... Julius Caesar, 47 BC

 

"I came, I saw, I was soundly defeated!"

... copywriter31, 2009 AD

(Following is the sequel to a previous Hub, "Well, We'll Just Have To Wait And See" CLICK HERE TO READ PART 1)

The language of choice in the PPC Affiliate Maketing world is irrelevant.

Fact of the matter is I lost A LOT of money playing the game of chance otherwise known as Affiliate Marketing.

Numbers tell the story.

I converted 1 sale from 677 click-throughs in Google Adwords.

Now, what I deem a lot of money is totally subjective. I do remember thinking, 'Jamey Boy, this ain't workin'... and I pulled the plug on the PPC's before the house caught fire. So now, putting my losses in perspective, life will not change around here very much, if at all.

Is PPC Affiliate Marketing A Scam?

I'll answer that with a qualified 'no, it's not a scam'. Granted, the fact that 676 curious and half-interested buyers passed on two, 5 star, highly-rated products is puzzling but I have some thoughts and theories on why they didn't buy.

On-the-spot, Internet Purchases Are Rare

I can tell you I never buy anything in cyberspace unless:

• I know the product
• I know the folks who made the product
• I know I've found the very best price on the item I'm about to purchase
• I am 100% confident in my decision. if I feel even the slightest doubt, then all bets are off

And I know you could think of other reasons that would swell this list to full page status.

As I watched the clicks mount while my money pile dwindled I mentally pictured people on their computers reading my ads.

I could see them first thinking, "Hmmmm, looks interesting, what the heck, this is not going to cost anything, I'll check it out."

The stats showed that most of the clickers on one of my products didn't like what they saw. Mid-way through day 2, I began wondering WHY they were turned off and the reason was so obvious that if I had known the research-is-necessary rule before committing a product to market, I NEVER would have invested.

Picture:

1. THE PRODUCT: Software that creates Hip Hop and Rap beats
2. THE AUDIENCE: Mostly African-American men, 17-24
3. THE WEBSITE: Slightly amateurish, no real obvious connection to the Hip Hop, Rap worlds
4. THE WEBSITE V/O (Audio Narration): A very wimpy, ethnically-mismatched male reading extremely weak copy
5. THE WEBSITE MUSIC: A white musician playing VERY complex JAZZ (JAZZ???) licks on a huge, very intimidating keyboard. This flash video would have scared me away and I'm a top selling, internationally-recognized Smooth Jazz Recording Artist. My main instrument? Piano and keyboards! FYI: My 'stage name' is not copywriter31. If interested to know the real name, please email.
6. THE WEBSITE QUALITY: The audio was splattered and distorted, and more emphasis was placed on the keyboard than the actual product

That, my dear reader, was a product rated very highly based on "gravity". Basically, gravity reveals daily conversion numbers, and this product was in the Top 5.

Had I taken the time necessary to research this product and it's corresponding website, I NEVER would have chosen this particular item... LESSON LEARNED!

Believe In Your Product

I cannot possibly sell anything I don't believe in! My lackadaisical attitude seeps into all my marketing efforts.

The first product I promoted in this Affiliate Marketing experiment was a get rich quick program.

Check these sites... They all sound great, don't they?

Slot Machine Marketing - Easy as 1,2,3

1. The same copywriter writes the glittering verbiage.
2. The same graphic designer puts the sizzling image puzzle together.
3. The same headline writer copies the "You Can Make $5238 A Day" headlines.

These websites are things of beauty and glitz; jumping off the page with loads of bling.

I collectively call these sites, Slot Machine Marketing and their irresistible lure has encouraged many a misguided believer to part with his/her money only to be disappointed over and over again.

In choosing products to market - pay per click style, I came across one of these Slot Machine schemes with a conversion rate through the roof. I mean the numbers were in the ozone; 20-22% conversion! I quickly generated the keywords, wrote 3 ads and instantly put it online.

And it sold!

Once.

"Do Unto Others"

Naturally I'm now thinking I have found THE product that's going to make a ton of money, so I paused the hip hop rap beat maker campaign and put all of my eggs in the Slot Machine Basket... but, then my good angel kicked the bad one off my shoulder and began whispering in my right ear.

The heavenly questions were spot on, like, "Would you sell this product to your mother, how about your uncle?" OK, OK! I got it and reacted by deleting that get rich quick campaign as quickly as I put it together.

See, I strongly believe in Universal Laws, or one could say it like, "what goes around comes around", or perhaps the best of all? "Do unto othere as you would have them do unto you."

YES! How true, how absolutely true.

Building lasting relationships begins and ends with trust. I'm in this for the long haul, so I treat my clients with the utmost respect in a sincere effort to win their trust; not getting rich for the moment off their hard earned money.

OK, went a bit off track there, but sometimes in the pursuit of making money we (I) forget the importance of treating people in a way I would want to be treated.

What I Learned

This copywriter merely uncovered the eternal truth of the following quotation: "If it was easy, everyone would be doing it". That phrase says to me, "if it was easy, everyone would be rich".

The fact of the matter is, short of good, old-fashioned, hard work, no method of making or earning easy money exists. In fact, when you read the wired word pair, "easy money", in New York and New Jersey vernacular, say to yourself, "forget about it."

Is It Possible To Make Money As A PPC Affiliate Marketer?

YES!... but, you must do the following to be successful:

• MOST IMPORTANTLY, find a great product that you believe in 100%. Depending on a Gravity Report or an 'expert's' recommendation will never cut it. These may be good places to begin, but your follow-up research better prove these products to be market-worthy.
• Short of inheriting a multi-million dollar fortune, no way exists to get rich quickly. When you see the Slot Machine websites I described earlier, forget about it... do NOT be taken in. There will always be some new, guaranteed way to make fast, easy money. I'm a professional copywriter and I know how incredibly powerful words can be when used to convince. Run from these sites as you would if you came across a stirred-up rattlesnake.
• GOOD NEWS! There are good, solid and honest products on the WWW... I found one. I discovered it on day 3 and I have featured it on my website and I have developed a successful PPC campaign.

In conclusion, the Pay Per Click route is fraught with enticement, danger and promise, but do your homework; and as in gambling, keep it in perspective. NEVER wager more than you can afford to lose and you will be fine.