Well, along with many other “tail end” types, I’ve just gotten myself and Duncan sorted out to go to the Expo just before the early bird discount rate was cut off. I am so excited, it’s going to be absolutely great!

As many of you will know, we are so keen to attend Matt & team’s great event again this year that we have postponed leaving on our honeymoon to Thailand and Malaysia on our way back to Australia for 3 weeks to make sure we don’t miss it.

We’ve booked our hotel, tickets, and flights so we’re locked in and ready for another great round of networking and informative conference sessions.

Not Booked Yet? Here’s Some Good News!

The early bird rate of £199 (instead of £299) has been extended for another month! You can still save £100 on your ticket and come and meet with myself, Duncan and loads of other affiliates and merchants for what will most definately be the “not to miss” event of the year.

Highlights include:

- 3 parties, including a Thames riverboat cruise (sounds lush!)

- Lunch everyday included in the price.

- Chill out area with refreshments laid on.

- All the usual conference freebies, giveaways, and competitions.

If You’re Not Sure About Going…

I have to say I could not recommend this event more for total beginners and experienced affiliates and merchants alike. If you’re shy or don’t want to come alone… don’t worry! By the end of the conference, you will know dozens of fellow affiliates. Everyone is very friendly and I personally guarantee I’ll gladly talk to anyone who wanders up for a chinwag about all things affiliate. Particularly if you turn up with a refreshing Whisky and Coke for me

You can still register for the affiliate event of the year Here. Don’t delay. If you don’t, you’ll regret it!!

See you all there

NB – The logo above is an affiliate link, the text link is a nice plain one. It’s your choice!

At last my shiny new blog design is complete, and I absolutely love it! I was so fed up with my horrid old look that it was actually putting me off adding new features and developing my blog further!

I still have a few things to tinker around with, plugins to add, fiddling around with the order of the menu items etc… but I think it looks 1000% better than it has done. Some new features I think I will add…

• Most popular / useful posts for people who’ve just found the blog. I’ve written a whole heap of beginners info now and the best of them should probably be put in some sort of logical order.
• A photo gallery for my various travels and networking events (My mummy even reads this blog to see my pictures – hi Mum!!).

There’s also the thorny issue of blog sponsorship. I’ve been considering this for some time now, my work schedule means that I can’t post as much as I’d like simply because I am totally restructuring my affiliate business this year. I’m missing posting though, so I have reasoned that if I could monetise the blog just enough to get a little back for the time I put into it, I’ll be able to justify putting out more quality content.

As you’ll see, there’s now a “Sponsors” section in the menu which I will move to a more prominent position once I have found a relevant set of supporters for the blog. If anyone is interested in sponsorship they can Contact Me for a chat. No purveyors of MLM or shitty e-books, I’m not having that kind of stuff on here!

Finally Kudos To The Blog Designer…

Dan Cregin of Baltic Blog Design has done a great job on this theme. I particularly loved how he incorporated the strong theme of travel into his suggested designs. He was recommended to my by Kieron - whom he has done a fair bit of excellent work for, so thanks to him for the heads up.

Dan charges a very competitive £300 for custom blog designs, but because he is such a lovely chap he has offered readers of Affiliate Stuff a 10% discount. If you are interested in his services, simply Contact Him via the form on his blog with an outline of your requirements and tell him Kirsty sent you to get your discount!

Its a good, cheap way to get an affiliate site on the go.

If anyone has any suggestions for features they’d like to see on here, do give me a shout. I hope to add in some new bits and pieces in the coming weeks.

Hurahh!!

Yet more thoughts from me on how to improve your copywriting skills. I seriously had no idea that so many people had real issues with writing copy until my initial post on the basics which was followed up with my suggestion that people having trouble might like to try some speaking software.

This resulted in yet more feedback. This time it changed from “I can’t write copy – what should I do?” back to “I don’t know how to write about products – what should I do?”

I thought what might be a useful add-on to the other two articles might be a bit of help regarding how one structures a bit of copy and works out what to say about a product. Obviously I’ve already written generally about finding keywords, topic areas, and how you should write generally about a subject. I thought it might be handy to look at how to use products to come up with additional articles for your landing page.

