Find the best strategies to get more traffic, sales, and revenue from affiliate marketing, blogging and becoming a leader in today’s world.
What is a blogging schedule?
A blogging schedule is a schedule that reminds you to publish posts based on specific duration. Take an example of my latest challenge, #60DaysBloggingChallenge.
Blogging schedule could benefit bloggers in many ways. Here are some:
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Every entrepreneur wants to get noticed in a noisy world.
Yes, they do and so do you. But wait, me too! Today’s world is very much different.As you work on generating buzz for your brand, make sure to keep a solid foundation by using LLC Formation Services to create a legally recognized business entity, helping to secure real-world credibility as you rise to the top.
We are constantly finding for ways to beat the competition. Take this website for example. I am constantly finding ways to build a bigger audience and increasing the size of my email list.
Getting noticed in a noisy world does sound like a daunting task, right? I bet.
They want to see you do good, but never better than them. Remember that – Unknown.
This quote is point-on. In this marketing world, there aren’t that many friends that wish you all the best with your business truthfully. And to be honest, they will welcome your failure because if you fail (and fail more), they probably have higher chance to success. Plus, lesser one competition to compete with them.
Make sense?
In this post, you’ll learn the tips I used to get noticed in a noisy world. I’ve been through some tough times, but with multiple awards and honorable mentions such as from Harvard University’s blog, I am sure I could do you some favors for free, right? CONTINUE READING
![How To Start A Blog In Just 5 Steps [Infographic]](https://www.reginaldchan.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/How-To-Start-A-Blog-In-Just-5-Steps.jpg)
You heard that you can make money with a blog and you are inching to start a blog. There are way too many guides out there on ‘how to start a blog‘ but you want just the facts.
Yes, you want a complete blogging tutorial that teaches you how to create a blog from scratch. You have no time to waste and certainly, you don’t want to waste money buying web hosting and domain names just to become another failed blogger.
You want to start a blog and start making money from blogging. I feel you –and that’s why I created this post for you; How To Start A Blog In Just 5 Simple Steps.
If you are the type that read, bookmark this post for future reference and if you’re a graphic-type of person, there’s an infographic right at the bottom of this post. And if you find this post useful, I would appreciate it if you can share this around or use the infographic in your blog post!
A domain name is like your brand and it matters even more especially when your blog get traction and more visibility. Most bloggers find it really challenging to find a blog name and allow me to hep you out on this.
There are several rules of thumb when it comes to choosing a domain name:
Domain usually costs anywhere from $0.99 to under $10 per year. There are many domain registrars out there such as GoDaddy and NameCheap which sells at super low prices.
Want to save money in domain name and get a free one? Continue reading Step 2!
To be included in you reading list: ProBlogger Secrets for Blogging Your Way to a Six-Figure Income
Web hosting is like the power company that lights up your home (in this case, home is your domain). One of the biggest mistakes done by bloggers is choosing really, really cheap web hosting companies due to the obvious reason; dirt cheap cost.
The results? Tons of downtime and even possibility of hacking which leads to angry visitors and lost of revenue for you. If you think about it, this isn’t the reason of you starting a blog. You want to make money or passive income from blogging!
So, here are some guidelines you need to know when choosing a web hosting company:
Since you are starting out in blogging, you should be getting shared web hosting as this is the most affordable one. While there are higher end ones like WP Engine, you’re still in good hands especially when your blog is hosted with a professional web hosting company with affordable prices.
Why? Because it doesn’t burn a hole in your pocket.
If you need recommendations, I recommend using BlueHost (read my review on Bluehost) because it costs only $3.95 per month and all the goodies such as free domain name, free site builder, professional support and money back guarantee under one roof. Of course, you only get this deal when you use this link (original price is $5.99 per month).
In the 3rd step on how to start a blog, you need to install a blogging platform. Here, I would recommend you to install WordPress as it is one of the most flexible blogging platforms for both beginners and businesses.
Big brands such as Tech Crunch, The New Yorker and Sony Music use WordPress for their websites.
By default, most shared hosting service providers would have cPanel system which you can use to install WordPress. If you slightly geeky, here’s the real definition of cPanel credits to Wikipedia:
cPanel is a Linux based web hosting control panel that provides a graphical interface and automation tools designed to simplify the process of hosting a web site.
If you are wondering if you could create a blog without WordPress, yes you could — but would you? Millions of blogs out there are powered by WordPress because it is flexible and super scalable. As a matter of fact, WordPress allows you to change every expect of your blog (with some coding knowledge).
Right now, you may be thinking, “Hey Reginald, this is just too much for me. I am working/studying and I have absolutely no time to spare. I demand to know how to start a blog fast!”
Yes sir! Pardon me for all the jargons I said in the past few paragraph. You want an easy way out? Signup for BlueHost web hosting and they will give you a free domain. Then the magic happens. BlueHost has 1-click install for WordPress. All you need to do is to click and wait.
