One of the tough things about being an affiliate marketer is that it is an extremely volatile industry. Offers go up and down, networks scrub and shave, traffic sources change, you’re constantly being outbid – these are just a few of the problems that can make an affiliate marketers job difficult. Its hard to say you can ever be 100% stable in any business though. But lets take a look at some things I’ve done, and that you can follow, to become a better marketer and hold on to campaigns just a bit longer.

I always start with research. This is something I know a lot of affiliates slack off on. They’d rather get data, then optimize off that data. I take my research on offers, demographics and psychograpics, put them all together to build a niche and tight campaigns, collect data on that and optimize further including new research information. Researching can be anything from figuring out your target market to knowing what your main competitors are doing and how you can improve off that before you launch your campaign. A smart and efficient marketer knows what they are getting into before they get into it.

So, how can we do better research? My days simply start out with reading the news or checking out new trends . Knowing what is going around in the world around you is going to help you pick niches, offers and put together traffic sources. You can target these trends on different advertising platforms through standard affiliate offers by using unique angles that other affiliate marketers aren’t going after. These aren’t always the largest campaigns, revenue-wise, but due to using a bit of creativity, they’ll last considerably longer than just broadly targeting something and inducing “banner blindness” to a larger target.

Another one of my favorite daily use tools is Quantcast. Quantcast allows me to find demographics for most larger websites on the net, or find websites that have the demographics I’m looking for. Also, they have a similar site/”users also visited” site feature which makes not only understanding demographics easier, but also getting under their head, or understanding psychographics of your market a little better, as well. The better you understand a target market, the better you will be able to manage them long term with a wide range of affiliate marketing campaigns.

You can also look into other tools such as tracking (which will always be essential), spies, and management tools that will just overall make your life easier.

Another issue I see a lot of affiliates with is cash flow. When most new affiliates start they have a couple hundred to a thousand or so bucks to their name with the hope of dropping a few ads and seeing 200% ROI. It just doesn’t work like that. You need money to make money. In your first couple months, if all you have is $1000 to work with, the max you can hope to see returns on is $2000. If you’ve got $10,000, you could possibly make $20,000. That doesn’t mean you will, but your first couple months are essential for cash flow as that is when you’ll be experimenting and learning the most. It also means networks probably aren’t paying you out on net-7 yet, which puts hinderece on whether or not you are making your money back right away.

So how can you help maintain overall cash flow? I started off in affiliate marketing by writing freelance. I still do it from time to time, as well as writing for a small group of blogs in only topics that interest me. Using your skills whether it be writing, teaching, programming, design or communicating, can be an excellent substitute income when you need that extra cash to put towards your affiliate campaigns. This is especially true when you are very short on cash. I hear way too many people complain that it is grunt work, too hard to learn, etc etc. You aren’t helping yourself out. Either stick it out for the additional cash to help you out of a rut, or keep complaining – just don’t let me hear about it.

Are you constantly building out your campaigns? I start most of my campaigns on one network, then scale out, usually with identical ads to continue to roll in money, even on old campaigns. Sticking to one network and/or one offer is an affiliate death trap. Make sure you are constantly building out new campaigns, even if you don’t have the money to run them yet, having them on lineup will accelerate you when you are ready for them. This gets much easier to handle when you have employees managing campaigns and other menial tasks for you.

Another big one I know many affiliates miss out on is having a stable business plan. If your idea of running a business is “Meh, I’ll get to it when I get to it or just wait for some better offers”, you’re not going to be having a very stable business. Network, manage, and plan your affiliate marketing. You don’t always have to stick 100% to it, but it will help guide you as you are scaling out to 4 or 5 figure days.

Here is an example daily schedule of how I manage my day and campaigns. First off, I wake up and read the news, drink my coffee, and check emails. After that, I only check emails a couple more times per day. If you can cut out access to Facebook completely, do so. Unfortunately, a lot of my business happens there, so I have to train myself to stay away from chatting with friends and only use it as a business tool. I go through any meetings and calls according to my daily planner. Another first thing I do is check the status of my running campaigns. Is ROI dropping? Are my offers all still up? I’ll do what I have to do to manage that. Afterwards, I start browsing OfferVault and talking to affiliate managers looking into new offers, campaigns and angles. If I find something worth while, I do my due research on it, send an email out to my designers to make landing pages or collect additional data (data mining and consolidating that data into a spreadsheet eases the amount of tedius analysis I would otherwise have to do on my own). I then start building those new campaigns. I don’t refresh my stats every 15 minutes, I don’t check my emails or Facebook every 15 minutes, and I avoid getting distracted by blocking myself from viewing sites that would otherwise kill all my time.

There is a lot more I could write on this subject, but I think I’ll leave you guys off here. Feel free to ask any questions on this topic in the comments section below!

This post is a followup to a question that was asked in the forums, but that I thought I would bring on the blog, as well. Mathi asked:

I seem to be stuck in a rut for a few months and barely making $100 a month even after spending more than that.

