My 2010 Big Money Maker Affiliate Programs

As 2010 winds down here are the affiliate companies that have done me the best in 2010 in no particular order.:

Amazon - I took a ton of pressure off of EPN in 2010 and it paid off greatly. Good targeted sites will convert that one day cookie. Great plugins like the PHPZon Wordpress plugin make it easier than ever to earn with the Amazon affiliate program.

Google Adsense - I doubled my 2009 Google Adsense income in 2010. What more can I say? I am very happy with the program and have a good understanding of what sites it works best on. I could live of that income alone.

Ebay Partner Network - Although no longer my top earner by choice by taking the pressure off of it and diverting it to other programs, I learned how to best maximize the EPN QCP model to my liking. It remains a solid way to earn money, especially using the PHPBay plugin by Wade. Program has earned me a ton of money over the years. Still love it.

Share-A-Sale - This affiliate company does not get enough recognition, but represents some great companies that convert fantastically. If you have not signed up and looked around at what they offer, you really should.

Commission Junction - I have been with these guys for a long time. I have a few companies that I represented for years that do very, very well for me. No complaints.

Clickbank - Great company to sell ebooks on. Easy to manage. I do a ton with this blog and another MMO blog that I run with them as well. Never had a problem with them.

Google Affiliate Network - They get more and more new companies every week it seems like. I have a few favorites with them.

Pepperjam - They have had their struggles, but I have a few sites that do well with a few of the companies they affiliate manage.

Linkshare - Same as Pepperjam really. What I do point their way, does convert.

Neverblue - Just really scratching the surface with these guys, but got several checks in 2010 from them. I want to try to use more of their stuff in 2011.

These are really just my major ones above and I use another handful of companies as well. Webmaster Magazine has a great article in the January 2011 issue of the top 50 advertising and affiliate networks for 2011. Worth a glance.

Google Query Operator Refresher

I think we get caught up with other aspects in this business that we often times overlook the simple or obvious things we should know. Such is the case with Google Query Operators. A ton of newer webmasters do not know what a powerful tool Google is outside of just regular search.

Stephan Spencer has an excellent refresher post up on Search Engine Land that covers her top Google Query Operators along with the format and a brief description of use of them. This is a great post to bookmark and use as a handy reference for future use as well. The daterange operator for instance is one I never knew existed until now. Great post.

Top 40 Wordpress Plugins For Niche Site Building

I have recently received some emails from readers wanting to know what plugins I use on Wordpress built sites. I re-built my list of plugins I use, both paid and free below and decided to just post for everyone to save me future emails. Mind you I do not use every plugin below on every site as it all depends on what type of site and many other factors. I would not install any plugin below on any site until you know exactly what it does and how to use it. Do not install all the free ones, just to have them installed. Have a purpose for each and every one. I am linking to the plugins home page, but every free plugin should be able to be installed from your Install Plugins admin page within your Wordpress admin. Just use the search on that page and copy and paste the names below to find and install very safe and easily. I have left a few fringe ones off the list, but here are my top 40 Wordpress plugins. Enjoy!

Paid Wordpress Plugins

PHPBay Pro - This plugin has made me a ton of money since I bought it. The best invstment an eBay EPN affiliate running Wordpress will ever make. You never need to worry if EPN updates URL's as Wade is always on top of things.

PHPZon - The Amazon version of the plugin above. Once again, I can not imagine not having this plugin as it brings me a kings ransom every month. There are free ones out there, but is it worth the risk?

ReviewAZON - The easy and simple way to add Amazon product reviews to your Wordpress blog. This can be used in various ways in addition to the plugin above. Great support as well.

Commission Junction Plugin for Wordpress - Commission Junction Edition allows you to quickly and easily display products from your Commission Junction affiliate partners by simply adding a shortcode (a tag name inside of square brackets) to your website pages or blog posts. Cheap, price, but not a cheap plugin.

WP Robot 3 - If you build auto blogs, this is the Cadillac of auto blogging plugins. Buy the full version, you will need it.

Keywords To Websites - One of the newest plugins to build a turnkey keyword list website. a classic SPAM builder that should be around a while and only get better over time. New on the market.

WP Syndicator - Another fairly new plugin I use on the blog type sites and auto blogs. Auto publishes to your network of web 2.0 sites with ease and automatically.

