Author: Rob Hoerntlein

I am a second generation marketer. My dad spent my childhood teaching me about marketing. His motto was "If you know marketing, whether you go onto marketing or not, at the very least you will be able to convince your prospective employer that you are the best person for the job". He went on to say "Always keep yourself in learning mode. That way when you get those inevitable jobs that you are not qualified for, by the time your boss figures out that that you are not qualified, you will have learned the job". In addition he emphasized "Always give the boss more than he or she expects, that way when the layoffs come, you'll never make that list". This is the way I have lived my life. I have always created my own way in this world. I have always created by own jobs. On those rare occasions when I have worked for someone else, it has been because I needed to learn something and instead of going to school and paying for my education, I got the job so that my boss could teach me, plus pay me.

Webinar Riches

Discover The Insider Secrets
To Wildly Profitable Webinars!

Webinars are an excellent way to increase sales and conversions, especially on big-ticket items. Because webinars are interactive, they are more engaging and thus have higher conversions than other types of marketing.

 

A few benefits of webinars over other sales presentations include:

 

  • The limited time nature increases participation. People can’t procrastinate if a webinar is only available at a specific time.
  • Active participation in the form of chat, question-and-answer sessions, etc. makes for a richer, more engaging experience that makes people pay attention and take action.
  • Social proof from other participants can increase conversions.

 

In this report, you’re going to learn how to set up and run successful webinars, with a focus on selling high value items that pay a higher commission than average products. You’ll learn how and why you should run automated webinars, and how to increase webinar conversions.

 

So let’s get started.

What You Will Learn

  • Selling High Ticket Items via Webinar
  • Automated Webinars
  • Planning a Webinar (Structure, Pitching an offer)
  • Planning the Presentation
  • Plan Attendees
  • Create the Agenda
  • Schedule Presenters
  • Plan a Dry Run
  • Fine-Tuning Your Pitch
  • Pre-Qualifying Participants

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Selling High Ticket Items via Webinar

Webinars can certainly increase sales to smaller ticket items, however generally speaking they are much more cost-effective for selling high-ticket items.

 

The main reason why these big-ticket items make more sense is because of the limited nature of webinars. Most webinar programs only have a limited number of seats available, generally due to the limitations of the software itself, which might not be able to handle large numbers of users at once.

 

Because there are so few people who will be able to attend each webinar session, it only makes sense to promote higher ticket items. If you are only paid $10 commission on a small ticket item, and you only have 50 attendees, you’d need a 20% conversion rate to make 10 sales, which would only earn you $100 in commission. 

 

That’s not exactly a princely sum for the trouble of planning, organizing and carrying out a webinar. And remember, a 20% conversion rate is very difficult to achieve even with a webinar.

 

However, if you were paid $100 commission on a large-ticket item, with the same 50 attendees, you’d only need a 10% conversion to get 5 sales, which would earn you $500 in commission. 

 

As you can see, you’d need half the conversions to earn five times as much income. So large-ticket items really make sense when you have a limited number of people to market to, such as you do with a webinar.

 

Not only must you worry about the physical limitations of your webinar software and server, but the schedules of potential attendees as well. You may see fewer attendees than you expect because people are busy at the time you schedule your webinar.

 

It’s possible to record your webinar and distribute it to people who cannot attend, however conversions on recorded webinars aren’t likely to be nearly as high as during the live broadcast, because you can’t have viewers of the recorded webinar interact with you as they could during the initial live broadcast.

 

Doing the Math – Before you plan your webinar, it’s important to do a little math to be sure your webinar has the best chance to be profitable. (In other words, worth your time.) 

 

First, figure out which product you’d like to promote. Ideally, this should be a product that you’ll make at least $100 in commission from, though higher amounts would be even better, obviously. 

 

However, don’t choose a product solely based on its commission. It’s better to choose a product that makes a bit less commission and converts much better than to choose a product that has a very high commission and won’t convert at all.

 

Let’s say your product will make you $100 in commission. If you want to make at least $500 from the webinar, you know you need to get a total of five sales. 

 

You may not know the exact conversion rate of your product, but you can estimate it. A 5% conversion rate is a good starting point as an estimate. It helps greatly if you’ve tested the product already, or if the product owner has released public information about its overall conversion rates, but 5% is generally a safe estimate for most products.

 

In order to get five sales at a 5% conversion rate, you need a total of 100 people in attendance. You could make more, or you could make less. But getting a minimum of 100 people to attend would be your goal.

 

If you have a high-converting product that gives you $500 commission, you would only need one sale to earn what you desire. This means a higher-priced product would require much fewer attendees.

Automated Webinars

Automated webinars make it easy to set up webinars at times when you cannot theoretically be in attendance. This is great for providing access to people on varying schedules and all around the world without having to be there constantly.

 

You may wonder why it makes sense to do an automated webinar when you could simply do a single webinar, record it, and offer access to a video 

 

There are many reasons to use an automated webinar system instead of simply offering a video recording:

 

  1. People are much more likely to attend when they feel they are on a time constraint because they don’t want to miss the event. If they are given a link to download a video, they are likely to put off watching the video until “later”, but “later” is likely to never come. People tend to procrastinate unless they have a set timeframe for something.
  2. People tend to perceive the value of a live webinar as much higher than the value of a single video, even though the information is technically precisely the same.
  3. A video recording does not allow audience participation of any kind. Some automated webinar scripts allow audience members to chat with one another and also chat with you if you are available at the moment.
  4. A recorded video cannot be set to play at a specific time so that late attendees believe they are attending a live webinar. However, with some automated webinar software, the video will begin at a specified time, and if people are late or leave and come back, the video will not resume from the same place they left off, giving the impression of a live broadcast.

 

There are many different automated webinar systems available. Here are a few of the most popular.

 

>> http://www.EvergreenBusinessSystem.com – The Evergreen Business System is one of the most popular automated webinar systems. At $497. This system delivers a tremendous number of features, most of which cannot be found elsewhere. For an additional $97 monthly fee, you can also run an unlimited number of live webinars using their servers. 

 

>> http://www.StealthSeminar.com – The Stealth Seminar system charges as $97 registration fee (after coupon), and then an additional $69.95 per month. While this is cheaper upfront than the Evergreen Business System, you will find that it lacks some of the features people want in a webinar host. However, it does integrate with almost all major autoresponder systems.

>> http://www.EasyWebinar.com – Easy Webinar is only $297 for a 10-domain license. It is less costly than other systems, but again it doesn’t have quiet as many features as the two listed above.

Planning a Webinar (Structure, Pitching an offer)

Planning the full webinar before it begins is absolutely essential. Without proper planning, you’re likely to end up with long periods of dead air or being unable to answer questions posed by attendees, which can throw off your webinar and cost you conversions/sales.

 

Webinar Formats – There are several different formats you can choose from for a webinar. Different formats have different benefits, so you may want to use different formats at different times based on your needs.

 

Let’s take a look at some of the various formats and their benefits and weaknesses:

 

Single Speaker – In the single speaker format, one person does the complete presentation and may ask the attendees questions or answer theirs. 

 

One major benefit of this particular webinar type is that you won’t have to train multiple people how to use the webinar software. Additionally, you don’t have to worry about timing and coordinating multiple speakers, or having presenters talking over each other answering questions. 

 

The biggest potential drawback of the single speaker format is that sometimes people are reluctant to interact with a single speaker, because they feel it can be a bit intimidating, because the single speaker becomes somewhat of an authority figure. However, this is also potentially beneficial, because if you are seen as an authority figure, people will be more likely to take actions you recommend or request, such as buying a product.

 

Interview Style – The interview style webinar involves two or more people working together. One person is usually the interviewer, and that person interviews one or more other people.

 

Some people find that hearing several people at once helps make a webinar more interesting. Also, since the interviewer is asking the other person questions, many times this encourages attendees to ask questions, increasing interactivity.

 

This means you’ll have to ensure everyone is able to use the webinar software, including the interviewer and all interviewees. You may also run into scheduling conflicts, because you will have to coordinate multiple people to run the webinar.

 

Moderated Panel – A moderated panel has several people online at the same time with one moderator who ensures only one person can speak at a time. This is done either through the software itself, allowing the moderator to mute everyone who isn’t currently speaking, or in the same way a moderator facilitates a live discussion, by giving individuals permission to speak.

 

Like the interview style, this type of webinar allows users to hear different perspectives and different voices, which makes the webinar more interesting than a single speaker style.

 

However, as with an interview style, you’ll have to ensure all parties know how to use the webinar software and be careful of any scheduling conflicts. But perhaps the biggest challenge with this format is keeping the conversation flowing well without people talking over each other. The moderator must take great care to keep things organized.