Now you are all set … under 5 minutes. Yes, sign up for BlueHost here (If you cancel within 30 days, you receive a full refund on your hosting service and if you cancel after 30 days, you receive a prorated refund for the remainder of your hosting term).
Yes, you just started a blog. Pretty simple right?
No, it’s no over yet! There’re two more steps and the next step (really simple one, I promise) is setting the blog up.
On your dashboard (accessible through http://yourdomain.com/wp-admin), head over the left panel and click on Settings > General as seen on the image below:
Once the page is refreshed, you will see a new page and this is the main switch box for your blog. See the options in the image below? Fill the details according to the details of your blog.
Once everything is done, click on the Save button.
Important note: Tagline should be no longer than 160 characters.
Bonus offer: See why over 164,000 website owners trust StudioPress Themes!
What are WordPress plugins?
WordPress plugins are bits of software that can be uploaded to to extend and expand the functionality of your WordPress site.
In short, plugins help you to do wonders with your blog (even when you have no knowledge about) and it increases productivity.
Plugins can be installed directly from your blog’s dashboard. Click on the left panel and select Plugins.
A new page will be visible and you can search dozens of plugins directly from the WordPress repository. As of this point of writing, there are over 37,900 plugins available for download to your blog.
Here are some important plugins you need to have when you first start a blog:
Alternative plugins for advanced bloggers:
WordPress comes with some beautifully made themes which you can use for free. But if you would want a more custom look and feel, there are tools such as Thrive Theme Builder that allows you to create custom custom blog templates without a single line of code. Besides that, you have StudioPress who offers dozens of professional made blog templates ready for download at very reasonable prices.
Did you know that you have finish all the 5 steps in ‘how to start a blog‘?
Yes, give yourself a pat on the back and maybe some beer. You have successfully create a blog from scratch (and without pulling a single strain of hair). Well, that’s awesome right?
Of course, starting a blog is just the first step in your blogging journey. What’s coming up next is how to make money with a blog (subscribe here to be kept updated)!
![How To Start A Blog [Infographic]](https://www.reginaldchan.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/How-To-Start-A-Blog-Infographic.jpg)
In this post, I am going to share with you 12 of the best mailing list plugins that will supercharge your list building campaign and increase your conversion rate.
I could not emphasize enough the importance of starting a mailing list. As a self-claimed plugin junkie, I find it very difficult to work with the just your average plugin. Instead, I wanted to work with the best plugin available to ensure that I am grabbing all the chances available to me.
As a blogger, you might be wondering which is probably the best plugin for your money and just like me, you want to make sure every visitor is converted into loyal subscribers.
Related: 30 Best WordPress Social Sharing Plugins For 2015
In this article, I will cover 10 of the most popular, recommended and best mailing list tools that is guaranteed to skyrocket your mailing list building for the upcoming 2014.
When it comes to the best mailing list plugin, Hybrid Connect is certainly one of my arsenal when it comes to list building. It offers a vast variety of ready-made templates which fits perfectly into:
Setting up Hybrid Connect is easy and probably one of the easiest among all the plugins I have tested. Besides that Hybrid Connect also makes it easier to create multiple sign up forms with the form builder feature, video opt-in and split testing.
Your visitors can also sign up using their Facebook account using Hybrid Connect which is a great way boost conversion rate.
What I truly love about Hybrid Connect are the automatic responsive designs to fit any browser or layouts and as well as the quick response from support team for any inquiries.
Hybrid Connect costs $49 for single site, $67 for multi site and $147 for a developer’s license. It comes with a full 30-days money back guarantee if you are unhappy with the plugin.
Download Hybrid Connect (now it is renaed to Thrive Leads) | Hybrid Connect Review
OptinSkin is probably the best mailing list plugin (alternative) for many bloggers. So, what makes OptinSkin so popular?
Personally, OptinSkin offers one of the best skins I have ever seen in a list building plugin. All the designs and layouts are perfectly done. This means that all you need to do is to integrate your mailing list provider code into OptinSkin and the rest is self-explanatory.
OptinSkin offers several features such as:
While many other list building plugins are offering different packages, you can get OptinSkin with just one price for unlimited usage, $67. It also offers a full, 30-days money back guarantee.
Give OptinSkin a trial run today!
When you have two of the best WordPress developers working together, you get probably the best mailing list plugin for 2014. Syed Balkhi from WP Beginner and Thomas Griffin from Soliloquy slider are the ones behind this game changer plugin.
I am not going to lie to you; OptinMonster offers around the same features Hybrid Connect, OptinSkin or probably a dozen more plugins.
So, what makes OptinMonster … such as monster when it comes to mailing list building?
