If You HAD to Start Over - What would you do Different???
- Thread starter Linda Buquet
- Start date
YourMlmTools.biz
Member
It's very important you understand it's NOT a whole new ball bame
I've been in sales for years. I can sell a refrigerator to an igloo dweller if I had to (tired of those unsteady temperatures freezing your drinks?)
You're way on top of the learning curve already for sales techniques. If you've done it all brick and mortar you're even further ahead
Now just study and learn the terms as well
People are people. Regardless of radio, tv, newspaper or internet
Rick
I've been in sales for years. I can sell a refrigerator to an igloo dweller if I had to (tired of those unsteady temperatures freezing your drinks?)
You're way on top of the learning curve already for sales techniques. If you've done it all brick and mortar you're even further ahead
Now just study and learn the terms as well
People are people. Regardless of radio, tv, newspaper or internet
Rick
1. would have bought 1 of a million open domains like cars.com, auto.com, loans.com, education.com, health.com, music.com, newyork.com.....all were open when i first bought a domain instead i bought stuff like lamelife.com and icebow.com WTF!!!
2. I would have taken my first biz public or sold it for a ton of money when it was offered!!!! That was stupid. It drifted a way a few years later.
3. would have used direct track until my tech was 100% instead of using version 1, 1.1, 1.2, 1.2.5, 1.732, 2.0!!!! Would have made way more $$$.
4. would have stayed away from MBA applicants from Ivy schools! They think too much.
5. would have done research before moving a biz to Tahoe - where the talent pool was very limited.
6. would have taken more vacations (have not had one in 6 years)
7. worked 8-5 instead of 7-8, and then 11:00 to 2:00 am. for real!!!
8. would have bought lap tops for my office instead of desktops.
9. wow i could keep on going...
2. I would have taken my first biz public or sold it for a ton of money when it was offered!!!! That was stupid. It drifted a way a few years later.
3. would have used direct track until my tech was 100% instead of using version 1, 1.1, 1.2, 1.2.5, 1.732, 2.0!!!! Would have made way more $$$.
4. would have stayed away from MBA applicants from Ivy schools! They think too much.
5. would have done research before moving a biz to Tahoe - where the talent pool was very limited.
6. would have taken more vacations (have not had one in 6 years)
7. worked 8-5 instead of 7-8, and then 11:00 to 2:00 am. for real!!!
8. would have bought lap tops for my office instead of desktops.
9. wow i could keep on going...
I only do GPT right now. A bit nervous to step into any other "niche" as I'm still exploring my options and still prefer to make money without spending any at all.. even tho I realize I could probably make more by spending a little.
But anyway if I HAD to start over. I'd join under someone that already knew a great deal about the site I'm on. I'd join under someone who's been there for a while and was making quite a decent amount. Sometimes people think that they don't want to join under anyone because that person would be making money for the work that they do. But from experience, I'd say that the money they would make is worth the kind of advice they'd give you and the direction they'd set you in.
When you join under someone, they are willing to help you learn the ropes to make as much money as you can.. because the more you make, the more they make. However when you join on your own.. you're left to figure out almost everything by yourself because no one would share their "secrets" so to speak.. because now you'd just be a competition to them.
But anyway if I HAD to start over. I'd join under someone that already knew a great deal about the site I'm on. I'd join under someone who's been there for a while and was making quite a decent amount. Sometimes people think that they don't want to join under anyone because that person would be making money for the work that they do. But from experience, I'd say that the money they would make is worth the kind of advice they'd give you and the direction they'd set you in.
When you join under someone, they are willing to help you learn the ropes to make as much money as you can.. because the more you make, the more they make. However when you join on your own.. you're left to figure out almost everything by yourself because no one would share their "secrets" so to speak.. because now you'd just be a competition to them.
YourMlmTools.biz
Member
There are lots of things we learn in business as we grow. The two that come to mind for me in affiliate marketing are:
1. I would have started with a self hosted blog rather than a free blog. When I first started, I was reviewing affiliate products (yes, I actually purchased them to review them). As a result of my reviews, I was selling products - about $1,000 per month worth and I never paid a dime for any traffic (and I did minimal posting or link building). One morning I woke up to a TOS (Terms of Service) violation page where where my hosted website once resided. I emailed them and explained myself and they agreed to turn the site back on long enough for me to gather my content, but the new site just never got the momentum that the original one did.
