Special Report: Home Based
Business And Affiliate Marketing
Exposed
A look into the true heart of making money online.
By Joshua Richards
Special Report: Home Based
Business And Affiliate Marketing
Exposed
A look into the true heart of making money online.
By Joshua Richards
Special Report: Home Based Business And Affiliate Marketing Exposed
1
COPYRIGHT NOTICE
This is a FREE report… Please Show it to your friends and family, post it online
anywhere you like, email it, P2P it, torrent it, whatever. Have a ball!
LEGAL NOTICE
The Publisher has strived to be as accurate and complete as possible in the creation of this
report, notwithstanding the fact that he does not warrant or represent at any time that the
contents within are accurate due to the rapidly changing nature of the Internet.
The Publisher will not be responsible for any losses or damages of any kind incurred by
the reader whether directly or indirectly arising from the use of the information found in
this report.
This report is not intended for use as a source of legal, business, accounting or financial
advice. All readers are advised to seek services of competent professionals in legal,
business, accounting, and finance field.
No guarantees of income are made. Reader assumes responsibility for use of information
contained herein. The author reserves the right to make changes without notice. The
Publisher assumes no responsibility or liability whatsoever on the behalf of the reader of
this report.
©
2008
Joshua Richards, Richards Consulting
Special Report: Home Based Business And Affiliate Marketing Exposed
2
Table Of Contents
Introduction
3
What
is
affiliate
marketing?
4
What
This
Means
to
you
6
Niche? What the Heck is That?
8
What are Multiple Streams of Income?
9
How to Use This Information
11
Appendix A: Guides, and Where to Get Them.
12
Appendix
B:
Necessary
Tools
13
Appendix C: The Secret Bonus
14
©
2008
Joshua Richards, Richards Consulting
Special Report: Home Based Business And Affiliate Marketing Exposed
3
Introduction
What comes to mind when you think of home based
business? How about Internet business, or affiliate
marketing? All three of them have somewhat negative
connotations these days, mostly due to a few confirmed
scams. As the saying goes: one rotten apple can spoil the
whole bunch!
These three things, in and of themselves, are most
definitely not a scam. Another interesting point: they are
actually all the same thing! Affiliate marketing is the most
specific of the three descriptions, with Internet business
being in the middle, and home based business being the all-
encompassing description for Internet and other forms of
work from home.
So, are these things scams? NO! They are all tried and
true methods of making an extra income. Your average Joe
can make a very comfortable living from the Internet... all it
takes is time, commitment and a drive to succeed. Everyone
has these things, although not everyone is willing to use
them. It's all a matter of how badly you want it.
©
2008
Joshua Richards, Richards Consulting
Special Report: Home Based Business And Affiliate Marketing Exposed
4
What is affiliate marketing?
Affiliate marketing has many descriptions, yet all of
them have the same meaning. It is a huge business on the
Internet these days, and it is a cooperative effort between a
merchant and an affiliate. For many years now, affiliate
marketing has proven to be a cost-effective, measurable
method of delivering long-term results. Every day, more
people research what affiliate marketing is, and want to
make money from it. However, in many cases, these new
affiliates do not fully understand the world of affiliate
marketing, and have made costly mistakes. In other words,
affiliate marketing has often been misunderstood.
In affiliate marketing, an affiliate is compensated for
every visitor, subscriber and/or customer provided through
his efforts. The most attractive aspect of affiliate marketing,
from the merchant’s viewpoint, is that no payment is due to
an affiliate until results are appreciated. The most typical
form of affiliate marketing these days is CPA, or Cost Per
Action. This means that the affiliate only gets paid if he
delivers a paying customer to the marketer's website.
An affiliate network typically manages the affiliate
marketing process, and this affiliate network is composed of
two functional bodies: the affiliates and the merchants. Each
has their special function and role when it comes to affiliate
marketing. The affiliate network acts as a third party between
the merchant and the associated affiliates. This network
provides the technology to deliver the merchant’s campaigns
©
2008
Joshua Richards, Richards Consulting
Special Report: Home Based Business And Affiliate Marketing Exposed
5
and offers, and collects commission fees from the merchant
and then pays the affiliates.
The merchant is any web site owner that wants or
desires to take advantage of performance-based marketing.
