Adding affiliate links to Facebook?

int-mark

14 years ago

I still don't know the answer to this question so if anyone does would really appreciate an answer. Thanks.

Thanks
1 reply

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John Tighe 14 years ago

The simple answer is "yes" - but you have to do it the right way and even then it's not necessarily the best option.

Facebook want people to do commercial activity, but only on certain parts of the site, ie, Facebook Pages (aka Fan Pages).

They don't want you doing it through your Personal Profile or through Groups. Links on other people's walls or in personal messages are likely to be disabled as spam, plus they get a poor response anyway.

The most successful FB marketers don't use direct linking anyway. The basic formula they follow is this:

1. set up a Fan Page or Group

2. provide people with good content and links to good content to:

i) encourage people to join (the group) / become a fan (of that page)
ii) build a relationship with them

3. market their members / fans outside FB

The way to market people outside FB is to offer them an ethical bribe (eg Free Report or video) to get them to sign up to your autoresponder list.

Once they've signed up you can market them as often as you want without having to worry about FB.

FB, understandably, have lots of rules to preserve the integrity of their brand / service and these rules are always changing. If you fall foul of them you could easliy get your account shut down.

Now if this happens you've lost access to your most valuable resource which are your members / fans. By signing as many up to your autoresponder as you can (by using a really compelling ethical bribe) you've protected yourself even if things go wrong with FB.

Linking directly from FB

The above not withstanding, the advantage of linking directly is that you'll probably get more people through to the offer page. If you've done a good job of pre-selling them while they were reading your stuff on FB then you could do pretty well from that strategy.

Using Anchor Text

One way of using anchor text rather than putting in your affiliate link is to write a report, blog post, etc, in which you place your anchor text (that goes to your aff link). Then import it to FB notes and post it onto FB from there.

Hope this helps,

John
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- John Tighe 14 years ago
  
  Oh, one more thing (it's like Columbo! ).
  
  Certain websites are blacklisted by FB and so you can't link to them anyway.
  
  The sort of sites that are blacklisted are things that are considered:
  
  MLM or network marketing
  
  "get rich quick" type products
  
  dating sites
  
  If you want to promote these types of products then you'll almost certainly have to go down the "marketing outside FB" road.
  
  John
  
  Thanks
  
  1 reply
  
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  John Tighe 14 years ago
  
  I thought I should add something about how to build up your fan page base or group membership.
  
  The best way to do it quickly is to follow these steps:
  
  1. Find groups or fan pages that are interested in the same or similar stuff as your group or page is about.
  
  2. Get involved, add value and get to know the person that runs that group or fan page and build rapport with them.
  
  3. The more value and the more good content you give people the more they will associate you with that good stuff and the more they will think of you as an expert (even if you didn't create the good stuff and you're only pointing them towards it).
  
  4. If your stuff's good people will start to join your page or group.
  
  5. If you can develop a good enough relationship with the person who runs the group or page you may even be able to get them to recommend you or give you a personal endorsement to their members or fans. That way you can get a lot of people following you relatively quickly.
  
  6. Once you have a following keep giving people great stuff and that will allow you to take maximum advantage of the viral power of FB.
  
  Thanks
  
  1 reply
  
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  John Tighe 14 years ago
  
  If you decide to set up a FB page or group then, in addition to building a list from it there are a couple of other key things you can do to protect yourself:
  
  1. The first is simple - make sure you read the rules so that you know the sort of things you need to avoid so that you don't get banned.
  
  2. The second is to set up a separate administrator with a separate FB account. That way if the worst happens and you do get banned then you can still get into your page or group.
  
  Thanks
  
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int-mark

14 years ago

Wow thanks alot for the responses! Theres a lot to take in but you've cleared alot of things up there. This is definitely a long term project for me. To start with I am just going to create value and trust with my statuses that appear on my faceback feed and then every now and again I am going to slip an affiliate link in with a suggestion.

One thing I would still like to know (if anyone has the answer) is if it is possible to create anchor text with an affiliate link from clickbank directly into your status?

