Is it worth getting Affiliate Manager 1st Edition?

One of the first things that will hit you about the Affiliate Manager course is the price tag of just $3 short of $1,000.

Of late there has been a spate of high-ticket courses. Some of them have been worth every cent and more, whereas others have failed to live up to all of the hype that went into launching them.

I'm pleased to say that of all the high priced course this one actually represents amazing value for money. Before you go back and read that last sentence again let me repeat - this one represents amazing value for money!

The reason I think it is exceptional value is because it's not theory or wishy-washy possibilities, it's a seriously in-depth study of exactly what needs to be done to start and manage a successful affiliate program.

Let me go through exactly what you receive for your money.

Ring Binder

The binder contains a step-by-step guide to the whole world of affiliate marketing. There's not a sentence of padding, just paragraph after paragraph of quality writing that explains every aspect of Internet marketing in clear, easy to understand terms.

On the day it arrived I took this ring binder to a nearby park to read through whilst I munched on my lunch in the sun. I expected to be able to skim read the whole thing in an hour and figured I already knew 90% of what would be inside.

How very wrong I was!

Two hours later and I was still making notes on Chapter 1. Not only had I learned a lot, but it had also fired up my enthusiasm in a major way. I was chomping at the bit to get back to the office and discuss what I'd read about with my colleagues.

I'd promised one of them that she could take home the course that evening, but I'm embarrassed to say that a whole week went by before she managed to prise it out of my hands.

You must remember that by this point I hadn't made use of any of the other resources in the box - just the ring binder, and I already thought the course was worth a lot more than the asking price - but more on that later.

DVD of Affiliate Marketing Boot Camp

This is a two DVD set of an entire days presentation at Bally's in Las Vagas. It's professionally filmed and has very clear audio and accompanying graphics.

Anik has an entertaining style that makes watching these DVDs a pleasurable experience and the pace is swift so there's little time to get bored.

I'm sure being present at this event would have been a wonderful experience, but there's one major benefit to having it on DVD rather than seeing it live and that is that you can pause it at any time. The reason you will want to pause it is because Anik will really get your mind on fire with exciting ideas and concepts and you'll want to make notes whilst these are still fresh in your mind.

Audio CDs

In total there are eleven audio CDs included with the course. These include some of the biggest names in the affiliate marketing and internet marketing world. It's a veritable whos-who.

This isn't just a hotch-potch of audio that has been thrown in to beef up the offering. Not at all. It's a well thought out collection of pre-recorded interviews covering all of the important subject areas relating to setting up and running an affiliate programme. Here's a short list of just some of the subjects covered:

• The Secrets of Developing Powerful Upsells
• Future Outlook for Careers in Affiliate Management
• How to Prevent Spyware from Destroying your Affiliate Program
• How to Easily Incorporate GoldCan intoi your Affiliate Program
• The ShareASale Network
• The PayDotCom Network
• How to Launch an Affiliate Program through Clickbank
• The Kowabunga Network
• The Linkshare Network
• The Commission Junction Network

Resources Guide

I've already found this to be an excellent reference guide that I've referred to successfully on several occasions. It includes a choice selection of links to pretty much every category of resources you could imagine. So, if you find yourself looking for some autoresponder software just turn to the appropriate section in the guide. There's a detailed contents listing so it's easy to see what information is available and where it is in the guide.

JV Guide

This is a 82-page publication that goes into a lot of detail about finding and managing joint venture partners. Like the rest of the material in the course it's excellently written and goes into a lot of depth. Forming joint venture partnerships can be a mutually beneficial way of taking your business to the next level, so just one or two good ideas from this one publication can pay for the whole course many times over.

Checklists

The Affiliate Manager includes several excellent checklists on different colored sheets. Here's a list of what they cover.

• Are You Affiliate Friendly? Checklist
• Affiliate Agreement Checklist
• Affiliate Survey Checklist
• Outsourcing Decision Checklist
• Affiliate Program Metrics Checklist
• Teleseminar Checklist
• Affiliate Boot Camp Cheat Sheet
• Complete Affiliate Program Planning Checklist  

Some checklists can be a complete waste of time because they are not thorough enough, but this is certainly not the case with these. A huge amount of thought has obviously gone into distilling the most important facts for each topic into just two sides of paper.

When used in conjunction with the rest of the material that comes with the course these checklists provide an excellent aide-mémoire to make sure you don't overlook any aspect of your affiliate program.

Template and Checklist CD

On this CD you'll find a collection of very useful resources that will save you hours of time.

• Affiliate Newsletter Templates
• Super Affiliate Recruitment Snail Mail Letters - Templates
• Recognition Certificate Templates (MSWord Templates)
• Affiliate Recognition & Award Snail Mail Letters - Templates
• Affiliate Program Launch - Budget Checklist/Spreadsheet
• Affiliate Competition - Budget Checklist/Spreadsheet

In conclusion

My recommendation would be to only invest in this course if you can answer YES to all three of the following questions.

1. Don't spend $1000 on this if you are going to just stack it on a shelf when it arrives. There are far cheaper ways of filling shelf space than spending $1,000.
2. Only invest your money in this course if you are really going to take the time to study it, learn from it and put into practice what you learned.
3. Only invest in this course if you already have an affiliate scheme in place, you can add an affiliate scheme to an existing business or you have a great idea for a new business that would rely heavily on starting up and operating an affiliate program.

If you did answer YES to all three of the above then I'd certainly consider getting your credit card out now and placing your order immediately, before you let the moment pass you by.

Affiliate Manager 1st Edition really is a course that will pay for itself many times over. So far I have only implemented a few of the ideas and concepts it teaches and I've already seen results that have translated straight through to the bottom line.

At $1000 it may sound like a lot of money, but just a single worthwhile idea can recoup that expenditure many times over, not just this month, but for many months and years to come. Don't focus on the $1000 as being a cost. Think of it as being an investment in your future that is going to pay dividends for years to come.

This is not a course full of hot-air. It's an in-depth, systemized approach to one of the most important aspects of Internet marketing. If you master these techniques you really will put yourself in the top 3% of Internet marketers across all products and services.

And the really great thing is that what you learn on this course isn't just applicable to the business you are running now. It's something you can take with you and utilize on every business you're involved in, both now and long into the future.

This is exciting stuff and if you answered YES to the three questions above I can guarantee you that it will be worth its weight in gold to you.

Click here to order your copy of Affiliate Manager

If you don't have the money to invest in Affiliate Manager now the next best thing to do would be to visit Anik's Affiliate Classroom site where you'll find lots of useful resources and information on the subject of affiliate programs in general.