The benefits to the merchant are many. First, the merchant
maintains and operates the affiliate program. The merchant
needs to do their part by researching interested affiliate
websites to ensure that they are a good fit for there particular
product line. Finding a fit for their merchandise is the key to
generating revenue. The merchant has access to markets
and customers without spending valuable time searching
them out. The merchant is the one whom decides how much
he is willing to pay for each sale that results from a visitor
sent from an affiliate.
Affiliate marketing is a great situation for both the
marketer and the affiliate. If they work together, they both
stand to profit. Affiliate marketing is an easy and inexpensive
way to start making money online, and you can be up and
running within a few days.
©
2008
Joshua Richards, Richards Consulting
Special Report: Home Based Business And Affiliate Marketing Exposed
6
What This Means to you.
The market has become saturated with affiliates.
Although this is great for the merchant, it can be a major
detriment to most affiliates. So, how does one succeed?
Simple. Set yourself apart from other affiliates. The major
reason that you should be different is that many of your
competitors are promoting the exact same program, possibly
in the exact same zone or even on the exact same websites!
Here are some ways that you may want to consider to help
you stay in this business, and have the chance to outwit and
outplay your competitors.
The first thing is set up your own website. It is essential
for you to have your own website, if you plan to make
affiliate marketing your professional career. Second,
potential customers primarily go to websites in order to
search, and sometimes purchase items they were looking
for. Your website is your brand. Having a website makes you
seem like an Internet authority, giving your suggestions
some more weight in the eyes of your customers.
Another thing you should have is your own ad. A lot of
times, affiliate marketers have published the same ad done
by other advertisers two or three times before. In this case,
you may email the owner of your affiliate program asking
permission to make your own ads. This way, people will not
become immune to your ads, as seeing the same ads over
and over again can make your potential customers just skip
it all together. Besides, your primarily purpose is to attract or
©
2008
Joshua Richards, Richards Consulting
Special Report: Home Based Business And Affiliate Marketing Exposed
7
encourage people to click and read your ads, and be curious
enough to click through to your website.
You should also have some products of your own,
which are only available through your website. Once you
have your website going, it is important to have some unique
products or services that your customers can't find at other
affiliate's site. You want your customers to keep coming to
your site, and the best way to do that is to have something
on your site that they can't find on others.
Next, you need to build a strong relationship with
people who already buy your products. In order to fully
answer the questions of your potential customers, it is best
to buy and test the product yourself. If you know what the
product is, you can better sell it. You can share with your
potential customers what a great experience you had with
the product, and this can make them interested enough to
buy it. You can also provide support, if necessary, or you
may provide a tutorial, or steps on how to use the product,
based on your personal experience. It is best to be totally
honest about the product that you are trying to market. If you
find out that the program you were promoting is a scam, stop
promoting it and inform your readers about it. This will help
you build credibility with your Opt-in lists.
We all make mistakes, and admitting your mistakes can
boost your reader's confidence in you. Lastly, don't try to
market everything you see. With services such as Clickbank,
it is easy to become overwhelmed and try to market
everything in the Clickbank marketplace. That's not a good
idea. It's better to focus on one market, or Niche, and market
products that fit in that niche.
©
2008
Joshua Richards, Richards Consulting
Special Report: Home Based Business And Affiliate Marketing Exposed
8
Niche? What the Heck is That?
When I first started out with this beast known as affiliate
marketing, I just grabbed a bunch of high commission paying
products, and started throwing affiliate links all over the
Internet. I did that for over 3 weeks, and didn't get a SINGLE
sale. I almost gave up totally.
Then, someone on the Digital Point forums told me
about Niches. Basically, a niche is a small, narrow, and
highly targeted group of similar products. For example: Xbox
360 Red ring of death repair. Sounds like a single product,
but there are at least 3 different guides on the same subject.
All of them are selling extremely well, because they are in
high demand.
Other examples of good niches, are MLM marketing,
Affiliate marketing, Golf, Cooking, How to play sports, and
computer repair. Each of these things can be further broken
down into even more targeted niches.
Now, I am not saying that you have to pick one niche
and stick with it forever, but pick one niche for each website
that you run. You can build multiple streams of income in this
manner.
©
2008
Joshua Richards, Richards Consulting
Special Report: Home Based Business And Affiliate Marketing Exposed
9
What are Multiple Streams of Income?
