The Affiliate’s Creed

“This is my computer. There are many like it but this one is mine. My computer is my best friend. It is my life. I must master it as I master my life. Without me, my computer is useless. Without my computer I am useless. I must make my computer true. I must use my computer better than any other affiliate who is trying to make more money than me. I must out-do them before they out-do me. I will, before God I swear this creed: my computer and I are money-makers in the affiliate world, we are the masters of our offers, we are the creators of wealth. So be it, until there is no better affiliate, but me! Amen.“

I hope you enjoyed the video above.  It’s the launch of my official entry into the  Shoemoney Affiliate Summit West Contest. I thought the video would be very amusing.  The idea came to me after I read about Shoemoney’s ASW contest.  I quickly began to work on it and although it’s not Hollywood studio material, I’m happy with the outcome.  The original video clip is  “The Rifleman’s Creed” from the movie “Full Metal Jacket”.

A Little about Me

My name is Patrick; I’m a husband, a father and an affiliate marketer.  I’ve been trying to make significant money online for a few years with some successes and too many failures to count.  I’ve been an affiliate marketer who has always been inspired by reading blog’s such as Shoemoney, John Chow and Pat Flynn’s Smart Passive Income.   I’ve definitely profited from the invaluable information provided by these blogs.

I’ve had many frustrations which you can read about here and had a home run or two, you can read here.  However, I’ve pretty much struggled over the years to maintain consistency and to take my business to the next level.

My Main Reasons for Wanting to Attend Affiliate Summit West

Unfortunately, making money in affiliate marketing has never been consistent for me and I realize I have a lot more to learn.  Additionally, I have found networking with people within the affiliate marketing industry very challenging at times.  Attending Affiliate Summit West would help with these limitations, especially having the opportunity to network with the legendary, Jeremy Schoemaker!

I look forward to seeing who the winner of the ASW Shoemoney contest is and sincerely hope it’s me!

I would love to hear some feedback below about the video!  

Thank you for visiting my blog.

If you have a small business and want bookkeeping software to automate your accounting activities, you should consider an online service at Outright.com. With Outright there is not need to have a pile of paper laying around your office because everything will be digitally in one location online where you can access it at anytime, anywhere in the world as long as you have Internet access.  

Outright will help you organize your credit cards, bank, eBay, PayPal Etsy and ecommerce accounts in one single place.  You can also use Outright to track your sales, expenses and see exactly how your business is performing.  At tax time you will be prepared to quickly and easily complete your taxes with detailed reports using this service.  

There is no software to setup because everything is done online. You can import data from your existing accounts into Outright.   The service offers a free account that never expires and a paid account that is $9.95 per month.

See video below of Outright Product Review

Let’s face it, the majority of us conduct business on the Internet almost everyday.  From shopping, entertainment, banking, research, etc., we all use the Internet.  Unfortunately, there are always criminals in cyberspace trying to steel your identity that will ultimately affect your finances and credit score. To determine if your identity has been compromised it’s always a good idea to get a free credit score to review your credit information. 

One way cyber criminals can steal your identity online is by using a technique called “phishing” to steal your personal information such as username / passwords, credit card information, social security number, date of birth, etc.

Phishing websites are fake websites that look like real websites.  Most people visit phishing sites by clicking links in their email.  As an example, they may get an email that seems to be from their bank telling them they need to log into to fix a problem.  They click on the link in the email and it brings them to a fake website.  They unsuspectingly enter their username and password and instantly this information is sent to a criminal who can use it cause serious harm.

So how do you avoid ever visiting phishing website?  Fortunately, it’s not too hard to prevent visiting phishing websites, but you must always be alert whenever on the Internet.  For one, never visit websites such as your bank by clicking on links within an email.  You should always visit by your saved bookmark, major search engines or typing the address directly into your browser address bar.  Additionally, if you ever want to click on a link in an email, you can first view the real link address in your browser address bar.  For example, an email may contain a link stating www.bankofamerica.com; however, the link goes to wwwbankofamerica.steal.com.  Fortunately, the major browsers and anti-virus program can alert you whenever visiting a phishing website but they don’t always catch every phishing site.

Never give your personal information to anyone whenever visiting forums, using email, using public Wi-Fi or even instant messaging with friends or family.  This information is not secure and criminals can easily intercept your information.

Whenever your visit a website and have to enter personal information make sure the website is using encryption to transfer your information.  To determine if the website is secure with encryption, check for the closed lock icon in the browser address bar.  If no closed clock icon is available, the website isn’t secure and when you transfer information, your information can be intercepted by criminals.  See example below with green closed lock in Google Chrome browser address bar.

