Lisa Irby Interview – Creating Websites To Promote Affiliate Products

Posted on 26. May, 2009 by Michael in Make Money

Could you describe what you do and how you earn your living Lisa?

I am an affiliate marketer. That means I create websites on topics that interest me and I earn commissions by referring my audience to products and services that relate to the themes of my sites.

A huge percent of your traffic comes from search engines, what’s your top tip for getting ranked well in search engines? Your domain is very SEO friendly for your niche, do you think this has helped you to rank highly?

My top tip is build useful, relevant content that your target audience would value. I honestly don’t spend a lot of time stressing out over my meta tags, keyword stuffing, and all those SEO tactics some Webmasters seem to lose sleep over. I’ve learned to write for humans (instead of the spiders). And when humans value your content, they link to you voluntarily. That’s what the search engines want to see. You can spend all day perfecting your meta tags, but if no one is linking to you using the keywords you target then you’ll never see much search engine traffic. SEO has definitely changed over the years. When I first started, it was all about on-page criteria such as meta tags, keywords, etc. But now it’s all about popularity and inbound links.

I understand that you make most your money through affiliate programs on 2createawebsite, what’s the secret to selling other peoples products and selling on commission?

Use what you promote and prove it! Anyone can say “this product is great”, but if you want to build credibility, you have to show that you use the product and also don’t be afraid to mention the cons along with the pros. Some people are afraid to mention negatives about a product. Sure, it may turn a few people off, but in the long-run it will build your credibility and improve your overall sales. If all you do is write glowing reviews for every product, people will get suspicious. Ever since I started reviewing the products I use, my affiliate commission shave sky rocketed.

Not many people are great bloggers and also rock it with YouTube, what advice would you give an Internet entrepreneur trying to get more publicity on YouTube?

With YouTube, the same principles apply for marketing a site or blog. You need to be creative, fresh and have useful information to present. Also, relax. When I first started YouTube-ing, I was very uptight because I was afraid of making a mistake. Now I don’t take myself so seriously. I try to keep a conversational tone as if I’m talking to a friend, and if I make a mistake, there’s always editing. And sometimes I leave the goof-ups in and have fun with them right on the video. Also, spend a bit of money on good editing software and learn how to use it. I cringe when I see people getting up in their videos to turn off the camera. Even the free software like Windows Movie Maker will allow you to edit that out. I use Pinnacle Studio and love it. Lots of fun bells and whistles to help your video look more polished.

A lot of people make mistakes when creating their first website, what would you recommend new Internet entrepreneurs keep away from?

If you aren’t yet making any money online, don’t create a site or blog telling other people how to make money. First of all, this niche is extremely saturated, so if you want to stand out, you have to create something fresh and prove that what you’re doing is working for you. There are too many “how to make money” online sites that basically say the same things. And I think a lot of people choose this topic because they can’t think of any other topic. Since they are trying to make money they figure they’ll create a site about it. I think it’s best to choose topics that you have personal experiences with. Your content will be more fresh and inspiring. Not to mention, you won’t run the risk of getting burned out because you have a personal connection with what you’re writing about.

You also run a successful forum, something most people never achieve. What advice would you give an Internet entrepreneur thinking of creating a forum for their website?

Don’t ever start a forum until you have an existing traffic base. This is my 4th attempt at a forum. The other 3 failed because my main site did not have enough traffic to build up the activity. Only a small percentage of the people who join your forum are going to participate regularly, so you need to have enough traffic to give the forum a chance at success.

You are one of my favourite female Internet entrepreneurs and often we don’t hear to much from women entrepreneurs. What would you say to any women reading this interview who are thinking about getting involved and making money online?

Don’t believe the hype about this being a man’s world. The field of programming is still dominated by men, but you don’t have to become a programmer to make money online. Yes, you will need to learn the basics of HTML and CSS, but there are many women out here flourishing in both Web design/programming and affiliate marketing. Don’t feel intimidated. Just get out here and do it!

Running an Internet Business gives you choices and freedom to do what you want, when you want. What would you say the Internet Lifestyle is for you?

You just said it, F-R-E-E-D-O-M. No day is ever the same and I love not having to live by a schedule. If I feel like putting in 12 hours I can. If I feel like sleeping in, lounging in my PJ’s and watching DVD’s all day, I can. A lot of people get turned onto running their own business because of the income potential. But I’ve got to tell ya, the money is nice, but nothing beats the flexibility and freedom. I always joke with people and say if I ever have to go back to a 9 to 5, I will need intense therapy.

What would you say is the biggest single reason for your success?