Introducing ‘Exit Intent‘ from OptinMonster. For me, this is the groundbreaking, mind blowing and explosive feature every mailing list plugin should have.
Exit Intent is basically a feature which tracks the mouse speed and your visitors gestures. When OptinMonster detects they are about to leave your blog, it will automatically trigger a pop up to ‘lure’ you to stay longer and build a bigger subscriber’s list.
Personally, I call Exit Intent as ‘smart pop-up’.
Exit Intent is a feature because over 70% of your visitors will NEVER return and it allows you to capitalize on that with Exit Intent and extremely powerful targeting features.
While OptinMonster could probably be the best mailing list plugin for bloggers, and Internet Marketers, it costs $49 for a basic account, $99 for a plus account, $199 for a full year license and $349 for lifetime licence.
Now, if the price is driving you away, don’t be! OptinMonster offers 14-days money back guarantee for all packages and thus, you know your money is in good hands.
Test drive OptinMonster’s Exit Intent today.
For those who are already building a list, Subscriber’s Magnet from MaxBlogPress is already a household name. Subscriber’s Magnet is probably one of the only ‘all-in-one’ plugin that offers everything you could ever wished for such as:
Optin form within post, embedded inside comment
What make me really attracted to Subscriber’s Magnet is that it offers a huge range of features which I could leverage especially when it comes to building a list.
You can try Subscriber’s Magnet for $1 for the first 14 days and after that, you can either choose the $37 for single site usage or $97 for multi site usage.
This is the latest plugin I came across and it really brings mailing list building process to the next level. Basically, WP Lead Magnet works in a very distinct way where each widget or sign up form will interact with each other to maximize the conversion rate.
For example, news visitors to your blog will see sign up forms on the sidebar, in the content area and after post. Once they have signed up using any of these forms, the rest of the forms will automatically disappear from their view.
This means that you utilize the spaces for banners, related post links and many more. At the moment, this is the only list building plugin which offers such feature.
While this is probably the newest plugins available, it is highly recommended by Neil Patel and it had proven to be useful by increase conversion rate by over 317%.
WP Lead Magnet costs $47 and as usual, it comes with a full 30-days money back guarantee.
See what WP Lead Magnet is all about here.
Popup Domination is already a key player in the mailing list industry. While it doesn’t offer features such as sidebar widgets, popup is highly effective in terms of list building.
Why should you consider Popup Domination?
It is simple to use and lightweight. For those who are looking for a very simple solution to build a mailing list using popups, this is certainly one plugin you need to consider.
Popup Domination offers:
Popup Domination cost $77 and 60-days money back guarantee (plus refund after 60 days on a case-to-case basis).
Try Popup Domination and tell me what you think!
Is Popup Domination is too expensive for you? Don’t worry! There’s where Ninja Popups comes into play.
It is used by thousands of blogger and is in fact, one of the most popular product sold on CodeCanyon with over 4,000 sales.
Ninja Popups offers:
If you are looking for a simple plugin to start off with mailing list building, this is one tool you must not miss out.
Ninja Popup – Simplicity at its best!
And if simplicity doesn’t make the cut, you probably won’t go wrong with this plugin. It costs only $18 and is in fact, one of the cheapest plugins that offers great returns.
Hello Bar is not a mailing list plugin but with it’s features, credibility and support, I believe it deserves to be in this top 12 spot. Hello Bar is a notification bar that could boost your conversion rate multiple times.
While the success of using a notification bar is highly dependable to your blog, report and studies had shown that it is indeed a great move to build a mailing list.
To name a few, here are some authority sites which are using Hello Bar:
For me, Hello Bar is a great tool to increase subscribers as that little small bar at the top can literally fetch thousands of subscribers without you knowing.
And yes, currently it is free for all and therefore, I see no reasons why you shouldn’t use it.
Download Hello Bar and try it yourself today.
I came across FooBar when I was trying to find a more custom notification bar. As much as HelloBar is a great tool to start with, I always wish to have a better control over my site. For example, I wanted to remove the ‘H’ brand and make it more unique.
FooBar offers:
FooBar only cost you $14 for lifetime license and if you ask me, this could possibly be one of the best and cheapest investment I ever done in my entire life.
With the right CTA, FooBar could easily beat any list building plugins out there.
Don’t get me wrong; GetResponse is not a mailing list plugin and I am sorry for the confusion.
But wait! Why did I even include GetResponse in this roundup?
When I published this article (Hybrid Connect vs OptinSkin review), some of my readers asked if there are other alternatives if they are tight in budget and do not want to invest in any form of plugin.
I totally get it and I actually tested running popups using my email marketing provider, GetResponse (and a few others). As far as I can tell you, it works pretty well and you certainly do not need to use a mailing list plugin just to build a list of subscribers.
So, how do you possibly leverage this from your email marketing provider?
