| By Sandi Hunter
Rather then writing an article, this time I decided to share with you some of the common questions I hear from affiliate marketers and the advice I give them. My hope is that other marketers reading this will benefit from the information and you too can start getting better results.
Are you ready? Here you go...
Q: What's better Solo Ads or Banner Ads?
In general, I would say well written solo ads would perform better then a banner ad. Assuming that you have a really great, captivating, attention grabbing headline and that your copy is benefit laden and makes a fabulous offer.
Solo Ads are often single email distribution of ad copy to a member list or a subscriber list. So real human eyeballs should be seeing your ads, if sent from a Safelist, you need to be aware that some people will be viewing your ad to earn ad credits. It doesn't mean it's not a good way to advertise it just means that don't think that everyone who clicks is a buyer. Some WILL buy, and Safelist advertising is effective.
BUT....Instead of asking which kind of promotion is better, consider that ALL advertising helps, so you can place some banner ads, AND place some solo ads. The BEST advertising results are often the result of MULTIPLE forms of advertising on various platforms.
Smart marketers employ a number of different kinds of advertising to target different markets, niche markets, and target specific demographics.
Q: I bought some advertising from a trusted source but I notice the rate at which I am receiving my leads is a little slow should I be concerned?
That's a tough one to answer. My first thought is if you trust this lead source and the leads are being generated slowly that may be a good sign. When ads are placed it takes time for people to respond especially REAL people who are HUMAN and filling out a form. You have to take a good look at your ad copy as well. I see ads all the time that I can virtually guarantee will not produce leads. Why? The ads are poorly written. They have no pop, no sizzle, and are serious sleep inducers. The other side of the spectrum is that the ad is so ridiculous in the claims made that people are clicking OFF the ad or ignoring it, instantly sizing it up as another sketchy pitch. I can also look at an ad and tell you if it will produce sign ups. Why? Because as a copywriter and marketer with close to 25 years in this industry it is plain as the nose on your face what gets people to react. It's not a secret, it's the science of human behavior and a result of utilizing proven motivation principles. If you don't understand the basics of good marketing, marketing that makes and offer to command action, then you need to go back to basics and learn. This topic is far to big for the purpose of this here, so instead you are start doing your homework. A good place to start would be with my company Worldprofit.com , but I will leave that up to you. If you want to get results from your promotion you must know what to promote, where to promote and how to promote, my team can provide that to you, it's both valuable and critical to your success as an affiliate marketer.
I would also offer you this advice. If you buy ads and get an instant HUGE influx of leads I would be far more concerned about that pattern. The reason is that you may just be getting paid to click leads, or robotic leads, or even just a harvested list of leads that have been bought and sold repeatedly. The leads may not be quality or even real and are mass distributed in bulk to unknowing buyers. The test will be if those "leads" login, respond, click or take some action to indicate they are HUMAN. Real leads DO something more then just click.
Q: Does Safelist marketing work?
A: Absolutely. For many years, at least a decade now, we 've operated 18 High Traffic Safelists to back that statement up, plus we use several other trusted time-tested safelists ourselves for promotion purposes. The Affiliate marketer doesn't have a bottomless pit of money to pay for Google Ads, or Facebook ads. Safelist advertising is low cost, offers a a targeted audience, and quite simply, gets results. If you aren't getting results take a good look at the ads/offers you are running before you blame the advertising source. I covered this above. Q: I hear about the importance of having a list, what exactly does that mean and how do I get one going?
A: A list is sometimes refered to as a customer list, or a lead list, or an email marketing list. Whatever you call it it's your essential bread and butter for your business. The people on the list are subscribers to your mailings and potential buyers of your products and services, be nice to them. Earn their trust, mail content that is valuable and not sent too often. Building your list takes time and is accomplished with optin forms, lead forms, newsletter sign up forms, surveys, and offers. You will need mail software or a service to be able to email your growing list and a number of services exist to help you with this. See the end of this posting for help with mail services and hosting. Ever notice those questionable companies doing a Pre-Launch? Notice the Pre-Launch seems to go on and on and on or never launches at all! Why do you think they are doing that? Three reasons, exposure, LIST BUILDING, sales potential The bigger the list the bigger the results when they DO finally launch. Understand the POWER of having, maintaining your own email marketing list in your own success.
Q: I am trying everything and not getting results, what do I do.
A: I see marketers so eager to start making money online, they try to do everything at once. What they lack is FOCUS. Yup, it's that simple. Pick one or two affiliate programs if you are just getting started. Spend some time every day learning about online marketing, but spend 10X more then that on promoting. People new to affiliate marketing often underestimate how much promotion is required to get sign ups and conversions. The affiliate marketing industry itself is partly to blame for this, many tell you it's so easy, you can get rich in 2, 4, 6 weeks, no work required, blah blah. One ad I just saw promised riches in 12 minutes. It's ridiculous. Sadly it's the same old pitch from many of these "just launched" here today gone tommorrow affiliate programs. Pick ONE good one, a program that offers value, has some substance to it and provides you with the tools you need to promote it. You may sign up for an affiliate program and are given a referral link then you are on your own to figure out where to promote. That's often why so many newbies get frustrated and give up. They see the value of the practice but don't know what to do to start getting signups, they post here and there inconsistently without rhyme of reason, no systematic approach, get frustrated and give up. That's why so many frustrated affiliates end up coming to my team of experts at Worldprofit they realize they need our systematic proven approach developed over many years.
Q: Where can I learn more about promotion so I can get better results as an affiliate marketer and start getting more sign ups into my programs?
A: At Worldprofit we treat affiliate marketing as a business, a business that anyone can do from anywhere in the world. Our all inclusive comprehensive system provides the tools, software, business resources and IMPORTANTLY, training to help you grow your own successful affiliate marketing business now and for years to come. |