Anik’s “Slap-In-The-Face” Advice For 2007…

Sunday, December 31st, 2006 at 3:27 pm by Anik Singal

2006 was an incredible year for my business. My second year in operation and we grew over 300%.

But, it wasn’t a year full of only success. I made big mistakes this year, the 2 that bit the most cost me a total of $120,000.

I fell for a “too good to be true” trap and made a horrible outsourcing decision purely out of greed and I paid dearly and actually am STILL paying in lost opportunities.

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(I’ll tell you more about what happened further down)…
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I know you’re probably in shock right now, right? I mean think about…$120,000 can buy an entire house in some areas.

I know that the $120,000 “sounds” like a lot of money, but I’ve learned to look at
it as an “investment in my business education” rather than a loss.

See, when you put the $120,000 side by side to the MILLIONS in mistakes I just saved
myself in the future, the $120,000 proves to be a great investment.

I don’t tell you this to make you feel “sorry” for me - not even close. I’m telling you this to help you realize that mistakes (small and big) are a part of business, as a matter of fact, an enormous part of business. I would go as far as saying that they are far more important than the successes.

Fake wealthy Guy See, too many times everyone looks upon known internet marketers or the “gurus” and all you see are the huge revenue numbers, the big checks, the nice cars and the enormous houses. What these “gurus” never reveal to you are the huge losses that all of them see from time to time.

They rarely talk about their failed businesses, failed products, failed launches, bad decisions, the list goes on…

Well, not me - I’m here to tell you that whether you’re selling your own product, selling a service or building an affiliate marketing business. You will absolutely make mistakes and you should not only be proud of them but CHERISH them (so long as you learn from them and don’t repeat them).

In 2006 I made plenty of mistakes, but can honestly say that I learned dearly from all of them. Now, obviously, I was able to have far more successes than I did losses since I still managed to grow an astounding 300%.

So, that was 2006, but what about 2007?

Well, as they all say:

“I have BIG plans for 2007″

I’ve taken a lot of time this past week to really sit down and think about my business and where I want it to be this time next year. I’ve thought about the elements that I need to focus on the most and of course, the elements that contributed the most in 2006.

Something different I did this year was rather than just think about myself, I thought about *YOU.* I thought about all the Affiliate Classroom students. I spent hours and hours analyzing your businesses to find what I think the most of you need to really focus on in 2007.

To simplify, I’ve split the tips/advice into 2 sections:

1. General Business Development Tips
2. Internet Marketing Tips

I’ve thought long and hard about these and really made sure to tie these in with the biggest trends I am seeing in online marketing for 2007 - so take them seriously, they’re for your own good.

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General Business Development Tips
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1) GET A MENTOR - NO EXCUSES

I’ve heard all the excuses in the book about how it’s impossible for you to find someone. The truth of the matter is, if you’re using this excuse, it’s because you’ve never really tried your best.

Just use me as an example. I grew up in a family of mostly doctors and engineers, not a businessman in sight. Actually, my parents were quite un-happy about “all the time I was wasting with this business stuff.”

But I had a passion and drive that drove me outside my comfort zone. I was determined to find those who would help me.

To date I have had over 5 mentors, each has been an immense help in their respective parts of my business. I can very confidently say that “MENTORSHIP” has been one of the top 3 contributing factors behind my success.

To put it simply, would you rather learn to learn to drive from someone who’s been driving for 10 years or would you rather get 10 people who’ve never driven a day in their life together and basically “figure it out?”

** HOW TO FIND A MENTOR **

Look, I hate to say this, but these things just happen. Not ONE of the mentors I’ve had was through any kind of “application process.” They were all “quincidences” that occurred due to a series of random events that took place because I stuck my neck out. Here’s what I did…

* Asked business associates for referrals
* Found able people and directly contacted
* ATTENDED SEMINARS
* Agreed to work for them (many times for FREE)
* Hired as a consultant and became friends (I call this “buying” my way in)

The key to finding a great mentor is going to be PERSISTANCE, always follow-up and never rely on just one person. Who knows if the first will be that great mentor.

Focus on building relationships and friendships in your industry - the “mentorship” role will grow out itself.

2) BUILD A TEAM - NO MORE 1 MAN SHOWS

Building a Team How many of you read the Internet Business Manifesto? I should see all hands going up! Rich Schefren opened our eyes with a simple diagram that revealed the biggest problem internet marketers have.

WE THINK WE CAN DO IT ALL

One of my greatest strengths is my ability to recognize my limitations and allow others to make-up for them. It’s a simple LAW of success, you have no choice but to accept it and live by it.

If you want to create a large automated business that creates wealth, prosperity and financial FREEDOM, you’re going to have to delegate work and build a strong team - no ifs and buts.

Remember this when you start to build your team…
YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR

If you’ll allow me to vent for a moment, I’d like to go head to head with a DETRIMENTAL ideology that seems to be catching on like a bad virus in the “internet entrepreneur” world. This misbelief has to be corrected right away before it dooms your business to failure.

Here it goes…

STOP FOCUSING ON CHEAP LABOR

Yes, I realize labor is “cheaper” in India, Russia and China. Yes, I know that little “Jimmy” down the street will work for 2 bowls of spaghetti and a bag of skittles. But honestly, WHAT QUALITY OF work are they going to do?

I’m not saying all “inexpensive labor” is bad. Heck, I have an excellent design team in India and they cost me 1/10th of what my American team costs me.

I’m only saying to stop focusing solely on “how much they cost” and stop looking for the cheapest.

This is a completely wrong way of looking at your business.

The “cheap” mindset may seem to work for now, but the minute your business starts to grow into an authority figure, that very mindset that will come back to haunt you.

The reason I am so passionate about this topic and am drilling on it is because I had the same mindset in the beginning of 2006 and this year alone it cost me more than $120,000. I don’t want that to happen to you.

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(I’ll tell you more about what happened further down…)
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And I’m not just referring to your outsourcing; I’m talking about your employees as well. I won’t mention names, but just recently I was talking with a big marketer and a good friend. This person started to brag about how they just hired 2 new employees on “just above minimum wage” with no benefits.

Both employees have a family, 1 with a new born child and when I asked this marketer how in the world those 2 would be able to survive on the salary, his exact response was:

“I don’t know, I don’t care - not my problem”

I knew that very moment that either or all of the following was destined to happen to the new team he was building.

1) Complete failure within 3 months
2) Hostile & Un-productive work environment
3) ZERO loyalty

One of the biggest lessons I learned in 2006 was when I was hospitalized for an entire month (I spent over 3 weeks in the ICU) and I almost died 3 times.

Assume I hadn’t told you that just now, would you have ever known? Let me ask you this, could you, right now, tell me which month I was hospitalized?

I’ll even give you a clue…

I didn’t work at all (barely logged into the internet), didn’t *personally* send out e-mails or launch a new product, etc…

..
..
..
..

No idea right? You know why that is? It’s because I have an amazing team that stepped up to the plate and took care of everything. They took ownership over the business and worked overtime, worked weekends and even worked on holidays, yet never complained.

It was then that I learned the true meaning of a team and how absolutely vital the team is to your business - if it wasn’t for them, there was a good chance that Affiliate Classroom would never have survived 2006.

Take care of your team, don’t penny pinch, treat them right and make sure to always reward them for the hard work they put in to make YOU money.

I’ll leave this topic by asking you just one question:

“It’s the end of the year, have you thought about giving your team a bonus to thank them?”

