Dabbling in affiliate marketing

Sorry for the lack of posts, I've been busy learning more about affiliate marketing, which has turned out to be one of the best things I've done so far.

If you are also interested in giving affiliate marketing a try, here are some tips on how to do that in the best way:

How to choose a niche
Like with everything else that involves making money long term, I think the best thing is to choose a niche that is profitable and that you feel passionate about. A great way to check what people are looking for is to use the Google Keyword Tool, but don't just base your decision on the keywords you find, instead, make sure there are great affiliate deals out there for the products you find too.

Work with different projects
By this I mean you should have at least a few different websites, blogs or whatever you decide to put your affiliate ads on. This is important both because you should never put all your eggs in the same basket, in case the basket breaks, but also because it will make it easier to see what the most profitable way of working is. So I personally have tried many different products and niches lately, in order to see what works best. (So far it's travel!)

Learn SEO in order to help people find your projects
This is really a must, since it makes a huge difference. So if you only take one of my tips to heart, let is be this one: Learn at least the basics of SEO in order to get A LOT further with your earnings. It's actually kind of fun once you get started!

Make a plan
You need to work on your affiliate projects on a regular basis, since few of them take off immediately. So make a plan that enables you to do just that, because the most common reason people fail with affiliate marketing is that they simply do not keep it up for long enough and give up too soon when the earnings don't come immediately.

I'm still kind of new to affiliate marketing, so it is possible I will have more tips to share further on, but so far, these are the things that have helped me succeed the most.

Lesson I have learned while trying to make money online

As you know if you have been reading this blog for a while, my project of trying to figure out how to make money online worked out pretty well for me. Not at all like I expected (a lot of the earning sites others swear by were just too much work for me, and some sites even turned out to be scams!), but I did succeed in the end.

And since I did, I want to share an important lesson I learned in the process: Don’t listen to those who tell you it cannot be done!

You see, when I told people I wanted to start to earn money online, people told me it was impossible, that it would not be worth the time it would take, and many other negative things. I thought they might be right, to be honest, but still wanted to try it out for myself anyway. And now I am so glad I did that! Because it was possible, and I never would have known that if I had just listened to others.

So one of the most important lessons I personally learned was not to listen to what others have to say. If you believe you can do something, you can! Just be patient and smart about any project you take on, and you will get there in the end!

What I am up to myself

I also thought it might be good to share what I am doing lately, in order to earn some cash online myself. Well, this month, I have set a goal for myself to start several new websites and blogs. I have realized having several blogs is great for a lot of reasons. The main being that your Adsense earnings add up so much faster than if you just try to promote one blog or website.

Most of the websites and blogs I set up are rather niched, since those are the easiest to work with for me.

I have set monthly goals regarding how many sites I should start every month, but since I did not quite reach that goal last month, I will have to work extra hard at it this month! So far it's going according to plan!

How to translate your website or blog into other languages

If you have a website or a blog in English or your native language, it might be an excellent idea to have it translated, in order to reach a wider audience. I have done this myself, with excellent results.

But there are some things you should keep in mind if you decide to do this:

Always use a professional translator or translation agency, or a translator who comes with recommendations from someone you trust. Sadly, there are some bad translators out there too, who don't actually translate but use some kind of automated translation service instead.
I tried The Native Translator the first times I did this, and they worked great. Plus, you can pay them with Paypal too!

Make sure the translator or translation agency you go for actually has experience with website translations, since not every translator has translated websites before, even if they might have other kinds of translation experience.

If your blog or website is a particular subject that not everyone masters, you might also want to consider getting a translator who specializes in that particular field, be it marketing, technical translations or something else. I also try to look for translators who know a little bit about SEO when I can.

Reasons you could get banned from Google Adsense

Google Adsense is, like I have mentioned before, one of the most popular ways for people to start making money online through their blogs and websites, since Google Adsense is generally easy to install and easy to understand.

The most common complaint against Google Adsense, however, is that people say they got banned from the service for no reason. This is why I thought I would list a few common reasons that could get you banned from Google Adsense, since I believe a Google Adsense ban is really not as unfair as most people think.

