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July 14, 2020 By adamriemer 1 Comment

How to Turn Product Reviews Into a Full Business

Product reviews on their own are not a smart business strategy. The burst in revenue from the sponsorship is nice, free products are normally fun, and the easy commissions with affiliate links are very appealing. But you likely won’t survive in the long run if you always rely on doing reviews.

Once Google, YouTube, Pinterest, etc… wipe the review or reviews that drive your traffic, and they will, your business will sink because you only focused on these types of short term wins.

If you’re a current product reviewer or you are thinking about creating a review platform, here is how you can take a successful product review and turn it into a long term business strategy.

Here’s the process and then I go into more detail:

Do keyword and topic research (this is the must read section)
Create the review
Make sure to optimize it and not just for the brand terms
Create a follow up post that tries to display as recommended reading
Bring the person to a place or platform you control
Monetize!

Do Keyword And Topic Research

If the product or brand you are reviewing has a lot of search volume, this is good news for you! But only if you rank for Product + Reviews on YouTube or Google. If the product or brand doesn’t have a ton of search volume, then you need to do keyword and topic research to help an audience find you.

Keyword and topic research are not the same thing!

Keyword research is looking for specific phrases with an estimated monthly search volume on a platform like Google, YouTube and Pinterest.
Topic research is finding the questions people are asking like if the product is compatible with another product, how much the product weighs, or if the product really works.

(Before we get into the meat of this post, some of the links below are affiliate links and I’ll earn a commission if you shop through them.)

Here’s a three step process to do keyword and topic research:

April 9, 2020 By adamriemer 3 Comments

SEO Keywords & Conversions – How an ‘ or – Can Make You Seven Figures!

There’s a big difference in following proper English and grammar guidelines, and creating a proper experience for your end users.

A professional writer will write a word to follow guidelines created many years ago. That is the issue. There is a set structure which is not updated to meet current usage and regular standards.

Using common spoken versions instead of the “technically correct” versions is one of the ways I help my clients bring in more traffic and increase conversions, but only when it is appropriate.

Google does tend to prefer proper grammar and english, but it isn’t always the best experience for your user base (customers, readers, subscribers, leads, etc…). That is why situationally we break from branding and corporate guidelines and do what is right for the end users. By doing this in these situations we can increase traffic and increase conversions.

Finding the right balance should be your goal as a business owner, marketer and content creator.

Below are a few examples with explanations of these.

You can find these same terms and phrases using Google keyword tools as well as your own site search depending on how much traffic your website has. I have the advantage of having some high volume websites as clients. These are all based on campaigns and niches I have worked on for various clients in the past, but not the actual data or examples.

(please note I’m not comparing specific apples to specific apples in each example. But I am keeping it in the family like a red delicious vs. a golden delicious, or a granny smith to a honeycrisp. They are each to demonstrate a specific technique or SEO and conversion tactic).

Example 1: Mother’s Day vs. Mothers Day

Mother’s Day is only 31 days away so I’ll start with this. Browser’s and many writing tools will autocorrect Mothers Day to have an ” ‘ ” symbol before the “s”. But if you look up the search volumes, the non apostrophe version has more traffic.

If you’re a blogger or content creator who does not have to deal with a branding team, this is an opportunity to capitalize where big brands cannot.

Bonus tip – One thing I’ve also seen in different niches is that the ‘s version can lead to different themes and topics. Instead of a shopping page or review, a listcicle could be the better experience. Checkout the double bonus tip in the next section for an even better one!

Group 1: without the apostrophe

Keyword	Volume
mothers day gifts	201000
mothers day gift	74000
mothers day gift ideas	60500
best mothers day gifts	12100
good mothers day gifts	9900

You’ll see “best mothers day gifts” above has 12,100 searches but “best mother’s day gifts” has 6,600. That’s a big difference in traffic and sales!

Group 2: with the apostrophe

Keyword	Volume
best mother’s day gifts	6600
last minute mother’s day gifts	4400
top 10 mother’s day gift ideas	4400
mother’s day delivery gifts	2900

Example 2: Microneedling vs. Micro-needling vs. Micro Needling

The spelling here and also capitalization make a difference. If your audience uses two words and capitalizes both, using this on your website could make it more relatable to them. But it might not follow brand standards or trademarks. The added benefit here is that you’re speaking your customers’ language. [Read more…] about SEO Keywords & Conversions – How an ‘ or – Can Make You Seven Figures!

March 23, 2020 By adamriemer 1 Comment

How to Source Product for & Start a Subscription Box

(Please note many of the links below are affiliate links and I’ll earn a commission if you shop through them. Some are affiliate links and I will not earn commissions like the SmugMug link. I’m sharing it because that is the only way for you to get a discount on a new account. Others are a for me to track because I like data.).

