3 Reasons Why You Should Become A Creative Live Affiliate Right Now!

 

While it is a lot of fun to create a blog, monetizing it can give you the incentive and drive to keep on putting in the hard
work that it takes to create a beautiful and informational site. Affiliate marketing is one of those ways, where you can turn
your creative work into extra cash. And it is even more fun, when you are working with high quality merchants like Creative Live!

But first, a quick intro to Creative Live for those of you who  are not already familiar with their services.

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Creative Live offers free streaming online lessons via their website, about a variety of topics throughout any given day, for example, blogging, creating your crafting business, photography and more! Fresh content is constantly brought on their channels, but if you miss any of their programs, you can purchase them rather inexpensively to watch at your leisure, often including bonus content, worksheets and teaching materials that are not available when you watch it live stream. This is where you – as their affiliate come in. Any purchases your readers make, after a click through will provide you with a percentage of their sales.

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And here are three reasons why you should become a Creative Live Affiliate:
1. They offer high-quality content you can be proud to represent.
I am very picky about the products and companies I work with. Just like they want to see high-quality work from me,
I am expecting the highest quality of services and information offered to my readers. Creative Live’s classes, both free as well as for purchase  and are something I can offer my readers with confidence, that they will receive valuable information for their time and money.
And so can you.

2. It’s free and easy to sign up
If you are a part of the ShareASale affiliate network already, it is as simple as following the instructions provided with this link. Should you not be a part of the ShareASale network (something I also highly recommend if you want to monetize your blog), don’t worry. Their sign on process is also simple and straightforward. Just add your information, and you are good to go in no time to work with Creative Live, and other great companies, such as Aloha, Lulu, and more.

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3. Their responsive banners and affiliate tools are easy to use.
Not a tech wizard? Neither am I, and I still manage to work with all of the easy to use tools that make being a Creative Live
affiliate. Creating custom links or placing responsive widgets on site bars, is more about copying and pasting, then knowing any special set up, and with the help of ShareASale, you can easily keep track of the traffic and payouts you generated.

Bonus:

Creative Live keeps you as their affiliate updated on all of their sales, specials and promotions via email, usually including links to those offers, with your affiliate tracking code already placed in for you. Simply add these promo codes and offers to
your site, and you are ready to go.

What are you waiting for?

Good luck and blessings!

Claudia

 

Disclaimer: The above post contained affiliate links, see Disclose Page for details

The Most Detailed Book On The Subject, I Have Read: Elevator Speeches That Get Results

Disclaimer: I have received this book for free from the publisher in return for an honest review. The following post contains affiliate links, see Disclosure page for details. Don’t miss their special coupon and discount deals below!

Book Title: Elevator Speeches That Get Results

Author: Dorothy Tannahill-Moran

Publisher: Introvert Whisperer

Genre: Non-Fiction/Business/Self-help

Rating: 5/5 Stars

Written in a delightful conversational tone, Elevator Speeches That Get Results, is a very detailed an informative book on the art of creating effective elevator speeches. This is not a book for someone who is looking to master the short sales pitch, rather a book that allows the reader to learn how to introduce themselves and their brand effectively and quickly, making a great conversation starter, as well as getting people’s interest in your expertise/niche. It is longer than most books in this price range, which surprised me positively.
With the Author’s straightforward style, there is little fluff in the book, so you do not have to navigate through a ton of personal anecdotes that take away from the actual subject matter.
Overall a great book on elevator speeches.

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8 Tips To Spring Clean Your Pinterest Account

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. See Disclosure page for details

Spring will hopefully be upon us soon, and during this time of the year, spring cleaning is on the mind of many. Why not extend this sentiment to your social media presence? Today, I will be talking about getting your Pinterest account ready for ultimate performance by doing some simple spring cleaning.

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Before we talk about cleaning and organizing your boards make sure your profile has been optimized:

1. Make sure your website/blog have been verified
2. Make sure your description contains your relevant keywords
3. Update your profile picture, preferably using one that features your face.

 

 

 

Now to the eight tips to spring clean your Pinterest boards:

1. Move your seasonal boards into the correct order according to your season, for example, your spring and summer collections should be pulled forward while your winter collection should be on the very end of your boards at the moment.
2. Combine any boards that have only a few pins
3. Delete boards that either have too little amount of pins and can not be consolidated with another board, no longer fit into your website/brand/blog niche or do not have a large following.
4. Move your most popular boards to the front – use Pinterest analytics tools to see which boards are the most popular/ active at the moment, and display them as the first two rows. Remember that when looks at your profile, those are the only ones they initially see.
5. Edit board descriptions – make sure all of your boards contain relevant keywords and updated information to make them easy to be found in the search results.
6. Split large boards into two boards – narrowing down some boards to a separate subject matter makes it easier for the followers to find your individual pins.
7. Update your boards featured image – move your most popular pins to the featured position, in order to draw in more followers. But most importantly make sure that the featured pin describes your boards content well.
8. Check your pin’s URL’s. Make sure your pins go the actual post or merchandise with the correct link like they are supposed to. If not, change that immediately.

