How Article Marketing Is Doubling My Affiliate Marketing Income

At least . . . almost.

Over at BloggingTips.com (BT) this week, I posted a review of sorts of ArticleMarketer.com. Since I started using this article submission service, it's almost doubled my affiliate marketing income. My first article was distributed on January 11th, and it's working like a dream.

To learn more, read the two posts I wrote there yesterday and Tuesday. They are: Article Marketing: Is it Worth It to Submit to Thousands of Directories in One Click (Tuesday's post); and How ArticleMarketer.com Has Almost Doubled My Affiliate Marketing Sales (yesterday's post).

I'm new to this whole affiliate marketing thing, as I've said here before. So it's fascinating to see what works, why and what doesn't. This is especially true because I literally have to squeeze this in between duties of my "real job" (freelance writer).

ArticleMarketer.com Feedback

If you have any experience with ArticleMarketer, or another submission service, please share it here so that those who are interested can get first-hand info about it. Your experience may be different from mine. There are some comments to my articles on BT, so be sure to check those out. I guess what I'm saying is before you plunk down any dollars, do your research.

The Latest Edition of the Inkwell Editorial Newsletter Is Out

The first issue of 2009 went out on Tuesday. If you haven't signed up to receive it, do so here. This issue covers how to make money with Constant-Content.com. I'd always wondered if you can really make money with the site; and if so, how. I interviewed freelance Lisa-Anne Sanderson, who's sold upwards of 200 articles on the site -- garnering from $10 to $100 each. She gave us the inside scoop.

Also, I talk about how to make money from special reports. I've done two in the last 4 months or so. Because of this, I've landed a higher echelon of client, am selling my most expensive service at New Media Words ($595) like gangbusters and am getting to a place where I get to do more picking and choosing of the types of projects I work on.

All of this came from the special reports I wrote. I explain how and why in the newsletter.

2009 so far has been busy on so many fronts; I barely have time to breathe. I hope the same is true for you. Until next time,

Yuwanda (Wanna know what I'm up to? Check me out on Twitter)
Contact: info *at* InkwellEditorial.com
P.S.: Where are all the freelance writing jobs? Find out in the 2008-2009 Freelance Writing Jobs Report
***********************************************
Freelance Success Stories! There are freelancers who make very good livings at what they love. Inkwell Editorial’s newsletter features these successful professionals who put to rest the phrase, “starving freelancer.” Current Issue: How to Make the Most Money as a Freelance Writer. Subscribe to read this, and all previous, issues.
***********************************************
Copyright ©2009 InkwellEditorial.com. Except where noted, no part of this site may be reproduced in any manner without the express, written consent of the publisher. Violators will be prosecuted.

Averaging $100-$150/Day in Passive Income w/Affiliate Marketing

All this week, I blogged about my "real" foray into affiliate marketing over at BloggingTips.com (BT). Real is in quotation marks because I've tried affiliate marketing before, but never put any effort into it other than sticking some links on my site. That garnered me little to no sales.

Affiliate Marketing Success!

I recently started to make good headway with one affiliate product though (3-4 sales a day, earning $25 per sale). Not bad for about an hour's worth of work per day to promote it.

I'm currently in the process of scouting for my next affiliate product. So, if you know of any, write in and let me know. As I say in today's post on BT, ". . . for me, “decent sales” translates into three or four sales per day, preferably with an affiliate payout of $25 or more per sale."

To read all three posts, visit the following links:
Article Marketing or Free Classifieds: Which Works Better to Promote Affiliate Products? (Monday, 1/19 BT post)

How to Overcome Buyer Skepticism When Selling Affiliate Products and Services Online (Tuesday, 1/20 BT post)

Newbie Affiliates: How to Choose Affiliate Products to Market (Today's post)

What's It Like to Have a Life on the Beach & Retire as a Freelance Writer

I was in Florida this past weekend (for four days actually). I'm working on a new ebook, so it was a working/pleasure trip. My fruitful foray into affiliate marketing is getting me closer to my dream of being able to work on the beach -- and essentially retire as a freelance writer.

You see, my plan has always been to have the option of retirement at 50. I'm working on becoming totally debt free by then -- including having my house paid off. Retirement for me means working only on my own projects (ebooks/affiliate marketing); not having to take on freelance writing projects.

And, that's getting closer every day -- much quicker than I thought.

What's It Like to Have a Life of Leisure; to Have the Dream of Financial Freedom Realized?