3) BRING IT BACK TO QUALITY

To carry on with the theme of “you get what you pay for” - I’ve seen another deadly ideology catching waive in 2006. The ideology of “QUANTITY OVER QUALITY”

John Reese recently released a video which I found refreshing where he argues against the entire idea of “Multiple streams of income.”

“Stop diving into 10 markets and trying to create 10 different businesses to diversify your income, rather GROW aggressively in just 1 market. Add multiple products and websites for THAT market.”

He re-coined a term:

“Multiple streams of REVENUE”

I couldn’t agree more since this is the exact ideology I built my business on and it served me well.

Let’s review some examples of the “QUANTITY over QUALITY” ideology that will eventually kill anyone’s business.

1. $1 “keyword stuffed” articles
2. Auto-generated websites, scrapper sites
3. Black hat SEO
4. Copyright infringement/Plagiarism

Bottom line is this - all the above may some how produce results “now.” But, check back in 3 months and you’ll find that your time/money/reputation was wasted.

Rather, spend that same time in focusing on quality. Focus on your visitor, your customer, your affiliates - drive quality and you’re truly building a long term business that is well diversified and safe.

So, to review the General Business Advice:

1. Get a Mentor
2. Build a TEAM (Treat them right)
3. QUALITY not Quantity

Now, on to more marketing related tips to help you drive more traffic in 2007 and increase your bottom-line revenue…

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Marketing Tips
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1) Web 2.0

Web 2.0 Community If you haven’t researched it yet, get to know Web 2.0 very fast and plan to dive in right away. Although Web 2.0 is still in its infancy, we’re already falling behind compared to the BILLIONS that the Fortune 500 is investing into it.

Web 2.0 is the “new internet” with a focus on social networking and user generated content. YOUR goal as a business is to simply provide the infrastructure and location where like-minded individuals can gather and share.

Web 2.0 is basically “community building” on steroids.

You monetize Web 2.0 through its viral element. Each new visitor brings many new visitors each who see your ads, your affiliate promotions, your services, your products and sure, even your Adsense!

In 2007, plan on building a Web 2.0 focused social networking space for your niche. For example, if you run a website on “dog training” - launch a dog lover’s social site.

As the internet evolves, there is huge value to be placed on a business’s ability to gather a large group of like-minded consumers in one location and build loyalty.

Sounds Great, What’s The Catch?

Do you have Thousands of dollars to invest in the programming needed to facilitate such a site? Or maybe those thousands would be better spent on building your team.

well not to worry…many scripts and services are now launching everyday that you can get for as long as $30-$50/month that will allow you to get started.

Keep posted, I’ll be testing them through out the year and as always will let you know what I think.

Ok, moving right along…

2) GO FOR THE LONG TAIL

Ok, this may seem like a small or obvious tip - but I promise you, it may be the best one in this e-mail (besides the team building one). Plan to have a major focus on building out your keyword list in 2007.

Whether for SEO or for PPC - if you’re sitting on a list of just a hundred or so, you don’t have enough and you’re likely going after the wrong keywords.

Here’s the best keyword strategy to use (focus more on this and you’re going to see a huge impact on your traffic and by default better rankings on the MAIN keywords:)

A) Find 3-4 word phrases
These phrases should have your main keyword or a part of it in them.

B) Add 1 page to your site for that keyword.

C) Target your promotion on that page.

D) Have good cross-linking on your own site.

That’s for natural SEO…

Now, how would you like laser targeted traffic for $.05 a click?

For PPC - if you’re not focusing on the long tail, you’re losing out on a lot of 5 cent targeted traffic. Trust me!

I’m in the process of testing 3 keyword generation software and will report back any of my findings. For now, please start using whatever tools you have - focus on adding pages to your site consistently and focus on the long tail keywords!

3) WORD-OF-MOUTH MARKETING

Why is it that since the internet more and more of are starting to abandon the “basic foundation” of marketing that built businesses for CENTURIES. Just because we have SEO, PPC, Ezines, and others does not mean we can forget the raw power of word-of-mouth marketing.

In 2007, all my sites are going to go through makeovers with more focus on viral marketing.

I want to do whatever it takes to get my visitors/customers to recommend my business to as many others as they can. I will focus even more on my affiliate program in 2007.

I will even make small changes like making sure all my sites have a “Bookmark Us” feature and a “Tell A Friend” script. Yes, these are simple fixes, but can you imagine the kind of traffic and income I lost in 2006 because I didn’t focus on these?

The internet has made word-of-mouth marketing even easier through automated technology and we should take advantage.

I’ll give you one more hint - if you want to tap into the ultimate word-of-mouth marketing - start a blog. Don’t ask questions, just start one!

So, to review our “Marketing Tips”

1. Build a Web 2.0 Space
2. Long Tail Keywords
3. WORD OF MOUTH MARKETING!

2007 is going to be an amazing year and it’s 100% in your control. You can make ANYTHING happen this year and I have a good feeling that you and I are going to do big things in 2007.

Of course I have TONS of other tips I want to give, but only so much I can say in an e-mail. So, I invite you to keep reading, join The Affiliate Classroom and watch as we make some incredible changes to AC this year - all to directly help your business grow!

Before I go, I want to do one more thing - I want to invite you to please leave a comment below.

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Give everyone your own tip. What is one tip you can give us for 2007? - Just Put It In The Comment Below:

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Wishing you a VERY HAPPY NEW YEAR and an incredibly prosperous 2007.

On behalf of the entire AC Team,

Anik Singal

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O Yea! I almost forgot to tell you what happened this year where I lost $120,000. Well, I told you it had to do with outsourcing right? I was trying to outsource “programming” of an entirely new concept/project.

The company seemed very promising and checked out on many levels. I agreed to award them the project and from the very beginning it was a complete disaster.

The coding was horrible, they never got the concept and they assigned un-qualified personnel. At the end of the day, they never understood the business, over-promised and never delivered.

Here’s what I learned:

You canNOT simply outsource the core competency of your business, especially if you know nothing about it. “I’m” not a coder and so I allowed myself to get fooled and “taken” by this company.

If you’re going to make a major outsourcing commitment in an area you don’t understand yourself - make SURE you have someone in your local team who does and who can manage that outsourcing work.

That’s your best insurance policy against “getting taken.”

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68 Comments

Anik, you have just posted your BEST NEWSLETTER “EVER!!!” Seriously, it contains more interesting, informative and valuable content than any other previous newsletter I’ve seen from you these past two years… and there was never anything lacking from your past ones!

If this is an indication of ‘things to come’, you’ve sure chosen a winning platform:)

Now, to comment on a couple of aspects of your newsletter: Could you perhaps elaborate in more detail re the “a,b,c,d” approach to the Long-Tail keyword Strategy? I’m extremely interested in what you have to say on this subject.

Secondly, when you say “Start a blog”, you’re touching upon an area of immense interest to so many newbies to your newsletter it would almost seem prudent for you to create say… a 15 - 20 page Special Report detailing the intricate relationships that blogs can and do have with an online marketer’s main site/s. I feel that this is ONE area that no-one has touched upon.

