It’s Monday again, and my affiliate email follow-up sequence needs some serious attention!
The leaves have fallen here in Sweden, the garden is waiting for someone to pick up a rake, and my to-do list seems to be growing faster than my email subscriber list.
Not exactly an unusual Monday, in other words. 🙂
But I’m looking forward to another week of working on my online business, even if I have to divide my time between my regular job, recovering from a stubborn cold, and continuing my journey from zero to $10,000 in online earnings through affiliate marketing.
And today I’ve identified something that really needs my attention.
My email subscribers need more follow-up messages.
Some of my existing automated sequences have already finished for certain subscribers, which means it’s high time to create something new and useful for them.
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Now, let me tell you what I’m planning for today.
Another $10 in Affiliate Commissions
First, a quick update on my earnings.
Yesterday, I reported approximately $1,760 in cumulative ClickBank Profit Club affiliate commissions.
Since then, another $10 in affiliate commission has been recorded, bringing my running total to approximately $1,770.
Not an enormous jump, of course, but I’ll happily take it!
When you’re trying to build something that will eventually replace your regular income, every bit of progress is encouraging.
My subscriber count, however, remains unchanged since yesterday.
That’s fine. I know from experience that things don’t necessarily move forward every single day.
What matters is continuing to work on activities that could help the business grow over time.
And that’s where today’s main task comes in.
Why My Affiliate Email Follow-Up Sequence Needs Attention
I’ve been building my email list using AWeber, and I’ve already set up automated campaigns to introduce subscribers to affiliate marketing opportunities and useful resources.
But I’ve now reached a point where some people have received all the emails in their existing sequences.
That creates a problem.
Not because every subscriber needs another sales pitch, but because the relationship shouldn’t simply end when the last automated email has been delivered.
Think about it.
Someone subscribes because they’re interested in learning more about affiliate marketing.
They receive their first emails, perhaps explore an offer or read some useful information, and then the messages stop.
If I don’t continue providing something worthwhile, why would they remember me a month or two later?
Of course, I don’t want to bombard people with promotional emails either.
The objective is to find a sensible balance between useful information, personal experiences and relevant recommendations.
My affiliate email follow-up sequence should help people make progress, not just encourage them to buy something.
That’s particularly important when many subscribers are beginners.
What I’m Planning to Add to My AWeber Campaigns
My first priority today is to review the campaigns I’ve already created.
I want to see where subscribers are finishing their current sequences and decide what should happen next.
Rather than creating a large number of random messages, I’d like the next stage to follow a more natural progression.
For example:
- Practical affiliate marketing advice. Sharing lessons from my own experiences, including what’s working and what hasn’t worked particularly well.
- Useful tools and resources. Introducing services or training that could genuinely help someone build their online business.
- Relevant affiliate offers. Recommending opportunities that fit the subscriber’s interests rather than promoting everything available.
- Personal progress updates. Showing what I’m doing myself, including my results, mistakes and challenges.
- Opportunities to engage. Encouraging readers to ask questions, reply to an email or explore a topic further.
I also need to make sure the campaigns are connected properly so that subscribers don’t end up receiving confusing or unnecessary duplicate messages.
AWeber has documentation on creating automated email workflows, which is useful when reviewing how messages, waiting periods and subscriber journeys fit together.
None of this is especially glamorous work.
Writing emails, checking links, adjusting timing and testing automations can be time-consuming.
But it could prove more valuable than publishing another dozen social media posts without having a proper follow-up system in place.
After all, getting a subscriber is only the beginning.
For beginners looking for more structured guidance on building an online business, I also recommend exploring the Coaching Profit System, one of the resources I promote as part of my affiliate marketing activities.
Using Buzz Builder to Start More Conversations
The second major item on today’s agenda is Buzz Builder.
I’ve mentioned this new product in an earlier article, and now I want to spend more time putting its ideas into practice.
One of the biggest challenges with social media is that simply sharing a link doesn’t necessarily give people a reason to interact.
I’ve been experimenting with different approaches, particularly on LinkedIn and Facebook.
The idea behind Buzz Builder is to create content that encourages curiosity and conversations.
Rather than starting every post with an affiliate link, I want to develop posts that invite people to participate.
That might involve asking a relevant question, sharing a lesson from my own journey or describing a problem that other beginner affiliate marketers recognize.
For example, I’ve recently been working on improving my blog’s loading speed.
