So you want to earn some cash on-line but don't think you're smart enough? Maybe you've heard of BANS (build a niche store) but can't afford to dish out the $100. Either way, these are both silly reasons. If you're reading this blog, you're smart enough, and anyone willing to pay $100 for that software isn't very wise with their cash. This post will outline, step by step, how to setup your own on-line store and start generating cash within thirty-days of going live.
First Things First
Pick a niche - this is very important. Find something relatively popular that doesn't have a lot of competition. This is probably the most difficult step, but will definitely pay off if you do your research. I recommend Google Trends, pulse.ebay.com, and Amazon's top sellers list. Just some examples of niches I've seen making money: Jeep parts, used vinyl records, vintage Halloween costumes, coach bags.
Get A Wordpress Blog
How you do this is up to you. I would of course suggest you find a decent web host and buy a domain. If you're really cheap, goto wordpress.com and sign up for a free wordpress blog there, but I can't guarantee this method will work on their servers. Just dish out the cash and get a domain with some cheap hosting. Don't pay more than $5/mo. You'll also want to go through and remove all the default data that's populated during the Wordpress installation. The first post, first comment, blogroll links, etc, etc. Go through the options and turn off comments/pings, unless you feel like moderating the abundance of spam you'll receive.
Find a Theme
Something simplistic, minimal, and somewhat professional looking. Avoid themes with lots of graphics and pictures to prevent distracting our visitors and future customers. Just search Google or browse the wordpress.org theme archive, you'll find something appropriate. The majority of wordpress themes are easy to navigate through, so this shouldn't really become an issue. Once you've found your theme, upload and apply the theme. Check out your empty blog to make sure everything looks ok.
The Secret, Free, Weapon
Radgeek has released this fantastic little plugin called feedwordpress. The plugin gives blog owners the ability to subscribe to RSS feeds, automatically post feed items to their blog as individual entries, and even assign items from certain feeds to a specific category. Search Google for "feedwordpress." Download and install the plugin. If you have any questions on how to setup/configure the plugin, just ask in the comments section of this post. I recommend setting up auto updating every 6-8, maybe even 12 hours.
Ok, So Now What?!
Alright - you've got your empty blog with a cool theme, our secret weapon is installed, now it's time to get to the fun stuff. This is the part where we generate the links that will earn us cash. Visit www.commissionjunction.com and sign up for a free account. Provide accurate information, including your Wordpress URL. Once signed up and activated, login to your Commission Junction account and click "Get Links" at the top. Search for "eBay" and apply/subscribe to whatever's relevant to your area. Off the top of my head I can't remember what's listed exactly, so if you have questions or doubts, share your options here - I'll respond quickly. Once you've applied, eBay will immediately accept you as an advertiser. Now, click "Account" at the top of the CJ menu, then click "Web site Settings." Copy the "PID" for your wordpress site into your clipboard (highlight the number, then ctrl+c).
With your PID in the clipboard, head over to the world's largest on-line marketplace, eBay. Click the "Advanced Search" link. On the Advanced Search page, enter the keyword or keywords you'd like to advertise or list on your blog. For example, if you wanted to make a pet site, perform a search for dog brush. Scroll down toward the bottom and look for the area above the Search button that says, "Affiliate Tracking Information." Click the blue link labeled "Show," select Commission Junction from the drop down box, then paste your PID, the one we copied earlier. Now click "Search."
This search alone produced 230 highly targeted items, many with the "Buy It Now" option. Again, scroll to the bottom and look for a tiny bright orange button with white text that says RSS. The link will look something like this:
http://rss.api.ebay.com/ws/rssapi?FeedName=SearchResults&siteId=0 &language=en-US&output=RSS20&catref=C5&sacqy=&sacur=0&from=R6 &saobfmts=exsif&_trksid=m37&dfsp=1&sacqyop=ge&saslc=0&floc=1 &sabfmts=0&saprclo=&saprchi=&saaff=afdefault&ftrv=1&ftrt=1&fcl=3 &frpp=50&afcj=&nojspr=y&satitle=dog+brush&afmp=&sacat=-1&saslop=1&fss=0
Which is ridiculously long, we can't use that. To shorten this up, head over to feedburner.com and create a free account. Feedburner is similar to TinyURL, but for RSS feeds. Your new feed should look similar to:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/myDogBrushRSSFeed
Now, login to your wordpress admin panel and click the "Syndication" tab at the top. Scroll down to the bottom to the "Add a new syndicated site:" Supply your feedburner URL, click Syndicate, then Use This Feed. Now go back to the Syndication sub-tab and click edit. Adjust the settings, including category, and save your changes. Now check the box next to the feed and click Update Checked Links. In the example above, 100 new posts for Dog Brushes would go into our Dog Brush category. View your site to see the product listings. Rinse and repeat, go crazy. Dog Brushes, Dog Shampoo, Dog Collars, Dog Clothes, Dog Bowls, Dog Food, etc, etc.. The sky is the limit!
So How Do I Get Paid?
Great question. CJ tracks your sales, so login to your CJ account every couple days to check the stats. Every time someone from your web-site completes an auction (buys an item) eBay pays you 50% of what they earn. For example (and this is just an example), say a product sells for $30. eBay charges the auction creator $1.00 to list the item. Since your site referred the person that purchased the item, eBay will pay you $0.50. eBay also pays $25 for every active referral. That means if you can get four people a day to sign up for an eBay account, they'll pay you $100. Imagine the possibilities of getting into high definition TV's, or digital camcorders, the really big ticket items.
What To Do Now
Traffic, traffic, traffic. The more people you get to your site, the more likely you are to make some cash. Eventually you'll start showing up in search engines. The possibilities are endless, just think of a niche, and run with it. Here are a couple live examples of the possibilities.
Health Solutions Toyota Corolla Parts & Accessories
Questions? Comments? Ask below...
**This is my submission to the Daily Blog Tips Tutorials Contest
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