Many of you know I manage the affiliate program for Cratejoy.com. That means I get to work with awesome content producers from bloggers to YouTubers, and I also get to talk to small business owners who create monthly bits of happiness for their subscribers.

TL:DR (Too Long Don’t Want to Read) – Skip to the bullet list below and go to the section relevant to your niche. You’ll learn how to source product or get ideas to create your own subscription box and subscription service.

The box owners curate monthly packages with everything from local and international foods to kids crafts, geek and fashion boxes, STEM and educational kits, books with interactive gifts to match the chapters, and even a kitchen sponge of the month subscription.

There are more than 2,000 boxes available for consumers, but what happens if the owner’s city goes into lockdown or sourcing product becomes tricky. It could be anything from their farmers market closing because of quarantine or a hobby store where you’d normally source crafting supplies shutting down for being non-essential.

Just Because Covid-19 is Here it Does Not Mean You Have to Lose Subscription Box Subscribers!

If this happens, marketing and creative strategy come into play. That is my specialty and what I help clients with. As a way for me to give back and encourage small businesses like mine to not give up, here is what I normally get paid for totally free for you to use. Any shares or likes and comments are greatly appreciated.

If you’re a box owner, you could offer pauses on your boxes to save subscribers, but you can also offer the following strategies as an alternative and work to keep more active users.

If you do not have a current subscription box, use this post for inspiration to launch one. If you reach out to me through the contact form, I’ll connect you with the Cratejoy marketplace team and get you their instructions on how to launch a subscription box service.

Cratejoy does not know this post is coming, so I hope it is a good surprise for them and is another thing I can do to support my clients as well.

Here are the current niches I have ideas for. Feel free to skip to the most relevant section if you do not want to read the entire post. As I come up with more ideas I’ll add them to the list. Feel free to leave a comment below with your own way to source product or keep a subscription box going in the comments section below.

How to Source Product for Subscription Boxes & Keep Subscribers:

Food Boxes
Pet Boxes
Fitness Boxes
Kids Crafts
Kids and Young Adults Books
Adult Books
Photography and Art Boxes
Sex Boxes
Cocktail and alcohol boxes

One Thing To Know Before We Go Into Sourcing

Before we jump into the options to keep your subscription box subscribers happy, there is one thing I am going to be recommending you do. Use your phone, camera or computer and stream out to Facebook and YouTube. By doing this you can engage your users, grow your audience and save the video.

That video can then be optimized for SEO and work to build you new followers and new subscribers. It is as simple as clicking “go live” so don’t get nervous with the technical terms.

People being quarantined and needing to isolate is increasing viewership and watch times for my video clients which makes sense. Now is the perfect time to engage your users instead of losing them. Here is what I would do if I had a subscription box company or was going to start one by niche.

Food Subscription Boxes

March 17, 2020 By adamriemer 4 Comments

How to Make Money During Coronavirus

If you work as a bartender, personal trainer, group fitness instructor, photographer, tutor, or even at parties as an entertainer (clowns and djs), you have skills people need now more than ever. And these skills could help you make money while growing new business while everyone is in self-quarantine.

The best news is you have everything you need, you’ll only need to embrace a bit of technology. And since we cannot go outside, now is the perfect time to learn it.

Below you will find ways that you can use your skills as a service professional and make money until you can return to your place of work. I start with a list of the steps below and then dive into detail about each.

What you need to make money during Coronavirus:

Create an editorial calendar
Join affiliate programs specific to your niche (examples below with explanations)
Use your cell phone or digital camera that connects to social media
1. A computer can work too
Post a set day/time to record, publish and/or stream
Learn the tools to build a larger audience
**bonus step** set up a website and collect subscriber information

Now let’s go into detail about each of these and make them relevant to you.

Create an Editorial Calendar

The first step is to create an editorial calendar. But make sure the first stream or video can be done without any extra equipment or supplies. Start by letting viewers know they can do the first week of activities with items around their own home but they might need to order a few things online for upcoming broadcasts.

Here are some examples by niche.

Fitness professionals – body weight exercises (not gear needed).
Bartenders and chefs – use common pantry items.
Photographers – taking advantage of natural light or even desk lamps.
DJs – create themed dance party nights and host a costume or themed contest during it where you give a free recording from an event away after we are out of quarantine. The theme can be anything that uses common items like toga parties.
Teachers & tutors – you can line up daily or weekly themes like algebra, physics and also create experiments that are educational, safe and fun and that use peroxide, baking soda or vinegar.

