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Greetings,

As I sat down to write this newsletter, the postie arrived ... being a natural-born procrastinator from way back, I had to go out and check the mail before I started work. What a pleasure it was to see a US postmark on an envelope, because I know that this means another cheque for my efforts in selling products for my affiliate program.

For those of us who earn our keep from the Internet, it pays to have a few "irons in the fire" as my grandma used to say. As we all do, I've been tempted by the prospect of earning squillions and doing nothing - but I usually do a quick Reality Check and realise that Life just doesn't work that way. 

So, it's back to my sensible affiliate programs that have their feet firmly planted on the ground and back to the desk and some real work - writing copy for websites, editing articles and books, proof-reading and doing what I call my Webits - full website edits. We're moving into the busy time of year - the Silly Season - that time when buyers are itching to spend their money. Now is the time to check that your business site is in tip-top condition. You don't want to risk losing any potential buyers - because once they leave, they usually don't return.

If you haven't had time to give your site a thorough examination - for spelling, punctuation, grammar, sentence structure, clarity ... and all those little things that can make visitors reach for the back button, now is the time to do it. Email me for a free quote and I'll give you a 10% discount for any work I do for you ... I know, I know ... generous to a fault, that's me. This is just to thank you for being a loyal member of this Merry Little Band of business people :) Just let me know you're a member and that you saw the discount offered in this week's newsletter.

Enter the contest to win a six-part writing course. There's one drawn on the first Monday of every month. Just click to enter: mailto:wsale@SmartBotPRO.NET?subject=REF003

Regards,

Jennifer

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Are you tired of the Rat Race? Join those of us who work from home - it's easier than you may think to regain control of your life. Click here for details: mailto:sky101@GetResponse.com?subject=Escape!

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Small Business Owner Launches Affiliate Program That Results In More Than A 1900% Return On Investment (ROI)


A Case Study by Matt Hockin
mailto:matthockin@home.com

As a publicity practitioner and consultant I am always searching
for most effective ways to "get the word out."  In the past this
meant getting articles and news published in the media such as
newspapers, magazines and electronic media (radio/TV).  Now, we
have the Internet, which has changed everything for the better!
The Internet allows ANYONE to communicate their message DIRECTLY
to their potential customers WITHOUT having to use the media. 

The most powerful way to use Internet publicity to "get the word
out" and sell your products is with an affiliate program.  An
affiliate program allows you to recruit others to endorse and
sell your product for a portion of the profits.  For example,
an online merchant named Yanik Silver was able to launch a
tremendously successful affiliate program in just a month's
time.  After spending only $650 dollars on affiliate program
software and auxiliary materials, Yanik had recruited over 700
affiliates, achieved a return on investment (ROI) of 1900% and
made impressive profits just 6 months after launching his
affiliate program.

Yanik owns InstantSalesLetters.com, a website where practically
any business owner can dramatically increase sales by creating
compelling and effective sales letters using easy, fill-in-the-
blank templates - right from their computers.

After announcing his new product to his database of customers,
Yanik wanted to bring it to the market and increase his sales.
He decided that an affiliate program would be the most efficient
way to sell his product. "Affiliate programs are powerful since
they allow an online merchant like me to pay only for results...
actual sales.  People are commissioned to endorse and sell my
products.  In return they receive a percentage of the profits
for each sale they bring me.  I only pay for sales with this
powerful marketing tool," said Yanik.

SET-UP:

Yanik set-up his affiliate program inexpensively and quickly by
purchasing AffiliateZone.com's "Affiliate Link" software.  This
software allows merchants to start their own affiliate programs
with real-time commission reporting for their affiliates at an
affordable price of only $450.

"AffiliateZone.com's Affiliate Link was easy, you don't have to
be a programmer because they did most the work for me.  They
installed the software on my server and then gave me simple
instructions on how to use Affiliate Link.  That's it!  It cost
me just $450 plus I added about $200 for tools that my affiliates
use to increase their sales," said Yanik.