Free Wordpress Plugins

Audio player - Audio Player is a highly configurable but simple mp3 player for all your audio needs. You can customize the player's color scheme to match your blog theme, have it automatically show track information from the encoded ID3 tags and more.

All in One SEO Pack - While not my top SEO choice for a WP plugin, it is stable and I still use it on several sites. This plugin is streamlined for some best practices for WordPress SEO. While it gives you many options the defaults reflect the settings I recommend using.


Advertising Manager - Control and arrange your Advertising and Referral blocks on your Wordpress blog. With Widget and inline post support, integration with all major ad networks. Great ad plugin.

Dagon Design Sitemap Generator - This plugin creates a sitemap for your WordPress powered site. This is not just another XML sitemap plugin, but rather a true sitemap generator which is highly customizable from its own options page in the WordPress admin panel. Need an easy surf-able sitemap for the surfers? This is it.

Easy Contact - Easy Contact is a simple, semantic contact form that utilizes the Sandbox design patterns. Insert using [easy-contact]. Easy & simply. I set mine with a math question.

Exclude Pages from Navigation - Provides a checkbox on the editing page which you can check to exclude pages from the primary navigation. IMPORTANT NOTE: This will remove the pages from any "consumer" side page listings, which may not be limited to your page navigation listings.

Exec-PHP - This plugin enables you the ability to run actual PHP code in a single post or page in Wordpress. Very very handy to have installed.

Facebook Social Plugins - Provides Facebook Social Plugins as widgets and Like button in articles.

FLV Embed - Standards compliant FLV embedding in your blog posts using SWFObject by Geoff and FLV Player. Supports Video Sitemap generation which is a huge feature.

Frame Buster Plugin For WordPress - The Frame Buster plugin for WordPress will thwart any attempt to load your site in a frame.

GD Press Tools - A must have for every site. GD Press Tools is a collection of various administration, seo, maintenance and security related tools that can help with everyday blog tasks and blog optimizations.

Google XML Sitemaps - Been around a while and a must have for every site. Makes a perfect and stable xml sitemap.

Light SEO - My new favorite WordPress SEO plugin. Focused in creating a clean plugin, with emphasis in source code's good practices. Automatically optimizes your WordPress blog for Search Engines.

Login LockDown - Adds some extra security to WordPress by restricting the rate at which failed logins can be re-attempted from a given IP range. Some sites you may need this on, you never know.

Most Commented Widget - Widget to display posts/pages with the most comments.

MultiFeedSnap - Plugin for displaying multiple RSS Feeds. Great for displaying niche related news feeds.

Open in New Window Plugin - Opens external links in a new window, keeping your blog page in the browser so you don't lose surfers to another site.

Ozh' Who Sees Ads - Who Sees Ads is an advanced ad management plugin that lets you decide who will see your ads, for instance Adsense, depending on user defined conditions.

Privacy Policy - Automatically adds an AdSense-compliant privacy page. Must have for nearly every site.

Redirection - Manage all your 301 redirects and monitor 404 errors.

SEO Friendly Images - SEO Friendly Images is a WordPress optimization plugin which automatically updates all images with proper ALT and TITLE attributes.

SEO SearchTerms Tagging 2 - The purpose of this plugin is to strengthen on page SEO by adding new internal linking to the blog post using the most popular keywords used by search engine visitors to find the blog post from a search engine ( incoming search terms ). Great plugin.

SexyBookmarks - SexyBookmarks adds a (X)HTML compliant list of social bookmarking icons to each of your posts.

SI CAPTCHA Anti-Spam - Adds CAPTCHA anti-spam methods to WordPress on the comment form, registration form, login, or all. In order to post comments or register, users will have to type in the code shown on the image. This prevents spam from automated bots.

Similar Posts - Displays a highly configurable list of related posts. Similarity can be based on any combination of word usage in the content, title, or tags. Don't be disturbed if it takes a few moments to complete the installation -- the plugin is indexing your posts.

StatPress - Real time stats for your Wordpress blog.

Twitter Tools - This plugin integrates your WordPress blog with your Twitter account allowing you to send new blog posts to Twitter as a tweet and and vice versa. Cross-promotion of a blog posts to Twitter is fairly common and can be automatically achieved with Twitter Tools. You can also create digests that consolidate all of your tweets

Vice Versa - Vice Versa allows you to easily convert WordPress Posts to Pages and Pages to Posts.