Sure, just about everyone who writes stuff on blogs / blogging tells us “how to create a blog” and the pros and cons of various types of blogging platforms i.e. Wordpress; Blogger; Moveable Type etc.,… but I’ve never seen anyone ever explain properly (and in a - z detailed steps) things like this for example…

“http;//yourblogname.com versus http://yoursitename/blog” (and the various reasons for having one or the other formats)

I know you co-launched a great blogging course 6 months ago, but I couldn’t tell from the large pre-launch Special Report ‘whether or not’ you delved into this area (from a ‘tell all to the newbies’ point of view).

Slightly off topic, but… this also leads me to bring up the fact that NO-ONE has yet (to my knowledge, anyway) ever really brought out an informative ebook on ‘how, when, why etc…’ (with special emphasis on the “how”) a person goes about determining when / when not to use “sub-directories and “sub-domains”… and “how” and “when” to physically create them (i.e. the full step-by-step process).

It seems that newbies are flooding into places like the Warrior Forum every day, seeking out ‘this, that and the other’… and yet, they often don’t even have a grasp of the ABSOLUTE BASIC FUNDAMENTALS of domain creation.

Why am I bringing all this up in here?

Simple… you said “seek out a mentor”.

Well, a significant number of us who subscribe to your newsletter see YOU (Anik Singal) as a mentor of sorts… and it would be brilliant if you could take on board some of the issues I’ve raised here and ‘in the spirit of mentorship’, share your knowledge with us:):):)

Happy New Year

Comment by Bruce Smeaton | December 31st, 2006 6:15 pm | Permalink

Hey Bruce,

Well let me first start by thanking you for your compliments on our newsletter in general and specifically what I just created. As for our newsletter, you’re going to see some major changes coming in 2007. I don’t know if I can launch them starting Jan 1 (tomorrow), but surely some point in Q1.

As for the long keyword approach, we’re going to focus a lot more on this inside AC this year, but here’s some more information.

Let’s take an example like “arthiritis” - maybe you have a website on that topic. Well, what I mean is to stop targeting a word like “arthiritis” but do a keyword reseach session on the word and maybe you’ll find longer keywords like:

“arthiritis in hand”
“medicine for arthiritis”
“how to stop arthiritis pain”

Now, all these keywords will have fewer searches for sure BUT they are far more targeted, and there are THOUSANDS of them. Also, less competition for them.

Much easier for you to get a few hundreds of those rather than bang your head going for the few main ones.

Does that make more sense?

As for your ideas regarding making more reports specific - you’re onto a great idea that we’ve already seen and are in process of addressing.

Just wait to see what we have in store for 2007 The last 2 years, I’ve learned a lot about what our students need and the best way to teach them. Im serious when I say that we have BIG plans for 2007

Anik Singal

Comment by Anik Singal | December 31st, 2006 6:31 pm | Permalink

Happy New year! great inspiring advice for 2007

work smater-not harder

Comment by Andrew harvey | December 31st, 2006 8:25 pm | Permalink

Anik, your first advice-only, no product pitch email…very refreshing…thanks.

Comment by Brad Wozny | December 31st, 2006 8:33 pm | Permalink

How do I join your classroom ?
I know I was accepted a long time ago but….
I am not an affiliate nor do I have a business.
Yes, I must for several reasons with money being
the first one. 06 was a bad year for me. I do not
want to repeat it.
I read every word. That is the way to go and I
appreciate you sharing it with the world.
Thanks,
James

Comment by James Dodson | December 31st, 2006 8:34 pm | Permalink

Advice for 2007

Do one thing each day that will move you forward in your business and in your life.

Comment by Linda Simmons | December 31st, 2006 8:38 pm | Permalink

Hi Anik,

I just read your predictions for 2007 and your losses and wins for 2006. All I can say is “WOW” You are one down to earth person.

I will file the message and follow your lead with the recommendations you made.

I am getting a lot of these type of messages today (December 31, New Years Eve, 2006). Talk about picking out mentor’s! All messages have good ideas for 2007, but nothing as down to earth as yours.

Anik, I would like to wish you and your family a very happy and prosperous New Year, and may all your plans work out for you, and may all your dreams and passions come true.

Thanks for a great inspirational message Anik,

Jim Hinck

PS: Put a Y in front of your name and what other great mentor do you come up with?

Comment by Jim Hinck | December 31st, 2006 8:52 pm | Permalink

Hey Anik, Happy New Year!

EXCELLENT newsletter to cap off 2006 and to usher in 2007.

Particularly liked the advice on building a team and getting in on web2.0 NOW as it starts to really explode.

web2.0 isn’t a Fad, it is a fundamental switch in the way that ALL business will be done online.

2 way ONLINE dialogue is not an option it is critical if your website is to rise above the clutter and develop loyal and responsive customers, who can become your viral evangelists.

Hoping to attend more Live Seminars in 2006 myself, most likely JV Alert and Yanik’s- great suggestion.

Looking forward to more beefy content in 2007 from AC.

Take care of your health.
All the very best to you.

Michelle B. Williams
www.web2trafficsecrets.com

Comment by Michelle B. Williams | December 31st, 2006 8:53 pm | Permalink

Andrew,

I couldn’t have said it better myself - working hard stinks I used to do it and did well, but I was always so stressed out. Ever since I started working smarter, my business is growing faster and I seem to have more than enough time to enjoy the fruits of my (and others) labor! haha

——

Brad,

Yes - I agree. Sometimes it’s nice to not have that. We’re very proud to be able to release our magazine every month at no cost for our students.

——

James,

Thank you for your kind words - 2006 was a good year for me, but it was the hardest year of my life. I had immense challenges, business AND personal. I thank 2006 for what it gave me and taught me, but I honestly also can’t wait for it to be over.

To join Affiliate Classroom, please go to:

https://www.affiliateclassroom.com/order2.php

——

Linda,

Excellent advice! I always say that no matter what I do, even if it’s as little as sending an e-mail. I MUST do something every day to move forward.

So on days that we are ill or days that we get back from work too late - no excuses, do SOMETHING.

Keep em coming guys!

Anik

Comment by Anik Singal | December 31st, 2006 8:54 pm | Permalink

I must have signed up for your newsletter somewhere along the line, but I can’t recall, since I’ve signed up for so many! I decided to click on your e-mail today and must tell you that your information is close to what Mike Filsaime’s provides in his Butterfly Marketing Manuscript I purchased. Only yours is free ;o) Either way, thanks for breaking it down for many people. I am doing many different projects, and your reinforcement of marketing tips I already know is much appreciated. Have a Great and Prosperous New Year! Adrienne

Comment by Adrienne | December 31st, 2006 8:56 pm | Permalink

Anik,

What a wonderful email - full of great advice and information. Thanks too for sharing your recent medical scare. I’m relieved to hear you’re okay.

My tip for 2007 is to do exactly what you have done here and talked about here - namely, be generous.

Yes we are all entrepreneurs and we all want to make money. But we can also be generous with our knowledge, with our time, with our staff or employees, and with our money.

Besides, the fact that anyone reading this even owns a computer puts us in the privileged position of having a whole lot more money than 90% of the worlds population.

I was glad to hear you talk about paying team members fairly. I sometimes tire of internet marketing gurus waving their wallets around. Don’t get me wrong, I like money… but how much do you really need and what are we doing with the money we have?

In 2007 I plan to put my money where my values are and be a social entrepreneur… not just in my thinking but in action. I’m launching a big dream acceleration product in few weeks. As one of the early enrollment bonuses I signed on a best-selling author named Barbara Sher to run a teleclass. Barbara single-handedly started an organization in Turkey to help village women learn e-commerce. She calls it “plop philanthropy” — plop yourself down and do some good.

