Blogging For Money – Is Affiliate Blogging Right For YOU?

There are 21 reasons why you make THINK affiliate blogging (blogging for money) is not right for you – or that it won’t WORK for YOU. Let’s shed some light on the truth… Can YOU make money online?

What’s Holding You Back?

Go ahead, make a list of all the things you can think of that are holding you back from getting to real work online.  Seriously, write them down and face them – then burn it.

My list might have looked like this a few years ago:

1. Have no idea what I’m doing.

2.  Afraid this is all a scam.

3. Other people tell me I will fail.

4.  Other people tell me this is a scam.

5. This will take a LOT of time to get there.

6. My computer is slow.

7.  I like to golf on the weekends…don’t want to work.

8.  Easier to just go get a JOB and let someone pay me a little and then I go home.

9.  Not sure I have enough money to do this.

10. Not sure I have enough SMARTS to do this.

11.  I read in marketing forums and I have NO CLUE what they’re talking about.

12.  No one will help me.

13. If I ask for help, people will laugh at me.

14.  If I ask for help, no one will answer.

15. No one understands what I am trying to do because *I* can’t even explain it.

16. I don’t have enough time.

17. This won’t happen over-night.  I have to be determined and persistent – and give up a lot of any free time I have.

18.  There are so many ways to do this – I don’t know which way to go!

19. I don’t know anything about marketing.

20.  I am gonna have to write…a LOT.  I don’t think I can come up with anything to write about.

21. Trying this will put a lot of strain on my family, both financially and time-wise.  I should just take the easy route and not bother with this internet marketing stuff .

Those are just 21 reasons right off the top of my head.  Anything sound familiar there?

Now, let me take that same list and tell you the TRUTH

1. Have no idea what I’m doing.

NO ONE knows what they’re doing when they first start.  We ALL have to learn.  Everything you learn gets you closer to the other side.

2.  Afraid this is all a scam.

It’s not.  The online marketing taught like this is NOT a scam.  It’s very, very real.

3. Other people tell me I will fail.

Usually these “other” people are folks who don’t know anything about internet marketing either.  Also, why do you put value in the opinion of someone who tells you that you WILL fail?  By the way, proving them wrong is kinda cool  =)

4.  Other people tell me this is a scam.

Again, this is usually said by people who have no idea about all this either.

5. This will take a LOT of time to get there.

This is correct.  It WILL take a good bit of time and effort on YOUR part to get there.

6. My computer is slow.

Great!  There is no better motivation to earn money than having a computer that can’t think as fast as you do.  Get started, make some money and buy a NEW computer.

7.  I like to golf on the weekends…don’t want to work.

What if you gave up a few weekend golf rounds in this next year so you could play golf  3 times a week all the years following?

8.  Easier to just go get a JOB and let someone pay me a little and then I go home.

Yup, easier…maybe.  Depends on where you live and what jobs are available.  This is the safe route and if you have mouths to feed with no money coming into the household, I HIGHLY recommend getting a”real” job while you learn internet marketing.

9.  Not sure I have enough money to do this.

If you’ve read thru my blog here at PotPieGirl.com enough, you know that it doesn’t take money to get started making money online.

10. Not sure I have enough SMARTS to do this.

You do.  If you’ve been using your computer all this time for browsing, emailing, socializing, and shopping, you are totally smart enough to get your computer to make money for you.

11.  When I read in marketing forums I have NO CLUE what they’re talking about.

If they say a phrase you don’t understand, Google it.  Learn what they are talking about.  Once you learn it, you OWN it.

12.  No one will help me.

Learn how to help yourself.  Trust me, 99.9999% of the answers can be found in Google.

13. If I ask for help, people will laugh at me.

Maybe, but that’s a sure sign of that persons integrity and character.  BUT, there are tons of folks online that WON’T laugh at you.  This is a big reason why I am such an advocate of newbies getting a membership at Wealthy Affiliate.  The forum there is so safe with lots of helpful people AND there are lots of other questions being asked by people just like you every minute.  Wealthy Affiliate is the safest learning center I have found online.  I wish I had joined there when I first started learning.

