As you can see, I am really not a website techy person.  I can write, and I can do basic design so if you are afraid of how will you build these sites, I can tell you it will be easy!  The first one is the hardest because it is all new to you,  but after that it gets a lot easier!

What do you need to run this business!

Here is what you need to do first!  You need to open a business account if you do not have one already.  (This is not intended as legal advice, here is just my input on business name!) Just pick a generic name such as "abc marketing and sales!"  If I was you I would have marketing and sales included because you never know when you might sell something as well.  You will also need a business license, bank account and employer ID number or Tax ID number.  You can use SS#, but affiliate markets will only pay you if you provide them with the tax ID number or SS#. 

People sometimes think this is just an easy way to make some extra money! Which can be, but it is still a business and government requires us to have the right paperwork in hand.

The free accounts you will need!

You also need to sign up for the links below. (After you have your paperwork in order) They are all free!!! But necessary for you to make money! Before you sign up you may need a website website first. I would suggest to get a free blog up such as http://blogger.com.  In your blog write anything that comes to mind about anything, the purpose of this blog will just be to open an account. The blog can be treated as a small website and in most cases it does the job to get your accounts approved! Here are the accounts you will need to sign up for ebay affiliate program (it's located at the bottom of eBay's page it says affiliates).  As of April 1st, 2008 eBay affiliate program will no longer we managed by CJ.com but rather by their own affiliate program.  You will have to apply for the new account on the (you can sign up on) April 1st, 2008  http://ebaypartnernetwork.com YOU MUST sign up for this! Because you cannot get paid without it!

But while you are at it, sign up for linkshare.com and amazon.com as well. Even though you won't need it right this second, this will be another way for you to monitize your traffic!  Also you need to sign up for google adsense account it is also free and another way for you to make money!

Keep track of your log in information because you will need it and make sure your passwords are strong!  Don't just type in simple password such as your name.  Make it strong such as xzoro1479, hacking does happen online and you have to protect yourself!

If you are totally new to the affiliate marketing here is a brief explanation of what it is!

Basically, it is a way for you to recommend other people's products. It is a system of advertising where you refer another company's product from either your website or an informational article and you make a commission if that person buys a product through your link. Different companies have a different cookie retention.  Some will save your "cookie" (way to track your ID) in for 7 days and some up to a year.  It really depends on the company and the program.  

For example!  Let's say you wanted to lose weight.  You will turn to Internet for information.  Through out the research you will be lead from one site to the next one.  By the end of your search you will most likely find what you were looking for and buy it!  That is what almost all people do online!  Your job here is going to be to market your site and get them at that final purchasing leg!  Let me give you an example!  Let say I was searching for a way to lose weight.  I will start with the top 10 diets (information mode).  That would be initial keyword I type in!  But as I move on I learn that I need to speed up my metabolism to lose weight! Well the keyword that will be my final purchase point will be speed up metabolism diet! 

Lets say you were promoting baby carriers.  The best baby carrier will be original information word I would type in, but as I learn there are couple popular brands such as Baby Bjorn Baby Carrier, (this means person is at the last leg of the purchasing cycle!) Next lesson will be about keyword research.

It is the same with products.  The person who is looking for a general word such as "the best toy" is just in information mode, but the person who is searching for "power ranger toy" is someone who already knows what they want! So lets say you are going to promote toys, you need to narrow down what kind of toys.  Inflatable, plush, video game toys etc.  The store that has all kinds of toys is hard to market, but the niche store is easy!  You can expand your niche store as you move on, but start with one and than expand.  I will explain more about that later.

Now you should also know that there is not a set way for you to make money with this.  It can be around $10 or $10,000 per month.  It depends on how many hours you can put into this and how smart you work!  It also depends on the way you market your sites.  I will explain to you the basic marketing I do, but I cannot teach you all!  Later on, when we get to that point, I will tell you how I learned to market. 

It is very important for you to know that everything I share with you is from my experience.  I have wasted a lot of money  when I started my online business.  Some of it was done by people who scammed me, and some of it was just unnecessary tools I purchased that I really did not need!

To make these sites successful you really do not need to spend more than $200 as said before! Your cost will come down to keyword tool, (at first you can go with free tools) the second is hosting, domain and usfreeads.com. So the total monthly expense will not be more than $50 on average. The most expensive is the software you need to get, but that is one time fee.

Your Homework for Today!

So your assignment today is to sign up for those named above and research affiliate marketing a little more. You also need to read this free eBook to get a better understanding of affiliate marketing.  Tomorrow, I will show you how to research your niche market and keywords!