So here it is… Product Copy 101 For Affiliates!

OK. So I will pick out a real life example to try and make it more relevant for you guys!

Lets say I have created a landing page about Calvin Klein bikinis and am looking to write some articles about some of their products to help make the page more relevant. I’ll base my pontifications on House Of Fraser’s Calvin Klein section as they seem to have a decent range of products.

– The first step is finding something to actually write about that will add value to the page and might help me target a few niche search terms. The key to this is to take a look at the products on a page and ask yourself “which of these has features someone might be looking for?”

I’ve selected this Calvin Klein Swimsuit

This is a really good example because I’ve a choice of features to focus upon.

1. It’s a designer swimsuit
2. It’s a halterneck swimsuit
3. It’s got retro styling on the cut

The first thing I always do is come up with a good strong title for SEO and use it to determine the content and structure of my product article. Here’s a few examples of what I’d use as a title with this swimsuit: -

– 50′s Style Swimsuit? Calvin Klein Designer Chic with Tiny Palms
– Designer Halterneck Swimsuit – Calvin Klein Tiny Palms
– Retro Swimsuit From Designer Label Calvin Klein – Tiny Palms

As you’ll see from the above titles, what I’m trying to do is capture niche search terms such as: -

- Calvin Klein Tiny Palms
- Calvin Klein Retro Swimsuit
- Calvin Klein Designer Swimsuit
- Retro Swimsuit
- Designer Retro Swimsuit
- Halterneck Swimsuit
- Tiny Palms Swimsuit

I’ve tried to structure the titles so that they include “niche term”+”designer”+”collection name” to make my chances of ranking as versatile as possible.

Once I have formed my title, its just like they told you when you sat your exams at school – “use the question to structure your answer”. Or in this case “use the title to structure your content!”

So, if I were to choose ” – Retro Swimsuit From Designer Label Calvin Klein – Tiny Palms”

In the first paragraph I’ll describe why that particular swimsuit fits the description I have bestowed upon it thusly: -

Looking for retro style swimwear with designer chic this summer holiday season? Designer label Calvin Klein’s beautiful Tiny Palms swimsuit is going to be red hot for 2008 with its palm effect pattern and terribly trendy 50′s style cut. Definitely a hot fashion option for looking cool by the pool!

I’ve got loads of keyword rich search phrases in there, made it read well enough to pass muster, and I’ve made sure I’ve mentioned all my phrases from the title.

OK, so the next thing to do is use the product description to give myself something to bulk things out a bit, referring back to my title search terms whenever possible!!

Styled in devilishly trendy turquoise and brown, the Tiny Palms halterneck swimsuit features a sexy plunging neckline with ring detailing. The padded cups are moulded to give your bust a little bit of extra lift and support. Featuring this seasons trendy 50′s style low leg cut, the swimsuit offers good rear coverage and fastens securely behind the neck. The wide halterneck band accentuates your bust and creates great shape that’s sure to have you and your swimsuit looking great poolside.

And we’re not finished there ladies and gents! Just to round it off, use any other related product info to squeeze another sentence or 3 out.

The Calvin Klein Tiny Palms swimsuit is available in sizes 32C to 38C, and the Tiny Palms range also includes a halterneck bikini and adjustable hipster bikini bottoms in the same pattern.

OK, so there it is! My basic guide to how to write a reasonable bit of SEO copy without having to think about it too much. The above method will pretty much work in any sector, it’s just that I’ve spent the day writing about swimwear and would have found it too difficult to change it over my post dinner glass of wine!

Well, once again I’m delighted to have been put on the shortlist for the Affiliate Blog award at the 2008 Affiliate Marketing Awards.

It’s really fantastic to have had people pay me the huge compliment of giving this blog the nod because they’ve enjoyed reading my random outpourings on here. I am made up, so thanks all!

