Where To Find Affiliate Products To Sell Online

computerPromoting and marketing affiliate products has become quite popular with individuals looking to earn money from home. Some of these individuals are working full time as an affiliate while others are just looking for a way to supplement their income and earn a few extra dollars.

Before you decide to enter this arena, it is important that you know where to find affiliate products to sell online and which ones to market. There are hundreds if not thousands of networks you can find online that will allow you to join their affiliate programs.

In this article, I will show you a few of the more popular affiliate programs, look at the pros and cons of each, and offer a suggestion to one that I am familiar with and one that I would highly recommend.

Find Affiliate Products To Sell Online … A Few Of The Big Boys 

When you think about products to sell online as an affiliate, there are a few that stand out from the rest. They have been around for some time and are very popular with individuals worldwide. They are: Clickbank, Amazon, and ShareASale to name a few.

  1. Clickbank

clickbank

This particular network is one of the world’s largest and specify in digital products that are made available to affiliates. Clickbank offers products to promote in just about any niche you think of, and is extremely popular with online affiliates.

I have written a separate article explaining and describing in specific detail the workings of Clickbank and what they have to offer. Simply click here to view that article which provides greater detail.

Pros (Clickbank)

  • The number of products available to affiliates
  • The high commission percentages paid to affiliates
  • The easy sign up process and the free membership
  • Payment schedules are available and delivered on time
  • No worries with shipping, refunds, etc.

Cons (Clickbank)

  • Refunds are readily accessible with the Clickbank platform
  • Competition for some products (selling) can be an issue for new affiliates
  • Customer service can be slow to respond to questions

2. Amazon

amazon

Amazon is another giant as a source of affiliate products that can be used to sell online. It is the largest online retailer worldwide, which offers affiliates (associates) products to sell in the market of books, music, electronics, men and women clothing, shoes, pet needs, recreational needs and so much more.

If you are considering joining this network as an affiliate, just click here to get started Millions of products have been sold from this site so you should feel confident in making sales as an affiliate.

Pros (Amazon)

  • People recognize and trust the Amazon brand
  • New products being introduced almost daily
  • As an Amazon associate, as long as a customer uses your affiliate link, you will get credit for a sale (24 hours ) even if they purchase a different product than the one you are promoting

Cons (Amazon)

  • The Commission structure, depending on the product you choose, can be on the lower end
  • Very strict guidelines that you must follow (Failure to do so can get your affiliate account shut down)
  • Competition for best selling products is heavy

3. ShareaSale

shareasale

ShareASale is another huge affiliate marketing network that supplies affiliates with a vast amount of products to promote and market. The merchant(s) belonging to this network offer the opportunity for affiliates to market their products in hopes of producing more sales.

The affiliate, after making a sale, will receive a commission from the merchant for their work. Like Clickbank and Amazon, there are thousands of products and services available to promote and market.

Pros (ShareASale)

  • Over 3,800 merchants who have products that you can market as an affiliate
  • Easy registration and timely approval
  • Commissions are distributed the 20th of each month (Easy to find details regarding your affiliate campaign)
  • Affiliate tools such as links, banners are easy to access
  • Excellent support

Cons (ShareASale)

  • The website itself can be a bit confusing, especially for new affiliates
  • Updates from merchant on product you are marketing may not be communicated to you)

As you can see, each one of these platforms provides a source to find affiliate products to sell online. It is essential that you decide on which type of product within your niche and choose a network that provides a product that interests you.

In addition, you will have to consider which type of product you choose to sell online. For example, Clickbank is known for its digital products where Amazon is popular with physical products.

My Recommendation

choiceFrom experience, I have found that finding a product to make some sales online is just half the battle. To be successful online, you must have a source available to you that will allow you to promote your product.

To be honest, it took some time and a good bit of money for me to understand this concept. I would jump on Clickbank or Amazon, find an online product to sell with no way of getting customers to this product.

That all changed for me when I came across a program called Wealthy Affiliate. What is Wealthy Affiliate? In a nutshell, its an online community with over a 100,000 members that offers affiliate training and so much more. Here are just some of the things Wealthy Affiliate offers:

A free membership that includes:

  1. Two Free Websites That Are Generated For You
  2. Access to 500 Training Modules
  3. Live Support
  4. Free Keyword Searches

You should know that there is a paid membership as well but that is entirely up to you. The paid membership (Premium) does offer added training, websites, personal messaging just to name a few of the benefits.

Not only that, but this program also enables you to promote this platform as an affiliate. You will receive affiliate links and banners that you can use along with the website you now have to promote Wealthy Affiliate.

It gets better! As an affiliate, look at the commission structure for both types of memberships:

 

W COMMISSION

money

 

 

 

 

 

I will tell you that I am currently an affiliate for both Clickbank and Amazon and have been for some time. Finding a product to sell online has never been an issue for me as I use both networks to do so. I have just found that Wealthy Affiliate offers an unique product that is so easy to market.

In comparing Wealthy Affiliate to Clickbank I have left you a comparison chart below for comparison. Both offer platforms that are legitimate and ones that affiliates have achieved great financial success. Here’s a look:

 

Summary

So there you have it. I have given you four different platforms in which to find products online to sell. Each is unique in their own way in what they have to offer.

For those looking at Wealthy Affiliate as a product to market, you can do so by clicking on the ad below. It’s free to look around and I know you will be impressed with what you find!

Is Clickbank A Scam? … What You Need To Know

Are you looking to find a way to earn some money online? There are a number of programs to be found online that offer a platform to achieve financial success but can they be trusted? One such platform is called Clickbank that offers an affiliate program to those interested in generating an income from home. Is Clickbank a Scam? Let’s look closer:

What Is Clickbank? A Scam Or The Real Deal?

Clickbank represents itself as an affiliate marketing network that provides a service to three specific groups. The network focuses primarily on digital products, and products or services that can be directly obtained with a click on the computer keyboard. In recent years, however, they have added a few physical products that may be purchased. Clickbank is and remains the number one network with thousands of digital products.