2. Focus. Once I learned how to get my own blog hosted, I diversified too quickly and did not effectively build quality sites until I "downsized". For anyone starting out, I would recommend just focusing on one site - until it is paying your monthly bills plus giving you a cushion and you are out of debt. I know it sounds harsh, but trust me, you will quickly be financially free and wealthy if you resist the urge to "diversify".
Hope that helps.
Anthony
1. I would have started with a self hosted blog rather than a free blog. When I first started, I was reviewing affiliate products (yes, I actually purchased them to review them). As a result of my reviews, I was selling products - about $1,000 per month worth and I never paid a dime for any traffic (and I did minimal posting or link building). One morning I woke up to a TOS (Terms of Service) violation page where where my hosted website once resided. I emailed them and explained myself and they agreed to turn the site back on long enough for me to gather my content, but the new site just never got the momentum that the original one did.
2. Focus. Once I learned how to get my own blog hosted, I diversified too quickly and did not effectively build quality sites until I "downsized". For anyone starting out, I would recommend just focusing on one site - until it is paying your monthly bills plus giving you a cushion and you are out of debt. I know it sounds harsh, but trust me, you will quickly be financially free and wealthy if you resist the urge to "diversify".
Hope that helps.
Anthony
YourMlmTools.biz
Member
What tos did they say you violated? Might be helpful on my end or for some other people.
Real good personal help story and I personally thank you for sharing it
Rick
Real good personal help story and I personally thank you for sharing it
Rick
I don't want to name the company, but they said that they had rules against usnig their platform for making money, which I though was bogus because there were (and still are) several people using their network in a similar way. I am not one for conspiracy theories, but do feel it was done just because they didn't want someone making money the way I was. They said it was draining their resources because I was driving so much traffic to the site.
My advice is to just read the TOS very well for whatever company you are doing business with and in particular look for anything relating to affiliate promotion, business promotion, or commercial endeavors.
Anthony
My advice is to just read the TOS very well for whatever company you are doing business with and in particular look for anything relating to affiliate promotion, business promotion, or commercial endeavors.
Anthony
D
djbaxter
Guest
That may well have been true. It may not have been the fact that you were running a commercial site as much as you were successful at it and the shared resources weren't sufficient to handle that.
It.s one of the problems with free hosting - and often one of the problems with shared hosting.
Yes, it was a tough lesson learned. Once again, "free" isn't really free after all. In this case "free" cost me a $1,000+ per month revenue stream.
YourMlmTools.biz
Member
So you made them too popular lol.
Idiots
Here's an example a poor company used an all you can eat
Guy I know in college with a bunch of buddies went to an all you can eat shrimp place and eventually got kicked out for eating too much
Different place same group. Owner asked if he could take their picture with all the plates stacked. The owner used it for advertising and increased the companies business
Moral here for all mods wondering if I'm on topic
Any situation can be used as a positive in an ad campaign. I wish I'd been better in sales when I first started and knew that
Rick
Idiots
Here's an example a poor company used an all you can eat
Guy I know in college with a bunch of buddies went to an all you can eat shrimp place and eventually got kicked out for eating too much
Different place same group. Owner asked if he could take their picture with all the plates stacked. The owner used it for advertising and increased the companies business
Moral here for all mods wondering if I'm on topic
Any situation can be used as a positive in an ad campaign. I wish I'd been better in sales when I first started and knew that
Rick
D
djbaxter
Guest
No, they're not idiots. It's the same situation as the free webspace offered by many ISPs. They're intended for small personal sites with limited traffic. Your little site is sharing resources with probably hundreds of other little sites. They're simply not designed for the kind of traffic that a successful commercial site will attract. And a site that does start attracting that kind of traffic takes resources away from all the other sites sharing those resources.
For the same reason, companies offering shared hosting will suspend a site that uses a lot of resources or bandwidth because to allow that site to keep going means that other sites on the same shared hosting are likely going to crash for lack of resources or bandwidth. If your site is in that position, it's time to move up to a VPS or dedicated server.
