After reading tens of thousands of pages working to make money online, I’ve listed below 11 of the most important philosophies (must-do, must-have) that you need to have when you work with digital products in affiliate programs.



I’ve gone about designing my own affiliate program, which is running starting January 2009. I had to think very hard about making sure that I incorporate all the below elements to help my Affiliates build their own success.

I’ll discuss the below features after I cover the essential “must have" features of make money at home success building a quick income, and long-term sustainability.

The 11 Must Have Elements of a Make Money Online System:

1. Have Your Own Products:

Ask any online success story and this is the either the first word of advice or the last in a list of items that increase in importance. However, for the average online operative (That’s You!), maintaining and upgrading your own products and services are a nightmare. It’s a full time job that requires staff and specialized knowledge.

My solution to this ordeal is to provide a platform where my Affiliates can use the data gathered by the network I’ve setup, combined with easy to use software to design their own products and services that cater to their local “flavors".

These products, which are mostly digital, can then be easily setup, maintained and enhanced by one or more local affiliates. Most importantly, that can be done with a few hours work per week.

2. Be part of a Proven Sales Process:

When affiliates get started online, I don’t think they give much thought to corporate identities, corporate brands and even logos. I don’t think affiliates are overly concerned about a proven sales process either. They look at it as displaying a banner (creative) on their website, and then it’s out of their hands after the potential customer clicks away…

What I’ve focused on is a process by which Affiliates can “let the system" do it’s work while they focus on a local income. Each local “unit" does provide to the entire big picture, but in a way that does not take away from the Affiliates local success. It only enhances it.

Perhaps, the best way to explain this is to mention an example. Our Global Discount Card will utilize local and global sales incentives to members, but be presented as a “Local Card" –even the benefits will be locally managed. The products essentially is a custom version, designed and maintained by the Affiliate with the backing of a global organization.

The reason such a card works is because in the “sales process" most consumers will look for a discount –online and locally, before they make their purchase. Especially, during times like now!

3. Participate in Closed Environments:

Most Affiliate programs will allow just about anyone with a website to participate.

I don’t.

I only allow my Members, who show a basic ability to work and follow directions to participate. All the teaching is done from my Underground lessons area. I will keep expanding these lessons until several thousand Member receive the learning that they need to manage many aspects of my network.

As the network grows, there will be more and more communication to help Members understand what is going on and adjust to market conditions. I’ve even installed an instant communication system with the affiliate program to reach Affiliates. So, via IM, e-mail and the forum I will communicate to them what is the best way to make money online.

Of course, all this is available to my Members who participate in the Rich Sage Underground. My exclusivity will be your advantage as any local business will need your help to work with my tools and services!

4. Participate where the NUMBERS make Sense:

I just wrote about this in a post titled “Expanding Business Model" — How the numbers need to ‘add up’ before participating in a business plan. In my case the problem was that I needed to create a ’system’ where I felt confident that around 2,500 people could make a full-time income working with it. I felt that what I had setup could help perhaps 5% or 10%, but not much more.

Then I spent the past 4 months making updates and enhancing my system to include lead generation for local businesses. When I brought this element on board, it all made sense and the numbers added up.

I could see that first hand –why sell websites that were making good money earning from CPA (Click Per Action) advertising programs? The obvious answer was to build such sites for local businesses and then manage such sites for as long as the ROI was good.

When you are looking at any type of affiliate program or for that matter, any type of business –Make 100% sure that the “numbers work" –IF the numbers don’t add up to make money for you, don’t do it!

5. Try to Work with Proprietary, Protected Products:

In the traditional affiliate program, which are open to all, the competition for key words and advertising leads to an environment where affiliates are competing with each other.

In my model there is plenty of room for all the Affiliates with a focus on local sales. The protected products, including territories, allow Affiliates to focus their efforts on an area of the world they are familiar with –most often in their back yards. Just as importantly, key areas will have just one Affiliate who is a Member. Of course, that Affiliate can get a few Assistants as well. But, overall, just one “manager" per area.

My products are also proprietary and protected by copyrights and TradeMarks. They get stronger the more they are used as well. The brand recognition will keep growing and growing.

With other online products, the more affiliates, the more competition between everyone. In my case, with protected areas this is not the case! Once you are a leader in a particular place, you are the person who will decide what to do in that area when it comes to representing and marketing our products.

6. Make sure the Products that You Do Work with Will Be Upgraded Often:

I’ve also made it a priority to keep expanding and improving the products with the use of much of the Membership fees. As for the software and network of websites that Affiliates will collectively help manage, many of my membership forum areas are built especially to communicate how to improve the products and web sites.

For example, the vBulletin software provides a way to setup Software Projects that can be discussed as a software product –bugs, patches, etc. When improvements are made, each item can be discussed as a “to do" item and when completed, the Software Project updated to reflect that.

Therefore, from the start, I’ve made it a priority to update all the products and services, and provided the means by which that can be done. The result is continuous improvement, continuous value building for the customer. Such products are easy to work with and even easier to sell to Clients who need it.

7. Make Sure the Products are a Universally Accepted Format:

At this moment there are around 5 major browsers –IE, Firefox, Opera, etc. command most of the users. In five years I think the top three will be IE, Firefox and Chrome from Google.

All the browsers now allow the use of external ‘plugins’ to run mostly JAVA based programming within the browser. I am taking advantage of that feature to create software that will run via any browser. The operating system is not that big of a deal –what is important is that my software be compatible with a browser so that it can run anywhere –on any OS.

