Yesterday I got an email from one of my students, he showed me an amazingly detailed plan that he’s going to use to build his first affiliate marketing business.
Obviously I’m really proud of him and pleased that he’d put this together, I think he’s going to be a major success as a result, but it got me thinking.
It got me thinking about my other students who don’t take action, who aren’t getting the results that they want and I figured that I’ve gotta shoot a video to talk people through getting started with affiliate marketing.
Table of Contents:
Get Started with Affiliate Marketing
I know it’s a tempting idea to put together a complicated and in-depth plan that’s gonna take you weeks to implement.
And I know how tempting it is to try and design a system that keeps you going after the launch.
Sure, you’re gonna have to drive traffic, and you’re gonna have convert those visitors into leads, and convert those leads into customers.
That’s the core engine that drives affiliate marketing businesses.
But how do you get started?
Don’t Overthink Affiliate Marketing
Well, it’s really simple.
And there are only a few components you need to make a start.
Don’t think about the big picture yet.
Don’t think about driving traffic, don’t think about converting any of your traffic yet – all you need to do o is make one webpage, just one single webpage that captures email addresses and that’s it.
Set that up today and it’s gonna take you maximum an hour.
Then you’ve made a start.
The Next Step
Tomorrow I want you to find an offer on ClickBank or JVZoo that will be of interest to the people who sign up to your list.
Its simple, right?
You have a way of capturing leads and then you have a way of monetizing those leads.
Forget about everything else for a while and don’t worry about designing a complicated longterm plan that’s gonna take you weeks to implement.
Don’t worry about SEO, don’t worry about social marketing or influencer marketing, or any other stuff.
Just set up a way to capture leads and have a way to monetize those leads – and that’s gonna take you what maximum two days to make.
Then you’ll have a very basic, but functioning online business that you can build upon.
And that’s the key here; it’s not about waiting until everything is perfect or waiting until all your ducks are in a row, as we say in the UK.
Done is Better than Perfect
It’s about taking action, right now, today.
Remember that done is better than perfect.
And the system that you set up today, well, lets face it; it’s not going to be perfect.
It doesn’t need to be.
You’re going to refine it over time, so you’re going to look back in a week’s time see how far you’ve come.
Then you’ll start refining things and start worrying about getting improving those vital conversions.
Affiliate Marketing Conversions
In affiliate marketing we have two major conversion points.
A conversion is when someone subscribes to your email list, that is the first conversion.
Then the second conversion is when someone buys a product that you recommend.
Once you have those two things working, only then should you worry about scaling up a little bit by creating more content, thinking about SEO, and reaching out to influencers.
How to Avoid Overwhelm
You have to learn how to walk before you can run, because if you go all in with a complicated plan that you think is going to sustain your business for months to come, there’s a high chance it’s just going to become overwhelming.
Of course there are the exceptions to the rule but overwhelm is why so many newbies quit; they’ve got too much going and it’s too difficult and it becomes too complicated.
I know because I’ve been there too.
Break things down into small manageable steps and take it one thing at a time.
Get one part working before moving onto the next.
A Simple Affiliate Marketing Formula
Making a page that captures email addresses isn’t complicated, right? It’s 100% copy and paste.
Finding a product that people want to buy, again that’s not complicated, all the data you need to determine the profitability is provided for you.
Connect the two together.
Then create a lead magnet – some kind of ethical bribe that entices people to subscribe to your email list.
And that’s all you need before you start sending traffic.
For that, try Facebook ads or use media buys and test the water.
Spend $5 or $10 testing things, find out how well the offer converts and fine tune it.
Test & Tweak
The analogy that I keep using is true; its like trying to tune in a radio, finding the right signal and once you have it, fine tune it until it becomes really clear and you get the results you deserve.
So, how do you start affiliate marketing? With a 1 page website.
Go make that page now, get it set up and then in 45 minutes or an hour you’ll have taken your first step towards improving your own life, and the lives of the people around you.
It’s not complicated.
You know the problem with intelligent people?
They overthink things, don’t over complicate it and don’t worry about what comes later down the road.
Just take small steps on a consistent basis, and improve what you’ve already got.