Also, Google NEVER laughs or casts judgement =)

14.  If I ask for help, no one will answer.

Google ALWAYS answers – learn to use Google to find your answers.

15. No one understands what I am trying to do because *I* can’t even explain it.

That’s ok.  Want a “generic” answer for when people ask what you do?

Them: So, what do you do for a living?

You: Online marketing

Them: What’s that?  Like eBay or something?

You: I sell other peoples products online and make commissions.

95% of casual acquaintances won’t ask you anything further.  I struggled with that “what do you do?” question for so long.  I also felt this need to explain what it is (and that it’s legit).  One day I realized that when I was a managing golf Pro, I just said what I did and no one asked or doubted it’s legitimacy.  Sure, that was a “real” job…but you know what?  So is internet marketing.  Say it with confidence.

16. I don’t have enough time.

If you can spend one hour a day getting one web page online, you have enough time.  No, you may not get ‘there’ as quickly as someone who has 10 hours a day.  But there is another positive side to the “not enough time” excuse.

Once upon a time, I was a single mom, running a golf course.  Trust me, there was not an extra MINUTE in the day to spare.  A woman in a regional golf association asked me to run for President of that association.  I literally said, “Are you crazy?  I barely have time to THINK let alone head up an association!”

She said, “Jennifer, I KNOW how full your days are, but let me tell you something I have learned.  If you want something done well and efficiently, give it to a woman who doesn’t have enough time to do it.”

C’mon moms, show of hands – How many of you have baked a “oops mom I forgot” batch of cupcakes or done a science project at 2 am?

We moms get things done  =)

17. This won’t happen over-night.  I have to be determined and persistent – and give up a lot of any free time I have.

This IS very, very true.  This does NOT happen over-night.  Commit to the plan and take action.  Trust me, you will love yourself for following thru down the road  =)

18.  There are so many ways to do this – I don’t know which way to go!

Yes, there are a LOT of options.  To me, that is the coolest thing about online marketing – there is no one ‘right way’ to do this!  The sky is the limit!  What way interests YOU the most?

19. I don’t know anything about marketing.

First off, you don’t need to.  Secondly, yes, you really do know a lot about marketing because we are all consumers.  You know what makes YOU buy something, don’t you?

 20.  I am gonna have to write…a LOT.  I don’t think I can come up with anything to write about. Yes, using the free methods to make money online does require a lot of writing.  Now, you do NOT have to write novel-length blog posts like I am doing right now, but you will have to write.  If this is something out of your comfort zone, get to writing so you ARE comfortable. 

21. Trying this will put a lot of strain on my family, both financially and time-wise.  I should just take the easy route and not bother with this internet marketing stuff . 
This was a BIG one for me.  Know what it really is?  It’s guilt.  When we have families, we are not only taking OURSELVES out of our comfort zone, the family gets uncomfortable too.  I think we women struggle with this more than the men because of our own perception that it is mom’s job to make everyone comfortable. 
I handled this fear in myself by talking a lot about what I was doing.  Each day, when my husband would come home, we would talk about his day then I would tell him things I learned that day, what I did, what I figured out, and all that good stuff.  I needed him onboard with me….and I needed what I was doing to not be such a mystery.  Let’s face it, if your significant other suddenly started spending hours and hours online, wouldn’t you be concerned? 
Anyway… I would let him watch me make a webpage or something.  He was amazed at how it all works and learned right along with me.   I do the same things with my kids.  Heck, I’ve been known to talk about my blog post over a Happy Meal with the 4 year-old  =) 
My best advice here is to keep the communication open.

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  What are your reasons for starting or not starting?

How to Create Lead Magnets that Win Clicks and Influence Customers

Lead magnets - often called content offers - are something we've all seen. From free eBooks, to templates, to other gated content that's offered alongside blog articles, they've become a standard part of social media marketing. If a website visitor clicks and gives you their email address, they become a lead, and you have the opportunity to move to more personal email conversations. 

The issue is, with the sea of content that's out there, there's also a sea of content offers. So how do you make yours stand out?  
And if that problem weren't hard enough, you also need to do more than just get the click. You want that content offer to resonate, you want that lead to see your expertise, and the value you offer so that they'll want to come back for more - either more content, or for a conversation in email, or for a meeting.