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A few more tips to keep you sane during the Pinterest Spring Cleaning

1. Choose only one or maybe two specific tasks to complete every day
2 Be clear about what you want to accomplish with your Pinterest presence – what do you want your boards and profile to say about you – do this before you start any spring cleaning, so you have a clear mission in mind.
3. Keep the amount of the group boards you are a part of to no more than 15 but no less than 5. Make sure they are all relevant to your brand and mission.

Have a great day!

Claudia

How To Get Started In Zazzle Affiliate Marketing

 

You probably already know how  – at least in theory – to make money as an affiliate on Zazzle. But for those of you who are new to the website, allow me to share a quick recap of Zazzle’s affiliate program 

Becoming a Zazzle affiliate is really simple. It takes only about 10 minutes to do and to learn exactly how to make money as an affiliate. Once creating an account with Zazzle – if you are a designer with this program already, you will not have to sign up again, you already get an affiliate account and number, automatically. But if you just want to sign us as an affiliate, you never have to design anything. Simply follow the prompts that Zazzle gives you, and visit their associate page, where you are   is given a unique user code. Each time you share a product on the various social media outlets or via your own web page, using the share button that is a part of every product listing, your affiliate number will be automatically embedded, if you are signed in. That way you earn a 15 percent commission off any sale that is made through that link.

That is the theory behind It.

But like with everything else that sounds too easy, to be true, it is not that easy as it sounds.

First you have to convince people to actually click your links. That is the easiest part, as long as you are not spamming people. The second part is harder – to convince them to actually purchase the items or any item on Zazzle.

How do you do that?

There are quite a few ways you can convince potential customers to actually purchase an item on Zazzle. They are not limited to the list below, and with a lot of creativity, you are surely to come up with more ideas than I have listed, but consider this a start

1.You have targeted the correct audience. If you are trying to get people to buy pretty designer ties, and most of your audience and followers are women, you might get an occasional sale, but not too many. Know who your target audience is, know who your followers are, match the products you offer accordingly. The more niche your audience, the easier the sale.
2.You have established their trust. All of what you have to offer on your website or on your social media accounts are of high quality, and your followers know that they can trust your lead. Only then will they purchase from Zazzle via you, rather than some of the other print on demand sites, or simply Amazon.
3.You have a large enough following. Establish a base following first, before you are trying to sell stuff online. If no one reads, watches, or clicks on your stuff, simply because they do not know you exist, make yourself known first. There are a variety of ways to build up social media followings, and there are plenty of books and workshops on how to build your brand and yourself, some of which are available via CreativeLive.
4.You are very picky about what you share. Don’t just share any old product from Zazzle. Not all of the designs are high quality, and even if most of them are, sharing outdated, hastily designed, or poorly executed products will not get you a sale. Be picky what designers you work with.
5.You have established relationships with designers. Some designers offer an availability of custom orders. Know which designers go above and beyond regular customer service, and tell them that you want to promote their work. If you mention your particular niche – like for example, Yoga and Reiki Business Cards, and they already make business cards for other professions, they might take their time to create designs that fit your niche even better than before. That way you have always fresh content and both of you can increase your sales and profit. A win-win situation.

I hope this short overview was helpful. And as always, remember to diversify your passive income strategies in order to be able to make a living with your online adventures.

Blessings

Claudia

Book Review: Appreciation Marketing – How To Achieve Greatness Through Gratitude

Title:  Appreciation Marketing – How To Achieve Greatness Through Gratitude

Author: Tommy Wyatt

Genre: Marketing, Self-Help

Publisher: Amazon Digital Services

Rating: 5/5 Stars

 

There are some book that are read, and forgotten, and then there are books that remind you of what you should already know and do but give you the kick to actually follow through upon that knowledge.

This book is of the latter kind, a book on practical gratitude and appreciation especially for people who are in some form of business of their own, no matter what service or product you sell, or value you give. It challenges you to actively give thanks, on a regular basis and tells you why – outside of the ever present, even if important daily gratitude ritual.
Gratitude is a way of life, a way of being, and a philosophy we should embrace in every aspect of our life. It is not something you o once a day, not solely placed somewhere on the pages of a notebook. This book is a reminder of that.
If you are interested at all in the principles of co-creation, personal growth or even Law of Attraction, then embracing a life of gratitude. It will change your life!
This book can tell you why.

