Obsessive Compulsive ADHD Affiliate Strategy
I often think about riding off into the sunset to become a full-time affiliate. As it is I don’t really have time to do affiliate marketing personally, but I dream up ideas and research niches all the time.
Even though I don’t have obsessive compulsive disorder or ADHD I imagine if I WERE a full-time affiliate, I’d be a lot like the author of the blog below. I think I’d have a bunch of half baked sites that needed work and always be working on launching a new site for the hottest new market that hit my fancy.
I know lots of affiliates who act like they have OCD and ADHD, but I don’t think they do. I just think the immense amount of information we have access too online and the huge number of opportunities, makes it easy to lose focus and jump from one thing to the next. If you can relate to any of this, then the blog below has some good tips and a strategy that I think makes some sense.
Affiliate Profile: Impulsive Obsessive Compulsive with ADD
“I’m an impulsive obsessive compulsive with ADD type personality. That means I get an idea in my head and jump on it. Immediately. Then I obsess over it for a period of time. Its all i think about. It’s all I do. Then all of a sudden, I get bored or get another idea and jump on it. This is a very bad, bad combination if you want to be an affiliate marketer. Here’s how I cope with my personal tendency to rush into and out of niche hair brain ideas.“
He shares 4 steps he takes to help avoid the tendency to jump from one thing to the next. Basically he forces himself to generate all the content and marketing pieces before he even lets himself buy a domain or build the site. Then he wraps it up by saying:
“The niche ideas that don’t make it through the process are the ones that would have likely failed anyway. If I’m not interested enough to generate good content, people sure will not be interested enough to visit the site.”
So what about you? Do you have affiliate OCD or ADHD or both???
How does it affect your business and what do you do to try to overcome it?
Share your thoughts below.
#1 nate wrote on Thursday, August 28th, 2008:
I don’t think I have any of those disorders, but I do exactly what that guy says he does. It’s just too much information and too many markets and opportunities that we see.
The other day my business partner and I were discussing new ideas when I said .. “yea, everyone has good ideas. It’s the ones who execute on them that win.”
His response was perfect. He said…
“That’s bulls**t. I’ve heard a ton of ideas from people, and 99% of them suck.”
So, the real question isn’t about capitalizing on all your ideas, it’s about finding the good ones in the mix and going for those. That’s why this guy’s process is good. It’s a filter.
#2 Linda Buquet wrote on Thursday, August 28th, 2008:
Hey Nate, thanks so much for weighing in! You’re exactly right and that’s a great way to look at this strategy - as a filter.
The other thing I’ve been thinking is that his 4 step process is really good for newbies to go through before they build a site. Sometimes they try to pick a little niche like “pug dog training” or try to tackle something big, competitive and boring like life insurance - just because it’s lucrative. If they don’t know about pug dog training or life insurance - if they find it boring and a chore to generate content - they could learn that lesson before they waste the time and money building out an actual site.
#3 peter bordes wrote on Thursday, August 28th, 2008:
I honestly don’t know how affiliates or any marketers can keep up with all the moving pieces. The markets and business cycles are moving incredibly fast. There are so many options and new layers of tools being introduced that you either have to have OCD to keep up with them or need to carve out a niche and own it.
Online media and marketing is a million dynamic pieces moving at light speed 24/7. I am starting to see new systems coming into the markets that integrate and automate them so we have more efficient time market and make our lives easier.
#4 Chad Timms wrote on Thursday, August 28th, 2008:
I will tell you that it is insanely easy to go online type in Affiliate Programs and get bombarded with information overload. There is an huge source of info but who do you know whom to trust? Well I am lucky enough to have found something I can focus on. It is easy to get sidetracked and then jump to a new program right away. You could literally sit in front of your computer and have 30 minutes pass by when it only feels like it has been 5. Stick to something that has a market and stay focused.
#5 phyneballs wrote on Thursday, August 28th, 2008:
i tried to sustain my lifestyle by doing affiliate business. It is not easy since i need to focus on the latest trends and latest products on the market. But what i learn is that the market is still there and we need to find it. Put an effort on bringing traffic to your website and you will see the results.