Good lead magnets have to draw visitors in and get that click, entice them to download, then sell them on your value while helping them solve their problems. It's not easy.

In this post, we'll break down how we design lead magnets that win clicks and influence customers.

Barry Feldman recently wrote and article in which he covered some good fundamentals about lead magnets, and provided some great examples of lead magnets that compel action.
To summarize Barry's list, lead magnets should:

• Be specific - Be absolutely clear what people are going to get, and, to take it a step further, what problem the lead magnet helps solve.
• Provide results - Tell them how you're going to solve the problem and what result they will see.
• Provide instant gratification - When prospects consume the content, they should be able to use the information immediately to solve the problem. 
• Build authority - The quality of what your offering and the information included should be valuable to your audience and, therefore, improve your brand's standing as a strong resource and thought leader.
• Provide value - By addressing issues and helping solve problems. As Barry stated, it should be something people would be willing to pay for. More on that later. 

To drive more clicks and conversions, we focus a lot of time on the results and value pieces of the equation. That's what we're going to talk about in this post. 

 

You Have to Know Your Buyer's Journey

To provide the best value, you have to have a detailed understanding of your prospects buyer's journey.
Content, as well as the lead magnets near the content, should be specific to each stage of your buyer's journey. For a better understanding of this, see this article by Rochana Rapkins on 6 Different Types of Buyer Journey Maps, and see our article How to Create the Right Content for each Stage of your Inbound Sales Funnel. 

 

Content Near Lead Magnet Calls to Action Is Key

Lead magnets are included near, or are embedded in some form within, your content. They might be call-to-action buttons on your website.



They might be calls-to-action on your blog.


 
They might be links in an email message that's part of a longer, ongoing nurturing stream conversation a salesperson is having with a lead, trying to turn them into an opportunity.


 
The key point here is that the right content offers need to be associated with the right content.

If you're doing your inbound marketing job well, you've defined the stages of your buyer's journey and are creating content specific to each stage. Make sure that you're identifying which stage each of your lead magnets applies to as well so that marketers and salespeople can include the right offers with the right content (see this article from Hubspot on customizing content for each stage of the buyer's journey). 

 

Winning Clicks and Influencing Customers 

 
We know that lead magnets have two jobs - they have to compel visitors to click and download them, and then they have to provide real value to move leads down the funnel and keep them coming back. We also know that lead magnets should be customized for each stage of the buyer's journey.
Let's look at some examples of what lead magnets might look like during each stage of the buyer's journey:

 

Retail product

• Awareness stage (top of the funnel) - Remember, at this stage, people are looking for answers and seeking education and insight. You should be educating them and positioning your brand as both a useful resource for content and as a thought leader. A retail product might provide a checklist - for example, a generator manufacturer might offer a listing of key features that generators should have for use with RVs, at worksites, and during power outages. This eBook is likely broadly promoted on websites, blogs, and through social media and search advertising. 
• Consideration stage (middle of the funnel) - At this stage prospects understand their problems and opportunities, and they're researching solutions that will help them best solve those problems or realize those opportunities. You need to both showcase your products and services, and differentiate them - and make yourself stand above the competition. You also want to guide those prospects that are the best fit for your business further down your funnel. At this stage, the generator manufacturer might produce a whitepaper detailing the capabilities, and features of its generators showcasing how they're designed to be used in specific scenarios. This type of lead magnet may be included alongside content or might be sent in an email message to leads that have already opted into a previous offer.
• Decision stage (bottom of the funnel) - At this stage prospects are looking for the reason to buy, they need something, internal or external, that will compel that action. For this element, the generator manufacturer might offer a coupon, free add-ons, free setup, or some other offer to nudge prospective buyers into action. Again, this offer likely comes in an email to leads that are already considered to be at the middle or bottom of the funnel.

