In a little over a year, this blog alone has earned me $6,931.97.
Compared to my other online businesses,
that’s not very much at all – but considering I don’t sell anything on
this blog and have only 4 125×125 ads (below the fold) in the sidebar,
I’d say that’s pretty darn good. My point here is that you don’t have to
aggressively sell or advertise to your audience in order to earn some
decent cash on your blog. You can do it by being honest and smart with your affiliate links.
Some critics might say that I probably could have earned more. Maybe
if I placed Google adsense within my posts. Maybe if I had more
advertisements in the sidebar. Maybe if I had text link ads. Maybe if I
did product review posts.
I disagree.
All of those things take away from the main focus of this blog (which
is the main focus that ALL blogs should have) – the content. If you
write excellent content – things that get people excited, things that
people haven’t seen before, things that make people want more – you’ll
have the potential (and more importantly, the foundation) to make money
online.
Pat’s Principles for Effective Affiliate Marketing on a Blog
Per a number of email requests, here are the rules that I apply when
it comes to affiliate marketing on this blog. You may have a different
way, but this is what works for me.
1. Affiliate Marketing Starts With the First Impression
First impressions are huge because they set the tone
for a visitor’s entire experience through your website, including any
possible transactions that may take place now, or in the future.
What is the first impression that you get when you go to a site and
it’s splattered with advertisements, for example? What does a site like
that say to a first time visitor?
“Hi, nice to meet you – click here so I can earn a buck?”
It’s like if you met someone for the first time and the first thing
they ask you is if you’re interested in buying something from them. It
reminds me of those guys who sell jewelry from inside their trench
coats. Maybe you’d buy a “folex” (fake-rolex) from them once, but you’d
never do any kind of business with that person beyond that.
I’d much rather get to know somebody first, trust them, and then have
them tell me what they might have to offer. Or better yet, be genuinely
interested in what they’re doing, and ask them about it myself. This is
the kind of philosophy that I use when promoting other people’s
products.
What do you see when you land on my homepage?
2. Only Promote Products That You Have Used.
As I mentioned in a previous post,
the way I earn money with affiliate links in ALL of my online
businesses is by promoting only products that I have used, and only what
I would recommend to my friends who want to achieve similar results. I
feel that anyone with an audience has a responsibility to do the same
thing.
There’s something fishy about someone promoting Apple Computers who only uses a PC.
Read Full Article Here: http://www.smartpassiveincome.com/8-principles-for-effective-affiliate-marketing-on-a-blog/
Related Blog: Tips and Tricks for Affiliate Marketing Group
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