So I decided to donate a portion of all sales of my new program to Barbara’s organization Hands on Hips. Moving forward I will do the same for a micro-grant organization called TrickleUp.org which helps impoverished people in the US and abroad to start small businesses.

Finally, my advice (which I am going to “try” :>) to take myself, is to be generous with ourself. I too have had an amazing year with a 30% increase in revenues over last year and an expected 50% increase over that in 2007. But I worked hard to get here… too hard.

So in 2007 my personal resolution is to work less and play more. As Charles Handy said, “There is only one real success, to live our life in our own way.”

Happy New Year Anik. Thanks for all you do. Whether you know it or not, the work you do — and the way you do it — matters.

Valerie

Comment by Valerie Young | December 31st, 2006 8:59 pm | Permalink

Again I am pleased to see a marketer tell it like it is and not how we like it to be.
My tip for 2007: Set up a seperate bank account for you internet business and keep enough funds in it to cover what you need plus a reserve. As profits come in, add a portion of it to that account every month.
You will then be ready to take advantage of opportunities as they arise.

Comment by Tom Walsted | December 31st, 2006 9:08 pm | Permalink

Anik, hi, it’s already 2007 here in Australia, and as I sit here with my latte this morning, your email caught my eye, mostly because of your Subject title, “My “Slap-In-The-Face” Advice For 2007″.

Haha who could resist reading that? I even came to the blog to do so, rather than read the email, and it is refreshing to read a great informative, interesting email without sales ‘hype’, like so many others I receive [and become inundated with].

Your comments are all worthy of contemplation and consideration, and highlight great concepts we can all use.

I wish you and yours a fun-filled adventurous 2007, and hope that all your dreams come true!

Cheers
Teena
http://buildawebsitetonight.blogspot.com

Comment by Teena Hughes | December 31st, 2006 9:08 pm | Permalink

hello,

2006 was the year I was introduced to the world of internet marketing, SEO, E-zines, etcetera to the point I didn’t know whether I was coming or going!…I still have 1800 e-mails to categorise into folders…Let’s just say I have been literally tsunamied with all sorts of usefull information.

In fact it all started when I purchased a copy of Brad callen’s SEO elite and keyword elite. Since then the informatio I got every day in my inbox seemed to grow more and more important…to the point where I’m now on the list of the likes of Mike Filsaime, John Reese and Yanik Silver amongst many others.

I have engaged in several affiliate programs but none of that seems to work for me.

I don’t have a credit card, no list, no fancy autoresponders but I did receive a gift from someone which was a free membership to a site where I can download software and e-books with resale rights. Since it’s impossible for me to put up a website to sell the stuff…I just don’t have the money..(I can barely afford to maintain my artist website)…I came up with another idea…I started a blog and put some ads on there for selling some ebooks…I ask the visitors to send me payment to my paypal account after which i’ll send them the ebooks as an attachment in my thank you e-mail I will send them…

I did this yesterday and also posted those ads on a free advertising forum…

I’m not saying I’ll get a lot of money out of it and if this system will work but hey…it was all I could think of with the ressources that I have…

Anyway I do think it’s a creative solution for someone without the necessary ressources.

Furthermore, Anik, I think you gave some wonderful advice, get a mentor, get a team and focus on quality instead of quantity…

And also, I think that being a musician doesn’t necessarily has to clash with online business…In 2006 I’ve created an album worth of music…all I need is a band (my team, a manager (mentor) and I’m on the road…I’ve been very tied up in 2006 thinking of a way to do online business but I have my product right under my nose…my debut album…I think that’s enough to chew on in 2007!…apart from getting a real live job maybe hehe..

love

your betty

Comment by betty donelly | December 31st, 2006 9:22 pm | Permalink

Anik,

Many thanks for about the only really useful message I got for the new year.
I have printed it out, and intend to make it an action plan for this 2007
My first job will now be to update my affiliate website
www.HelpingAffiliates.info

I got this in a bundle of five domains for ten dollars, and haven’t done anything with it.
Thanks to your newsletter, I’ve now got some enthusiasm for it, and I’ll make sure the Affiliate Classroom features prominently.

My tip for 2007?

It’s an oldie, but one I forget time and time again, with the avalanche of information and “free gifts” I get each day.
Just delete them all unread, and concentrate on the one thing you said you were going to do this day. Tweak that site, write that article, send out another promo email.

Read my article “You should be in a concentration camp!” at www.article-news.org
Search my name Peter Phillips as author

Hope you and your family have a successful new year, good luck to the Indian cricket team in South Africa (watched their second innings yesterday-they were awful!) Good job I live in Australia, although winning so easily gets a bit boring! Actually India is the one team we seem to have trouble with, especially over there.

Cheers from Oz
www.money-makingopportunities.com

Comment by Peter Phillips | December 31st, 2006 9:27 pm | Permalink

Anik,

GREAT advice! I hope everyone who reads your email will take it to heart.

Here’s my one VITAL piece of advice to add…

TAKE ACTION!

I can’t tell you how many students I’ve mentored who have fabulous ideas. They spend weeks researching, planning, preparing… but they NEVER put their idea into action.

It doesn’t need to be perfect before you launch it. It just needs to be “good enough” (you can always include free upgrades, etc. or let people know you’re in ‘prelaunch’).

The point is… until you take action, you won’t make any money.

Comment by Holly Cotter | December 31st, 2006 9:43 pm | Permalink

Hey Adrienne,

Thanks for the kind words, using my name in the same sentence as Mike’s was an honor - he’s a good friend and a brilliant marketer. Watch what he does closely and you can learn a lot!

—–

Valerie,

Thanks so much for your kind words - you and I know each other for so long. We met RIGHT when I was getting started and you were kind enough to have given me space in your newsletter.

And your advice is right on point - hope everyone follows and reads!

—–

Tom,

I try my best “to keep it real” - I think it’s necessary now a days with so much to distract and “scam” us.

Also, your advice was a neat one, what I like most about it is that it helps people budget themselves and NOT overspend on this course and that course.

It teaches discipline and forces you to only spend profit - that is precisely what I did. You know when I started, I had only $100. I took that $100, got a domain name, hosting and a software for $50.

That $100 is what led to everything I have today (and that was $100 I won at a super bowl party!)

——

Teena,

hahaha - I liked that subject line too I was trying to be witty and funny while getting maximum reads!

Glad to see it worked on ya

——

Peter,

HEY! Don’t count our Indian cricket team out quite yet. We’ve had a tough year but we’ll get our acts together Eventually…

And glad to hear you’re getting re-energized!

——

Holly,

Isn’t it funny how some times the SIMPLEST of advice is the most important? You’re absolutely right - YOU GOTTA JUST DO SOMETHING.

That’s why I say, who cares if you fail - FAIL FAIL FAIL, WHO CARES? Make mistakes, get up, brush yourself off and do it again!

It’s the only way to do it.

Btw…for those wondering. I had tried to start at least 3 small tiny businesses before I made it online. My first one was a classified ad in high school advertising computer repair services - I got 1 phone call and it was a prank call ;(

Even to this day, I know I try something, it doesn’t work and so I do it again.

For example, you think I’ve given up on outsourcing since I had that huge loss? Heck no! I just learned from it and am already at it again, but this time it’s working the right way!

Thank you all for contributing - keep ‘em coming!