 

Software App

• Awareness stage - A software vendor that sells proposal creation software might produce an eBook which explains how the standard back and forth of writing proposals without using such a tool wastes time and may result in unnecessary churn for every proposal created, and delivery of rushed or unrefined proposals that may lose business.
• Consideration stage - The proposal software vendor may run webinars regularly that allow prospects to see the software in action, and that show how common issues in proposal creation and collaboration are addressed by the software. It's important to note the interactive nature of this activity. While the webinar is likely to be mostly a canned presentation and demonstration, the webinar format gives the software vendor a great opportunity to have salespeople interact in real time with prospective buyers, and follow up with those buyers after the fact to answer questions, provide clarifications and continue productive contact. 
• Decision stage - To nudge leads into becoming buyers, the proposal software vendor may offer a free trial of their software, or, as some software vendors frequently do, offering a 'forever free' version of software with minimal functionality to warm users up to using a paid version. 

 

Professional service

• Awareness stage - An IT consultancy that provides security hardware, software, and consulting for intrusion protection and prevention may also use an eBook in the awareness stage. In the technology sector, one of our favorite types of eBooks is a 'Notes from the Field' eBook. This kind of eBook would showcase a variety of real examples of the types of threats that exist, the impact of network attacks, and the steps needed to secure networks from future issues.
• Consideration stage - The IT security consultancy might publish an Expert Guide on Detecting Network Intrusion. The guide showcases the company's knowledge and expertise and conveys the complexity of the services they provide. At this stage, leads are often doing intense research and looking for in-depth knowledge, which is what this lead magnet provides.
• Awareness stage - The IT security consultancy might offer a free evaluation of a prospective buyers network. It's important to note that, with this type of offer, you should clearly state what prospects will and will not get. In this case, the IT security consultancy might make it clear that a security engineer will spend two hours with the client and provide a range of options that may be a good fit, while a sales associate will provide estimated pricing. 

 

Make Sure Lead Magnets Offer Real Value

 
As Barry Feldman notes in his post, lead magnets "should be valuable to the point where people would pay for it if asked."
I agree - I even like to take it a step further, since everyone wants to know time and numbers. For the majority of our clients, we believe a good lead magnet should be worth 1-2 weeks of paid consulting time, or $3,000 to $7,000. Obviously, there are a lot of variables in there, but we find most of our clients wind up in that range.

How do you justify this, especially if you need one lead magnet for each stage?

What's your average sale? What will you make if one client becomes a customer based on a lead magnet? What will you make if two clients become customers? When we run those numbers, we often see closed business generating two or three times the revenue versus the cost of producing three lead magnets (one for each stage).

For example, if that IT security consultancy creates three lead magnets for the cost of $21,000, and wins a year-long retainer from a single client at $5,000 a month, that's $60,000 in revenue of the client in the first year, or 300% return on investment. That's one client, and it doesn't account for continued revenue for the lifetime of that client relationship.

 

Conclusion

 
Great lead magnets help your products and services stand out. There's no secret sauce here - you have to put in the time and effort to understand what your target audience is looking for, their pain points, and what opportunities they're seeking, and how they progress through their buying journey. Once you understand this, you can then create lead magnets that compel them to click and convert them to customers. 

What are your objectives for the lead magnet? How do you create them? 

By Bob Carver
http://www.socialmediatoday.com/smt-influencer/how-create-lead-magnets-win-clicks-and-influence-customers 

Things you should know about making money blogging

• Much of the money bloggers make doesn’t come from blogging directly. A blog is a platform or online home base. After proving their trustworthiness, bloggers use their blogs as springboards to launch other products & services that bring in income. Examples are ebooks, books, speaking gigs, products, ecourses, etc.
• If you want to make money blogging, it takes time, creativity and hustle—a lot of all three—but it’s absolutely doable.
• Each blogger has a different combination of income streams. There is no “right” way and that’s the beauty of it. There are endless possibilities. Find a combination that works for you or make up your own.
• Income streams ebb and flow, so successful bloggers are constantly exploring new ways to make money. The key to making good money as a blogger is to have multiple streams of income. Even small trickles of money coming from various sources over time can add up.
• The best way to start monetizing is to let it happen organically. Hopefully you are blogging about something you enjoy. As you grow, monetize (make money) in ways that would most suit you and your audience. For example, blogging about knitting? Sell knitting patterns. Blogging about fly fishing? Sell your services as a fly fishing guide. Blogging about being a preschool teacher? Sell preschool curriculum.
•  https://amylynnandrews.com/how-to-make-money-blogging/