Affiliate Cinderella Has to Stay At Home…
The only injustice here is that I’m not going to be able to attend the Awards Ceremony on June 5th at the Park Lane Hotel, London. Anyone who knows me well will know that it has long been an ambition of mine to don a designer frock and attend just such a glittering occasion. *sigh* This wannabe glammed up affiliate dolly bird will just have to wait for another time

The other esteemed blog nominees are: -

• Jason Dale (www.onelittleduck.co.uk)
• Kieron Donoghue (www.here.org.uk)
• Lee McCoy (www.leemccoy.co.uk)
• Paul Wheatley (www.mooseontheloose.co.uk)

I read all of these blogs regularly and am delighted to see them up for the big prize. Particularly Jason, who’s often hilarious take on the world of the affiliate (and a fair bit of affiliate politics), is an extremely refreshing read. You got my vote Jason!

You Can Vote For Your Best Affiliate Blog Choice Here (and all the other awards also!). I’m not sure it’s entirely fair that Kieron only gets to hold last years title for 8 months – but hey, there’s every chance that won’t matter if he wins again!

Good Luck To All Nominees!

P.S. – Might I point out that once again Duncan hasn’t bothered his bahookie voting for me, despite being an A4U member. Still, not to worry. He can think about that when he’s sleeping on the couch this evening

Just as a follow up to my last post, after I’d went on and on about how you should write copy for SEO a few people came back to me and said “But I can’t write at all? What’ll I Do? Should I Give Up on Affiliate Marketing If SEO Copy Is So Important?”

There Is Another Way…
For the last week I’ve been getting Duncan to help me out with copy. He has never been able to express himself in the written format as he has some quite serious issues with managing to get it all to “make sense” on paper. However, Duncan is a very articulate person in terms of being able to discuss things verbally. Given that I’m currently completely stacked out with mountains of copy waiting to be written, and don’t need much in terms of the technical work and graphics Dunc usually does for me, we decided something had to be done!

We’d heard mixed reports about speaking software (the stuff that writes down what you say), but decided… “what the hell, we’ll give it a go!”

So We Took The Plunge And…

We tried Dragon Naturally Speaking – And although it’s far from perfect (I was going to do a tally of how many times Duncan has said the word “F*ck” as a result of trying to train it to understand him but totally lost count!). It has given him the ability to come up with articles that are nicely structured and only need a small amount of editing to remove a small number of “funnies” that the software seems to put in there.

It has gotten better all the time mind you, so we’re expecting that he will get quicker and quicker using it as the software “gets used” to the way he speaks.

Phew…
It’s a huge relief to have him contributing in this way as the need for content surrounding every new brand and merchant was becoming a bit of a bottleneck in our operation, despite us having the help of one or two people with some copy. It’s one of the reasons I’m not able to blog as much at the moment, and I’m really, really missing writing in this blog as it helps me wind down in the evenings. Hopefully Dunc’s new role as a copywriter will help me get back to posting more often.

The Verdict – It’s Worth A Go If You’re Having Bother…
All in all, I have to say if you can talk about something but you have bother writing about it, you can probably use this software as a way to create your own copy. At £110, it’s not cheap but then you’d use that amount for 2 or 3 articles from a copywriter.

We bought our copy from Amazon.co.uk for £110 which was £40 off the RRP (nb, that’s not an affiliate link!)

Duncan Says….
That he feels the system resources the product description says you require are actually underestimated. This software is quite resource heavy and we had to upgrade the RAM in his computer to make it work properly. Therefore he thinks you’d need at least a 2 GHZ processor and at least 1000MB RAM to actually make the software function as it was intended.

If you use this software, let us know how you get on. Like I say, it’s not perfect but its really helped us out!

So you want to get in on some of this exciting travel paid for by affiliate marketing? Then this is a great opportunity to get into it!

It’s not often that I’m impressed enough to spontaneously advertise a merchant’s new programme and incentives, but those genius lads at Sunshine.co.uk have come up with a total beauty. Their new incentive means even total beginners are in with a chance of a free week’s holiday. And it’s Sooooo simple it’s almost painful.

For the last wee while Sunshine have been running a really simple series of “missions” designed to entice people who have never worked in the travel sector before into promoting them. Two of my friends have already won holidays just for setting up a site and popping up a couple of pages of content! I like them odds

Interested? OK here’s what you have to do!
First of all you need a site related to an area of Sunshine.co.uk. It can be about one of their resorts, holiday region, or based on a country.