With a combination of the latest software, that enables a lot of cloud computing, much of that is possible. I am sure such functions will just keep improving –we’ll stay on top of things to make sure our Affiliates are better able to assist their Clients with such software.

If you are in a situation where you need to provide support and education to work as an Affiliate, there’s no end to the time demands. In my case, the support and teaching is mostly done with online lessons and video. From time to time you may have to answer questions via email, but that is the extent of the help or support you provide.

Of course, keep in mind that when you do provide one-on-one support to Entrepreneurs and businesses in your area the amounts you can bill and consequently your income skyrocket!

8. Low Maintenance, High Margin:

Given our type of products and services, the margins are very good. The main cost of maintaining such products are the programming and testing costs of the software and marketing expenses.

We don’t need to store them. We don’t need to recall them. The products are updated often and create a subscription model of sales that enjoy very good profit margins. Of course, these margins are shared with my Members and that in turn creates more and more sales.

While the company focuses on the quality of products and services, all the Member Affiliates can focus on their local business building to get a fast-start on their commissions.

Keep in mind that if you are selling very low margin products, such as most electronics online, then you really need a huge number of web site visitors to make it profitable. In my affiliate program, you don’t sit and wait for traffic. I’ll teach you how to quickly sign-up your clients.

9. Preferably, Digital and No Inventory:

Obviously, downloaded digital products are easy to manage –they present the easiest to maintain products. And afford all the advantages that these types of products present such as regular and even automated updates with easy delivery!

You’ll find people selling on auction houses where maintaining an inventory is part of the hassle. There are some who get products drop-shipped, but again, that leads to competition.

While working with me, you’ll see that the products are created from thin air, using our data and no one else can make these claims in your area.

10. Provides Outstanding Value to the User:

The products and services that are offered from my affiliate program are again based on a membership that presents the user with several products from publishing to directory placement –all based on a membership price. It’s an outstanding value for any entrepreneur online.

I’ll keep adding more and more products and services to the Membership to keep increasing it in value. At this time someone who owns a small website has to go to a dozen places to get their promotional work done. With my software they can rely on one setup to do all the work and save money doing it.

11. Becomes Part of Online or Real Life, Seamlessly:

Lastly, the products that I deliver via the consumer and small business memberships have to save money and work very easily to deliver that value. Using them should be as easy as a few clicks of the mouse or pulling out the wallet.

Rich Sage Global Affiliate Program:

Below are Features that are unique to what I have setup:

#1. LEADS:

I’ve setup the network of sites to focus on lead generation for various companies in your area. This is the fastest and least expensive way for you to start earning money online.

Just keep in mind that with 10 clients earning you $250 per month, by generating leads/sales for them, on average you have a full time income.

In some cases you may earn more than $1,000 per lead. For example, this may be a loan for real estate that is successfully funded by a local mortgage broker. It may be straight forward for housing loans, but commercial (business) loans may pay much more when funded successfully.

So, by generating leads for a loan or mortgage company you can build a great income. There are several dozen of these types of businesses you’ll be able to solicit in your area. I’ve discussed how you can find Clients to work with without selling anything to them!

In other cases you may only earn $10 per lead, but plan on generating one or two leads per day and then it becomes worthwhile to keep it going. Imagine having a few such clients in your local area?

#2. SITE SALES:

On occasion, from your inventory of sites, you’ll sell one or two. You may increase that to one or two per month. But, that is an exception. Most of your time will be concentrated on lead generation for a select group of clients.

Selling sites should not be your primary objective simply because there are too many variables when you set out to sell web sites. For example, you may have to wait months and month after setting up a site and running it to get paid.

It’s a great idea to “add such a item" to your business plan –having a portfolio of generic sites that you can sell to your local customers. However, income from such a setup will always be a bonus –not a dependable, month income stream.

Your income stream should be built with Clients from #1 and #3.

#3. AFFILIATE PROGRAM:

This is a longer-term solution to your make money online needs. Using the same traffic building ideas presented for lead generation, you can build an affiliate income using my products and services, which only you can sell as a Member.

All the knowledge that I’ve used to build the Rich Sage network of sites will be shared with you, along with the best practices to build your affiliate income.

The main advantage of my affiliate program is that:

* The products are only yours to work with

* All the above detailed advantages, plus my brand

* My own traffic generation efforts

* Recurring commissions –monthly, quarterly and annual commissions

4. VENTURE CAPITAL:

Some of the bigger sites that we build as a community will generate significant earnings. I will put a portion of those earning into a VC account which I will build for you as a Member. You DO NOT make any type of contributions to such an account. It is a 100% bonus. I will allocate your share based on your affiliate income and the percentage of earnings you make monthly as an Affiliate versus the other Affiliates.

This is NOT a security! It is a bonus that I maintain for you based on your affiliate success as a Rich Sage prodigy!

I cannot make any kind of guarantee what this will add up to *anything* — All I can say is that when you help me build multi-million dollar web properties, I will share with you what I earn when I sell or invite strategic partners to work online with my business model and web sites.

Rich Sage Operations:

I haven’t had instant success –everything from my traffic to monetizing and beyond is a step by step effort –that’s taken years. I practice what I preach daily and it has all worked and brought me to this point.

I do have some lofty goals. They too get accomplished because I push ahead daily.

When you learn from me, you will not learn some magical “action" that takes you from a dollar a day income to a full time income in a week or two. That happens very rarely. We don’t strike gold everyday sitting in one place. However, with daily “action" that follows a proven plan success can be built, step by step and that is what I focus on teaching you via the Rich Sage Underground.