On this very day, in 2005.
I remember it like yesterday...
We had just wrapped up the "go live" of our website. We put the final touches on it. We had set-up our payment, had the membership ready to go, had the sales page in place, and..
WealthyAffiliate.com was born! (please don't laugh when you look at our original site below)
When we launched, we were a keyword list service. That's it. We charged $29.99 per month or $359.88 per year.
We provided people with a list of handpicked keywords for PPC a few times throughout the month.
Carson and I were both very successful online as PPC marketers for 3 years leading up to launching WA. We had extensive knowledge Google Adwords, and prior to BingAds.com, Overture.com which was the PPC platform for Yahoo. We knew that we could teach others what we know. The principles, the process, the business.
Our Principles & Ethics Started Off Early
Looking back at our very first site, in the very first paragraph we made the following statement:
"First of all we need to agree on something. Making money on the internet is not easy. If it was easy everyone would be doing it, making millions of dollars a year and doing it from the comfort of their own home. If you are lazy and are not willing to put in some hard work please leave the site now as this isn’t a scam to make a quick buck."
Even back then, companies were touting how it was so "easy" to get rich quick. Every single one of those companies is no longer in business or they have gone through 10 different name changes and product names and sometimes they even changed their name.
In today's landscape, things have only gotten worse and more and more people are getting taken advantage of on the concept of "getting rich quick". However, we have not changed in 11 years. We teach PROPER, ETHICAL business online and we continue to do so to this day.
Teaching Others What Works, What We KNOW.
We knew if we could create success and teach people the exact process of how to do so, they could replicate our success.
Keywords were a huge component of success back then as they are now. If you can get traffic from relevant keywords, you can build a business online. Exactly the same as it is today, 11 years later (other than the fact there is way more opportunity today than in 2005)
In hindsight, it was an ugly site. Our sales messaging was unclear. We didn't know much about being a merchant at all, we only had experience being affiliates. But we had to learn by doing and we had to grow up quick as a business.
We didn't know what it would become. We didn't know if we would ever have a paying member. We didn't know if it would evolve. We didn't know how people would react to our service.
But someone decided to be the first member. Then we had another. Then another...
Here WE Stand. As a Community. 11 Years Later.
A lot of things can change in business. A lot of things have for us in the last 11 years. We have gone from a keyword list site delivering a few keyword lists per month, to the top recommend and most active internet marketing/affiliate marketing platform in the world.
When we started out we had no idea what WA would become, but keeping "helping others" at the tip of our tongue and as a focus with every update, every evolution, every innovation, it has allowed Wealthy Affiliate to evolve into what it is today.
We have never been stronger as a community. We have never been as elaborate as a platform. We have never had a better vision as to how WA is going to better serve, YOU. You were our focus back in 2005, you are absolutely our focus now.
Here's to the next 11!
Recent Comments
332
I was looking at some old versions of WA in April and I'm personally amazed at how much it's matured.
If I had to offer some feedback to Kyle and Carson, it would be I trust you.
It's that simple. I may have never met Kyle or Carson in person but for some reason I trust them and I can't explain why?
Yes, the training here is up to date and on point, but, it's Kyle's personality and Carson that I love.
To be honest, I joined in 2014, I don't need WA anymore because I know what I need to do to be successful now because of WA.
Even with the knowledge and experience I've gained, I still don't want to leave as it makes me feel empty inside without having Kyle and Carson and, of course, the community by my side.
I love this place and I'm happy to pay the price of membership just to state that I'm apart of such a great program.
Kyle and Carson, it isn't your business that is great it's you. Believe me, we the community love what you have offered us but we love you more.
You demonstrate with actions alone how committed you are to help others succeed in this industry and it's this commitment that makes WA strong.
What is the golden rule in business? Build a relationship and earn trust. The trust here is where the heart is of WA and you have earned it all.
Thank you Kyle and Carson, if it wasn't for you I would be working in a dead end Job right now but instead, I'm successful online because of you.
Sam.