It may be annoying to the site with all the traffic but what alternative does the server owner really have? And if you're drawing that much traffic, presumably you're making enough money to be able to afford the higher costs of a VPS or dedicated server - it's the cost of doing business, just as out in the real world if your business grows to the point where your store or office is no longer big enough you need to find larger premises at a higher cost.
YourMlmTools.biz
Member
siteground gives me unlimited bandwidth, but I've recently run across a problem with sending emails. Another good question for new folks to ask
Bandwidth
Email limitations
Rick
Bandwidth
Email limitations
Rick
If I may, I'd like to try to get this thread back on topic.
This is one of our main stickies for newbie so I don't
want it diverting into a bunch of other topics.
If You HAD to Start Your Affiliate Business Over…
What would you do Differently???
This is one of our main stickies for newbie so I don't
want it diverting into a bunch of other topics.
If You HAD to Start Your Affiliate Business Over…
What would you do Differently???
YourMlmTools.biz
Member
I'd make sure I had good bandwidth
Make sure there's no ridiculous email limits
Get my domain name A LOT sooner than I did
I can't stress this more folks. A website is like an office. It's how people first view you when they click (open the door) and look for assistance (send an email)
Rick
Make sure there's no ridiculous email limits
Get my domain name A LOT sooner than I did
I can't stress this more folks. A website is like an office. It's how people first view you when they click (open the door) and look for assistance (send an email)
Rick
That's all about beating the learning curve...mental support should be stronger than effort to ensure you succeed especially when involving in paid adv such as PPC. You must be brave and smart to encounter the risks and if failed change the plan or retry the technique with more focus and awesome strategy.
James Martell
<b>5 Star Member - Pro Affiliate</b>
If I were starting over again...
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<img src="http://www.5staraffiliateprograms.com/images/halloffame.jpg" align="left" hspace="10" />
Your words of wisdom were added to the 5 Star Hall of Fame.
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- I would work on a topic I thoroughly enjoyed.
- I would pick a topic where video made sense so I could better utilize YouTube.
- I would be sure to focus on the creation of only 100% original content.
- I would focus heavily on serving the needs of my visitor.
- I would pick only a handful of merchants to represent.
- I would blog everyday...no matter what.
- I would pick one content management system (I.e. Drupal or WordPress).
- I would learn how to outsource (then there would be nothing I couldn't do).
- I would find one good techie I could call on when needed.
- I would find one good graphic designer to handle my graphics.
- I would find one or two good writers to support my efforts.
- I would create content every day.
- I would add a photo gallery so I would be found in Google Images.
- I would send out a monthly press release using PRWeb.
- I would start Twittering to build my following.
- I would make sure that at least 2 or 3 sites a week link to me.
- I would subscribe to aWeber to build my list.
- I would use aWeber's Blog Broadcast feature to send my newsletter.
- I would buy some traffic from Google.
- I would call my affiliate manager at least once a month.
- I would attend 1 or 2 conferences a year.
- I would stop looking for "the short cut".
- I would not buy software that promises to "do it all" for me.
- I would find someone I trust to help me.
- I would work to get the support of my wife faster.
- I would stick to only one hosting company.
- I would register all of my domain names via my hosting company.
- I would start a chat forum.
- I would podcast.
- I would submit my podcast to the podcast directories.
- I would interview others for my visitors.
- I would build a community.
- I would take better care of my passwords.
- I would blog on other people's websites.
- I would brand myself by adding my photo and name.
- I would distribute my RSS feeds everywhere.
- I would take more time choosing my topic.
- I would not get so wrapped up in keywords.
- I would write naturally.
- I would master Google Analytics.
- I would work on increasing my conversion rates every day.
- I would not get sucked into the latest "technique".
- I would work more often in Internet cafes.
- I would post more often in chat forums ...helps to organize my thoughts.
- I would start a group on FaceBook.
- ...and so I could do it all ... I would build only one site.
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Excellent post James. You covered a ton of bases.
Thank you!!!
Thank you!!!
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