 

Interactive – The interactive format requires a single individual to lead the attendees in various activities such as question-and-answer sessions, lessons or other interactive content.

 

Because this format is extremely interactive, people generally get more out of the webinar. Attendees can ask questions, and even answer questions for other attendees. This can be very helpful if someone asks a question that you don’t know the answer to.

 

The main problem with this format is that it can really only reasonably accommodate a small number of individuals, because large groups can cause a lot of confusion if everyone is trying to speak at once. You need to be reasonably skilled at running this type of webinar for it to work effectively.

Planning the Presentation

You will need to plan your presentation carefully from start to finish, and you won’t want to deviate from that format too much during your webinar. The reason for this is that once a webinar has been derailed, it can take a long time for it to recover and get back on track, thus making your webinar run over time.

 

Since people have to plan to be present at a particular time for a webinar event, they generally don’t allot time over that. They may make plans after your webinar, and if it runs over, they may have to leave. Or they may just get bored if the webinar runs too long.

 

Here are some things you might want to include in your presentation:

 

  1. A slide that introduces your webinar, including its purpose, what time it begins, how to use the various webinar functions, and how long the webinar is estimated to last.
  2. A slide that gives information about the webinar host/presenter and any other presenters, interviewers or interviewees. Include their name, their professional credentials, and a picture if you have one.
  3. A short presentation of the webinar’s agenda, including the topics to be covered and any other material to be presented.
  4. Screenshots or videos that demonstrate primary elements of your presentation. You may be able to keep these on your computer and present them as needed, as some webinar software allows you to share your desktop so everyone can see what you’re doing live as you do it. This will let you show videos, slides, screenshots or whatever else you need to display.

Plan Attendees

Keep in mind that a lot of webinar software has hard limits on the number of attendees. This is due to a number of different factors, such as bandwidth, software limitations, etc.

 

If you know you have a limited number of spots available, be sure to let potential attendees know this in advance. This will help increase the number of people who sign up for your webinar, because it will lend an element of scarcity.

 

Record the Presentation – It’s a very good idea to record the webinar to allow those who could not be in attendance to view it at a later date. This will increase your conversions, because you will be able to reach more people than could be present due to their own scheduling conflicts or due to the space limitations for the live presentation.

 

If you’re going to record the webinar, you’ll want to plan this in advance so you can be certain your webinar software allows recording, and to learn how to use the function properly.

Create the Agenda

It is very important to create an agenda with approximate times so that the webinar flows smoothly and doesn’t go too much over time. Remember, if you run over time, you won’t make it to your final sales pitch with some participants, which will severely cut down on conversions.

 

Your agenda should contain a list of topics that you plan to discuss during the webinar so that you don’t forget any important points.

 

The agenda should also contain a rough guide for each segment of the presentation, including the order in which speakers will make their presentations, a list of interview questions, etc.

 

Here’s a sample agenda for a webinar beginning at 6:00 PM:

 

6:00 – Introduction to the webinar and its presenters.

6:05 – First topic of discussion.

6:15 – Second topic of discussion.

6:25 – Third topic of discussion.

6:35 – Questions from the audience.

6:50 – Product is introduced, letting people know their unanswered questions can be answered by it. This is the sales pitch.

7:00 – Webinar is concluded, attendees are thanked for their presence, and the final sales pitch is made.

Schedule Presenters

If you intend on having any special guests, additional presenters, experts, or interviewees, you need to schedule them well in advance so they are certain they can be present and on time for the webinar.

 

Don’t forget to schedule all presenters for a trial run, too. This should be done at least once before the day of the webinar in order to ensure everyone knows how to use the software properly and that everyone knows their role and can stick within the time constraints.

Plan a Dry Run

A trial run is absolutely vital for ensuring your webinar goes smoothly. There isn’t much that will kill a webinar’s effectiveness faster than a bunch of people saying “um” and “uh” every couple of minutes because they don’t know what they’re doing or what should happen next.

 

It’s a good idea to do two or three dry runs, but you must do at least one. The dry run will help ensure everyone knows how to use the webinar software correctly, the order of events, what they plan to say, and how to stay within time constraints.

 

You won’t be able to plan for things such as user questions as well, but you can anticipate some of the things attendees might ask and be prepared to answer those questions.

 

The dry run should include, at minimum:

 

  1. Practice the webinar introduction, including introducing individual presenters.
  2. Making sure presenters know how to use the webinar software.
  3. Check all software and equipment. Make sure the web server is running optimally. Be sure everyone has working headsets and knows how to use them and mute them when necessary.
  4. Go over the complete agenda with all participants. Do a run-through of all presenters’ presentations, including visuals such as screenshots and videos.

Fine-Tuning Your Pitch

The most important part of your webinar is obviously your pitch. This pitch must be as finely tuned as possible before the webinar begins, and it must contain the perfect blend of selling versus informing.

 

If the product is yours, you can be a little more aggressive with your sales pitch. People will expect this if you’re selling your own product, so they won’t really be upset.

 

However, if you’re selling an affiliate product, people are likely to be rather skeptical about the product if you’re selling too hard. Instead, try to focus on talking about why you personally like the product rather than just saying, “Buy! Buy! Buy!”

 

Here are some things you might want to include in your sales pitch:

 

  • A few of the most important features of the product
  • The best benefits of the product (Remember, benefits are different from features. Features would be things like a server’s bandwidth or hard drive size. Benefits would be no loss of sales due to bandwidth limitations or never running out of server space for critical backups.)
  • What the product has done for you personally
  • Why you believe everyone would want the product

Be careful not to oversell the product or people will smell the sales pitch a mile away and won’t feel it is genuine. The more personal it seems, and the more you relate to them what it has done for you, the more people will want to buy it.

Pre-Qualifying Participants

Something you may want to do if your webinar is very limited is to pre-screen potential attendees to be sure they understand the product you are presenting, its basic features and its price. You don’t want valuable webinar spots being taken by people who would have absolutely no interest in the product you’re selling or wouldn’t be able to afford it even if they were.

 

Thus, before your signup form, you might want to include a short survey asking people questions that pre-qualify them for your webinar.

 

Some example questions for a weigh loss webinar might include:

 

  • Are you interested in losing 50, 75, even 100 pounds or more in the next six months?
  • Have you tried other weight loss products and failed?
  • Are you sick of weight loss systems that try to charge you a monthly fee on and on, yet they never work?
  • If you could pay a one-time fee of just $497 to lose all the weight you want, and be guaranteed success, would you be interested?

 

This will ensure participants are both interested and willing to pay the cost of the product.

Final Words

Webinars can be extremely profitable if care is taken with the setup, presentation, and pitch. Remember that they are best used for pitching high-value products that pay a larger commission in order to take advantage of the limited nature of most webinar software.

 

Remember, you can continue making money long after your webinar has ended by allowing others to view the recording of it. But don’t forget that your webinar’s effectiveness will diminish significantly if you only offer a standard video stream or download of your broadcast.

 

Instead, consider using one of the automated webinar systems that make your broadcast seem like a live event. This will increase urgency and ensure that more people will view your recorded webinar and take action, too.

 

I wish you the best of luck with your webinars, and I hope you find wild success with all your future webinars!

 

Good luck!

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Box Shot Balls

How To Make Your Digital Products
Look Even Great If You’re A Design Dummy!

It has been said for decades that you should never judge a book by its cover, but that is exactly what most people do. Whether it’s a book on a shelf, a person they just met or the virtual packaging for an information product, people really do pay attention to appearance.

 

If you think about it, this makes sense. In a perfect world, everyone would look past cosmetic appearance and get straight to the heart of the matter. However, this is far from a perfect world. You never get a second chance to make a first impression, and your product’s image is the first impression most people will have.

 

You can increase sales significantly by simply presenting the best possible image for your product. With a virtual product, this is usually done with a virtual product image. This might be a 3D book cover, software box or other visual representation of the digital product.

 

Graphics design is one of those things most people seem to shy away from. It seems highly technical and difficult to the average person, but it’s actually a lot easier than you might think. These days, software practically does the job for you. All you need is a basic understanding of the principles of design and how the software functions.

 

In this report, you’re going to learn about the different types of software available for the creation of virtual product images such as book covers, software boxes, DVD cases and more.

 

You will also learn the basic steps you need to take in order to create your own virtual product images, including where to locate legal stock photos and how to create your image from start to finish.

 

Let’s get started!

