Google, Inc. is a multinational corporation, with sales of nearly 30 billion dollars per year. At present, they control over 70% of the search engine market, processing over one billion searches each day. They are not only the number one search engine, they are the most visited site on the internet, an enormous and powerful entity.
Now picture this scenario: You have decided to jump into the waters and create your own web site or blog about something that you love and have built up some followers. Now you’re thinking that you would like to earn some spare cash from it, a little icing on the cake for your efforts. You grab your cell phone and call Larry Page, the CEO of Google during a board meeting and say “Hey Larry, I need you to stop what you’re doing. I’ve come up with this web site that people enjoy, I need you to look at it, send some good paid advertisers over and give me a piece of what they sell”. And Larry says, “Ok, I’m on it!”. Next you call the top person at Walmart, Best Buy and Bill Gates of Microsoft, or better yet, get them all on a conference call together because there’s a ballgame coming on shortly that you don’t want to miss. Your message to them is similar: “Hey listen, I created this great web site, I need you to put your ads on it and send me a portion of the profits.” They all respond in kind, “No problem, you got it!”
The above scenarios are presented tongue-in-cheek but in essence represent what many “regular ole” people have been doing for years and are doing as we speak. The best part is that they didn’t even have to make those phone calls and bother those people. In the case of Google, they have a program called AdSense, which is free to you and separate and apart from their search engine function. It works very simply. They scan your web site or blog, figure out which types of ads would work best for you and send you the code. When your visitors click on these ads, you earn commissions from Google, Inc.
In the cases of Walmart, Best Buy, Microsoft and thousands of other companies, you have even more control. You can handpick your advertisers, however large or small and whichever category of businesses that you prefer. The deal is similar however: Your cost is zero and when your followers click (and buy products in these cases), you receive commission checks. This is known as Affiliate Marketing, you are the middleman or middlewoman and Bill Gates and his entrepreneur peers are happy to send you money for throwing some more business their way.
There are some qualifications, however. You need to have a quality, reputable web site or blog with some value to the public. You cannot simply slap up a one page blog about what you and your frat buddies did last night or how you almost bowled a perfect game and expect a major company to support you. There is an approval process and your site will be reviewed for quality, decency and overall value. Even if your site or blog is perfectly maintained and upstanding, some individual companies will reject you because your site may not match their particular niche. Do not fret, there are many other choices.
There are four major commission-paying companies which handle the advertising and payment programs for thousands of businesses, including the ones mentioned above: Commission Junction, Linkshare, ShareASale and Google Affiliate Network, yes, Google again. Amazon is another giant which maintains their own advertising and commission program through Amazon Associates. All of these entities have their own approval process so make certain that your site or blog is in great shape and is marketable before applying. It is much wiser to spend extra time up front to get your site in tiptop form than it is to rush and be rejected by any of these valuable income-paying programs. Some of them do not offer a second chance.
If you are excited about this prospect, yet apprehensive because you have no knowledge or experience with web sites, blogs or marketing, fear not. Our web site features easy to understand, step-by-step guides on how to choose your topic, create and maintain your own blog or web site, bring in visitors, apply your ads and collect your commissions. We also feature established, high-quality Work-At-Home programs geared towards the beginner, as well as experienced individuals.
The Roadmap to Work-at-Home Success Steps
The following is strictly an outline for success in building an online income. We feature more detailed instructions and “How-To” guides throughout our web site.
> Choose a method and a topic:
Method:
This could be starting your own blog, web site, message board, chat room or learning and following an established moneymaking program.
Topic:
This should be something that interests you and will interest others as well: A sports team, iphone apps, hobbies, photography, coupons, recipes, etc.
Notes: Your goal is to bring in visitors, keep this in mind at all times. Something that excites you may not have mass appeal. Example: I love to lay in the pool and listen to music but this is not a marketable skill. However, if I were to start a blog or message board about classic rock, smooth jazz or summertime activities, then I would have a valid avenue to reach a large interested group . Always keep your potential audience at the forefront of your planning and activities.
> Begin
Build your blog, web site, message board or sign up for your program.
Blog: We recommend Blogger.com or WordPress, both are free.
