This Is All You Need for Online Income Success.

Are you looking to start an online income, but feel kind of stuck?

If so, then you’re not alone — I’ve been there, done that, got the t-shirt, the coffee mug and the commemorative bobblehead! 🙈

Because when you’re first getting started online, it can be very easy to overcomplimicate things (that’s a word, right?)…

The gurus tell you that you need brain-fuddling funnels and courses and upsells and webinars and high-ticket coaching programs and a friendly elf named Trevor to succeed…

But when you haven’t yet made any money online and you’re not even sure that you have any marketable expertise (you do!), that can be totally overwhelming.

And overwhelm leads to procrastination, so you end up doing nothing.

So what’s the simplest way to make money online?

The truth is, you can make decent money without ANY of that complicated nonsense!

The simplest and best way to get started with an online income is with affiliate marketing.

But you need to do it right — and that means building an email list. Not building one means you’re throwing away customers — and repeat sales!

Now before you run screaming for the nearest exit, building a list is really not hard, you don’t need any tech skills and it won’t cost you a penny at first! 🥳

How to build an email list

You need just 5 things to start building a list:

✅ A opt-in / landing page to collect email addresses
✅ An autoresponder service to store emails & send newsletters
✅ A lead magnet (freebie) to give away in exchange for an email address
✅ A 4–5 email welcome sequence
✅ A thank you page

That’s it.

Getting started

To get started building an email list you need a simple opt-in funnel. It looks something like this:

You can create your opt-in and thank you pages for free.

You don’t need tech skills or even a website!

Go grab yourself a free GetResponse account — you get an autoresponder service (for up to 500 subscribers), plus one free landing page (which includes a matching thank you page).

There’s an easy drag and drop editor plus plenty of templates to choose from, so don’t worry if, like me, you have the graphic design skills of an amoeba.

Click here for a handy guide to Create a Landing Page (In 9 Easy Steps)

Alternatively, if you want to start out even more simple, you could get a free Gumroad account and use their email service, however it isn’t an autoresponder and you will likely need one at some point.

Although I sometimes use Gumroad, I also have a paid autoresponder to send my emails — which is a much more professional way of doing things.

What is a lead magnet anyway?

A lead magnet is a valuable info product, solution, or benefit that you give to a prospective customer in exchange for their contact info.

Crafting a winning lead magnet (freebie) kickstarts the know-like-trust journey with your new email subscribers.

And this will turn them into superfans and repeat buyers! 💚

When you’re creating a lead magnet, again keep it simple (and short!).

What makes a good lead magnet?

Lead magnets that work best are quick and easy to make and consume eg:

🧲 Templates
🧲 Checklists
🧲 Cheat sheets
🧲 Resource lists
🧲 Email courses
🧲 Video tutorials

And you can create any of them for free with Google Docs.

The key is to make sure they solve a big problem for your your audience & give them a quick win 🙌

That’s all you really need to build a list and start making an affiliate income.

Build a relationship with your subscribers

Before trying to sell, it’s important to build a good relationship with your email subscribers…

When your subscribers know, like and trust you, they’re more likely to buy.

So how do I build a good relationship?

💚 Give tips about how to solve their biggest problems.
💚 Tell funny or heart-warming stories about your life.
💚 Let them know about new & useful tools you’ve found.
💚 Send them to interesting articles (they don’t even have to be yours).

Make sure to inject your personality into your emails too.

My subscribers are in no doubt that I’m a geek who tells terrible dad jokes at the end of every email. Here’s a recent example:

I made a huge mistake challenging Death to a pillow fight.

I wasn’t prepared for the reaper cushions!

Some subscribers have been on my list for 10+ years even though I’m sure they must groan every time 🤭

So how do I make an affiliate income?

Once you’ve started building a relationship with your subscribers (in the first 4–5 emails) you can start to make affiliate income by recommending products to them.

Avoid the temptation to make a quick buck and only promote quality products and subscribers will stay with you for years.

And because you gave them value they will continue to know, like and trust you, so they’ll buy stuff from your affiliate link.

They get the help they need, you make money. It’s a win-win. And fun too!

How do I choose an affiliate product?

Here’s a quick and easy way to choose an affiliate product to promote:

List all tools/courses you use & love 😍

Have they got an affiliate program?

Will you get decent commission 🤑

Apply to be an affiliate of the best ones.

Promote one product at a time 😎

Here’s a final pro tip

When you’re choosing an affiliate product, pick something evergreen, with recurring payments and you’ll start to build a regular income!

This article was first published on Medium

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