Thanks
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John Tighe 14 years ago

I think you can create anchor text if you have a fan page. I'm chasing that one down so I'll let you know when I find out.
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RGallowitz

14 years ago

You can use an affiliate link by making it look like a normal link! But you need to be smart about it.

This is going to sound a tiny bit blac'k hat, but it works very well.

You can use Prosper202 along with the AffiliateTeachings Link Cloaker. By combining the two you can create a super cloak which their team can NEVER pick up. Damn...Google can't even do it.

Cheers
Reinhardt

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Make INSANE money by promoting PHYSICAL affiliate products.
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tish_lynn02

14 years ago

Very informative posts. Been thinking about using facebook but didn't know how. I may need to integrate this into my current project.

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John Tighe 14 years ago

You can use a simple redirect from a Fan Page so your affiliate link doesn't look like an affiliate link.
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Technista

14 years ago

IMHO, people don't visit sites like FB to see a sales message. For some, it's a turn-off. Better to use it to build relationships and authority, but include links to your website, blog, squidoo, etc... and do your selling there.

Good luck!
T

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Norman Smith

14 years ago

Originally Posted by Technista

IMHO, people don't visit sites like FB to see a sales message. For some, it's a turn-off. Better to use it to build relationships and authority, but include links to your website, blog, squidoo, etc... and do your selling there.

Good luck!
T

I agree, having advertised on FB for several months. People on FB are surfing,browsing speaking to friends not buying. Freebies sometimes work but linking to any capture that as pop ups or exit popups are totally taboo on Fb

Thanks

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TheRichJerksNet

14 years ago

Originally Posted by Technista

IMHO, people don't visit sites like FB to see a sales message. For some, it's a turn-off. Better to use it to build relationships and authority, but include links to your website, blog, squidoo, etc... and do your selling there.

Good luck!
T

Yep .. people will never understand that social networks are not a marketing platform. Then many wonder why they get banned...:rolleyes:

James

Thanks
1 reply

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John Tighe

14 years ago

Originally Posted by TheRichJerksNet

Yep .. people will never understand that social networks are not a marketing platform. Then many wonder why they get banned...:rolleyes:

James

I agree - that's why the more successful social media marketers tend to make their money off FB, etc.

To make marketing on FB work you have to offer people something that is of real value to them.

They'll still use FB for social media, but if you set up a Page or Group that appeals to their particular interest and that gives them sufficient value then they'll be happy to receive info from you or trade their email for your ethical bribe and therefore join your non-FB list!

Where FB does come into its own is its viral potential and the fact that it's free. Going back to what I said in my first post, you can find the groups that are interested in your niche, join them, add value and start migrating people across to your Page / Group and from there onto your list.

Also, if people become fans of your Page you get direct access to their newsfeed and all their friends will see it. This is super powerful stuff

If you're putting out good stuff people will start following you and then thier friends will see your stuff, etc.

If you're putting out c**p they won't!

Thanks
1 reply

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TheRichJerksNet

14 years ago

Originally Posted by John Tighe

I agree - that's why the more successful social media marketers tend to make their money off FB, etc.

To make marketing on FB work you have to offer people something that is of real value to them.

They'll still use FB for social media, but if you set up a Page or Group that appeals to their particular interest and that gives them sufficient value then they'll be happy to receive info from you or trade their email for your ethical bribe and therefore join your non-FB list!

Where FB does come into its own is its viral potential and the fact that it's free. Going back to what I said in my first post, you can find the groups that are interested in your niche, join them, add value and start migrating people across to your Page / Group and from there onto your list.

Also, if people become fans of your Page you get direct access to their newsfeed and all their friends will see it. This is super powerful stuff

If you're putting out good stuff people will start following you and then thier friends will see your stuff, etc.

If you're putting out c**p they won't!

The problem with this is that the idiots that put out those crappy ebooks about using social media for SpaMarketing do not specify to use fan pages or groups. Many take it as, create a profile and add a bunch of random people as fast as I can and then start posting all my SpaMarketing on everyones wall..

