As many of you know, I've always considered myself more of an e-mail and SEO affiliate. I never did much PPC at all, too much tracking and headache for me (the thought of logging in multiple times a day scares me - I prefer to sit around and collect free traffic). Yes, yes, I know, PPC CAN be "sit-around" traffic too, I just never played with it until end of last year and mostly starting in Q1 this year. Honestly, I just got tired of hearing all the HUGE stories of affiliates making a GAGILLION dollars using PPC, so I wanted in! Well, as my PPC brain swells with wisdom and knowledge, I've learned a few things I want to share with you affiliates who are also looking to grab a piece of Google, Yahoo or MSN's traffic.

A) I found that a LOT of these affiliates who claim to make $1 million+ in commissions are also spending close to $989,000 in ad expense (yes, I do exaggerate a bit). B) If you're just starting, don't expect your PPC to be profitable right off the bat - typically it can take days for you to work your costs down, tweak your keywords, etc...

But, here's the real doozy for me that I've never really read in all these "I make a million buck... Read More →

As a follow-up to our recent post, I found an interesting video inside YouTube by shoemoney where he tells us all to CALLLM DOWN! First of all, although I have heard PLENTY of rumors regarding the Adsense Abitrage BANNING, I am yet to have even one student actually report that they received one of these e-mails. I bring this up because ShoeMoney says the same thing - he hasn't heard of anyone actually getting the notice. Now, do "I" really do Adsense Arbitrage, the answer is yes and no. I only have a couple of Google Adword campaigns that take traffic to a page that has Adsense ads. I end up breaking even on these campaigns (maybe make a few bucks profit). But the best part is that I get a bunch of subscribers out of it, so in the end it is very profitable. But, see here is the catch - my sites are GOOD sites with relevant content, they just have ads squeezed in them. So, no in the terms that it's definitely NOT a "business strategy" for me, I think it's silly to make it a business strategy (relying on the same source for traffic AND your income is not of interest to me). So, I will agree with ShoeMoney when he sa... Read More →

I just read an interesting post that warned AdSense publishers that they will soon have their accounts disabled - as of June 1st to be exact! Even big accounts (those making $10,000 or more) have been notified that in two-weeks, their arbitrage accounts will be disabled. I really can't blame Google for taking this step. I was talking to a friend the other day who was doing some research and she just wasn't getting anywhere because of all the garbage out there! Thank goodness I've never concentrated on setting up "Made for AdSense" sites, mainly because I have a hard enough time managing my 10 Niche Affiliate sites. I've never really thought it was interesting enough to have thousands of five to ten page sites dedicated just to making money on AdSense. That was, however, how a lot of people were making big money - both in marketing the sites and in selling "Made for AdSense" Templates. Now the good ole days are over!

The good news is that Google warned those who will be affected, so the advertisers won't keep advertising and sending people to pages that can ... Read More →

That's right. You think you're so slick in the affiliate programs you find, the keywords you use, the ads you test - not for long buddy! Now, I have the ability to stalk your campaigns. As a matter of fact, the software is running as we speak - I MAY be researching one of your niches and finding everything out about it! Things like...

1. What affiliate program(s) you promote. 2. How long you run your ads. 3. What time/day you shut your ads off. 4. What keywords you advertise on. 5. What ads you use (all your split testing). 6. Which of your ads Google favors.

I'm not even done yet! Ok, so before you start freaking out, no, I don't have an "out" for you - I'm just using this post as an example of what I "could" be doing using this new Google Adwords Software I've been testing lately. I've had this in my hands for about 3 weeks now and I am absolutely completely blown away. To be honest, this may be THE most shocking software I've ever seen in my entire life (no I'm not just hyping it up). Lately, everyone has been all "goo goo ga ga" over Chris Carpenter's new "Read More →

This is definitely the "eye-catcher" of the day for me. As I was doing my "blog rounds" today, I landed on a very shocking post by Shoemoney where he talks about how the Rich Jerk is selling out to avoid bankruptcy! Apparently the business was found for sale at this website... There were actually a few things I was shocked to learn by reading this story.

1. The Rich Jerk had investors. 2. He "apparently" blew all the money on buying advertising that -- I guess -- didn't work. 3. The rumor that he's doing this to avoid bankruptcy!

