Rip my Site to Pieces

[GuitarZan]

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Hey,

I am sure some of you have heard of Phil Wiley. I build Mini Sites and promote them through PPC. My first Mini Site did not bad, but my second hasn't done a thing.

www.curing-depression.com is the second site I am talking about.

One point worth noting is that the content I am writing is very surface level stuff. I assume most affiliates do this when writing on a subject.

I am just so sick of the rat race, and I have to get out of it... All I need is to make $1000 per month off of my sites.

If there is anything you think is worth mentioning... Please do.

Here is another post I posted somewhere else that has to do with this site... The Uk Aff Marketing Forum is the only place I am posting for a review though.

Hey,
I found a product that made a little money through PPC straight to Merchant. This was awhile ago.

I decided to build a small 5 page site around the topic, and in the process improve the Conversion Rate of the product which was only 1% when I sent people from AdWords to the Merchant site.

I built one site... No Sales.

Just built second site with different layout and content... No Sales

I am now trying to figure out why there hasn't been a sale for the second site. The product isn't really expensive (Under $100), and it used to work through PPC.

If anything, I have found that by creating a landing site (Mini Site) for people to go through before sending them to the Merchant, increases the Conversion Rate.

I have just changed some things to the second site, and am hoping this may change things.

So when do you give up on a site? I know that it is sometimes hard for a site to be successful right from the start, and that you can lose money in the process of trying to make something profitable.

Thoughts?

C.K.

P.S. I would have probably given up on the site a little while ago and never posted this, but I hate giving up on things.

[lakrasia]

Whole site is there to promote one product - personally, when browsing, I like sites which come up with plenty of alternatives to browse. No-one believes that there is one single cure-all for depression and paying lip service to other methods without giving any information or links is not convincing. It's very clear you set up the site just to sell the Linden method and links to a page half a mile long, which again, I always switch off from, cos it's another one of those American fads. Just a personal view here, as it might work for some people, but I think if you don't have a particular interest in this field, it's better to find something else, as the content is a bit sparse and uninspiring.

[GuitarZan]

Hey,

Maybe adding another product would be better.

I don't think you went through all of the 5 pages, as I do have info on the Linden Method on my page titled "Choosing a Treatment".

I don't see why I have to have an interest in Depression to create a site on it. Money doesn't usually come from interests.

How could I change the content to be better and more inspiring? What are some common things I can do?

Thoughts?

C.K.

[lakrasia]

I think you are maybe expecting a lot from your web site - "all 5 pages" does not constitute much of a website.

I started working on websites nearly a year ago and am only just up to earning about a fiver a week, but I've learned a lot and my sites contain several thousand pages and I'm keen to create useful sites that people enjoy visiting and that's what I'm working towards.

If you're not interested in depression, forget it. I used to be a therapist, but I really don't see why I should list every different type of problem, every different type of therapy. If you can't be bothered to research it yourself, then don't build a website about it.

I don't wish to be unkind, but it's clear from your site that you are only interested in making money and haven't a clue about depression, otherwise you'd create something worthwhile for people with depression to visit.

As I said before, you only promote one product, the Linden treatment, so I'm not sure why you replied that I hadn't read all your pages and that you are promoting this one single product on other pages too.

You really are missing the point if you think adding a second product will make it a site worth visiting.

[lakrasia]

I have to add that depression is a potentially fatal illness - obviously.

It's totally irresponsible to be offering a cure, as your domain name suggests, when you not only know nothing about the subject, but also think it doesn't even matter!

[GuitarZan]

Hey,

Thanks for your thoughts... That is why I titled the thread "Rip my Site to Pieces".

Although we disagree on some things, I agree on others. I may just scrap this project. I think a very useful skill that some people have, and that I could learn the skill of learning when to call it a day, and not keep trying to get blood out of a stone.

In actuality, Mini Sites do sell. Building content sites is one way of going about things... There are a lot of different methods you can do things.

You HAVE put words into my mouth... I do care what happens. I researched aff programs diligently. The author of the linden-method guarantees a cure... All in all, I do care about what happens to people... I am not some heartless person.

Thanks again for a fresh opinion.

C.K.

P.S. I notice that you seem to be the "build a huge site that is an authority in it's niche" person. That's fine, but realize that some of us are not here to spend countless hours developing sites like these, when smaller sites will sell fine.

[Flightmapping]

CK,

I'd agree with Lakrasia that you are treading on very thin ice, especially with a programme primarily aimed to treat anxiety, which is not always the same as depression anyway.

It is one thing promoting a cosmetic treatment promising a larger **** or bigger ***s, but depression is a very serious illness, and it is irresponsible to promote something without knowing a lot more about the subject matter, and without offering a more balanced range of advice.

Having maintained a website for someone who promotes natural treatments, and who is very balanced in how he reports on his own products, I should warn you to expect some visits from trading standards if you ever get your site noticed anywhere.

[Rich]

I agree with lakrasia that the stupidly long landing page is probably a major problem in getting sales, though they seem popular in the US for some reason.

Scrolling to the bottom I realised they are based about 4 miles from me, with offices on a road with other businesses, which is normally a good sign, though there are other business that share the same address.

Maybe the UK site will give you more details you can use to pad out your site, but it wouldn't be something I would feel confident promoting.