Wednesday, 23 May 2012

Pinterest

Pinterest is a social networking site that is used by Pinners (users) to share their interests by pinning images, videos and links to their or other user's pinboards.  The pinboards each have a title and they accept multiple images.  It is all the rave at present because it is a unique concept and user's are able to share this image content and build their own interesting boards.  You can take the opportunity to promote your brand, products, goods and information and you can make money through promoting your affiliate links.  You can upload images from your the web using a Pinterest bookmarklet, a PinIt Button or from any URL.

In order to have a Pinterest account, you need to be invited to join, but once the invitation is issued it is pretty simple to get started.  You will receive an email and will need to choose at least one interest.  The system will then follow people that it thinks you might be interested in but it is possible to unfollow if you wish.  It will also choose boards that you may be interested in but it is easy to delete these if you wish.  You can then go in and complete the information for your profile. You can choose a personal or company profile from here.  But, before you start using Pinterest, it's a good idea if you understand some of the terminology and be aware that you can download the PinIt Button from Pinterest or a Wordpress plugin.  Then you can choose what you wish to Pin, within reason, providing you stick to the terms and conditions as determined by Pinterest.  There are many categories including education, science, history, outdoors and photography.  You can use your own images to promote your products or services and this is what makes Pinterest so unique because, while your images have to conform to Pinterest standards, there is no limit to the type of image you can include.

Booklists are popular and you can suggest books to read and link them to your affiliate links at Amazon although you need to be aware that there has been talk that Pinterest is changing people's affiliate links.  Quotes are also very popular and you can promote your business and brand using quotes.  Videos are also very popular and are a great way to promote your brand.

There are different ways that you are able to pin your boards such as pinning direct from a PinIt Button on your website or uploading an image from your computer and you can even upload from your mobile phone.  You will then choose which board to add your image to and this may be one that is already created or a brand new board as determined by you.

It is worth doing some research to see what interests other Pinners and that way you can target your audience.  You can then build your following and you can choose to follow either users or boards and you will be informed when a Pinner pins new content to the boards you are following.

But why would you want to use Pinterest as a marketing tool?  Well, think about it.  You can promote your brand, products and services using this new social networking medium.  You can use Pinterest simply to build and market your brand and you can research to see what your competitors are doing.  What are they promoting and who are they promoting to?  How do they showcase their products and why are their products unique and engaging.  You can promote a board showing your company history and company profile or you can give customers ideas on how to use your products.  Create a board showing customer testimonials or promote a competition or contest.

You can stand out as a sector expert but you have make sure that you engage with your customers and use Pinterest to its fullest extent.  There are so many marketing opportunities available to you as an affiliate marketer but make sure that you update your boards regularly and don't just leave them blank.  Happy Pinning!

Saturday, 17 March 2012

Jaaxy, The Best Keyword Tool Online

Jaaxy is the latest keyword tool to be released and it is a research tool to contend with.  If you are an internet marketer, you are going to want Jaaxy to dig down to find for you the best niches out there.  No longer will you have to guess what people are looking for online because Jaaxy analyses the most reliable search engine data and delivers on its promises to provide you with all the best keywords.

Now you can optimize your content and let Jaaxy use Google's API to bring you the most searched for keywords. So how does Jaaxy work and why is it the best keyword tool?.  Well, Jaaxy, the best keyword tool, will give you the results of websites listed for any given keyword.  This is then the competition, and from this Jaaxy uses an 'SEO Score', which tells you whether you can get that first page listing in Google, Bing, Yahoo and the other major search engines.  You will get the high traffic, low competition keywords on which to base your content.

You have the luxury of being able to create list upon list of the most valuable keywords so that you achieve the highest rank in the search engines.  And it only takes a miniscule 7 seconds per search anywhere in the world.

Of course, there are other keyword research tools, but they often provide skewed results and data that has no relevance to your campaigns.  Find the keywords with the lowest competition and use 'Get QSR' to discover your competition in Google.  If the QSR is below 100 you will get that sought after first page rank with Google. That is what makes Jaaxy the best keyword tool online.

