Let’s Dispel 6 Myths about Building Affiliate Marketing Websites

Let’s face it, there are plenty of myths floating around out there when it comes to affiliate marketing.  The sad truth is that many people are believing these myths as truth and are falling into bad situations.  Let’s do some “mythbusting” by taking a little closer look…

Myth #1 – Managing an Online Business is Easy

The first myth many people fall for is believing that affiliate marketing, or building affiliate websites is so easy that it doesn’t take any work at all.
They’ve been told that an online business will “run itself” and that they’ll be making a fortune before the month is out.  I would dare to say that it’s more likely that not even 5-7% of the most successful affiliate marketers became rich overnight.  Now don’t get me wrong, there may be the chosen few that were fortunate enough to achieve a level of overwhelming success in a short time by setting up just the right marketing campaign at the opportune moment in time.  But most marketers out there will tell you in confidence, that it was all the luck of the draw! Anybody who is safe to consider a real “success story” in this line of work would tell you they worked very hard to get where they are right now.  Success in affiliate marketing takes time and hard work, but the rewards are worth it!

Myth #2 – Build it and They Will Come

We all know the ever-quoted words of Kevin Costner in “Field of Dreams“.  But life isn’t always so easy
as it is in the movies.  Not all words of wisdom are necessarily true in all cases.  And, if you have any kind of inkling to do a start-up with an affiliate program,  one of the main things you have to consider is creating your own website.  If you’re going to do this for real, let’s not build some run-of-the-mill fantasy website.  You could build it, and if you don’t go about it in the proper fashion, no one will come at all!

“How do you build an affiliate marketing website? What are the easiest steps to follow in order to build one that attracts?”

First, you must decide on a theme or niche that you want to get involved in.  This might be a hobby you have, something you’ve gained experience and expertise in over your lifetime, something you used to work at, or it could even be something you’ve never done before but want to learn yourself.  It’s probably better if you can brainstorm your idea and think about the kinds of products or services you could promote that are tied into your niche because this would help you to plan out the design and layout of your website and it’s accompanying pages.

Myth #3 – You MUST have an EXACT Match Domain

At some stage in the game (usually about the time you brainstorm your niche and site name), the next thing you’re going to want to do is choose a domain name and get a web hosting service up and running (ie. NameCheap, GoDaddy).  Your domain name is a unique identifier used to label (or basically mask) the actual IP address of your website and becomes the recognizing factor when it comes to branding your new endeavor.  When deciding what domain name to register, sometimes is a good idea to consider the type of products you are endorsing and the overall theme of your website.  It used to be true that having relevant keywords in your domain name would give you better chances of drawing more visitors to your website. However, Google has since stepped away from using this as a determining factor as to whether your site is a “legit” provider of the goods or services.

You will still be better off choosing a “top level” domain extension (.com, .org, .net – in that order) and preferably .com(s) because it is the more popular and memorable. When selecting your web host, be sure to consider the security of the service and up time guarantees.

Myth #4 – Just Push a Button and Your Website Creates Itself

This myth is somewhat true and somewhat false.  If you’ve ever seen my post on “The Best, Fastest and Easiest Way to Build a Website”, then you have already seen that a WordPress website at Wealthy Affiliate CAN be built with pretty much the touch of a button.  But that’s only to create the “shell” of your site.  Next comes the arduous task of creating your site’s theme, menu structure and ultimately all of your keyword targeted pages and posts.  One has to be mindful not to become too disheartened at the task only because they don’t have a lot of experience with building websites.  There are several page generation tools (such as WordPress) and fast launch sites available online (ie. Wix); you just have to search for them.  There are countless resources available online that can help you build your affiliate marketing website, but there is a trash pile of bad advice and information that is also just a mouse-click away.

One of the biggest hurdles people that are new to online marketing encounter is the learning curve.  It takes time and patience to study and learn the whole process. This is one of the biggest reasons why your site or the products you are going to promote must match your interest. Building a website for the very first time can be a lot more enjoyable if you know up front what it is you’re getting yourself into and how you may fair with the overall theme of your website.   Don’t worry yourself so much over the graphic design of your site, there are plenty of ready-made templates that are free or available for purchase anywhere you look.  Some, however, can be a pretty expensive option.

Myth #5 – All You Need is a Computer and a Website

Having the ability to create an affiliate website on  your own from scratch could potentially be less expensive and might even be a little more interesting.  Looking at it from that perspective, you may even increase your knowledge in IT (Information Technology) and the use of computers, software and the internet. As you educated yourself in these different aspects as webmaster, you would be increasing your advantage against other affiliate marketers. It would be an even bigger benefit though, if you already knew the basics in web page development like programming languages (HTML, PHP, Java, etc.) and you had some expert knowledge of graphics software because you can then you could make your site extra corporate-looking, more convenient to use or easier to navigate. Furthermore, if you’re super skilled in this area, you could effectively concentrate more on the content of the page rather than the design.  So you’re all set to jump in and build those pages now, correct?

“Yeah, right…sure you are!”

The key to drawing visitors to your brand new website is to have high quality content; therefore, the thing you should really be paying the most attention to when building your marketing website is that. There are surely several other common factors that contribute to the success of any affiliate marketing site, but there is absolutely no doubt that unique, original content tops the list. This is exactly why users choose to be on your website. They want to find the information they need, and if you don’t supply it, they will certainly go elsewhere.

Be sure that you are writing interesting and involving content that is related to your sites overall theme and visitors will begin to frequent your site more often.   Look into affiliate programs that are a complement to your site, not just some haphazard stuff that sells.  Having computer hardware affiliate programs on a dog grooming site just isn’t going to cut it.  Offsite links can contribute to how well you will be listed in major search engines as well.  Create specific pages for the products you are endorsing, but don’t try to sell.  Follow the 3 T’s when it comes to online marketing:

“Teach…Transform…Transact”

In other words, don’t just promote the products by putting together a bunch of glossy, gimmicky ads. Keep your readers interested by injecting lots of relevant and useful information. This will entice them to click on your link to buy your product.  People that don’t trust you, won’t buy from you.

Myth #6 – Just Set it and Forget it!

This isn’t dinner here!  Remember one thing, lack of relevant content will equate to no returning visitors, no sales and ultimately, no commission!

Make your site simple, yet not without a touch of class.  Be yourself and build a site that reflects your personal character in the overall concept.  It should be pleasing to the eyes and interesting to browse.   To help you in your design, there are handfuls of nice online stores that will give you a great idea or two as to how you can make your own site look better and be more user friendly.  Be sure not to place a multitude of ads,  these could detract from your end goals; and thus, instead of clicking your ad, they might just leave your site and look for other interesting websites. Banner ads are not the only means of advertising your products.

Now your website is up and running, though it may never be complete, and that’s O.K..  Don’t forget to submit its URL to major search engines to increase the flow of traffic, you’re gonna need it!

It’s all GO TIME from there. Learn what you can about the proper use of keywords for SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and know how to apply them in your content as you create it (not afterwords!). Update your site regularly or add new webpages.  As your desire, passion and knowledge grows, your site with grow with it. Always inform your followers about any updates that take place to your site. You can use newsletters to accomplish this.

The Web offers an abundance of information on just about anything, right at your fingertips.  Make use of it!  Continue to educate yourself and improve your skills as you move ahead, and you’ll soon find yourself incredible success in affiliate marketing!  But if you’re still stuck on which way to turn, let’s get you where you need to be so you can get started on the right path to that success!  If that sounds good to you, click the banner below and I’ll help you set up your new website as soon as we connect!

   P.S.  Be sure to leave any comments or questions below and take a moment to stop by my WA Profile!