Is It OK To Profit From Rejected Affiliate Leads?
Here’s an interesting issue.
James is an affiliate who sends a company leads to a page where the prospect shall complete a form requesting for – something free. Once the prospect does that and is considered a ‘good’ lead, James gets paid his commission. This is a pretty classic cost-per-action campaign or pay-per-lead affiliate program. Nothing wrong with it right? But what if…
The lead is ‘rejected’ by the company. Maybe because the form wasn’t complete or the prospect did not complete all the required steps because they changed their minds. The prospect doesn’t receive his freebie and James doesn’t get paid for that lead. However, unknown to the prospect and James, the prospect’s contact information is not discarded but actually saved into a ‘rejected leads’ database or mailing list.
Soon, the company begins to send the ‘rejected’ prospects some other offers and related emails. The links in the emails do not carry Jame’s affiliate IDs and cookies only last 30 or 45 days. Eventually, James is totally out of the picture. Yet, the company has gained a lead that James sent for free.
We’ve been cavalierly told, this is standard practice everywhere, giving names of large Internet stores as an example. Well, that may be true but does ’standard practice’ make it OK though?
How do you handle it?
Why is it OK?
Why is it not OK?
We’d really love to hear your thoughts on this.
Photo by Ali FaridPractical Guide to Creating an Information Product
Please Welcome Angela Wills as a New Contributing Author to Small Business Branding!
Too many people slow themselves down in business by making projects larger than they need to be. Creating an information product is a prime example.
How long have you wanted to create an info product? Have you been waiting for the ‘right time’? Have you been putting off writing it until you have more experience? Do you feel it won’t be good enough unless it’s 100 pages or a huge package?
Well if you said yes to any of the above, you’re putting up barriers to your own success!
The bottom line is you have experience that people are willing to pay for.
Now let’s go over a practical guide to creating your first information product, step by step:
Step 1 – Define Your Target Market
This is an important step. Know exactly who you’re talking to and what their needs are. This will require market research if you’re not already fully immersed in the market. It may be that you are already working in a specific market and they’ve clearly expressed a need to you – that works too. Many people ARE their target market. Being part of your target market gives you an even better understanding of the needs and issues faced by that market, giving you a competitive edge when creating your products.
Step 2 – Create Your Product
Don’t get stuck in the perpetual mode of creating perfection. Nothing is perfect. Get your product created and move with it. You can always tweak after you release it and improve based on customer feedback.
Step 3 – Create Your Salespage
You’ll need to tell people about your product and why they should buy it. This can be an intimidating step for many people as they feel they are not good at writing to sell. The thing to remember here is your target market. Convince them that your product will help by providing clear descriptions along with examples and customer feedback where appropriate. A salespage doesn’t have to be a huge piece of writing, it only needs to be as long as it takes to give your potential customers all the information they need to make a buying decision.
Step 4 – Set up Payment & Delivery
You need to get people’s money for your product. Setting up payment is another challenge for some. Start off simple with Paypal or a simple shopping cart system. It’s a learn as you go process. Again, don’t expect to get it perfect the first time and just get something set up. Take payments, watch the process, tweak and make it better.
Step 5 – Promoting Your Product
Now you’ve got everything set up and you’re ready for tons of sales. Don’t forget about the promotions! Here are some of the most popular ways to get information product sales:
- Partnerships with your niche influencers.
- Pay per click marketing.
- Email marketing.
- Blogging.
- Social Media.
Now you might be thinking you don’t know how to set up paypal, or a shopping cart, or make a pdf. I’m going to tell you something here you don’t often hear from people teaching you stuff –> Google it.
If there’s something you don’t know how to do I promise you that you CAN figure it out. I learned about 90% of what I know about online marketing through trial and error because it’s just the easiest way to learn. Don’t let the excuse “I don’t know how to do it.” stop you – ok?
Many of the marketing methods require that you already have a following. Without a market to bring your message to you shouldn’t expect your product to be an overnight success.
No matter where you’re starting from creating your information product is a real step towards creating passive income. Before you know it you’ll be getting emails saying ‘you’ve made a sale!’
It’s Not the Idea – It’s What You Do with It
Many people struggle with finding just the right business idea to pursue. The idea IS important, particularly for businesses requiring large investment, but I’d say that it’s what you do with the idea that matters most.
- Just because you want to open an Italian restaurant and some Italian restaurants can do very well, doesn’t mean your Italian restaurant will be hit.
- You may want to sell ebooks to homeschoolers because you see other people selling them, but demand doesn’t necessarily equal success.
- A lot of people use a personal trainer, but deciding to offer your services as one, may not translate into more clients than you can handle.
Not to put a damper on your business plans, of course. The point is, it doesn’t matter what your business does as long as you stand out from the crowd and connect with a healthy supply of target customers.
If you’re looking for business ideas, go here.
But if you’re looking to attract the right kind of people to your offers, differentiate and brand your business.
Now this may start to sound like a basic Business 101 lesson, but you’d be amazed at how many people don’t do this or don’t go far enough with it.
