Is there any way to get the secret?

[grumpyoldman]

After many months visiting this forum and leaving posts I finally have to ask. How is it possible to sell half a million dollars worth of affiliate products when it's a well known fact that nobody buys affiliate products. It is actually way beyond belief.

As I've posted else where on this forum, I have 100 affiliate products - with good copy - and, between them they've had 11,000 visits in six months. Sales have totalled 2 - one $15.63 and one $6.37.

I should imagine that this is the average for affiliate sales.

I've also written a number of e-books that have been widely distributed, over the last 12 months and there has not been one single sale from the links in them. By my calculation, at least 50,000 links have gone out in my e-Books. NOT ONE SALE.

So, 61,000 links = $22. Pretty good, eh?

To make half a million with affiliate sales, and there's no offence here, just admiration, must be some sort of deception on a grand scale.

People just do not buy from affiliate links. NEVER

What do you have to tell them that will put them off their guard and stop them thinking sensibly?

There must be some sort of hypnotism involved.

Please don't say Rosalind's e-Book - all due respect, I'm sure that it's great, (at $47 it would have to be solid gold ) but I don't think any of us have ever made a cent from any e-Book.

There MUST be a good con somewhere. Is anyone going to let on

[Brewster]

Hi Grumpyoldman

I can see why you are grumpy! That is alot of links for not alot of dollars. However, I would hold fire on the statement that no-one buys from affiliate links - that is a gross over generalisation

I'm wondering what the subject of the ebooks that you wrote were.

The real secret I think of affiliate is targeting your ads at the correct audience - sometimes this is the difficult bit. Learning where your audience is will pay you dividends.

I would do some googling for other super affiliates such as shoemoney and Lee Dodd. Listen to their podcasts and radio shows, and test test test!!

You are on the right tracks with your effort, but you just need to be steered in the right direction.

Best of luck
Joe

[grumpyoldman]

Thanks for your kind reply Joe,

Yes, I suppose I was over generalising a little.

The books I've written are one on making your own fresh pasta with about 40 original recipes (I'm a retired chef). That sold 3 copies on eBay at $3.80 each, in 6 months. That's my fault, though. I knew that most I could hope to get for an eBook was 99 cents, but I had to be greedy!!!

Another was on Blood Circulation Problems and Natural Remedies. My heart problems have nearly killed me a couple of times so I thoght I'd look into it. I ended up researching for about 4 months and then wrote the book.

I didn't bother listing that one at all as I realised that if anyone had medical problems, the last place they'd look is on the internet, they'd go to their doctor.

I did give the linkless source code to a couple of marketers who were dumb enough to think that they could sell it bit I've not heard back from them. Obviously they didn't sell any. LOL

I'm just finishing one on energy saving in the home, but I probably won't list that either.
Unless you're promising $10,000 per month and delivering nothing, you'll never sell an eBook.

Thank you for the advice on shoemoney and Lee Dodd, but I'm afraid I'll have to pass on it. Not because I don't believe it's any good, not even because I've never heard of them, but because I don't know what a podcast is and I can't imagine that any radio station would have a show on Internet Marketing so I'd not know where to look. In 15 years I've never used the media player and have no idea how it works. My apartment is ALWAYS in silence. LOL

If I get an email with audio or video in it, or advertising "video tutorials", I delete it unread. It must be a scam.

I'll just keep writing, I'm good at it, but I never expect to make a sale. I'll even put affiliate links in, just to keep my eBook selling friend happy. I know that nobody would ever click on one.

She even re-brands her re-sell eBooks. Another waste of time. I don't bother. You'll never get any traffic from it. I just leave mine the way I received them. I don't believe in wasting time and effort un-necessarily.

Thanks again for the reply.

All the very best to you and yours.

[catherinel]

Grumpyoldman - I've come the the conclusion that your posts are a hoax.

[grumpyoldman]

I genuinely wish they were, but sadly, they're not.

Thank you for giving me ceredit for creativity that I don't possess.

I'd be more than happy to provide the Paypal and Clickbank statements that are so popular. Unfortunately, mine would be for the opposite reason.

[vartov]

Grum, making money online is not easy, but I assure you that it is possible.

People buy from affiliate links, but it depends on who is promoting the product. All those Gurus are making money promoting other people's products.

If you have a list and people trust and love you, I assure you that you sell.

Try to know why people don't buy from you, I think there is something wrong. Test your salesletter, graphics, prices etc.

You have to continue promoting your eBooks if you think they have quality and can help people.

If your eBooks provide a solution to peoples' problems, it is impossible that you can't sell them.

[grumpyoldman]

Thank you for your reply Vartov,

I wish that I had 10% of your confidence.

I do agree with you that it depends on who's promoting the affiliate product. I am, so no-one will buy.

I don't have a list as I could never use an autoresponder - far too technical. Unfortunately, if you want trust and love, selling online is definitely the wrong business to be in.

My sales letter is always the sales page provided with the affiliate product or one that is re-written but unmistakably similar. I don't have a graphics program, I'm not a graphic artist, and I always price anything I sell way, way below anyone else if I can.

For instance, I ask marketers what is a fair price for my book. If they say $47, then I will price it at $4.70 because the only books that can be overpriced with impunity are IM books and I don't write them.

I can assure you that it is not 'impossible not to sell them'. It is always possible not to sell.

Selling anything online is 100% luck.