Jaaxy's own algorithm uncovers exact competition, estimated traffic and associated monthly searches and you can find the relevant domain names instantly from the search option.  Jaaxy is the best keyword tool online because it will help you to uncover the profitable keywords and domains; you may want to go down the route of selling domain names to earn money.

There are additional features too, such as searching the article directories or video sites so that if your keyword is already ranked in one article directory, you can submit it to another.  Jaaxy also has a website SERPS feature that analyses the top ranking sites.

The Website SERPS tab will allow you to find the top ranking sites so that you can see why they are highly ranked and the affiliate program feature enables you to find programs relevant to your search.  Jaaxy is the best keyword tool out there, because it combines all of these features to provide you with the keywords you need.

Don't lose track of your keywords.  Jaaxy will build your keyword lists so that you can manage and modify them whilst they are analyzed and forecasted for traffic.  Access your keywords in CSV or TXT format and manage your keyword lists globally.  The Search History feature enables you to access past searches and keeps this data safe should you need to use it again.

Jaaxy is the best keyword tool online and you can earn from the affiliate program.  You will be paid generous commissions for new referrals to Jaaxy, promoting it as the best keyword tool online.  It is also the most cost-effective option when it comes to researching keyword.  You can join as a member and pay for your membership by making use of the affiliate program.

Friday, 30 September 2011

The Pareto Principle

The Pareto Principle is otherwise known as the 80/20 Rule.  It is also described as the law of the vital few and it states that, in many instances, 80% of the consequences come from only 20% of the causes.  Vilfredo Pareto, an Italian Economist observed that 80% of the land in England, and every country that he subsequently studied, was owned by only 20% of the population.  

This rule was later applied to other concepts.  It was then determined that in business, 20% of customers account for 80% of the business's profit; in productivity 20% of activities account for 80% of successes.  This principle has also been applied to relationships and to just about everything in life, and it is calculated that 20% of the people you know provide you with 80% of effective support and satisfaction.
This rule can be used to ensure that you are concentrating on the most productive (profit) aspects of affiliate marketing.  Consider then that 20% of what you promote will earn 80% of your profit.  Also, that 20% of your negative behaviour and thoughts will contribute to 80% of your hardship and failure.  So, by focusing on this 20%, you will reduce the amount of negative output and you will greatly increase your potential for growth.  

This concept can also be used to effectively manage your time.  If you have much work to do, break it down.  What 20% of your tasks will contribute to 80% of the positive results you would like to see.  Just ensure that you concentrate your efforts on this 20% and spend less time focussing your efforts on the 80% of efforts that produce only 20% of success.  

It's not easy to do, but when you actually start to draw up a plan and split your 80% and 20% respectively, then you are able to concentrate and focus on the most productive quota and this can be used when you start to test and track the success of your marketing campaigns because it is said that only 20% of your keywords will lead to increased click-through rates and therefore increased sales, so if you concentrate on this quota then you will be maximising your potential to succeed.  Give it a try; start identifying the campaigns that are working and those that are not.  You can learn more about how to test and track your campaigns here.

