How is it that after testing campaign after campaign, in the last few months, probably 20-30 campaigns I found one that's profitable? It isn't going to last forever, and I'd like to be making much more than what I am right now. I'm continously trying to start new campaigns, get a sale here and there, break even, or start losing. There has to be something wrong in my method, since I hear of people saying things like, they like competition and like to get in a saturated niche and take over, etc..etc.. See, I would like to know what I am doing, and what I need to do to make a campaign successful, instead of just taking a chance with "testing" a campaign and hope that I'll get lucky, like I'm gambling.
This is how I'm currently doing things:
I'll browse an affiliate network, find an offer, I'll research some numbers (searches per month, competitors, average keyword costs, etc.. and go with something that I believe is unsaturated and would be able to afford the keywords)
Then start up Keyword Elite and create a few thousand keywords to start with. Start a campaign on Yahoo, then just delete keywords from my campaign that aren't relative or bringing non-converting traffic. All of my keywords are at minimum bids (yahoo).
I don't use landing pages with campaigns I'm testing out in the beginning. I don't see why I should spend money on something just to test and then it doesn't perform. That campaign that I have that was referring to above, it doesn't do well with a landing page, but does well if I send traffic directly to the merchant.
Should I be concentrating more on keywords? Whenever I raise bids on keywords I end up losing, so I don't bid higher than the minimum bid. In the beginning I tried to create my own keywords, and use phrase builders and what-not, but that didn't help. I'll even mess up a profitable campaign if I mess with anything after I've started it.
Maybe I should try a saturated niche? I've heard of people say, if it's saturated then you know it's making money. Then you also have people that sarcastically advise, "ringtones, dating, mortgage, pharm" to noobs. I tried adult when I first got into affiliate marketing and didn't making anything at all.
Some questions:
When you first start a campaign, do you start losing in the beginning until you start seeing which keywords are converting?
How much do you let yourself lose? Is it the amount of the payout?
Do you not care (to a certain extent) how much you lose until you find out how to get the campaign profitable?
Do you always bid as high as you can on converting keywords and get rid of everything else?
Do you ever only find 1 keyword in your entire campaign that's converting? Do you think I should put some money into a campaign when I first start it to find converting keywords? Instead of the method above where I create a few thousand keywords at minimum bid? They are at minimum bid probably for a reason right? Nobody is bidding on them since the conversions are probably weak. Usually I'll give a campaign about to the payout amount to convert, if it doesn't then I'll start thinking twice (this reminds me of the gambling scenario I mentioned). So instead, maybe I should take a couple hundred dollars raise my bids really high just to find a couple converting keywords. Opposite of my current method I'm using now of many keywords, min. bid. Instead less keywords, and higher bids?
I have to change something since my method isn't working well, I don't think I should be going through so many campaigns that aren't performing, since these are all on networks and there are people making money from them. Seems "thinking outside of the box" really applies to affiliate marketing. Some people say the only reason you can't be successful in affiliate marketing is if you quit, but in reality it can't be that simple or everybody would be doing it. I think my lack of creativity is what's keeping me from making serious money.
This is how I'm currently doing things:
I'll browse an affiliate network, find an offer, I'll research some numbers (searches per month, competitors, average keyword costs, etc.. and go with something that I believe is unsaturated and would be able to afford the keywords)
Then start up Keyword Elite and create a few thousand keywords to start with. Start a campaign on Yahoo, then just delete keywords from my campaign that aren't relative or bringing non-converting traffic. All of my keywords are at minimum bids (yahoo).
I don't use landing pages with campaigns I'm testing out in the beginning. I don't see why I should spend money on something just to test and then it doesn't perform. That campaign that I have that was referring to above, it doesn't do well with a landing page, but does well if I send traffic directly to the merchant.
Should I be concentrating more on keywords? Whenever I raise bids on keywords I end up losing, so I don't bid higher than the minimum bid. In the beginning I tried to create my own keywords, and use phrase builders and what-not, but that didn't help. I'll even mess up a profitable campaign if I mess with anything after I've started it.
Maybe I should try a saturated niche? I've heard of people say, if it's saturated then you know it's making money. Then you also have people that sarcastically advise, "ringtones, dating, mortgage, pharm" to noobs. I tried adult when I first got into affiliate marketing and didn't making anything at all.
Some questions:
When you first start a campaign, do you start losing in the beginning until you start seeing which keywords are converting?
How much do you let yourself lose? Is it the amount of the payout?
Do you not care (to a certain extent) how much you lose until you find out how to get the campaign profitable?
Do you always bid as high as you can on converting keywords and get rid of everything else?
Do you ever only find 1 keyword in your entire campaign that's converting? Do you think I should put some money into a campaign when I first start it to find converting keywords? Instead of the method above where I create a few thousand keywords at minimum bid? They are at minimum bid probably for a reason right? Nobody is bidding on them since the conversions are probably weak. Usually I'll give a campaign about to the payout amount to convert, if it doesn't then I'll start thinking twice (this reminds me of the gambling scenario I mentioned). So instead, maybe I should take a couple hundred dollars raise my bids really high just to find a couple converting keywords. Opposite of my current method I'm using now of many keywords, min. bid. Instead less keywords, and higher bids?
I have to change something since my method isn't working well, I don't think I should be going through so many campaigns that aren't performing, since these are all on networks and there are people making money from them. Seems "thinking outside of the box" really applies to affiliate marketing. Some people say the only reason you can't be successful in affiliate marketing is if you quit, but in reality it can't be that simple or everybody would be doing it. I think my lack of creativity is what's keeping me from making serious money.
