Hey there! Welcome back to my blog.
This week has been fantastic now that I’ve finally got my website up and running. It feels like a huge accomplishment, and I’m excited to dive into other aspects of my business. Of course, there’s still some tweaking to be done on the site, but hey, that’s all part of the process, right?
You’ll soon find out, once you get yours up and running, that it’s a never-ending cycle of updates and changes. But that’s what makes WordPress so great! It’s like a playground for creativity, with endless options and features to explore. So buckle up, and let’s dive into this exciting journey together!
What is WordPress?
WordPress is a popular and user-friendly content management system (CMS) that allows individuals and businesses to create and manage websites, blogs, and online stores with ease. It provides a flexible platform with customizable themes, plugins, and features, making it suitable for all users.
It might sound like a lot of mumbo-jumbo at first, I know that’s what I thought too. Once I got into it, everything started to make more sense, so please don’t get discouraged. If I can do this stuff, so can you! It’s crucial to have a website with a blog where your audience can find more information about your niche and your journey.
A little Piece of Encouragement
You know, there was a time when I knew absolutely nothing about building a website. It seemed like this giant, daunting task that I never thought I could tackle. But guess what? I did it! 🎉
The Key Ingredient
It turns out, the key ingredients are patience, time, and, most importantly, dedication and a burning desire to make it happen. If I can do it, trust me, so can you! If you’re ever feeling overwhelmed or doubtful, just remember, it’s all totally possible with the right mindset and a bit of determination. You’ve got this!
What did I learn from building my website?
I wanted to share a little hiccup I encountered while working on my website , hopping back and forth between themes. Boy was that a big mistake! Things started to get jumbled up, and I found myself scratching my head more than actually making progress.
That’s when I decided to call in my son, Zachary. Bless his heart, he saved the day! With his help, we managed to sort things out and get me back on track. But let me tell you, it was a learning experience for sure!
I’ll admit, I’m not the most tech-savvy person out there, and sometimes I feel like I’m just stumbling through this whole website-building thing. But you know what? Despite the bumps in the road, I’m pretty darn proud of how it turned out. And that’s the thing – it’s all part of the journey. We live and we learn, right?
If you’re feeling a bit overwhelmed or lost in the digital world, just know you’re not alone. Take it one step at a time, and don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it. We’ll get through this together!
Lesson learned: Stick with one theme and one theme only!
Hopefully, this will help you. It’s definitely a trial-and-error process building a business and website, but it certainty can be done!
I wanted to share a little victory with you. Recently, I had the chance to dive back into my training with my mentor, Dean. It felt good to reconnect and get some guidance, especially since I fell a wee bit behind during the holidays and in getting my website up and running.
A little Note
Having a mentor is another crucial part of starting an affiliate marketing business.. I couldn’t have done this without having Dean by my side helping me and directing me in the right direction.
But guess what? I managed to accomplish another task the other day, setting up my professional email! It might sound small, but trust me, it was a big deal for me. There’s something about having that official email address that makes you feel like a real business owner, you know?
Now, I know some of you might be wondering about the ins and outs of creating and using emails for your customers. Don’t worry, we’ll dive into all of that together when the time comes. For now, let’s just celebrate the little victories and keep moving forward, step by step.
Speaking of Emails…
If you haven’t heard yet, the new “Yahoo and Google” rules have taken effect as of Feb. 1st.
What that means is that you will only have a 3% spam rate to work with. If you go past the 3%, then Yahoo and Google will block your email from ever getting out to anyone. That is one of affiliate marketers worst nightmares! Too many emails coming into people’s inboxes have become a problem for Yahoo and Google. They aren’t making as much money because people can’t see the ads, or they miss them with all the spam emails in their inboxes.
That’s one of the reasons why I started a blog post. I wanted to jot down my progress (wins and losses) so people can learn from me, but also to build a relationship with my viewers so they grow to know, like, and trust me.
Remember, for when you get your affiliate marketing business started, so you don’t get your email blocked from Yahoo and Google, because then there will be NO BUSINESS if that happens…
Here’s the basics of what you need to start an affiliate marketing business
1. Choose a Niche: A product that goes with your interest.
2. Set Up an Online Platform: Get your website, Blog, and Social Media channels.
3. Create Valuable Content: Develop high-quality, engaging content relevant to your chosen niche.
4. Join Affiliate Programs: Research and join affiliate programs relevant to your niche. For example:(Affiliate System is mine)
5. Promote Affiliate Products: Incorporate affiliate links into your content strategically, ensuring they are relevant and add value to your audience.
6. Build an Audience: Focus on growing and engaging your audience through consistent content creation
7. Track Performance: Utilize tracking and analytics tools to monitor the performance of your affiliate marketing efforts.
8. Optimize and Iterate: Continuously analyze and optimize your affiliate marketing strategies based on performance data and feedback.
Here’s a List of a Couple Different Essential Platforms You’ll Need to Run an Affiliate Marketing Business
1. Website Builder: WordPress, Wix, or Squarespace for creating and managing your website.
2. Hosting Provider: Bluehost, SiteGround, or HostGator to host your website.
3. Email Marketing: ConvertKit, Mailchimp, or AWeber for building and managing your email list.
4. Affiliate Networks: ClickBank, Amazon Associates, ShareASale, or CJ Affiliate to find affiliate programs.
5. Social Media Platforms: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, or Pinterest to promote your content and engage with your audience.
6. SEO Tools: Ahrefs, SEMrush, or Yoast SEO for optimizing your content for search engines.
7. Analytics: Google Analytics or Matomo to track traffic and conversions.
8. Content Creation: Canva or Adobe Spark for designing visuals, and Grammarly for editing your content.
9. Link Tracking: Pretty Links or ThirstyAffiliates to manage and track your affiliate links.
Most of these platforms are conveniently integrated into the Affiliate System that I use, so you have everything you need in one place. This not only streamlines your workflow but also saves you money by eliminating the need for multiple subscriptions.