As mentioned earlier, Clickbank provides a platform for three specific groups. As outlined on their website, here are the three types of individuals that may find the Clickbank network one of interest.

 

Customers

Anyone has the opportunity to visit the website and purchase a product (digital) of their choosing. After doing so, the customer will receive instant access to their product through a link or download.

Product Creators   (Vendors)

These individuals use the Clickbank network to display their products or services to the needs of their customers. Many of these product creators or vendors do quite well in selling their self-created products through the Clickbank network.

Digital Marketers   (Affiliates)  affiliate marketing

Digital marketers are basically affiliates, who promote and hopefully make sales using a product that has been made available by product creators. As a digital marketer (affiliate) you will have the opportunity to choose a product that you wish to market by receiving an affiliate link that is unique to you and you only.

How Clickbank Works … As An Affiliate

As a digital network, Clickbank provides a platform that enables individuals to earn income in a few different ways. Let’s take a look at these, and give you a better idea on how this process takes place.

The first step in using Clickbank is to set up an account with a simple sign-up process. After doing so, you will receive a Clickbank ID that will be used to market and promote digital products. As an affiliate, this personal ID will allow you to search the marketplace to find a product that you would like to promote. More on the marketplace in a minute.

Let’s assume that you have done your research and have decided on a product that you would like to market. Great! You now will receive an affiliate link that represents the specific product you have chosen to market. What next? You will need a source where you can market and promote your product in order to make sales. Got you covered here!

The Marketplace … Thousands Of Options!

The Clickbank Marketplace has thousands of digital products in various niches so finding one to market that interests you should not be an issue. Below is just a sample of some of these niches (categories) that are offered through the Clickbank website. As an affiliate, you have many options.


As you can see, there are a number of choices here. Each one of these categories contains sub-categories which will give you additional options in choosing a product.

I chose Business/Investing to illustrate these sub-categories. Check it out below:

 

Finding a Product To Market … What To Look For

As mentioned earlier, the Clickbank network offers thousands of product to market in a number of niches. So how do you know which product to choose, and which one can prove to be beneficial to you as an affiliate? Let me show you a few things to consider when choosing a product through the following screenshots:


                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             Gravity (Grav)

Within the Clickbank network, gravity has significant meaning to affiliate marketers. Gravity refers to a calculated performance (By Clickbank) of a specific product, with a Gravity (Grav) number representing the number of affiliates who have made a commission over the past 12 weeks by selling this product.

By looking at the screenshot above and the one on the left, you can see that the Gravity (Grav) is a little over 143. This roughly means that there are 143 affiliates who have made a commission in the past few weeks. That’s the good part. Here comes the bad! With 143 affiliates already making sales, you can bet there are many out there marketing this product (Lean Belly Breakthrough) as well. Competition will be tough in making sales with this product!

In the screenshot on the right, (Xtreme Fat Loss Diet) you can see where the Grav is a little over 12. Using the same explanation as we used above, you can tell that are 12 affiliates who have made a commission selling this product in the last 12 weeks. Although competition is much lower with this product, you have to ask yourself if this product has a market. Why is the Gravity number so low? Through some simple research, you will find your answer.

Initial $/sale

what to sellIn using our screenshots above, you can see that the Lean Belly product has an initial sale of $35.08. This number indicates the amount ($35.08) that you will make with your initial sale. With the Xtreme Fat Loss product, your initial sale would be $22.35.

Avg % sale

This number represents the amount of commission you receive when selling this product. In our examples we are using above, the product on the left is 77% with the one on the right being 75%. These are the average commission rates for each of these products.

Rebill

This a very nice feature that many of the products offered through Clickbank have attached to them. In our products listed above, you can see that neither have this feature. For those products that do, a rebill is a process where your customer purchases the same product month after month which can give you a nice residual income.

 

Pros

pros and cons

Let’s now take a look at some benefits associated with becoming a Clickbank affiliate.

  1. Thousands of products to choose from (Roughly 6,000)
  2. New products being introduced by vendors almost daily
  3. High commissions (Usually somewhere between 50% and 70%)
  4. Cost nothing on your part to join as an affiliate
  5. Payments are sent to you in a timely manner (Every one to two weeks)
  6. Allows you to promote in four different languages (Can promote worldwide)

Cons

Here are a few of the disadvantages of becoming a Clickbank affiliate.

  1. You will have to spend some time with research to find a product that meets specific criteria.
  2. Customer support, in most cases, does not respond to an issue quickly.
  3. Payment can be delayed until certain criteria are met (Clickbank guidelines)

How And Where To Promote Your Clickbank Product

Okay, you have got your Clickbank product and you are ready to start earning some income. How do you plan doing this? How do you plan on marketing and promoting this product? Without having online traffic that you can place in front of your product, you have little chance of generating sales. Here’s an idea:

blogMany successful affiliate marketers use a website (blog) that allows them to market and promote their Clickbank product. This can easily be done by giving a review of your product, and pointing out the things you like and don’t like about your product. Be honest with this review, as your readers can easily tell fact from fiction.

Some of you at this point may not have your own website or have no idea on how to build on. There is a program I found that will actually build a website for you, and get this, for free! The name of this site is known as Wealthy Affiliate where ‘techy’ knowledge or website experience is not necessary.

Once you have your website created (less than 30 seconds) through Wealthy Affiliate, you now have a place to market your product. With your own website, you now control what you want on to display on your site and drive traffic right to your Clickbank product.

Conclusion

Well, I hope you have learned something new about Clickbank and hopefully answered some questions you may have had. I especially like Clickbank for affiliates just starting out due to its simplicity in signing up (free to join) and the number of products available to market.

Is Clickbank a scam? In my opinion, absolutely not. Thousands of individuals worldwide use this platform every day and many are making a good deal of money with as a Clickbank affiliate. It does require work on your part but the rewards can be substantial.