What You Will Learn

  • Graphics Programs
  • Photoshop Add-Ons
  • Virtual Product Design Packages
  • Stock Photos: What You Should Know
  • Putting It All Together

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Graphics Programs

The first piece of the graphics puzzle is a good graphics software program. There are hundreds of these available, ranging in price from free to hundreds of dollars. If cost is a concern, you may be able to make do with less expensive alternatives; however, the more expensive packages will make it easier to create the look you’re after even if you’re a beginner.

 

Let’s take a look at some of the popular graphics packages.

 

Adobe Photoshop: http://www.photoshop.com

 

The most popular graphics software is Photoshop from Adobe. While there are other graphics packages out there – most of them cheaper than Photoshop – you simply won’t find the range of available add-ons for any other program. If at all possible, pick up a copy of Photoshop. There is a 30-day trial available on Adobe.com, so you can try the program for a while to see if you like it.

 

The main reason to purchase Photoshop is for the wide range of add-ons available. These add-ons help add flair to your designs, even if you are a very inexperienced designer.

 

Another great reason to purchase Photoshop is for the huge array of tutorials available. A simple check of Google or YouTube will turn up millions of tutorials for beginners and experts alike, and there are also countless books available to teach you Photoshop from basic to advanced use.

 

Photoshop CS2 (a version that is several years old) is also available for anyone who may have purchased a license in the past but can no longer locate the serial number. If you have purchased CS2 in the past, visit the download page and use the included serial number (found in the table beside the download link) to activate it.

 

http://www.adobe.com/downloads/cs2_downloads/index.html

 

If you want the latest version but can’t afford to shell out hundreds of dollars upfront, you can “rent” the software through Adobe’s Creative Cloud service.

 

http://www.adobe.com/products/creativecloud.html

 

This service starts at $29.99 per month if you are a student (and you must have proof of your status, such as a student ID card) or $49.99 for an individual with a one-year commitment. If you don’t want to make a one-year commitment, the cost is $74.99 per month.

 

This gives you access to all of Adobe’s Creative Suite products, including Photoshop CS6 and others, for a monthly price instead of paying a large amount of money upfront. You can even get a free 30-day trial, allowing you to test all of the Adobe software.

 

You will also have 20GB of cloud storage for your products, giving you a great way to back up your work and access it from any location on any machine. Once you install the Adobe Application Manager and log in with your Creative Cloud username and password, you can download and install any of the software on any machine.

 

NOTE: You can only install the software on two machines at one time using Creative Cloud. However, if you need to use your software on more than two machines, you can simple de-authorize and re-authorize machines as needed. You shouldn’t ever need to use the software on more than one machine at a given time, anyway.

 

GIMP: http://www.gimp.org

 

GIMP, which stands for The GNU Image Manipulation Program, is an alternative to Photoshop. The program is free, and it is available for almost every imaginable operating system. In fact, the source code is freely available for porting to other systems.

 

The main reason GIMP is less popular than Photoshop is because of the lack of add-ons. There are many add-ons available for GIMP, however existing add-ons for Photoshop will not work with GIMP, and you won’t find anywhere near the number of available add-ons you would find with Photoshop.

 

Fortunately, there are still a lot of good tutorials available to help you learn how to use the program. For this reason, GIMP is a good choice when used in conjunction with other software packages, such as Box Shot 3D which we’ll look at later.

 

CorelDRAW: http://www.corel.com

 

CorelDRAW is another higher-priced option, however it costs considerably less than Photoshop. CorelDRAW doesn’t have the range of available add-ons that Photoshop has, nor does it even have the same level of support as GIMP.

 

Perhaps the only redeeming quality of CorelDRAW is its ability to work with vectors, which makes it a good choice if you plan to do your own artwork for your product images.

 

Other Programs

 

Unfortunately, there aren’t a lot of alternatives to Photoshop for actual design work. Many of the former Photoshop competitors have removed a lot of their design capabilities, instead focusing on photo editing. For example, PaintShop Pro used to be a full-fledged design package, but has now been scaled back to be mostly useful for photographers.

 

There are a few online programs that allow basic image editing. You can create simple graphics with these, but they won’t give you the professional look of a rendered 3D-style graphic. In order to get that, you would have to import your graphic into another program. We’ll discuss these programs later.

Photoshop Add-Ons

There are several types of add-ons available for Photoshop that will make your job a lot easier. In fact, some of these add-ons will make it seem as though you are a graphics guru even if you are a total newbie to graphics design.

 

Photoshop Actions – Actions are scripts that run within Photoshop. These scripts add automation to Photoshop, allowing you to create realistic 3D style images without the need for an expensive and complex 3D program that would take years to master. These scripts range in price from free up to around $300.

 

Cover Action Pro: http://coveractionpro.com/index.html

 

Cover Action Pro has been the standard cover action script collection for years. This script package contains over 100 different action scripts, allowing you to create a wide variety of product images from books to software boxes and much more.

 

The Standard edition of Cover Action Pro currently costs $199, while the Extreme version costs $299. The Extreme version contains the same actions as the Standard version, but it also comes with the Bundles & Courses action pack.

 

Cover Action Pro is a great choice for beginners, because they provide plenty of training to help you learn how to use the scripts. Additionally, you can purchase a template package for $47 that will let you get started with little or no Photoshop experience.

 

Black Belt Covers: http://blackbeltcovers.com/

 

Black Belt Covers is a less expensive alternative to Cover Action Pro. At $97, it is about half the price of Cover Action Pro, so it is a good choice if you’re on a limited budget.

 

The main problems with Black Belt Covers are:

  1. The actions have not been updated in several years, so they appear fairly dated compared to Cover Action Pro.
  2. There isn’t much in the way of tutorials that teach you how to use the actions, especially compared to Cover Action Pro.
  3. There are fewer actions available than with Cover Action Pro.

 

However, the price difference definitely makes this script package worth considering.

 

Mockups Master: http://mockupsmaster.com/

 

Another great Photoshop actions package is Mockups Master. This package doesn’t have quite the range of selections that Cover Action Pro comes with, but the graphics are more up-to-date than those in Black Belt Covers.

 

Perhaps the best thing about Mockups Master is the price. At this time, the product is available for only $27! If you’re just looking for a basic package that will give you a quality image, Mockups Master might be a great option.

 

Photoshop Styles – Styles are applied to layers, and they apply decorative effects to those layers. Styles are especially useful for creating interesting text effects, making plain, boring text really pop off the page.

 

Text without style applied is dull and lifeless. It doesn’t attract attention. You can turn plain text into a stunning logo with the click of a mouse by using the right Photoshop style!

 

If you’re going to apply styles to your text, be sure to choose a style that complements the image you’re using and it easy to read. Don’t choose overly busy styles or styles that clash with the other colors in your graphic. Using the wrong style is much worse than using no style at all!

 

Following this text, you will find an example of text on a gradient background. On the first line, no style is applied. On the second line, a garish style that clashes with the background and is difficult to read is applied. In the last line, a clean, simple style that looks good with the background is applied.

As you can see, the last line is easy to read and looks visually appealing. It stands out more than the text with the bad style applied, and it draws the eye much more than the text with no style applied.

 

You can download free Photoshop styles from hundreds of websites, but you should be aware that many free styles are not very attractive and may make your text difficult to read. Additionally, some styles are made for thinner fonts and others for thicker fonts, so keep that in mind as you use styles.

 

You can also purchase quality styles from reputable vendors. These purchased styles are often much more useful than free styles, and you can often see examples of the styles used on text before you buy.

 

One great place for purchasing styles (as well as other add-ons) is Graphic River.  This website allows individual product creators to sell their add-ons through a single marketplace.

>> http://www.graphicriver.net

 

To find Photoshop styles, simply mouse over “Add-ons” in the top menu, and then click “Photoshop”.  In the menu on the right side, click “Styles”. This will bring up a selection of hundreds of styles for purchase. Most packages include multiple styles focused around a similar theme, and packs are remarkably affordable. Packs start at around $2 and go up to around $20 for very large packages.

 

A great place to find free add-ons, including styles, is at deviantART. There are thousands of free downloads available. 

 

Once at the deviantART website, click “Resources & Stock Images.” Click “Application Resources.” There is no section specifically for Photoshop Styles, so browse through the Photoshop .PSD section and the Photoshop Actions section to find styles, or search for “styles” within the Application Resources section.

>> http://www.deviantart.com/ 


Other Add-Ons – There are other types of add-ons available as well. For example, you can buy or download gradients, patterns, shapes, brushes and more. Each of these types of add-ons is useful in its own way. Gradients are useful for backgrounds and stylizing text. Patterns are great for adding texture to elements. Shapes are great for calling attention and crating dynamic images, as are brushes.