Untapped Affiliate Opportunities


Affiliate marketing is now changing the landscape of industry. As markets expand and diversify, there is always an equal and opposite effect and this is particularly apparent where electronic products are replacing tangible goods. Consumers are choosing to accept their products in different formats, such as electronic, digital products.  Internet downloads, whether legal or illegal, have had a detrimental effect on certain industries, and has led to the downfall of many companies in the last ten years.  The way we choose to purchase and consume products is changing, our lifestyles encourage us to demand more efficient ways of satisfying our requirements.  We want our products quicker, easier, cheaper, immediately.  There is a need for companies to keep abreast of changing trends, and company websites are essential in order that customers are provided with as much choice to satisfy their purchasing habits.  Not having a company website means that the company is unable to tap into every available opportunity to sell their products.  It is estimated that the internet is growing by a million pages a day; this means that consumers are hungry for information, particularly information delivered digitally.  Companies cannot expect to survive if they are unable to provide information on their offer in this format.  Some industries that have been adversely affected by the growth of the internet are;
  • The book industry. There is a definite decline in tangible book sales and book shops are being made redundant as customers utilize 'cutting edge' technologies to access products of their choice. I was employed by a major book distributor in my local area six years ago.  This book wholesaler specializes in printed copy and boasts the ability to supply any book printed.  During my time with this company, tangible book sales were on the increase and human resources were unable to keep up with the consistent need to employ more staff.  Six years down the road, this book distributor has cut its workforce by almost a third, and driving past the warehouse, staff are seen milling around outside the large industrial warehouse, smoking, chatting and looking bored.  This was unseen five years ago, at all employees were stretched to keep up with workloads.
  • The music industry.  The internet is the medium providing sources of illegal downloads, file-sharing, piracy and free subscription sites streaming music, such as Spotify, available free through subscription.  This is a possible alternative to illegal downloads.  Since 2000, album sales have decreased by 52% and CD sales fell by 11% between 2005 and 2006 and are likely to decline further.  Digital music revenue has increased 40%.  iTunes, now the dominant force in online retailing.   
  • Film Industry.  For the first time this year, 2010, the issues being discussed at the Cannes Film Festival will include "How has the internet influenced the film industry"; research shows that independent film success is influenced by internet critics.  The internet provides its users with the opportunity of voice for anything and everything.  Widgets, widely available, can be added to personal sites and social networks, encouraging consumers to provide their opinions on films, critics, filmmakers and box office and independent films.  Cineaste Magazine set up a symposium to discuss "Film Criticism in the Age of the Internet : A Critical Symposium".  The resulting article is worth a read; it discusses whether blogger-critics can influence the industry" 
  • Newspaper sales.  News is available in many formats nowadays, with the availability of hand-held gadget, computers, mobile phones and palm-top devices, news is available 24/7 and it is free.  Newspaper sales have declined and this had led to many newspaper companies laying off journalists due to the financial crisis.  News via the internet is constantly updated and the content is current.  In 2009, total revenues declined 16.6% and online revenues declined by 8%.  In order for news reports to occur, journalists are needed; the fact that workforces are being downsized could lead to less diverse and independent reporting.
  • Travel industry.  The internet is the portal to travel information and consumers are now taking advantage of lower fares, personalized itineraries, excellent customer service and better security.  The online travel market continues to grow as agents have invested in state-of-the-art online store, with Computer Reservation Systems (CRS) now available to customers,  targeting both leisure and business consumers.  However, as airlines and hotel companies are advertising on travel websites, the consumer is perhaps not getting the best value offer, as travel companies promote those companies providing their websites with increased advertising spend.  Consumers are able to use the services of travel planners to ensure that they are being offered the best travel value.
Affiliates are able to take advantage of the way the internet is changing the face of business and altering industry trends.  Amazon provides a unique opportunity for affiliates to promote products and the portfolio is second to none.  As the book industry suffers from online sales, it is possible to conduct research to find the books that consumers seek online and sell via Amazon.  This also applies to the music and film industry.  These are all not-to-be-missed opportunities so get promoting and selling today.

Thursday, 29 September 2011

Maslow's Model - 5 Levels of Psychology

5 Levels of Psychology - Meet Consumer Needs to Make Money

Affiliate marketing is about providing the right product to the right customer at the right time.  Look at Maslow's Model and learn how to market your products effectively.
 

Implementing Maslow's Model

Maslow prepared a paper on “A Theory of Human Motivation”, otherwise known as the Hierarchy of Needs.  This model is based upon the stages of human growth and the natural curiosity.  The interpretation of his work is best portrayed in a pyramid.  There are four stages, at the bottom is deficiency, the lowest level of needs. Maslow was aware of the necessity for people to find how to market their products effectively and he started with finding out why psychology was the key to this.

