myself!
        Signature

        Ok, sure. You can follow me on Twitter - http://twitter.com/Chris_Hunter ;)

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  • Profile picture of the author Andyhenry
    Hi Steven,

    I think your final step - 'promote the hell out of it with all of your resources' doesn't do your hard work justice.

    As you say - there's a lot of work involved in getting that step right, or at least in knowing how to do it right.

    It's easy for some of us to say just promote it when we have tools that mean we can do it quickly on a scale that doing it manually would make way more difficult and time-consuming.

    I'm sure people would appreciate any further detail you can provide as to the steps you take.

    If you're just sending an email to your list and getting that result - it just won't work for others, but I'm sure the reason you're posting is because you believe others can reproduce some of your other actions to get results.

    Andy
    Signature

    nothing to see here.

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    • Profile picture of the author Steven Wagenheim
      Originally Posted by Andyhenry View Post

      Hi Steven,

      I think your final step - 'promote the hell out of it with all of your resources' doesn't do your hard work justice.

      As you say - there's a lot of work involved in getting that step right, or at least in knowing how to do it right.

      It's easy for some of us to say just promote it when we have tools that mean we can do it quickly on a scale that doing it manually would make way more difficult and time-consuming.

      I'm sure people would appreciate any further detail you can provide as to the steps you take.

      If you're just sending an email to your list and getting that result - it just won't work for others, but I'm sure the reason you're posting is because you believe others can reproduce some of your other actions to get results.

      Andy
      Andy, you're absolutely right. This also takes us into the more general
      area of product promotion in general. What I pointed out in this outline
      was what was critical for the affiliate promotion itself, the review and
      getting a blog, even a free one, with the product name in it.

      Everything else is really beyond the scope of a forum post. I seriously
      doubt that the members here want to read a 20 page report on article
      marketing, ppc marketing, safelist promotion, FFA lead generation and
      other things that I use to ultimately get eyeballs to that review page.

      And even if somebody did want to spend the time doing it, the amount
      of time it would take to create such a post would be mind boggling.

      As I said, the results I get, on average, are equally distributed between
      the various methods of promotion that I use.

      Teaching each of those methods is just not physically possible within
      the confines of a forum post.
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  • Profile picture of the author Mike Hill
    Well Steve, no matter what anyone else says about you I still think
    you're one of the smartest marketers in here.

    You actually do things the right way: Learn it => Do it => Teach it!

    Mike Hill
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  • Profile picture of the author Andyhenry
    ok.

    It just seems like getting a blog and writing a review will make zero money and win no contests at all - it's all down to the marketing.
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    nothing to see here.

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    • Profile picture of the author Steven Wagenheim
      Originally Posted by Andyhenry View Post

      ok.

      It just seems like getting a blog and writing a review will make zero money and win no contests at all - it's all down to the marketing.
      And don't forget the bonuses that you're adding as well.

      I'm sorry you found no value in my post Andy.
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      • Profile picture of the author Andyhenry
        Originally Posted by Steven Wagenheim View Post

        And don't forget the bonuses that you're adding as well.

        I'm sorry you found no value in my post Andy.
        Don't be so dramatic (I know you can't help it)

        All I'm doing is suggesting that you may have left people hanging and they might appreciate you filling in the massive gap.

        You know as well as anyone that telling people to promote stuff is saying nothing without the detail they need.

        Andy
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        nothing to see here.

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        • Profile picture of the author Steven Wagenheim
          Originally Posted by Andyhenry View Post

          Don't be so dramatic (I know you can't help it)

          All I'm doing is suggesting that you may have left people hanging and they might appreciate you filling in the massive gap.

          You know as well as anyone that telling people to promote stuff is saying nothing without the detail they need.

          Andy

          Andy, the important parts of the process were all included.

          1. Get the product
          2. Write a comprehensive honest review
          3. Get a blog with the product in the URL, Blogger is fine for this.
          4. Offer bonuses for purchasing through your link, even if all you offer is your time.

          Of course everything we do online, whatever it is, requires marketing.
          This wasn't meant to be a course in marketing. It was meant to show
          how to get a competitive edge in affiliate promotions.

          This is how you do it.

          Naturally if you don't know a blessed thing about advertising you're not
          going to make sales even if you offered people a million dollars.

          Get people to your blog and you'll make more sales than most affiliate
          marketers because most won't bother to go through all this.

          That's all I was trying to point out...not give a course on marketing.
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          • Profile picture of the author Fun555
            Originally Posted by Steven Wagenheim View Post

            Andy, the important parts of the process were all included.

            1. Get the product
            2. Write a comprehensive honest review
            3. Get a blog with the product in the URL, Blogger is fine for this.
            4. Offer bonuses for purchasing through your link, even if all you offer is your time.

            Of course everything we do online, whatever it is, requires marketing.
            This wasn't meant to be a course in marketing. It was meant to show
            how to get a competitive edge in affiliate promotions.

            This is how you do it.

            Naturally if you don't know a blessed thing about advertising you're not
            going to make sales even if you offered people a million dollars.

            Get people to your blog and you'll make more sales than most affiliate
            marketers because most won't bother to go through all this.

            That's all I was trying to point out...not give a course on marketing.

            One question? how do you get a product before the date it launch? did you email to the author and ask them sell to you offline or something?............That is what they need from you actually.. Well so far you doing really good... Congrad to you been a top 3 contests.
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            • Profile picture of the author Floyd Fisher
              Originally Posted by Fun555 View Post

              One question? how do you get a product before the date it launch? did you email to the author and ask them sell to you offline or something?............That is what they need from you actually.. Well so far you doing really good... Congrad to you been a top 3 contests.
              The product should be finalized before the launch, so it is possible (for some) to get a review copy.