 

You can download thousands of various add-ons through Graphic River and deviantART, and there are thousands of web pages that make these elements available free. But check the terms for use and make sure they are for commercial use.

Virtual Product Design Packages

If you cannot afford Photoshop, or if you use the trial and find you don’t like it, there are other alternatives available for creating virtual product designs.

 

Box Shot 3D (Windows and Mac)

http://www.boxshot3d.com

 

Box Shot 3D is a software package that is available for both Windows and Mac computers. This software allows anyone to create many different types of virtual product packaging graphics without Photoshop, because it is a standalone program. It is not a Photoshop action script as so many other virtual product design programs are.

 

Box Shot 3D is a 3D rendering program that allows you to take one of their premade shapes, add your own graphics to the shape, and render the shape from any angle you use. You can even customize the lighting to create exactly the look and feel you desire for your image.

 

Box Shot 3D is currently $80.

 

True Box Shot (Windows or Photoshop)

http://www.trueboxshot.com/

 

True Box Shot is a software package similar to Box Shot 3D. The standalone version (Windows only) is $55, and the Photoshop action version is $39.99, making it cheaper than Box Shot 3D.

 

True Box Shot doesn’t have as many options available for cover types, but if you find the right one for your product, you can save money by choosing this option over Box Shot 3D.

Stock Photos: What You Should Know

Unless you will be creating your own images or taking your own photos for your products, you will need to purchase stock photos. Legally, you cannot just take images from other websites without paying for them. Doing this could get you sued for major damages by the owner of the image.

 

In fact, you shouldn’t even trust most images you find online that claim to be free. You have no way of knowing whether that image is truly being posted by the owner of the image’s copyright or by someone who has illegally downloaded the image elsewhere and is reposting it.

 

Stock Photo Sites – Finding the right stock photo for your project is crucial. If you choose a boring photograph or piece of artwork, your entire project will be boring. No amount of graphics work can make a terrible image work well.

 

There are many different stock photo sites available, and most are reasonably priced. Keep in mind that the price you are paying is going, in large part, to the photographer who took the image. Most images only sell a handful of copies (or none at all) so the photographers don’t really make a lot of money. This is why stock photos may seem pricey. A good photo is well worth the expense!

 

Here are some of the best stock photo sites:

>> http://www.bigstockphoto.com

>> http://www.istockphoto.com

>> http://www.dreamstime.com

>> http://www.depositphotos.com

>> http://www.shutterstock.com

Be sure to read the license carefully before you buy. Some stock photo agencies may require an additional fee for certain uses, so be sure you understand your rights thoroughly before you buy.

 

Many stock photo agencies require you to purchase credits instead of buying individual images. This may require you to buy more than you really need. Big Stock Photo is one of the few agencies that currently allow you to buy images one at a time, so if you know you’ll only need one image, you might want to consider using them for your stock needs.

 

Trustworthy Sources of Free Images – There are a few sources of images that you can be relatively certain you can trust. Keep in mind that these sources may have limited selections, so you may not find what you need. Additionally, the quality will not generally be as good as with stock agencies that charge for their photos. Plus, you can never be 100% certain the images you download are legal, so use these only as a last resort.

 

Here are a few sources that are considered trustworthy:

>> http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Main_page

>> http://publicphoto.org/ 

>> http://pixabay.com/ 

>> http://pdphoto.org/ 

>> http://www.photos-public-domain.com/ 

>> http://picdrome.com/

>> http://www.alegriphotos.com/

>> http://www.public-domain-photos.com/ 

 

And here is a large list of reputable sources for free photos:

>> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Public_domain_image_resources 

 

Please be sure to read the site’s terms of use before you use the photos! Many sites require you to credit them or have other terms you must obey to use the images legally!

Putting It All Together

Once you’ve chosen your software, you need to put everything together to create your virtual product image. Here is a quick and easy step-by-step tutorial that will walk you through the process of creating your image.

 

Step 1: Choose a Product Type 

 

The first thing you must do is chose which type of virtual product image best represents your product. This will obviously be limited by the software package you have chosen to use based on which types of product packaging they have available.

 

If your product is a book, you can choose a paperback or hardcover book image. If you have a software package or any type of product that is packaged as a bundle, you could use a box. If you sell audio or video, you could use a CD or DVD case.

 

Step 2:  Choose a Stock Photo

 

After selecting a product type, choose a stock photo that complements both your product theme and the type of virtual product image you have chosen. Try to avoid generic images of smiling people or stacks of money. 

 

Instead, choose something that really represents your company, your product or your product’s name.

 

Since the flat image will usually be quite large, choose a stock photo that is at least 3000×3000 pixels in size. 

 

This will be a bit more expensive than a smaller image, but a smaller image will look grainy and pixelated if you try to blow it up to the size required by most cover action software.

 

Step 3: Create the Flat Graphic

 

Most cover action software comes with basic blank templates that are used to create a flat graphic for use in the final design. 

 

Think of taking a software box and opening it up completely and flattening it out. If you fold it back up, it is a 3-dimensional product, but originally it was a flat, printed piece of cardboard.

 

There are hundreds of websites you can visit to get inspiration for your flat design. Sometimes looking at the work of others can give you ideas for your own work. 

 

Remember to use these only for inspiration. Never try to copy someone else’s work!

 

To find good sources of inspiration, search Google or another search engine for the following:

  • Ecover designer
  • Book cover designer
  • Minisite designer
  • Ecover design
  • Minisite design

 

These searches will give you a good starting place for finding inspiration for your work.

 

Step 4: Render the Virtual Product

 

Once the flat graphic is finished, you can use your chosen cover design package to compile the finished 3D product. 

 

If you’re using a cover action script in Photoshop, you will simply run the action to turn your flat image into the finished product. 

 

If you are using an external program like Box Shot 3D, refer to the software’s manual to find out the steps you need to take to compile your finished image.

 

Step 5: Save the Image

 

Don’t forget to save both the flat graphic and the compiled graphic separately as a PSD file or other format that can be edited, and then save the compiled graphic as either JPG format or PNG format.

 

If you’re using Photoshop, you’ll want to save your graphics as a PSD, because you can come back and edit these files later if you need to make changes or create new images using the same basic elements. Don’t forget to save both the flat graphic and compiled graphic separately!

Final Words

You’re finished!

 

That’s all there is to it! 

 

Once you learn these basic steps, you will never have to pay a designer an outrageous fee to create covers for you again!

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Deadly Affiliate Marketing Mistakes

Affiliate marketing is a great way to make money, but it’s not necessarily as easy as it sounds. Too many affiliate marketers are actually making HUGE mistakes that cost them time, money, and may even hurt their reputations permanently.

Fortunately, once you’ve identified these killer mistakes, it’s easy to correct them so you can stop making them in your own affiliate marketing campaigns.

If you’ve been wondering why your affiliate marketing campaigns aren’t as effective as you’d hoped, you might be making one or more of these big mistakes than could be seriously hampering your efforts.

In this blog post, you’ll learn about the most common mistakes made by affiliate marketers (even some highly experienced marketers make these mistakes!) You’ll also learn how to keep from making these mistakes yourself, and how to keep from repeating the same mistakes over and over again as so many people seem to do.

So let’s get started.

What You’ll Learn:

Mistake #1: Focusing on Selling

I understand that the main goal of affiliate marketing, at least for the marketers themselves, is to make sales. That much is obvious. But you should never focus on “selling”.

Instead, your main focus should be on helping people. No matter what your market, you should be focused on helping your market in some way, because this is how you add value to your affiliate offers and how you get the audience in that market to trust you and want to buy from you.

It doesn’t matter what your market is, your main goal is helping people. Period.

Weight loss? You’re helping people get in shape and get healthy.

Internet marketing? You’re helping people make money and achieve financial freedom.

Socks? You’re helping people keep their feet warm and dry and look fashionable at the same time.

Always focus on helping your target customers. This will help you build a rapport with the people you’d like to sell to, making your job easier and giving you a reason to feel good about yourself at the same time!

Mistake 2: Not Testing

Testing is one of those things that everyone seems to know they’re supposed to do, but almost no one actually does.

Why exactly is testing so important, anyway?

Well, let’s say you’re achieving a 2.5% conversion rate. Not too bad, you might think. After all, you have considerable competition, and you aren’t really standing out well in your market.

But what if one simple tweak, something perhaps as simple as adding ONE WORD to your squeeze page or changing ONE IMAGE on your blog’s main page could increase that to a 5% conversion?