There are many on facebook and other social media sites that will report it as spam in a heartbeat and then those SpamMarketing types run to some forum and cry about their account being banned. I have seen it far too many times.

I have a group but I do not post to it often and I sure do not email all the group members either. It was not designed to do SpaMarketing. Sorry but anyone that sets up a group for the purpose to email these members are no better than spammers. Unless of course your group specifically states this is the reason for your group.

There are many ways to use facebook to your advantage without a fan page and without a group. Many just do not want to take the time or energy to actually socialize and communicate.

James

Thanks
1 reply

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John Tighe

14 years ago

Originally Posted by TheRichJerksNet

The problem with this is that the idiots that put out those crappy ebooks about using social media for SpaMarketing do not specify to use fan pages or groups. Many take it as, create a profile and add a bunch of random people as fast as I can and then start posting all my SpaMarketing on everyones wall..

There are many on facebook and other social media sites that will report it as spam in a heartbeat and then those SpamMarketing types run to some forum and cry about their account being banned. I have seen it far too many times.

I totally agree that there are lots of spammers out there pumping out lots of ... well, SPAM!

My point, and maybe I didn't clarify this well enough, is to make the distinction between spammers putting out stuff of little or no value, and people who produce quality content that the people that follow them look forward to consuming (eg, I always look forward to getting emails from Frank Kern!).

Originally Posted by TheRichJerksNet

I have a group but I do not post to it often and I sure do not email all the group members either. It was not designed to do SpaMarketing. Sorry but anyone that sets up a group for the purpose to email these members are no better than spammers. Unless of course your group specifically states this is the reason for your group.

There are many ways to use facebook to your advantage without a fan page and without a group. Many just do not want to take the time or energy to actually socialize and communicate.

James

I don't see a problem with marketing outside of FB to people members of your group or fans of your page on the basis that:

they have to opt-in to become members or fans
they can opt-out at any time
they have to opt-in again to give you their email
they can opt-out at any time, assuming you're using an autoresponder

Also, while FB clearly was not designed for spammers (and they do a pretty good job of banning those that do) FB Pages were designed as a place where people could do business on FB.

The idea is that business stays on the Fan Pages and that keeps the Personal Pages and Groups business free. FB gets businesses to use FB Pages, which they can then find ways to monetize. Everyone's happy!

Thanks

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scrofford

13 years ago

Originally Posted by Technista

IMHO, people don't visit sites like FB to see a sales message. For some, it's a turn-off. Better to use it to build relationships and authority, but include links to your website, blog, squidoo, etc... and do your selling there.

Good luck!
T

I agree...FB is NOT for marketing. Why would I want to go to my Facebook page just to be spammed with different internet marketing offers? I think that most people aren't interested.

Thanks

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Tomwood

14 years ago

John what do think will happen when Google real time kicks in then you have buyer coming from the search engine to facebook. I think that will improve conversions

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John Tighe

14 years ago

Originally Posted by Tomwood

John what do think will happen when Google real time kicks in then you have buyer coming from the search engine to facebook. I think that will improve conversions

That's an interesting point.

I really don't know about conversion rates - I guess that'll depend somewhat on what Google display in their real time results, eg, does your FB post have buying / action keywords in and do these get shown by Google?

In terms of traffic, again, I think it's hard to say. I just did a Google search for "Tiger Woods" to see what came up.

On the one hand the real time feed really catches your eye because it's moving. On the other, it updates so fast (unless you pause it) that nothing is on there for more than a minute or two.

It is possible to search from within the real time results, but I don't know how many people will do that? :confused: Does anyone have any thoughts or figures on this?

It may turn out (based on the current models they are using) that Bing is more useful than Google for IMs. If you look at what each is doing with Twitter at the moment, their approaches are quite different.

Google puts its real time feeds in with its ordinary search results, but only has real time feeds for certain popular terms.