If you are using GetResponse, you could easily build popup forms using the web builder as seen below:
This doesn’t only applies to GetResponse but also to over a dozen email marketing providers out there. Well, all you ever need is possibly time and patience.
While it is not pretty out-of-the-box, take sometime designing it and you would probably get the best and most complete signup form you ever need. Period.
Try GetResponse today and get extra $30 discount! | GetResponse vs AWeber
Did I miss out anything or you have some other mailing list plugins (and tools) that you believe it should be included in? Use the comment form below and tell me what you think.
If you want to be successful in blogging and online business, you need to start a mailing list. You probably heard about the term ‘the money is in the list‘ and that if you think that is just for Internet Marketers, you are absolutely wrong.
It doesn’t matter if you are running a small blog or a corporate website; you need to have a god-damn mailing list! And when it comes to the best mailing list provider, you are spoilt with choices. With over a dozen email marketing providers around, we are constantly trying to get the best for our bucks. I mean, who doesn’t right?
Prior to this, you should know that I am a huge fan of AWeber and I eve wrote a review about it. Read all about AWeber here.
Recently, I was basically lured into the dark valley and got bribed by GetResponse with their 25% Christmas deal and being a human being, I was attracted to it … big time!
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Latest Update: Like email marketing? Read my latest comparison between MailChimp, ConvertKit, and Drip for 2017! Read more.
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And I went through the whole process to migrate all my subscribers from AWeber to GetResponse and it was merely to leverage from the Christmas deal while giving it a go.
Yes, call me crazy.
Important disclaimer:
I know there are probably hundreds or thousands of posts about AWeber vs GetResponse and seriously, I find them not much of a help as they are merely focusing on selling! In this review, I will be sharing with you what I think about both email marketing providers and of course, my personal opinion as a paying user myself.
In this review, I will sharing with you several criteria for my judging and thus, feel free to head to the relevant section for my write up. Of course, this could possibly be a very long review indeed!
Criteria used for judging:
While this is definitely going to be a huge list, I recommend you to bookmark this for future reference.
AWeber
AWeber was founded back in 1998 and it was then a huge hit when it comes to email marketing. As off 2011, AWeber was home to over 100,000 customers globally. By now, I believe they are serving over 300,000 clients worldwide.
AWeber is used by several key figures such as Ileane Smith, John Chow and Adam Connell. For me, I love AWeber’s professional designs and outlook.
Some claimed that AWeber is probably the best email marketing provider in the world.
GetResponse
GetResponse was founded back around the same time with AWeber and it is a great alternative to AWeber. At the moment, GetResponse has over 300,000 clients internationally and is one of the most interactive email marketing providers I ever come across.
GetResponse is actively used by many bloggers, marketers and even huge corporations as well. Just like AWeber, it gets tons of great reviews from popular sites such as Mashable.
There are also many die-hard fans for GetResponse when it comes to choosing the right tool to build a mailing list.
Winner: There ain’t any winner in the background check. Both are highly creditable and reputed. Therefore, this is a draw.
If you want to sky rocket your mailing list creation, you got to have beautiful signup forms that converts.
AWeber
I have been using AWeber for over 8 months before this and I got to admit, I love their well-designed sign up forms. At the moment, AWeber has over 140 beautifully crafted sign up forms to woo your visitors to sign up.
Creating a sign up form on AWeber is easy and it offers 4 types of form such as inline, pop up, pop over and lightbox. For me, most of the sign up forms are beautiful and thus, it save me a lot of time when it comes to modification and this makes AWeber pretty much ready out-of-the-box.
AWeber has a great Drag and Drop editor for designing forms but I think that is absolutely not needed since it comes with some very attractive ready-made templates.
Now, if you are still unable to find a right template for yourself, don’t worry! AWeber team could provide support and even create a custom template for you! Yes, no joke!
GetResponse
GetResponse is something new to me and I am highly attracted to their very leisure outlook. You know, the vibrant colours and fonts … you get the point.
When it comes to build a sign up form, GetResponse is pretty much opposite from AWeber. Of course, I am more towards the lazy type and expects a lot from my email marketing provider. In terms of sign up form designs, I find that GetResponse is pretty much not overly attractive. They are pretty plain in some way (I am comparing highly to my site only) right out-of-the-box to be honest.
However, don’t get fooled with this. GetResponse is very powerful since it has a great Drag and Drop editor which I love to call to WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get). This means that every form you build is according to your liking.
Winner: Since I am a huge believer that email marketing must be easy and less time consuming, AWeber is the clear winner here.
AWeber and GetResponse are equal in this comparison. The main reason is because both of these are very popular email marketing providers and thus, it is a no brainer to include easy integration with most of the mailing list builder plugins.
Sign up forms generated with AWeber and GetResponse comes with both scripts and HTML codes which you can easily use and integrate to any plugin under 10 seconds flat.