I don't know, but it's no longer a faraway dream; it's a blurry vision that's coming clearer into focus every day. And why am I telling you all of this?

Because when I first started freelanc writing, I could not have imagined where it would take me. As I got older though, I started to formulate a plan for my life, ie, by this age, I want to have this much money in the bank; by this age, I want to be able to work x number of hours per week; by this age, I want to be debt free; by this age, I want to retire altogether; etc.

While I have stumbled badly along the way, I kept pounding away. My dream has always the foundation for everything I've ever tried. With every failure, I knew I had to get up and start again, because I knew I didn't want to wait until I'm 65 to "retire."

I always joke with my girlfriends that I still want to be "cute" when I retire; not old with one foot in the grave. Not that that's what 65 is, but I've been working since I was 11 -- literally. If I retired at 50, I figured almost 40 years of work should be enough -- I should be able to play for 40 (assuming I make it to 80 years old).

What is Your Dream as a Freelance Writer? Are You Achieving It?

So my message for you today fellow freelance writers is, "What is your dream? Are you making headway? Where do you want to be in 5, 10, or 20 years?" What you do -- or don't do -- today is getting you there, or not. As my mom used to say, "Time is going to pass; it's up to you what you do with it."

Detailed Testimonial from a Fellow SEO Writer

I'm posting this testimonial from a fellow freelance SEO writer, because when I asked her what finally moved her to buy the SEO writing ebook, she wrote back -- explaining in detail what taking concrete action can do.

QUESTION
On Mon, Jan 19, 2009 at 1:43 PM, Yuwanda Black wrote:
Tenisha: Could you answer the following for me: 1. What finally made you purchase the ebook? As you said, you'd been doing SEO writing for a while, so you knew there was opportunity out there. 2. Why hadn't you capitalized; what made my ebook so useful to you?

ANSWER (from Tenisha a few hours later)
I'll be honest. The economy has affected my writing and editing business -- drastically. And I've been searching ways to get more clients. After doing some content projects for a couple of social networking sites, I decided to focus more on social media and SEO writing as a part of that.

I remember reading one of your posts, or maybe it was an article, where you mentioned how your accountant asked what you could do to make money today. Well, that's where I'm at right now. I'm hungry for work And SEO work seemed like one of the quickest -- and easiest ways for me to pick up work and get new clients.

Your book is useful because it shows you step-by-step how to make money; it wasn't some pie in the sky concept, but clear, concrete steps that I could follow. And the query email you included in the ebook is priceless! Everything else is gravy. It was also realistic. You weren't telling me that I would make $1,000 in a few hours, but a couple hundred of bucks a day. I could get my arms around that. And it's realistic. I'm used to the tricks copywriters use with ebooks to play to emotions, and I saw none of that with your stuff.

Your book showed me how to market my services. That was a big hump for me. I've owned my writing and editing busines for nearly three years. And I've done SEO blogging for more than two years. But I kept seeing SEO article writers charging only a few dollars for their work.

Writing is my passion, but figuring out how to get others to pay for top dollar for it has been a struggle. I'm a former journalist, but nothing about my newspaper career ever prepared me for running my own business. [Emphasis added: This is where many freelance writers stumble, especially when they first start out. If you don't learn how to market, you'll never be successful as a freelance writer]

I wasn't sure if this whole SEO article thing was really viable until your ebook. I'd heard of copywriters charging $100 an article, but these are copywriters who easily command $10,000 for a sales letter; that's not me -- yet!

But I figured you were on to something and so I read your blogs, articles and your website. (Plus, I think I'd already heard of you some years ago because I used to get emails from Inkwell Editorial.)

I was discouraged, though. I completed a rather low-paying SEO article project with lot of keywords over the summer. When I broke it down hourly, I was making less than minimum wage. What amazed me was the client said they had people making at least $1,000 a month. I figured they must be chained to their computers and writing at least 20 hours a day!

I knew I had to cut out the middleman, but I was having a hard time figuring out how. Your book showed me, and I'm sure I'll buy some of your other books. You have a gift of writing to show others how to do something. As far as the basics went, your books didn't leave me with any questions.

I'm still marketing and I've had some luck. The low-payers are still out there. An SEO guy from Atlanta contacted me yesterday about meta tag writing -- I had to turn it down because it involved Dreamweaver and Front page and I'm not an expert. This guy outsources from India, so I think he was blown away at my rates.

