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Monday, March 26, 2007

Why Aren't You Using Video?

Last year, Ken Evoy of SiteSell.com conducted a video contest that paid $10,000 for the first prize.

Yes, $10,000.

He simply asked his customers to create a 2-3 minute video for why they love his product, Site Build It!.

Well, the video entries came pouring in, and even though there could only be one winner, many of the contest participants still feel like winners even though the contest ended months ago.

Why?

Because they are using their own videos on their websites to show their audience how Site Build It! has changed their lives. And as SiteSell affiliates, they earn a commission for every person that buys. Some of the customers reported sales immediately after they launched their video.

Here's an example of a customer video below...



Of course, these SBI! customers could have written an article talking about the product, but a video showing their expressions and emotions is far more effective, because video connects with people in a way that text on a screen cannot.

Anyone can write about how great a product is, but there's something about a visual that really adds a taste of realism to your testimonials.

If you have an ecommerce/affiliate website, I really hope you're thinking of adding video in some way. It is the future, and that's why we're starting to see more companies offering video tools for their affiliates to use on their sites.

WebVideoZone is a great resource for learning how to develop video for your website. Joe's site is super informative and suitable for all levels of expertise.

Sunday, March 25, 2007

Make Money With MySpace

I've discovered a nice little way to generate residual commissions from my MySpace page. It involves showing your friends how to shorten their MySpace web page address.

I've always hated that the MySpace address of my page was long and ugly. Well, here's a way to resolve that and generate a little cash on the side.

Learn how.

Friday, March 23, 2007

Why Won't Google Rank Me?

Every now and then I'll get emails from people who are puzzled as to why they can't get ranked in Google. And almost every time I review the site in question, I see the same things...


  • - Not enough unique, useful content

  • - More affiliate links than content

  • - Too few pages


Google makes its money from advertisers. Advertisers use Google because it's the Web surfer's #1 search engine.

Why is Google #1 among Web surfers?

Because it provides useful, relevant results.

Look at your site through the eyes of a stranger. Imagine someone arriving at your site after typing in the keywords you are targeting.

Would they find what they were looking for?

Does your site provide enough info on the topic that your visitor would want to stay and return later?

Is your content useful and unique?

If you answered "no" to any of the above questions, then that may be a big reason why you aren't having success with Google.

Now of course, there are other factors Google looks for - link popularity, keyword density, etc. However, the biggest problem I see with most people is that they simply do not provide enough useful content on the keywords they are targeting.

Google loves big sites that focus on one main theme. If your site is not "bookmarkable" then you need to work on expanding content. Take a look at your competitors and add information that they don't provide. What can you do to make your site stand out in your niche?

Become THE information source for everything related to your topic. Pretty soon Google and other Webmasters will reward you with traffic... for free!

Tuesday, March 20, 2007

Want to Copy MySpace?

It seems that everyone wants to capitalize on the success of MySpace.com and build a site like this successful company. While it sounds like a great idea based on their success, do you really understand what goes into creating a site like this?

After numerous questions on how to create a site like MySpace, I simply had to write an article about this.

Some say the article is discouraging. I call it realistic.

Microsoft FrontPage Replaced

If you haven't heard, Microsoft is no longer selling or supporting Microsoft FrontPage. Windows Vista has a replacement product, and it's called Microsoft Expression.

So far the reviews for this new web publishing tool have been less than stellar. I've heard it's not nearly as easy to use as FrontPage, and there are still a lot of bugs to work out.

So until the Web hosts stop supporting FrontPage (and I think it will be a while before that happens), I'll continue to use it. Sounds like Microsoft Expression has some fine tuning to do.

By the way, you can still buy Microsoft FrontPage at Amazon.com.

Sunday, March 18, 2007

Turn Your "About Me" Page Into $$$

I discovered this neat little trick by accident. If you are familiar with my site, you know I push Site Build It! (SBI!) pretty heavily. Not just because I'm an affiliate, but because it really worked for me and it has changed many people's lives.

I got tired of hearing all the raving reviews about SBI!, so I bought it in July of 2005 to see if it was really worth all the hype. My site, flat-stomach-exercises.com was an instant hit. Not just because I used Site Build It!. I have to give a little credit to all the hard work I put into it as well.

Remember, there's no product that can make you rich, you have to put the work into building content. SBI! gave me the guidance that helped me succeed. It's so nice to know that all my search engine and sitemap submissions are automatically taken care of while I work on keeping my content fresh.

Anyway, I digress. After about three months I started getting e-mails from people who wanted to know why I provide so much weight loss information for free when other sites charge for the same info.

So I created an "About Me" page that explains a little about myself and that I used Site Build It! to create the site. I explained how I used Google AdSense and encouraged my visitors to do the same with their own sites. I supplied a link over to Site Build It! and instantly the sales began to roll in.

That taught me a big lesson about PREselling. Even though that site isn't about website creation, my "About Me" page gave my site some personality and helped me build a bit of credibility. People genuinely liked my site, wanted to learn more about me and then were inspired by my story.

If you aren't using an About Me page to tell your story, you could really be missing out on additional revenue. People like to know there's a real person behind that web page, and it also helps to add a photo of yourself. After all, what do you have to hide, right?

Instead of trying to hard sell with banners, ads, etc. Sometimes something as simple as a small recommendation on your "About Me" page can be twice as effective.