With Bing on the other hand, you have to go to a Twitter search page: www.bing.com/twitter That makes it less obvious to people, but you can search for real time results for any search term, eg, you could type in "weght loss" and get the latest tweets plus the most tweeted links about "weight loss".

The Bing model looks more promising for IM, but of course there's the question of traffic. Bing gets a lot less and the number using Bing's Twitter search page will be even less.

It'll be very interesting to see how it plays out though, especially when the search engines are able to integrate FB feeds. I'm sure, also, that the respective real time search models aren't set in stone and will continue to evolve.

If anyone wants an overview of how real time works then this is quite a useful article: Google's Real-Time Search Ready to Challenge Bing - PC World

Thanks
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John Tighe 14 years ago

Does anyone know when Google and Bing are planning to role out real time search to Facebook?
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John Tighe

14 years ago

Originally Posted by int-mark

Any idea how i can create an affiliate link from clickbank in facebook that just shows the anchor text as the link?

You can use FBML (Facebook Markup Language) (basically, a modified version of HTML) to add anchor text to your pages.

If you add anchor text without using FBML sometimes it works and sometimes not, because FB have a habit of stripping out code.

If you add anchor text without using FBML it's a good idea to go back and test your links occasionally to check they still work.

Thanks

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axel40

14 years ago

Hi
Could anyone help me with two problems I`ve got with Facebook application?
Despite having put "everyone" and "allow" for Public search (on search engines) results my Facebook name+"Facebook" doesn´t show up on google at all. As I understand it then really should(?)
Second ,on Privacy settings, it is impossible to change for "Privacy-photos". Although I many times have chosen under "Who can see this" and clicked "save settings" it remains on "edit settings" and then of course my choice is not activated.
Two for me strange problems I cannot fix.
I first thought it could be restrictions on my MAC behind it but it is the same with my Vista Labtop

Thanks

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ryansjones

14 years ago

I suppose you could always require people to pm you for the referral links you are promoting on facebook. For example, some companies, such as Global Domains International and Yuwie have invite systems (where you can send email invites to people interested in the site you are promoting), you might could require people interested in what you are promoting to pm you and then you could email him/her the link that way (or send him/her an email invite if the program you are promoting allows you to send email invites to people). Just a thought

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valleytech

13 years ago

I would have to agree that facebook is not a place to put affiliate links. It is a place to drive people to your websites once they are interested.

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Pandawdy

13 years ago

What's to keep me from posting my own affiliate link on someone else's fan page?

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philiptrav

13 years ago

I guess just building a fan page and fans is the important part and later you can post the odd link.

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durant0704

13 years ago

They allow bit ly links and redirects. So get a little creative and stop using those hideous Clickbank links. After you do that, all you have to worry about is actually getting you FB friends and fans to click on the link

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carolf

13 years ago

this is my facebook page.... Carol Finlayson Coaching | Facebook

I write a blog post and I share it on the wall of loads of pages that I have liked, all relevant to my content. ( someone here advised no more than 3/4 shares per half hour )

Once I posted an affiliate link on my page because i didnt know that fb dont like you doing that at all. I got an instant message saying I was banned from sharing links for 15 days and if I did it again I coudl risk losing my page.

after a year of super hard work to build up my following I would not like to lose that page....... so now I just offer great content and drive the traffic to my website, I add affiliate links to my articles.

my traffic is rubbish so I dont make many sales yet, but I will.

Thanks

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lionelfrench

10 years ago

Hi Buddy,

I use URL shorteners and this hides the affiliate links. It does work via Facebook!

I also suggest other Social Media like Twitter, Pin interest they are all great sources of internet traffic, YES it takes time to create accounts but it actually converts and in the long run it’s far more rewarding. With these social media sites you can get a sale within just hours of posting quality content.
Also Google Alerts is great since you can jump into your niche discussion provide quality content which results in sales.

Traffic is so IMPORTANT, and is the vital Key to your Internet Marketing Success.
Traffic= Sales=Money

For other Quick, Easy to implement, auto-pilot traffic solutions, check out my sig Box

Good luck Buddy

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Adding affiliate links to Facebook?

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