That is to say… I’ve finally converted sales on one of my affiliate websites that I have been working on with Fresh Store Admin.

This was the one site where I actually paid for Fresh to do the link building.  They did their thing, the page jumped from PR 0 to 1 almost right away and I’m averaging 15 to 20 clicks per day.  The link building strategy was to build a feeder site linking to the money site and a link wheel. The guy gave me a diagram of what was done.  I was beginning to think these things would never convert.  Right now Amazon is only paying me 4% of the order but that can go up to 15% if I sell more items.  I think that if I can get to about 250 visits a day on all these sites, I’ll have a significant little passive income network going on.  Very excited.

Over the past month or so I’ve been experimenting with Fresh Store Builder an Amazon Affiliate Script.  The investment for the script was minimal (around $75) and I must say the sites I’ve been able to churn out look pretty good.  I was led to the script by a forum when I was doing research on Associate-O-Matic, another script I was considering.  The consensus was that Fresh Store Builder looked the best and was the best for SEO.  I had a couple of domains sitting in my account collecting virtual dust so I figured I’d give it a shot.

Remember the logo I had done on Fiverr for The Birthstone Store?  Well it was about time I put that precious little gem (sorry for the terrible pun) to good use.  The script was super easy to install.  I just uploaded all the files via ftp, and followed a temporary wizard form at my site’s domain to configure everything.  If you know how to use ftp and simply create a MySQL database and user, you won’t have any trouble.  If you don’t know how to do those things… google harder.  Seriously, you can figure it out with about 10 minutes of focus.

Once the script was installed, I just logged into its Content Management System and started messing around.  The Fresh Store Builder website’s members section had some tutorials that were helpful as well as a checklist to be completed for a proper launch.  Beyond that, they encourage you to visit their forum or submit support tickets for help.  The forums were pretty weak.  There aren’t really a lot of active pros on the boards but I have submitted a number of support tickets (the software isn’t perfect) and they have been very timely and helpful.

In theory, this could prove to be VERY passive income.  If I can manage to get traffic to the sites.

Pros:

• Inexpensive
  
• Easy install, minimal programming skill required
• looks great and there are a few really good templates
• Optimized for SEO
• integrates with Best Spinner software for more unique content
• Will automatically populate with products, reviews and descriptions from Amazon
• No inventory or order processing… Amazon does all that for you.
• Speedy Support
• Easy sitemapping

Cons:

• Some errors in the script
• Not all templates allow you to edit site components through the site itself (but for the ones that do this is a great feature)
• Amazon commissions are pretty low until you have sold a lot of items.
• Weak forum
• You cannot output feeds to shopping directories as you would with traditional e-commerce stores.

If you want to have a look at what I’m working on, check out my sites:

• The Birthstone Store
• The Promise Ring Store
• 2012 Survival Supply
• Microscopes Unlimited (may be down for construction)

As of now, nothing has converted.  I’ll let you know if any of them turn a profit.  So far I think it’s worth it though.  Shameless affiliate link: http://www.freshstorebuilder.com/r/rockapreneur/

Staying healthy can be difficult on the road.  There is the urge to snack on chips and soda at every rest stop, and the temptation to sample every town’s famous fried foods.  How can you say no to Chicago style pizza and Philly Cheesesteaks when you’re in their respective towns?  The calories add up, but at least you can burn some of them off with your rock every night.  Even better if you are a DIY band and have to load your own gear.  Then you come back home.  You’ve developed drinking and eating habits that don’t suit a sedentary lifestyle.  How do Rock Stars stay so skinny!?  …probably cocaine.  But since Bay and I aren’t that cool, we have to work out.

A couple years ago, I completed about 8 weeks of P90x and was getting into the best shape of my life.  Then my roommate broke my resistance bands and it was easy to excuse myself from the rest of the program.  Well, it’s time to shape up again and this time I figured I’d give another Beachbody program a shot.  Enter Insanity.

Insanity is based on the concept of Maximum Interval Training, in which you push your body to its limits for an extended period of time and then briefly cool off before launching back into the intensity.  Apparently it is super effective and this program is only 60 days, and doesn’t require any additional equipment purchases.  ie. NO EXCUSES.  Now hopefully Bay will get here soon, because I’m stoked to start Day 2, Plyometric Cardio Circuit!