Physiological Needs - These appear to be obvious and are the needs to enable human survival; without the important life-providing needs, the human race would be extinguished.  These include, breathing, homeostasis (maintaining a stable environment), hunger/thirst, air, sex and rest.  

The second level includes physical needs; security, safety and law and order.  These provide protection and ensure a familiar, orderly law and order.  Humans have need for a world that is consistent, safe and predictable; providing personal and financial security, health and safety guards against adverse conditions.

Love and Belonging - After physiological needs are met, is the need for social involvement and a feeling of belonging through emotional relationships through friendship, intimacy and family.  Humans must be provided with a sense of acceptance, and must love and be loved.  Lack of this sense of belonging can lead to isolation, loneliness, depression and illness.

Esteem or Belonging - The fourth stage is esteem, such as recognition, respect, prestige, importance, attention, appreciation.  All humans want to be respected, accepted and valued within their society.  This promotes a feeling of value which improves self-respect.  Maslow formulated two versions of esteem, namely, lower and higher.  The lower is the need for respect from other people, recognition and glory.  The higher is a need for self-respect; self-confidence, independence and excellence.

Self-actualization - This is the fifth level of the model and it is best described as ‘a person’s ability to achieve maximum potential’.  In order to achieve this excellence, a person must be able to succeed at the lower four levels and become master of all levels.  Marlow taught these two levels of self-actualization as a) “be free of the good opinion of others”, b) “do things not simply for the outcome but because it is the reason you are on earth”.

Albert Maslow is known as the founder of humanistic psychology.  He was born in Brooklyn, New York and was the son of Russian Jews.  His childhood was an unhappy one, without friends, he spent his time in libraries.  He went on to study psychology in Wisconsin.  Since the 1970’s, his ideas have fallen intro disrepute.  Nonetheless, his philosophy is broadly in line with other sales psychologies.

Maslow’s Hierarchy is the first theory, understanding consumer motives to purchase, and it is relevant to affiliate marketing.  Researching, understanding and implementing psychological techniques will ensure that your products are specifically targeted to your niche markets; master this technique and your business will grow in leaps and bounds.

Sales Psychology

Sales psychology is an intricate model employed to increase sales and earnings potential.  The most renown strategy is employed in the tangible business area.  Supermarkets obviously know that their shopper are looking for food and hunger drives their need.  They employ techniques to stimulate customer senses and encourage them to stay in the store for longer.  Sales psychology can be adapted to fit any business model and there are basic principles used to maximize profits, based on customer needs and wants.  

An abstract from Dualistic Model of Passion (Vallerand, et al 2003), the overview of related research defines passion as a “strong inclination toward an activity that people like, find important, and in which they invest time and energy”.   Related to the existence of passion; the two types are associated with differing outcomes and experience; harmonious passion sets its origins in autonomous internal identity, thereby, people choose to engage with an activity they love; obsessive passion originates from a controlled internal identity and leads people to display uncontrolled behaviour patterns leading to an urge to engage in an activity.

