Full time Affiliate marketers/SEOs

[rfung]

How do you introduce yourself as far as your job goes?

"So, what is it that you do?"

Idle curiosity :)

[cagey1]

Anything like "Web Development" or "Web Design" is usually followed by "Could you make a website for me?" or "I've got a website that really needs some work, what do you charge?"

This is often effective:

"I own an international conglomerate"

[teenwolf]

The difference between success and failure is not knowledge, it's courage to take risks.

I couldn't agree more. The handful of people that I know that have tried and failed were not willing to take risks. That is the bottom line.

Anything like "Web Development" or "Web Design" is usually followed by "Could you make a website for me?"

That is a great point and has happened to me many times. Maybe I need to reconsider.

Perhaps I will try a new one, too -- "Professional Idiot"

[Michael Anthony]

"Could u make a website 4 me?"

Yes, but it'll be mine and I'll sell you the traffic. That way, when u stop paying me, I'll be able to sell the traffic to someone else.

That's my usual answer, anyway :)

[dataguy]

Yes, but it'll be mine and I'll sell you the traffic. That way, when u stop paying me, I'll be able to sell the traffic to someone else.

That's great. I just had a great line come to me on the spur of the moment....

I had someone ask if I could build a web site for them and I told them that I don't really do that anymore. I explained that they could tell me exactly what they wanted and I could work to get it just as they like it for a thousand dollars, or I could make my own site the way I want it, and make a thousand dollars a month from it. The person couldn't think of any response other than just "ah", and I was off the hook.

[HeyJim]

...or I could make my own site the way I want it, and make a thousand dollars a month from it.

Uh, do I use FrontPage or Dreamweaver to make one of those?

{wink}

[Zygoot]

No the real experts use MS Word, it generates instant highly SEO code ;)

Currently my website is some sort of hobby for me, with a more than decent revenue. But I plan to boost my traffic and create a few new sites to tripple my revenue.

[fhobiz]

What about this:

I run a Personal Web Franchise (PWF)...

[melon]

get a job and do SEO, so you can answer them.

[devonm]

I am now full time affiliate marketer. I am starting by building websites about various items and SEO-ing them and getting the .TK domains.If these work out then, I,ll be getting .coms.

[Zygoot]

>getting the .TK domains.If these work out then, I,ll be getting .coms.

IMHO that's a big mistake..

[brickwall]

At the moment I call myself "The Editor" of my single content site. Once I have several sites online, "The Editor" wouldn't be appropriate anymore.

In my observation, AMs who call themselves "President And Founder" of so-and-so internet business numbers the most. I just couldn't bare calling myself that.

[suzyvirtual]

I have tried every title imaginable and none of them seems to fit just right. I gave up the "web developer"/"I make websites" thing to avoid the "hey, help me make a website" thing.
At the moment I am using "I'm in internet marketing and advertising".
When asked who I work for I just say that I do freelance or consulting work for several companies.
Sometimes I just say I do freelance graphic design or freelance writing, both of which are true, although that work only produces a very small percentage of my income. I am technically trained as a jeweler, and do a bit of that on the side too, so sometimes I say I'm a jeweler.
As a result of my inconsistent and cagey answers to the question, most people seem to assume I am full of cr@p and that I must have an inheritance or a sugar daddy or something. That's okay because it staves off the "teach me how to do what you do" thing.

[Powdork]

Can all you folks that have people ask you to build them a website give them my email addy.

[suzyvirtual]

powdork, trust me, you don't want that...it is always somebody asking for you to make a website to sell some wretched and unmarketable hobby/craft and they are usually offering to pay a six pack of beer for your hours and hours of work.

[Powdork]

Oooh thats no good. I'd need 5 six packs of Fat Tire per hour.;)

[Noximus]

Zygoot, is right. devonm, why do you need .tk domains?

[West of Willamette]

Nice topic.

When I did pharmacy affiliate programs, I told people (jokingly) I was an "Online Drug Dealer". I don't do pharmacy anymore...so I just tell people I make money online. Very few ask for an explanation.

[suzi]

This was really, REALLY fun guys. You had me smiling.

[mykel79]

I live in Poland (that's in Europe for those who don't know;)), so there are even less people living off of affiliate marketing than in the US. A lot of them make a few bucks a month advertising a local auction site. Fortunately that also means almost no-one asks "can you make me a site?" when I say "I make websites".
My favorite reaction is when a person knows what I'm talking about, but asks "and you can live off of that?", with a patronizing look in their eye. I always think "if only you knew how well, you ignorant man" :))

[bts111]

I make money while I sleep...

That's one of my favorites : )

[Procyon]

"I make money while I sleep..."

I like that ;)

[BriGuy20]

Quoth the BTS:

I make money while I sleep...

I love that too. If I ever start doing infomercials, that's one of the things I'm going to use.

[Chef_Brian]

"I used to be a chef"

LOL ... people get confunsed with web marketing type anwers.

Cheers,

[rfung]

I make money while I sleep...

I haven't quite used that one, but I like to bring the example home and say "as I am talking to you here, I'm making money"... (what about you?MUAHAHHA)...

I'm still not confortable with the amount I make though, and this trip I'm in the UK has cost me more than I made last month. I think I'll only feel reasonably stable when I'm making $10k/month.