Take care,
Tenisha
###

That's it for today folks. To paraphrase our new president, "It's time to get down to work"(I'm working on a new ebook -- unrelated to freelance writing. I'll turn my attention to getting more of those out in a couple of weeks (I have many, many titles to get to)).

Yuwanda (Wanna know what I'm up to? Check me out on Twitter)
Contact: info *at* InkwellEditorial.com
P.S.: Where are all the freelance writing jobs? Find out in the 2008-2009 Freelance Writing Jobs Report
***********************************************
Freelance Success Stories! There are freelancers who make very good livings at what they love. Inkwell Editorial’s newsletter features these successful professionals who put to rest the phrase, “starving freelancer.” Current Issue: How to Make the Most Money as a Freelance Writer. Subscribe to read this, and all previous, issues.
***********************************************
Copyright ©2009 InkwellEditorial.com. Except where noted, no part of this site may be reproduced in any manner without the express, written consent of the publisher. Violators will be prosecuted.

2 Scams Freelance Writers Need to Be Aware of Immediately

As the economy worsens, the online scam artists come out in full force. I'm pretty used to online scams -- and how to avoid them. But, I received two variations of some old ones that were pretty convincing in my inbox this morning. So, I took a chunk out of my day to write up a pretty extensive article detailing them -- and how to avoid them.

I posted this piece on AssociatedContent.com so it could reach as many freelance writers as possible. Read AssociatedContent and PayPal Scams: How to Keep Your Online Earnings Safe 100% of the Time for full details.

I know a lot of us freelance writers use these two sites. So feel free to pass this along to any of your friends -- even friends who aren't writers as there are some concrete actions suggested that can keep your money accounts safe online.

Want to Immediately Make More Money as a Freelance Writer?

Moving on to a different topic, yesterday, I wrote a post on BloggingTips.com entitled, Freelance Writers: How to Immediately Make More Money. It's kind of a case study in when to say no to a client; when to cut them loose. Very insightful if you have clients who suck you dry in the time department.

How to Use Traditional Media Tactics to Make Your Blog Stand Out, Get More Traffic and Increase Sales

This was another post I did over at BloggingTips this week. A few readers have commented on the "tie in" tip. What is it? Read the post to find out. This never occurs to a lot of bloggers, but is a trick used by "traditional" journalists all the time.

Aw Shucks, You Made Me Blush!
(and yes, black people do blush! :-))

I receive a lot of flattering emails from readers of my blog, websites and hundreds of articles distributed via article directories. This is one of my favorites: Every time I read one of your articles, I bow to your insightfulness! As always, thank you so much for all you share :-)

Thanks Herstory (a fellow AC writer). Learn more about her here.

While I don't do unique posts here often anymore (that'll change as soon as I can catch my breath this year), I do try to keep you updated. And remember, if you want to submit a guest post, I'm all for it!

Yuwanda (anytime you wanna know what I'm up to, check me out on Twitter)
Contact: info *at* InkwellEditorial.com
P.S.: Where are all the freelance writing jobs? Find out in the 2008-2009 Freelance Writing Jobs Report
***********************************************
Freelance Success Stories! There are freelancers who make very good livings at what they love. Inkwell Editorial’s newsletter features these successful professionals who put to rest the phrase, “starving freelancer.” Current Issue: How to Make the Most Money as a Freelance Writer. Subscribe to read this, and all previous, issues.
***********************************************
Copyright ©2009 InkwellEditorial.com. Except where noted, no part of this site may be reproduced in any manner without the express, written consent of the publisher. Violators will be prosecuted.

2009 Freelance Writing Resolutions: How Many Have You Broken Already?

I make resolutions every year – personal and professional ones. I tend to break at least some of the personal ones pretty quickly. But, I do my darnedest to keep professional ones because they ae the ones my financial future goals depend on. Do I always reach them – no? But, I do make considerable progress – simply because I made them.

So I ask you this, how many of your 2009 freelance writing resolutions have you broken already? Did you promise yourself that you were going to go fulltime this year, but haven’t taken even the most basic steps yet, eg:

Have you written samples, researched what you’re going to charge, started building a website (or researching web designers you may want to use), ordered that ebook on how to start, started building your service list, etc.

The only way you’re ever going to achieve your freelance writing dream is to take concrete action toward it. It’s not too late – just because you got a slower start than you wanted does not mean that you should give up altogether. It just means that now that you recognize you’re procrastinating – stop it and get started.