W3 Total Cache - The fastest and most complete WordPress performance plugin. Dramatically improve the speed and user experience of your site. Add browser, page, object and database caching as well as minify and content delivery network (CDN) to WordPress.

What Would Seth Godin Do - Displays a custom welcome message to new visitors and another to return visitors.

WordPress Database Backup - WordPress database backup creates backups of your core WordPress tables as well as other tables of your choice in the same database.

WordPress Mobile Edition - WordPress Mobile Edition enhances your site’s interface for visitors using a mobile device. By automatically detecting mobile browsers, this plugin gives your blog a mobile/phone/PDA- friendly interface with progressive enhancement for advanced mobile browsers.

WP Greet Box - Show a different message to your visitor depending on which site they are coming from. For example, you can ask Digg visitors to Digg your post, Google visitors to subscribe to your RSS feed, and more! Best of all, this plugin is compatible with various WordPress cache plugins.

10 Things You Probably Did Not Know About Me

I thought we would have some fun on a Friday. I put together a list of 10 things that most people, including my friends and family, do not know about me. Can you relate to any of these things?

1. I can usually identify most cups of coffee by brand after just one cup. Friends and family call me the Rainman of coffee.
2. I would not and did not eat caramel until the age of 40. I thought I hated it! Now I can not live without it. I will put hot caramel on ANYTHING I can.
3. I was once named the top Dominos Pizza manager in the United States based on several ranking criteria. This was back in the late 80's.
4. I am a recluse obsessive compulsive person and I absolutely love it. On a normal week I might spend 6 hours a week outside of my own house. I am not a person that has to touch a door knob 20 times, but some of my obsessive compulsive rituals are quite unique. I absolutely love it. I attribute it to most of my success.
5. I forced future Hall of Fame running back Emmitt Smith to fumble twice in one game while we both were in high school and played against each other.
6. I am that guy that orders bacon cheeseburgers plain. Just meat, cheese, bacon and bread. Cooked medium rare as well.
7. I hated mowing the lawn as a kid, but now it is the highlight of my week during Spring and Summer. I love it so much, that it is one thing I must do on my birthday every April if it is not raining. I consider it a present to myself.
8. I consider Excel to be the greatest computer program of all time. I love numbers and stats and what you can do with them.
9. I left home at the age of 17 with only my car and my clothes. Lived on my own ever since.
10. I have every piece of recording that Andy Gibb ever made. He was the younger brother of the Brothers Gibb, better known as the Bee Gees.

Free Sites For Royalty Free Stock Images

I am no graphics guru by any means, but can hold my own in Photoshop. I do all of my own graphic work and often times I am on the hunt for the perfect royalty free image to use in a logo or header design. Over the years I have collected quite a few bookmarks to great sites that offer these royalty free images, but today I came across a post that boast 180+ such sites. Wow! Now I must admit I have not heard of or visited well over half of these sites, but the list is quite impressive. One is bound to find what they are looking for in one of these many sites. Most of these sites do require you to register as well. I would bookmark this post and even copy the URLS into your bookmark folder for image sources for future reference. Happy image hunting.

Top 10 Lesser Known Affiliate Programs

I was asked a question by email about a some lesser known affiliate program companies that I use outside of EPN, Adsense, Linkshare, Commision Junction, Pepperjam and ShareASale. I have listed a few below that I also use off the top of my head. Just because they are lesser known, does not mean they do not perform. As always, if they represent products you can build a niche around or integrate into existing niche site, by all means you should give them a try. A lot of people really do not know that Google has a program that I listed below as well. I get emails at least once a week of new publishers and products that they have coming on board and they are growing fairly quickly. Have a look below and check them out for yourselves. You might be surprised.


http://www.clixgalore.com/
http://www.affiliatewindow.com/
http://www.affiliatefuture.com/
http://www.affili.net/
http://www.linkconnector.com/
http://www.google.com/ads/affiliatenetwork
http://www.bridaluxe.com
http://www.onenetworkdirect.com
http://www.tradedoubler.com
http://www.buy.at/us/

Have You Ever Heard Of The Top 10 List By David Letterman?

