Since it’s Friday, I thought that I would stir up the pot a little and give ya’ll something to think about for the weekend. I’m going to tell you why I no longer believe in, or sell joint ventures or affiliate products.
Yep, I know that is probably going to upset a lot of people who have heard, or believe that the world of JVs and affiliate products is the bees knees… to that I say- It’s just not for me.
Now, if you are not a purveyor of information products, this doesn’t mean that today’s post will not apply to you. This information can work for anyone that is thinking about doing some kind of JV with another business.
Anyway, onward and upward. I have been getting literally bombarded by JV offers from around the world lately and most of them I ignore completely. If I can tell that the person is sincere, I at least send a “no thanks” email back, but for the most part the delete button is my best friend.
Let me tell you a story first, and then the headline of this post will make a little more sense.
I believe that the best use of the Inter-web is when it mimics the downtown of a large metropolitan city. Here, you have individual boutique shops, each one selling the stuff that it specializes in. In one shop you can get shoes. In another shop they sell music or clothing.
Each shop that you visit contains an expert that knows more about that particular product or service than anyone else in the area and you know that you are buying the perfect solution to your probalem, based on the quality of the service you receive.
The most successful shops sell things that you can only get in that shop. Nowhere else nearby.
This is why I don’t do JVs or sell affiliate products. I look around at the Internet and I see tons of websites that are all pushing the same thing. Instead of selling their own products or services, they are trying to leverage the work of others.
This would be fine, except that you can get that stuff ANYWHERE. There is no small boutique shop feeling when you go to an affiliate’s web site. You feel like you are in Wal-Mart.
If you have ever been in a car for more than 30 minutes (in the US at least), you can get off the highway and see almost the same thing each time you get out. There will be the same chain of hotels, the same fast food, and the same gas stations.
That is what affiliate marketing and joint ventures have turned the Internet into. Now, I know that you can make a crap-ton of money by leveraging your customer list with someone else. In fact, it’s something that I occasionally suggest to other people. If you don’t have a product, or you can compliment your services with others’ that is great. I just don’t do it myself.
I want to keep the Underdog Millionaire as one of those shops. I want to be that smiling shopkeeper that you go to visit when you have a very specific underdog small business problem.
Is there a time when you might want to be an affiliate? Sure. Getting your feet wet selling other people’s stuff is a great way to start an Internet business, but you are always at the mercy of someone else. When you are your own, complete shopkeeper you have all the control.
I can go in and update any of my information products at the drop of a hat, if there is something new and useful that I would like to add.
Sure, I have tried that stuff in the past. I have tried advertising for a few minutes as well and I know that is how the six-figure bloggers make most of their money. However, I just found it to be a distraction. I think that anything you put on your website that has the opportunity to take YOUR customer and lead them to someone else’s business is taking away more than it helps.
But alas, that it just my humble opinion.
If you are struggling with creating your own information product, or you are looking for a way to develop a new income stream for your business, info-products are perfect for just that. I developed a system where you can create your own information product entirely for FREE and the whole course will set you back less than 10 bucks.
Check out the Ultimate Information Product Report here.
Now it’s your turn… are you going to tell me to stuff it? Do you think there is merit in what I just said? Is there room out there for everyone to be successful if they focus on their own niche really hard, creating an Internet of virtual boutiques instead of clones? Tell me what you think.
Until tomorrow,
Joshua Black
Click the image to get the FREE Underdog Millionaire wealth Pack!
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{ 2 comments }
Joshua,
What you say makes a lot of sense. It is pretty brave actually when you think of how poorly the “mom and pop” stores have always done competing with Wal-mart and the ilk.
I cannot say I will stand back to back with you, I actually do very little to monetize my site at all at the moment, and the little I do is the occasional and fairly rare affiliate that I believe in.
In a perfect world mom an pop’s would thrive, and I hope that stays true in virtual world.
Good luck,
Steve
I understand where your coming from, but creating your own product is such a hard thing to do, you have to know something special or people will not buy it.
Most people have no knowledge to make big bucks, that is why they are pushing other peoples products, i could to a product on SEO, but what is the point when there are already tons of SEO products out there.
Creating you own products isnt as great and easy as you make it out to be.
Greets
Dave
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