(Disclaimer: I have received a copy of this book via a book subscription service named Script. The links on this page to Amazon and Creative Live are affiliated links, but all opinions are as always my own)

 

Making Money On Zazzle – Are You A Part Of A Blogging Community

I can not overstate the importance of having a well-designed, creative blog to promote your products, and as a part of doing so, joining blogging communities is a must.

Blogging communities allows you to interact with fellow bloggers, as well as potential customers – and yes, your fellow bloggers are your potential customers – increase traffic, build readership and connections, and potential opportunities such as guest blogging. Because of these benefits, I compiled a list of 15 blogging communities you should check out and connect with.

Top 13 Blogging Communities:

1. BlogEngaged
2. Kingged
3. BizSugar
4. DoSplash
5. Blokube
6. Inbound
7. ManageWP
8. Indiblogger
9. BlogCatalog
10. Blogher
11. Blogster
12. FuelMyBlog
13. SocialBuzzClub
Happy Blogging!

 

Check this out: 

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Selling Art Online – My Thoughts On Handmade At Amazon

By now you might wonder what is Handmade At Amazon. Well it is in its core, the Amazon version of Etsy – the online market place that is supposed to be for handmade items, services and vintage things – just with a little twist.

First of all, stuff listed on Handmade At Amazon is actually handmade. Before becoming a seller, an artist has to fill out an application, and prove that their production process is that what can be considered artisan – small businesses with only one or a very few people working on projects,and items that are truly crafted, not mass produced. I had a beef with that on Etsy, one of the reasons why I never became an affiliate for them, and promoted the crafters items, was because there were so many mass produced things in there, posing as handmade.

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Sterling Silver Tree Pendant Necklace with 24k Gold Leaves

But Amazon sells a lot of mass produced stuff too, what’s the difference?
Well, they don’t lie about the items they list as mass produced, and claim that they are handmade or artisan. You can buy both, but they are in different sections, and do not compete with each other. A win for the crafts people, I think.

There are quite a few really nice products already listed, on Handmade but I have a feeling too many people are still waiting to see if it is really worth diving into. I highly suggest not to wait. As with Etsy, those who set up shop early make the most profit and have the best chance of continued success. If you are an Etsy seller, I would suggest that you get into the action now. Especially before the shopping frenzy starts.

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Minimalist Rectangle Vase with Austere Blue-White Glaze

Visually, I find the set up appealing but unremarkable. It is not too different from the rest of Amazon, actually blends in so much, that if it was not for the not so very big logo “Handmade” on the right side of the screen, I would have thought I am just serving the old-fashioned Amazon. What I do like is, that if I share a pin directly from the listing’s page, it automatically adds the light blue Handmade At Amazon logo, so it is easy to distinguish the pins from others. A great way to promote individual artists, I think.

But with the launch just having been a few days ago, it is still early to see if Amazon continues to support Handmade as much as it promised. After all it is only a small section within this huge company, and unlike the niche appeal Etsy had, I have a feeling the products could get lost in there.

The opportunity here lies for the individual artists to work together with marketers and affiliates (like me), to get more exposure to gain traction. That is, if these sellers are not too busy to keep running their Etsy stores, with their already established clients.

 

Have you checked out Handmade At Amazon yet? What are your first thoughts? Let me know what you think about this opportunity, or if you are already have a store set up. If you do, I would love to interview you, and here what you think, and what you think this new venture can add to your sales and success.

Have a wonderful day!

Claudia

The Beginning Of An Experiment

I am volunteering myself for an experiment.

No, not what you are thinking, there are no taking weird pills, or sacrificing some part of my dignity (okay, that might not be entirely possible to avoid). I am talking about reading some books, doing what they say, and giving you the results.

To be more specific, I am speaking about inexpensive ebooks specifically written to increase blog traffic. I am not doing this out of entirely selfish and obvious reasons – what blogger does not want more traffic, right? – but I am also doing this because I want to dissect the following:

1. Do those quickly written Kindle e-books actually provide real information (more about that subject, and the people that are trying to sell us writer’s, bloggers and internet marketers write about as possible and profitable)?

2. Can they translate to real valuable information for the  marketing purposes of writers, artists, print on demand/product on demand designers, and other creatives ( so basically YOU)?