2.5% higher doesn’t sound like all that much of a difference until you realize that’s DOUBLE the conversion rate, DOUBLE the customers, and DOUBLE the income. From making one change! Isn’t that worth it?

The thing is, you’ll never know what might make a difference if you don’t test.

Mistake #3: Sticking with MMO Products

MMO, or Make Money Online, is one of the most financially lucrative markets there is, but it’s a mistake to concentrate solely on that one market. Did you know that even the biggest internet marketing (I.M.) gurus have diversified into other markets?

That’s because any niche, no matter how lucrative, has a maximum income cap that you can reach. Eventually, you could reach virtually the entire market, and your income will suffer because you have nothing new to sell to them and no way to add new value.

Sure, this is an extreme example. The fact is, no market has an absolute cap, because new customers are being born and growing up all the time. But think about it. Once you’ve hit a plateau, your income stagnates.

But if you diversify, if you branch out into other markets, you’ll always have fresh products to promote. You’ll always have new value to add. You’ll always be able to make money because you’re not pigeonholed into one specific market.

I know it may be tempting to start with the MMO niche because it can be extremely lucrative and you’re learning a lot about it yourself, but unless you can help someone in that niche because you are an expert yourself, you’re better off trying a niche where you have more to add.

Mistake #4: Spreading Yourself Too Thin

The temptation is great, especially for new affiliate marketers, to spread themselves too thin by branching out into too many markets. Maybe they buy 50 domains all at once, or they set up blogs in 13 different niches in one week. But this is folly.

You should focus on one or two key niches at a time, and diversify once you’ve made some real headway into those niches. Unless you can hire someone to manage multiple blogs, multiple products, multiple email lists, multiple social media pages and accounts… you’re doing yourself a huge disservice if you diversify too widely in the beginning.

Choose two or three markets initially, and only diversity further once you’ve really made some real headway into those first niches. Once you have some decent traffic, a small mailing list that’s growing, some social media presence that’s making a difference… then you can think about trying out new niches.

Don’t make the mistake of spreading out too far too fast. You’ll find that you can never make a real difference in any one niche, because you aren’t putting enough effort into one to make any headway.

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Mistake #5: Joining Too Many Affiliate Programs

Another major temptation for affiliate marketers is to join too many affiliate programs because they aren’t sure which one will be the most profitable for them. Well, let me let you in on a little secret.

They can ALL be profitable for you!Trust me, as long as you’re sticking to the legitimate affiliate programs with well-known companies, you’re almost always going to see some nice results. There’s a reason why their affiliate programs are so popular!

Choose your two or three starter niches, and then find 2-3 affiliate programs for each one. Make sure you can find at least one really hot product at each affiliate program that looks like it will convert well in your niche, and then stick to promoting that product for a while before you try something new.

If you join too many affiliate programs at once, you’ll find that you take a very long time to reach the minimum payouts required for each affiliate program, because you’ll be making $2 here, $8 there, $22 somewhere else… it’s madness!

It’s much better to sell three different products via one single affiliate program than it is to sell fifty products from thirty-five different affiliate programs.

Not only that, but if you’re a member of too many programs, you’ll be more apt to forget the rules of each affiliate network and end up getting banned, because there’s just too many to keep track of.

Some of the best or most popular affiliate programs include:

>> http://www.clickbank.net

>> http://affiliate-program.amazon.com

>> http://www.jvzoo.com

Check these programs to see which ones have products that fit with your market, and then stick with those programs for a while. You may find you never need to move past these few programs.

Mistake #6: Not Tracking Results

If you start seeing a good number of sales, you’ll soon start to wonder which of your marketing efforts is the most productive. You’ll obviously want to concentrate more of your efforts on those methods that are making you the most money. But what if you have no idea which areas to concentrate on, because you don’t know which methods are working?

Enter TRACKING…

Tracking, quite simply, lets you know where your traffic is coming from and where it’s going. Simple tracking is as simple as using a tracking code through your affiliate program. For example, you can create a unique tracking ID for each website you own on the Amazon affiliate network. Or if you promote products through ClickBank, you can add a custom code word to your affiliate links to allow you to find out where every sale you refer came from.

You could also go into much more detail by using your own affiliate tracking script that will allow you much more detailed information about your clicks and sales. This is advanced stuff, so you might not need it right away. But you definitely need SOME sort of tracking in place so you can figure out which of your methods is working best!

Mistake #7: Giving Up Too Quickly

If you start seeing a good number of sales, you’ll soon start to wonder which of your marketing efforts is the most productive. You’ll obviously want to concentrate more of your efforts on those methods that are making you the most money. But what if you have no idea which areas to concentrate on, because you don’t know which methods are working

Enter TRACKING…

Tracking, quite simply, lets you know where your traffic is coming from and where it’s going. Simple tracking is as simple as using a tracking code through your affiliate program. For example, you can create a unique tracking ID for each website you own on the Amazon affiliate network. Or if you promote products through ClickBank, you can add a custom code word to your affiliate links to allow you to find out where every sale you refer came from.

You could also go into much more detail by using your own affiliate tracking script that will allow you much more detailed information about your clicks and sales. This is advanced stuff, so you might not need it right away. But you definitely need SOME sort of tracking in place so you can figure out which of your methods is working best!

Mistake #8: Competition Fear

A lot of people try to stick to the “low hanging fruit”, because they’ve been told that’s what they should do as newbies. Or they do it because they’re terrified that they’ll never be able to compete against the millions of other websites out there.

HOGWASH!

You can compete in ANY niche! I’ve known complete newbies who managed to crack super tough niches like MMO and weight loss right off the bat. Is this likely? Of course not. Is it possible? Definitely.

I don’t advise new affiliate marketers to tackle these extremely tough niches immediately, but you don’t have to choose tiny, obscure niches that aren’t likely to make you much money, either. If there’s not much competition, it’s because there’s not much money there. Trust me, there ARE no “undiscovered” or “untapped” niches anymore. There may have been a few years ago, but that ship has sailed. If it’ll make money, it’s already making someone money. Probably a lot of people.

Don’t fear competition, just be wary of it. You WANT competition, trust me. Too much competition is a difficult thing to overcome, but choose niches that have a decent amount of competition, because that’s where the money is.

Mistake #9: Ignoring Competition

While it’s important not to fear competition, it’s also important to be sensible. Expecting to make a fortune overnight in a super-competitive niche like weight loss is a sure recipe for disappointment.

What you need to do in the beginning is target niches that:

  1. Have a healthy amount of competition
  2. Don’t have so much competition that it’s difficult to get traffic
  3. You have some interest or knowledge in

Notice #3 especially. If you have absolutely no interest or knowledge in a niche, it will be harder to create content, harder to identify with your target market, harder to sell products you know little to nothing about, and harder to get traffic.

Do you need to be an expert to conquer a market? Absolutely not! In fact, you could probably do well in a niche that you know NOTHING about, just learning as you go.

But if you have absolutely no interest in the subject, it’s going to make it much, much easier to give up. You’ll simply get bored, because your work day becomes such a grind that you’ll throw your hands up in frustration and flip on the television or head out to the lake.

So how do you choose your first few niches?

Make a list of some topics you have an interest in. I’d say 10-20 topics would be enough to get started.

Now check to make sure there are:

  • Affiliate products to promote
  • A decent amount of competition
  • Resources available for you to learn from
  • Traffic sources you can take advantage of

As far as competition, you want to look for niches that have at least 50,000 existing websites. Even a few million isn’t a big deal. Fifty million might be pushing it unless you have money to pay for initial promotion.

You can find out how many sites there are that mention your topic by searching Google. I search multi-word phrases in quotes to be sure I get an accurate number.

I searched for “golf” and got “About 1,310,000,000 results.” Yikes. Over a billion! A search for “gluten free” came up with “About 85,100,000 results.” Better, but still pretty big. “Pasta makers” came up with “About 424,000 results”. That’s definitely much more reasonable.

Don’t fear competition, but be reasonable about it!

Final Thoughts

Affiliate marketing isn’t for the faint of heart, or for people who find that they tend to give up too easily or jump around from one shiny new thing to another without thinking.

It’s actually a lot of hard work, and it takes time to build resources like blog traffic and email lists. There are no shortcuts unless you have the cash to spend for content creation, buying existing websites with traffic, or paying for email subscribers or social network followers.

Always keep these       potential mistakes in mind as you navigate your way through the precarious world of affiliate marketing. Be sure you’re not making these mistakes, and don’t become lax once you start making money. No one is immune to these mistakes!

As long as you work hard, keep at it, and avoid these mistakes, you’re certain to start making money.