Anik

Betty,

Ok THIS is what I like to see! See what Holly Cotter wrote above? She said “TAKE ACTION!” - that is precisely what you did!

Here are a few tips that will help make that blog into a business in 2007 (and they’re all free).

A) Well this one costs $20/month - Get an account at aweber.com and set-up a “opt-in” for people on your blog - start building your list!

B) Make sure to get an account at www.ezinearticles.com and start submitting articles - FREE traffic that builds for life!

C) Get into social bookmarking. Start bookmarking the posts you make and over time it builds links AND traffic - also free!

Good luck to you Betty, you’re on the right path!

——-

Comment by Anik Singal | December 31st, 2006 10:09 pm | Permalink

My advice for 2007…

… keep uptodate with the back office paperwork for the business so that the compilation of your annual tax returns and company accounts aren’t so stressful and you will save on accountants fees (if you use one).

I’ve been so busy refurbishing three properties late 2005 and into 2006 that I let my paperwork slip, and had to spend time over Christmas (on and off) getting caught up and checking it all over again. Not something I want to go through in the next tax year!!!

Best wishes to all in 2007.

Gareth C Thomas

Comment by Gareth Thomas | December 31st, 2006 10:17 pm | Permalink

Anik;
Thank you for sharing a Heartfelt Story and Wonderful
Marketing Lessons!

Aside from sharing your experience and terrific advice,
you also remind us of the Most Valuable sales, marketing
and copywriting Advice:

Make it Personal

Best of Success in the Years Ahead, and
Thanks for ALL You DO!
Stephan

Comment by Stephan Iscoe | December 31st, 2006 10:41 pm | Permalink

Anik,
Great report.Web 2.0 is the future along with video advertising.Although the other methods will still fine, you have to keep up with the times and not be afraid to change or add any advertising opportunities that lay ahead.Imagine if you were the ONE who actually spearheaded these opportunities.It just takes a bit of creativity(Actually,a lot of creativity to stand out from the crowd)
As far as your so-called IM friend that pays employees far less than what they are worth.These guys are the ones that hold the key to his company.Any disgruntled employee(If it were me would do everything possible to screw that company and make sure that he or she weren’t making any more money than I was)But then again ,I would have quit long before that.It just pees me off so much when people like this don’t share any profits at all with their employees.
Besides that,I wish you greater success and more prudence in your outsourcing in 2007.
Best Regards,Tim

Comment by Tim | December 31st, 2006 11:13 pm | Permalink

Never forget this:

GREED will always cloud even the best of vision and judgment - UNBRIDLED GREED brings total blindness to fools and wise men alike.

- Dan B. Cauthron

Comment by Dan B. Cauthron | December 31st, 2006 11:24 pm | Permalink

Hi Anik,

Thanks for the good free advice.
I will definitely put this into practice for 2007.
I will return the favor by adding this advice to my blog at www.KyushuNetwork.com with reference to you.

Thanks again,

Colin

www.Ausgo.citymax.com

Comment by Colin | January 1st, 2007 12:15 am | Permalink

I appreciate Anik’s honesty in his failures and his outlook on life in general about learning from those experiences and making them positives. It reminds me of one of my favorite songs. “No hay mal que por bien no venga” (Gloria Estefen). It means ‘From all bad some good must come’.
I am really new at this and I look forward to learning all I can. I feel very lucky to have found AC. Happy New Year Everyone!!! Thanks Anik

Comment by Gena Burns | January 1st, 2007 12:30 am | Permalink

Anik,

Great advice for 2007! I also want to commend you and Rosiland on Blog Classroom. I got a wealth of info from the class and have three great blogs up and running, and get this….they’re all getting traffic too and making a few sales

Again thanks for the great advice and looking to make wonderful things happen in 2007.

I wish you much success in the years ahead and Happy New Year!!

Ruth

Comment by Ruth | January 1st, 2007 12:41 am | Permalink

Hey Ruth!

That’s such great news! We all (meaning the whole class) worked very hard during those 6 weeks and Ros and I were very proud.

It makes 2006 that much better for me to know that it has you up and running. Keep at it, trust me, this time next year those blogs are going to be KINGS in your industry!

Anik

Comment by Anik Singal | January 1st, 2007 12:48 am | Permalink

Anik,
What a great and timely newsletter content! I had just completed putting together my written vision/plan for 2007 and some of this content will certainly form an intergral part of my action plans as I now have direction and focus.I take comfort from your positive approach to lessons learnt from setbacks in lifeand business.

All the best wishes you, family & team in 2007
God bless
Pius

Comment by Pius | January 1st, 2007 1:08 am | Permalink

Hi Anik

Thanks foir an awesome post… I appreciate your honesty and inspiration.

Did you finish telling us about the outsourcing disaster? Or did I miss it?

I have a team of 8 or so full time in India, which I’ve been fortunate with, but geez they get frustrating sometimes… there is not much initiative shown LOL.

Would be interested to hear the details of your trials.

Peter Cutforth

Comment by Peter Cutforth | January 1st, 2007 1:42 am | Permalink

Great post!

My number one tip for people trying to make money on the Internet would be: stay focused!

It’s far too easy to get distracted by the latest fad / guru, but you need to stick to your plans, otherwise you’ll end up with loads of partially-completed projects but nothing actually implemented that earns you any money.

(And, yes, I’ve been guilty of that too!)

Comment by Mark | January 1st, 2007 1:59 am | Permalink

Hey Anik,

Good to hear I am not the only one that screwed up along the way

I think my screw-ups along the way are very close to yours.

Yup, I too have fallen for “too good to be true” stuff that cost me big time. Ahhh, but I learned a lot.

Stumbling a few times along the way is part of growing a business.

You mentioned getting a mentor, I am hugely successful with my online ventures yet I still seek mentorship.

The moment anybody in business thinks they know it all is the moment of demise.

Wishing you the best for 2007 - Still 3 hours left in 06 in my timezone

Cheers!

Colin

Comment by Colin McDougall | January 1st, 2007 2:10 am | Permalink

Hi Anik,
Your articles are powerful. They are an eye opener. If all guru internet marketers are like you, the world would have been a good place. I am a beginner affiliate marketer and I have experienced a lot of failures right from the start. But I wont give up, I would continue to try until I succeed.
Concerning acquiring a mentor, I think that’s a good idea, but what I have discovered is that many “mentors” I have come across are not willing to tell you what particular affiliate program is giving them the kind of success they claimed. Also many good affiliate programs are highly competitive, how can one really succeed as a newbie? I believe a good mentor who wants his mentee to succeed should take the lead to reveal what affiliate program he or she is doing so that such mentee can succeed in record time. Best of all he would even show his mentee his website and strategies. Anik, whats your opinion about this?
I would highly appreciate your impute to this.

All the best.

Ochuko

Comment by Ochuko | January 1st, 2007 3:58 am | Permalink

Hey Ochuko,

Thanks for writing and I applaud your presistance and resolve to NOT give up - that’s what it takes!

However, I disagree with your evaluation of what a mentor does completely. I’m VERY happy that you brought this up because you’re not alone in your belief of what a mentor is…

MANY believe that a mentor is someone that basically holds your hand each step of the way and shows you how to duplicate their business. Well, the truth is that they do NOTHING of such sort. I’m starting to think maybe this is why so many have a hard time getting a mentor? Perhaps too much is expected of them…

Let me continue by using my personal experience as an example. My mentors have NEVER held my hand, nor have they revealed every single strategy or partner of theirs.

