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by Frank Rumbauskas
When I began selling products online, I never once intended to become an affiliate marketer. In fact, I didn’t even know what affiliate marketing was! As an author of books – first my own self-published, then published books – affiliate marketing was unknown to me because, in the world of authors, there are usually no affiliate links. In our world, if I mail to promote a book, the other author returns the favor. Nice and simple. No affiliate checks or programs to mess with!
Internet marketing is different, however, and affiliate marketing and JVs (joint ventures) are a prime source of traffic for most marketers.
When some big-name marketers first approached me to promote their products, I had no idea an affiliate check would soon be in my mailbox. I just assumed that internet marketers did things the way authors did – I’d mail for them, and they’d mail for me. Imagine my surprise when a big fat check arrived a few weeks later!
I’m now considered a top affiliate marketer. I routinely make five figures whenever I promote a big launch, and internet marketers are always asking me how I do it.
And therein lies the irony – I’m a top affiliate marketer because I never wanted to be one!
If you backwards analyze my business model, the reason why I do so well promoting affiliate products is simple. It’s because affiliate marketing is an afterthought for me. I have a large and very loyal list, and as a result, they listen when I promote. My unsubscribe rates are ridiculously low, even when I promote hard. By contrast, most new internet marketers who decide to earn their income as affiliates do poorly. The reason, quite simply, is because top affiliates are usually not just affiliates. They are people who have a product and a platform – THAT is why people listen when they promote.
What I DO NOT do is send out pushy, spammy, high-pressure content trying to push people into buying. Doing that would have destroyed my success a long time ago!
And, while I’m thinking of it, a word on list-building: I obviously have a large list. That’s how I promote. But, unlike many new marketers, I didn’t build that list through JVs. Yes, JVs are the fastest way to build a list. And if you’re brand-new to internet marketing and have no list, that’s a good way to begin building one. The problem, however, is that your list isn’t exclusive. You’re picking up names that are on several other marketers’ lists.
The reason I’m able to do so well in big promotions and blow out a lot of the big gurus is simply because my list is exclusive. By building it in several niches via AdWords, YouTube marketing, and more, I have names that the others don’t. That’s how I, with a list of around 100,000, can outperform marketers with much larger lists. It’s because they may have more subscribers, but I have more exclusives who won’t see the offer from anyone else.
In summary, keep these points in mind. If you work on building your own business with your own products first, you’ll automatically become a powerful affiliate marketer in a very short time!
About the author