Want to know what a typical day in the life of a busy SEO copywriter and new media marketing consultant is like? Follow me on Twitter.

Yuwanda
Contact: info *at* InkwellEditorial.com
P.S.: Where are all the freelance writing jobs? Find out in the 2008-2009 Freelance Writing Jobs Report

Hot Stuff Around Here!
$100 for SEO Articles: How to Become a Highly Paid SEO Copywriter

How to Start a Freelance Writing Career in Less than 24 Hours for $0
***********************************************
Success Freelance Writers Tell Their Stories: There are freelancers who make a very good living working from home. The Inkwell Editorial newsletter routinely features these successful professionals. Subscribe to read all issues.
***********************************************
Copyright © 2009 InkwellEditorial.com. Except where noted, no part of this site may be reproduced in any manner without the express, written consent of the publisher. Violators will be prosecuted.

Lessons from a Busy SEO Copywriter; Q&A w/ a New SEO Copywriter

This blogger is one of my favorites because we seem to share the same mindset on this profession. If you're wondering how to get busy finding work as an SEO copywriter -- or searching for any type of freelance writing jobs -- read Do You Have the Attitude to be a Successful Freelance Writer in 2009?

SEO Copywriting Success Tip

To be successful in this business, you have to know your stuff. I do a lot of reading on SEO -- here's an an interesting read: Your Site is SEO Optimized But is it Search Engine Friendly.

Q & A with a New SEO Copywriter

Question: Many Internet marketers hire writers on elance.com for $10 to $15 per article at the most. In fact, hiring a writer for that much means the writer is very talented in the eyes of the Web marketer. If a marketer gives a writer steady work, the writer will tend to lessen his/her rate to like $7 or $8 per article. I’ve even heard of some writers going as low as $1.00 USD! (These writers tend to be non-US and non-native English speakers, though.)

With that as context, here’s my question: Why would a SEO company hire a writer for $25 to $45 (or even $50 per article)? What am I missing here? . . . I’d appreciate any clarification.

My Answer: One of the reasons I tell SEO writers to stay away from sites like Elance is that companies that go there are looking for quantity, not quality. And, this is why my marketing plan advises that you target companies directly.

Many companies will give these types of sites a try; once they get burned a few times by low quality, they then look for professionals. THAT's why they'll pay you $25, $35 or more for an article -- they care about quality. For more, read this article: Get $100 Per SEO Article - How to Become a Highly Paid SEO Writer There's a market for both -- remember, there are freelance writers who get paid $1, $2 or more per word. It's all in who you target with your marketing. Hope this helps to clarify things.

Get the ebook that outlines how to start a career as an SEO copywriter.

Want to know what a typical day in the life of a busy SEO copywriter and new media marketing consultant is like? Follow me on Twitter.

Happy Friday everybody. I'm knocking off early -- this week has been exhausting!

Yuwanda
Contact: info *at* InkwellEditorial.com
P.S.: Where are all the freelance writing jobs? Find out in the 2008-2009 Freelance Writing Jobs Report
***********************************************
Freelance Success Stories! There are freelancers who make very good livings at what they love. Inkwell Editorial’s newsletter features these successful professionals who put to rest the phrase, “starving freelancer.” Current Issue: How to Make the Most Money as a Freelance Writer. Subscribe to read this, and all previous, issues.
***********************************************
Copyright © 2009 InkwellEditorial.com. Except where noted, no part of this site may be reproduced in any manner without the express, written consent of the publisher. Violators will be prosecuted.

SEO Copywriters: Want to Make an Extra $61,880 This Year?

I've been woefully neglecting my own blog, but busy as a bee at others. You can find the post mentioned in the title at Copyblogger. SEO copywriting is a lucrative freelance writing niche -- if you know how to market to get the work. I lay it all out in this post.

How effective was this post? Got three client queries, landed two new clients and added new subscribers -- to my newsletter and Twitter.

Do you fear/dread competition as a freelance writer?

Moving on, over at BloggingTips.com, I addressed the fear of competition that a lot of freelance writers have. It's unfounded, for the reasons I list in the post ATTN: Writers & Bloggers: 3 More Reasons to Start Freelancing – Now!

Want to know what a typical day in the life of a busy SEO copywriter and new media marketing consultant is like? Follow me on Twitter.

I'm dying for a glass of wine, but have to get my workout in first -- rats! Until next time.

