Wow I can't believe I have sold over $1,000+ worth of software as an affiliate! The small victories have just added up and now I have hit a big milestone of $1,000 in affiliate sales but how exactly did I do it? Well there's an old salespeople saying “Show up and throw up” which is commonly said when a sales rep goes to a client meeting and talks about their product or service but they forgot one huge part of the meeting – the customer's needs.
The saying I prefer is
“Stop Selling and Start Solving”
because at the end of the day people buy products and services to solve certain problems however complex or basic the problem may be. I have been recommending software through Preston's Corner and that's how the site makes income and I will be launching some products very soon so it's quite exciting but I just wanted to look back and tell you how I sold over $1,000+ of other people's software. It's a great model because I recommend certain products and once someone buys the product then I get a commission and the product creator has to provide all the support. (This is technically called affiliate marketing since I am promoting products as an affiliate 🙂 So I'm sure you are wanting to see proof of how of these sales so here it is –
Here is Proof of My $1,000+ in Software Sales
How Exactly Did I Sell This Much Software?
So how did I do it since there are tons of people all promoting the same products online? How did I stand out from the rest of those people? Well first things first you have to listen to your market and understand what they need. Find out what products and services that they are currently using and see what they are saying about them. In most cases there is always something that they are needing that their current software or service is NOT doing. Figure out what that need is and go from there. Find online forums or facebook groups where people are talking about your niche and see what they are saying. See what they don't like about the current solutions and if you get lucky they will even tell you exactly what they want for FREE. It's allot easier to do this is you are actually a customer so for instance on internet marketing products I am the customer so I can easily understand what other marketers are saying and want to do. I can look at it from a marketer's perspective since I am a marketer but it's not always that easy in other niches / categories online.
Learn How People Search Online
Once you know what people need you can begin looking for a solution. This is an essential part of the process because you might not think in terms of the technical aspects of the product. For instance someone who wants to target people searching for airline flights might target the keyword
Marketer's Target Keyword: “Airline Flights”
The problem with doing something like this is that most people who want to buy a flight don't search for “airline flights” they search for the term “cheap flights” because they don't care about anything other than price in most cases.
Most Searched Keyword: “Cheap Flights”
You have to put on your marketer hat and think like someone who is looking for what you are offering. For instance I love PixelStudioFX but most people have not idea what that software does. It's a very easy to use ebook cover creator so I would not focus my keywords around PixelStudioFX but more like the terms ebook cover creator software or DIY ebook covers since that would be where most of the searches come from.
Reviews & Comparison Posts Are Essential
One of my keys to success is doing product and software reviews. I have reviewed many software products including PixelStudioFX and compared Popup Domination vs. Thrive Themes vs. Optin Monster which are all conversion softwares for WordPress. That one post has made me some decent affiliate income since people read the review and then buy the software. I like to review similar products to show which one is the “best” or just show each product's pros and cons. People love to see the bad stuff that bloggers write about other products more than the good! I guess it's because they think bloggers are just promoting the products because they are getting paid to do so. My best piece of advice here is to be honest and transparent about the products and above all please actually review the product BEFORE you post a review. I can't tell you how annoying it is when I read or watch a review when I can clearly tell the person did not even use the software for more than 5 minutes…. It's embarrassing for you and your audience. Always be prepared and be professional because people can tell right off the bat.
The Ultimate Goal is to Provide Value
The key to making money as an affiliate is to provide value to your audience. There is a famous quote that says “Your income is a determination of how much value you provide” so in that context the more value you provide = more money you make. Let me just say that it's not all about the money but with my tips and tricks revealed in the post you will be well on your way 🙂