How many times have you program hopped in your affiliate endeavors? Without a doubt, at some point or another, you have jumped ship. Reading all of the emails promising the riches of the earth is a bit like ADD.
I, myself, have hopped from program to program looking for the next best thing. The program that was going to make me a millionaire overnight. It can be a daunting task deciphering ethical from unethical offers in this business. My first year trying to make it in this business, I must have tried 100 different programs. All of which failed due to my lack of knowledge and know how. I would try something for a week, not make a dime and head to the next one. All the while spending all kinds of money I didn’t have to get a top notch sure fire deal.
Well what I can tell you, is there is no sure fire deal. You are not going to buy a program today and be rich tomorrow. Now the power of the internet allows for easy money and riches beyond belief. However, I am not one of those super affiliates making money hand over fist. I am however, working my way towards quitting my full time job and doing this at home as my main source of income.
You have to FOCUS. Focus focus focus. Taking on too many tasks will divide your attention and not be profitable at all. Pick a few programs that you want to promote, learn all you can about them and take your time putting it all together. You do not have to be perfect, but you should know your product. A good rule of thumb is to only promote what you yourself believe in. This lends credibility to your site and to your name. Work at building relationships and take the advice of those who have succeeded.
I try to be as upfront and honest as I can with this business. There are some shady characters out there that make it difficult for all of us. Don’t feel bad if you fall prey to one of them, as I can bet 50% or more of us have as well. Stay focused on your 2 or 3 deals and work your blog or site the best you can. To start out with, I would utilize all the free advertising avenues available. Twitter, Facebook and sites like DIGG! and StumbleUpon. All of these options will get people to your site. It may take time, but the an important thing to learn is patience.
It may seem as if you are getting nowhere, but when you accept that building an income online genuinely takes some time, you will persevere. You CAN make a full time living online if you trust in yourself, work hard, smart and learn from your mistakes. And a BIG mistake is program hopping. Just say no!
Whether you are the affiliate or the merchant or a blogger, consistency is the most important factor in success. NOTHING will make you rich overnight. Yes, there are some offers that – if you get in early enough and they have enough power affiliates promoting them – will make a bunch of money in the short term but they are not going to feed you in the long term.
Affiliates aren’t the only ones who fall off the wagon. Merchants make the same mistake especially with affiliate managers and other consultants. Every time you change horses you go back to the start of the race because there is no “right way” to do anything. There are many very different ways.
What works is finding something you can truly believe in and consistently planting the seeds that will create a harvest OVER TIME. Multiply those seeds by collaborating with others starting with me. I will introduce you to those most generously supporting each other.
Gail:
What a wonderful response! I agree 100% with “you wont get rich overnight!” I bought into all that hype when I first started out and quickly saw the truth.
Engaging the community and social networking are the keys. AND…the best way to Passive income.
Pleasure to see you here,
Lisa
This is very true. It is so easy to get distracted by different programs with all their offers and promises, especially when you are just starting. You do need to stay very focused. If I can train myself to, then anybody can. Occassionally, I still fall off the wagon. lol