Furthermore, both offers features such as:
I have tested with several optin plugins such as Hybrid Connect and Optinskin. Integrating both email marketing providers is as easy as A, B and C.
Winner: Draw
AWeber
If you are interested to use AWeber, it is great for both HTML and plain text usage. Creating a newsletter using AWeber is easy as there isn’t any technical skills required. All you need is to choose the beautiful ready-made templates and you are probably all done and ready with it.
AWeber has spam score value which are auto calculated based on the number of images, links and number of sensitive words in your newsletter. This is definitely a good thing as having a high score will actually increase the changes your newsletter landing in the spam box. Certainly, something you wouldn’t want to right?
Once a newsletter is done, you are given two choices which you may decide to send immediately or schedule a different time. If you are deciding to schedule the newsletter, all you need to set is the time which is according to Eastern or Western time.
Of course, you can also decide which mailing list which will be receiving the newsletter (aka segmentation).
Personally, AWeber is great if you are very focused in text based newsletter.
GetResponse
Again, GetResponse is very opposite to AWeber and it is more focus in dynamic and responsive email newsletters. GetResponse has over 30 of ready made newsletter templates and all you need to do is to choose one that fits your need. Lastly, do some modifications according to your needs and you will be ready in no time.
Of course, if you are adventurous and hardworking, you can just use the Drag and Drop feature and build your own custom newsletter.
A huge feature which GetResponse has is that it comes with responsive email testing and preview. This means that there is an option for you to preview how the newsletter would look like on different smartphones, computer OS and even browsers! Oh yes, if you think that I am joking, I am not!
Here’s what it (called as Inbox Preview) looks like:
GetResponse also comes with spam score but it had to be done manually (one click button).
Wait!
There’s one more thing you should know about GetResponse; the revolutionary time-travel. With time-travel schedule featured enabled, all newsletters will be send out according to your subscriber’s local time. This is a mind blowing feature since you obviously do not have all subscribers living in the same town or time zone.
Winner: I would go with GetResponse as I felt each newsletter would be more customized and personalized thanks to the effective Drag and Drop feature. Also, with the latest Gmail update on images, having more images in your newsletter would be a good ‘investment’. Of course, the time-travel feature by GetResponse is definitely a no-brainer winner over AWeber in this comparison.
Autoresponder is a great feature to attract loyal readers back to your site and keeping them informed of the latest updates.
AWeber
Creating an autoresponder is easy and all you need is to create multiple emails (called as follow up emails) plus, setting up the time to be send accordingly. Here’s an example:
AWeber’s autoresponder feature is pretty straight forward and it is pretty well baked for users who do not require much of a beautiful user-interface (comparing to GetResponse).
GetResponse
GetResponse does everything the same as AWeber and with some twist. You would be able to decide each autoresponder to be send according to:
While this may sound hazzy at first, this means that GetResponse autoresponder is more versatile and provides a more custom-made experience for you and your subscribers.
Winner: For me, GetResponse is a better autoresponder since there are multiple ways to trigger an email. This means that you have everything it takes to create multiple goals that can be triggered by any goals or campaigns you had set.
Furthermore, having multiple options is a great way to boost your email marketing campaigns.
6. RSS to email feature
This is one email marketing feature which is very powerful and can determine the success or failure in luring your readers back to your site. Basically, all you need is set once and forget.
AWeber
I was addicted to AWeber RSS to email and used it for a course of around 2 months. Setting up is extremely easy and AWeber provides you two options which are automatic and manual.
In automatic, you need to set the time and the number of RSS collected on AWeber. Once it reaches the goals you had set, an email will be send out automatically to all your subscribers.
However, it is not the case for the manual feature. Instead, emails will be created automatically and placed in your draft folder. You would then need to manually send each email (assuming after you customize or checking it).
Personally, I tend to use more automated than manual but bear in mind that automation could means boring and you are killing the surprise factor.
GetResponse
Since I moved over to GetResponse and totally love their Drag and Drop editor, I basically ditched this feature. However, here’s my review on it.
When it comes to RSS to email feature, GetResponse has only automatic feature and this means that it doesn’t go in draft unlike AWeber.
I would say this is a great addon to any mailing list campaign you are building. However, with the capabilities of the Drag and Drop feature of GetResponse, this could be one of the most under-utilized feature for me.
Winner: In terms of usability, I would give higher point to AWeber since it has the automatic and manual feature. It certainly a better feature when it comes to email customization.
AWeber
Out of a scale of 10, I would say AWeber would score around 7.5 for this category. In AWeber, you get all the basic feature you could ever wished to build a newsletter, autoresponder etc.
If you are planning to use AWeber drag and drop feature, it is best used on a blank template since all the ready-made templates are already so perfectly done.
The only issue is that you got to get used to the layout of AWeber Drag and Drop before you can actually maximize its usage.