But if you give up, I can guarantee you’ll fail!

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Writing a Good Autoresponder Sequence

So you’ve got people to opt-in to your list and you’re building a subscriber base. This is probably the single most important thing you can do in your online business BUT if you don’t follow it up with a good autoresponder sequence then you’re pretty much putting all of your list building efforts to waste…

A good autoresponder sequence builds a relationship with your subscribers. It (hopefully) gets them to buy products from you and engage in what you’re all about.

Many people get it wrong. They stack up the messages without giving much thought to what they are actually doing. Here’s how to do it right:

1. Put yourself in your subscribers shoes

Easier said than done I agree, but do you really want to be receiving sales email after sales email each and every day? The first step towards writing a good autoresponder sequence is to put yourself in your subscribers shoes and think about what they would like to receive. What interests them? What will benefit them?

2. Give content. Don’t just sell.

It’s a funny thing but the truth is that the less you sell, the more you’ll sell! Give quality content in your autoresponder sequence and look out for your subscribers interests. Tell stories, give them helpful advice that they can put into action straight away without needing to buy anything.

3. Carefully time your emails

Autoresponders let you space your messages in any way you wish. All you have to do for each message is to specify the number of days between that email and the last one. Try delivering them every day for the first few days, and then space them out a little longer after say the first week. Why? Because immediately after subscribing people are ‘hot’ about you and it’s a great time to sell to them.

4. Think about what they originally signed up for

Most people build their list by giving away some sort of freebie in return for the opt-in. A top tip for writing a good autoresponder sequence is to make sure that your emails relate back to the original thing they signed up to receive. If your squeeze page ‘bait’ was about blogging then they are obviously interested in blogging or they wouldn’t have subscribed!

Above all – give quality content and deliver to your subscribers content that you know they will enjoy. Take a look at other marketers autoresponder sequences. How do THEY do it?

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Using Giveaways To Build Your List

Using giveaways to build your list is becoming an increasingly popular method, and providing you do it right it’s easy to generate a large amount of subscribers in very little time.

A giveaway event is basically a website where marketers upload products for other people to download for free. These products can be anything – eBooks, short reports, audio products, video products, etc.

In order to gain access to the products, people first have to sign up to the giveaway event (so the organiser of the giveaway gets to build their list) and then people also have to opt-in again to download any individual product (so the person who puts the product on the site gets to build their own list.)

Contributing a free product to a giveaway event can therefore be very lucrative. People sign-up to giveaway events because they’re looking for free products, and if you can provide a product that people want then you should generate plenty of new subscribers.

The most important thing is that you give away a QUALITY product. Many people upload products to giveaway events that are outdated, tired, and are generally rubbish.

You can’t offer crap. Sure you’ll get opt-ins, but if the product is rubbish then people will very quickly unsubscribe.

* Create a high quality product – The most important thing is to create a high quality product that people will actually want to download. If your product isn’t any good then people won’t opt in for it and you’ll get very few subscribers as a result.

* Take the time to write something useful and interesting, or record an audio or video that provides real value.

* Ensure your description is clear and accurate – make sure people know exactly what they’re getting before they sign up.

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How to Get More Subscribers to Open Your Emails

So how do you get subscribers to open your emails? You’ll be surprised to know that the answer is simple: by making sure they are worth opening! You see, it doesn’t matter if you spend thousands on building the biggest and fanciest email list in the world. If you send emails out full of bumph which no one wants to read then all your hard work won’t get you anywhere! In this article you will learn how to build that relationship with your list and get more subscribers to open your emails.

1. Give people a reason to open your emails

If all you do is sell then people latch onto this pretty damn quickly! Even if they don’t unsubscribe in the first place they are highly unlikely to open your emails because they know that each time you’re trying to sell them something. Give people a reason to open what you send. Of course you need to sell from time to time, but also provide good content that people can actually use. Make people look forward to receiving your emails. You want people to see your name and think ‘hey I must open that because it’s from such and such a body and I know I’ll benefit from reading it…’

What I’m trying to say is that the more you give, the more you receive. If you’re giving great value for free or for a very cheap cost, then people will see you as an authority and in turn will want to buy from you.

You don’t need to reinvent the wheel. There are plenty of other people out there with great content and information on their sites that you can use as inspiration and reference. Write your own articles and blog posts, but also look around for other interesting articles and blog posts to link to.

Other things to include in your emails could be:

– competitions
– promotions
– free stuff
– your latest blog post
– news related to your niche, etc.

2. Think about your subject line

The email subject line is often the only thing that gets read. It’s like a headline in an ad, or the cover of a book. If it doesn’t grab you, you won’t read anything else.

And so I have some thoughts on how to make your subject lines better.

You can use subject lines to build anticipation for upcoming emails and events. You can use them to tease out information from your list in the form of a question. And you can even use them to let people know that there is no need to open the email until later.

But just remember this – be respectful of your list’s time, and don’t send emails unless they have value to your audience in some way.

3. Consider the time

Sending emails on certain days and times will yield much better results than others. Again, it all depends on your target audience and where they live.

When will your subscribers be at their computers?

Try different times and test to see which times work best for you. A lot of people take the opinion that Tuesday is a good day, however I have always found it pretty poor and the competition is massive!

Find out what works for you and don’t forget time differences. If you live in the UK but most of your subscribers are in Australia, for example, then don’t hit them when they will all be in bed!

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Affiliate Marketing Terminology

Did you know that you can easily generate a 6-figure income without ever having to create a product of your own, and without a well-known name or brand?

It’s true! Every day, thousands of affiliates are earning a full-time income from affiliate campaigns that drive sales from both small and wide-scale product launches.

They also make money in many other ways, apart from direct promotion.  Affiliates focus on building their own list so that later, if they decide to create their own product, they already have a built-in customer base!

With nearly a zero-startup cost involved, and no risks, there are absolutely no downsides to becoming an affiliate marketer.

Let’s take a closer look at just a few of the many advantages of becoming an affiliate marketer:

  • You don’t need a product of your own.
  • You don’t need a website of your own.
  • No customer support is required on your end.
  • No shipping, inventory or overhead involved.
  • You can work at your own pace.
  • You can venture into multiple niche markets easily.

It’s easy to see why affiliate marketing is such a viable, and popular method for building a successful online business!

In fact, whether you are a complete beginner with little experience, or you’re a seasoned marketer looking to maximize your income, affiliate marketing is an incredible source for passive income and unstoppable profits.

In this blog, we’ll work through the terminology associated to affiliate marketing so you can gain a better understanding before you dive into this million-dollar marketplace.

Are you ready? Let’s begin!

What You’ll Learn:

What is affiliate marketing?

Before we dive into the terminology associated with the affiliate marketing space, let’s take a quick look at what affiliate marketing is.

Affiliate marketing is often considered by many to be the “gateway” into the world of online business. One of the reasons why affiliate marketing is so popular is because of just how easy it is to get started.

Regardless of your experience, or your skillset, you can make money as an affiliate in just a matter of a few days.

In fact, one of the most lucrative aspects of affiliate marketing is just how fast and easy it is to begin building profitable campaigns that will generate non-stop profits very quickly.

In affiliate marketing, there are three main players:

1:  The Creator
2:  The Affiliate
3: The Customer

It’s the creators job to develop the product, build the website and sales funnel and to provide affiliates with the tools and information they need to order to effectively promote the website.

Affiliates form the bridge between the merchant and the customer, by developing targeted campaigns that recruit leads, and funneling that traffic directly to the offer via an affiliate link.

Affiliates are then paid a commission on every referred sale, most often, a 50/50 split, meaning that you’d earn 50% commission for every sale made.

This is The Best Way to Build a
Passive Stream of Income!

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This all-inclusive system will teach you everything you need to know to generate a steady income in affiliate marketing, and best of all, it was created by super affiliates with many years of experience, so you’re learning from the pros.

Affiliate Marketing Terminology

If affiliate marketing sounds like something you’d like to get involved in, you’ll want to brush up on the most commonly-used terms associated with this multi-million-dollar industry

Here are some of the terms you should know:

Affiliate Program:

An arrangement in which the advertiser pays a commission to an affiliate for each sale captured via their website or advertising link.

The commission model is based on actions performed by users, usually involving lead generation, subscription to a service, a direct one-time purchase, or other actions.

The advertiser will utilize performance-tracking software to track the users’ actions and the affiliates who have assisted in that process.

Many service providers run their own affiliate program, which means they buy traffic for themselves to increase their own profit.

Affiliate Manager:

An Affiliate Manager is any person who communicates with the affiliates. They often create offers and take care of maximizing performance of the affiliate program.