My previous article, WordPress Image Optimization: My 20-Second Wake-Up Call, describes how I discovered that oversized images were contributing to a serious website performance problem.
That experience could easily become the starting point for a social media discussion.
Something like:
“Have you ever spent weeks trying to attract more website visitors, only to discover that your website itself might be driving them away?”
It’s a genuine question based on something I’ve experienced myself.
And I think those sorts of conversations can be more interesting than another generic promotional post.
With Buzz Builder, I want to experiment with different post ideas, attention-grabbing openings, discussion questions and calls to action.
I’m not expecting the tool to magically produce subscribers or sales.
I still need to select the ideas, personalize the content, publish it and actually participate when someone responds.
But if it helps me communicate more effectively and consistently, that alone could make it worthwhile.
Building an Audience, Not Just Collecting Email Addresses
One thing I’ve been thinking about lately is the difference between having an email list and having an audience that actually knows and trusts you.
They’re not necessarily the same thing.
An email address is useful, but it doesn’t tell you whether someone is interested in what you have to say.
That’s why I’m increasingly interested in connecting the different parts of my business.
My blog gives me a place to share longer articles and document my progress.
LinkedIn allows me to participate in discussions with people who are interested in marketing, SEO and online business.
Facebook gives me another opportunity to start conversations.
And AWeber allows me to follow up with people who have chosen to hear more from me.
Ideally, these activities should support one another instead of operating as separate projects.
Someone might first discover one of my posts, visit the blog, subscribe to my list and eventually explore an affiliate offer.
But that won’t happen simply because I’ve published a few posts.
I need useful content, relevant calls to action and a follow-up process that makes sense.
That’s the system I want to keep improving.
Autumn in Sweden and a Cold That Won’t Leave
Meanwhile, the weather has definitely moved into late autumn here in Sweden.
Most of the leaves have now fallen from the trees, which means it’s officially leaf-raking season.
Not my favorite activity, I must admit!
But unless someone invents a way for the leaves to collect themselves, the job still needs doing. 🙂
It won’t be happening today, though.
I’m still recovering from the cold that has been bothering me for a while, and I don’t see much point in rushing back into physical activity before I’m properly recovered.
The leaves can wait.
I’ve also got work to do at my regular job, so there are already enough demands on today’s schedule.
I’m fortunate that I can work on many parts of my affiliate business from my computer, even when I’m not feeling quite at my best.
That doesn’t mean I have unlimited energy, of course.
Something I occasionally seem to forget when planning my day!
The $10,000 Goal Is Still Very Much Alive
My long-term goal remains the same.
I want to build an online business that eventually earns $10,000, and then continue developing it into something capable of providing a more substantial and dependable income.
I’m not there yet.
My cumulative commissions are now around $1,770, my subscriber list is still relatively small, and there is plenty of work ahead.
But there’s also a lot I’ve learned since starting.
I’ve learned more about affiliate offers, email marketing, content creation, website performance and the importance of tracking results.
Perhaps most importantly, I’ve learned that making progress isn’t always about adding something completely new.
Sometimes it means improving something you’ve already built.
This weekend, it was my website’s image optimization.
Today, it’s my email follow-up sequences and social media engagement strategy.
Different activities, but both part of the same bigger picture.
Today’s Goals — According to an Optimist!
So, here’s what I would ideally like to accomplish before the day is over:
- Review my existing AWeber email sequences and identify where subscribers are no longer receiving automated follow-ups.
- Create and prepare useful new emails, including relevant affiliate recommendations.
- Experiment with Buzz Builder to develop social media posts that encourage more conversations and potential subscribers.
- Handle my regular job and continue recovering from this cold.
Will I manage everything?
Well, anyone who knows Fredrik Gustafsson will probably tell you that I’m something of a time optimist.
I have an impressive ability to underestimate how long things are actually going to take!
But that’s okay.
If I don’t finish everything today, I’ll continue tomorrow.
The important thing is to keep moving in the right direction.
And hopefully, by the end of this week, I’ll have a better email follow-up system, some interesting new conversations and perhaps another small step toward that $10,000 goal.
If you’re starting your own affiliate marketing journey, you can explore ClickBank Profit Club or learn more about the Coaching Profit System.
I’ll keep sharing my experiences, results and lessons as I go.
Affiliate disclosure: This article contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase through one of these links, I may earn a commission at no additional cost to you. All earnings mentioned are my cumulative affiliate commissions, not net profit, and they are not a guarantee of typical or future results.
