Questions About Mobile CPA (9)

Like a lot of less experienced affiliates, I have been learning a lot about mobile CPA. I have been checking out the training guides on here, which are very detailed, and also reading the follow along campaigns. I am concerned, though, about the number of follow alongs that are going really badly - not just running at a loss, but a huge loss in most cases. I have had similar experiences with mobile in the past myself.

My questions are as follows:

1. Is there a reliable methodology that can be followed for success or is it just a case of throwing so much money at testing that you'll hopefully just hit on something that works?

2. It has been said on here that 95% ( possibly more ) of people who get into CPA will fail - why do you guys believe this is? What are the specific reasons? The most common reasons?

3. How does running CPA offers ( on mobile ad networks specifically ) compare to developing and promoting one's own products, in terms of difficulty?

I have some hard earned cash saved up that I can use to get going with mobile CPA marketing, but at the moment I'm reluctant to get started as like to see a good chance of a solid ROI on any money that I invest.

Thanks in advance guys.

Originally Posted by bernardk

1. Is there a reliable methodology that can be followed for success or is it just a case of throwing so much money at testing that you'll hopefully just hit on something that works?

I can completely understand your concerns!

1) What you've seen in the guides is a reliable methodology, derived from the successful practises of a number of top affiliates. It works, and it works repeatedly.

However a reliable methodology for success - in any field, not just affiliate marketing - does not mean the same thing as "a methodology that never includes failure of an element". Consider venture capital investment, for example - 20+ VC-backed companies will fail, one will succeed, but the one that succeeds will pay for the rest. The same principle applies to Hollywood film production, publishing, blogging, and, yes, affiliate marketing.

Or to put it another way, "throw enough money at it that something works" is the basis of success in any field of entrepreneurship! If you're building a software product, you work exactly the same way - build, release, repeat until you overcome the "long slow ramp of death" and hit profitability.

2) I have a great deal of respect for the people who've said that, but I do believe that their numbers are somewhat off in this case. If you count everyone who tries AM at all, a 95% failure rate might be correct, but in my experience if you only count people who read advice, follow it appropriately, and devote a realistic amount of time and money to learning, the success rate is considerably higher.

3) Having succeeded in both fields, I'd say that the level of difficulty is somewhat lower in affiliate marketing. Developing product-market fit for a product-based company is a non-trivial challenge, and the feedback cycle on even the most well-executed product development plan is considerably longer than it is for launching AM campaigns.

However, the volatility of the profits is higher: short to medium term success in AM is less of a guarantee of long-term profitability than developing a product which achieves product-market fit, as more of the elements of your success are outside your control. The revenue graph of an affiliate marketer is considerably spikier (or to use a poker term, higher-variance) than that of a successful product owner.

Hope that helps to make things a bit clearer!

Originally Posted by caurmen

I can completely understand your concerns!

1) What you've seen in the guides is a reliable methodology, derived from the successful practises of a number of top affiliates. It works, and it works repeatedly.

However a reliable methodology for success - in any field, not just affiliate marketing - does not mean the same thing as "a methodology that never includes failure of an element". Consider venture capital investment, for example - 20+ VC-backed companies will fail, one will succeed, but the one that succeeds will pay for the rest. The same principle applies to Hollywood film production, publishing, blogging, and, yes, affiliate marketing.

Or to put it another way, "throw enough money at it that something works" is the basis of success in any field of entrepreneurship! If you're building a software product, you work exactly the same way - build, release, repeat until you overcome the "long slow ramp of death" and hit profitability.

2) I have a great deal of respect for the people who've said that, but I do believe that their numbers are somewhat off in this case. If you count everyone who tries AM at all, a 95% failure rate might be correct, but in my experience if you only count people who read advice, follow it appropriately, and devote a realistic amount of time and money to learning, the success rate is considerably higher.

3) Having succeeded in both fields, I'd say that the level of difficulty is somewhat lower in affiliate marketing. Developing product-market fit for a product-based company is a non-trivial challenge, and the feedback cycle on even the most well-executed product development plan is considerably longer than it is for launching AM campaigns.

However, the volatility of the profits is higher: short to medium term success in AM is less of a guarantee of long-term profitability than developing a product which achieves product-market fit, as more of the elements of your success are outside your control. The revenue graph of an affiliate marketer is considerably spikier (or to use a poker term, higher-variance) than that of a successful product owner.

Hope that helps to make things a bit clearer!

Originally Posted by craigm

Charles Ngo posted this on FB

The film industry? Wow, that is amazing - I'm an absolute film fanatic myself. I watch loads of movies, from the 30s to the modern stuff ( I draw the line at silent movies, though ). What area did you work in?

At the min, my core business is SEO - I have been working with a local agency and earning some decent enough cash, but the guy I'm working with has been running into some trouble financially and I'm already down about $3000 between this month and next due to cutbacks. My concern therefore is running out of cash before I hit a profitable campaign.

Having said that, the budgets mentioned in the mobile cookbook of between $1000 and $1500 - $2000 aren't a problem - I can quite comfortably afford this and still have some left over to scale, so if I can make it work with this kind of budget, then it's all good.

Thanks again for your advice!

No worries!

I work in animation - still do, actually, but rather than grubbing around for grants for indie pictures, I now use AM to finance them

Good stuff - that sounds like an excellent plan!