I saw your email yesterday saying to promote dating offers on FB. Should I be taking that path or try to find other offers to run on FB?

If you say that dating still works on FB then I will give it a go. :-)

I think I just need you point me in the right direction.

So what does it take to be a successful new dating affiliate on Facebook. I came up with some of the following answers.

Dating on Facebook is not and will not be dead. There are a few ways you can go about it to stay profitable.

1. Go international. OneHourTranslation.com will translate your ad into any language accurately and with the same meaning. Sometimes messages get fumbled in translation, but these guys do a bang up job. It will cost you anywhere from 3 – 8 dollars depending on how long and what translation level you want.

A lot of affiliates are still to lazy to go this route, so if you put in the extra cash and work to get things translated correctly, it can play out well for you in the end. International markets have very little competition, or less than the US/UK/AU/etc, at least, making them prime real estate for your dating ads. The only downfall is that many users in other countries don’t set their relationship status, so it can be hard to find a decent amount of singles. You’ll have to market to many different demographics and countries to make this venture worth while. It may also be hard to find an offer that profits for your target country, especially if you can’t read the landing page.

2. You can stick with US dating, but you might want to segment and find very niche dating sites or dating products. Fetishes, ethnic/religious dating sites, etc. Stay away from the general dating sites that will take any and all singles traffic. They convert poorly and the only way people are making money on them is by constantly rotating images, landing pages, and spending a ton of money for very low margins. Try using keywords to psychographically target users (ex. Find singles that love to play Golf!)

3. If you have the capital or the technical knowledge, create your own dating site! You keep all the money yourself, which means no more small margins or getting cut off from offers. It takes a lot of research to figure out how to get users to convert and keep them subscribed though, so you’ll need to work on that. One thing I would do if you were going this route, is to go niche like in option 2 above. Create a network of dating sites. Keeping users engaged with other users interested in the same this is what makes dating sites thrive.

Really, the key to dating or any other niche that is big on Facebook is to avoid going the lazy route. Use a landing page, rotate and track everything, and think of unique ways to target your core market through the use of keywords or other alternative targeting settings. Going out and targeting every single guy 18 and up worked about 2-3 years ago. Unfortunately, that isn’t the case anymore. Out of the box thinking and effort will give you an advantage above other marketers.

For more answers to your questions, check out my forums or 1-on-1 coaching!

A couple days ago, I shared a link for a Free Facebook Ad Uploader.

This time I’m back with a Free PoF Ad Uploader. This one comes from PimpMyServer.us, so make sure to reach out and say thanks if you can.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jap5abQryrE[/youtube]

So for those of you who don’t feel like shelling out money for the Mr. Green PoF Ad Uploader, here is a free alternative! Again, it is a bit more complex than a paid solution, but for those that are on a budget, it does it’s job well.

Click here to download it!

There have been a few attempts to sell some new automated ad uploader’s for Facebook, but they’ve all been catered to more experienced markets. In the coming days, I’ll be reviewing one such script, but for those looking for a free solution, a couple of guys at Wickefire found a free uploader.

It’s an .exe so it only runs on Windows, and you’ll have to use a torrent client to download it. Click here to get it.

I have not tested it yet, as I’m not sure what kind of data it is sending to who, and we all know there could be some sniffers in there waiting to steal campaigns. Use this at your own risk. Other than security issues that have yet to be answered it seems like a pretty creative answer to the problem of those not wanting to dish out money for another uploader. It doesn’t offer the same convenience an all in one package does, but it does the job for now.

EDIT 16/11/2010: Changed the above download link to new version 1.1.

Also, last Friday I missed Freebie Friday. I’m in the works of hiring a new designer to get some fancy new landing pages. I also had to fly around over the weekend and rectify some visa issues. Needless to say I’m exhausted, but this week we’ll have a lot of great new content, especially in the forums.

Here’s a new one for you guys! Watch the following video that shows you how I am able to make hundreds of images perfectly sized for Facebook and Plenty of Fish in just an hour.

For some of you not listening to my dumb rambling (honestly, I wouldn’t want to listen to my voice either, and my horrible resizing job), here are some of the steps below.

1. Find your image source (I use Bing) and use a relevant keyword to the type of niche you’re working in.

2. Open the images in new tabs

3. Copy the image then close that tab.

4. Open Photoshop and create a new workspace of 110 pixels by 80 pixels, with a resolution of 72 pixels.

5. Paste the image into your workspace.

6. Enable the Transform outline box (CTRL + T) and hold shift as you click and drag the corner until you fit the image in your workspace.

7. Save as and name the file. I just use 1, 2, 3, etc. to quickly name each file in order.

8. Repeat with as many images as you’d like.

Using these steps, I can do a few images every minute. I’ll open 100+ tabs in about 15 – 20 minutes first, then go back and copy and create each ad image. This proves to be very time efficient if you can’t yet afford to have an employee or outsource the job.