The goal of a mentor is to LEAD you the right way, but you still have to do your own work. What good would a mentor be if he said…

“Here Ochukp, copy this website I made and promote program A and B, you’re set, you’ll make money.”

The mentor never really taught you anything!

What happens on site number 2? What happens when it’s time to expand? Or what happens when your mentor leaves or is no longer available? What will you do then?

See, the mentor has to TEACH you HOW they found the programs, and HOW they made that site. Then, you take those teachings and build a SIMILAR business but not in their niche.

What good would it be if I mentored someone and they went out and started www.AffiliateClassroom2.com - that would be direct competition and make no sense, right?

So, the job of the mentor is to guide you - if you’re about to make a mistake, they can catch it and correct you - while also teaching you why you were wrong so you don’t make it in the future.

Also, mentors are great for their “rolodex” - their contact list. I had a recent example of this.

I had a chance to sit down and meet with someone who has (at a very young age) built 2 companies, one he sold for $360 million and the other is doing $600 million in revenue in 2006 alone!

My mentor was a friend of this person so he introduced us and I was able to learn a lot from our lunch together.

Another example, I needed to hire someone to fill a marketing position. My mentor felt he had the perfect fit for me so he introduced me to his friend.

Just those introductions saved me DAYS of headache and THOUSANDS of dollars.

So, you don’t want to literally DUPLICATE the business of your mentor - you want to duplicate the way they THINK and the way they BUILD a business…

I hope this helps?

Anik

Comment by Anik Singal | January 1st, 2007 6:08 am | Permalink

anik.. man this was the BEST peice of riff i’ve EVER
heard from you..

priceless.

i TOTALLY agree on the mentor thing..
i just realized this almost a month ago..
and i think that’s a big big BIG secret of success
for all the big marketers online..

thanks for reminding and thanks for all the tips..
you rock!

Comment by Shariq | January 1st, 2007 6:20 am | Permalink

[…] Anik Singal of Affiliate Classroom posted an excellent article in his blog yesterday, Anik�s �Slap-In-The-Face� Advice For 2007. […]

Comment by Crucial Internet Marketing Focal Points For 2007 » VRE Toolbar Niche Marketing News | January 1st, 2007 8:10 am | Permalink

Hey Shariq,

Thanks man! hahaha, I like that “riff” - I’ve never heard that before.

And yes, mentorship is HUGE. Im blessed to have been so lucky with great mentors through the different stages of my business life.

You’ll be amazed what a hand-shake at a conference followed-up well by you can lead to.

The other thing I want to point out to everyone is that sometimes “mentorship” also comes disguised as “friendship.”

A mentor doesn’t have to specifically take that role. It’s basically someone who has seen the success you want who you call to ask for advice or help before you make major decisions.

Look around, many of you may find that you have someone already quasi-filling that role!

Anik

Comment by Anik Singal | January 1st, 2007 8:48 am | Permalink

This tip could help Betty and anyone else who is working to a very tight budget at the moment.

If you cannot afford the $20 a month for Aweber’com’s excellent autoresponder (AR) & mailing service, use YourMailingListProvider.com — it’s free all the way up to a list of 1000. It is not an AR service but it does let you send an email once per day to your list. With just one tiny ad, which disappears if you pay $5 per month.

Hope this helps,
Gary Harvey
www.eProfitNews.org

Comment by Gary Harvey, eProfitNews.org | January 1st, 2007 9:08 am | Permalink

PS:

One more thing, Betty. You’d need a website to display the subscription form. That could be a free blog from Blogger.com, for example. Or any of the other free blog sites out there. A search of Google or Yahoo could help you locate one you like the look of.

You’d just add the form code to the template of the blog. Blogger.com allows you to do that, then you can preview your changes and approve them if you like what you’ve done or change them if you dont. A bit fiddly, but free!

Gary

Comment by Gary Harvey, eProfitNews.org | January 1st, 2007 9:12 am | Permalink

Anik,

What a great post to find in my inbox this new years day. I’m relatively new to this business having just started in 2006. I’ve not made any significant money yet, but what a learning experience it’s been. Yes, I have spent quite a lot of money. I have a mentor and although it’s not been exactly what I anticipated I have learnt so much which I would not have otherwise learnt.
It can be easy to criticise a mentor because we don’t make millions straight away, but look at the education you are getting.
My tip which Holly has already given is TAKE ACTION.
It is so easy to just keep surfing the net, gaining information and just getting lost in information overload.
If you don’t know what action to take then just TAKE ACTION on one of Anik’s tips or from the guys who have commented. You don’t need to go any further than this blog for a guide.

To great success for us all in 2007.

Andrew

http://realestateinvesting.gallant-investment-property.com/
www.spokenwordbook.com

Comment by Andrew Gallant | January 1st, 2007 9:28 am | Permalink

Gee!!thank you so much Gary…That’s it…! I WILL use your advice and setup an opt-in script on my blog!

betty

Comment by betty donelly | January 1st, 2007 10:48 am | Permalink

My advice would be simple:

Be A Nice Guy.

Networking has brought me most of the opportunities that I’ve had, and I can guarantee you that I wouldn’t have had 99.9% percent of them, if it wasn’t for simply being a nice guy when I’ve met people. Remember people’s names. Send them a Christmas card. Thank them for attending your event. Talk to them and take an interest in them. No matter who they are, give them some time.

Having a good network is SO important, and I can’t think of any better way than to try and help people. After all, there’s a whole lot of people like we were when we started, who need advice and help. Who need mentoring.

That’s my tip.

Comment by Pete Wailes | January 1st, 2007 1:17 pm | Permalink

Hi Anik

Thanks for the useful advice.

I just have a question about blogs. I started one within MySpace some months ago, but as far as I can make out, no-one has bothered to read it! I presume it must be in the wrong place. Do you think I should start a new one on one of those mainstream services? How do you make sure your blogs are read by lots of people? (Assuming you don’t have a “list” to post to).

Anyway…as a newbie, I don’t really have too much advice to give, but I’m learning fast. The one mistake I have made (and its a terrible habit to get out of) is to lose focus too often by being side-tracked by new “offers”. I seem to spend all day researching various offers and never seem to get any real work done.

So my tip is FOCUS.

Comment by Lynn | January 1st, 2007 2:04 pm | Permalink

Two things have helped me and you touched on one:(teamwork)This is my slogan for this year.

Lets Work Together Because, a Team Guarantees Success, Alone Guarantees Failure!

Attitude is Everything!

Thanks for Everything

Flip Parker

Comment by Flip Parker | January 1st, 2007 3:30 pm | Permalink

Anik

Thanks for an this fantastic post… I just luv your honesty and inspiration.

My number one tip for people trying to make money on the Internet would be:

Everyday “Advertise before reading emails, tweeking Websites or watching Video Tutorials”

Concentrate on the job of getting customers buying while your brain is active & alert. Stay focused on the work on hand then once that is accomplished then spend time learning new approaches.

Keep up the good work.
Everyone have the most profitable year ever.

Bob
!

Comment by Bob Howard | January 1st, 2007 5:49 pm | Permalink

Hello Anik,

What a great way to start the new year. There is so much information and advise in your email.

As a newbie to Internet marketing I found your comments to be paramount. The need for mentorship is indeed a must and to find one that you can trust is a difficult task with all of the “so-called” gurus that claim to have everything that you need. So many offer you the world…and never follow up or are so overbearing that you give up on them.

