The Value of Testing

One of the most important aspects of affiliateThe first and most important goal for Trevor is to
marketing is testing. This allows you to know whatget traffic to his site. Without traffic, this website is
works best for your particular website and gives youas good as your personal hand written diary. Traffic
the warning signs that you are possibly going downencourages an excitement about your website and
the wrong route. Testing gives you the ability to buildwill ultimately make you money. There are hundreds
the optimal website on which every space is filled inif not thousands of different ways to get traffic to
the most profitable way.your site. Each feature you add or remove from
It is vital that you have access to Real Time stats ifyour site, could change your daily ratio from 10 to 1
you want to be able to test out your ideas. Mostvisitor or just as easily, from 10 to 10000 visitors.
affiliate networks offer this feature for free, andThe beauty about testing is it never ends.
there are plenty software packages on the marketOnce Trevor has sufficient traffic visiting and
which will track this for you. In this way, you will berevisiting his site, he needs to work a way that
able to see straight away if the change you haveencourages the visitors to stay and browse. Through
made has had any benefit to your online business.informative articles or interesting campaigns, Trevor is
Sometimes the crucial make break changes, do notnow able to test what works for his visitors and
immediately track a huge turn around of yourwhat does not work. As Trevor gains knowledge in
business, but often there will be some hint whichthe power of testing, he will look for the hidden, less
gives you the hope that you are moving in the rightobvious changes to test. A good example of this, is
direction.the difference it can make whether the name of the
What exactly is testing? It can be as small as movingwebsite is displayed at the top middle, top left or top
a banner from the top right hand corner to the topright of the page. The importance of this decision can
left. It can be as huge as rethinking your wholehave a significant impact on the amount of
model of how you will get traffic to your site. Ittype-in-traffic Trevor will receive to his site.
could simply mean you need to replace theOne of the most important parts of affiliate
campaigns you are currently running. Whether yourmarketing is testing. This allows the affiliates to know
goal is to get visitors to your site, give your visitors athe impact of each new idea and determine whether
wonderful time or it is to make money from everyevery change made will benefit or improve their site.
visitor that enters your site, testing will give you theTesting hints or spells out exactly what works and
tools to spot what is working and what needs to bewhat needs to be rethought. Thus, if you are
rethought.interested in affiliate marketing, make it a goal to be
Let us look at an example. Trevor is running ainterested in testing.
website on Disney World. He joins an affiliateTesting is not restricted to websites. It is just as
network and picks 3 offers which he will run on hiseffective if you want to improve your mailers or
Disney World website. They include an email submitblogs as well. Don't hold back on testing, it is one of
campaign, a zip code campaign and a shopping sitethe most powerful tools for success, and vital if you
where his visitors can purchase Disney goods. He alsowant to succeed. From the moment you decide to
puts a bit of adsense on the top and left hand sidebuild a website, start a mailing list or write a blog,
of his website. The rest of the site is filled withtesting each step can only be of benefit to you and
content and pictures. At these early stages of thehelp you succeed.
website, Trevor already needs to start testing.