These two types of passion cause people to search out what makes their lives worth living, through the key behaviors identified as triggers that determine their motivation; these being, fear, greed, guilt, anger, exclusivity, salvation or flattery.  These behaviors will govern how people react to satisfy this inherent need to be satisfied; these being;
  • Decisions based on emotion – people will make their decisions based on a feeling, emotion and need, but not through a logical thought application.  Subjective benefits which cannot be evaluated in monetary terms will be satisfied through persuasion.
  • Justification of the emotive decision – people will justify their emotional purchasing need by applying pseudo-valuable arguments regarding the nature of the product, thereby justifying purchase rationale.
  • Satisfying egocentric/narcissistic behavior – egocentric means ‘centered around self’ and narcissism (derived from the Greek word for Narcissus) is a personality trait of egotism, preoccupation with issues of personal adequacy and power
  • Value searching – value is subjective and as such, is not a fixed number or amount.  It applies to the specific product and holds meaning for the specific person to whom it is applied and is relative to what is being offered.  Value is demonstrated as being equal to, or added value as being greater than, a comparison offer.  The greater the value to the relative price, the more added value is perceived, which can enhance the likeliness of the sale.
  • Human brain reacts specifically toward people – in that humans react to people on a socially interactive level.  The precuneus of the brain is thought to be involved in the understanding of human perspective, and as such, people are designed to think in human terms, therefore addressing by name, using pronouns to address personally and providing examples of human testimony will lead to increased interaction; use of testimonials and examples of happy customers will lead to success.
  • Hierarchy of Human Need – it is a fact that people love to buy, and no matter how many needs they have satisfied, they will strive to attain more. People buy with their hearts, no matter how much their brain screams ‘you don’t need it’, people enjoy being sold to and Maslow, the eminent psychologist, claimed that people buy for two reasons; to solve problems and to make themselves feel good.  Maslow also claimed that if you could anticipate every objection a customer has to a product, then research satisfactory solutions, you can persuade the customer to buy anything.
  • Marketing to a suspicious audience – the pyramid schemes of the 1970’s created suspicion with every type of network marketing.  These days, it is difficult to bypass the plethora of information warning you about click fraud, spam, spyware and adware and people are now naturally suspicious.  It is possible to buy some of the credibility back for the affiliate marketing industry by backing up your offer with legitimate reviews and testimonials.  If you are going to use such worthwhile resources, then rather start small until your product uptake increases and more reviews are forthcoming and be honest about why you only have a couple of testimonials.  Never provide bogus commentary about your products.
  • Maslow’s Model – people are constantly in search of products, advice, resources to improve their lifestyles; they have a natural dissatisfaction with their lives and want to tap into anything that soothes that constant hunger to have, achieve, succeed, provide wealth.  We return once again to Maslow’s model of the Hierarchy of Human Needs (as above)
  • Exclusivity – everyone wants to feel needed, desired and special.  Affiliate marketing is the most applicable business to which these principles apply; it demands extensive research to find niche markets and involves carefully targeting your offer to a unique customer.  Your are therefore, providing an exclusive product to your customer-base.  But just because you have found the ideal product for your customer, doesn’t mean they will buy it.  This is where you can close the pre-sell.  Inform the customer of key benefits of the product and outline why the product meets their exclusive needs.  Provide a review and include testimonials.  Make them aware of money-back guarantees and help them to arrive at a positive decision.
 

Start Your Business With A Plan and Goals


Set Some Goals

If you want to build a successful online business, then setting yourself goals and tasks is the way to go.  It works because it makes us think and focus on what we need to do to achieve.  Thinking and planning about what you need to do makes you aware of your thought processes and puts you in a positive frame of mind in order to deal with successes and failures, and we are better able to understand where we have failed or succeeded.  Think about where youwant to be in a year, or two years, or even five years from now and  set some goals using the following techniques.
  • Be specific about what you want to achieve and provide detail so that you cannot be indecisive
  • Be realistic about what you want to achieve
  • Plan for your goals but remember that planning what you want to achieve is not actually you achieving the goal so don't spend a enormous amount of time planning.
  • Write down your goals to help you organise your thoughts and commit to them.  We often resist doing this because it makes it real and we have a natural fear of failure.
  • If you fail, don't dwell on the fact that you have failed.  Rather concentrate on where you go from here.  This is positive action.
  • Break your goals down into more achievable goals, rather than huge, long-term ambitious goals.  Breaking the goal down in achievable objectives will make you more likely to succeed.  For instance, if your main goal is to earn $1,000 per month, make your first objective "how I will get to my first $100" then "how I will get to my first $500 if I triple my efforts in achieving the first $100" and then "can I reduce the amount of time I spend on low-earning campaigns and concentrate on the products that are working for me to achieve my $1,000"
  • Tell others about what you hope to achieve.  You will then have their support and also you will be unable to change the goal posts or give up very easily.
 