If you live in the United States and have had a television at one point in your life, you probably have heard of the Top 10 List By David Letterman. It has been an ongoing segment on the Letterman show for ages. Why do they continue to do it? Because it is successful. Many folks will tune in just to watch that one segment.

Top ten list can easily be translated over to any niche as well and makes for a great social bookmark. It is a quick read for surfers and really draws attention. You never know what regular visitor you may pick up when posting a top ten list to your niche site. You can probably do a weekly top 10 to train visitors to come to your site once a week.

The "I did not know that!" factor works the best when using these. Make them witty yet informitate and be sure they are researched and factual. List items that a regular niche user may not know about before they came to your site.

Top 5 Things That Helped Me Business Wise In 2008

Well here we are on the doorstep of 2009. It has been one of the best years of my life by far. My earnings exploded and I have also expanded my knowledge on many levels and subjects as well. As far as my business side of things, below are my top 5 things that helped me business wise in 2008. These are in no order and each one is as important to me as the next.

1. This Blog - Yes, I have said it many times that my own blog opened my eyes and taught me the true power of how content and the SERPS interact. Dealing with the clunkiness of Blogger taught me a ton as far as some coding as well. Another thing it taught me was being more disciplined towards my sites and being dedicated to posting, even on days when I didn't feel like posting.

2. Understanding Wordpress - I had some bad experiences the first time around with Wordpress, mostly caused by myself. I forged through it and now can't imagine not using it now. Anything from a blog to a regular site content management system. There is a reason Matt Cutts from Google uses it and now I know why.

3. On Site SEO - Everything I thought I knew over the years with SEO was wrong. I literally retaught myself starting in 2007 and continuing on into 2008. A great ranking site starts with onsite SEO and can not be ignored. This is one of the few elements of ranking better that you have full control of.

4. Reading Other Blogs & Books - The sooner you accept that you do not know it all and that you never will, you can open mind and learn from those that know the things you do not know. Make sense? I turned 40 in 2008 and my thirst for knowledge went through the roof. I have read and written more in the past year then I had in my first 39 years on this planet. Open your mind and learn from those that have walked the path you are walking.

5. List & Goal Setting - I am full time in affiliate marketing and work from the time I get out of bed until the time I get back into bed on most days. There still is not enough hours in the day though and by setting goals and making list it ensures I get the things done that need to be done on a given day. Does it work out perfect every day? Absolutely not, but I can not imagine every getting the amount of things done this past year without list and goals. Regardless of the time you have to dedicate to your business, you need to know what you are going to do with that time so as to maximize it.

I look forward to the challenges, setbacks and successes 2009 has to offer. I wish all of you out there reading this much success and joy in this new year.

Happy New Year!!!!!!!!

Top 10 Things To Master In 2009

Well here comes 2009. Below is my list of things you should probable have a handle on internet marketing wise for the new year. While most are not earth shattering, these are things you will be behind the eight ball on if not up to speed on.

1. Wordpress - Wordpress is not new by any stretch, but it made even a further leap ahead in the content management market in 2008. New plugins come out daily to make task easier and more effective. It is still free as are most of the plugins that go along with it. More and more people are in tune with blog reading and Wordpress has it down pat. Make it a priority in early 2009, to use it and know the ins and outs of it.

2. Social Networking - Just looking at how Twitter forced itself to the forefront in 2008 alone should be all you need to see. Social Networking was king in 2008 and will explode times ten in 2009. Facebook, Myspace, Kaboodle and the list goes on and on. You can certainly funnel buying traffic through these networks.

3. Google Adwords - Adwords is another form of paid traffic generation which is very under used. It takes some work mastering and getting a good return on your money spent, but when done right will have your targeted customer sitting right in front of the product they are looking to buy. Start small budget wise and read everything you can get your hands on on developeing profitable campaigns. Do not under estimate the power of it.

4. Video - While video is not new, the biggest buzz coming out of PubCon is the future of video and integrating it into your site or generating traffic with it. The best part about it is you do not have to create the videos yourself. Most all the major media sites offer the ability to embed videos into content pages or blog post. Youtube has acres of videos that never see the light of day, because the poster does not know or care how to market it correctly. This is so wide open right now.