By following these steps, you can establish a solid foundation for your affiliate marketing business and work towards building a sustainable source of passive income. I’m just trying to give you an idea of what you would need in order to start an affiliate marketing business.
Just imagine quitting your 9-to-5 job and being able to work wherever you want in the world as long as you have a computer and the internet… With making your own hours on top of that! Sounds great, doesn’t it?
What I was so excited about when I joined my mentor and his team was that all of this is in the Affiliate System, so it makes things so much easier with handling your business.
These are just some of the things that I have accomplished already, and I am so proud that I have because I’m just an ordinary person trying to make a living, just like you! There is still so much that has to be done with my business, but that’s where the patience and dedication comes in. We didn’t learn to walk in one week when we started out. We had to crawl first before walking. The same concept goes with starting a business. One step at a time…
Follow Me!
If you would like to continue getting more insight on how and what to do, then keep following me on my journey and I will help you along the way. If you ever have any questions about anything, then please don’t be shy. That’s how we all learn, by asking questions.
I hope this blog post has given you some more insight on the basics of how to get an affiliate marketing business started.
Please feel free to leave a comment. I would love to hear from you!
Also, if you’re interested in gaining more insight on affiliate marketing, take a look at the book at the bottom of this page. It’s free, other than paying the S/H $7.96. Just click on the banner, or you can click right here. This book is what got me started, and it’s more than worth it!
I hope you have a wonderful week! I look forward to hearing from you, and I’ll see you in next weeks post…
Until then…
To Our Success,
Hi, Meredith! Congratulations on getting your business email set up! I like getting such one-and-done tasks completed myself. Great victories and then I’m ready for the next one. Cheers to you in the coming week!
Hi Nakina,
Thank you so much! Good luck to you in your next adventures.
Hope you have a good week as well….
Meredith
Meredith, Hang in there! It’s apparent that you have the true desire to succeed, but computers don’t always want to cooperate. Your post was certainly packed with great information!
Hi Ken,
Thankn you for taking the time to look at my blog post. I appreciate the compliment on my post. I am getting better with the computer now that I have had some experience, and my son is here to help me. I just keep trying to learn amd move forward. Thanks again!
Meredith
Meredith, firstly, many congratulations on starting your website and using WordPress to develop it. As you’ve shown it’s a very powerful tool and allows you to communicate with the audience and set up your business. As you said there’s always technical issues and it’s great to have people around you that help like Family. I like how you’ve laid out the main things you need to do. and it’s great to see the information around the email rules and what you have learnt. If I could offer any advice you can if you want to is do smaller blogs on each of the topics that you covered . There’s no real right or wrong answer just a suggestion . Well done . Keep up the good work until the next time . Thanks , Atif
Hi Atif,
I appreciate all the compliments. Thank you for that, and the suggestion you gave me on creating smaller blogs for each section I talk about. I will remember that for my next post. Any suggestions you have I am happy to take. Thanks again!
Meredith
The Word Press Blog is the centerpiece of our businesses. How we nurture and grow with it is a daily challenge that is doable. Great your grandson could sort out the sticky obstacles and make it right! Good on you!
Hi Kate,
Thank you for the comment. Yes, I’m figuring it all out slowly but surely… My son has been great with helping me. He’s a good kid, and I’m lucky to have him to be able to help me when I need it. Thanks!
Meredith
With time, patience and a growth mindset you can learn and do anything! As long as we don’t tell ourselves beforehand that something is too hard or that we aren’t able to do it, we can accomplish anything we set our mind to. Natural laws are the only limitations.
Hi Katrin,
That is so true! I think we sometimes forget these things, and we have to be reminded of that. Thank you for your comment. 🙂
Hi Meredith, I enjoyed reading through your post! There is a ton of valuable information for anyone looking into Affiliate Marketing as a source of income.
It’s also an easy read and clearly set out – well done!
Thanks for sharing. I look forward to visiting again to see your progress
Have a great week 😊
Hi Karen,
Thank you very much. I appreciate your kind words.
Meredith
Hi Meredith, congratulation for getting your website up and running.
A lot of times, we have the tendency to make a mountain out of a molehill in our head. But when you actually start doing it, you realize it may not be as difficult as you think.
I remember when I first started online, it took me three years before I start setting up my first WordPress Blog. All the while, I was avoiding it because I thought it was too difficult. But when I start doing it and just follow instructions, it took me like one hour. I was asking myself, “what have I been avoiding all these years”.
Anyway, I want to congratulate you again for taking the first step. You should be proud of yourself.
Hi Alan,
Thank you for your comment. I seem to do that with everything I do. I guess I’m a bit of an perfectionists when it comes to things like this. It can be a good thing, but then at times it can be bad too. I’m sorry it took you so long for you to get your first blog post up. I know exactly what you’re saying though, with the fear of failure, or just not knowing what to do. Thank you and I am very proud of myself for having accomplished all of this.
Meredith
Hi Meredith,
It’s so important to celebrate wins (big and small). Not only to recognize how far you’ve come but I think also to give ourselves time to feel grateful and to breathe and come up with great ideas!
I like your website and the way you have portioned it into sections with color and images that reinforce your story.
Congratulations on pushing through! You are a role model for those who think they can’t
Hi Eleanor,
Thank you for your kind words and your compliments on my website. I appreciate it very much! You are right, every win means something, and we should always account for that and never go on without acknowledging them. We’re always so quick to look at the bad and never the good. Thank you!
Meredith