Second, add two pages of content about their hotels or resorts. Then e-mail Chris, the friendly Sunshine.co.uk affiliate manager and tell him you want to be in on his holiday promo. More details on this and some other things you’ll need to tell Chris here.

Don’t Know How To Set Up A Site?
Don’t forget to read my WordPress 101 Guide. It has everything you need to get your first site up there and fighting.

You don’t have an excuse not to try this, and I can assure you that the feeling of travel through the powers of affiliate marketing is one of the most deeply satisfying experiences you’ll ever have!

Greetings! Just a short post to see if there might be any Sunshine Coast residents I don’t know about lurking around in my subscribers?

I’m trying to organise a small and friendly Sunshine Coast affiliate meet on a weekend afternoon quite soon. I’ve already drummed up a handful of people, and thought I’d do a wee blog post just in case there were any affiliates or wannabe affiliates reading on here.

It’ll be very friendly (because I will be there, lol) so if you’re interested, don’t be shy and do drop me a line via my Contact Form or even leave me a wee message in the comments field below. It would be great to see anyone from the local area!

All together now!

“Happy Birthday To Me….”

Hurahh!! I have just realised that it is exactly one year to the very day since I started writing this blog. It only seems like five minutes ago since I wrote my first ever blog post about Google Checkout Not Tracking. A couple of weeks later I realised people might actually be interested in what I had to say about matters affiliate related when I wrote about my passion for this business and how I thought AM was The Greatest Job In The Universe.

Since then I’ve gathered over 400 subscribers (thanks guys) and have really enjoyed exploring my own love of the business. I have enjoyed helping other people understand the mechanics of affiliate marketing and attempting to infect them with my enthusiasm even more, and hope to continue doing so for a very long time to come!

To celebrate the blog’s first birthday I’ve commissioned a brand new custom blog theme, as the current one is looking a bit past it and old.

I’d also like to throw the floor open and see if anyone has any areas they’d like to see their roving affiliate reporter talking about. I’ve got lots of ideas for some great posts, and now that we are settled into our new home in Australia… I should have lots more time to get into a bit of blogging. So if you want to know more about anything not already covered, or if you’ve ever sent me an Ask Kirsty I didn’t get around to replying to… now is your big chance! Contact Me Here, don’t be shy!

We are celebrating here tonight with wine and fine food… all in the name of Affiliate Marketing.

Cheers Everyone!!

Alright, so after my outburst regarding someone ripping off my site content and structure I spent a bit of time having a good old think (It all got sorted out super quick, and Paul sent me a nice apology, which I accepted).

Anyhoo… after my post someone commented that it was my own fault for letting on to people about my site. They may even have loosely suggested that only an idiot would post their original ideas online. Another point was that people copy product areas and structures all the time. Business is business etc.

Now, it’s unlike me to agree with those who have disagreed with my POV… but these comments are actually quite accurate! Well, I dunno about me being an idiot but those who’ve seen me after 15 whisky and cokes might disagree

BUT (and y’all knew that was coming didn’t you?)

I have always held the conviction, no the absolute knowledge that even if I show people my sites, my work, my entire process, they will most likely not be able to monetise my ideas the way that I can. Why? Because they come from my affiliate mindset… not theirs. Everyone thinks differently about affiliate marketing.

You Can Steal My Sites, But You’ll Never Get My Brain!!
The true way to succeed is total originality. OK, you can make a buck and even a decent living by closely copying what others are doing… but you’ll never have that BMW in the drive or the beach house in the exotic location of your choice.

My convictions on this matter were strengthened considerably when I saw a site “inspired” by mine. Although it was very similar, I could see immediately it would…

a ) Get a google slap at the next Adwords QS festival as the depth of content I’d put into my own version was not there

b ) That although the general structure had been replicated, they did not have the benefit of my extensive experience regarding how consumers behave in a buying pattern within the site’s sector. This meant their deep linking, product placement, and link placement was totally wrong. So although the page generally looked like mine…. it simply wouldn’t push visitors through to merchant as effectively.