The website looks something like what I've been attempting Kyle and Carson. But, let nothing take away from the fact that you guys jumped into learning as you went along by providing everything that is right about a business.
WA stands as a true testament to what you guys were trying to achieve and I think I can talk for everyone here, you succeeded in unbelieveable fashion to get to where you are now.
May the business prosper and grow guys, thank you very much for blazing the trail that we may all follow. True Pioneers!
All the very best to your future.
Tommy
Congratulations Kyle! This is a momentous achievement that you, Carson, and WA have been around for 11 years. You are the living proof of what hard work and determination and a strong will of never giving up, can lead to.
Happy Birthday to Wealthy Affiliate and I have no doubt that you will be around for another 11 years and beyond!
It's a great success story and here's the main reason WA has evolved into the best internet business training platform on the planet. Don't Call Them Gurus The first image is Kyle & Carson taking a break at one of their Las Vegas Super Affiliate Conferences they host every year usually in January. You'll be hearing more about the next one as we approach the end of the year.
Read their profiles ... it goes a long way towards explaining the evolution of WA.
I'll toast to that ... here's to the next 11!
Awesome Kyle!
WA is by far the most ethical and helpful site that I have ever been a part of an I am so honored to share WA with everyone that I know throughout the World.
Congratulations on 11 years and to many more years to come by helping others along the way.
Thank you Kyle, Carson and the entire WA Community,
Tony
Happy Birthday Wealthy Affiliate! Thank you for sharing this with us Kyle. It's great to see how the original site looked and amazing to hear how this fantastic community started out.
I for one am looking forward to progressing further and seeing what Wealthy Affiliate holds for me. Thank you for creating a place where all of us can hang out!
Cheers,
Andrew
Hi Kyle,
I think the original site looks good. Very clean. One thing is for sure, making money online is not easy. Personally I have been at it about 14 months now.
I have had limited success and I'll take it. I am certainly not about to give up and let a little bit of a challenge run me away like a school room sissy. Sooner or later I will get there.
Your and Carson's example of staying with it is one I am happy to follow. The principles and ethics you started with remain in tact today and that is truly the secret to long term success.
Way to go fellas, Happy Birthday and many happy returns.
Barry
LOL, not sure if your comment about the original site is sarcasm or what, but we have definitely come a LONG ways in the design department.
The challenges in business are always going to be there, we have them every day and it is part of the growing process.
The financial success is a byproduct of your business activities and it will happen. Not at the same rate for everyone, some achieve it much quicker than I did or Carson did, some slower. What I do know is that it WILL happen if you continue to persist.
And still standing stronger than ever!
Congratulations on everything you have achieved and thank you for sharing your precious knowledge to all us 'lucky ones' that made it into WA :)
I just celebrated my first year at WA and I hope to be part of this amazing community for many years to come :)
Cheers,
Angélique
It most definitely does. It has been wonderful to have you here for the last year and I only look forward to the years ahead. It has never been brighter!
This is amazing Kyle. I wasn't around back then but I was circa 2010 and it was also a lot different than it is now.
Thank you and all the team behind this amazing community. You have given me a business that I am proud to work on and make money with each and every day.
I look forward to much more success here at WA.
#MemberForLife ! hahaha
Chris Lee
You have such an awesome story Chris and it has been amazing to see you grow and evolve over the years. I know you are just scratching the surface of your longer term potential and the growth stages of business are always the most exciting ones.
WA is going to look a lot different months from now, a year from now and drastically different I imagine years from now. Stay humble, stay true to the roots, stay flexible, embrace change, and work ahead of the curve not behind. :)
Thank you Kyle. You've been a great mentor in my journey and for that I am thankful.
Looking forward to the future. :)
See more comments
Congratulations! I'm definitely conveying the "helping others" mentality into my website and business, because it's the first thing that draw me to WA, and keeping me in it. Without it you don't really have much of a business.
If there is a message I want to share with you, it's to keep the honesty level high, transparency, advertise what you truly offer, and the community will only grow bigger next year.
For those things, even if I haven't made the kind of income I expected, I'd still be thankful and return for next year.