$3.5k budget, eager to learn, seeking advice on right direction (5)
$3.5k budget, eager to learn, seeking advice on right direction
I've been doing native and FB and last year was just okay for me and I know I still have a long way to go. My cousin heard what I'd been doing and told me he wanted to get in to the game as well. I don't think I'm in a position that can give high-level advice to him and want to hear thoughts from experienced affiliates here for some guidance.
Basically he's very eager to learn and have a budget of about $3-3.5k (should be able to have more down the track).
I've had a glimpse of Amy's newbie tutorial and it looks great, but I don't have much experience with pops so can't give him more detailed advice. What I've heard is that pops is slowly but surely going downhills and I'm not 100% sure if it's worthwhile for him to go down that route. Another concern is that I'm under the impression pops is pure arbitrage and he probably won't learn much about *real* marketing.
I do have som experience with native and FB but doubt it's a good idea to point him to that direction as the budget could be an issue. I thought about recommending iStack's 6 week mastery challenge to him but once again, the cost of the training is $3k and he won't be able to actually do anything after the training cos all he has got for now is $3k.
So is it a good idea for him to spend that $3k and focus purely on pops to learn the ropes, even if pops is on the way down? What can he learn by investing $3k on pop?? Or should he save some more money(for example, an additional $1-2k) and jump onto FB/native in a few months, meanwhile reading some good books etc to get started?
I've thought about the possibilities if he invests his capital on pop:
1) he makes nice profits and can move on to FB/native using new skills he's learned and profits he has made
2) he breaks even or loses some capital but has learned some valuable skills
3) he loses most of his capital and didn't learn many valuable skills; money and time wasted; he either quits the game or has to wait a while and save money before he can try again
Both possibility 1 and 2 are acceptable to him, but not possibility 3.
Would you recommend him to invest his money and time (say 3 months) on pops to learn the ropes?
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Pavel
This is a topic that comes up quite often, so I'm going to write a longer post so there'll be something to refer other members to in the future when they ask similar questions. So please bear with me - I apologize in advance for being long-winded.
Personally, I would suggest that your cousin arrange for some form of ongoing income, a percentage of which he can allocate towards running campaigns. You did mention that he should be able to get more money in the future, which is great - I just want to point out that it would be a good idea to make sure that it happens.
It's already stressful trying to learn a new trade (and one with a steep learning curve at that!), and doing so while watching a relatively small and finite budget dwindle will take that stress to a whole new level. (Been there, done that, NOT fun.)
A big part of this game involves being willing to test extensively - whether it be traffic types or traffic networks or offers or angles of creatives (banners/landers) or targeting or bids. And when a person is under pressure to get green while working with limited funds, they tend to fall into the trap of not testing extensively or systematically. They tend to test sparingly and randomly, a bit here and bit there, jumping from one approach to another, one traffic type to another, one vertical to the next, etc. Thus they're not able to build any significant experience in any one area. And with each campaign, they would hold their breath and cross their fingers for it to get green - and when it doesn't, they'd feel defeated, which would make them more weary of the next campaign they set up, and more earnest for it to be profitable - turning the whole thing into a downward-spiraling vicious cycle until the funds are exhausted.
Worse, instead of analyzing stats and making logical and rational optimization decisions based on them, the stressed individual would make irrational decisions based on emotions. They would either pause a campaign prematurely or over-run it way past the point of hopelessness. When split-testing they would add/delete test candidates before statistical significance is reached, wasting money to arrive at inaccurate test results.
In my opinion and experience, there are 2 things a new affiliate can do to drastically reduce stress levels and maximize chances of success when it comes to managing funds:
1)Don't set a deadline. I know this is in direct opposition to all/most goal-setting advice in existence, but for something like running campaigns, the last thing a newbie needs is holding themselves to generating certain profits by a certain date. There's simply too much uncertainty in this business. Being able to promise oneself that they'd stick with it until they succeed is really the best one can do.
2)Instead of aiming for profits, aim to exhaust your allocated test budget. Again, another piece of advice that goes against what most business gurus teach, but this seemingly simple change in mentality and perspective can make such a difference in the way you feel about running campaigns. When your goal is "spend $500/week on testing", all of a sudden you'll start focusing on looking for what to test and how. You'll be able to test systematically because the next campaign does not absolutely need to be a winner. Plus, this is a goal you can reach because it's something you have control over - vs. trying to make yourself reach a certain level of profits this week, which is in part beyond your control.
Just these 2 things will lift a ton of weight off of the newbie's shoulders. Learning would be more fun and productive. He'd be way more willing to test. His focus would be on learning and testing instead of holding his breath in angst for the next campaign to be profitable.
So - based on the advice above - I believe it would be best if your cousin could allocate that 3-5k towards learning, and then (as mentioned) allocate a daily/weekly/monthly test budget that is disposable (so that by spending that money he won't go hungry or lose the roof over his head or bring on any other dreaded consequences, even assuming the absolute worst case scenario where he doesn't make back a single penny).