Alex after Day 2 of Insanity

I have recently become obsessed with a brilliant startup has emerged on the web called Fiverr.  Like most successful web concepts, the premise of the site is simple – the things people are willing to do for five bucks.  Since its inception, the site has exploded with new “gigs” (the tasks users will perform for the money) and all you need to participate is a PayPal account.  Whether you need consultation on SEO, or someone to call your kid and pretend to be Santa Clause, someone will most likely be able to accomodate you.

Obviously, you could channel your creativity and potentially make a lot of money on the site, but I’m more interested in the potential for outsourcing tasks.  I first began to experiment by hiring people to perform promotional activities for my band.  Using Fiverr, I’ve been able to more than quadruple my band’s followers on Twitter. We’ve given all of our social networking sites, custom designed skins.   Our videos on Youtube now receive hundreds of additional daily views and we went from hundreds of fans on Facebook to thousands in a relatively short period of time.  User’s on Fiverr have designed posters for us and created press releases as well.  Note:  Sometimes you get what you pay for.  We have had a couple of lackluster results, but hey, its only five bucks and for the most part we’ve been pleasantly surprised.  I began to consider other ways I might benefit from the site.

Enter the entrepreneurial experiment.  Ever since I read The Four Hour Workweek by Tim Ferris, I’ve been trying to automate income with e-commerce.  Recently I had done some keyword research and saw some potential in drop shipping birthstone jewelry.  I figured I’d take the opportunity and see how much of the process I could outsource with Fiverr.  I bought TheBirthstoneStore.com and got to work… if you could call it that.  A better word would be delegation.

The first thing I needed was a logo.  I had an idea in my head but couldn’t find the words to articulate its expression.  The first gig I hired was “create 4 original vectorized logos logo for your company.” After completing my purchase I was presented with the following additional instructions to have my order fulfilled:

DESIGNINC REQUIRES THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION IN ORDER TO GET STARTED

Thanks for the order. This is for FOUR vectorized logo designs. No revisions. I can NOT design in web colors or dimensions to fit a web site. If you would ever give negative feedback for $5 worth of work, please cancel your order. YOU NEED TO HAVE $5 EXPECTATIONS.

I need: Company Name, Colors, 10 words or less what company does.

I meet ALL deadlines for logos. Let me work my magic for $1.25 per logo.

–CHRIS–

My Response:

1. The Birthstone Store (.com)
2. I can swap the main colors of my ecommerce theme between black, silver, red, blue, and green. I don’t know if it would be best to design with those colors or maybe use others to make the logo pop.
3. We sell birthstone jewelery online.

A few days later… the result:

Yuck.  He wasn’t kidding when he attempted to set my expectations with his first message.  I figured I’d give it another go with another designer on Fiverr.  This time I paid more attention to the customer reviews and everyone seemed thrilled with the next candidate.  His gig was titled “design a high quality LOGO for your Company.”  He seemed to be a bit more organized and had me complete a questionnaire about my logo on an external page.  I answered the questions, but was somewhat vague.  At this point I was more clear on what I didn’t want in my logo.  Holozo (the designer) sent me the following:

Thank you for the information.

I will begin work on the first concept, and deliver as soon as possible.

Logo Design is how I support my wife and children.

I ask that at any time during this project, if you feel my work will result in negative feedback, please let me know what can be done to rectify the situation.

I would much rather lose a few hours of my time then have a permanent negative feedback effecting my ability to put food on the table for my family.

I average over 50 orders at a time. If you are in a hurry to receive your logo, please see:

I will move your logo up in my design queue for $5
http://www.fiverr.com/users/holozo/gigs/move-your-logo-up-in-my-design-queue

-William H
Web & Logo Designer
Holozo

How clever.  This seller has managed to create tier pricing with compound gigs.  I was in no hurry so I opted to have my logo designed at the normal pace.  Give it a few more days and…

Please let me know if the design is acceptable, or any revisions which need to be made, or if you would like for me to give it another try.

If you would like another try, please provide as much information as to where I went wrong and where I need to go with the design to satisfy your needs.

Please be as descriptive as possible, “Make the design better”, unfortunately doesn’t help me understand what you are truly seeking.

I strive to satisfy all of my clients. Once you are happy with the design, let me know. I will then finalize the order and provide you with the large high quality images.