So What Does It Come Down To?
It comes down to creating your own process guys. Work out what you are interested in, find your own niche, get REALLY familiar with all the merchants in that niche and create your very own affiliate work of art. There are no shortcuts in all of this. Put your effort into something original, something you can truly call your own and NOBODY will be able to take it away from you…. because an original affiliate will never really lose out. People may try… they may even make money. But your income will be safe, because you’ll have ownership of your techniques and be able to replicate and scale to your hearts desire.

Your counterfeit affiliates will only have the scraps you leave behind.

So if you’re on the outside… the inner workings of the mind of an affiliate seems like a strange and mystical thing indeed, doesn’t it? Affiliates are quite clearly King Midas personified. Everything they touch turns to pure internet gold. They are blessed with an uncanny ability to make money. If you fail at affiliate marketing once, thats it. You should give up cos you’re clearly crap. Right?

Ummm… wrong!

I have an earth shattering nugget of information… Affiliates in every shape, size and form are normal human beings, and they make bad judgements at times as well. OK, they usually offset them with their good judgements. But, to kick off this insight into the affiliate mindset I thought it would be good to show you a few examples of affiliates having bad ideas or getting something badly wrong.

One of the best examples I found was from one of the most famous affiliate success stories – ShoeMoney Himself. In a great post, Jeremy details his top ten worst ever business ideas, including my personal favourite… an idea to garner advertising revenue from “Topless Chix In A Ferrari Cross Country”.

The Domains I’ve Bought Whilst Drunk pale in comparison to some of Jeremy’s bloopers! Well, except my idea for a sex toy reward points site… that’s kinda similar in the lameness stakes,

Affiliates make mistakes too. Big mistakes. Let us not forget the massive lapse in judgement which occurred when a Tesco’s affiliate decided to register lots of naughty domain names, attempted to argue at the High Court they were totally entitled to the £26,688 in commissions which Tesco reversed, and umm…. Lost!

Rights and wrongs of any of the above aside… you can bet that the affiliates who fell foul of Tescos are still making money and we certainly know Jeremy is living the dream. The point I’m labouriously trying to make is that all affiliates make mistakes and come up with dud ideas. What makes them a success is that they don’t let the failure define them… Why? Because they learn from every mistake and pass that knowledge into their next attempt. Affiliates do not give up.

Wow Kirsty… thats like, totally profound. What other qualities must an affiliate possess?
For a start… they don’t need money. It’s not money that makes an affiliate a success. It’s their success that makes them money. Understand?

And see, a lot of people manage to find something that will make them a bit of cash. But what next? You need the Imagination to be able to Replicate and Scale UP your success.

To do that, you need to have the Focus to find your “thing”, stick to it and do it well over and over again. Or you may be an ambidextrous affiliate… and have many “things”! Finding your money making method will not happen overnight. Life doesn’t work like that, so why should affiliate marketing? You must have tenacity to have success at anything in life.

And once affiliates have found their success… do they sit down? Nah… they proactively seek out new deals with networks and merchants. They ask for higher commissions in exchange for greater volume, they approach people with ideas, they network, they work bloody hard on their business.

And once you have all that… you’re home free, right? Nobody can take that revenue stream away. Ummm… well except if that method you sweated blood over is suddenly deemed to be wrong by someone like Google. This happens to affiliates all the time. Who can forget such hilarious Google japes as the Florida Update and we all know and love the Google Adwords slap. So affiliates have to constantly innovate to stay one step ahead of (or deal with) the changing requirements of the industry.

And that in a nutshell is what it comes down to. Work hard and don’t ever give up. I have a motto I bought as a painted postcard from an artist in Chiang Mai, which I immediately loved.

And that is what I am now. I’m an alchemist. Every time something goes wrong I look at my beautiful little postcard from Thailand, and I “feel” the affiliate mindset. I take what’s happened and turn it into a positive, the same as many other guys in this industry. Affiliate marketing is not an easy ride, and I take my hat off to all my affiliate colleagues for their innovation and tenacity. It humbles me every day, and inspires me on to greater things.

It’s all the encouragement I need! I hope everyone else feels it too