              If it's not, that would be a major red flag to not get involved.
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              • Profile picture of the author Sonni
                The way I see it is that it's sounds easy, but it's not. Steve is a great writer and has a way with words, not everyone has that gift. So, what he does may not work quite as well when someone else tries it. Of course, he's worked very hard to develop the style of writing he uses and deserves his props.

                Whether you like him or no his methods work. That's the bottom line as I see it.
                Sonni
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                www.makeblogs.org
                www.easytipsforweightloss.geteasytips.com
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                • Profile picture of the author Steven Wagenheim
                  Okay, for those screaming for more info, here you go. This is the reason why
                  I don't post here as much as I did because nothing is good enough.

                  Pay Per Click - Forget about targeting all those common phrases like make
                  money online or whatever. You want your campaign to focus solely on the
                  keywords related to the product like product x, product x review, etc.

                  This keeps your costs down and targets the people who are only interested
                  in the product you're promoting.

                  Article Writing - Write an article on the problem that the product solves.
                  Don't get into the details of solutions. You're going to leave that for the
                  resource box.

                  For Authority Blueprint X I made my article about the pros and cons of
                  authority sites. Then, in the resource box, I said:

                  CLICK HERE to discover how to put together an authority site that will
                  ultimately bring you in a steady income for years and years to come with
                  very little upkeep.

                  The resource box pulled like crazy. My CTR was over 40%.

                  Safelists - I know that nobody bothers with these things anymore, but I
                  do and have learned to make them work for me. For safelists, I simply
                  said that I had a review on my blog sent it out with the title "Comprehensive
                  Review Of Authority Blueprint X" I then mentioned that I was giving away
                  bonuses for those who purchased from me. I then gave the URL of the
                  review site so they could read it.

                  FFA Leads - Same tactic as Safelists.

                  My List - I simply sent them an email saying I had reviewed the product
                  and gave them the URL. I then followed up with an email about how lousy
                  the launch went with all the problems. I was very up front about
                  everything. Finally, on the last day, I sent an email saying only 2 hours
                  left to get 7 days of coaching free.

                  I have no doubt that a big reason I made so many sales on this launch
                  was because I offered everybody, not just my list, but everybody 7 days
                  of coaching for free. The worth of that amount of time far exceeded
                  the cost of the product. It was a no brainer.

                  As somebody pointed out, this method requires a lot of skill as a writer
                  and a lot of hard work.

                  Where in my original post did I say this was easy?

                  But if you want to beat out all the other affiliate marketers out there
                  when promoting an affiliate product, contest or not, this is what you
                  have to do...this is the extra mile you need to put in. Because any schmo
                  can put up a link to a sales page.

                  I hope this has helped a little more. As I said, this wasn't meant to be
                  a marketing 101 course. If you don't know basic marketing, you have no
                  business promoting anything...affiliate or otherwise.
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          • Profile picture of the author abelacts
            Originally Posted by Steven Wagenheim View Post

            1. Get the product
            2. Write a comprehensive honest review
            3. Get a blog with the product in the URL, Blogger is fine for this.
            4. Offer bonuses for purchasing through your link, even if all you offer is your time.
            Steven, out of these four steps, what do you think is the most important, of all things being equal? IMO, I think it's #4. The others are hard to differentiate.
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            • Profile picture of the author Steven Wagenheim
              Originally Posted by abelacts View Post

              Steven, out of these four steps, what do you think is the most important, of all things being equal? IMO, I think it's #4. The others are hard to differentiate.
              In order of importance, if you put a gun to my head?

              4
              2
              1
              3

              But there is no way you can leave any of the steps out. Obviously, without
              getting the product, how can review it honestly?

              And yes, while a great honest review makes a big difference, let's face it,
              if you're giving drop dead bonuses, the product is hard to pass up.

              I have actually had people write to me for other promotions telling me
              that they bought the product just because of the bonuses.
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              • Profile picture of the author abelacts
                Originally Posted by Steven Wagenheim View Post

                In order of importance, if you put a gun to my head?

                4
                2
                1
                3

                But there is no way you can leave any of the steps out. Obviously, without
                getting the product, how can review it honestly?

                And yes, while a great honest review makes a big difference, let's face it,
                if you're giving drop dead bonuses, the product is hard to pass up.

                I have actually had people write to me for other promotions telling me
                that they bought the product just because of the bonuses.
                Drop dead clearer now :-) Thanks for clarifying, Steven.
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  • Profile picture of the author Ron Douglas
    Steven, congrats on your success in those affiliate contests. It should really pay off when you have a product launch and ask them to reciprocate.

    I can see how making the extra effort to do an honest, quality review and then taking the time to get traffic to that review will work. Most affiliates will just send out an email to their list and be done with it.

    It's kinda like leveraging the popularity of the product to get traffic. The bigger the launch, the more popular the product will be. The more competition you will have as well I suppose.
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  • Profile picture of the author Ricky Parker
    Thank you for taking the time to post this.

    But as Andy points out I see it the same way.

    A little more detail would be nice.


    It's like trying to build a model car with no instructions. I mean yeah I can look at the picture on the box and think, "wow this thing looks cool."

    But without any instructions it's kinda a waste of time.
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  • Profile picture of the author Frank Bruno
    Wow, Steven Doesn't owe a complex algyrthm beyond the post he made to synical people.

    Come on guys relax a bit......

    He shared what works for him so others can understand that there are different ways to promote affiliate products whether launches or otherwise.

    This method works. There are others doing it, but like Steven said, not many marketers go to the extreme to see it out.

    Frank Bruno
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  • Profile picture of the author richmannow
    I would love tocome in anywhere near you so I will practice what you say, thanks for the information, it really helps us newbees

    Rich
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