For those looking to market your product through your own website, I would suggest you give Wealthy Affiliate a good look and see just what they have to offer. It will cost you nothing to do so and offers a fantastic affiliate program as well. Simply click on the banner ad below to get started now!

 

 

 

 

Your Key To Success: How To Become An Online Affiliate

More and more people are becoming intrigued with the idea of making money right from their home. Generating an additional income flow to their household would certainly be a huge help in paying off those bills that been hanging over our heads. Sound familiar?

One way that some are using to accomplish this goal is to become an online affiliate. An affiliate can be simply defined as someone who markets or promotes a product that belongs to someone else and then receives a commission when a buyer purchases this product. Interested in learning how to become an online affiliate? Keep reading!

How To Become An Online Affiliate: Step By Step

This process is not a complicated one, but it will take some initial planning on your part. There are a number of things you must have in place which I have listed below. Here are some details to consider:

  • Research (Product)
  • A platform to display your product or service
  • A vendor that will approve you as an affiliate
  • Marketing (Traffic)

Research

This, without question, is the important step in finding success as an online affiliate. So what type of research am I talking about here? As an affiliate you must decide on which type of product that you plan to promote to earn commissions. In researching a product, you should consider finding answers to the foloowing questions:

  • Competition – Is the product you are considering to promote have a market? If so, how many other individuals are promoting the same product? Is the commission you will receive from the sale of the product worth your time and effort in promoting this product?
  • Platform – After researching and deciding on a product to promote, what next? You are going to have to establish a platform in which to provide information and promote your product. A blog website is a great place to do just this, where you will have complete control on how you choose to promote your product.

Offer your readers an honest review of your product, pointing out the pros and cons as well as mentioning where the product can be purchased, cost, and other important facts that you feel your readers should be aware of.

  • Vendor – In order to become an online affiliate, you first much receive approval from business or company (vendor) that will allow you to promote vendorsone of their products. These companies will have a set of guidelines and rules put in place that you must agree to before gaining acceptance.

Some vendors will ask to see your website before approving you as an affiliate. They like to see a website that has been properly set-up and one that is receiving some traffic to your site. If, for some reason you are denied  acceptance you can always try again later or look for another vendor.

Once you have been approved, you will be given an affiliate link that is unique to only you. This is the link that you should always use when promoting your product. Without it, any sale you make will not be credited to you.

  • Marketing – Before you ever start an online business, you must devise some sort of a marketing plan in order to maximize your level of success. How are you planning on getting potential customers to your site? How are you going to advertise?

There are a number of ways to gather online traffic but he best way to do so is by creating great content and by providing value to your readers. With work, you will be seen as someone that is trustworthy which will pay huge    dividends in the future.

Using social media is a great source to display and promote your product. Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram are just a few of the social media platforms that are available to you.

Pros

thumbs up

1.) Free To Join Affiliate Programs

Many individuals, especially those new to the making money online concept, have a limited budget and just aren’t capable of investing a large sum of money into a new venture. As an online affiliate, there are plenty of vendors out there who will allow you to join their affiliate program at no cost to you. Zero start up cost!

2.) Work From Anywhere

How would you like to work as an online affiliate on the beach? Your favorite coffee shop? On a plane? Anywhere you have internet service can be considered a working place for you. The freedom associated with serving as an online affiliate should not be underestimated.

3.) Thousands of products to promote

Finding a product to market and sell should not be a problem, as there are quite a few vendors out there that will allow you to promote their product. I would recommend that you choose a product that you have actually used yourself or at least one you are familiar with.

4.) Unlimited Number Of Customers

Look at it this way: Let’s say you own a small candy store in a rural area. On a good day, you might get 15 to 25 customers that walk through that door. As an online affiliate you now have potential to reach hundreds if not thousands of potential buyers a day.

The number of potential buyers to your site requires a great deal of work on your part including a great marketing plan, but with time, it is doable. Supply great content, grow your brand, and provide value to your readers. Customers will come to your site!

5.) Multiple Streams of income

Another plus to becoming an online affiliate is the possibility of producing dollar signmultiple income streams by promoting a number of products within your chosen niche. Let me give you an example: As an affiliate, let’s say you are promoting and trying to generate money by selling sunglasses.

Ask yourself this question: What other product may someone have interest in who are looking to purchase sunglasses? What about sunblock? Lip Gloss? Hats? See the connection here? By choosing to promote these items along with the sunglasses, you know have an opportunity to produce multiple streams of income.

6.) Customer Service – No Worries

Good news here! As an online affiliate, you won’t need to concern yourself with such things as shipping, stock or customer complaints. All of these issues are handled directly by the vendor who has given you permission to promote their products online.

7.  Low Risk/High Reward

Most of the vendors you find out there will not ask for a fee to sell their products. This is especially beneficial to those looking to break into the area of affiliate marketing but have a limited budget to get started.

8.) Flexible Work Schedule

As an online affiliate, you decide how many hours you are willing to put into your online business. Like anything else you do, the more effort and committment you put forth will determine the degree of success you can obtain. Twenty hours a week? Two hours a day? These are questions only you can answer.

Cons

thumbs down

1. Competition

In any business, there will always be a certain level of competition. This is no different for those in the online business. The more popular the product, the more competition you will find with individuals attempting to promote and make sales. Let me give you an example of this by entering ‘weight loss products’ in a Google search. Here is what you get:

Over 14 million results! Can you imagine as an online affiliate how tough the competition would be in this catagory? This is not to say that you won’t be able to make some sales in this area, I am only suggesting that you need to narrow down your product search. Perhaps something like, ‘ weight loss products for the elderly,’ or ‘weight loss products for children.’ This is why research is so vital as an online affiliate.

2.) Will Take Work

The degree of success with being an online affiliate will be directly related to the work you put in. Building an online business takes work and a gfreat deal of time. It’s a marathon and not a sprint! For those thinking a couple of hours a week will bring financial freedom will be in for a huge disappointment.