Finally, always use strong passwords using a combination of letter, numbers, symbols and different letter case.  Periodically, you may want to change your passwords especially for websites that are extremely important to you, such as your bank. 

Remember you can always get a freescore online to make certain your identity hasn’t been compromised.

How time flies.  Here is my number 6 update of my Lending Club Account Performance.  The last update was on May 13, 2011 about 6 months ago.

It’s amazing that it’s been over 2 years since I opened my account with Lending Club.  It feels like only a year.  

Since opening my account with Lending Club in August of 2009 my account has profited $7,639.23 in interest, however, about $1,000 of this is bonus paid to open the account and to add more funds.   With charge-offs I’ve actually profited $6,967.62.  The net annualized return is stated as 7.37%, but its actually 6%+ with the charge-offs.  Regardless, this more than beats CDs, with most paying less than 1%. 

I’ve invested a total $50,000.  I initially opened the account with $10,000, and then added another $20,000 because Lending Club was paying a 1% bonus to add the additional funds.  A few months later I added another $20,000 because Lending Club offered a 2% bonus.  (Note: Lending Club is currently offering a 2% Cash Bonus on your initial investment.)

Within the last 6 months an additional $429 has been charged off.  Currently, there is $1,065 late ($310 late 16-30 days, $755 late 31-125 days) and $40 in default, so some of this money will eventually be charged off as well.  This loss is a part of the game of lending money directly to individuals via unsecured loans.  Unfortunately, some people will default; however, the interest from paying borrowers “should” cover the losses.

Below is a screen-shot of my account as of 11/9/11.

Related Articles:

• My Lending Club Account Performance Update 5
• My Lending Club Account Performance Update 4
• My Lending Club Account Performance Update 3
• My Lending Club Account Performance Update 2
• My Lending Club Account Performance, So Far, So Good (Update 1)
• Earn a High Interest Rate with Lending Club P2P Loans
• Need a Loan? Get a Low Interest Loan from Lending Club
• Social Lending Networks are Booming
• Lending Club Offering $25 to New Customers in September and a Change to
  win $2,500

If you are interested in investing in Lending Club now is a great time because they are offering a 2% Cash Bonus on your initial investments.  Good luck!

Almost everyday the U.S. government confiscates a ton of assets from businesses and individuals  for a variety of reasons and sells these assets online and via auctions.  You can locate online these auctions or find listings for live auctions at GovSales.gov. The online auctions allow bidding on items over a period of time, normally 7 days. The GovSales.gov web site also advertises when live auctions take place across the country. Live auctions are regularly scheduled and are open to the public.

You can find the following items for sale by the U.S. government:

Below is a brief video: Introduction to GovSales.gov

For more information visit GovSales.gov

If you need to have a medical, vision or dental procedure it’s always a good idea to shop around because we all know healthcare is very expensive.  One service that makes this easy is PriceDoc.com.   PriceDoc.com is an online marketplace that connects consumers with healthcare providers. 

PriceDoc.com allows consumers to easily compare and negotiate pricing for medical, dental and vision procedures in a specified location in the United Sates while providers benefit from getting new patients who are willing to pay directly, out of pocket to the provider for their services. 

Procedures listed on the PriceDoc.com include the following:

• Dental (teeth cleaning, crowns, fillings, braces, whitening, etc.)
• Common and preventative medical procedures (physicals, mammograms, vaccines, x-rays, etc.)
• Vision (glasses, contacts, LASIK surgery, eye exams, etc.)
• Cosmetic (liposuction, breast enhancement, Botox, face lift, etc.)
• Weight loss (dieticians, nutritionists, etc.)
• Chiropractic (back and neck pain, arthritis, soreness, sports injuries, etc.)
•  General well-being (acupuncture, hearing aids, physical therapy, massages, etc.)

PriceDoc.com makes it easy to match patients and doctors by:

• Locating and reviewing providers in your area
• Optimizing office scheduling and management
• Comparing cost for office visits and procedures
• Finding competitive pricing for best case healthcare

Within the web site you can “Make Offer” and “Name Your Price”, which allows consumers to negotiate with providers the cost of their procedures. 

For more information visit PriceDoc.

If you want to save money on your prescription medications then you must consider BidRx.com.   BidRx will save you money (up to 50%) on any drug by having pharmacies and pharmaceutical companies from across the country bid on gaining your business.  If you need your prescription immediately, you can search for locations close to your home.

I searched for one drug on BidRx and found pharmacies selling the same drug at ½ the price with free shipping compared to my local Walmart Pharmacy.

BidRx only allows reputable U.S. pharmacies to participate in their program. Signing up to BidRx is simple and free.  The website is extremely easy to use.  For more information visit BidRx.com.