5. Product Feeds - All major eCommerce sites now see the need for affiliate marketers. Why? We do it better and get paid after the fact. Pepperjam forged ahead in putting eCommerce sites in touch with online marketers, but several are still scratching the surface and still will insist on using straight datafeeds. There are tons of paid and free pugins and applications available to help integrate several major and minor product lines into your website. It might take a little more effort, but will be well worth the work.

6. RSS Feed Marketing - Sure RSS feeds are not new, but effectively using them to capture sales through still is. Learn how to integrate ads into your RSS feeds and capture the buyer right at point of impact. If your site or blog does not have a RSS feed, get one and I mean yesterday.

7. Anything Attached To Google - While Yahoo and MSN Live made great strides in 2008, they are still way behind Google. Anything that Google usually touches, turns into a must have. Stay on top of them by following along with the Google webmaster blog. Know about new applications and features right when they happen and get a jump on everyone else.

8. Mobile - As prices drop on cell phones, PDAs and the like, more people will be using them to interact with the net. 2009 will be the year to start accomidating these devices. One might even consider developing a .mobi clone of their site to better accommodate the viewing for the surfer as the mobile browsers advance. By the end of 2009 it will be a must for your site to know what device a surfer is using to access your site and direct them to the most compatible version for them.

9. Surfer Generated Content - Unique content will always be king, and while this is not new news, letting the surfer create content is even better. Allowing comments, opening up a forum or product review section is the best way to get surfers interacting with your site and providing their own unique content. Just look at Squidoo and Hubpages. Look for anything that will let the surfer set up his own easy to use mini webspace in relation to your site and niche. Perhaps even reward them by profit sharing in what their content pulls in. Not everyone is tech savvy, but even a six year old can set up their own Myspace page.

10. Analyzation - Tracking of who what when and where has never been easier. As competition on the web increases, the better you will need to be at maximizing every visitor to your site. Get in tune with your server stats and analytics programs and learn how to convert EVERY surfer into some sort of revenue.

Not a Nostradamus post by any measure, but mastering these 10 things along with paying attention to whatever else pops it's head up in 2009 will get you well ahead of your fellow internet marketer.

What trends do you see for 2009?

Top 10 Wordpress Mistakes

It is so good to see a ton of BANS users getting on the train and doing Wordpress BANS integrations. However on quite a few that need help after purchase, I am seeing several of the same mistakes being made on the Wordpress side of things. These are not in any particular order of importance as I feel everyone of them is equally important as the next in building a SEO and user friendly BANS Wordpress site. While there are tons of plugins out there to make every task easier, starting with the basics and learning how to actually make Wordpress work for you in the basic form is very important.

Here are the top 10 mistakes I am seeing:

1. Improper Permalinks Setup - The default setup in Wordpress simply numbers the post in the url. Personally I prefer the month and name setting /%year%/%monthnum%/%postname%/ over everything else, some will tell you to use a custom structure like /%postname%/ which is ok, but if you want to go safe, use the month and name setting.

2. Improper SEO setup - The All in One SEO plugin, even in it's default setting, will do wonders for you. Get the title of the post or page up front in the TITLE tag. This plugin is a necessity for every Wordpress blog.

3. Bad Use of Categories and Tags - I did a post on categories and tags a few days ago. Know the difference and how to properly use them.

4. No XML Sitemap - Once again there is a great XML Sitemap Generator plugin to handle this.

5. No Privacy Policy - If you are going to run an ecommerce site of any kind, you better get use to adding a privacy policy on each and every site. One again the privacy policy plugin cures this.

6. HTML and CSS errors - Not all themes are created equal. Run your site through a validator and fix any major structure errors.

7. Blogrolls Linked to Unrelated Sites - You should be linking out to on topic or semi related sites. You dilute your niche credibility by linking to just anyone who will link to you.

8. No Database Backup - Get in the habit of backing up your database. Losing every post and page on a website is a sick feeling.

9. Not using Akismet - Time management is always crucial and not using a comment spam blocker will cost you precious time.

10. No Unique Content or Post - In order for Wordpress to show it's benefits you need to post to it and post to it as often as you can. This does not include content scrapers or copied articles. It must be yours, on topic and timely.

15 Must Have Plugins For Wordpress BANS Templates

I have had several purchasers of the BANS Wordpress templates request that I do a post on the plugins I use on with Wordpress Build A Niche Stores that I have. Well your wish is my command.