As you’re talking about the first week and using items the person already has, mention what they’ll learn and need for the upcoming 3 or 4 weeks while we may be trapped inside. This is your first opportunity to earn revenue.

Join Relevant Affiliate Programs

(note, some of the links below are ads and I earn commissions if you shop or sign up for services through them. Just like I’m recommending you do.)

You’ll want to join affiliate programs and get unique coupon codes that are trackable to you. When your fans and followers use the code, you earn a commission. ProsourceFit.com is an affiliate program I manage and I will happily get you set up. Click here to join, its free and we’ll get to work together so double bonus!

If you’re a bartender and are recommending unique items like bitters, or a chef and spices may not be available, join programs from herb and spice, or food ecommerce websites. You’ll be supporting small businesses and also helping your fans and followers. If you’re a teacher or [Read more…] about How to Make Money During Coronavirus

November 21, 2019 By adamriemer Leave a Comment

Strategies to Get More Instagram Swipes, Saves & Comments

Optimizing for Instagram is all about getting your current followers, and people searching for hashtags to engage with your content. For this post I’m going to focus on how to increase Instagram engagement for your current fans and followers, with the goal of sending the right signals that your images and posts are high quality.

When your followers engage with your Instagram posts in a natural way, it should help you to get more exposure to new audiences in the hashtag search feature and for the people that already follow you. On Instagram there are multiple signals that can send a positive note to the algorithm.

Five Instagram Engagement Ranking Signals Include:

Swipes
Likes
Comments
Saves
Shares

To get your fans and strangers to engage, you not only have to produce images your audience wants to see, but you have to be creative. That is where I come in and I help the partners in my affiliate marketing programs with this regularly. Here are a few Instagram optimization strategies by the type of account to try and help you get more swipes, comments, and saves.

Swipes

Swipes are when people swipe left and right to look at your photos when you have multiple images in the same post. If a user is scrolling through their feed and stops to look at your image, then also swipes through the series, there is a good chance the content is good. Aside from asking your followers to look through each image, here are a few ways to encourage more Instagram swipes by popular type of Instagram account.

Bonus tip: Add arrows that point right in the lower right hand corner as an additional signal if you have a series. You could also place “next” or “step two” over top of the arrow in the lower right corner of the image.

For Photography Instagram Accounts:

Share a series of how you create your photos starting with the final version as the first image in the series. You could caption it, “how to create a photo like this”. You could also do a split picture with a before and after image that has a line dividing the image in half. Then make each image in the progression a major step in your editing process. Now your fans can follow along to see your process and replicate it. In order for them to create the same outcome, they’ll have to swipe through each image in your series.
Teach a photography technique like “taking an XY shot in harsh light”, or “how to create XYZ effect with photo editing”. Each image in your series should be the next step to reach the end goal. If the fan or follower wants to learn the technique or skill, they’ll need to swipe through.
Upload multiple shots with the same theme, and offer a discount on the last photo in the series that applies to each. This shows off your work and provides an incentive to look at the last image in the series.

Makeup and Beauty Instagrammers:

November 18, 2019 By adamriemer 2 Comments

7 Best Speakers to Listen to at Affiliate Summit

Affiliate Summit is coming up soon, and the only thing that comes up short at this show is time. You have incredible networking opportunities, tons of meetings and parties, not to mention a crowded expo hall. But something else you won’t want to miss are the speakers.

(The links in this post are ads and I earn commissions if you shop through them.)

Affiliate Summit speakers are almost always on point, or ready to help. They provide you with information, entertainment, and some let you know when you’re making money. That is one of the best things about the show, you get all the networking in the world, and also access to some of the most informative speakers. That’s why I’ve created this list of my favorite speakers to listen to at Affiliate Summit.

And if you haven’t purchased your ticket to affiliate summit yet, click here to buy it today since they always sell out and the prices go up the closer you get to the show.

If your favorite speaker from Affiliate Summit is not on it, I apologize, but this list is kept for the top 7 only. It may change from show to show, but these are my personal choices and the reasons why.

Blog

Do Keyword And Topic Research

Here’s a three step process to do keyword and topic research:

Example 1: Mother’s Day vs. Mothers Day

Example 2: Microneedling vs. Micro-needling vs. Micro Needling

Just Because Covid-19 is Here it Does Not Mean You Have to Lose Subscription Box Subscribers!

How to Source Product for Subscription Boxes & Keep Subscribers:

Food Subscription Boxes

What you need to make money during Coronavirus:

Create an Editorial Calendar

Join Relevant Affiliate Programs

Five Instagram Engagement Ranking Signals Include:

Swipes

For Photography Instagram Accounts:

Makeup and Beauty Instagrammers:

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