Teamwork is a must, singly, anyone that claims to know-it-all is being foolish. Mentorship and teamwork work hand in hand.

I may be new to the internet but have some years behind me in management and can tell you that teamwork on a task, whatever it is, is a must to be able to become successful within that task.

I like and agree with the comments that I have read here today. Each one of them is positive and strong in commitment in their own way.

So what can I add here…something that my Father instilled in me years ago…and that is “Plan your work…and WORK you plan”!

Profits to all in 2007 and beyond….

Sincerely,

Kris

Comment by Kris W Harney Sr | January 1st, 2007 5:51 pm | Permalink

WOW! You did a fantastic job in writing this article. Very well done indeed. I learned a lot and was asking myself why I do not work more with Affiliate Classroom.

I specially look for a mentor, just someone who can show by example.

Anyhow, I agree that 2007 will be a fantastic year. Your article helped to make it a good start.

All the Best Andreas

Comment by Andreas Walther | January 1st, 2007 7:13 pm | Permalink

Anik, Isn’t a slap in the face (or more basically a kick up the behind!) just what we all need? Thank you so much for the great advice.
If I can do one thing different;y in 2007 it will be to DO IT, NOT JUST THINK ABOUT IT!
For example, I’m a bookseller, and I’ve written a number of articles and book reviews for my site, which I can put good affiliate links in- so why are the artcles still sitting in a folder on my computer and not out posted on my site?
Advice like yours is priceless, yet only has real value when we act on it. Thank you for a much needed slap!
Jane
www.mulberrybookshop.co.uk

Comment by Jane Jones | January 1st, 2007 7:55 pm | Permalink

Hi Anik,
I would think critically about what what you posted in response to my comment about mentorship. I am a member of AC and I must confess that it one of the best internet marketing membership site I have come across.

Comment by Ochuko | January 1st, 2007 8:18 pm | Permalink

Anik,

What a great article! One of your best in fact.

I am definitely including this on our blog for all of our affiliates to read.

Happy New Year to you and everyone at Affiliate Classroom…see you in Vegas!

Comment by Matt McWilliams | January 1st, 2007 8:45 pm | Permalink

I have been at an absolute loss about creating a website and blog. You, along with your readers have given me the courage to jump in and give it a go. Thanks Gary and Teena.
From my house to yours, everyone have a safe and prosperous New Year

Comment by Trish | January 1st, 2007 9:02 pm | Permalink

Anik,

Fabulous advice–thanks so much! Here is my advice to your readers: Just DO something! I spent the last six months of 2006 reading and thinking and intending to do something. This week, I finally DID something. I started a new website and created a blog to go with it. I’ve already written several articles and posted on my blog. So everyone, quit thinking about stuff and DO it!

Comment by Audrey | January 2nd, 2007 1:01 am | Permalink

Anik,

Great advice all around. I was sorry to hear that you were hospitalized and nearly died this year. This was a shock to me as I was part of your Niche List Profits coaching this summer. From the way your business ran, I’d never have known you had any kind of problems. I hope that you have a very healthy 2007!

Entering my 2nd year of doing business online, I have discovered one thing that gives me a huge advantage…and that is PLANNING! In all honesty, I have found that time spent away from the computer, planning is my MOST productive time. It’s been such a huge help that I’ve decided to take time once a month to do nothing but plan.

Without planning I tend to become overwhelmed with what needs to be done…writing articles, testing headlines, adding affiliate offers to my email sequence, etc…The more you let this build up, the more you will do nothing. I’ve literally spent weeks on the computer just wasting time..checking emails, checking web stats, checking emails again, reading a few websites, checking opt in stats…did I mention checking emails?? Basically I was so overwhelmed that I found it easier to just waste my entire day online…and because I have an online biz, I sometimes feel I HAVE to be on the computer all day. This is WRONG!

But once you sit down and write everything down on paper, then take time to organize those thoughts into actionable items…you now have a plan that you can follow. You can just look at it and you know exactly what needs to be done…and you just do it! The first time I did this, I spent 8 hours! I wrote down EVERYTHING I could possibly think of that I needed to do. I then put those items into order and my rpductivity went through the roof. I can’t stress enough how important it is to plan your businesses’ progress..

Here’s to a HUGE 2007,

Chris Hubbard

Comment by Chris Hubbard | January 2nd, 2007 2:49 am | Permalink

Hi Anik,
I read your great information in my email and then came to the blog and read it again! Really a lot of good common sense tips. Thank you. And I agree with the others, it is nice to get some emails on occasion that just have info and no pitches in them.

I have just recently started reworking all of my keywords for my 2 sites in just the manner you suggested. Hopefully that will significantly increase the traffic soon as that has remained a significant problem for my business this year.

One word of advice to those who have yet to build a website. DON’T use a free website service. It makes your site look unprofessional and you will likely get traffic as a subdomain of the hosts primary site. You will never get your site fully into the natural search listings that way.

Looking forward to more great advice from the Affiliate Classroom.

Happy New Year to all.

Karen

Comment by Karen G. | January 2nd, 2007 3:34 am | Permalink

This is one of the best reads I’ve ever come across. There’s a whole lot of truth in what you’ve just shared and I think everyone reading this agrees!

We’ve seen a lot of second-rate products flooding the market and it’s high time it returns to people offering quality products to people.

Internet marketing is a business. And treating it as such with a long-term vision will decide who prospers in the coming years.

Adam
Secrets Of Self-Made Millionaires

Comment by Adam | January 2nd, 2007 10:31 am | Permalink

Anik, I’m not sorry you lost $120,000 last year. I am glad that I need not follow that same path. I joined your email list about a month ago and am happy I did. So many “gurus” all say the same things, but you seem to be different. Your slice of life attitude is unique. Some of your points really hit home with me. Like reward your team for their service.

As Karen above said. Don’t get a so-called free website. I did this for over a year with no results. Then I built my own website. My traffic went from 600 pageviews a month (cost $300 - PPC) to 4000 pageviews a month (cost $0 - organic SEO) with the website I built myself. I consider this level the jump off point. To see how I did this visit the link

Comment by Tim | January 2nd, 2007 10:48 am | Permalink

I DID NOT LIKE TO SAT YOU HAPPY NEW YEAR BECAUSE YOU DID NOT DO ANY WORK FOR ME.

TAKE LOT OF MONEY BUT DO NOTHING ?

LARGE COMPANY BUT NO RESPONSIBILITY

IQBAL

Comment by iqbal | January 2nd, 2007 1:35 pm | Permalink

You Affiliate Marketer are the CEO - Key to Success in 2007…

He talks about changing your perspective this year by seeing yourself and acting like the CEO of your own Virtual Real Estate Company. Stop seeing yourself as just an affiliate or as a web designer, SEO, programmer or blogger. Delegate out all the mu…

Comment by 5 Star Affiliate Marketing Blogs, Google and SEO Blog | January 2nd, 2007 1:58 pm | Permalink

Hey Iqbal,

You seem upset with us, but I’m not 100%
sure what the problem is? Please make sure
you contact our support desk.

Anik

Comment by Anik Singal | January 2nd, 2007 5:31 pm | Permalink

You lost $120,000 due to outsourcing.
Wake up !
You don’t need to manage outsourcing better,
you need to “NOT” outsource.