I’ve learned how to connect with the people I am targeting. Creating a successful site is not just about throwing up pages of content and weaving in a few affiliate links. People want to know there is a human behind the site, and they have to trust and connect with you. I’ve learned to do this through both video and my content.

If you could go back in a time machine to the time when you were just getting started, what advice would you give yourself regarding making money online?

Good question. I touched on this before, but I would definitely emphasize the importance of choosing a topic you are passionate about. The reason I warn people about the “how to make money” sites is because I used to own one of those. I was barely making anything myself so there was nothing fresh or unique about my content. For 3 years, I struggled to get traffic to that site, but never got above the 100 visitor per day mark because there was nothing original about my approach. Today I have articles about making money on my site because I am having success and I have proof, personal advice, etc. But when I first started, I wish I had chosen a topic that I was more connected to.

What is the best advice you have ever been given?

If you want to become a successful affiliate marketer you still have to apply the fundamentals of business. Throwing up a site is not enough. You need a plan, a target market and you have to learn how to market effectively.

Thanks very much for the interview, Have you any plans (personal or business) that you can share with us about your future plans / goals /lifetime goals?

Next week I am launching a free e-book titled, The Perfect Site Guide. It’s a free guide/manual that teaches you how to create a website and make money online. This is long overdue and I’m looking forward to the release. I think it will really help a lot of people. You can download it at http://www.ThePerfectSiteGuide.com

Lisa teaches people how to create a website, you can see her website by clicking here.

If you want to keep up with what Lisa is up to, then follow her on Twitter.

If you're really considering making a living through blogging, then you absolutely have to check out Blogging To The Bank by Rob Benwell. In his book, the UK millionaire blogger reveals step by step how he makes as much as $90,480 a month from just a few hours work.

For people ready to dive into a more premium guide, you should consider Blog Mastermind by Yaro Starak. Yaro teaches how you too can master the exact SYSTEM he uses to make a minimum of $10,000 to as much as $35,000 per month, blogging part time.

Tags: 2CreateaWebsite, Affiliate Marketer, Create a Blog, Create a Website, Earn Commission, Female Entrepreneur, Lisa Irby, Making Money With Affiliate Marketing, Making Money With YouTube, SEO Friendly Website

26 Responses to “Lisa Irby Interview – Creating Websites To Promote Affiliate Products”

My220x

26. May, 2009

Great interview and I agree with her point on don’t start a blog about making money online until you are making money as you will just be reposting things hundreds have already posted.

Reply to this comment
- Michael
  
  26. May, 2009
  
  Lol.. I completly agree, when I read that answer I think of 100s of blogs who copy John Chow and then never make more then $100… I don’t know anyone who has been successful with a make money online blog as their first website.
  
  Michael
  
  Reply to this comment
  - Kaiser Serajuddin
    
    26. May, 2009
    
    Except you pimp!
    
    Reply to this comment
Scott :: IrnMedia.net

26. May, 2009

Great Interview Michael, personally I look at some of the people that have been interviewed on this site (and R21) and couldn’t possibly see a reason to start a blog about Making Money Online EVEN after starting to make a lot of money online.

Reply to this comment
Shane - Inspiring Your Success

26. May, 2009

I completely agree with everything she said and all the advice can be used for creating any type of website, or business, not just affilites.

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Jacques

26. May, 2009

Received an e-mail last week from a guy who copied your site up to every detail. Layout, banners and everything. Just the name changed to ???? Dairy.com (Sorry cant remember the name. Will try and find in my history)

Reply to this comment
Nikolai

26. May, 2009

Nice interview. I think the most important point is to run it like a real business. Coz it is one! You can’t just slap something up there and hope it sticks. This also applies to blogs and most other websites.

Reply to this comment
- My220x
  
  26. May, 2009
  
  I agree with you there that you should run it like a real business as many people think they can make money just by putting together a rubbish site.
  
  Reply to this comment
Jerry--Moneylove

26. May, 2009

A great interview–you asked all the right questions. And I’m in love with Lisa Irby and her prosperity conscious attitude and down-to-earth information. She is the first Internet guru I’ve come across who is totally in synch with the philosophy I talk about in my bestselling book Moneylove. I definitely want to explore doing business with her, and am already a devoted fan. She joins incomediary.com as one of my very few must-not-miss resources.

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Doug Groce

26. May, 2009

Excellent information here – A lot of what Lisa said goes back to the basics of being smart about running your business and providing valuable, unique, content and service to your readers -

We may get caught up in the latest cool tactics sometimes, but what Lisa mentioned seem to be the foundation of any good blog or business online.