Or if you don't have a Site Build It! success story like I have, you can simply refer your visitors to start their own sites with a regular web host. Join the Ultimate Domain Reseller program and earn a residual income (on domains and hosting) when your visitors start their websites through your link.

You don't have to have a site on website development to profit from these kinds of affiliate programs. Everyone wants a website these days. You just have to find creative ways of getting your audience interested. Start with your "About Me" page!

Saturday, March 17, 2007

Why Most Blogs Fail

I get emails from people all the time asking me why they need to pay for a website when they can just create a free blog. After all, many people are making money just by blogging.

While this is true, the average person does not realize there's more to blogging than just "putting up a blog." Successful bloggers (I call them blog mavens) have created a following in their niche, and give people a reason to return to their blog. They're creative and understand how to draw in their audience.

Don't blog just for the sake of blogging. Find your niche. Know your audience. Develop your unique voice. Blog about unique topics and stay away from posting the same ole' info people can find anywhere.

Just like successful websites, blogs that succeed provide useful information to a specific niche, and the author continues to update it with relevant content.

Don't just put up a blog, build your brand of one.

No Space For MySpace at Google

With the huge MySpace revolution going on, thousands of people are flocking to myspace.com to create their home on the Web. After all, it's free, easy and you can make tons of new e-friends without ever leaving the comfort of your own home.

While MySpace is a great place for networking and sharing information, it's not an ideal place for a site that you'd like to get listed in Google and some of the other major search engines.

To get a top ranking in the major search engines, you need a site with a lot of content centered around a theme or topic. The majority of MySpace sites are personal pages with no real theme or focus. Therefore they don't score well with the major search engines.

And if you want to make money out here, it is crucial that you build a site that the search engines love. You can receive thousands of free hits per day from Google alone.

So while MySpace is an awesome site for a quick and easy personal page, if you really want a chance to rank well with the major search engines, you really should register your own domain name.

Tuesday, March 13, 2007

$1.99 Domain Names

WebsitePalace.com is running a nice special where you can get domain names for $1.99 if you also sign up with hosting or any of their other products. There's no limit on the quantity of domains you can order. Better jump on this before it ends.

Saturday, March 03, 2007

Kudos To CoffeCup HTML Editor!

I bought CoffeeCup for the first time in 2005 and was mildly impressed with it. It was pretty easy to use, but one thing that bothered me was that you couldn't edit your pages in the "design mode." You could only edit in the "code view."

Needless to say, this didn't sit well with a lot of beginners. And even though I am pretty savvy with HTML, I still like having the ability to work outside the code.

Well, their 2007 version is a tremendous improvement over earlier ones because you can now edit right in the design mode, so you can see the immediate impact of any changes you make to your page.

I learned HTML by using FrontPage and I was used to being able to edit in "design view", so needless to say, this was a thrilling new feature for me. In my opinion, this makes CoffeeCup much more suitable for beginners now.

Way to go CoffeeCup!

Friday, March 02, 2007

How I Make Six Figures Online

My friends and family are in awe of the amount of money I make with my sites. To be honest, sometimes I am too. It's hard to believe something that started out as a hobby/side income venture, has turned into a full-time income that allowed me to quit my job.

The process is very simple, but unfortunately most people don't have or want to take the time to let something like this develop. It definitely takes time and I would never tell you this happened overnight.

Here are two important tips for long-term success online...

1) Choose a topic you love. This is the most important step and here's why...

The reason my sites make money is because I get a lot of traffic. If you don't have any traffic you won't make much money. The free search engines (especially Google) love large sites and they can also tell how many unique sites voluntarily link to you.

If you build a site with a ton of great information in a specific niche, over time people will begin to voluntarily link to you for free, and Google, MSN and Yahoo will begin to notice your site is popular and reward you with a ton of free traffic.

2) Choose affiliate programs that pay residual income for lifetime customers. For example, say you have a fitness site and you join an affiliate program for a gym membership.

So when you refer your visitors to sign up for a membership, the company pays you a percentage of your referrals membership fee for as long as they are a member. If a customer is a member for 10 years, you get paid every month for as long as they are a customer!

Those are the kind of affiliate programs I look for. The 5 Pillar Program is a great example. I actually bought their product and made a lot of money with it so getting my visitors to buy is pretty easy because they read about my success story.

That's another important tip...always buy the products you recommend!

They pay you a 25% commission for every customer for life. So let's say I get 30 people to buy Site Build It! this month. That's roughly $2250 for that month. When those customers renew their SBI! subscription a year later, I get that $2,250 again PLUS any new commissions from new customers for that month.

So over time, the residual commission begin to pile up. There are some affiliates in the 5 Pillar Program making 5 figures per month largely because of the residuals.

The Ultimate Domain Reseller Program is another example of residual payments. They actually offer a reseller program. This is a bit different from an affiliate program because you can actually set your prices and determine your profit margin. For that reason, there is a yearly fee.

With this program you selling domain names and web hosting. You don't have to have a site about web design to successfully sell their products. You could write a small "About Me" page on your site and tell a short story of how you created your site, then offer them the links to begin their own.

Every customer that creates a site from your link will earn you a commission every month for as long as they keep their site.

I receive 5 figure checks per month from them because of the residual commissions. I've been a reseller since 2002 so the income is really snowballing now.

For a listing of more lifetime commission affiliate programs, see LifetimeCommissions.com