Common reasons people get banned from Google Adsense include:

Clicking on your own ads.
This is strictly forbidden and Google is really good at noticing if you do. So even if you think you can do this in a way you can’t get caught: Don’t do it! They will know.

Asking others to click on your ads.
This is also another big no-no, no matter if you write something on the site encouraging people to do it, or ask your friends to do it for you. Also when it comes to this, Google has very good ways of seeing when you ask people to click for you, so don’t even try!

Misleading people so they click on your ads by mistake.
Also not allowed, and even if it was, you shouldn’t do it. It is highly annoying after all!

Buying traffic.
Also strictly forbidden, and seriously, not very hard to discover. Buying traffic is generally very stupid too, so why anyone would willingly do this is beyond me.

Using some kind of automated software that automatically clicks on the ads.
Also very easy for Google to notice, so a very, very bad idea indeed.

Autoblogging.
It may seem like a very convenient way to get a nice blog, but it’s really not.

Making changes to the Adsense code.
This is not allowed, because Google does not want you to manipulate it anyhow. And since they made the code, they WILL notice if you do!

Placing too many ads on your site/blog.
More than 3 ad blocks is not allowed, so stick to the rules.

Blogging about topics that are not allowed.
These include scams, illegal drugs, weapons, PTCs and gambling, just to mention a few examples. Stick to the good topics instead!

Stealing other people’s content.
This is bad, not only because of Adsense, but because of other things too. So never copy anyone else’s content, take the time to write your own instead. Please!

For more information about what is and what isn’t allowed on Adsense, the best thing is to check the user agreement. You will find all the information you need in there!

Worth knowing about Google Adsense/Google Adsense review

Like I mentioned in one of my previous posts, I have Google Adsense on a few of my blogs, and I manage to make a bit of money with it. I've heard many people say that it is impossible to earn anything with Google Adsense, but I don't agree. This is why I thought I would share some of the things I have learned with my readers, in case you are thinking about adding Google Adsense to your blog or website as well.

How to succeed with Google Adsense:

First of all, make sure you understand how Google Adsense works. Not everyone who signs up for Google Adsense is familiar with the rules and what your obligations are. Knowing how Google Adsense works means you should be fully aware of the topics you should avoid, as well as of the fact that it is absolutely forbidden to click on your own ads.

I have always been a stickler for the rules, and I think this has explains why I never had any problems with Google Adsense of any kind. I never clicked on my own ads or tried anything else that was against the rules, for that matter, since I read about how good they are at figuring those things out, no matter how smart you think you are.

Second of all: it takes time to make money with Google Adsense. It probably took me like 6 months before I saw any significant earnings, so if I had given up before that, I would never have gotten anywhere. So even if you don't seem to make money with Google Adsense to begin with, don't give up! You will get there in the end!

These are really the two most important Google Adsense tips I have to share. I haven't tried anything more elaborate than that, I just worked on my blogs, making sure they were optimized (meaning I learned SEO - Search Engine Optimization) and had good content and regular posts. People continued reading them, and some of them did end up clicking on the ads, so it really can be as simple as that!

So despite the fact that there are some bad Google Adsense reviews out there, I highly recommend them. Just remember to be patient and not cheat!

On my “to do”-list: Write a Mechanical Turk review

Even though my current projects are going pretty well, to keep things interesting, I thought I would still review some online earning methods every once in a while, because I totally get that not everyone who reads this blog would be happy with the earning methods I’ve chosen.

And the first online earning method I thought I would review is Mechanical Turk, since I’ve heard a lot of contradicting things about this site. Some people swear by it and love it, while others think it pays way too little to be worth anything.

So of course, I want to find out: Is Mechanical Turk worth it? Is it possible to make money with Mechanical Turk? And what separates them from other sites like Mechanical Turk?
So if you’ve ever wanted to know more about Amazon Mechanical Turk, stay tuned! A Mechanical Turk review is coming up soon!

What is Mechanical Turk?
Amazon Mechanical Turk is actually a market place, where anyone in need of help, can ask others to help them with it. Common tasks on Mechanical Turk are writing gigs, translations and such, but there really are quite a lot of other tasks there as well. Mechanical Turk is owned by Amazon, and you join it in the same way you join their affiliate program (which I am already a part of, and pleased with).

(pic from Vator)