The winner of my contest is Nathan Hutchinson. I’ve talked to him already and he will be receiving a new netbook from Tatto Media. Nathan was one who actually came and asked me about different offers and how he could increase his income.I want to thank Mike Cataldo from Tatto Media for giving me the chance to hold this contest, and thanks to all the participants for trying to get their affiliate income up.

Overall, it wasn’t a spectacular show up with only about $700 being brought in over about 2 months, but I definitely could have done a better job promoting it. Hopefully, some of you continue to work with Mike ant Tatto Media because I know they are a real solid group that knows what they are doing. Most of the affiliate managers are already marketers themselves, and Mike is even an advertiser so you are getting some direct deals with them.

Falling ill while having work to get done used to be hard to get out of when you were stuck at a 9 – 5 job at the office. You’d have to call in, explain your situation to your boss or manager, and in some cases, get a note from your doctor that woud excuse your absense. I hated that! Now that I am a freelance writer, I don’t have anyone to deal with except my clients.

Talking to your clients isn’t always as “great” as it was when you had to explain your situation to a boss. Some lousy clients don’t see why you can’t just perk yourself up in bed and write the freelance writing projects they’ve sent you. I mean, you get to work at home! It’s not a real job, right? To us freelance writers, it is our job, and being ill is being ill. How should you handle your clients when you just don’t think your body could take 8 hours in front of a computer screen?

[image by cutglassdecanter]

Got the Morning Jitters

When you wake up and you get that feeling that you won’t be able to write, not because you are too lazy to do it, because your stomachs urging to show its contents to you or you are breaking out in fascinating sweats, be sure to take a good look at yourself. Are you really ill, or is it just that morning sickness crawling over you. Hop in the shower, throw on some clothes and sit at your computer. Still feeling sicker than all hell? If so, it might be time for an extra nap or maybe even a doctor’s visit.

Get in Touch with Those that Matter

If you’ve decided its time for you to take a freelance writer’s sick day, you aren’t scotch free and in bed, yet. You’ve got to let your clients know, especially if you had a project due with a deadline within the day or those coming. If you’ve have your clients phone number, put it to good use. Explain your situation to your client, and ask for a deadline extension or something else you can offer in trade for turning in their work late. I’ve offered a client a few extra articles in return for an extra day extension on a writing project I once had.

Take a Helping Hand

In some instances, your client may let you live out your illness only working you when you are high and dry out of the sick spells. There are those that still won’t understand why you can’t just work in bed, though. This is why I highly suggest you network with other freelance writers for hire. No one says you can’t hire them to help you out with work. Whether or not you want to inform your client that you are outsourcing the work they’ve sent you is up to you. I do it to stay honest, and always let them know the contact information in case they’d like them as a more permanent writer than me. It may lose me work, but it develops trust between you and a client. Trust brings many more clients running back to you for future projects.

Sometimes You Just Gotta Do It

Some cases leave you no other options. You asked your client for an extension with no love. You can’t find a freelance writer you trust enough to work on this project. You are the only one you know that can do this project. If you are truly ill, spread the work out over as much time as you have available. Take numerous breaks, sit the computer on your lap in bed, and drink plenty of water. Don’t forget to use medication. Working while sick isn’t glamorous, but sometimes clients don’t leave us with any other choice.

Have you ever fallen ill on an important deadline date? How did you handle it? Let me know through the comments or send me an email at contact@justindupre.com. I’m always open for a chat or ready to give some freelance writing advice if you have any questions for me.

Some people ask me how a ?child? (me) can make more money, by simply typing some letters, than someone with a college degree in business management from a state university. Well, A) I?m not a child. Thank you very much. I?m 20 years of age, practicing a profession of writing and B) There really is no B. I can collect more money from my services because I know how to set my position higher than that of a college graduate and my target audience of clients needs writers like me.

It really isn?t that hard for anyone to get better benefits on a job for any career path. Quality research time and knowing what skills are needed to advance is all it takes. When I see a client searching for someone with a specific skill, and I notice those with this skill consistently get higher paychecks than those practicing in other fields, I hop on that train and study. While broadening my knowledge of professional freelance writing, I expand upon what I can already do, and in the eye of possible clients, they hit love at first sight.

Making yourself attractive in the eye of your employer doesn?t necessarily mean you need to be sexy (have you noticed, though, the sexy female employee is generally the secretary only being paid 30k a year). Broadening your skills and nailing it on the head of an employer is what they are looking for.

When a possible client for my freelance writing services contacts me, I immediately open my portfolio and exam what has shown off that skill they seek the most. If I haven?t nailed that skill yet, I give myself 24 hours to hit it. Research, research, writing, research, a little coco, and some more writing will help me smooth out any braised edges on that skill. At the end of 24 hours, if I haven?t seen an improvement, I won?t take on that project as I wouldn?t want to lose a possible future client in case they return. If I, however, believe that this is the god of all projects and my skill grew sufficiently enough, I?ll send my proposal to take the task off their hands, along with all that research I spent.

Even if I don?t get the job, I built up an extensive mass to my freelance writing portfolio, which comes in great use further along the road.