Web Site: We recommend Yahoo or GoDaddy, as they both offer an all-in-one service: Domain name, web site hosting, site building tools and support for a very low price.
Message Board: We recommend Aimoo (free) or Website Toolbox (low cost, professional results).
Notes: Optimize your site, that means get it up and running smoothly. Fill in your meta tags, this is the embedded information about your site upon which the search engine giants (Google, Yahoo, Bing, Ask , etc.) will rank and place you. This is how outside visitors will find your web site or blog. We feature outstanding how-to e-books in our Quick Reference Guide, covering all aspects of search engine optimization (SEO), along with many free tools.
Work-At-Home Moneymaking Program: We feature some excellent how-to guides for beginners in our Quick Reference section. These guides will teach you everything that you need to know from start to finish. They carry an extremely low cost and in most cases, a money-back guarantee.
Notes: Study the program carefully and follow it to the letter. These are outstanding programs with specific information and procedures at each step of the way. Equally as important, they contain critical “Dont’s” to shield you from wasting time and money.
> Making money with your Blog, Web Site or Message Board
Sign up to be an affiliate with Clickbank , Linkshare , Shareasale and/or Commission Junction and Google Adsense. Review the products and companies available and then place relevant ads on your site. The respective web sites will provide complete instructions and tips.
Notes: Use common sense and good judgement in choosing your ads and companies. Example: If you are running a bingo site for the elderly, don’t feature Metallica and Motley Crue ads. Play to your audience: An ad can turn someone off much quicker than it can turn them on and your ad choices are a direct reflection on your credibility. In addition to targeting your specific demographic, there is much room for generic ads which will appeal to all groups. Whether the target audience is 18 or 80, they all eat food, shop and buy common products.
Google Adsense will automatically scan your site for the type and topic of ads and produce the ad codes for you.
> Bring traffic to your site:
Submit your site to the major search engines: Google, Yahoo, MSN, Ask and Bing. It may take some time for your blog or site to be indexed and listed, so start as soon as you are in good working order.
Notes: Make sure that your site is in good shape before submitting. The better condition your site is in, the higher the potential that you will be ranked above similar sites. This ranking may mean the difference between a few visitors and many thousands of visitors.
Start by word of mouth, family and friends, coworkers, your Facebook, Twitter, Myspace page, AIM buddies, etc. Building traffic is a never-ending process and the more traffic you have, the greater potential for revenue from your ads.
Notes: This is where you need personal creativity as well as guidance and knowledge. If you are the go-getter type, you will find great ways to build traffic on your own. See our article ” How To Get Quick, Free Traffic for Your Web site or Blog ” for some very effective zero-cost ideas.
> Persevere (The Pep Talk)
This is the most critical step of all. Stay at it. Unless you’ve discovered the cure for a dreaded disease or the formula for picking winning lottery numbers, you will not be an overnight sensation or millionaire. Much like Rocky Balboa, you are sure to be knocked down and battered (with disappointments) along the way. The secret is not to be knocked out. It takes time, patience and perseverance.This is what separates success from failure. Ignore the naysayers; The world is full of people who will tell you that you can’t or shouldn’t do something. Be thankful that you are not one of them and march forward.
Some will argue that you can’t learn from someone who hasn’t done the same thing themselves. This is utter nonsense. Since our entry into Affiliate Marketing years ago, we have learned a great deal from novices as well as experts. I had a good many history teachers who taught me much about the Civil War but never actually fought in it. You can learn valuable marketing, behavioural and human nature lessons from anyone, including small children. These lessons will prove to be most helpful in targeting your audience.
Gather knowledge and ideas from different sources along the way. Study other web sites and blogs and see how they are put together. Take note of ideas and put your own stamp and flair on them. There is no shame in this, it has been done since the beginning of time, someone sees an idea and takes it in a different direction. It is called progress. The wheel has already been invented, tweak it and make it spin your way. Do things at your own pace, on your own terms and take breaks along the way.
The rewards are great, monetarily and in terms of pride and self-fulfillment but only if you do not allow yourself to be derailed by setbacks, negativity or complacency.
Source: BetterWaysToday.com
Earn More, Spend Less and Live Better
© 2011 BetterWaysToday.com. All rights reserved.