Have you ever heard or read the phrase "multiple
streams of income" before? Do you know what this phrase
means? For many businessmen, creating multiple streams
of income is one way of securing themselves as well as their
businesses in the future. They also believe that it can save
them from the so-called famine effect in the business
industry. If you depend on just one source of income and this
single stream has vanished, you'll find yourself bankrupt and
wondering what to do next.
The initial step to create multiple streams of income is
to have a website. But if you're already a Webmaster or a
site owner, you definitely have an edge. A good portion of
affiliates have no website, and just market with their adds in
articles and forum postings only.
Affiliate marketing is one of the most desirable ways to
make multiple sources of income. This is because affiliate-
marketing programs can come in various shapes and forms.
There is a huge amount of affiliate marketing programs that
you can sign on with and start making money immediately.
It is advisable to promote multiple merchants in your
site so that your visitors will have variety of destinations to
choose from. Using multiple merchants in the same site or
niche means only one thing - you have multiple streams of
affiliate income. There is absolutely nothing wrong with this
business strategy, as this is one of the best ways to protect
your business.
©
2008
Joshua Richards, Richards Consulting
Special Report: Home Based Business And Affiliate Marketing Exposed
10
However, you should choose only those affiliate
programs that interest you so that you can effectively
advertise and promote them. Don't ever be tempted into
signing up for numerous affiliate programs in the hope that
one of them will bring income. Select wisely and don't be
engaged in selling products you know nothing about. Go with
the stuff that jives with your enthusiasm; your passion can
capture your client by the nose and guide him/her to your
affiliate link.
You should also work hard to make your multiple
streams of income more stable. You can do this by
embracing some strategies and tactics and by developing
within yourself, some traits that can help you become
successful in any kind of business such as patience,
persistence and thirst for knowledge.
Lastly, just remember the adage that says "Don't put all
your eggs in one basket." So that if one of them is lost, you
can still make an omelet. What do these eggs have to do
with multiple streams of affiliate income? Well, it goes
without saying that the more streams of income you
possess, the bigger and better your money lake becomes.
©
2008
Joshua Richards, Richards Consulting
Special Report: Home Based Business And Affiliate Marketing Exposed
11
How to Use This Information
Now, all that is really left, is to direct you to the places
to get what you need to get started making money online.
There are places to get the necessary info, some free, some
not. Generally, the free sources are not as reliable, but they
have their merits.
I have included a rather large Appendix, filled to the
brim with links to both free and paid sources of information,
resources and programs to give you a helping hand using
the information in this report.
All you have to do, is read on, select what you like, and
click! May you make your fortune, and someday thank me
for my small part.
Best of luck,
Joshua Richards.
©
2008
Joshua Richards, Richards Consulting
Special Report: Home Based Business And Affiliate Marketing Exposed
12
Appendix A: Guides, and Where to Get
Them.
A very good, if rather condescending,
explanation of the inns and outs of affiliate marketing.
Highly recommended. Don’t let the standoffishness
drive you away; his guide is packed with useful
information.
An Excellent, and large, guide
about opt-in mailing lists. A must read.
(pay per click) Advertising. Also a must read.
A Good PPC Guide. Not as good as the
Google Magic Formula, but includes some more
interesting information. Recommended.
©
2008
Joshua Richards, Richards Consulting
Special Report: Home Based Business And Affiliate Marketing Exposed
13
Appendix B: Necessary Tools
THE Autoresponder for your opt-in lists.
Necessary.
If you plan on using Clickbank as a
merchant to sell your own ebooks and reports, this is a
must have. That, and its dirt-cheap! This link takes you
to a special order page, where you get it for only $1.99!
(You can find it elsewhere for $4.95 - $9.95)
HTML editor. Right up there with Dreamweaver and
FrontPage for ease of use and quality, it is absolutely
free. Must Have.
Free FTP Client. Recommended. You can grab a
copy from my
Generator. Grab Your Copy
©
2008
Joshua Richards, Richards Consulting
Special Report: Home Based Business And Affiliate Marketing Exposed
14
Appendix C: The Secret Bonus
And now we come to the best part. For all those of you who
read the whole report (or cheated and skipped to the end for
the good stuff
☺) here is a special bonus:
Over $12,000 dollars worth of Private Label Rights Content
(If you don’t know what PLR Content is, Think public domain,
but better) for FREE! Click The Link Below to Check It Out!
©
2008
Joshua Richards, Richards Consulting