Target Market: It all begins with a deep (really deep) analysis of your target market. Who are they (age, sex, income, career, family status, etc.), but more importantly, what are their beliefs, fears, needs. What makes them tick?
Unique Selling Position (USP): Here’s where people really struggle. They come up with ideas on what makes their business appealing, but not necessarily what makes it unique. In other words: What makes your target market want to come to you, instead of your competitor?
What you discover in those 2 exercises should be a part of every aspect of your business from your products and service to your sales copy and communications.
After all, we can all set up dog-walking businesses, but those who differentiate will get the fiercely loyal clients. A dog walker who also trains pets, can reach a clientele of extremely busy people who might be struggling with a naughty pet. Or perhaps, a dog walker who offers grooming services to posh pets will reach another clientele. If you can successfully reach a specific area of your target market that readily spend money and your competitors ignore, you’ve got it made.
5 Often Overlooked Web Spaces For Presenting Marketing Messages
On any given web site (which includes all the processes that goes on behind the scenes), there are always pages that could be monetized or get a marketing message across. Very often, these are what I call utility pages. Stuff that aren’t part of your regular content like blog posts or product description pages, but they exist because you need to confirm an action that the customer or visitor has taken, like the thank you page after subscribing to your newsletter. Many marketers are already aware of the value of this page and have taken steps to insert a message there. But there are other pages that are also overlooked.
After login screen
If you have a membership site, blog or forum where you require people to log in to participate, the page they land on is really important. I believe in guiding people and making things as clearly laid out as possible, like presenting a ‘dashboard’ page with quick links to all the key areas of your site. Beyond that, this page should also always have a space where news and offers are prominently displayed. Once they wander into the deeper regions, it would be difficult to get their attention.
After logging out
On 99% of the sites I’ve seen, once people log out, there’s a page that tells them they’ve logged out and probably branded with the logo. That’s it? While logging out does indicate someone is ‘done’ with your site for that session, it doesn’t mean you can’t lead them into something else that might interest them. How about adding an affiliate offer or a free download associated with an affiliate product.
Email confirmation page
Depending on your email newsletter service, some allow you to customize or direct people to your own page after someone confirms their subscription to your mailing list. Many of chosen to shift the freebie download to this page instead of getting people to check their emails once again. If you don’t deliver anything right away – maybe an RSS by email subscription. Add a promotional message there.
Recurring subscription email
This will depend a lot on the shopping cart/subscription system you use. On some systems, you can set it to send out an email every month notifying people of an upcoming payment or upon successful re-bill. Take the opportunity to cement your relationship. Edit that message to thank them and update the email every month to include a link to a small gift just for staying a subscribed member. Your free gift should include links or further recommendations that lead customers deeper into the other products and services you offer.
Mailing list unsubscribe page
If your email list service allows you to edit the unsubscribe page, why not enter a little message there? You could say you’re sorry to see them leave, to part on a good note, you’d like them to have a (insert freebie). Once again, the freebie can and should lead people to other areas or offers you may have. If you don’t have this option, you can do it in an unsubscribe confirmation email. Some providers do that. I find this a little annoying though because once someone unsubscribes, they’ll not want to get another email from you confirmation or not so this email will likely not get opened. It could be worth testing.
Hope this short list gets you thinking. There is a reason why these spaces are overlooked because they aren’t in front of you all the time, like your home page or blog may be. So don’t feel bad if you missed them but how do you find other spaces you may have missed? One of the best ways, is to step through the subscription, order process or registration process as a visitor/customer. Better yet, grab a friend and get them to record themselves as they go through the motions. You’ll often see right away where each screen could be improved to make the process clearer, smoother and where is a perfect spot to add a marketing message.
Online Marketing: It All Comes Back to the Written Word
No matter how you communicate with your online business, to potential and existing customers, words are always the cornerstone and more to the point, the written word.
Today’s online business owners are moving into other forms of media like video and audio to market to their prospects. But, in this arena, it is the words that you pen which will have the greatest impact.
When speaking of the written word, did you know:
- Your headlines (composed of written words) are what catch the reader’s attention. Multi-media tools use headlines to catch and grab the attention of the audience so they will “tune in.”
- Written content is just about universal. A large majority of the public can access a piece of written content, even when they can’t audio or video. Think about your mobile users and those in rural areas with slower connections. Words are easily accessible.
- The written word is the most effective form of communication to keep your customers satisfied. If you provide online customer service (as opposed to telephone support), you’re going to be relying on the written word to decipher your customer’s issue and to resolve them.
- You can’t send an email without words. No subject line or no explanation means no response. You use words to get your subscribers to open your emails AND to click to view a video, listen to your audio, etc.
- Social networking needs written words Everyone seems to be connected through some social network. Think of the ever popular Twitter which is a system of short texts. MySpace and Facebook rely on words to communicate information, even with other forms of multi-media tools at their disposal.
