Experts Edge with Tom Bell

It’s time to race down the digital highway and learn from the best, with Tom Bell at the wheel! 

Who is Tom Bell? 

Super Affiliate Tom Bell goes through the ins and outs of what makes a 7 figure affiliate stay top of their game.

From generating consistent returns to mega-money months and more! Toms got the goods on what makes affiliate marketing tick.

An expert in FaceBook, PPC, Native, and more, Tom runs a high-impact affiliate consultancy (Tom Bell Digital).

The company provides tailored coaching on a range of different affiliate disciplines.

Some of their markets include CPA Affiliate Marketing, Contextual & PPV Traffic, SEO, growth/brand strategy, and more. 

Set up a free call with Tom and get to grips with your first $1000 day!  

So, let’s get right into it. 

How did you first get into affiliate marketing, and why?

I was (still am) a professional pianist/instructor, and around the time, I first got into affiliate marketing.

I had begun using Google Ads to bring in new clients.

Over a relatively short period of time, I learned how to generate consistent income.

From a minimal investment (a few dollars/pounds for clicks), I was onboarding clients worth 1000 pounds across an entire tuition lifetime. 

This newfound revelation fuelled the fire to learn more and sent me headfirst into a host of different online marketing forums. 

I started hearing how affiliates were making thousands of dollars a day, with an internet connection and some trial and error and… I had to know more! 

What followed was a wild ride into the heart of affiliate marketing.

To get up to speed as quickly as possible, I joined an affiliate forum (called AffPlaybook) and connected with seasoned affiliates every day. Learning from them and perfecting my skills as an affiliate and digital marketer. 

I remember the thrill of hitting my first $100 day, and around 6 months after that, the campaigns started to generate consistently strong returns and haven’t stopped since. 

What was the first offer that got you to $100?

For a time, I was running a lot of pay-per-view traffic. I believe it was an offer for printer ink on Max Bounty. I ran it on a $25 CPA or something in that region.

The results came in quicker than expected, and I’ve been honing and diversifying my online portfolio since then.  

The magic in affiliate marketing is that once you’ve figured out how to make $10 a day, you can just as easily ramp up to $100 and so on. The skies are the limit.  As long as there is proven scalability and mid to long-term growth in the traffic you’re going after.

What’s the biggest misconception in affiliate marketing?

When starting out, affiliates tend to think that a single campaign will generate instant money on tap, but, unfortunately,  it’s not the case (initially at least).

Unless you have some sort of unprecedented insider knowledge of the product or service, the first months can be a bit of a slog. 

This is the stage where an affiliate is refining/expanding their skillset, buying and optimizing data, while testing out a range of different offers and traffic sources. Until the process is fine-tuned, there’ll be the occasional brick wall. 

My campaigns weren’t profitable (starting out) and the beginning stages were all about calculated trial and error.

My advice would be to apply campaign testing principles consistently and learn from seasoned professionals.

It’s a numbers game and for every ten or so campaigns that you run, two might be profitable. But it’s that one in a thousand that can and does take affiliates to six figures and beyond.

What was the best affiliate advice you received?

There’s a certain psychology to online advertising. And, If you’re playing for the long game, try at all costs to never let your mood become tied to the inevitable ups and downs of a given campaign. This goes for experts and beginners alike. 

By its very nature, affiliate marketing contains a high degree of volatility, especially in the paid traffic side of things. So, you’re going to have days where you make solid profits and others where you might run at a loss. 

It’s really important to keep the composure and see how the data averages out over time.

It’s crucial to keep the perspective (especially during the profit dips).

Also, never compromise your capacity to make rational decisions.

Easier said than done of course, but the more you can take this mindset and approach, the sooner it will benefit you as an affiliate.

Is there a starting formula to creating a great first-time campaign?

This mostly depends on the traffic source you’re opting for. As a general rule, the idea is to not change too many campaign variables at the same time. It’s important to properly test each phase of the campaign as you continue forward. 

Using high-quality, succinct, and ultimately compelling creatives is half the work done already. 

Regularly monitor your impression clickthrough rate with a tool such as Voluum, where you can analyze and adjust your campaign creatives and headlines to boost audience engagement. 

Now you’re going to want to take these best practices and use them to generate a captivating landing page. This is your ultimate calling card and the first point of contact after a user clicks on your ad. So make it count with strong product information, visuals, and/or testimonials that help drive home the sale. 

If you’re split-testing several offers at the same time and don’t have an unlimited flow of budget to burn, It’s important not to change or swap out too much, too quickly. Change one campaign aspect at a time (a word, a title, an image, etc.) and go from there. 

What are the online tools that every affiliate needs to succeed?

When it comes to trackers, you can’t go wrong with Voluum or Red Track. The software is cutting-edge, multi-featured, and super responsive. 

As far as spy tools go, I’d recommend Anstrex and Adplexity. But, a word of caution when it comes to using these platforms. Take what you see and use it as inspiration when building your creatives, but never duplicate exactly (i.e rip and run). 

Originality generates conversions and, in addition to experiencing poor performing “run of the mill” returns, you could even face some hefty shut-down issues (especially with FaceBook ads and similar). 

And, at the end of the day, it’s all about driving originality and staying ahead of the competition. Make sure you’re always tackling campaign generation head-on while drawing from the industry’s best practices. 

And, while we’re on the topic of creatives, remember that the key to crafting great visual content is piquing your audience’s curiosity while pre-qualifying potential conversions.  

A successful campaign seamlessly marries these two elements. Sell the product and/or offers story and leave the rest up to your target audience.

What are the skills needed to become a world-class affiliate? 

Find the common ground between the creative and the analytical. Think outside the box, find the angle, but be able to drill down (and fully understand) the numbers in a given week or month.

Additionally, mindset and interpersonal skills go a long way. The digitally nomadic lifestyle lacks a certain personal interaction, and to fight this, communication is key. Reach out to people in your industry, develop lasting relationships with your advertiser manager and stay heavily involved in affiliate forums. 

And lastly, drive innovation at all times. Test the offers and angles that no one else is doing,  capitalize on trends that are working and dont be afraid to take risks. 

Any closing thoughts?

For the affiliates who are just starting out. This industry rewards dogged persistence. Educate yourself as much as possible but dont fall into the trap of collecting all of the theory and none of the results. Dive in and learn all you can in the field with hands-on trial and error. 

Launch a campaign and apply your knowledge in practical situations wherever possible and as often as you can. 

That’s it for now. Thanks to Tom Bell and catch you on the next installment of Experts Edge. 

As always, feel free to reach out to your dedicated Advertiser Manager and/or support team for tried and test campaign setup/optimization tips. We’re always here and always happy to help. 

Leave a comment in the description below and tell us who you’d like to hear from next. 

Bye for now.