How to Promote Affiliate Links Offline

Many people promote affiliate links online; depending on your target market, you may be facing some stiff competition. While you should not stop your online promotion efforts, you can add offline promotion to increase your commissions.

When promoting offline, you will want to redirect your affiliate links. This is a very simple process. You can create a page on your domain that and include some HTML code that will automatically send your visitor to your affiliate link. If you are promoting an autoresponder, you may name the page http://www.yourdomain.com/autoresponder. Simply add the following code: <meta http-equiv=”REFRESH” content=”0; URL=http://www.youraffilatelink.com”>. It’s that easy!

You can design some flyers right from home. Depending on the price of your printer’s ink cartridges, it may be cheaper to just print out one flyer and take it to a copy shop and use the self service method to make additional copies. Take them with you wherever you go; put them up wherever you see a bulleting board, such as the grocery store, the mall, post office, library, etc. Using brightly colored paper will grab people’s attention. Create a catchy headline and make sure the font is clear and easy to read.

You can get car magnets made up that will stick to the side of your car. It will look like a message that is painted on your car. Stick the car magnets on whenever you are out and about running errands. Your car can be sitting in the middle of a parking lot, generating traffic for you.

Take a small cardboard box and decorate it with brightly colored wrapping paper. Attach a sign that says “Free Drawing” and offer some type of prize. You don’t have to offer anything of too much value.

You can get some entry forms made up at your local copy shop for a small price (make sure the entry form includes an area for the registrant’s email address). Take the box around to local salons, convenience stores, grocery stores, and anywhere else that you can think of. Leave the box there for a week, and when you return, take the entry forms and email the contestants. Let the winner know that they won; and let the other people know that they did not win, but you appreciate the fact that they entered. Include links to your site, as well as your newsletter. You may generate a lot of traffic to your site and add a few names to your mailing list.

Depending on your product, you may want to try a direct mail campaign. You can purchase mailing lists from companies that specialize in collecting demographic info. You can also purchase some postcards from companies such as Vistaprint for a reasonable price.

 

Julianne Alvarez-Wish is a military wife, mother, business owner, professional writer, blogger and legislative advocate. She is the Colorado State Leader for the National Association for Moms in Business and the owner of The Wish Place. She is the Colorado Springs Stay-at-Home Mom Examiner for Examiner.com. She also blogs at A Wishful Thought. Her passion, purpose and goal is to help parents work from home so they can be home with their children.

Taking Your Business on the Road: Ideas for Offline Publicity

Doing business over the Internet offers many advantages, such as being able to work anywhere and having a vast market to work with. That doesn’t mean that you have to stick to online publicity. There is still much to gain by taking your promotions offline.

Press releases are a great way to gain exposure for your business. They may sound formal and complicated, but they are simply documents containing information, submitted to the media, in hopes the media will feature the information.

There is a standard format to follow when writing a press release and you can find samples on the internet. You can include general information about your business as well as feature an event or special promotion. You can submit them to any news organization, from your local newspaper to an online media outlet.

Never underestimate the power of a simple business card. Whether it is a simple act of giving someone your card, stapling your cards to the bottom of a flyer or putting magnet on the back of them and sticking them to the outside of a mailbox, there are many ways to promote your business with them.

Depending on the type of business you have, you may be able to find local events to sponsor. For example, if you have a business that pertains to children, you can sponsor a little league team or if you have a business in the health field, try looking into the next health fair.

Speaking in front of a crowd often frightens people, but if you have the courage to do it, it is a great way to bring publicity to your business. Many local groups and organizations are often looking for speakers and presenters for their meetings.

Be creative and use your imagination when looking for groups to approach. When you find a group that is in your target market, call the group and offer to give a presentation.

For instance, if you are a web designer, the local Chamber of Commerce would be thrilled for you to come in and give a presentation on a number of topics relating to websites.

The members may be so impressed that they will want you to help them with their websites, or give your name as a referral when someone they talk to needs a web designer.

Check your local phone book for listings of other groups, such as the Optimist Club or Rotary Club. Most churches will have several different groups that meet regularly, such as groups focused towards men, women, and a group specifically for mothers of young children. Your local schools will have a parent – teacher group as well as booster groups for specific departments such as athletics or music.

Julianne Alvarez-Wish is a military wife, mother, business owner, professional writer, blogger and legislative advocate. She is the Colorado State Leader for the National Association for Moms in Business and the owner of The Wish Place. She is the Colorado Springs Stay-at-Home Mom Examiner for Examiner.com. She also blogs at A Wishful Thought. Her passion, purpose and goal is to help parents work from home so they can be home with their children.