Start With A Good Business Plan

To provide a concise overview, a business plan should include; reasons for choosing the type of business, targets, aspirations and objectives, adherence to legal and tax obligations, company image and purpose, customer service expectations, cash flow projections, profit and loss projections, comprehensive analysis and forecasts.  It is wise to include a crisis management plan for any eventuality, including force majeure or events that may hinder business continuity.
  • Identify unique selling points about your business; what can you offer that the competition cannot.  This will mean conducting research into the market.  Learn from your opposition; look at their websites, marketing strategies and list as many of their good ideas as you can, then build on these.  Don't aim to match their offer, always enhance your offer to increase your customer base.
  • Company image is extremely important in the world of marketing, no matter what size the business.  Your image will enable you to be identified, it provides you with a consistent  model for application, professionalism adds value to your business and promotes your credibility and it further protects you against plagiarism. 
  • Research your competition's customer profile and identify your target audience.  Make a list of expectations; what do you need your customers to do to make your business successful. Formulate a strategy for reaching your target audiences and identify the methods you will employ, starting with techniques that are your strengths; if you are a strong writer then article marketing is for you, or e-mail marketing if you are disciplined and can effectively maintain mailing lists of potential customers.  Work to master each and every technique before moving onto the next. 
  • Time management is a unique attribute.  The second main reason why new home-based businesses fail is complacency and a tendency to treat the business as a hobby.  Discipline will allow you to make the most of your time.  Your business requires time-attention if it is to grow.  It is not applicable to allow yourself the luxury of leaving work early or taking a few hours out for self-satisfaction just because you can. You are responsible for the success or failure of your enterprise, this can be determined by the time you are prepared to invest in driving your business forward.  Manage and organise your time as you would with an employer, define and stick to hours of business.  Set rules to limit yourself; avoid wasting time with personal issues, restrict personal calls between certain hours, stick to an hour for lunch and your expectations for meeting deadlines.  Write task-target list, including a projection of hours and three key strategies to ensure those targets are met.  Maintain a time sheet of the hours you are investing.  Make a note of increased hours and reasons, such as setting up a new campaign or a campaign involving increased competition, thus added input.  This can be used to analyse your business and encourages you to work more effectively.  Identify what is impinging on your time, endeavor to improve work practices to streamline time management. 
  • The legalities of your home business need to be investigated.  Start with research into whether your business complies with legal obligations, county laws and any regulations, tax** and national insurance (for UK only) commitments.  Affiliate marketing is a low-risk business.  However, because you will be promoting products to consumers it is best to speak to your insurance company about Limited Liability. It is possible and easy to set up as an LLC and to put your earnings on a Schedule C as you would if you owned your own SSN for a business without making it LLC (for USA). In the UK, it is known as Public Liability Insurance and this is a voluntary insurance.  However, you must make the decision. 
  • Your business may not require substantial financial investment, but insurance must be investigated.  Insurance for unscheduled loss of time, business insurance covering fire, theft and equipment.  Is liability insurance a requirement and does the home require additional insurance for running a business.
  • Financial forecasting and planning will ensure your business is financially healthy.  Implement a concise budget and keep a basic accounting system, detailing expenditure (include everything).  Ensure you adhere to budget projections. Maintaining a balance sheet will provide you with your profit/loss projection, which details assets, liabilities and equity and this will form your first year budget.  This should be split into individual months.  As your business grows, you may consider a financial consultant or accountant to balance your books.  Alternatively there are resources online that detail how to execute a simple trial balance. Cash flow projections will determine the forecast of cash in and out of the business and this may be more applicable to affiliate marketing.
  • Feedback is the most worthwhile resource to draw from.  Ask customers to comment, note complaints, late deadlines or poor customer service. Keeping records of successes and failures and detailing strategies implemented to overcome adversity will prevent further failings.  Track and re-implement techniques that increase sales and provide good ROI.  Analyzing your business after six months in the first year can assist with streamlining and progress in the second half.
  • Draw up a rudimentary business continuity plan in the event of interruption.  You might lose internet connection, or the phone lines could go down.  You might be unable to work for a week due to sickness and you will want to take a vacation at some point.  Consider every eventuality to include; nature of the issue, impact on business, alternative mechanisms, financial considerations and what worked and what didn't for next time.
Finally, keep notes and record everything.  A six-monthly analysis and forward-planning can help you to ditch the deadwood and encourage re-growth. 
Speak to friends and acquaintances who have achieved success with their business models and ask them for their valuable input to make yours the perfect business plan.

