I’m officially two months into the e-book sales game and March turned out to be less exciting than I hoped it would be. Not horrible. Just not where I want to be quite yet.
My original goal for March was to churn out 3-4 new reports and sell them on the Warrior Forum. I only created one new product, How I’m Making $45-$150 a Day Selling E-books Through Blog Comments.
Along with it, I’ve still been selling The BIG LIST of Amazon Products. This one has been profitable from day 1 and continues to generate the bulk of my sales.
Marketing tactics I used
Unlike February, I didn’t really participate on the Warrior Forum, nor did I ‘bump’ the ad promoting my BIG LIST of Amazon Products (also on the Warrior Forum).
Bumping your ad puts it back on the first page of the special offers section. It could take as few as 5-6 hours to 24+ hours for it to be pushed off to the second page (and beyond) by newer incoming ads. This little tactic costs $40 per bump. So I’ve realized that once sales reach a point of saturation, it doesn’t make sense to keep bumping it.
I have been doing a lot of blog commenting lately, which accounts for a massive 42% of my site traffic. (You can read about my exact strategy in How I’m Making $45-$150 a Day Selling E-books Through Blog Comments.)
I listed an ad on the SitePoint Marketplace, promoting The BIG LIST of Amazon Products. The ad cost $10 for 30 days, but it hasn’t been doing anything to boost my sales. Aaah well, in internet marketing experimentation is the key to success.
I also joined Triberr, which automatically tweets my new blog posts to the followers of the 7 members in my tribe. The combined distribution amongst my Triberr members reaches over 35K potential eyeballs. For a passive marketing strategy, you seriously can’t beat that. By the way, if you want an invitation to Triberr, e-mail me (thinkbigpeople [at} gmail).
(Thanks to Janet Callaway over at The Natural Networker for turning me on to Triberr. Her blog should really be called Brilliant Networker!)
Brankica Underwood over at Live Your Love gave me a shoutout last Saturday in her roundup blog post. That’s the first time I’ve ever been included in a roundup, and that mention definitely sent some new followers my way. (Thanks Brankica!)
And even though I didn’t do any guest posts last month, I did submit an article to Slideshare (which I talked about in this post). I’m definitely pleased with the traffic it sent my way, but I’m learning that Slideshare may only be a good choice for social media topics.
Traffic stats
I started this blog in January, but technically I became active with it in March. In less than a month I’ve been getting between 50-120 visitors a day, almost evenly divided between new and returning visitors. The larger number of visitors really started coming in within the past 10 days as I’ve increased my promotional activities.
My biggest single source of traffic has been readers coming directly to the site… returning visitors. My second biggest source has been the combined traffic from my blog comments. Third is Google, fourth is Twitter and fifth is Blokube.
The results do surprise me. I never expected Twitter to be so high up on the list, considering I only have 220+ followers. But being in Triberr really pushed me into the traffic zone with Twitter.
Product profits
So here’s the big “tada” that you’ve been waiting for:
The BIG LIST of Amazon Products = $1,026
How I’m Making $45-$150 a Day Selling E-books Through Blog Comments = $144 (Sold strictly on the Warrior Forum)
Total refunds = 2 (That’s good!)
I’m NOT bouncing off the walls with joy, but I’m not totally disappointed either because at the end of the day, my blog is profitable. I make more in one month selling a $9 e-book than most bloggers make in an entire year. I’m truly humbled by that.
I love the fact that I was able to generate the bulk of those sales because of this blog. Even when the Warrior Forum failed to produce any more sales, I was still able to continue making money from my product. That’s an accomplishment worth mentioning because I know there are a lot of Warrior sellers who aren’t as adept at blogging or making the most of social media.
My personal synopsis about the Warrior Forum
I’ve been fussing and fumbling with the Warrior Forum since I started selling products there back in February.
Remember, this is a ‘make money fast’ crowd that I’m dealing with. They want a plug-and-play solution that produces results in record time – and traditionally they don’t want to do a lot of work to get there. If you’ve got a magic fixit, this is the place to sell it.
In light of my lackluster sales, I’m inclined to believe that I had a couple of things working against me:
1) I didn’t participate. I wasn’t sure how much that would really contribute to my bottom line, but I have noticed a difference in sales from the time I was participating to the times I wasn’t. This is a community, and when you’re an active member of the community, people do take notice.