I have just finished an eBook that, used correctly will save any household 30% on their electricity costs. It's simply 120 + energy saving tips. I've had it looked at by a couple of people from the WF and one from here, who's not got back to me yet. I've also given it to an eBook reseller and a few people that have nothing to do with the internet and, so far, the comments have been magnificent. Some have even written testimonials, un-asked.

This is the first place I've mentioned it as my re-seller friend told me not to say anything as there's nothing like it on the market and she wants to help me 'launch' it. Well, bad luck, girl, the world knows now.
If someone wants to quickly write one and beat me to the punch - be my guest. Mine won't sell anyway.

Doesn't 'launch' sound so pretentious

Do you think it will sell? I don't, so I'm just going to put it in my 'junk' folder, and forget it even though I have a site with the book's title as the domain name.

Why? Well, you answered that earlier in your post.

It depends on who's promoting the product. I'm not a guru, I'm a nothing, so no-one will buy it. End of story.

I can't write articles, no that's not true, I could, I just don't believe a single article ever gets read so it's a total waste of effort. I don't blog, because I can't see a teenage market for my eBook. I don't swap links because I feel that you have to be really big time before you woud dare approach anyone for that sort of thing.

I also believe that JVs are only between multi million dollar corporations.

I try to do everything alone.

So I guess you'd say I don't promote.

[WorldGems]

Hey Grumpie,

Do an attitude check. I know you've probably had positive thinking thrown at you forever and you're probably tired of it. However, it just might help if you see the glass half full.

It sounds like you're well on your way. just don't sell yourself short. An never give up.

jim

[walker22]

[Dinger]

Hi Grumpie - I might be mistaken but aren't you the one the posted in an earlier forum about refusing to do advertising of any kind to get traffic to buy your ebooks? I have read many, many articles and yes I also bought Ros's book and one thing that they all have in common is that you must put in the work - just because you built it does not mean that they will come. Don't sell yourself short, we are all our own worst critic and I think that you need to think more of your hard work and be willing to promote it. May be it is time for a change - good luck

[Rosalind Gardner]

Hey Grumpy,

Someone is going to steal your energy-saving book idea, run with it and make millions if you don't get it out there.

Why don't you take 10 of those tips, bundle them into a free report and then start posting on 'green' forums and link to your blog/site about energy-saving tips.

Your visitors download the free report which of course links to your energy-saving tips guide that you sell for 19.95 or more?

Seems like you have a LOT of experience, do a LOT of writing about that experience and then do very little effective marketing.

Cheers,
Ros

[Griff Grumbein]

In addition to Ros' great tip, add an opt-in form and you can sell to them for as long as they don't opt-out! Sounds like you've got something they'd be interested in. . .take advantage of it! Get that list and you'll have customers you KNOW are interested.

[catherinel]

Grumpy - do try Rosalind's advice.

I did not realise you were selling your books so cheaply. And the others are right - a low price does put a lot of people off.

If I see something that is priced between $30 and $40 dollars, then someone offers me the same thing for $5, I automatically assume that it must be rubbish.

Some people will price their product or service low - until they've made a few sales, and it just doesn't work. a) It attracts the type of customers you don't want - those who want something for nothing. b) Even if you do get a few genuine customers initially, then you put your price up - they will feel ripped off because you've hiked the prices up so much - even if they are more realistic prices.

[grumpyoldman]

One year later...

I followed all advice given.

Bought a domain name and a cheap hosting.

Uploaded the e-Book.

Placed articles on Squidoo and Ezine Articles.

Placed solo ads through a few sites, including USfreeads.

Used my URL in the signature of every email sent and on every forum post.

Admittedly only about 2 or 3 this year - I've stopped visiting forums in the hope of results.

I have a list of 700 ( who have bought ZERO in 8 months) and a small PS about the Energy book, with an offer of 50% affiliate commission is at the bottom of every email.

I've had a couple of GREAT reviews published on blogs and in Ezines from freebies I sent out.

The result has been underwhelming.

ZERO sales in one year. As I expected.

None of the above 'tactics' have any result whatsoever.

No more trying to sell my own product - it just can't be done.

[walker22]

Hi Grumpy,

First off, congrats on building a list of 700 subscribers. That's better than a lot of people have done.

As far as not selling any copies of your book, I can see why when I go to your web site. I don't know where to look because you offer a variety of books but nothing to compel me to click on any of them.

I think you'd do much better by having a page that speaks directly to one specific target market instead of this scattershot approach of offering a pasta recipe book, a weight loss book, an electricity savings book, etc.

I'm not trying to be insulting but I can tell you there was nothing on the page to grab me and pull me into one of the books.

Who is your ideal customer? Could you write a sales page that speaks directly to them? From my own experiences, that has been the most effective strategy and it's what works for the people I study who are making money online.

If you can, think of it this way (I'm borrowing from Mark Joyner's book The Irresistible Offer). Your customer has four big questions in their head when they land on your website:

1. What are you selling?
2. What's it gonna cost me?
3. Why should I believe you?
4. What's in it for me?

Unfortunately, despite the obvious effort you've put into this, your site currently doesn't answer any of those questions for me.

If you can re-structure your site and the sales copy for each book to answer those 4 key questions, then I think you'll see sales happen.

Hope that helps...

If you have questions regarding how to answer those 4 questions please post them and we can help answer them for you.

Good luck~

Michael