GetResponse
GetResponse on the other hands is highly focus in drag and drop feature compared to AWeber. I would rate GetResponse higher with a score of 8.5 due to the fact that the feature is more ‘interactive’ with users compared to the above.
However, bear in mind that this is great option especially when you are picky (like me) or would simply prefer a fully customized form.
The only downside for GetResponse is that it takes quite a bit of resources to get this feature running. Therefore, you may face a slower loading page if you are using an older computer.
Winner: I would give GetResponse the winning point here because I noticed it is able to perform better (in terms of functionality) as a drag and drop editor and the WYSIWYG feature really works well with this editor.
Email delivery rate is important as we need to ensure that our subscribers get those email newsletters promptly and at the right time for the maximum effect.
AWeber
Through my 8 months with AWeber email marketing, it has never fail me when it comes to email delivery. Every email is sent out promptly and sharp on the dot.
What else to say? Perfecto!
GetResponse
The delivery rate for GetResponse is pretty close to AWeber and I got to admit, probably on par for many if is not better.
Honestly, I had issues with time-travel delivery not once but twice during my first week with GetResponse. However, the support team was really fast in rectifying the matter and everything was back working in a very short period of time.
For your information, the issues I faced were caused by a technical glitch which affected my account only. Unlucky me!
Winner: While both are seriously on par, I would give AWeber the winning point here due to the technical error I faced during my time at GetResponse. Though it was just an unwanted error, it certainly affected me a little especially when I have such a high expectation.
AWeber
Building a mailing list is all about contact and if you are importing contacts to AWeber, you are in luck.
It is pretty easy for backend users like you but it could be a hassle for your subscribers. By default, the process of importing contacts (bulk upload) to AWeber is a 3-steps process:
You can also upload contact manually to AWeber and everyone need to go through the same verification process.
Update: According to Brandon from AWeber, we (clients) could request to have this double opt-in feature removed on a case to case basis simply by contacting their customer support team for assistance. Personally, I have yet to experience this and thus, I leave it as a neutral factor at the moment.
GetResponse
By default, GetResponse automatically enables double opt-in for all subscribers. However, you are able to change this feature in the settings.
Compared to AWeber, I totally understand the reason behind this. Not all subscribers are happy (and keen) to keep ‘authorizing’ the newsletters (especially when you are moving from AWeber to GetResponse) and you might lose quite a number of loyal subscribers which could affect your email marketing campaigns dearly.
I would highly recommend to enable double opt-in for new mailing list subscribers to avoid spammers and disable this feature when you are importing your contacts (from other email marketing provider to GetResponse).
Winner: I would say GetResponse is a better winner compared to AWeber in this comparison as I am coming from the point of a subscriber.
Imagine having to verify subscription email another time and maybe, the subscriber could ignore it. I know maybe there are 60% of people out there who will still re-verify but honestly, I would rather not take any chances.
AWeber
As stated above, AWeber is extremely strict when it comes to verification and thus, it is compulsory to verify through email before subscribers will be added to the your mailing list.
While this could be an extremely good move for you as a host, it could also prove an issue for some subscribers would consider it a hassle to ‘keep verifying’ especially when you are moving from one provider to another.
However, don’t forget that by verifying again, you could easily remove inactive users from your email marketing.
GetResponse
GetResponse is different from AWeber as it offers both choices for its users. By default, the double opt-in feature is enabled from the moment you start an account with GetResponse.
However, you can change this setting by going directly to the settings and turn off the double-opt in feature.
This is where you can decide when and what action would require to turn on the double opt-in feature.
Winner: For this, I believe AWeber is a better choice. In comparison #9, I gave GetResponse the winning point as that was during the process of importing email subscribers. However, this comparison is mainly on the users themselves and thus, I believe AWeber’s compulsory opt-in feature is a great move to avoid spam or any wrong doings.
AWeber
Customer service at AWeber is pretty top notch. They have a good respond rate and speed; through my experience, all email enquiries and supports are replied within 12 hours or less.
I would also give credit to them as they always come back with follow up emails and asking me if the problem is solved after a few days.
Coming from a customer service background myself, this is definitely more than just good customer service. It certainly make me believe that my mailing list account is in good hands.
AWeber has the live chat feature which is great and you can easily find it on the top left (green button). Their support team also operates 24/7 and you can even tweet them for assistance too.
GetResponse
I am going to be very honest here. GetResponse support team isn’t as good as AWeber.
However, what makes GetResponse on par with AWeber and the rest of the email marketing providers is the live chat feature. This means that you are absolutely sure that at anytime you need some help, chances are there’s someone listening and providing valuable assistance.
While AWeber has the live chat feature too, I noticed that GetResponse live chat feature is more visible and the button is located on the left side of the page.