Sure my blog commenting strategy picked up the slack. But I think I could’ve done much more in sales had I been more active there.
2) My e-book was competing against services that offered 7K comments for $20 (or something like that). Plus I mentioned that my technique would require some work. When you pit automation against a do-it-yourself solution in an environment like this, automation almost always wins.
3) I was packing to move. My mind has been wandering off into dusty corners rather than focusing completely on my business.
Moving into April
My goal for April is quite simple… to produce 1-2 products that really hone in on the wants of the Warrior market. I have a few ideas in the works, but I really need to make sure that it fits the demands of this audience. I get it… I understand it… but I’m not feeding into it 100%. That’s what I need to concentrate on.
Understanding your audience is great, but if you’re not giving them what they demand, then you might as well not try to sell anything at all.
So now that I’ve totally exposed myself, what bits of self-advice have you vowed to live up to for the month of April? Leave a comment so we may all learn from experience.
About Dahlia
Devesh from 
Brandon on 
Hi Dahlia,
Awesome report. You’re doing super impressive work. Triberr is great community. I created an account there, last month but I’m not much active there. Thanks for the kick.
Btw. You may way to checkout a new site dimblr, it is something similar to Triberr.
Thanks for sharing this great post and mentioning Blokube .
~Dev
Devesh recently posted..Use these 5 Simple Tools to Grow Your Online Business
Twitter: tnsblog
Hey Dev… Thanks for the heads up about dimblr. I’m off to go check it out!
Dahlia
Twitter: thatIMthing
Hi Dahlia,
thanks for sharing your insights and your testimonial about Triberr. I’m just curious, why would you want to create a new product, market it through blog commenting and other efforts and then only make 45 $ -150 $ a day ? I also can’t really see the passive aspect of this type of income.
What do you think ?
Take care
Oliver
Oliver Tausend recently posted..Power Of Gratitude Pt 8 – Blessings Of A Home-Based Business
Twitter: luckyoliver70
Hi Oliver… Good question. The comments actually continue to generate sales after I make them, so in that aspect they are contributing to a passive sale. The comments also lead to other things, like Tweets and social media linking from others, so it trickles down to it being passive.
I’m still mastering it so that I’ll have to do less work on the front end. My plan will eventually include affiliates, which I’m sure will really make the passive income difference. Inch by inch it’s a cinch!
Dahlia
Twitter: thatIMthing
I am learning so much just from your trial and error so I truly thank you and appreciate you for sharing this info!
And girl, you know people don’t want to work! Have you researched other sites that may be more receptive to your products over the WF? That may be a good exercise.
TTYL
~Kesha
Kesha @st. louis website design recently posted..Using Facebook Lists for Maximum Productivity and Separation
Twitter: Xdwebsolutions
LOL Kesha! I know, I know, but you know… I can’t lie and say it’s all a downward slide when it’s not. Gosh, will honesty PLEASE pay off!
I’ve looked at other places besides WF, but the potential for a big payday is too much for me to turn away at this point. I’m already knee deep in it so I’ll keep going. Now if I’m still at it a year later, with no better results, I’ll send you a plane ticket so you can come slap me.
D-
Twitter: thatIMthing
LOL! OMG…There will be No slapping going on here. We are going to find away to make this work for you. And honesty on your blog is a good thing because one of your commenter will have the answer you are looking for.
I’m thinking about joining Triberr..I will eMail you.:-)
~Tisha
Hi Tisha… Yeah, I hope it doesn’t get to the point of slapping!
I’m getting ready to send you the Triberr invite.
Dahlia
Twitter: thatIMthing
WOW Dahlia you seem to be doing well for a 2 month blog. Despite my 600 followers, I’m dying to increase my twitter traffic and your Triberr invite would come in handy.
Please check your email. Thanks
Twitter: udegbunamchuks
Hi Udegbunam… Doing well, but the go-getter in me says I could be doing much better, lol. My shortcomings are teaching me a lot along the way.
As the old saying goes, no pain, no gain!
Dahlia
Twitter: thatIMthing
Well done, Dahlia-
Not only are you actually selling your e-book, but you’re doing the work of testing and analyzing the results.