Advertiser:

This is a person or organization that owns a business and offers services or products to customers.

Advertisers are willing to pay affiliates for each new lead or customer they bring. This helps them promote their brand and acquire new customers.

Affiliate Network:

An affiliate network acts as an intermediary between affiliates and advertisers. Affiliate networks allow affiliates to easily find and participate in affiliate programs suitable for their inventory.

Bonus offer

In affiliate marketing, you are competing against other affiliates, who quite often, may be advertising to the same group of customers.

This is where the power of bonus offers comes into play.

Affiliates will often offer bonuses to persuade a customer to purchase through their link rather than someone else’s. Typically, the bonus adds additional value to the product that is being promoted. In other words, it is relevant, in the same niche/topic, and serves as an auxiliary component.
The greater the perceived value, the easier it will be to convince people to purchase through your affiliate link. Therefore, it’s very important to learn how to create high-quality bonuses that stand out and capture the attention of your target audience.

Building your bonus offer doesn’t have to be a difficult process, but does require some knowledge of design and/or content creation.

Cookies

In affiliate marketing, cookies are used to identify a visitor who has clicked on an affiliate link. It’s simply a form of tracking.

Cookies are usually assigned for a specific period of time. If the visitor returns within that timeframe, the affiliate marketer will be paid for the sale, whether or not the visitor uses the affiliate link to complete the purchase.

CPA, CPS, CPL & CPC

Cost Per Action, or CPA, is the cost of an action carried out by a visitor. An action is almost always a form of conversion (see below).

A visitor either purchases the product or shows an interest in it. This is also referred to as Cost Per Sale (CPS) or Cost Per Lead (CPL), respectively.

Cost Per Click (CPC) is a payment model for online advertisements. Each time the ad is clicked, an amount will be paid to the advertiser.

Cost Per Action (CPA) is a payment plan where advertisers pay their affiliates for conversions only. If a sale is not made, the affiliate is not paid.

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Campaign or Offer

This is the promotion of a product or service. Offers are created by affiliate managers or product owners, and usually contain all relevant information about the payout model, commission offer, and best marketing practices.

An Offer URL is the final URL where the visitor will land after clicking the promotion link or banner. This is your landing page where they will find your offer or campaign.

Conversion

This is usually a target action of the end user, defined by the advertiser. It can be a subscription to a service, lead generation, sale of a product, or installation of a mobile application.

Conversion is the final goal of advertising and is the event the affiliates will be paid for. In other words, the consumer has now been converted into a paying customer.

The Conversion Rate is the percentage of website clicks that converted (turned, changed) into a lead or a sale

For example, if one in every hundred visitors to your site makes a purchase, then your conversion rate would be 0.1%.

Data Feed

This is a file containing lists of all the products an advertiser sells, including prices, images of products, descriptions, and affiliate links for the products.

Disclosure

This is a notice on an affiliate’s website or blog, notifying visitors that the affiliate is being compensated or paid for sales, recommendations, endorsements, and advertisements of a product and/or service on their website or landing page.

This is an important part of your marketing campaign because it’s required to comply with FTC laws. You should place this statement towards the top of your landing pages before you mention the affiliate offer.

Tracking Link

This is a unique URL to which an affiliate sends an audience for a particular offer. It can also be called a click tracking link or affiliate link.

Third-Party Tracking

This is the principle of notifying affiliates in real-time for every conversion. When a new conversion (or sale) is received, affiliate software automatically sends a conversion notification to tracking systems at the affiliate site or other third-party systems.

For example, if an affiliate program or network works with another affiliate network, each valid post-back can be forwarded to that affiliate network.

Creative

This is simply an advertisement (ad), or, in a broader sense, any form of content that helps sell the product, including graphics and banners.

There are many types of creatives used by affiliate marketers. Choosing the right type depends on the advertising channel, target audience, and advertising message.

When it comes to using banner-type creatives, they are typically large enough to be easily noticed without disrupting the user’s experience.

Interactive banners are, as the name suggests, dynamic and highly interactive. They usually offer more than one interaction, trying to get users to engage. This type of ad can contain an interactive element (a video or game) plus a call to action (a contact form, for example) all within the same banner.

An Ad Tag or Ad Snippet is an HTML element used to display ads by dynamically fetching them from an ad server.

Referral Bonus Program

This is a special type of payout awarded to affiliates who brought new affiliates into the affiliate program.

For each referred affiliate, they can receive a fixed-price sign-up commission and a percentage of their total earnings in a given period.

Client-Based Tracking

This is a tracking method in which information is stored on the user’s computer. A cookie is saved in the user’s browser when they click on the ad, and then linked back to the affiliate that brought in that user.

After the user completes an action on a page, the tracking program records a conversion for the proper affiliate using a piece of tracking code called tracking pixel.

The pixel is also called an impression pixel or iframe pixel, depending on which of these two methods are used.

Client-based tracking is simpler to implement on the advertiser’s side, but is less accurate, since it uses cookies.

Impressions

This refers to the number of times an ad is shown on a page.

Landing Page

This is a website or webpage to which affiliates refer traffic.

For example, when a user clicks on an ad or banner, they are redirected to a webpage that gives them more information about the product advertised on that banner, usually with purchase options.

The main purpose of a landing page is for the user to complete an action. It can be a purchase, service sign-up, download, or any other action that has a positive value for the advertiser.

Your landing page should reflect your online personality and use your charisma to encourage users to take action and gain you those commissions.

Niche Marketing

This type of marketing is focused on a specific group of consumers.

Niche marketing targets a far smaller group than general ads do. For example, if you are promoting yoga products, your niche is yoga while your main industry might be health and fitness.

A well-defined niche allows marketers to create more personal ads that will yield better results.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

This is a contact with the potential to become a customer. A lead, in other words, is a person who shows interest in the product or service you are promoting, which makes them more likely to become a customer instead of a browser.

This is also known as a prospect.

Keep in mind that the definition of a lead may vary depending on the organization using the term.

For some companies, a lead is a contact already determined to be a prospective customer, whereas other companies consider any sales contact to be a lead. Your goal is to convert the maximum number of leads into actual customers.

Lead

This is the process of getting a better ranking on search engine results pages. The purpose is to achieve higher visibility and attract more traffic (more visits or clicks) to a website, which in turn results in more sales or leads.

This is also known as a prospect.

Keep in mind that the definition of a lead may vary depending on the organization using the term.

For some companies, a lead is a contact already determined to be a prospective customer, whereas other companies consider any sales contact to be a lead. Your goal is to convert the maximum number of leads into actual customers.

EPC (Earnings Per Click)

This refers to the amount of commission an affiliate earns fro every person that clicks on their advertisement and purchases from the merchant’s website.

A/B Testing

This refers to an instance where you are running two or more versions of a webpage or creative at the same time in order to identify the most effective campaign.

Affiliate ID

This is a unique identifier given by the affiliate program or merchant that you are promoting. It tracks your sales, clicks and often, overall traffic.

Ad Blocker

This is a unique identifier given by the affiliate program or merchant that you are promoting. It tracks your sales, clicks and often, overall traffic.

This is the technology that prevents online ads from displaying on a website.

Ad blocking is on the rise, so the International Advertising Bureau (IAB) has launched its L.E.A.N. program to make ads better, and therefore, to encourage users to give up their ad blocking.

The latest research shows that over 15% of online consumers are using ad blockers nowadays, so something needs to be done to restore the balance in the marketplace.

The problem is that unscrupulous advertisers have started showing heavier, more distracting ads that impose on the customer instead of enticing their interest. IAB has owned up to this mistake. They realized that the most important thing to do now is to improve the experience of internet users so that ad blockers are no longer needed.

Encrypted

To advertise on secure websites, advertisers need to create secure, SSL-compliant creatives for display and video ads. SSL is a protocol for establishing a secure connection between two parties on the internet.

The goal is to make sure that communications are encrypted (or encoded) so that unauthorized users cannot understand them.

Return on Investment (ROI):

This is the amount derived by subtracting your net revenue from the total amount of your costs. The result shows you the profitability of your campaign.

A high ROI means the gains compare favorably to the cost, so you’re making good profits.

There are two main benefits to using the ROI calculation: it’s easy to calculate, and it’s almost universally understood.

First Click

This means that the affiliate program will reward commissions to the affiliate who was the first to refer the customer who made the purchase within the cookie duration timeframe.

Last Click

This means that the affiliate program will reward commissions to the affiliate who was the first to refer the customer who made the purchase within the cookie duration timeframe.