3.) Low Commissions

The commissions you receive from most vendors is nothing to get real excited about. Let me give you an example of what Amazon pays out on commissions (fees) in a number of products they offer to online affiliates:

As you can see from the table above, the commission sturcture is not designed to make you wealthy overnight. This is just one of many vendors out there but this will give you a better idea of what to expect when you start to apply as an affiliate.

4.) No Control Of Affiliate Programs

These affiliate programs are pretty strict in enforcing guidelines and rules that you must follow as an affiliate. You have no control over this! They can at any time remove you from their affiliate program with little to no explanation. Make sure to read the program’s guidelines and follow them in good faith.

Finding A Platform To Promote Your Products

Okay, you have completed your research, designed a marketing plan, found a product to promote, received approval from one of the affiliate programs, now what? Well, in order to inform prospective buyers about your product you are going to need a platform to do so.

One great resource to consider is through a blog. A blog website, as mentioned earlier, will give you complete control in the manner in which you promote your product. Don’t have any idea on how to build a blog website? Neither did I until I actually found a platform that would do this for me.

This program, known as Wealthy Affiliate, will actually build you a website at no cost to you! This is accomplished throgh complete automation on their part in less than 30 seconds which enables you to get your blog up and running in a very short time. All that is required from you is to enter a few details as shown below:

 Nothing difficult about this at all, a third grader could do this! All is required on your part is to enter your product name a title for your blog website. That’s it! Once you have your website built, you are on your way to becoming an online affiliate.

Conclusion

By now, you should have a better understanding on how to become an online affiliate. Building a website and startting a blog has never been easier with the help of Wealthy Affiliate. I hope the information that I have provided above will be beneficial to you and assist you as you move forward.

For further clarity, I have left a diagram below that perfectly illustrates the process of an online affiliate. It truly is a rinse and repeat type process and one that you can use with multiple products and niches. Stay focused in your research, devise an effective marketing plan and use the methods I discussed earlier to drive traffic to your site!

For Those Looking To Build A Website And to Get Started With Your Blog Today, Simply Click On The Banner Below And Join Wealthy Affiliate As A Free Member! 

At Last, The Secret To Writing Blogs For Money Is Revealed!

As our economy continues to fluctuate, more and more individuals are looking for a way to increase or add additional income to their household. For many, the idea of making money online has peaked their interest and have created a blog to do just that.

In this article, I will examine and show you the process in writing blogs for money, give you some ideas on what your content should include and offer a suggestion that will increase your likelihood of making money through your blog. I will also reveal that ‘secret’ that will help driive traffic right to your blog site!

Is Writing Blogs For Money Easy To Do? No, Here’s Why …

In order to be successful in making money with your blog, there are a number of things that you must have in order. For many, they simply have little understanding in how to create a blog that will generate income and become frustrated when they see no results. Here are some of the major roadblocks that must be addressed:

  • Niche is too competitive
  • Blog content and overall layout is poorly constructed
  • Lack of traffic to your blog

Although there may be other roadblocks that blog writers may encounter, in my opinion these are the three that must be addressed in order to have a successful money making blog. Let’s take a further look at these roadblocks and find a solution in knocking them down.

Use These 3 Little Tips To Make Your Blog A Money Making Machine!

Choosing  A Niche

A big mistake for many bloggers looking to make money with their blog have not clearly defined their niche or have one that is just too broad in nature. For those who are unfamiliar with the term ‘niche’ let me explain what this actually relates to.

A niche is basically a specific piece or part of the market for a particular type of service or product. Anything can be a niche. To be successful in writing blogs for money, you must understand that you don’t want to have a niche that is too broad. Break down a larger niche into a more targeted component within this niche. Let me give you an example:

Niche – Grapes (Too Broad Or Too General)  Competition here will be great

A More Targeted Niche (White Grapes)

Even More Targeted (Seedless White Grapes)

Even More Targeted (Seedless White Grapes From California)

Can you see the difference here? As a blogger, you will have much more success at targeting ‘Seedless White Grapes From California,’ than just ‘Grapes.’  The broad niche of ‘grapes’ is just too general and competion with other bloggers will be high. Research and narrow your niche and target traffic looking for a specific item, in this case ‘Seedless White Grapes From California.’

 

Blog Layout   

design                                                                                                                                                               The cosmetic look of your blog will also greatly influence the success moving forward. Potential buyers who find your blog must have a pleasant experience if you hope to capture their attention and possibly make sales. Here are a few tips that I would recommend in making your blog easy on the eye and appealing to your readers.

  • Writing content – Make it user friendly and tell a story if applicable. Should not read as medical dictionary.
  • Use appropriate titles and subtitles
  • Write in short paragrahs (2 to 3 sentences)
  • Use relevant imagery (Images that ‘show’ how to do something are powerful)
  • Use lists (numbered, bullets) to break up content
  • Avoid fancy headers, sliders or irrelevant images                                                          Allow for plenty of ‘white’ space with your article (Easier on the eyes for readers)
  • Insert a clear ‘call to action’ in every article

Following these guidelines certainly won’t guarantee that you will make money hand over fist, but it will position your blog in a much better place for success and financial gains. When your blog is designed with elements in place, you have increased the chances of your readers and buyers to visit your site time and time again. In theory, they have enjoyed their experience.

Getting Traffic

 Okay, you have narrowed the selection of your niche down to a more online audiencetargeted focus. You have outlayed and displayed your blog in a manner that is appealing to the eye and one that reads smoothly throughout. Great work! The next step in writing blogs for money is getting potential buyers in front of your product oer service. You need traffic!

I could write an entire article on ways to get online traffic to your blog but I would like to just stick to a few that I personally use with my own blog. Let’s consider these methods below:

  • Search Engine Optimization (SEO) – SEO in simple terms has to do online visibility. A blog (website) will be more visible and receive a higher page ranking in the search results once it is recognized as a trustworhty and authoritative site. A goal of yours should be getting your site on the first page of Google. That’s where you get traffic!

