Surgery update, new video, BANS, eBay program and more…
Duh. I only realized today that I didn’t send an NPT newsletter update. Blame it on the morphine… that stuff will really mess up your mind.
First of all, for all those who inquired — I’m feeling much better. Ed sent a short but sweet surgery update and I got out of the hospital last Tuesday. (I just told the doc I was going home and he said “OK”). Shortly afterwards, I got word that the mass was benign. So now it’s just a matter of moving really slow for the next few weeks.
So, while I’ve been housebound, I’ve been blogging and made a video.
The video is a very basic affiliate marketing tutorial called “How Affiliate Marketing Works” in which you’ll see one of my sites, the products that I promote on that site, how I affiliate with merchants and how easy it is to get the affiliate link code to place in your blog.
Posts since the last newsletter include:
- PubCon Las Vegas Dates Announced
- Polling Plugin for Wordpress Blogs
- How to Exclude a Blog Category from Displaying
- Amazon’s Video Widget for Affiliates
- PPC Advertising Doesn’t Work
- Free Bootcamp DVD’s
- Where to Place Affiliate Links for Increased Backend Sales
- eBay Dumps Commission Junction
- Happy Easter Everyone!
- BANS to be Updated by April 1st
I’ll send the next update sooner, so you won’t have quite such a long list of posts to review next time.
See you next time.. and once again, thanks for all your prayers and good wishes!
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BANS to be Updated by April 1st
As a follow up to my post about eBay leaving Commission Junction and setting up their own Partnership program, as well as concerns expressed by BANS (Build a Niche Store) users, here’s part of the email reply that I got from Kelvin…
Hi Rosalind…good to hear from you.
I can confirm that all versions of BANS will be updated as soon after the eBay affiliate transition as possible - ideally on the 1st April.
Best,
Kelvin
Good going, Kelvin. I just KNEW you wouldn’t let us down! 
To learn more about BANS, please read my How to Easily Add eBay Listings to Your Site post.
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Video: How Affiliate Marketing Works
Here’s a video that I made for you to show you the basics of how affiliate marketing works.
You’ll see one of my sites, the products that I promote on that site, how I affiliate with merchants and how easy it is to get the affiliate link code to place in your blog.
Of course, to learn all about how affiliate marketing works, get the Super Affiliate Handbook - the affiliate marketing industry’s standard training manual.
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Happy Easter Everyone!
Just a quick note to wish all the NPT readers a very Happy Easter.
Here’s hoping that the Easter bunny was good to you and that you are able to spend the day with family and friends.
Relax and Enjoy.
Cheers,
Ros
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eBay Dumps Commission Junction
eBay published a press release, portions of which are reprinted below:
SAN JOSE, Calif.,– March 17, 2008 – Today eBay unveiled the eBay Partner Network, a new global affiliate program for publishers driving traffic to eBay. Officially launching on April 1st, 2008, the eBay Partner Network will be eBay’s new in-house affiliate network, designed to more fully align the programs across eBay’s global properties and give affiliates expanded access to revenue opportunities across its platforms.
and…
As part of the move to an in-house affiliate network, eBay and Half.com will no longer run their affiliate programs through ValueClick’s Commission Junction platform. eBay’s Tradera AB, ProStores, Inc, Reseller Marketplace, Media Marketplace, eBay Stores and StubHub will not be affected and will continue their relationship with Commission Junction. eBay affiliates working with other platforms including, Affilinet and TradeDoubler will not be affected.
Affected eBay and Half.com affiliates will be required to move their affiliate links over to the eBay Partner Network by May 1st, 2008. eBay will continue its valued partnership with ValueClick’s technology division, Mediaplex, for ad serving, tracking and other custom projects. More information on the transition process for eBay affiliates, as well as the eBay programs affected, can be found at http://affiliates.ebay.com.
While this is great news for the scores of affiliates who hate Commission Junction and particularly its tracking system, a number of affiliates who are using BANS (Build a Niche Store) are expressing concern on ShoeMoney’s blog over the change.
Although I have yet to hear anything from Kelvin, the BANS developer, I trust he’ll get a new version out in time. Just to be sure, I’ll pop him a note and report back on what he says… will need to make some changes to my own BANS installation over at Roamsters.com.