3. Are they all saying the same thing, or do they differentiate in content, so that it makes sense to purchase more than one of them?

4. Should you disregard them completely as humbug?

 

The 5 books that I am going working through – one a month, beginning Oct. 1st, are:

1. Traffic Building Basics; 50 Ways to Increase Your Website Traffic and Explode Your Business Today! (web design, web marketing, marketing) –  by Online Business Buddy

2. BLOG TRAFFIC: How to Double Your Blogging Traffic in a Month by Susan Beth

3. BLOG MARKETING: 26 Top Marketing Ideas for Your Blog (Business Blogging Series Book 5) by Kaye Dennan

4. Pinterest for Food Bloggers: How to Grow Your Following and Increase Blog Traffic (markets itself to be useful for any blogger) by Mary Loudermilk

5. How To Promote Your Blog – 101 Free Ways To Increase Your Website Traffic Today by Richard Adams

In that exact order.

How this will work:

I will read through the book during the assigned month, putting in practice the advice given, unless it sounds like something I do not agree with, and I will tell you the results. Of course, I can not give you all of the details of the advice that each book gives – you got to buy (or rent for free) the book for that, that would not be fair to the Author, but I can and will give you the answers to the 4 questions I stated above. All reviews and thoughts will be posted no later than the 2nd of the following month, so the review dates are:

Book one: review posted on Nov. 2nd
Book two: review posted on Dec. 2nd
Book three…. well you get the idea.

I hope you will join me, and we will all learn something from this experiment. I sure hope that they do what they promise. Looking forward to sharing that with you.

Blessings!

Claudia

3 Tips For An Effective Product Description

A great product description can be as important as the image of your product in the purchase decision making process of your potential client. Take the time to be diligent in taking advantage of this sales tool by keeping the following three tips in mind.

1. Keep it short
Attention spans are getting shorter, and people hate feeling like they wasted time. Keep your product description between 100 and 130 words. Any length above that should be reserved for your blog posts.

2. Tell Them Why They Need It
Give the person reading your description why they need to have your creative product. Does it save them time, money or does it evoke a special feeling, a connection they are trying to make, either for themselves or for a loved one.

3. Use Clear Keywords 
Describing something as beautiful is not a very effective way of utilizing the small space you have available to you. Instead use words that describe your product category, your style, your niche and color scheme, all words that allow your customer to search for your product, and gives them a clear idea if your art is a perfect fit for them. Even if a customer might not buy the first product of yours they have seen, they are more likely to return when their needs change. Make them remember you.

 Also, check out the course “What Are Tags And How To Use Them”, for more info on learning how to tag your content, and products – today!

Featured Artists Of The Week: Thomas “Swiss” Wuthrich

Independent artists range in the choice of their medium and subject matter greatly. I find it intriguing whenever I find an artists who can capture my attention in an unexpected way, just as Thomas Wuthrich has done with his humorous way to create relateable pieces of art. Thankfully I had a chance to ask him a few questions about his work in general and what he thinks about working on the Print On Demand Platform, Zazzle.

Funny Economical Cheese and Wine Party Invitations Postcard by Swisstoons

Here is the short interview I conducted with Thomas recently:

Me: Thank you for sharing your thoughts with us today, it is a great pleasure toy connect with you.
Tell us a little about your journey to the art you create (amongst other places) on Zazzle today?
Thomas: Many, many years ago, I stumbled across a book at the library about making money writing gags for greeting companies (just the gags). I got pretty good at coming up with, literally hundreds of ways to say “Happy Birthday”, “Get Well Soon”, etc. It was great training. A few years later, I began freelancing gags to cartoonists, including Bill “Lockhorns” Hoest. I would include a little sketch on the 3 X5 cards I’s submit. With encouragement from several cartoonist clients, I began drawing up my own gags and submitting them to magazines. After winning a 5000 US$ grand prize in a cartoon contest by a cigarette company, I was hooked on Cartooning. Even though I have sold lots of toons over the years, I still consider myself to be basically a gagwriter who can draw a little.
Me: What made you choose the name for your pen-name “Swiss”.
Thomas: I choose the pen-name “Swiss”, because my parents had emigrated from Switzerland about 15 years before I was born.
Me: Tell us a little about your style of work.
Thomas: You’ll notice that my toons are simple and uncluttered. Even though I have sold lots of toons over the years, I still consider myself to be basically a gag writer who can draw a little

.
Me: Judging by the quality of work you provide, I say you are a lot more than that. Thank you for this interview.

Check out Thomas Wuthrich’s cartoons out on Zazzle at “Swiss Toons” right now!

Swiss Toons