Comment by H | January 2nd, 2007 6:21 pm | Permalink

Hey H,

I completely disagree. There were mistakes made. And sure, I lost $120k this time. But, so far my entire business which has made me a LOT more money than that has been run off of outsourcing.

Re-read my thoughts on it. I clearly state that you canNOT outsource something unless you have ample knowledge about it:

You canNOT simply outsource the core competency of your business, especially if you know nothing about it. “I’m” not a coder and so I allowed myself to get fooled and “taken” by this company.

If you’re going to make a major outsourcing commitment in an area you don’t understand yourself - make SURE you have someone in your local team who does and who can manage that outsourcing work.

So, you’re partially right.

If someone is going to outsource a part of their business, make sure there is at least 1 person on your IN-HOUSE team that can adequately manage that outsourcing.

Outsourcing can be VERY key to start-ups, please don’t walk away from this thinking that you should not outsource.

Anik

Comment by Anik Singal | January 2nd, 2007 7:24 pm | Permalink

Hi Anik:

I love your advice for 2007.
I am not into affiliate marketing at this time. Even so, your advice for utilizing word-of-mouth marketing including viral marketing tools and blogs is a great reminder for me.

I already use free ebooks as viral marketing tools. In fact, I give away over half - the top half - of my bestselling book How to Retire Happy, Wild, and Free (over 57,000 copies sold and published in 7 foreign languages) and the first chapter of my recent unconventional career book Real Success Without a Real Job as Free Ebooks (in PDF format) on The Real Success Resource Center Website through this direct link:

Free Downloadable Ebooks

and encourage people to send copies to their friends, colleagues, and clients.

But, I have been putting off starting my new blog. You have given me the motivation that I needed to start the blog in the next week which will be called My Retirement Plan: Providing Retirement Planning to Help You Retire Happy, Wild, and Free.

One important tip for other people who have books sold on Amazon.com: Check out my Blog (or Plog as Amazon calls it) on the Amazon.com webpage for How to Retire Happy, Wild, and Free which I had thought about for over 9 months but posted just 2 weeks ago. This has elevated the sales ranking of the book considerably.

And to think that I procrastinated for 9 months before I did this.

Ernie Zelinski
Author of the International Bestseller The Joy of Not Working
(Over 200,000 copies sold and published in 17 languages)

Featured at: The Joy of Not Working

Comment by Ernie Zelinski | January 2nd, 2007 9:42 pm | Permalink

Anik:

Just a further note to your great advice about:

GET A MENTOR: NO EXCUSES

Here is one of my favorite quotations that applies to getting a mentor.

“If I wanted to become a tramp, I would seek information and advice from the most successful tramp I could find. If I wanted to become a failure, I would seek advice from men who have never succeeded. If I wanted to succeed in all things, I would look around me for those who are succeeding, and do as they have done.”

— Joseph Marshall Wade

So long for now,

Ernie Zelinski
Career Change for the Organizationally Averse

Comment by Ernie Zelinski | January 2nd, 2007 11:25 pm | Permalink

Anik,
Affiliates will benefit from reading your information. In 2006, we’ve put our focus on supporting our affiliates, and business is growing! 2007 should be even better!!! Building a team is great advice, and you’re right, we reward them and are not afraid to pay. We are building exactly what you suggested, an “amazing team that stepped up to the plate and took care of everything”.
Thanks, Anik!

Comment by Tracey | January 3rd, 2007 12:40 am | Permalink

My tip for 2007:
latent semantic indexing
look it up, it’s revolutionary.

in short: focus on synonyms of your keywords an related words.

Jonas
www.sitetips.be

Comment by jonas | January 3rd, 2007 3:40 pm | Permalink

So glad it was not me who lost all that money, I would be down the drain, but thanks a lot for your letter.
I realize that I do need a mentor, as I still fell lost in all the information. Although I have read info over and over.
I note that you suggest we get somebody to help us, should you not involve us as a consultant with other people who is looking for help, until we know what to do. I am prepared for help somebody until a realize how to do the workor as long as I am needed.
Please just check my web page although I have not used it at all.
I realize I must start earning, I really have a passion about this business.
I have written to you before without any success of a reply.
Warm Regards
Claudie

Comment by Claudie | January 3rd, 2007 4:00 pm | Permalink

Hi Anik,
Great Blog!

Some of the subjects made it seem as if I were reading
about our past experiences.

Our first developer cost us a lot and generated a
disaster. The second developer did a little better but
dropped the project before completion. The third
company did a much better job. We left California and
allowed ourselves to be talked into changing companies.
It resulted in our business being down for six months.
We finally recovered the data and went back to the
California company. Live and learn - the hard way.
Thank God our customers were glad to see us back and we
picked up where we left off. A true investment.

March of last year I biefly woke up in an emergency
helicopter. Two weeks later, I woke up again with my
wife at my side. My brain went on vacation.

Affiliate Classroom is fantastic. You and your team are
doing a great job.

Speaking of mentors, I would like to get some direction
from you. If this is possible, tell me when and how
much, and take a look at our site (http://www.namesandmore.com).

Thanks.

Max and Darlene Miller

Comment by Max Miller | January 3rd, 2007 7:44 pm | Permalink

Very good post Anik.

I hope you are well again. See you at the Summit in a few weeks. Are you coming to Brook’s Affiliate Dinner? http://www.AffiliateDinner.com

2006 was also an “interesting” year for me. I posted a little story at the RN Blog which might be interesting for some.

http://www.revenews.com/carstencumbrowski/2007/01/a_real_world_web_20_fairy_tale.html

My advice: Be honest, don’t fake and you will be fine.

Another one: Don’t always think about immediate monetization of what you do. It it sounds right and feels right, just do it and make compensation secondary.

You might not make anything or little in a bunch of cases, but often do those things “pay” back nicely and probably in ways you never would have expected in the first place.

You will never know, if you only do stuff where you get immediate financial gain from it.

Cheers and a successful year 2007.

Comment by carsten cumbrowski | January 4th, 2007 3:20 am | Permalink

Anik,

Excellent Post! I have listened to a few of your podcasts and regularly read the Affiliate Classroom magazine and am quite impressed with the up-to-date and useful content you and your team provide - keep up the great work!

As for recent outsourcing woes, I can certainly relate as I have had both good and negative outsourcing experiences. Based on own experiences in managing multiple outsourcing relationships, I have actually recently put together a new report, called “Six Success Strategies for Building Effective Outsourcing Partnerships.” You can grab this report at our site, www.esalesguru.com. I have also created a Podcast based on the report that you can access there as well.

While there are always risks with outsourcing certain business functions, I believe it can be a very powerful tool if managed effectively. Our business, ESalesGuru.com is presently gearing up to launch an innovative outsourcing portal specifically for the rapidly evolving Internet Marketing industry. We actually have incorporated a “Pre-screening” component, so that we can do our best to retain a high quality outsourcing marketplace. Check it out sometime!

All the best in your ebusiness endeavors in 2007!

Craig Cannings

Comment by Craig | January 4th, 2007 3:57 pm | Permalink

Anik

Thanks for the splendid post.
I thouroughly enjoyed reading the blog. Perhaps the the most enjoyable in recent time. Your advices really clicked inside me.
Please find time to read through a blog I have just started http://360.yahoo.com/abuaaremu and make comments on the way forward.
I plan to be in touch regularly with you for the next few months.
Thanks

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