In the meantime, to learn more about BANS, check out this blog post - How to Easily Add eBay Listings to Your Site.
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Where to Place Affiliate Links for Increased Backend Sales
In the following video I discuss where you should (and should not) place affiliate links for increased backend sales. Enjoy!
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Free Bootcamp DVD’s
Hi all, I’m just home from the hospital and after plowing through about 200 emails, I finally came across one that should make you happy.
… Derek Gehl is giving away his $297 “Internet Millionaire’s Protege Bootcamp” DVDs for FREE!
This means you can get 7 hours of professional online business training in the comfort of your very own home — and all YOU have to pay is the cost of shipping the package to your door!
But apparently there are only 121 copies of Derek’s world-class training DVDs left… so click here to claim your free 7-hour DVD training system now.
BTW, Derek is also throwing in a free 30-day membership to his exclusive Internet Entrepreneur Club… Which means you’ll have unlimited access to his online building experts — and can ask them any questions you want — for a whole month!
OK, now back to sifting through the other 500 emails that came in…
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PPC Advertising Doesn’t Work
I couldn’t help but notice the ad shown here to the left when I was checking my Gmail the other day.
“PPC Advertising Doesn’t Work” the ad loudly proclaims and then goes on to say that “You’re Throwing Away Money Since Your Visitors Don’t Trust You“.
Wait a sec.
The company is USING Google Adwords, Google’s pay per click advertising to advertise its service.
So, unless they’re complete idiots who are purposely throwing money down the PPC drain, doesn’t the PPC Advertising Doesn’t Work ad title make them liars — or guilty of misrepresentation to say the least? Especially considering their product has NOTHING to do with PPC advertising, a marketing method that isn’t even mentioned on the site.
They are selling a product that is supposed to enhance visitor trust - a seal to place on your website that guarantees that your testimonials are real - so wouldn’t it make more sense for these advertisers to try a different pitch? How about “Your Visitors Don’t Trust You”, “Beware Fake Testimonials” or “Build Customer Confidence”?
The point is, don’t believe everything you see under that “Sponsored Listing” column. While Google spouts its commitment to relevant advertising, the truth is that because ads don’t go through an editorial process before being displayed, Google advertisers are still getting away with breaking the FTC’s most basic rule of advertising:
Advertising must tell the truth and not mislead consumers. In addition, claims must be substantiated.
And just for the record, PPC advertising DOES work. I’ve been using it every day since 1998, and wouldn’t want do business on the Internet without it.
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Amazon’s Video Widget for Affiliates
I just checked out Amazon’s video widget and it’s a piece of cake to use. Once you’re in the Amazon affiliate interface, you just:
- Click on Build Links/Widgets
- Click on ‘Add to Your Web Page’ under Your Video Widget
- Click on Upload a Video
- Browse and Select a video to upload from your computer
- Agree to the Terms
- Give Your Video Widget a title
- Upload the Video and wait for it to process (Refresh the page to check the processing status)
- Play the Video and Click on Add Product at the point you wish to insert the popup
- Enter the name of the product you wish to insert
- Click on the Add Product button beside the product
- Save and preview your video
- Grab the code and embed it on your site
In the example below, I added a book called The Ultimate Guide to Spas and Hot Tubs : Troubleshooting and Tricks of the Trade
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Happy Birthday Flickr!
Flickr, the digital photo management and sharing site turns 4 years old today and I just wanted to say “Happy Birthday” to one of my favorite online services.
I have 2 Flickr Pro accounts, one for my business-related pics and another that Ed and I share for our travel and personal pictures.
I love Flickr and the more I use the service, the greater my adoration. The mapping feature as depicted in the graphic below is especially neat.
For example, I took the picture of the CF-116A Freedom Fighter shown above left in Kamloops, B.C. However, because many folks won’t know where that is, I added it to the map for their quick reference and it even gives you latitude and longitude coordinates. I absolutely love when others do the same as it improves my overall mental map of an area.
Of course, I also appreciate that Flickr drives traffic to my blog from links placed in relevant photo descriptions… much like the resource box used in article marketing.
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