- People surf the Web for information. Giving them an article or review they can read or a step-by-step how-to that they can follow requires you to use words – everywhere.
The truth of the matter is that words will always be big part of marketing your business online – and it’s worth learning how to do it well. The Internet runs on words. Even though some envision a television-type experience sometime in the distant future (personally, I don‘t buy it – we don‘t need another TV…we want the Internet!), words will still play a big role. The Internet is a user-controlled experience and through words, people can easily find what they need and utilize it.
Listen To Your Target Market And Reap the Rewards
Do you pump out plenty of content, but sometimes feel unappreciated? Many content site owners and blog owners for that matter, tell me they don’t understand why their content is not appealing to their readers. No matter how hard they try, there seems to be a break in the connection.
It could be that your connection problem is simply traffic. Implementing new strategies like link building and more targeted marketing would be the answer here. When nothing changes after that the problem might just be a disconnect between you and the market. To cure that, simply try LISTENING.
It really seems like listening is a lost art these days. When we listen, we find out what we didn’t know before and that could be the difference between success and failure. To know what your target market wants, listen to what they have to say first and then provide the content that they seek. You’ll develop a deeper understanding of your audience.
Need to learn how to listen just a little better? Here are 8 tips to help you do just that:
1. Keyword Research: Before beginning any new project, it is important to know what words people are using to search for a particular product or service. But, this is only the tip of the target market iceberg. You still need to know WHO is searching for the information. Keywords can only get you so far. To build the all-important relationship with your blog readers you will have to pull a few more tricks out of your hat.
2. Commenting: When your readers leave comments on your posts, read them. Drink in what they are telling you. Use that information to meet their needs.
3. Track your Links: Keep an eye on the links on your website. Who uses them? Track the offers and emails that people are acting on. It could be that what people are saying and what they eventually do are not the same.
4. Submit Questions: This is for your readers and not you. Ask them to offer their suggestions for better, more insightful content on your part. To make it easier, create a form that is easy to use and convenient. What are the most popular requests?
5. Message Boards: Peruse some of the more popular message boards pertaining to your target market. Here you will find out what everyone is talking about. Take the time, but don‘t get so engrossed you forget your purpoase.
6. Facebook and Twitter: These are addictive and easy to get lost in for hours – so use your time strategically. Stick with groups on these social networking sites that represent the target market you are trying to reach. Check in from time to time and you will certainly find the information that you need.
7. Blogs: You are not the only one with a blog – just about EVERYONE has one these days. Check out the blogs that your readers and other target market members own. Configure your blog reader so that you can scan the headlines of these blogs to gain insight into the target market.
8. Competition: Keeping an eye on your competitors is wise. Look at the type of content they post and the feedback they receive from readers. Again, you can create a spot in your RSS reader to scan the headlines on the competitor’s blogs.
Listening is important, but don’t be concerned about the time it takes. Once you have listening skills, It can happen as a natural occurrence throughout the day. And the value it brings back to your business is priceless.
Content & Copy: Bring Those Goals Together for Better Results
Those who believe that content and copy (i.e. “copywriting”, using words to sell) are two separate entities have this to say:
“Providing content on your website is for the purpose of information and not necessarily to sell a product.”
“On the other hand, writing copy is definitely to sell products to potential customers.”
If you think this way, then consider the following points:
When potential customers come to your website, you don’t just want them to look; you want them to do something. Your content is versatile in that it can build a relationship with the prospect and, at the same time, it can call them TO DO something.
If your copy is good, it will not only convince customers to buy but will build a solid relationship as it informs them of what you have to offer and why it is better.
Both copy and content have similar goals. You can use both to inform and to call your customers and potential customers to action. No, it doesn’t mean that you have to turn your content into a sales letter, but you can tweak it a bit so that customers are inspired to buy.
Here Are Some Tips to Bring More Copy (Results) to Your Content:
Don’t neglect your headlines. Here is where you will be grabbing your reader’s attention. You want them to have a hard, almost impossible time looking away.
Know what you want to accomplish with your content and then call the customer to action. What is it you want your words to do? If you want them to sign up for a mailing list for a free product or newsletter, then say that in your article. This is no time for subliminal messages. Including keywords that link to other pages on your site is not good enough to direct them. Use the keywords by all means, but also be specific with your words.
Show your confidence through your writing. When you waver on a point in your article, customers may lose faith. Know what you are talking about and pass your confidence on to the prospect.
Connect with your audience. Let them know that you are speaking directly to each of them with words like “you” and “your.” To many group pronouns like “we” and “they” may lead them to think that they don’t need your product and you are not talking to them. Say something like: “You are probably one of those moms who are too tired in the evening to always cook dinner;” instead of “Many mothers don’t have the energy to cook for their families.” Don’t miss the opportunity to be direct with the audience.
For the best results you can get, craft your content with an end goal in mind. Engage the reader with headlines that hook and invite them to read more. Be confident and direct, telling the audience what action they are to perform after reading your piece. If you don’t, no one will necessarily buy your products even if they are the best in the world.