Below are 15 must have plugins I use on my Wordpress BANS stores:

1. PHPBay - This is a plugin that allows you to show eBay auction listings on an actual Wordpress post or page. This gives the ability to target smaller niches or trendy hot products without having to build a complete store page in BANS. Support is excellent and it works flawlessly.
2. Popshops - This plugin is great for targeting 1000's of products from multiple affiliate programs such as Commission Junction, Pepperjam, Linkshare and Shareasale to name a few.
3. Exec-PHP - This plugin enables you the ability to run actual PHP code in a single post or page in Wordpress. Very very handy to have installed.
4. All In One SEO Pack - This is a must have Wordpress plugin to help make your CMS very search engine friendly. Consider it steroids for Wordpress.
5. Google XML Sitemap Generator - Just as the name says. Creates an XML sitemap for Wordpress to submit to Google, Yahoo and MSN.
6. CForms - Easy to use form creator that ads customizable contact form to a Wordpress blog.
7. Privacy Policy Generator - Another must have plugin for generating a privacy policy for any site.
8. Wordpress Redirection Plugin - Easily redirect old URLs to new URLs with this easy plugin. Great for 301 redirects.
9. Page Link Manager - Easy to use plugin that lets you manage page links and hide them if needed.
10. SEO Smart Links - This plugin automatically links certain words in a post or page automatically to the URL of your choice. A huge time saver for busy bloggers.
11. Similiar Post Plugin - The name says it all. Displays similiar post under each blog entry. Great for targeting ceratain niche buyers.
12. Wordpress Database Backup - Makes backing up your database a breeze.
13. Evermore Breadcrumb - Automatically display a short preview of your blog posts on your home page. Each preview includes a link to the full post.
14. Easytube Youtube - Makes adding Youtube videos to a blog post a breeze.
15. Exploit Scanner - Helps keep you allert to blog hacks and exploits.
    

I Made Mistakes Too - Top 5 List Of My SNAFUS

I know sometimes it seems that I can make it all look too easy as far as BANS store building is concerned, but let me assure you I made and still make mistakes myself. Plenty of them. Part of your development will be to make less mistakes over time and streamline your process of getting a new store launched, optimized and earning money. Here are a my early top 5 mistakes I made in my Build A Niche Store early days. See if you share any of these with me.

1. Store niches were too broad and I was trying to be everything to everyone. No research into the niche, I just dove right in.

2. No proper keyword targets were defined. I just threw up what I thought was a good title and went from there, built it by the seat of my pants and on the fly.

3. When I added content, I added other websites content. This will do you no good. If it aint yours, it really has no business on your site. If you read something you think will help your surfers, just link to it. It is your duty.

4. I did not understand proper anchor text use and how to apply it off site and on site.

5. Spent too much time on how the store looked instead of concentrating on how to gain organic traffic. It should be done the other way around, worry about getting recognized first and buff and polish the store second. Plenty of pretty stores never get seen.

That is just a quick glimpse as my list is a mile long. Everyone makes mistakes, but recognizing them early will save you a ton of time and head banging.

Sunday should be the second post in the Niche Store Student On Board Series. So stay tuned. Have a great Saturday.

10 Mistakes Most Newbies Make

Happy Friday, everyone! Today we will cover what I consider to be the most important mistakes new Build A Niche Store builders make.

1. Directions - They do not read the manual thoroughly. There is a ton of things and common questions answered right on your own hard drive. I bet not many of you have even printed it out. Print it and keep it next to you as quick reference.

2. Hosting - Most new users ignore the fact that Hostgator is the suggested host for BANS. They suggest this for a reason. Many go through Godaddy and some other budget hosting companies only to discover problems or much worse down time. Once you have a better grasp of everything, then you can mess with different host.

3. Niche Research - Most do not know how to do it or what they are even looking to do. All they know is they want an xBox or iPod store and that is all they know. Dig around in the blog or the BANS forums. There is tons of info on researching niches.

4. Broad Stores - Even if you have researched your niche, most set up too broad of stores. There is no reason to have 100 pages if you are just starting out. Going back and optimizing the 100 pages for a newbie almost always takes the wind right out of their sail. Start small and narrow as it is easy to add to later and you will not feel so overwhelmed.