 

  • As your blog matures and you continue to write great content, your blog will become more popukar within the search engines such as Google, Bing and Yahoo. As a result, your blog will steadily increase in ranking resulting in more customers to your blog.

 

  • Paid Advertising –  This an option you have if your budget allows for it. There are a number of sites that offer a PPC campaign in which you are actually charged a fee to run a campaign within this platform. In this scenario, you will place an ad with one of these sites which in turn will display this ad on sites that are closely related to your niche. Here is an example of an ad with a niche focused on flea collars:

 

Notice the word ad in the example above. You will be charged to place this ad but it is an effective way to get online traffic to your blog. These ads can get expensive, so proceed with caution.

The Secret To Making Money With Your Blog!

Whether your blog is focused on selling a service or product, the key to success really comes down to one major element. Without it, you are losing out on a potential of huge financial success. Okay, here it is: You the blogger questionand owner of your website must be able to solve a problem to your readers. You must be able to offer a solution.

Take this very article you are reading right now. I would have to assume that you landed on this site to find out if it was actually possible to make money by writing a blog. You have a problem (not making money with your blog) and are looking for a way to change this.

What did you find? A solution that included a better approach in selecting a niche, a proper layout, and ways to drive traffic to your blog website. This article has given the reader a solution to a problem that they may have not thought of before. There is value to the reader in this example, and hopefully a certain level of trust. This is huge!

What To Sell? A Personal Preference …

offer

Writing blogs for money can come in a number of variations, and really comes down to a personal preference. Generating income from your blog can come from selling a service that you can offer or from selling a physical product that you may or may not own.

It is not uncommon for some to market a specific service from their blog. Say you own and operate a window washing business that you have decided to market online with your blog. You state how good your work is, your prices, customer reviews, package deals, etc, and by using the strategies mentioned above, drive potential buyers to your blog.

The same can be said for physical products. You are skilled at making handmade jewelery and have created a blog to show off your talent. Employ the same process as a service being offered, with good content, good imagery and help your customer solve a problem.

Don’t have a product or service of your own to offer? No problem! Welcome to the world of affiliate marketing. What is an affiliate? Simply put, an affiliate is someone who promotes a product that is not their own, markets and sells this product and then receives a commision from the owner of this product.

There are a number of affiliate programs you can find online that will be happy to have you as an affiliate. There are products available in just about any niche you can think of, with Amazon being one if not the largest. I am an Amazon affiliate myself as well as being an affiliate for Wealthy Affiliate.

i will tell you that Wealthy Affiliate offers a much larger commission and the entire platform is user friendly. In addition, Wealthy Affiliate will provide you with excellent training and support, and put you on a great path in designing a blog that will produce results.

 

Conclusion

I certainly hope this article has provided some insight for you and gives you a better understanding in creating a blog to make money. Following the writing guidelines mentioned above will certainly increase your chances at creating and growing a successful blog.

Keep in mind that writing blogs for money requires work. It will take some time and commitment on your part for the search engines to view your site as one that provides value to your readers.

For those looking to earn money as an affiliate I will leave a link just below to Wealthy Affiliate. This is the very platform I use and highly recommend it as an excellent source. Free to join, so do yourself a favor and click on this link to get started today.

WA Banner

 

 

 

Blogging For Dummies? It’s Easy If You Do It Smart

Why does blogging seem to be so difficult for many? This is particularly true for individuals just starting out who in my opinion just lack the essential knowledge when it comes to blogging. As a result, they are a part of that group that is labeled blogging for dummies when it actually really isn’t their fault.

In this article, I will look into the problems and issues facing new bloggers, offer a number of solutions and look at some of the benefits that can be obtained through the creation of a successful blog.

Why Blogging Causes Headaches ( 3 Problems)


  1. A Plan – The biggest problem I see with those attempting to start a blog starts with the planning process. In theory, they have no plan! Without a plan you are basically just throwing darts at the wall and hoping one sticks. This is no way to run a blog and once again puts you in that blogging for dummies category. Let me offer a solution.

Solution – Before you even consider a blog, do yourself a favor and ask this one question: What is the purpose of my blog? Are you using your blog for entertainment purposes, a business, an affiliate or some other reason? Let’s assume you want to start a small online business and have created a blog website to gain some revenue. Great idea!

So you now have a purpose. With your blog, you can hopefully drive traffic (customers) to your site by offering some sort of value to them. This value can come in a manner of a product or service you recommend to these customers and a product or service you offer on your blog. Make sense?

By defining this purpose or plan, you now have made the task of blogging much easier. In the example I used above you can now explain to your readers the benefits of the product or service for sale. Using your blog, you can explain how this product has helped you, detail the pros and cons, and give an overall truthful summary review on this product or service.

writer's block

 

Problem 2 – Any blogger, experienced or new will tell you at some time they have encountered writer’s block. It happens to the best of us! Nothing is worse than sitting down in front of your computer, putting your fingers on the keyboard and … nothing! Extremely frustrating.

Solution – In my opinion, the old writer’s block scenario can be avoided before we ever put our fingertips to the keyboard. Successful bloggers will do extensive research on what it is they are about to blog on and take additional notes with their research.

As a result of this technique, these notes taken from research can be used as a foundation in writing a blog article. You now have a system of reference (notes) that will create easy flowing content on your blog. In essence, you have eliminated the writer’s block by doing some research before the actual writing process takes place.

nicheAlong these same lines, many bloggers will center their attention around one specific niche. Let’s use sunglasses as a niche. When blogging about sunglasses, I would recommend that you narrow this niche down a bit.

Sunglasses is just too broad. Instead, blog about one specific brand or one that you have personally owned. You will find that writing content becomes much more easier in this format.

Problem 3 – Let’s face it, writing a blog can be time-consuming. With all of the surrounding distractions including cell phones, kids, and pets it can become difficult to find time to sit down and work on your blog.