** Tax commitments : In the USA obtain the “Business Use of your Home” IRS publication #587 and in UK form CWF1 Becoming self-employed and registering for National Insurance contributions

Sunday, 25 September 2011

Testing To Optimize Your Campaigns

Tracking Your Campaigns

Tracking your campaigns is so important if you are planning to run a viable affiliate business.  Finding out what initiates your profits is key and this is where you can concentrate on which efforts are producing success.  Delivering the right product to the right audience at the right time is what leads to success and profits.  You can try different techniques, such as changing headlines or copy, offers etc and then measure the results.  However, it is easy to spend all of your time just tracking where the last sale came from, so this is where you will probably need a tracking tool, one which is automated.  It is probably not enough to track, you also need to analyse your business so that you can trim the fat, or improve on your efforts.  Initially, there are free tools that you can use, but as your business expands, you will want to invest in a system that is effective and automated.

You will also find value in researching your audience and their habits, such as when they buy, what age and gender are interested in your offer.  You can also use ClickBank's transaction reporting system to see how many people are clicking on your Hoplinks so that you can redefine your campaign.  When you have a website it will be necessary to analyse how many visitors are coming to your site and what marketing technique is bringing them to your site.  You can analyse which clicks are working.  You will need to have website analytics as well.  This will provide information on the visitors to your website and will provide you with information on how those visitors interact with your site.  Google Analytics and Yahoo Web Analytics are both free systems and are easy to install.  They will provide you with valuable information about your visitors  ClickBank's sales reporting can now integrate with Google Analytics to provide you with Integrated Sales Reporting.  As your business grows, you will learn that you can never test, test, test enough!


It is said that 20% of keywords bring in 80% of sales, while the other 80% are actually under-performing; now this might not be true, and it could just be repeating the laws of the Pareto Principle, but this does appear to be near to correct.  You can analyse your campaigns to make sure that you are getting the best performance out of them.


Start with your web pages.  My Linker link cloaking tool as provided by Wealthy Affiliate will help you to analyse your merchant page click through rates and determine if your sales pages are pulling in the visitors you need them to.  This tool is provided free of charge with your membership.  Alternatively, you can just use Google Analytics, which is free, to determine this for you.  Just include your Google Conversion Tracking ID.


Google Sales conversion tracking allows you to track your sales down to the keyword level.  With conversion tracking in place, you will determine that 15% of your keywords bring in most of your sales and you can work out which ones are under-performing and make tweak your web pages to make them convert better for you.  If you are using My Linker, you can create bespoke reports to work this out for you.


Split testing your ads is possible with the use of your Google Adwords account.  This is where you create two ads within an ad group that contain different text but the same destination and display URLs.  You need to make sure that your campaign settings have ad optimization turned off.  Your ads will then run 50% of the time so that you can see which is performing better, then you can use the one achieving the best CTR.

Test the effectiveness of your websites using A/B landing page split testing by using your Clickbank tracking IDs in order to test sales conversions and merchant page CTRs. 

You should also test opt-in traffic quality from different sources because traffic from one source is not the same as that from another.  You can therefore create multiple we pages and include opt-in forms on them but label the forms differently so that you can tell where leads are coming from.


These are the kinds of indepth tests you can perform to optimize your campaigns.  You can work out which landing pages are working for you, how well pages are converting to merchant click-throughs and therefore optimize your campaigns.  This will save you considerable sums of money wasted through campaigns that aren't working for you. 

You can join Wealthy Affiliate University to help you optimize your campaigns and learn how to run these types of indepth tests to help you get the best out of your campaigns.