- William H
Web & Logo Designer
Holozo

Not bad… My response:

Hey, I like the design but I dont really like the jewel at the top. I think something smaller and less graphic would be better. Maybe a couple of small gemstones that look less like pictures and maybe a little more vector… hope that makes sense. The ‘Birthstone’ text is also a little fat. I’d like it too be a little sleeker and more sophisticated. Thank you so much.

The response and 2nd proof:

Please see attached.

Let me know if I am headed in the right direction, and any steps you would like me to take.

- William H
Web & Logo Designer
Holozo

Much better. But it needs more color.  These are gemstones after all…

So much better. Can we make the white jewel red? – Alex

And finally:

I am happy you like the design.

Please see attached.

Let me know if I am headed in the right direction, and any steps you would like me to take.

- William H
Web & Logo Designer
Holozo

BOOOYA!  Can you believe that only cost me five bucks?  Me either.  Getting this logo squared away certainly gave me some momentum.  Right away I began searching for more Fiverr gigs.  I got a package of 50 stock photos for any category.  I chose gemstones.  Most of the pics were useful.  I really wanted to say “there were a few gems in the bunch,”  but that would be confusing.  Now with most of the design elements taken care of, there was another consideration.  At some point I’d have to source products for my store.  The next gig I ordered promised to find good drop shippers for any type of product.  The seller presented 5 options but only one seemed reasonable.  I’m holding off on contacting them until after Christmas.  Something tells me I’m going to need more potential suppliers.  I also need to have confidence in them.  Too bad you can’t outsource trust.  Oh well.  So far my pet project has come quite a long way for less than 50 bucks.  I’ll post followups on the development of The Birthstone Store and our adventures in outsourcing as they come.  As always, your words are welcome.

So maybe you aren’t at the level where you and your band are being chauffeured into the hottest restaurants in town to feast for free.  But hey, you have to start somewhere.  If you try to eat fast food the whole time, your health and your performance will suffer.  Fortunately, we live in an era in which information is easy to come by and I’ve stumbled upon some valuable information about how to keep your belly and your wallet full.  Introducing Groupon and Livingsocial.

I think I originally learned about these sites through facebook ads or something.  The idea is to leverage the buying power of the masses through social media to get huge discounts and potentially free food.  I signed up but never really used the services.  I didn’t really want to dive in and start making my friends buy stuff with me.  It sounded like MLM or a pyramid scheme…(’bout to get lame) …a food pyramid scheme.  In the context of being in a touring band, however, this plan seems much more viable.  Think about it.  You are constantly traveling with a group of people who will be eating with anyway.  I’m pretty sure they’d all like to save a little money too.

To make matters easier, both companies offer smart phone apps.  If you have an iphone or other GPS enabled phone, the apps will pull your location and let you know where the nearby offers are.

Screenshot from Groupon demonstrating Smartphone capability

Now, this isn’t entirely fool proof.  You do have to get enough people to pay to play and not all the deals are based on food.  Today’s LA Groupon is for children’s fitness classes…  But it apparently works enough to let Josh Stevens from www.liveoffgroupon.com travel the country and live off of these deals.

I’m intrigued enough and have downloaded both apps but haven’t actually been able to put them to use.

Anyone out there attempted this?  Any tips or tricks?  Please share!

Update 8/11/10

I was browsing the web tonight when I stumbled upon a site that aggregates the offers from Groupon, Livingsocial, Twongo, and more.  The site is called Redeemio.  They don’t appear to offer any mobile apps but that could be on the way, but for now you’ll need mobile web access to take advantage of this site on the road.

When our band decided to go on tour, we sat down and brainstormed a packing list.  Some essentials were worth noting.

Your Equipment

Obvious.

Health Insurance

Don’t think you can play it safe.  If you think you’re broke now, just wait until you hurt yourself without insurance.  Sure you may never do enough damage to meet your deductible, but remember – that’s a good thing.

AAA

• Roadside assistance at even the most inconvenient times.
• The program covers you, not the car so really only one person in the vehicle needs the membership, but its cheap and worth it so cough it up. Current price: $20 sign up fee + $48 per year
• You get all sorts of great discounts on travel, restaurants, and entertainment – many of which could come in handy on the road.
• If you want they offer insurance.
• A full service travel agency – this service is free.  Stay tuned for another post where I use this to plan an actual tour.

