The ClickBank affiliate program homepage provides a quick 5 step description of how to make money working online.  While some of these steps need quite a bit of elaboration, they still provide a useful plan for getting started.

Step 1 – Signing up for ClickBank Affiliate Program

Unsurprisingly the first step to earn money with ClickBank, is to sign up with ClickBank.  This just involves filling out a form.  In this step we also get to meet a handsome looking fellow by the name of Alan who is looking to make money working online.

Step 2 – Finding Products to Promote

The description given for this step is twofold:

1. find a product to promote; and
2. create a ClickBank affiliate link.

Now the affiliate link is something that ClickBank largely takes care of itself, so is not something that we really need to be worried about.

However, there are many different things to consider when choosing a product to promote from the ClickBank affiliate program.  Firstly, it is important to do some research to be able to identify and target a hungry crowd.  This is a very big topic in its own right.  Then, after identifying our target audience, it is necessary to start looking at what products that hungry crowd might be after.  This will involve considering the various products which ClickBank has to offer and coming to grips with the different types of information available about ClickBank products.

Step 3 – Promoting ClickBank Affiliate Links

The next step is to promote the ClickBank affiliate program link.  ClickBank suggests that this can be done using search engine ads, blogs, and posting reviews in forums.  But there are plenty of other ways that immediately spring to mind (and no doubt many other methods out there as well):

• using classified ad sites
• article marketing
• Squidoo lenses
• email lists
• twitter
• Facebook ads

Each of these requires different specialised knowledge in order to both get started and use effectively.  This can complicate things somewhat, but ultimately the aim is to get targeted traffic to click the ClickBank affiliate link.

Step 4 – ClickBank Tracks Each Sale

This step is fairly self explanatory – ClickBank tracks things and affiliates such as Alan get paid a commission.  Alan has started to make money working online and likes this so much he gives this the big thumbs up.

However, this is subject to any ClickBank refunds that get issued. In the event that the particular sale gets refunded, Alan will lose his commission.  Expect a big thumbs down from Alan if that happens.

Step 5 – Find and Promote More Products

The final step described for Alan is to rinse and repeat – find and promote more products on the ClickBank affiliate program.  Here we see Alan taking a bit of a nap.

Still, to the extent that this plan works, why wouldn’t he feel “in control of his future and as he gets better at promoting products he sees his earnings grow.”  Good for Alan.

Way Forward

So what can we take from ClickBank’s 5 step plan to make money working online?  Well, it is simple in theory, and there are some steps which are quite easy, but there are a number of areas which require a decent amount of knowledge to either get started or to use effectively.

In my next post I’ll be looking at the product that got me started on my affiliate marketing journey.

© Tom McEwin
AffiliatePlayground.net

In my last post I covered why I want to make money working online. In this post I’ll be looking at how I plan to do this using affiliate marketing and where I got the information to start out.

Click here to view the embedded video.

What is Affiliate Marketing?

In a nutshell, affiliate marketing involves promoting other people’s products online and getting paid commission for doing so.  It typically involves the visitor clicking on a link provided by the affiliate, which sends the visitor to a merchant’s website.  Wikipedia has a more expansive definition, but this is the guts of it.

So why is this the way I want to earn money online?  Well, there are a lot of great things about the concept of affiliate marketing, such as:

• ease of start up: an affiliate marketing business can be started with no capital outlay, no product, and no website;
• variety: there are tons of products available for budding affiliate marketers to choose from, so there is likely to be something to suit every interest, and plenty of scope for creativity in promoting products; and
• portability: it can be done from anywhere around the globe so long as there is an available internet connection.

Taking My First Steps to Make Money Working Online

The first major step that I took to learn how to build an online income was by getting a copy of an ebook called Year of the Affiliate by a guy named Sean Rasmussen. This ebook covers the ins and outs of affiliate marketing and various strategies which can be employed.  It is targeted at beginners, but I expect that even those with a bit of experience with affiliate marketing can learn a thing or two from Sean. I highly recommend it and I expect I’ll post a more detailed review of it on this blog at some stage.

One of the things I really appreciated about Year of the Affiliate is that Sean has made the first half available as a free download. The free version introduces all the important ingredients to get started without a website, including where to find affiliate products and how classified ad sites and article marketing can be used to start making affiliate sales.  This is definitely something worthwhile checking out for anyone who might be even the slightest bit curious.

Where to from Here?

The benefits of classified advertising and article marketing go beyond just making initial affiliate sales.  These methods also provide an excellent opportunity to develop one’s ability to write convincing advertising copy and become familiar with affiliate programs generally, before moving on to more advanced techniques.

Given this is the case, I’ve decided to start using classified ad sites and article directories to make my first sales and to show that it is possible to make money working online using the free methods suggested in the public version of the Year of the Affiliate.

In my next few posts, I will be covering off a couple of additional introductory concepts, before following my exploits with classified ad sites and article directories.  This will involve me looking at:

• the steps necessary to start posting on these sites;
• my interpretation of the dreaded terms of use (to make sure I read and understand them); and
• my research regarding writing ad copy and articles.

I look forward to sharing this with you.

© Tom McEwin
AffiliatePlayground.net

Having money is generally a pretty good thing given it is an essential part of modern day life.

It really goes without saying that how much money a person has affects their lifestyle and the opportunities available to them. Those with little cash can experience incredible hardship.  But the desire for wealth goes beyond just avoiding poverty – to wanting to take advantage of the amazing opportunities that modern society has to offer.

More than Just Paying the Bills

Click here to view the embedded video.

I’ve never been one to settle for just paying the bills – I’d much rather:

• work towards owning my own home;
• be financially free; and
• travel the globe with my lovely wife.

Eventually I’ll even replace the 1991 Toyota Corolla that I have been driving since I was at university.  Developing an ability to make money working online is a means to help me achieve this.

I don’t think that money alone can buy happiness, because even with money people can still get the Blues.  But it sure helps.

Having lots of money has been blamed for causing a whole lot of trouble for some people, including rich celebrities, lottery winners, and the odd professional sports star.  However, I’d put this down more to poor use of money, and poor life choices, rather than anything inherently wrong with money itself.

In my mind, money is just a medium of exchange, so the real issue is how it gets treated and what people do with it.  Not only can it be used to pay the bills, but it also opens up great opportunities and lifestyle, depending on long and hard a person has to work to earn money.

Why Make Money Working Online Rather than Elsewhere?

There are plenty of ways to trade time for an income, so why make money working online?

I only have so much time and various other commitments, including a full time job. Therefore I need to ensure that I treat my time as a finite resource and use it as efficiently as possible.

One of the great things that the internet offers is leverage. Instead of exchanging a set amount of time for a set amount of cash, which is the standard deal an employee gets, the financial rewards from an internet business are limited not so much by the amount of time invested, but rather by how effective the methods are.

The other really cool thing about the internet is that recently some incredible opportunities have opened up courtesy of various social media websites, and the rise of Web 2.0.  The internet is also at the forefront of how technology affects daily life, so it is a pretty exciting thing to learn about.  Plus discovering how to make money working online seems like a great hobby.

© Tom McEwin
AffiliatePlayground.net