A New Beginning
It has been around 4 years since I resigned as a member of WA. Time really flies. I can still recall the excitement and joy I had when I first joined this community. It was amazing, so much information, so many new people to get to know.
“Where in the world to start?!?”
Was my first reaction when I joined back in 2007. I was literally flooded with the content of WA. Now after all these years when I’m back again, I can see why newbies have such a hard time in the first few weeks. Should you start with the courses straight away? Should you linger in the chat or discussions just to see what’s going on? What about my profile? It’s still empty, oh my. I need to come up with my life story AND THE PHOTO… Oh the dread.
And this is just the tip of the iceberg. The possibilities are so plentiful and overwhelming!
Let me tell you something that will bolster your confidence a bit. The current WA is by a hefty amount more considerate to newcomers than it used to be back in the day. It used to be all about the forum (that is now obsolete). A lot of new posts got lost in overfilled table of content, and only those who got enough attention got bumped to the top. Not a pretty sight when you have hundreds of new members coming in and asking various questions. Last but not least, information was not structurised as one would expect. However I see that Kyle and Carson did a good job of noticing this and changing it!
The New Looks
Hats off! I really like the new looks and not just the looks, the content is well organised too. Not too flashy, not too stale. The menu is now well put and there is minimal confusion when navigating around. Instant access to discussions that are hot is just fabulous. You can now see what members are talking about instantly upon the arrival on the website.
The new “Build my website” is really intuitive compared to what it used to be. The old siterubix wasn’t exactly up to “web 2.0” trends to be frank. Now you can have your wordpress site up and going in a few clicks, easy peasy!
All in all, I’m glad how things are evolving around here.
New technologies, old concepts
After returning to affiliate marketing cosmos, I have to say that things haven’t changed that much at all! The concept has remained the same, only the way you handle content changed a little. As much as I have gathered so far, I’d say that now it’s more about serving constant fresh content instead of just making a 3-page long static landing page and hope for the best. Don’t get me wrong, to each his own but that’s how I used to do it. Then I would go write a bunch of articles to promote my site, or later on use PPC to boost the promotion, which is still a common practice. I didn’t use but a single blog to promote my products! I can’t really remember why, maybe I was just too lazy of writing new content every week for a single product (or I was incapable of!). However I did make some money the “old fashioned” way and it was amazing to know that it worked. What about now?
I seriously doubt I’d be able to pull off something like that today! Simply because times have changed and people have educated themselves, that if a site appears static, it screams for a sales pitch and I totally agree with that. I’ve seen some ridiculous attempts of internet marketing. Landing pages full of affiliate links, forcing information down your throat in a single page - “take a look at my shiney guide, good boy/girl, NOW BUY!”. They wouldn’t even bother comparing the product to something else, hehe. I guess that’s what separates good marketers from bad ones. Promise me you won’t be like that folks!
I among other countless newcomers, have to start anew! Just like you my dear newbie friends. I have a tiny bit of experience though that will surely aid me in my quest. But without your help, the WA community, I would most likely fail again like I did countless times in the beginning without you.
I shall post my stories regarding my progress and possible accomplishments here, in my blog. Tune in if you wish to join me on my journey!
Cheers!
Jernej
Recent Comments
10
Hmm, how should I put this... not entirely... yet! I've been here, done that. I haven't done anything now that I hadn't done already, so I'm not as excited as I was back then.
When I'll start generating revenue again, then I'll be back on a "hype" train again :D
But until then, I'm staying cool!
Cheers!
Really like your comparison on the changes this site has made. Hearing that you are back to this site shows that you do have some faith in the process. Good booster to our newbie spirits. Thanks.
I'm glad I am of assistance!
I do have faith in this community. Just remember, don't be discouraged if you won't make it at first. Hardly anyone makes it on their first try. WA is here to guide you through the whole process of affiliate marketing.
Interesting about how things have changed. I think WA gives a false impression to say you can build a website in 30 seconds as we all know that is the beginning and to a new comer their is still a lot to learn. What I find exhausting is the fact that you still have to go through a ritual of doing everything the right way and find that you are not making any money and possibly want until the ritual is finished. I personally am a
hang in person but for people who arn't it must be daunting and I think personally that their should be more information about learning how to make money especially for affiliate marketers to give people more of an incentive to hang around.
I agree kelly on the ritual. For every niche or a product that is not necessarily in the same category, you must restart the process. But bare in mind that nobody said that this is going to be easy. Furthermore I dare to say it is a damn hard job to do and the sooner you realise that, the better you'll be off! There are so many variables that you must consider, it can really be stressful. Just the sole fact that your success online is determined by your own set of skills is, to me, terrifying. After a few attempts at IM, i can see how one would question his/her skills. Not everyone is "made for this" to be honest.
Kellie, WA says you can make your website in a few clicks and there is no false impression there. They never say you will make sales in a few minutes or even a few days. Their copy is very explicit that you have to put work and time in. If anyone thinks they can get a website up and running and making them money in 30 seconds I respectfully say they need to think on that for a bit. There is a learning curve to everything. Every successful company (think franchises, for example) has a system in place ("rituals") that makes them successful. Why would any of us think the process would be different for us? I think sometimes the problem is when we spend hundreds of dollars instead of hundreds of thousands we tend to have unrealistic expectations. I haven't seen WA suggest that anything but time and hard work will get us success. WA gives us great tools and shows us the steps (system) that will help us succeed. Most folks who aren't willing to stick around and learn (not just here but anywhere) probably won't succeed in business. Business ownership is not for the faint of heart.
Welcome Back! I've only been here a year and I feel like it's changed a lot since I joined, I can't imagine how different it looks to you. :)
Good Luck on your re-entering WA and online business journey.
Take Care,
Patty :)
Yes it's pretty different, but in a good way! I just hope I will be able to recreate some of my old successes and eventually surpass them.
Thx for taking care Patty!
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Enjoyed your post.