People often wonder what it takes to run an affiliate marketing business. Are you one of those people who buys all that “lazy mornings starting late with a lazy breakfast, turning on the computer and checking how much money went into their bank account while they were sleeping?” It’s time to wake up and smell the coffee because reality is nothing like that.
Now, let’s not start off on the wrong foot, affiliate marketing doesn’t have to be difficult or onerous, but it does require information, commonly known as work. However, the work involved can be very interesting, somewhat tedious at times, but certainly a hundred times better than being on a job.
So, let’s see exactly what our work day should look like, as an affiliate marketer.
Well, the first part is like the guru says, you get up and have breakfast quietly, after all it’s your business and you are the boss. This, however, is not a justification for getting up late and hunching over in your pajamas or nightgown and waiting for a kettle or coffee pot to boil.
Try to get up as early as possible, preferably no later than 7 am. and get dressed, have breakfast, etc. and be ready to get on with the business of the day.
Virtually all highly successful business people, whether online or offline, tend to get up early so that they can meet their personal requirements quickly and get on with the business of the day.
As an affiliate marketer, you will first need to:
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To access.
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Quickly check business emails (note: not personal emails)
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Check web statistics i.e. sales, promotions, enquiries, etc.
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Attend any administrator such as banking, emails, etc.
Once all the basics have been done, which can usually take an hour or two, it’s time to move on to the real business of the day, which is getting more business.
It’s common knowledge, among gurus, that virtually all of your time and energy should be spent bringing new customers into your funnel, be it by providing new products, mailing lists, banners, advertising, etc.
This means that the rest of your working day will be spent on marketing tasks. How much time you spend on these activities is completely up to you, after all, it’s your business and you’re the boss. Remember, while you may be the boss, there are no real employees and the money really stops with you, even if you use outsourced sections of your business.
This is not the best place to get into the nitty-gritty of the particular tasks that are required to be done. It goes without saying that the more skilled you are at a particular task, the less time it will take. All tasks require a certain amount of time and effort, and as an affiliate marketer, it’s up to you to choose the amount of time and effort you want to put into your business.
In theory, the rest of your workday could just be a case of, say, updating your blog, chasing affiliate payments, or otherwise could involve numerous hours.
How many hours?
Well, to be completely honest, you could be sitting at your computer until the wee hours of the morning and you’ll find that many successful online marketers put in that level of effort. It all depends on how much you want to succeed.
Suddenly, that lazy day lifestyle you were sold is nothing more than a fantasy, you may end up working harder and longer than when you had a job.
What is the solution?
In a simple one word answer, it is SCHEDULE.
Plan your day and stick to it strictly. Keep it rigid at first, and then when you feel comfortable with the routine, you can start to relax. By now, you’ll know what works best for you, where you can make the most profit, and most essentially, you’ll know how much time and effort you’re willing to put into your business.
Now, I bet when you read the title of this article and started reading it, you thought you were going to see a list of specific tasks that you would have to check off in order to complete your daily effort. If you did, then this is the old work mindset being activated.
Now that you are an entrepreneur, boss or whatever title you want to give yourself, you have to think differently. everything you do in YOUR BUSINESS Reflect on your lifestyle, big time. So if you want to have that laid-back dream of waking up late, slacking off, and checking your bank account, you’re going to have to either win the lottery or work hard to set it up.
I hope this article has helped you understand that running a business, even an affiliate marketing business, requires a new paradigm. To quote a very famous and relevant saying, “When you change the way you think, you can change your world.”