5. Default Meta Tags - Just because it is set up out of the box that way, does not mean that is the way it is meant to stay. I just posted yesterday on meta tags and I suggest you apply it too EVERY store and content page.

6. Default Store Navigation Text - See #5 on this as well. If at all possibly, rename the page anchor text to better accommodate your store.

7. No Unique Content - If you hate writing or do not have the money or resources to add ORIGINAL UNIQUE CONTENT, you better learn to like it or have a rich uncle. This is probably the most ignored tip I give. Spinning articles or Wiki pages is not the same either. Make you store the authority on what it sells and you will reap the benefits.

8. No Daily Plan - If you have no plan to succeed daily or weekly at different task, you have then planned to fail. If you only have 1 hour a week to dedicate to your site, you better know ahead of time what you are going to do with that hour.

9. Poor SEO/Traffic Generation - You can have the fanciest well designed website on the web with great graphics and headers, but if it is not optimized well and gets very little traffic it will not succeed. Too many people worry about building a web masterpiece for the eyes instead of focusing on SEO, traffic generation and link building. Pretty websites with no traffic only end up getting seen by you.

10. You Quit - I hate to tell you this, but if you mark this date a year from now on the calender. I am willing to bet only 2 or 3 of every 10 that read this blog will still be active. It is the facts. Most of you will blame BANS, EPN, me or something else for you quiting as well. Affiliate Marketing has a steep, steep learning curve. Once you get past that curve and the light comes on, it all slowly starts falling into place. When you do quit, please sell or give the stores to someone who will use them.

Keyword Research is NOT about Keywords

Came across an interesting read while browsing the Build A Niche Store forums this evening. It has two parts and it talks about the The 10 Commandments of Keyword Research.

Part 1
Part 2

I am finishing up some free templates that I hope to release on Tuesday.

Top 10 mistakes new BANS store owners make

10. Unsatisfactory hosting
Lets face it it, if your site is not up and running or you are constantly having errors, then you are not making money. I have over 80 stores hosted with Hostgator and have never had a problem that I did not cause myself. This is crucial to your success and one of the biggest decisions you will make regarding your business.

9. Improper store installation
Many new BANS store owners are usually new to site building as well. There is a manual included with your download and I suggest you use it. My father says it best. "Read the F'ing manual!" Take it slow and follow it step by step, if you have questions then just ask for help in the forum.

8. Too broad of niche
If I had a dime for every xbox, ipod or baby store I have seen built by newbies, I wouldn't need to build any niche stores myself. If you are not a SEO expert then you do not even try to compete with the big boys in these niches. There are plenty of free keyword tools out there that will help you drill down your niche. Four word key phrases are perfect for newbies and will get you earning money just the same. Instead of widgets, think red tall fuzzy widgets.

7. Hurrying with site completion
New BANS store owners are in such a rush to get the store live, they do not take the time to optimize each and every page of there store. This is not a race and as my father always said, "Do it right the first time, so you don't have to go back and do it again." Take your time, folks.

6. Not monetizing properly
You might not know it but CJ offers affiliate programs that might just match your niche. Not everyone that comes to your store wants eBay items. Give them other places to go that you can earn a commission on. Amazon and Google ads are also a must for newbies.

5. Out of the box stores
Change all of those default store titles and navigation text. Make them fit a keyword. Do not just throw up a cookie cutter category. This only takes a little time to do and can help in the search engines.

4. Canonicalization
Don't confuse the search engines. Tell them if if want to be www or non-www. Do not take the chance of Google thinking you have 2 main pages. This is very simple to do and should be done first thing.

3. Knowing your traffic
You need to be on top of where you traffic is coming from at all times. Google offers free webmaster tools and analytic programs to make this a breeze. You need to be on top of who is linking to you and how people are finding your site. You can often uncover other keywords that will help in tweaking your store.

2. Checking CJ stats every five minutes
This will kill motivation very quick. Get in the habit of only checking at the most once a day. Every other day if possible. They update in the evening, there is no reason to check 50 times in the morning. BANS works. Build it and they will come.

1. Building one store and waiting
You need to think of these stores as outlets, the more outlets you have the more opportunities to make income. Do not sit on one store and watch it grow like grass. It sometimes takes six months for a niche store to seed well and start producing nicely. Start planting a bunch of seeds now, it's a beautiful site when they all start popping out of the ground.