Mobile High-speed Internet Access

After looking at all of the options we are choosing to go with the Virgin Pay As You Go plan.  The whole band wants internet so for about $150 you can buy the 3g to wifi usb router.  And since tours vary in length, you can just purchase minutes as you need to.  Contracts suck, especially when you may be splitting the bill with your band mates.  Someone is likely to get screwed.  The only downside is that its 3G, and the only way to get the much faster 4G is to sign a contract with Sprint.  Technology is always advancing, though.  By the time you read this, you’ll probably get more bandwidth for less money.  That’s another reason not to lock yourself down to any one provider.

Toiletries

We figured it was best to hit the dollar store and buy a communal supply of the basics and to bring a small bag for your more specific personal needs such as medicines.

Camera

We are going to be out on the road soon on a new adventure, seeing new places, and experiencing new things.  You may not always be able to tour and that’s why its great to have memories.  Also, taking candid pictures and videos and posting them online is a great way to keep your fans coming back for more.  One of those small flip cams or something comparable is ideal because they are easy to use and relatively inexpensive.

ID and Passport

Many band folk are strange folk and can sometimes draw the wrong attention in unfamiliar territory.  Should this attention be from the law, or require the assistance of the law, it is a great thing to be able to identify yourself.  I know it can feel a little big brotherish but if you want to use your music to unite the masses in revolt, you’ll have to play by the rules for now.

Can you think of anything I’m missing?

It looks like we’re going on tour in September!  I’m not afraid of roughing it now and then, but I am a man who appreciates his sleep.  I also don’t want to go broke so it’s time to set a hotel budget and plan accordingly.

Just as I said that, Choice Hotels ran an ad on my TV about their rewards program.  2 stays and I get a $50 restaurant gift card!? Let’s take a look.

Hmm… the promo ends in August.  I wonder if they’ll have more.  They have an Iphone app for booking on the go.  I think I’ll download that in case I decide to go a la carte with my hotel choices on the road. Let’s see if that’s even necessary.

The Oakland Clarion Hotel

I also found a part of the site where you can check for discounts of up to 20% for booking in advance.  Let’s try the first city on the tour – San Francisco, CA – Sept. 3rd-4th.

Yikes… the cheapest option is this hotel that’s not even in San Francisco.  It’s in Oakland and it’s $59 bucks for 2 people max.  While I’m sure this hotel is nice, I wonder if that is too far away and what the costs would be to accommodate our 4 person group on average elsewhere.  I remember when I drove out to California from Florida about a year ago.  I was just stopping at random motels along the highway and they were all around $60 bucks.  We could probably get away with sneaking a couple of extras in there but I wonder if there is a better deal out there.

And of course the universe answers with a Hotels.com Rewards Program commercial.

Stay 10 nights and get a night free!? Let’s check it out…

“After you stay 10 nights, over time, at any hotels.com partner property, we’ll give you a free night at a welcomerewards eligible hotel valued up to the average daily rate of your ten stays. Whether it’s a resort in the Bay Area or a cozy New England Bed & Breakfast is up to you.Welcomerewards eligible hotels are identified in your search results by the welcomerewards symbolwelcomerewards™” – Hotels.com

Well, at least it was easy to refer to the promotion on the website.  Let’s break it down.  Going off of our $60 a day average, we can estimate that we’ll have to pay about $600 before we receive a free night valued at $60.  $60 bucks is practically 6 meals! Not bad, but you do have to accumulate 10 stays.  Not really as impressive of a promotion as the Choice Hotels $50 restaurant gift card but it’s not like I can even use that anyway.

Since I’ll be running my business on the go, I’ll be able to use my American Express Gold Card for rewards points, and if I really wanted to, this would be a pretty good time to use some of the points I’ve already accumulated.  American Express loves to advertise their travel assistance.  Let’s see if there are any other benefits I can reap with AmEx on the road.

There’s Priority Club which features hotel chains like Holiday Inn and Crowne Plaza but rewards don’t start until you accumulate 10,000 points, meaning you’d have to spend $1000 bucks before you saw any benefit.  Maybe I’ll use some of my points with amex to get the benefits, but this is clearly not as good a value as Hotels.com.

Red Roof Inn has a loyalty program where you get a free night after spending $500. Red Roof as well as the Choice Hotels can be booked through Hotels.com.  It seems the best idea is to book through Hotels.com and determine which of these cheaper motel chains you like the most and try to double up on the rewards programs.