Solution – One of the things that I would suggest is that you actually schedule a day or days of the week and a specific time to work on your blog. I know this sounds easier than it actually may be, but it does give you a concrete plan. For example, on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9:00 AM to 11 AM I will work on my blog.

During this time, eliminate all distractions. Turn off the cell phone, the television and focus solely on what needs to be done with your blog. Focus strictly on your blog, nothing else.

How To Blog … What You Should Know

Research

Make sure you do your fair share of research within your desired niche when first starting a blog. Nothing will lose credibility faster than writing about something that you have fabricated or made up. Your readers will pick up on this very quickly and will most likely never return to your blog.

If you are using your blog as a business, it would be wise on your part to check out your competitors websites, and see what they are doing to get ideas for your own site. Never copy or use their content but rather gain ideas that you may choose to use with your own blog.

keywords

One of, if not the most important components of research has to do with the selection of keywords. Having the appropriate keywords will be key in getting readers to your blog. Keywords are the words that individuals will type in their browser to find specific information in what they are looking for. Here is an example of this:

Let’s say someone is looking for electric razors for men.

  • They go to the Google Browser Bar and type in: electric razors for men and press enter on their computer
  • Google now generates a large number of results that contain the words ‘electric razors for men’
  • If you have used ‘electric razors for men’ as your keyword phrase, then your site will be listed in these results
  • Your hope is that your site will appear on the first page of these results but that may take some time and SEO work

There are a number of keyword tools that are free to use where you easily find with a Google search.

 

Blog Layout

design

Don’t overlook the importance of this item. Your blog should be appealing to your readers, something that has a good flow to it and is easy on the eye. Many individuals are visual by nature and a blog that is created with flowing content and well-placed imagery will go a long way in getting readers to your site.

Choose a theme that best represents the purpose of your blog. There are thousands to choose from so take your time before deciding which one best suits your needs. I am a big fan of the WordPress themes which are quite easy to install and offers plenty of options.

Use titles, lists, images and smaller paragraphs when creating content on your blog. These tactics will provide readers with a pleasant experience when viewing your blog and increase the odds that they will come back time and time again. Stay away from the gigantic headers, fancy sliders, colorful backgrounds and long paragraphs, as these things may actually keep readers away.

Content

The goal of your written content should always be focused on the concept of providing value to your readers. Help them solve a problem that they may have. You may want to design and format your blog in the following manner: Identify the problem, offer a solution, and suggest the benefits of this solution. Here’s an example:

Problem: Dog Obesity

Solution: Recommend a dog food or dog food brand that has fewer calories

Benefits: Dog loses weight and enjoys a more energetic, healthier lifestyle

 

Submitting/Publishing Your Blog

google

Okay, you have done your research, chosen a theme, and written content that provides value to potential readers. Now what? The next step is to submit or publish your blog to the search engines (Google, Bing, Yahoo) to get your blog live on the internet.

Where and when your blog site appears in these search engines depends on a number of factors. In most cases, it will take some time before your site appears on the top few pages within these search engines. It comes down to SEO, using appropriate keywords, and whether Google recognizes your blog as one of authority and one that can be trusted.

Remember this, content is and will always be the important factor in getting ranked within the search engines. The more content you produce on your blog, as long as it provides value to your readers, the faster your site will rank. Without great content, you are fighting a losing battle.

Benefits Of Doing A Blog The Right Way

benefits

 

If done correctly, and by following these steps I mentioned above, your blog can be successful in a number of ways. As stated many times throughout this article, the key is bringing value to your potential readers and customers. With that said, let’s look at some of the benefits associated with a blog. – Helping others

  • Helping others – This is the human element, feel good about yourself type of thing. I would hope we all like the idea of helping others and a blog is a great way to do that. What better way than to solve a problem for them? As an bonus you can assist hundreds if not thousands individuals looking for a solution to the same problem.

 

  • Trust and Authority – As your blog grows and becomes more popular within the search engines, you will gain trust with your readers and be looked at as an authority within your niche. As a result the traffic to your site will continue to grow putting you in a great position to find success.

 

  • Income – If you are one of those looking to start an online business website (blog), the ability to generate revenue is definitely obtainable. Use the method of providing content that solves a problem to your readers and be truthful regarding the product or service you are offering. Gain their trust and increase the odds of financial gains.

Conclusion

Blogging for dummies doesn’t have to be a difficult task if you are willing to design and follow a specific plan put in place. In this article, I have offered a number of steps that will hopefully be beneficial to you in research, design, content and other elements of your blog.

A successful blog doesn’t happen overnight. It takes work. It takes commitment. The rewards, however can be huge and give you a great sense of accomplishment. It gives you the freedom to choose what you want to write about, when you want to write and how much time you are willing to give to the process.

I am far from an experienced blogger but for those who would like to take a look at blogging platform that I have used that has been incredibly helpful, I would encourage you to take a look at Wealthy Affiliate. It is free to join and take a look around the platform. So simple to start a blog within this platform!

Please don’t hesitate to ask me any question you may have, I would love to help! I wish you the very best with your blog and I truly hope you have a great level of success.

Check Out this Site For Dummies That Will Get You Started With Your Blog! No Credit Card Needed, No Experience Needed! Join For Free by Clicking On The Banner Below!

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Don’t Be Fooled By Online Business Training!

The idea of starting an online business has become very popular to individuals looking for a way to earn or generate additional income. Unfortunately, without the proper knowledge or experience in building a business online, individuals will look for a place that offers online business training to help them get started on the right path.

There are a number of online sites that offer this training and make quite a number of promises to you as a potential business owner. Are all of these sights legitimate and have your best interest at heart? In this article I will take a look at this question as well as providing some additional insight as it pertains to this topic.

 

The Problem With Online Business Training

For those who believe that a search on Google to find a site that offers online business training will solve their issues will more than likely become very disappointed. Finding a site that claims to offer this service will not be a problem as there are hundreds of sites out there offering this service to you.

