This will be my first "contribution" to WF in a while... if ever. I was going to waste time making an ubercamp parody but felt i might as well contribute something useful.
Anyways, affiliate marketing is nothing new. Before the internet it was called Direct Response marketing and it was done through mail, magazines, and so on. There are some legends in this field and this is what this post is about.
"Keep trying something new until it sticks" is the affiliate marketer's key to success motto. This is especially true for Pay Per Click, where the response is about as quick and direct as it gets. You can keep trying for months or even years because there are so many things to try. One of the main reasons your campaigns will succeed or fail is because of the words you use. Why not take a shortcut by knowing what to write when you start?
There are fundamental reasons why people buy the things they buy. Direct response marketers figured this out before the internet became what it is today.
I think its fundamentally flawed that people place so much emphasis on tracking and analytics. Don't get me wrong, they're incredibly important (srsly don't forget to Split Test), but if you don't know how to sell then all you're doing is "polishing a turd." You can start 100 campaigns, choose 10 that work, finally get one that makes you money, but this is more of a machine-gun approach. What if you wanted to be surgical? What if you wanted to only promote stuff you actually enjoyed selling, but couldn't turn them into a profit? Maybe these books can bring you into the black.
The legends of yore wrote some great books on direct response, so here are my recommendations.
Recommended Reading:
Joe Sugarman
I picked up this author's name from another book I read (for the life of me I can't remember the author or title cause I don't have it on me, but it wasn't very good)
Anyways, his book 30 Triggers is a short, great read. It's basically 30 reasons why people buy shit told through a story... you have to think about what he writes but he hits a LOT of reasons why people buy stuff.
Amazon.com: Triggers: 30 Sales Tools you can use to Control the Mind of your Prospect to Motivate, Influence and Persuade.: Joseph Sugarman, Ron Hugher, Dick Hafer: Books
I feel guilty doin this, but you can download this book here:
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=XGDAMPI0
He has other books that you should pick up as well:
Amazon.com: The Adweek Copywriting Handbook: The Ultimate Guide to Writing Powerful Advertising and Marketing Copy from One of America's Top Copywriters: Joseph Sugarman: Books
Robert Cialdini
This dude isn't a direct marketer, but a psychologist ( i think) Anyways, this book is an amazing study into the sub-conscience reasons people do what they do when influenced by another.
Amazon.com: Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion (Collins Business Essentials): Robert B. Cialdini: Books
Jay Abraham
I don't have any material I can recommend off the top of my head, but this guy is one of the best marketers of all time. He's one of the few people that can actually justify a $5k fee for his seminars.
Amazon.com: Getting Everything You Can Out of All You've Got: 21 Ways You Can Out-Think, Out-Perform, and Out-Earn the Competition: Jay Abraham: Books
Disclaimer: I am by no means an super affiliate, but I am not a gooberaffiliate either. Matter of fact I don't think I have any PPC campaigns going, but this knowledge can be applied to any kind of traffic, even your own products. Take form this post what you wish.
If you learn something or this posts helped your campaigns, let us know.
If you have any other great direct response books or authors to recommend, do it here
Anyways, affiliate marketing is nothing new. Before the internet it was called Direct Response marketing and it was done through mail, magazines, and so on. There are some legends in this field and this is what this post is about.
"Keep trying something new until it sticks" is the affiliate marketer's key to success motto. This is especially true for Pay Per Click, where the response is about as quick and direct as it gets. You can keep trying for months or even years because there are so many things to try. One of the main reasons your campaigns will succeed or fail is because of the words you use. Why not take a shortcut by knowing what to write when you start?
There are fundamental reasons why people buy the things they buy. Direct response marketers figured this out before the internet became what it is today.
I think its fundamentally flawed that people place so much emphasis on tracking and analytics. Don't get me wrong, they're incredibly important (srsly don't forget to Split Test), but if you don't know how to sell then all you're doing is "polishing a turd." You can start 100 campaigns, choose 10 that work, finally get one that makes you money, but this is more of a machine-gun approach. What if you wanted to be surgical? What if you wanted to only promote stuff you actually enjoyed selling, but couldn't turn them into a profit? Maybe these books can bring you into the black.
The legends of yore wrote some great books on direct response, so here are my recommendations.
Recommended Reading:
Joe Sugarman
I picked up this author's name from another book I read (for the life of me I can't remember the author or title cause I don't have it on me, but it wasn't very good)
Anyways, his book 30 Triggers is a short, great read. It's basically 30 reasons why people buy shit told through a story... you have to think about what he writes but he hits a LOT of reasons why people buy stuff.
Amazon.com: Triggers: 30 Sales Tools you can use to Control the Mind of your Prospect to Motivate, Influence and Persuade.: Joseph Sugarman, Ron Hugher, Dick Hafer: Books
I feel guilty doin this, but you can download this book here:
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=XGDAMPI0
He has other books that you should pick up as well:
Amazon.com: The Adweek Copywriting Handbook: The Ultimate Guide to Writing Powerful Advertising and Marketing Copy from One of America's Top Copywriters: Joseph Sugarman: Books
Robert Cialdini
This dude isn't a direct marketer, but a psychologist ( i think) Anyways, this book is an amazing study into the sub-conscience reasons people do what they do when influenced by another.
Amazon.com: Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion (Collins Business Essentials): Robert B. Cialdini: Books
Jay Abraham
I don't have any material I can recommend off the top of my head, but this guy is one of the best marketers of all time. He's one of the few people that can actually justify a $5k fee for his seminars.
Amazon.com: Getting Everything You Can Out of All You've Got: 21 Ways You Can Out-Think, Out-Perform, and Out-Earn the Competition: Jay Abraham: Books
Disclaimer: I am by no means an super affiliate, but I am not a gooberaffiliate either. Matter of fact I don't think I have any PPC campaigns going, but this knowledge can be applied to any kind of traffic, even your own products. Take form this post what you wish.
If you learn something or this posts helped your campaigns, let us know.
If you have any other great direct response books or authors to recommend, do it here