And I love that you’re sharing all the “nitty gritty” with us.
Thanks for letting us in on your journey.
I for one, am learning a thing or two, for sure!
Wishing you well-
Nanette
Nanette Saylor recently posted..How to Find the Courage to Commit to Goals
Hi Nanette… It makes me feel better about slogging ahead when others are learning from my journey.
The journey I take isn’t perfect, but it’s interesting. I feel like I’ve got a homerun coming soon!
Dahlia
Twitter: thatIMthing
wow I wish I will be having your success when the time comes.. At the moment though my blog is not getting me anywhere near your earnings.. I am trying to poke around the warrior forum to see if I can change things around for me.. Congratulations by the way.. I could only imagine how much you will be earning if you did not have those listed things above working against you
Hi Lynn… the Warrior Forum is a good place to sell your ideas. But they definitely have to match a specific formula and you have to willing to participate. On a side note, I have made some pretty decent money selling my e-books there, so even though it’s not a huge payday, it’s enough to keep me motivated.
Keep up the good fight and you’ll make it happen!
Dahlia
Twitter: thatIMthing
Hi Dahlia,
First off: great job! You’re doing what most people would love to do and that’s earning money online. Even if it was $30 you’d still be proving that it can be done.
Automation does win and it’s sad. Many newcomers want that “push button” formula or some copy and paste program to riches. It doesn’t exist. This takes work. But just be persistent with promoting your eBook and I’m sure word will continue to get out.
My advice to myself is to improve my podcast show since it’s now public-facing and not just sitting on my hard drive. Also, to complete the new autoresponder series that I have been meaning to roll out. I have to keep taking action!
Do you intend to add more content to your eBook or make a second edition and raise the price?
Jon
Jon recently posted..Smart Online Business Strategy- First Episode and Introduction
Hi John… Thanks for the kudos! And good for you for moving forward with your podcast. Action is often easier said than done. But it’s sooo relieving to get things done. Even if things don’t work out (like you said in your failure post), at least you know you got out there and did something.
I’m going to keep working on e-books because I enjoy this business model. Though I think I’m going to delve into some more niche markets and see how that goes. I’ll be back here reporting my results in May!
Dahlia
Twitter: thatIMthing
Dahlia, aloha. Realizing that I had been missing you, I came over to see what was happening. Imagine my surprise when I saw your kudos. Thank you so much, Dahlia; I so appreciate your kind words.
Like you, I am finding that Tribber is driving lots of traffic to my site and I am loving the new people I am meeting. Dan and Dino put together such an awesome platform. Even though you do not have a huge number of personal followers, with the exposure Triberr gives you, once people “meet” you, they are hooked because you consistently deliver solid quality content.
Hope all went well with your move. Over the weekend, I will put together some thoughts I wants to share with you as well as some questions I have for you. Look forward to connecting with you soon. Aloha. Janet
Janet @ The Natural Networker recently posted..Seduce Your Lizard Brain by Janet Callaway The Natural Networker
Twitter: janetcallaway
Hi Janet… I’m so glad you stopped by! Triberr is definitely a keeper and I’m happy that you turned me on to it.
The move is still in progress. I’m downsizing so I can save up my pennies for the move to your Aloha state later this year. I haven’t been on the road in such a long time… I can’t wait to get out there again.
Let’s definitely talk soon!
Dahlia
Twitter: thatIMthing
Hi Dahlia, some great tips in there. I am currently writing an Ebook and I have just learned a ton.
Thanks for sharing your experience, I wish you the best in April.
Cheers
Hey Real guy John
Are you working on a expat-type of ebook? Can you spill the beans a little?
Dahlia
Twitter: thatIMthing
Hey Dahlia,
Congrats on the success of your eBook. We lovee that you’re part of theTriberr community!
Dan Cristo recently posted..How to Steal Your CEO’s Identity
Thanks Dan… I love Triberr!
Twitter: thatIMthing
Its awesome to see what Triberr can do in terms of traffic. And I promise you, this is only the beginning
Just you wait till you see what we have in store over the next few months.
Dino Dogan recently posted..Top 3 Tribe Building Strategies for Bloggers