Unfortunately, this can be the start to an absolute nightmare! Why? Let’s take a look at the problems associated with online training that will leave individuals frustrated and confused:

  • The language being used in the online training can be difficult to understand (Technical Language)
  • The human element is missing (No support, immediate feedback, interaction, etc.)
  • Cost (Many online training platforms are expensive)
  • Can they be trusted (A lot of online scams out there)

These are just a few of the issues facing those individuals looking to gain knowledge with online training. As you can see, these issues alone will make it quite difficult to succeed with an online business.

Is There A Solution To These Problems? Well, Yes ..

Here comes some good news! All online training is not created equal and there are indeed a few out there that actually deliver on what they promise. To be honest, when I first started my own online business I had very little knowledge or experience in doing so.

Just like many of you, I researched a number of online training courses to get my business started and fell flat on my face. I literally spent hundreds of dollars in purchasing various training courses only to be let down time after time. The language (technical) was way over my head and simply got lost with the training.

This didn’t stop me from continuing my search and came across platform that looked promising but remained very cautious just the same. I wasn’t about to pay another large chunk of money again and receive little if any benefits from it. After a few days, I decided to go back and check out this platform a little further and here is what I found:

What AN Online Business Training Should Look Like …

1.) A Free Membership (Upgrade Is Optional)

2.) Free websites to be used in any way I like

3.) Extensive business online training with video, and easy to follow instructions (No ‘techy’ stuff)

4.) A support system to answer questions I may have immediately (Live chat)

5.) Classrooms that offer specific training in establishing an online business

6.) Live Video Classes

If you remember, I told you about a site that I had come across but wasn’t ready to take the plunge at that time. Like I stated earlier, I decided to re-visit this site and found all six of the elements within this program. I was actually surprised at the level of training within this platform and decided to join as a free member. Below is just a small sample of some of the training that is offered.

 

The training provided here is ideal for anyone, from newbies to experienced Trainingonline business owners. The training is set up in a way that takes you from one step to the next with support (Live Chat) which is always available. You will be hard-pressed to find online training out there that offers as much as Wealthy Affiliate and I would strongly recommend that you give it a look for yourself. Won’t cost you a thing to take a look around!

What You Will Learn With This Training …

The training offered here encompasses everything you could imagine in running an online business. As I mentioned earlier, the training is designed to be suitable for anyone interested in building a business online.

Listed below are just a few of items that are explained in the training provided by Wealthy Affiliate .

 

Wealthy Affiliate

  1. How to generate and build a website (WordPress Blog)
  2. How to find and create a domain for your website
  3. Hosting
  4. SEO training (Getting your website ready for Google)
  5. How to select a theme for your website
  6. How to market your website
  7. Using social networks to draw potential customers to your website
  8. Email Marketing
  9. How to design your website
  10. How to produce content to help answer questions your readers may have
  11. How to effectively use images on your website
  12. How to analyze the overall productivity of your business website
  13. How to do a proper keyword search
  14. How to run a successful PPC campaign
  15. How to become an affiliate

And so much more! To be honest, I didn’t have the foggiest idea about 80% of these items mentioned above, but with the training I now have a much higher level of knowledge in a very short time.

What Are The Benefits To You? …

Okay, we have found of site that promises to be what we are looking for. What can we expect once we get inside the training platform and what are the benefits of this platform? As a member myself, I can tell you the benefits that I have received in just a few short months.

Before doing that, I think it is important to understand that any training associated with an online business is an ongoing process. At the rate that technology is changing, what was once accepted may be outdated in a relatively short time. Effective training should be current with these changes.

I also believe that training and support should go hand in hand. Without one or the other, it is extremely difficult to be successful in anything you do, online or not. Far too many online training platforms provide training with little to no support. Should you encounter an issue with something, you are left to figure out a solution on your own.

Let’s take a more detailed look at the training provided through Wealthy Affiliate and the benefits associated with this type of format.

  • You are NOT alone with this training (Some members will be ahead of you in the training, others behind)
  • Support (You will have a community of others there to gladly help you)
  • Training modules or stages are clearly defined and easy to understand) Step-by-Step Process
  • Video Training which makes it easy to stop, pause or forward for better clarification (Easy To Navigate)
  • Trustworthy and legitimate (Over a million members worldwide)
  • Constant and current updates to the training
  • Task Oriented (You will perform specific tasks as it relates to the training) My favorite part!
  • A sense of achievement
  • Train and learn at your own pace
  • FREE Membership

Conclusion

I certainly hope this article and has been beneficial to you and has brought further clarity to online business training. Don’t be fooled like I was, and fall for every online training you come across and end up spending hundreds of dollars that has no great benefit to you.

I have brought your attention to one of these platforms, Wealthy Affiliate, that has delivered in what it promises. Don’t get me wrong, I was more than skeptical at first and didn’t realize its real value until I started my training. Anything and everything you could think of as it relates to an online business will be covered in a simplistic fashion.

Wealthy Affiliate, in its training does an excellent job of ‘showing’ you how to do something instead of ‘telling’ you how to do something. As a visual learner myself, this was an enormous benefit to the learning process. Video, graphs, charts, pictures are all on display within the training platform.

I wish you the very best in your search for the proper training, and please feel free to ask me anything you are not sure of. I will be glad to help!

 

For Those Who Are Looking To Get Your Training Started Right Away, Simply Click On The Banner Below And Get Going!

 

Website Builder For Free … The Real Deal

website builder online

 

For those who have the experience or technical skills to build their own website, life is good. The same can be said for those who have the financial resources who simply pay to have a website built for them. What if you don’t have either? Well, in this article I am going to show you where to find a website builder for free that requires no experience or skill set on your part!

Here’s The Problem  

technical issues

 

It’s no secret that a lot of us would like to have our own website but really have no idea how to get this accomplished. There are a number of reasons we fail at this idea and I want to share with you what I think are three of the major reasons that stops us from obtaining our very own website.

