The Insider's Guide To CPA Marketing Profits

Earlier this week I downloaded a free report by Gauher Chaudhry called The Insider's Guide To CPA Marketing Profits. Since I am always looking for a little pearl in the vast ocean of information, I scan lots of articles, reports and websites.

I'm a believer in "all information is good". It's what we do with the information that really counts. Of course, there's always the risk of information overload which is not productive, but different ways of saying things speak to different people. In that light, until you've completely assimilated a skill or bit of knowledge, it never hurts to hear it presented in a different way.

This report is 89 pages but once you take away things like title page and table of contents, the actual content is 79 pages. It runs the gamut of basic stuff like an introduction to CPA marketing all the way to a script for iFraming. There are lots of links to tools and resources and a glossary at the end as well. I'm not disparaging the amount of content - what I'm saying is that you can easily read through it in about an hour. I can't speak to the knowledge of those who have been in this business for awhile, but for those of us who are fairly new - especially those of us in AC, there is some new information and resources, so I consider it time well-spent.

We all know by now that the purpose of these free reports is to build a list for a future promotion and in this case, Gauher is promoting PayPerClick Formula 2.0. Having no prior experience with this program, I really can't address it at this point, but if anyone has any experience with the first version, or with Gauher in general, please share it with us. Meanwhile, pick up his free report and expand your knowledge.

Arbitrage Conspiracy

I've just posted a rather lengthy comment on a blog by Jay Stockwell of SpeedPPC. I suspect the comments were a very unintentional consequence of his review of a new product. That comment has in turn inspired this post.

I have been participating in the first class of the much touted Arbitrage Conspiracy. If you're unfamiliar with the class, it is an introduction and reported a-z instructional program for teaching the way to financial bliss using CPA networks and PPC marketing. We are in week 10 of a 13 week course and up to this point, we really didn't know who the other members were.

From a newbie perspective, in my opinion, the course has delivered a lot of good and useful information. I agree with their self-described a-z content in most respects, but it is missing l-m-n-o. And the missing part is the interactivity that most of us require to really learn. Yes, they make an attempt for some interactivity with a weekly webinar and I applaud their efforts. But it is virtually impossible for them to respond to all the questions of all the members in the one-hour sessions.

They have promised us a much-anticipated forum wherein we can all communicate with each other, but as yet, it has not been delivered. But it appears the dam of anonymity has burst and many of us have found each other in Jay's blog. I hope some of you reading this have arrived here from there.

I welcome comments from other AC members but I want to make something very clear. I know a lot of us have struggled and have not yet found our "golden nuggets". I'm one of you. I believe it's important to feel a kinship and know we're not alone in our challenges. That said, my intent is not for this to be a place to complain and build negativity. My goal is for us to be able to share our experiences so that we can learn from each other, boost each other up and become successful in this crazy Internet world.

A couple of people who left comments on Jay's blog have offered to create a forum for us. Until it's ready, please leave comments here and we'll see what we can build together.


UPDATE: This update is long overdue. The folks at Arbitrage Conspiracy did set up the forum and it has been very useful. It continues to be an active community for learning and sharing. To the great credit of Aymen and Emmanuel, they have not left their students high and dry. They continue to nurture and offer content and opportunities for success. They are preparing for a re-launch and I recommend you check it out.

MediaPost Publications Utah House Passes Bill To Bar Using Rival Trademarks In Ads 03/09/2009

MediaPost Publications Utah House Passes Bill To Bar Using Rival Trademarks In Ads 03/09/2009: "Utah House Passes Bill To Bar Using Rival Trademarks In Ads"

I'm very new to PPC marketing and I must admit, I'm struggling. I've been working at it for 2 months now and have yet to find the elusive "golden nugget". Being the very determined woman that I am, I'm not ready to throw in the towel. In an effort to make progress, I've been doing some research and I found this article that I thought was rather interesting. Check it out.

The whole trademark issue has been a bugger for me. I've read some legal advice and sought opinions. I'm not a lawyer, and heaven knows I'm a newbie to this industry, but after giving it serious thought, I've come to a conclusion. Take it for what it's worth and remember, it's just an opinion (and not a terribly informed one at that). And you know what they say about opinions!

Brick-and-mortar stores are permitted to advertise using brand and trademarked names - how else are you supposed to know what they sell? The question consumers ask is can I get a better deal at Best Buy or Fry's? So what's the big beef about using them as keywords and in Internet search ads. In my opinion (see above disclaimer), it's more deceptive to try to be "creative" and coy about what we're marketing in our search (Google, Yahoo, MSN etc.) ads. And it's not cost-efficient. Just let us say what we're advertising and make it easier and less frustrating for the consumer as well. If someone is looking specifically for an iPod don't make them click on endless generic ads for mp3 players.

Of course, this will affect bids but isn't that what capitalism and the free market is all about?