Yuwanda
Contact: info *at* InkwellEditorial.com
P.S.: Where are all the freelance writing jobs? Find out in the 2008-2009 Freelance Writing Jobs Report

Hot Posts!
How to Become a Highly Paid SEO Copywriter
How to Start a Freelance Writing Career in Less than 24 Hours for $0
***********************************************
Freelance Success Stories! There are freelancers who make very good livings at what they love. Inkwell Editorial’s newsletter features these successful professionals who put to rest the phrase, “starving freelancer.” Current Issue: How to Make the Most Money as a Freelance Writer. Subscribe to read this, and all previous, issues.
***********************************************
Copyright © 2009 InkwellEditorial.com. Except where noted, no part of this site may be reproduced in any manner without the express, written consent of the publisher. Violators will be prosecuted.

How I Lost $26,000-$39,000 in Online Income Last Year

Happy New Year everyone. I hope you had a safe holiday season, and are looking forward to a profitable New Year.

Now, on to the title of today's post. My bloggingtips.com post today details how I shot myself in the foot -- losing $26,000-$39,000 in online income last year. Ouch! But, I have a game plan moving forward to rectify that, you'd better believe. Read How I Lost $26,000-$39,000 in Online Income Last Year to find out what it is -- and to find out where you may be losing money online too.

Advice for New Freelance Writers on Getting Started

This past weekend, I spent some time answering emails sent in from new and experienced freelancers alike. I wrote an article in response to one and posted it on AssociatedContent.com because I get this kind of question a lot -- especially this time of year, particularly from newbies. The wannabe freelance writer wrote, in part:

I would love to start out in the freelance field. I am afraid that my previous work experience will limit my chances. I have done the research on freelance writers and their previous work experience surpasses mine. I have only worked in menial jobs making little or no money. I don't know how to market myself in this field where the people have PH.'D's masters and bachelors [sic].

I find that the number one thing missing in most freelance writers -- newbies and experienced alike -- is a lack of self confidence. I know I've written it before, but to risk repeating myself -- you must, must, must develop confidence in yourself if you're going to strike out on your own -- no matter what kind of business it is.

Is it easy? No. But, have the courage to take the first steps. You're going to make mistakes, but if you never take the leap, you can't start learning from them. With each mistake, you learn. The more you learn, the more confident you become.

Read my full response in the article, New Freelance Writers: How to Compete with More Experienced, Better Educated Writers.

What I'm Up to This New Year

Affiliate Marketing: I'm getting serious this year about upping my passive income. I squeezed in some affiliate marketing over the holidays -- and to my amazing surprise, made a few hundred bucks in just a few days. If this continues, it's going to make me shift some priorities, but I'm containing my excitement for now.

Marketing New Media Words: Most of my attention is spent on client projects garnered through my SEO writing and internet marketing firm, New Media Words. The company just landed a new client -- which is a welcome start to the New Year.

Writing More Ebooks: I've kind of let getting new titles out slip thorugh the cracks. The latter part of last year was a bit crazy. But, I'm going to get back on track, as it's part of my plan to make more passive income. So, I'm squeezing in some regular writing time to get titles out on a regular basis (at least one a month).

Site Redesign: This is taking for friggin' ever, but I've stopped pressuring myself to get it done. I had hoped to have it done by this month. But, it's going to take longer. Once I got my business goals assessed by a business coach, I realized that I was allowing myself to be pressured by others to get this done. While it is a priority, it's not an immediate "get it done today" priority.

He made me realize that my financial goals -- which I'm on target to surpass without a site redesign -- should be my priority.

What are your plans for your freelance writing career this New Year? I'd love to know.

Want to know what a typical day in the life of a busy SEO copywriter and new media marketing consultant is like? Follow me on Twitter.

Yuwanda
Contact: info *at* InkwellEditorial.com
P.S.: Where are all the freelance writing jobs? Find out in the 2008-2009 Freelance Writing Jobs Report

Hot Posts!
How to Become a Highly Paid SEO Copywriter

How to Start a Freelance Writing Career in Less than 24 Hours for $0
***********************************************
Freelance Success Stories! There are freelancers who make very good livings at what they love. Inkwell Editorial’s newsletter features these successful professionals who put to rest the phrase, “starving freelancer.” Current Issue: How to Make the Most Money as a Freelance Writer. Subscribe to read this, and all previous, issues.
***********************************************
Copyright © 2009 InkwellEditorial.com. Except where noted, no part of this site may be reproduced in any manner without the express, written consent of the publisher. Violators will be prosecuted.