  • Experience or lack of the necessary skills to build a website
  • Money (Building a website can be expensive)
  • Training

 

Experience/Knowledge

Unless you are an individual who has a great deal of computer knowledge or those ‘techy’ skills, building a website on your own can be just about impossible. Would you even know where to start? For most of us, including myself, the answer is a definite no!

Are you familiar with such things as domains, hosting, html, SEO, plugins, themes, menus, keywords, etc? Yea, me either! You see, these are just a few of those ‘techy’ terms that most of us are just not familiar with. This alone will drive many if not most individuals away before attempting to build a website.

(Money or Lack Of)

If you were check out various website builders out there, you would find that may cost you hundreds of dollars to have one built. When you think about having a website built for you, in a lot of these cases, there will be additional costs that include such things as hosting and domain registration.

This is definitely a major issue for those on a limited budget and as a result, just give up. Now this is not to say that all website builders are bad, it merely suggests that it can become quite expensive. In addition, some of these website builders only provide a ‘barebone’ product which can be frustrating as well.

(Training)

Let’s assume that you finally get your website built. Now what? Do you know how to get others to visit your website? What is the purpose of your website? Are you selling products or services online? A blog? A review site to help others? Without a certain level of training, these questions will be difficult to answer.

As I mentioned earlier, it is truly my belief that these three issues are a real concern for those looking to build a website. Would you like some good news? Let’s talk about a solution that eliminate all of these issues.

 

Solution

(Lack of Experience)

new skills

For those who lack the necessary skills to build their own website, I have great news. You don’t need any! That’s right, I have a place where you can build a website without knowing the first thing about building a website. No special skills or experience is required to accomplish this, just a matter of you supplying a few simple details.

There is a site out there that actually understands that everyone out there doesn’t have the technological skills to build their website, and have made it possible despite this issue. The name of this place I am referring to is known as Wealthy Affiliate which is exactly what you are looking for, a website builder for free.

Let me show how are they able to do this with this screenshot below. Notice what is required on your part (not much) and why the lack of experience or those ‘techy’ skills are just not necessary. Take a look at how easy this entire process is done and what is required from you.

Wealthy Affiliate
Still a little fuzzy about what is required on your part? Okay, let’s break this down a little bit further. Notice first the similarity between ‘Choose a domain name for your website,’ and ‘Enter a title for your website.’ In this example the individual was obviously interested in basketball skills and drills and wanted to build a website that focused on this.

One of those ‘techy’ things that beginners are unfamiliar with is the ‘domain’ term. Not to worry as a domain is nothing more than a name used in a URL (Link) that identifies your website. A domain name usually, but not always is used to identify the information you provide on your website.

For example. perhaps you have interest in sport cars and want to provide your information on your website about sport cars. Your domain name could be something like, ” sportcarswithbilly” or “sportcarsforsale.” Your title using these two domain name examples could be “Sport Cars With Billy” and “Sport Cars For Sale.” Pretty easy stuff to do!

Here comes the best part: Once you enter these two tidbits of information, your next step is to click on an ‘Enter’ button and your website behind the scenes is created for you. I know from experience just how easy this is to do, and believe me, I have no special skills or knowledge when it comes to building a website.

 

(Money)

cost

Another major obstacle for many really comes down to finances. If you have hundreds of dollars to have a website built for you, then you won’t have any trouble finding sites out there that will be more than willing to take your money. I am assuming that you found your way to this article because you are looking to find a website builder for free. You have come to the right place!

Not only will Wealthy Affiliate build you one website, they will build you two. For free! Hey look, I certainly would understand your skepticism in reading this, but this is exactly what Wealthy Affiliate will do for you. No strings attached, no credit card required, no long term contracts of any kind.

These two free websites are offered through their Free Membership plan which thousands of people with little or no experience now have an active website up and running. There is a paid membership available if you would choose to upgrade but that is solely optional. The paid or Premium Membership obviously has more options available to you, but that choice is entirely up to you. The Free Membership will build you two websites at no cost to you.

(Training)

For those who have a website built, free or paid, there still remains a certain level of what to do next. Without some training, coaching or guidance many new website owners have no idea how to use their new site. Wealthy Affiliate will walk you through the steps that are needed to make your website functional.

I provided a screenshot below to give you an example of the type of training that you will get with your Free Membership which is really easy to follow. Step-by-step instructions that anyone could follow. Learn at your own pace, without having someone looking over your shoulder. Take a look below:

lessons

There are a number of lessons available to you which you can gain access to at anytime. Many of these training modules are presented with videos that allows you to start and stop at any point which I found to be very helpful.

 

(Benefits Of A Free Website)

If you are unable to find a better website builder for free, I highly recommend you take a look at Wealthy Affiliate. As I mentioned above you will be hard-pressed to find a platform such as Wealthy Affiliate that offers these type of benefits that so many of us are looking to find.

Assuming your search in finding a free website builder has to do with a specific plan, there are indeed a number of benefits associated with website ownership. Perhaps your plan is to start an online business with your website which is very common these days.

Many individuals enjoy the thought of helping others and create a blog website to do so. Bloggers will write about a specific interest they may have and provide information to their readers that has some type of value in the content. There are countless ways to use a website that will be beneficial to you. It all starts with a plan or vision.

(Summary)

I sincerely hope you have learned something new in the reading of this article and you now have a better idea of where to find a website builder for free. In my honest opinion, you will find everything you need with the Wealthy Affiliate platform and it will cost you nothing to see for yourself.

I am myself a member of Wealthy Affiliate and I would encourage you to leave me a question below if you are still unsure about something, and Ill get back to you in short order. For those who want to take a further look at what Wealthy Affiliate can do for you, just click on the banner below to get started today.

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Ready To Get Your Own Free Website Now And Receive Some Great Training To Get You Started? Just Click On The Banner Below And Join The Free Membership At Wealthy Affiliate!

Wealthy Affiliate

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