Just starting out- how does my plan sound?

[JeremyS]

Hey everyone, I'm just starting to get into the world of affiliate marketing. I have been educating myself for a while now and feel that I want to jump in soon. I have a buddy with an affiliate network and have been learning a bunch from him as well. Any tips, advice comments about my understanding and plan of action would be greatly appreciated:

I would be an affiliate network with affiliates signing up on my site to promote the campaigns I have at that moment.

I am going to have someone code the PHP and design the site, design the tracking system so that would be taken care of.

I would get the offers and campaigns from a variety of lead generation companies which I have already contacted.

The start up money is going to be taken care of so that is a non issue.

what are the best ways to drive traffic to my network, do I need to spend a lot in advertising per day?

Does my understanding and plan seem to be ok and workable or am I missing something here?

another thing, most affiliate networks are strategic partners with roughly the same companies (netfilx, blockbuster, columbia house, experian, vista print etc), how do they become partners with them? join their affiliate program and that gives them the right to put up a partner banner?

Thanks!

 

[Linda Buquet]

Hi JeremyS,

Welcome to 5 Star.

Sorry, you may wish you hadn't ask your question here, but I'm hoping that what I say is taken to heart and taken constructively, because I'm only trying to help.

1st off I've been in the business for YEARS and I would not even attempt to start an affiliate network. If someone gave me 3 Million and said start a network I'd say, no way.

2nd if you are new to the business starting a network is the worst possible idea. You can't begin to do it if you haven't been an affiliate and don't even know enough about it to know how to get offers.

3rd designing your own tracking is a really really bad idea. ESPECIALLY if you don't know the biz. Even if you did, there is no way you can build everything in and have it be as good as standard solutions that have been USER TESTED and improved on for years are.

4th affiliates aren't going to trust a home grown tracking system from a company they don't know that has no track record of being a successful affiliate themselves.

5th It's hard enough learning to do affiliate marketing yourself. Trying to be a middle man between successful affiliates and other networks adds levels of complexity you can't even imagine.

6th One of the hardest parts of starting a network is the chicken vs the egg. You can't get networks to give you offers unless you have lots of affiliates and can talk the volume you can do YET you can't get any affiliates until you have a good variety off good offers. I know because I helped a company that had a TEAM of the top people in the industry TRY to start a network. They had the brains, 85 years of combined experience, the connections on both the merchant and the affiliate side - and they could not even pull it off due to the catch 22 I mentioned.

Sorry to rain on your parade, but I'm trying to save you money and heart ache because I don't see this as a viable plan at all. It's sort of like you decided you want to be a Dr so you are going to jump right in and start doing surgery before you've even been to med school.

 

[JeremyS]

Thanks for the reply Linda, the only reason I ask this is because I have a buddy that has less than 5 years of experience in the biz and is making several hundred thousand a month. I'm not sure if what he does is magic but I have seen proof.

 

[Linda Buquet]

Hi Jeremy,

It sounds like he has a few years of experience though, right? I just don't see how you could do it with no experience because even with experience it would be hard to get started. I would be an affiliate 1st. Learn the ropes, make some money and then you'd be in a better position to decide if this is even something you want to do.

I know affiliates making several hundred thousand a month on their own too, without all the additional challenges that come from trying to recruit and manage a bunch of affiliates and different network offerings. So just saying be an affiliate 1st and then see if it's still makes sense to you.

 

[JeremyS]

That sounds good Linda, I've been on the site and have been learning the ropes. I really do appreciate all of your feedback, its just that after seeing what he does and what he has set up, doesn't seem to difficult and after calling the companies (neverblue, cactus media etc.) they said I knew what I was talking about, and that they would be willing to work with me. You learn best by doing right?

 

[Linda Buquet]

Gotta admire the attitude!
Let us know how it goes!

 

[Dylantk]

I hope you can get this to work! let us know if it does! I like hearing success stories because I believe I will have one, One day!

 

[JeremyS]

attitude is everything, you have to have a positive one to succeed. Everyone I talk to is always so discouraging and say it is going to be hard and expensive, I'm willing to work and learn and then I come to find out some of those people have a budget of 700 bucks, what a joke. If im gonna do this, going to be full force and I have the $ to back it, so we will see. Talking with coders now, on the phone with azoogle, neverblue, cactus media etc and hopefully I can make it happen. I have connections in advertising and will make my site different in its own respect from the rest. Will be posting here frequently for questions/advice/progress when I move forward, thank you again Linda for the time you put into the responses, I really appreciate it!