7/27/24

The following post contains affiliate links. This means I get a commission if you decide to make a purchase through my links, at no additional cost to you. Please read my disclosure page for more information.

This is a review of the free eBook, Affiliate Marketing Tips for Bloggers. At the time, I was looking for ways to make money doing what I enjoyed — you guessed it, blogging. Lurko and I were already documenting our continuing saga of moving to Mexico and living off-grid, so we essentially had a blog. We even had a few followers. What would it take to transform our online journal into a money-making venture?

I read everything I could get my hands on about making money from blogging. Eventually, I stumbled upon Michelle Schroeder-Gardner’s blog, Making Sense of Cents. From her, I learned there were LOTS of ways to make money blogging! One of these ways was affiliate marketing, which basically sounded like talking about products you enjoy using. That sounded like something a shy introvert like me could do.

I wanted to learn more, so I downloaded the free eBook, Affiliate Marketing Tips for Bloggers. To do so, I was asked to join Michelle’s email list, which I did, knowing I could unsubscribe at any time. And then I dived in!

What I Liked

Here’s what I liked about the free 36-page eBook:

• IT’S FREE. We love free!
• I have enjoyed the (also free!) email list that goes with it, and I find the weekly tips to be helpful.
• The eBook is visually attractive and well-organized.
• The author shares her personal success story, as well as the stories of other people like me who were new to affiliate marketing and found success. The stories are all inspiring and motivating.
• Throughout the eBook, there’s a lot of links that lead to more information, such as starting a blog, if you’re the kind of person who enjoys going down rabbit holes.
• Though the eBook is an advertisement for the (not-free) affiliate marketing course, the advertising is subtle, in the form of gentle reminders and nudges that don’t detract too much from the learning.
• The eBook answers a lot of frequently asked questions — questions I also had! How can a beginner like me make money with affiliate marketing? What affiliate programs can I join right away? How would I get paid? The eBook told me.
• Michelle also goes over some strategies to increase your affiliate marketing income. There’ a lot more involved than sticking some links in your blog post and hoping for the best.
• The advice includes a major legal nugget: always disclose your affiliate links! You will get into big trouble with the FTC if you don’t!
• Michelle includes testimonials from people who took her course, who also offer tips on how to use affiliate marketing successfully. Everyone remembers the first sale they made, and it’s inspiring to read their stories.

What Didn’t I Like?

This is going to be an honest review, so I will also share the negatives about the Affiliate Marketing Tips for Bloggers eBook.

• It’s basically an ad for the course, Making Sense of Affiliate Marketing. But we knew that going in, and the plugs weren’t super obnoxious.
• Some of the strategies, Michelle just touches on without going into too much detail. Of course that is to get you to buy the course and that is fair, but there’s still that sense of “awwww” when you realize you’re not going to be diving in.
• 20 out of 36 pages are testimonials and tips from other people. It IS inspiring and it IS interesting to read others’ stories, but after about 13 or 14 testimonials I was ready to move on. I didn’t read the whole thing. I think Michelle could have put in only half of those tips/ testimonials and gotten the same effect.

Bottom Line

Overall, Affiliate Marketing Tips for Bloggers was an enjoyable read and I did learn a bit. I will warn that it left me wanting more, and in the end, I was convinced to sign up for the full course. So, mission accomplished and good job! Your mileage may vary. If you’d like to read my review of the course, Making Sense of Affiliate Marketing, go here for that. Then you can make up your own mind about whether you want to go the affiliate marketing route.