Personally, while AWeber could probably have the best support team, it is always great to know that GetResponse support is just one click of a button away.
Anytime you need help about email marketing, just hit the live chat and someone should attend to you within minutes.
A draw back from GetResponse is possibly the fact that they do not operate 24/7 like AWeber does. So, this could be something you should be considering if you are the type that would require lots of support.
Winner: Again, I would call this a draw. Both has live chat feature which is good and the only difference is that AWeber is operating 24/7. So, go figure!
Disclaimer: This is probably the biggest and most important factor when it comes to deciding which email marketing provider you are going to use and my review here is solely on budget and quality of service.
AWeber
AWeber is offering $1 trial for 30 days plus, a full 30-days money back guarantee if you are unhappy with the service. The below are AWeber pricing plans:
As you can see, pricing for AWeber is pretty steep. In fact, it is one of the most expensive email marketing provider in the market now.
GetResponse
GetResponse is offering 30-days free trial and no credit card required. This means that at anytime you are unhappy with the service, you can stop without a single cent charged to you (if you cancel within the first 30 days).
This is what GetResponse pricing looks like:
Just like AWeber, GetResponse is also offering discount if you sign up for a yearly plan. What differentiate GetResponse and AWeber is that GetResponse do not have a quarterly plan.
On top of that, GetResponse also offers additional pricing for bigger email volumes such as the below:
New users who sign up for GetResponse could also get extra $30 discount if they signup through a special discount code like this one, GetResponse $30 extra credit.
Winner: As much as I love AWeber, I would say that GetResponse is a better choice with bigger discounts and easier on the pocket. Also, GetResponse offers more email subscribers limit compared to AWeber which is also a huge plus point.
Phew! That’s one hell of a review right? If you managed to reach here in one shot, I think I might need to treat you a mug of beer mate!
I even took 5 rounds to complete this article with over a dozen revisions.
Using the comparison above, here are the scores:
With the detailed comparisons above between AWeber and GetResponse, which would be a better choice for you?
While you won’t go wrong with any of them, I would say GetResponse is much better due to the pricing factor.
Though I would probably get better customer service at AWeber, I could get twice the number of subscribers limit plus saving of at least $77 with GetResponse.
I hope you enjoy this long review and tell me what you think using the comment form below.
Also, here are the links which you can sign up for both the email marketing providers:
When I published an article at Bivori on how I make around $400 per month just on affiliate marketing, many readers were asking if I could provide even more details on the said industry. I got to admit, affiliate marketing is a very lucrative industry … if you have not known about it yet.
You have been warned. This tutorial is lengthy and thus, I would highly recommend you to bookmark this for future reference.
Affiliate marketing for beginners consist of:
Affiliate marketing is a process where you get a small token of appreciation (usually in terms of cash) when you recommend others to purchase the product. Affiliate marketing is very popular among bloggers as the commission could varies from a mere 5% to as much as 70% (or more) per sale while some companies are offering fixed commissions. Either way, it is a very lucrative industry when it comes to the term make money online.
Personally, I consider affiliate marketers as virtual salesmen for the company and it is always a win-win situation for both sides. The supplier would be able to increase their sales with minimum (or zero) cost while the sellers are able to earn commission based on the number of sales.
Pretty good deal if you ask me.
The most crucial part about affiliate marketing is all about:
You may have the best product but if you have the wrong audience, no one is going to buy it from you.
It all starts by deciding what niche you want to invest in. Choosing the right product will determine your success (or failure) in affiliate marketing.
For example, there is absolutely no reason why you should be promoting products related to child care on a technology niche blog.
While choosing the right niche is important, choosing the right products is also important too. There could possibly be hundreds of related products you can promote on a single niche topic. Therefore, you need to decide which would be the best product you should be promoting.
When it comes to affiliate sales, lesser choices are always better and this means that instead of promoting two products on one write up, try promote only one.
The reason is simple; The more choices you provide to your visitors, you are increasing the difficulties for them to decide. Your ultimate goal is to make sure that you make it simple for your visitors to decide and not making things harder and more complicated!
Finding the right audience group is important. Why? Imagine promoting an apple to a person who is looking for pears. You get the point.
I personally use three tools to help me decide what my audience is looking for on my blog.
With the data extracted from the above tools, you would be able to determine which keywords that are attracting readers to your site and once that is done, head over to your favorite affiliate networks and search for the right product to promote.
This is probably the most important thing for a blogger; getting paid. It is mandatory to have both of these if you want to grow in affiliate marketing:
The leading merchant when it comes to sending or accepting money. It works for all countries and it is possibly one of the best in its class. Click here to sign up for PayPal.
An alternative method to get paid when PayPal isn’t an option. It provides free account to all and you will automatically get a debit card as well. This is highly recommended by affiliate networks like ShareASale.
Sign up for Payoneer and get $25 debited into your account for free!