I know it's easier said than done, especially the part about arranging for additional income. Freelancing is an option depending on the types of skills the individual has. Getting a part-time job offline would be another. Another way to get extra money would be to save money by changing one's lifestyle - for example moving back to live with parents to save on rent, and/or quitting drinking and partying and eating out. Time management would be another issue when the person's working 2 jobs plus having to learn how to run campaigns, but if a person wants it badly enough they'll find the time. Some people managed to do AM while working 2 jobs plus taking care of wife and kids. We all need to start somewhere. IMO I'd rather choose to work my butt off than having to work with a small and limited budget and seeing it dwindle, but that may just be me. We're all wired differently. I'm only giving advice based on what I know. 
As for traffic type - I've expressed my thoughts in the second part of this post:
https://stmforum.com/forum/showthrea...l=1#post335169
Expectations are of paramount importance. To a newbie, the most important thing is see some conversions as early on as possible. The learning curve for FB or Adwords or Native is considerably steeper, so it's considerably harder to get from no conversions to the first conversions. This is the stage where most people will throw in the towel. Pop traffic on the other hand, will give you conversions guaranteed - you'd get these even just by sending visitors to offers directly.
For people that are patient, that are ready to stick with AM for the long haul until they see results, that aren't afraid to figure things out for themselves and test different targeting and advertising angles - I would suggest that they start with FB directly.
For people that need to see results to stay motivated, and people that don't feel like braving a steep learning curve, I would suggest running pop first. It's still not too difficult to make xx-xxx/day for someone without very extensive experience, and it's a fantastic tool for learning tracking and stats analysis and advertising angles (to some extent only - as most landers are ripped and you can't tailor angles to different demographics like you could for FB, so not a lot of creativity is required). But in order to succeed with pop in the long run you'll need automation and/or man power (i.e. a team), and constantly testing to find new green camps to replace dying camps - all in all a whole lot of hassle.
Hope that helps! I'd love to hear what other members would advise as well.
Amy
GREAT points from Amy there.
I'd particularly emphasise her point about not setting yourself a deadline to make a certain amount of money. Psychologically, that's a very bad idea: the goal is out of your control, and often harder than you expect. You can put in all the effort in the world and still miss it through no fault of your own - and if you've set it as a specific goal, that's a very powerful recipe for burnout or disillusionment. (In fact, the latest neuroscience on burnout suggests that it's precisely related to having unfair or unreasonable goals that you fail to meet thanks to circumstances outside your control.)
Instead, set an action-based goal. I particularly like the "spend $x/week" goal because it also gets you (or whoever you're advising about AM) over your/their fear of losing money. That's a huge hurdle for most people, and setting it as a deliberate goal is a powerful way to combat that problem.
Hey Pavel,
Few topics you should consider regarding programmatic media buying:
1. What is the type of offers you are looking to buy traffic for?
2. How flexible are your KPI's?
3. How can you monitor and monetize your test in the long run?
I will elaborate:
1. What is the type of offers you are looking to buy traffic for?
Some SSAs (self-serve advertiser) enable you to buy pop traffic, this doesn't mean that the traffic they sell is best suited for your offers.
I would make a small deposit in each and check if the interface works for.
2. How flexible are your KPI's?
in the short run, you are expected to lose, only because of the fact you buy pop traffic blind (only source ID)
Note that keyword use can make your life easier, but it is not always an easy integration with the platforms.
If you have a clear CPA (Cost per action) goal, you should take into consideration the fact that when starting, your CPA will be higher and will improve if you manage the optimization better.
3. How can you monitor and monetize your test in the long run?
I advise you to manage and XLS file with whitelist and blacklist per platform.
On the demand side, I would try A-B testing different landing pages/advertisers on the same traffic before fully deciding if it good for you or not.
Hope I was able to help.
Ping me in private if you want some recommendations.
James
Phenomenal post Amy.
I think too often people go into this industry with their head in the clouds, and aren't mentally prepared for what it takes.
The biggest red flag I often see is someone having money saved up, but no job, no other income, and no bells going off in their head that something is wrong with that picture.
It's not gambling, but ones mindset can certainly start heading that way if they're jumping around trying everything and falling into the "hope and pray" testing methodology.
People tend to focus on the amount of money they have saved up as if that's THE key factor in their success, when really it's more about what you're willing to sacrifice to accomplish reach your goals. How bad do you really want it? Enough to get a job, downgrade your lifestyle, etc?
Why not try and land a job working at an advertising or affiliate network and learn the ropes while making money at the same time? Or at least freelance?
Regarding courses, plenty have made it in this industry without dropping thousands on a slick and shiny course. We have this tendency to think if we're spending money on something it's going to solve our problems, but ultimately it's all down to the individual and getting that real world education spending ones own money on ads.
If money is tight, then why not not instead network as much as you can, and share knowledge? Or even partner up with someone to run campaigns together to split the profits and losses with.
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