Work-at-home statistics in general tend to be dismal. Success in affiliate and related type marketing isn’t much different. Most people make very little money, if anything at all. But what the stats fail to mention is how often failure isn’t in the method, but in the execution. Many people get roped into the idea that once they set up a website or blog, and submit it to a search engine, the money should roll in. It doesn’t work like that. Launching a site and submitting to search engines is just the first few steps. The “work” in affiliate marketing isn’t building the site, it’s in marketing it. You can have the best monetization resources, but if no one is visiting the site, you won’t make money. So here are some quick tips and resources to make sure you have the traffic needed to earn income from a monetized site.
- Provide unique quality content that fits the mission or topic of the site.
- Optimize the site for search engines (SEO). Even just basic SEO techniques will improve your ranking in the search engines and therefore increase traffic.
- Create a marketing plan. You can’t rely on search engines to drive traffic to your site. Getting yourself known around the Internet increases your website’s exposure and your search engine ranking.
- Build a list. To increase the chance of making a sale, provide a newsletter. Having a list gives you the chance to make offers to a visitor in the future. Be sure your emails aren’t only offers or readers will unsubscribe. Instead focus on informative articles or tips with an ad or two. To encourage visitors to subscribe, offer them a free report or other incentive.
- Monitor your results. Study your traffic using Google Analytics, the web stat tools that come with your hosting service, or a statistic plug-in for WordPress (if that’s what you’re using). Use the information to determine what sites are sending people to yours. What keywords are being used to search and find your site in the search engines? What pages are the most popular? You also want to track affiliate results. Which programs are getting the most clicks? Why is that? Is it placement? Program? Type of ad (text vs. banner)? Many of the programs will allow to create a special tracking code so can know which ads are working where.
To learn more about making money with affiliate programs, check out WAHS University’s course on Affiliate Marketing Success.
Great tips for helping one succeed in a home based business. You have pointed out several important things to look for and identified that one needs to have an interest or passion for whatever it is they wish to accomplish. Great ideas.
Thank you for commenting. I’m glad you enjoyed the post.
These are some great tips. I’ve seen quite a few people who jump into internet marketing too quickly without a plan, and are left frustrated when they see no results coming. Building the right audience and being able to drive traffic to you blog or website does not happen overnight. If one puts in consistent effort and takes care of all factors – the ones you’ve put here in this post, money will definitely begin to flow.
Thanks for the great share.
Hi Rita, thanks for the comment! I think you’re right, some people give the impression that if you build it and monetize it, the money will come. But that’s not the case. Thanks again!!