| Do you have a dream? Does your dream include | | | | marketing efforts and your work at home business will |
| making money from home through internet marketing? | | | | fail if visitors do not click on your ads and links. |
| If so, you're one of millions of people with an internet | | | | Location is important. Just like in the real world, location |
| marketing dream. An internet marketing dream that | | | | on a web page is vital. Banners at the top of the page |
| includes making enough money to say goodby to your | | | | will usually get more clicks than banners in the middle |
| boss, make ends meet, maybe buy a new house or a | | | | or at the bottom. |
| second car. | | | | Don't limit your internet marketing on behalf of your |
| You hop online one night to shop for a birthday gift for | | | | merchant to banners. If you have articles on your site, |
| your dad and you keep seeing a link at the bottom of | | | | or you have a blog, a MySpace page, Squidoo - |
| the store pages that says "Click here to become an | | | | anything with text, include text links to your merchants. |
| affiliate". What the heck is an affiliate? Checking it out | | | | These often pull better than even the best graphics. |
| a bit further you find the explanation. | | | | You could write a sentence about cross stitch |
| An affiliate promotes the goods and services of | | | | patterns that would read something like this. |
| someone else. An affiliate is then paid for each sale by | | | | "I used embroidery thread from Widgets Embroidery |
| the merchant. Hmmm this sounds like a pretty good | | | | Works to complete this pattern and found the thread |
| deal! You already have a web site, all you have to do | | | | was vibrant, colorful and knotted easily." |
| is download some of these banners and links and your | | | | Link "Widgets Embroidery Works" to your merchant |
| site will become a cash cow. You begin dreaming | | | | with your affiliate link. Text links used in this fashion |
| about all the things your internet marketing business will | | | | often work better in internet marketing efforts than |
| be able to buy. | | | | banners. |
| Six months later, working from home every spare | | | | Add text above or below the banner. This is a simple |
| minute, you have made one sale and have a check | | | | trick that can really pay off. Instead of just a "bare |
| that will cover the cost of a bag of dog food. | | | | banner" add a line of text with your affiliate link and |
| What happened? Can you really make money online | | | | with NO break above or below the banner (or both). |
| with affiliate programs? The answer is yes with a | | | | Something like "For the best embroidery thread on the |
| huge BUT. There are several things you need to know | | | | planet click here". |
| about affiliate programs before you ever add a single | | | | Watch your merchant stats. If you have clicks on |
| link to your site. | | | | advertising but no sales, drop the merchant and |
| The internet marketing programs you sign up with | | | | choose another one selling similar products. If you've |
| need to match the content on your internet marketing | | | | sent a thousand visitors to the merchant site without |
| site. If your site is about cross stitch patterns you won't | | | | making a sale, that merchant isn't converting your |
| get many clicks on banners for weight lifting equipment! | | | | traffic to sales. It may be that your internet marketing |
| You need to know and understand the needs of | | | | efforts are being wasted on this merchant. |
| YOUR visitors. Only sign up with merchants and | | | | Yes you can make money online, yes you can work |
| internet marketing programs that meet those needs. | | | | from home and have an internet business that makes |
| A catchy banner pulls more clicks than a boring | | | | money and you can use affiliate sales to get that |
| banner. How well has your merchant done making | | | | money. But if you don't follow these simple guidelines, |
| banners? Are the banners and graphics the merchant | | | | you won't be able to buy a tankful of gas from your |
| has provided interesting, exciting, something people will | | | | affiliate checks, much less a new corvette to park in |
| want to click on? If you don't have the graphics ability | | | | your driveway! |
| to make your own banners to replace boring ones, | | | | No embroidery patterns were injured in any way in the |
| look for another merchant selling similar products who | | | | research for this article. |
| has a better graphics department. Your internet | | | | |