RESULTS:

Yanik's affiliate program has been tremendously successful.  In
the first month after launching, Yanik's affiliates produced
approximately $2900 in sales.  Yanik payed out $1400 or
approximately 48% commission for each sale his affiliates
produced.  He also made a nice profit on his $650 investment
with a $900 profit, which calculates to a 138% return on his
investment (ROI) in the first month.  6 months later, Yanik's
affiliate program has provided a 1900% ROI, supplies 40% of his
website's traffic, 50% of sales, and will continue to pay off
for many years to come.

LAUNCH CAMPAIGN:

I asked Yanik to share the elements that made his affiliate
program so successful.  Yanik replied, "InstantSalesLetters.com
is a unique product - it's more of a tool and has a high pay out
in commissions for affiliates who sell it.  I pay 45% for the
first tier affiliates, and 5% to the second tier.

I announced it to about 20-30 affiliate program directories such
as Allan Gardyne's AssociatePrograms.com and Refer-It.com.  I
also announced it to my valued customers and received 56 new
affiliates within a week. 

Another critical element is that my website sells.  To have a
successful affiliate program, your website MUST sell, or you will
not convert the traffic that the affiliates send you into sales.
This will discourage your affiliates from sending you anymore
traffic.  My conversion rate is 3-4 percent, which is very good!

3-4% of my affiliates came from referrals from influential people
or "heavy hitters" who announced it in their e-mail newsletters
(e-zines).  I talked to Allan Gardyne and impressed him with my
3-4% conversion rate.   Allan then announced it in his
AssociatePrograms.com e-zine which resulted in many new
affiliates.  Others like Kim Skinner, and Marty Foley announced
my affiliate program to their e-zine subscribers as well.

TIPS:

I asked Yanik if he had any tips on how to get an affiliate
program to sell more products.  Here are his tips...

1) Educate your affiliates and build relationships

2) Think like your affiliates

3) Most people are lazy - give them the tools they need

4) You need a site that sells - good conversion rate is a MUST

5) Test your website's conversation rate with your own traffic
   to make sure your site sells or you will BOMB with your
   affiliates - they'll be mad.

6) Offer a newsletter for your affiliates with tips on selling

7) Give them "cookies" for 2-years (not the kind you eat!)

8) Many affiliate URL's are too long to fit in an e-zine, so I
   show people how to do a "URL re-direct" in my affiliate toolbox

COMMENTS:

Yanik also noted, "Affiliate programs are also an excellent tool
for tracking advertisements anywhere - e-zines, banners, website
links, etc.  Simply make an affiliate link for each ad, and you
can track the effectiveness.  They're great for joint ventures
as well."

Affiliate Link is a good program that is inexpensive and easy to
set-up, but it is missing some things that the more expensive
programs offer:

1) No confirmation e-mail to an affiliate when they make a sale.

2) No export capabilities - doesn't export into QuickBooks

The good news is that AffiliateZone.com will announce an upgrade
soon that should perform these duties.

LINKS:

Instant Sales Letters http://www.instantsalesletters.com/al/affiliates.cgi?159
AffiliateZone.com     http://www.affiliatezone.com/

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Article by Matt Hockin.  For helpful marketing and publicity
tips, subscribe to my WebSitesThatSell.com E-Zine by sending
a blank message to: mailto:websitesthatsell-subscribe@topica.com

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If you're looking for some tips to help you with your writing, subscribe to my free, weekly writing tips newsletter, The Write Way. Every week you'll find tips on how to write well, a short quiz, a humorous look at some aspect of writing and more. Click to subscribe: mailto:WritingTips-subscribe@onelist.com?subject=SubscribeWW

Quick Tip

Make sure you can sleep at night!

How many emails have you received this week that promised you $5,000 every week for 1 - 2hours work?

If you're like me, too many.

We all know that there "ain't no free lunch!" Why do such a lot of people continue to delude themselves with these shonky offers?

You CAN make money on the Internet IF you choose legitimate programs and put in some effort yourself. There are some excellent products that market through affiliate systems - they enlist people like you and me to sell their products for them - we get paid when we sell the product - but if we don't sell, it doesn't cost the marketer anything. It's the ideal arrangement when you think of it, isn't it?

If you haven't been able to find anything suitable, but like the idea of joining an affiliate program, here are some I have been associated with for some time now and have found to live up to their promises: http://www.write101.com/affprogs.htm  Please let me know if you've had similar positive experiences with other programs, we tend to dwell on the negative so often.

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