Affiliate programs that reward commissions based on last click attribute the sale to the affiliate who was the last to refer the customer who purchased the product or service.

And finally, here is a list of a few common affiliate marketing abbreviations:

  • AOV: Average Order Value
  • B2B: Business to Business.
  • B2C: Business to Consumer
  • EPC: Earnings per Click
  • SEM: Search Engine Marketing
  • SERP: Search Engine Results Page

Final Thoughts

Affiliate marketing is one of the few opportunities available today that provide you with the opportunity to make money instantly, without hefty start-up costs, experience or skill.

In fact, you could very well see results from a single affiliate campaign within just a few short hours from now, even if you’ve never set one up before!

The next step is to create an action plan and build your bonus pages so that you can stand out in the marketplace and maximize conversion rates.

It truly is an exciting and incredibly profitable market to be a part of. In fact, an affiliate can earn anywhere from $10,000 a year to six-figures and beyond when they focus on building a targeted list and then creating emails that motivate their audiences.

This is The Best Way to Build a
Passive Stream of Income!

If you’re ready to finally stop being a slave to the system and start working for yourself, just click the button below. This is your chance.


Click Here to Learn More

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Affiliate Marketing for Beginners 2022

Affiliate marketing is a big topic online and there are tons of different views and opinions on how to do it. This post doesn’t suit every situation but gives you a good idea of what affiliate marketing is all about and how it works.

Affiliate marketing is not rocket science. You don’t have to be an expert marketer to make money online with affiliate marketing. Actually, affiliate marketing can be as simple as selling information products to your prospects and customers. Selling information products however could be tough if you are not familiar with the subject matter or do not know where to find information that’s of value to your visitors.

What You’ll Learn:

What is affiliate marketing?

Let’s start with the basics. Affiliate marketing is a business model where affiliates get rewarded for sending customers to other businesses. In a nutshell, it’s about promoting other people’s products or services and earning a commission from each sale that you make.

The four parties involved in affiliate marketing are:

  1. The merchant (sometimes also called ‘advertiser’ or ‘brand’) – The merchant is the party that creates and owns the product.
  2. The network (that contains offers for the affiliate to choose from and also takes care of the payments) – The network is the party that connects the affiliates to the merchants and handles the management of affiliates’ accounts (tracking links, payments etc.)
  3. The publisher (also known as ‘the affiliate’) – The publisher is an individual or company that promotes an advertiser’s product or service in exchange for earning a commission from sales generated from their marketing efforts.
  4. The customer – this is the person who visits the merchant’s site and purchases a product or service and potentially becomes a repeat visitor or customer.

Why should you consider doing affiliate marketing

Many people in the world are aspiring entrepreneurs. They want to be their own boss and live their best lives. You may be one of them. If you’re looking for a way to make money online, affiliate marketing is one of the best options out there.

Affiliate marketing is cost-effective, low-risk and easy to get started with. It’s a great opportunity for business owners and entrepreneurs who don’t have many resources or budget available to start an eCommerce store. It’s also perfect for anyone wanting to earn some extra income on the side as a digital nomad or freelancer.

How does affiliate marketing work?

You, as an affiliate marketer, will earn a commission when a potential customer clicks a unique link and completes a purchase on the merchant’s website. The merchant’s cost-per-action (CPA) is only triggered when an actual sale is made. So, if you refer your audience to an ecommerce store but they don’t complete a purchase, you won’t earn anything. This typically happens when your audience isn’t ready to buy.

You may also receive a commission if a person you referred completes other actions on the merchant’s website – like signing up for an email list or creating an account – but not all offers have these additional types of commissions.​

Getting Started With Affiliate Marketing

The best way is to start small and grow as you go. If you are considering to start affiliate marketing, and don’t know where to start. This is the tutorial for you. I’ll walk you through everything you need to know about affiliate marketing, and get you started with it.

Choose Your Niche

The best way to start an affiliate marketing business is by selecting a niche that you can relate to or are passionate about. You want to be knowledgeable and helpful in your posts, so why not blog about something you care about?

A niche is a focused topic area. When choosing your niche, think about topics that you’re passionate about. You also want to find a profitable niche that has some competition. If there’s no competition, it may indicate that it’s too competitive or that there’s not enough people interested in it.

If you love dogs, for example, you could start writing about dog training tips, dog care, dog food reviews, and more. There are many different categories within the pet niche from which to choose!

Choose a Platform

You can choose between a blog or YouTube channel. Both provide plenty of opportunities for you to make money from affiliate marketing. If you want to build an audience and increase your affiliate sales, choose a platform that’s best suited to you. If writing is your thing, go with WordPress and start blogging. If you prefer making videos, go with YouTube and create your own channel.

If you want to build an audience and increase your affiliate sales, choose a platform that’s best suited to you. If writing is your thing, go with WordPress and start blogging. If you prefer making videos, go with YouTube and create your own channel.

Creating content for these platforms is free, so you don’t have to invest any upfront costs. However, you will have to invest time into creating and promoting your content.

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Find Products To Promote On Your Chosen Platform

Once you have your niche and your website or chosen platform is up and running, it’s time to find products within your niche that you want to promote on your website. You can find products on ClickBank which is one of the most popular affiliate networks online today.

To get started, head over to ClickBank and create an account. It’s free to sign up and once you are approved, you will be given access to ClickBank marketplace where you can search for products that you want to promote.

When you sign up, make sure that you have a profile picture because this will help increase the chance of being accepted by vendors who are looking for affiliates to promote their products.

After being accepted as an affiliate for ClickBank, it’s time to start searching for products that you can promote on your platform or website. You will see a search bar at the top of your screen titled “Find Products.” Enter in keywords related to your niche and hit “Search.”

Once the results appear, look through each product and read the sales page thoroughly before making a decision on which product is best for promoting on your platform.

It’s important to look out for any red flags such as:
– No sales letter (sales page)
– Low gravity (under 10) – Low price – No refund rate of less than 10%

If you find any of these red flags, I would advise you not to promote that particular product as it may not have been tested in the market place yet or there are negative reviews from customers.

Create content

The key here is to make sure that your content is of a high quality. If it isn’t, people won’t take you seriously and they won’t click through to buy.

The easiest way to do this is to write articles around your niche and include affiliate links where they fit naturally. For example, if you’re in the weight loss niche, you could write an article titled “5 Ways To Lose Weight By Winter” and at the end of the article you could include an affiliate link for a weight loss program that you sell.

This works well because:

  • The article gives value to readers who might want to lose weight before winter
  • It fits naturally with your niche
  • You are promoting an affiliate product that is relevant to your content

Promote products on your website through affiliate links

I’ve seen lots of bloggers over the years who think they’ll be able to write an epic piece of content and then people will just simply click on their links.

You still have to promote it !Just because you have an amazing piece of content doesn’t mean people will click on your affiliate links.

There are a few things you need to consider:

1. Your content needs to be relevant to the product you are promoting.
2. It should be easy for people to find your content.
3. Make sure your links are relevant and easy to find within the text itself

Be careful where you put your affiliate links:
You can’t just plop your affiliate links anywhere and expect them to work. You have to include them in the right places, otherwise they will be there forever, not being clicked on by anyone.

Here are some tips on where you should put your affiliate links:

  • At the beginning of your article because people tend to stop reading after a certain amount of paragraphs and don’t reach the end of the article.
  • After a description of the product or service you’re promoting – you should explain why it is useful and why people should pay for it. Only then should you add your affiliate link.
  • Affiliate links belong in the body of a blog post or article, not in the sidebar, footer or header section. The same goes for author bio boxes at the end of an article too.

Generate traffic and sales for your website

When you are generating traffic for your affiliate marketing website, the most important thing that you can do is figure out who your target audience is and then focus on them throughout the entire process. The more specific that you can get with this, the better off that you’ll be.

The reason that this is so important is that your target audience will be the ones who are going to bring you the sales. If you’re able to get a specific audience, then you can focus on getting them to purchase from you and only them. If you try to target everyone, then you’ll end up not really hitting anyone.

Final Thoughts

The most important takeaway here is that affiliate marketing is a long-term investment. You won’t be making big money right away. If you’re looking for a quick buck, affiliate marketing is not the answer.

Affiliate marketing requires work to succeed. Not necessarily hard work, but a dedication to making your site thrive. After all, it’s not impossible to make affiliate sales—it’s just not easy. However, if you put in the effort, it will pay off eventually.

This is The Best Way to Build a
Passive Stream of Income!

If you’re ready to finally stop being a slave to the system and start working for yourself, just click the button below. This is your chance.


Click Here to Learn More

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