Reply to this comment
Coree

26. May, 2009

I can really identify with everything Lisa is saying here. When you asked her about advice for women entrepreneurs her answer was exactly what I needed to hear :”Just do it!”. I think we, as women, tend to intimidate ourselves into thinking that this is a man’s world. But, the truth is, this world is exactly what we make of it…male or female. Don’t let fear of failure (or success) hold you back. Just do it!

Thanks Michael for introducing us to another awesome woman making things happen!! I’m going to download her book now.

Reply to this comment
- Michael
  
  26. May, 2009
  
  Glad you enjoyed the interview Coree Found a great bunch of women lately that I need to feature! I have been following Lisa for a few years now since we have websites in the same niche.
  
  Just Do It is the best advice you can get, so many people fail because they never start.
  
  Michael
  
  Reply to this comment
  - My220x
    
    26. May, 2009
    
    I agree! Just Do It! I’m not exactly doing it yet but I want to start a blog about programming so need to learn programming first which i’m doing daily. Every day I’m a step closer towards my goal
    
    Reply to this comment
Shirley

26. May, 2009

WOW! I really enjoyed your interview with Lisa..it was both inspiring and informative.

Thanks Michael as always you provide great information the very best always.

Reply to this comment
Bloggers School

26. May, 2009

Very Interesting work I love the part about you being uptight on Youtube At first. This is also new and not so perfect sometimes as TV or movie quality videos or content would be. There is room for a little forgiveness from the user and the publishers standpoint.

Really nice job on the Interview.

Reply to this comment
Marcell

26. May, 2009

Great interview! Lisa was one of the first to inspire me! She’s tells 100% truth about what she does and how she does it. Great interview Michael

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Alton

26. May, 2009

Where do I go to get question answer from you ? Thank You .

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mark domingo

27. May, 2009

nice post again! getting more inspired here.

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Renelda

27. May, 2009

What set this interview apart from the rest was that she was concise and thorough. She just makes perfect sense. Her advice are credible. This is my personal favourite interview because I can look at her and be inspire. She is not only a woman, but a minority. I can look at her and see myself and hopefully someday I can have the lifestyle of an internet entreprenuer. Hard work, niche marketing, and confidence will pay off no matter what path a person take

Reply to this comment
Patrick

27. May, 2009

Great interview. Lisa keep up the good work! You inspire me!

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Kurt Avish

27. May, 2009

One part caught my attention is that its true that many MMO blogs are rising out of everywhere but most of them do not even make money online.

I call this the John Chow dream

A good lesson from this interview is that if you wanna promote something, first use it and get a personal experience with it.

Reply to this comment
Vivianne

28. May, 2009

It may be true that many people begin a blog with the intention of making a profit, but then fail. But then many people start all kinds of businesses, offline and online, with the goal of making a profit, but fail. That’s life.

More important than failing is that they gain the experience, and push forward for success the next time. Failure online need not cost a lot of money. It should be a relatively inexpensive, temporary setback. Keep prodding along folks.

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gainsvillesun

28. May, 2009

I love what Lisa had to say, especially about blogging. You need to blog about things that actually interest you in order to have the drive to sustain and improve upon your blog in the long run.

I also agree, there are waaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too many Make Money Online copycat websites as well as an oversaturation in Tech related blogs with mediocre and copied content.

I believe that originality remains as one of the Keys to a successful business online and offline.

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john paul paquibot

29. May, 2009

when i first learn adsense – i have no idea about html – after html – i have to learn SEO . most people wants to earn adsense are stuck on SEO instead of writing to humans.

but until today i only know SEO and designing webpages but i never improved my writing – i dont even have a skill on it.

i rank in google for few keywords – mostly local but in terms of adsense earnings i always fell to $2 per day and monthly of $100+ only.

from Liza irby i’ve read and try to understand the words ” Targeted Traffic ” i guess those targets means that = age of people (kids click better) , kinds of surfer people ( knows adsense or not ) and type of problem this people are surfing for answers.

i have been to SEO for 4 years now and doing the same mistakes that keep me on $2 per day earnings on adsense.

but i hope to learn from guys like lisa , adsense is really not that easy .. thanks zemez_man at yahoo dot com

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Patrice

08. Jun, 2009

Michael that was a great interview with Lisa Irby. That was very inspiring and I learned a lot. Women can also be a successful internet marketer just like men.

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Leonard

13. Jul, 2009

I just started watching Lisa and listening to her instructions for online marketing over the past 10 days or so and am happy to have discovered her, and your interview this early on in my Internet career. Just shaved tons of time off of the learning curve. I realize there is so much more to learn, and doing will by far be the foremost teacher but it certainly helps to observe the valuable sign posts that Lisa and you prove to be along the way to greater income and stability. Thank you for taking the time to interview Lisa. The information blessed me.

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