I don't know about you, but I was under the impression that the Rich Jerk was VERY successful and making MILLIONS! As I sit here and read this story there are a few things that come to mind. First of all, this could all be a rumor or some "marketing ploy" - I mean it IS the Rich Jerk, who knows with him! Secondly, I guess we should not believe all the hype we see! No d... Read More →

I really like to do things the easy way. Unfortunately the easy way usually turns out to be either the hard way, or the way that won't work. I admit that I have tried some shady "get indexed in 24 hours"methods, but most of them don't work! I have learned that if you really want to get indexed and STAY indexed, patience is a virtue and planning is essential. Here are five things that I have learned about getting indexed: 1. Money won't get you indexed faster. Throwing money at a problem rarely works and getting indexed isn't an exception. Buying links or even purchasing entire high PageRank sites is no guarantee. In fact, when a new site comes online with hundreds of back links, it raises red flags. No search engine believes that a new site can come online with a hundred sites already linking to it so not only is throwing money out there to get indexed not helpful, it might even slow the process down. 2. Plan ahead. Getting a domain and instantly going live is a big mistake. Yo... Read More →

Affiliate Classroom magazine's May 2007 Issue - Traffic Techniques - will help you turn traffic into sales! Believe it or not, this is issue #29 of the Affiliate Classroom Magazine! That means we started publishing this eMagazine over 29 months ago! That's 2 years and 5 months! This issue highlights one of the most important things an affiliate marketer needs be able to do - generate traffic to his or her web site! The May 2007 issue of Affiliate Classroom Magazine will teach you a few easy ways to start directing traffic your way. You'll get a Step-by-Step 5-day action plan for acquiring traffic after you read "5 Days To more Free Traffic." "Turning Traffic Into Sales" will teach you the best way to handle all that new traffic. It's important to know where those visitors are going after they reach your site. And that's not all. "Measure That Traffic!" will teach you how to track your statistics. You will know know if the changes you are maki... Read More →

Usually in my blog posts, I take a concept related to affiliate marketing and explain it in a way I hope is beneficial. Today, I’d like to touch on the concept of the blog itself. Don’t worry – I won’t drone on about the definition of a blog. (That would be like the teacher in the movie “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,” calling the roll in the classroom: “Bueller…Bueller…Bueller…”) You already know that a blog is an interactive online journal, or you wouldn’t be reading this particular blog. Instead, I'll focus on a key question: should an affiliate marketer build out a website, or a blog? The question gave me pause. After all, I’ve said from time to time that one of the most important things you can do in starting an affiliate marketing business is to build a website. By that I’ve meant a “traditional” site, containing a home page and links to additional web pages that help you promote products and/or services. Starting a blog instead of a traditional website has one particular disadvanta... Read More →

Long time readers of Affiliate Classroom magazine, and thousands of others, will already be familiar with Stefan Everaet's Niche Content Packages site. For two years now, Stefan has offered the finest PLR content for sites looking for new or fresh articles. Well, a great thing just got greater. Stefan has revamped the business model, and done a complete makeover on the site to go with it. The results are spectacular in both function and looks. Formerly, Niche Content Packages allowed a certain number of subscriptions and no more. That helped keep the possibility of duplicate content across multiple sites down to a reasonable level. Responding to customer requests, the membership cap has been removed and new options for accessing content have been implemented. But the advantage of keeping the number of sites with similar c... Read More →

We are very excited to announce that the entire Affiliate Classroom web site will soon be updated! Like every smart Training Facility, we need to know what works, and what could be improved upon. That's why we are asking for your Case Study or Testimonial on what worked (or is working) for you as a student of the Affiliate Classroom. If Affiliate Classroom or AC Magazine has helped you start, change or grow your online business, we will reward you for telling us your story! Just submit your Personal Case Study or Testimonial about AC. You will also have a chance to win cool prizes.

This is an excellent opportunity for you to get your web site listed on the AC web site and get a LOT of exposure.

You see, if your Case Study or Testimonial is selected, your web site's address will be listed on our newly updated AC Home Page. That's definitely a bonus that will help your site get recognized, as well as bring traffic to you as we continue to grow. Our number one go... Read More →