Affiliate networks are basically ‘warehouses’ containing hundreds if not thousands of products you can promote. Choosing the right program to join is important as it will determine your affiliate success.
A few rules which varies among these networks would be:
To answer the above question, here are my top contributors when it comes to affiliate sales:
The below are the complete explanation for the various affiliate networks you can join and as well as the recommended affiliate programs to join.
Fees: Free
Minimum cash out: $50
Payment method: Cheque, direct deposit and Payoneer
This company started up since 2000 and had ever been expanding until now. With more than 13 years experience in handling various affiliate programs, this is definitely one of the best affiliate network in the market right now. It is also home to some of the biggest names in business such as StudioPress, Thesis and WP Engine.
Sign up for a free ShareASale membership here – Join today!
Signing up for ShareASale is free and they would do a quality check on your site before approving your membership. Once that is done, you are free to apply for any of the 3,900+ affiliate programs they have. Lastly, grab the links and you are ready to grab some sales.
Top affiliate programs to join:
The minimum cashout for ShareASale is $50 and it is done automatically. You can choose to be paid either by cheque or bank transfer via Payoneer.
Also, ShareASale has several pay-per-click affiliate programs which is good for several blogging niche.
Fees: Free
Minimum cash out: $50
Payment method: Cheque, direct deposit and Payoneer
Commission Junction is owned by ValueClick and is also one of those top affiliate networks for bloggers. You can literally find many blogger tools in Commission Junction or CJ in short such as HootSuite and MaxCDN.
Recommended affiliate programs to join:
Cash out on Commission Junction is automatic and you can adjust your payment method by clicking the Account tab.
Join Commission Junction today and make money through affiliate sales!
Fees: Free
Minimum cash out: Nil
Payment method: PayPal
DigiResults is another popular affiliate network and most of the items are related to Internet Marketing. Choices of items to promote are rather lesser at DigiResults when compared to ShareASale or Commission Junction due to its specific niche.
Top affiliate programs to participate:
Cashing out at DigiResults is done automatically and you will get your affiliate payment between 30 or 60 days as stated by the merchant. Payment are done directly to your PayPal account from the merchant instead of DigiResults. Try DigiResults today!
Note: I only use the above 3 affiliate programs as I had personal experience in them and 50% commission is huge.
Fees: Free
Minimum cash out: Nil
Payment method: PayPal
This brand is already a household name when it comes to affiliate marketing. ClickBank is used by thousands of affiliate marketers daily and it is highly reputed. At the moment, they are over 10,000 digital vendors and 100,000 affiliates using ClickBank.
Top affiliate program to join:
ClickBank doesn’t only offer products you can promote but as well as tutorials and guides to make you a better affiliate marketer. Join ClickBank today!
Fees: Free
Minimum cash out: $10
Payment method: Varies
Among all the affiliate networks, Amazon is probably one of those who serve the shortest cookie period of 24 hours. Commissions are paid according to percentage and the number of items you sell. This means that the more you sell, the higher your commission which starts at 6%.
While these may seem bad, do not underestimate the power of Amazon. The brand itself is already well known to many and there is absolutely no reason why you should not use it.
There is no recommended products for Amazon as it has a huge inventory and all you need is to choose. Try Amazon Affiliate Program now!
There are many online marketing strategies which you can follow but for me, I only stick to one; sales funnel. My sales funnel is a 4 steps where I build a base for my readers to keep on reading. The chance of then exiting is really high and thus, each sentence should be phrased correctly.
Here are the 4 basic steps you need to create a sales funnel:
Step 1 [zero sales pitch] – What is the problem faced by your readers?
Step 2 [slight sales pitch] – Provide at least 3 solutions to the above problem with one solution is buying a product
Step 3 [moderate sales pitch] – Share a blog post on using the product to solve the problem (step to step guide or tutorial)
Step 4 [high sales pitch] – Review of the product you are promoting
I am not going to lie to you as the above is some seriously tedious jobs. However, it is extremely rewarding.
As you can see above, each step would have a different tone when it comes to sale pitch. Starting off with a high sales pitch could easily deter your readers. Therefore, the best way is to create the ambiance gradually. Furthermore, I don’t think there’s any one who is wiling to fork out money in less than 10 seconds.
While seeing your money grow just by selling affiliate products could be very tempting, it is always best to practice with etiquette. For example, you would need to decide:
There isn’t any cold and hard guidelines when it comes to affiliate marketing but you have to remember that it relates back to your brand and trust. Etiquette is really a thin line and it can be easily broken.
Lastly, the most important practice an affiliate marketer should have is the share the real and proper information of the said product. Just don’t promote just because of the commission. Instead, promote because you know that it will help your readers … one way or another.
So, I hope you enjoy this blog post as much as I do when writing and tell me what you think using the comment form below.