Becoming a solo ad vendor can be quite a profitable side hustle for anyone. It’s easy to start for beginners and does not require a wealth of capital either. What’s good about selling solo ads is how it’s a ductile. It’s one of the most scalable businesses to get into.
You can start small and build big. Moreover, you would have complete control over your deals too. In this article, I will walk you through the whole process of how to become a solo ad vendor and how to sell solo ads to make big money.
How To Become a Solo Ad Vendor: What You Need to get Started
Lucky for you, becoming a solo ad vendor does not require you to be a master marketer, nor an all knowing coding genius.
Here’s your docket of things you need to do to get started:
Choosing your Niche
To get started, you would need to identify your niche and hence your target audience. The top 5 niches that work with solo ads, in no particular order, are: Finance and Crypto, Health and Fitness, Make Money Online, Affiliate marketing and business opportunities, Relationship.
The importance of choosing a niche that is already popular with solo ads is undeniable. If the niche has a broader demand, it would also mean that you would get a broader audience to target.
When choosing your niche it is important to keep in mind that the niche is an evergreen one. Such niches include categories that do not involve seasonal or occasional demand trends. The benefit of choosing an evergreen niche to become a solo vendor is that you would have sure shot traffic to engage with.
Additionally you would always want to choose a niche that allows you to build a relevant subscriber list without much hassle.
Having a niche also ensures solo ad buyers that they would get a more targeted and relevant audience list, based on interests, preferences, age, gender or social status. This builds your credibility as a solo ad seller in the market.
Building email lists
You can build an email list by using a number of ways. Having a high converting lead capture or landing page is the first factor to work on to building an email list. These pages are also known as squeeze pages and are built with the intention to attract visitors to subscribers. They can be mostly in the form of pop up windows asking to provide your email id.
The sole purpose of such a landing page is to create leads that convert. These may include opt in forms as well.
To build an email list through a landing page, you would have to make sure that your squeeze page includes a captivating headline to begin with. Whether you are using a lead magnet to build the list or a pop up form, make sure to use symbols, signs, bold texts, styles and colors to draw in the attention.
A great tip that always works with lead conversion is minimizing fluff between the potential customer and the site. What this means is that, if you are using an opt-in form to create your list, dont ask your target to input too much information. Ask them to provide their email instead of name, age and other details.
Choosing an email service provider
Once you have a landing page and an email list built, managing your lists and segmenting them is where the challenge lies. You can do this by choosing an email marketing service like CovertKit, Hubspot, Mailchimp or Sendinblue.
So how do these email marketing service providers work? These service providers are an all in one software platform that manages and segments your email lists. They also work to send out campaigns and accumulate relevant data that you might need to customize your list.
Using email service providers, you will be able to categorize your lists and hence personalize your solo ads even better. You can also avail services like A/B testing, Sending time customization, email editor, campaign analytics and customizable templates.
Set up tracking tools
The last step to getting started as a solo ad vendor is to monitor and track the performance of your solo ads. You would want to set up a link tracking and analytics software that allows split traffic and link tracking features.
Split traffic feature in your tool will allow you to direct Tier 1 traffic from, say, the western traffic. Likewise, the link tracking feature would allow you to understand where the click is coming from, increasing the efficiency of your email marketing.
Further, a good tracking tool would include pixel tracking and, or server to server tracking which would give you an idea of your leads’ analytics. Finally, with a tracking software set, you will receive reports on how your solo ads are performing.
How To Sell Solo Ads
Here’s a step by step guide on how to sell solo ads:
Step 1: Start Website building or web hosting
Once you have chosen your niche, you can start building your website. With website builders, it’s easy to create your own which includes optimizing your site page according to your niche.
Step 2: Engage in online Marketplaces
One of the easiest ways to sell your solo ads is through engaging in solo ad marketplaces. Of course you can sell your ads on your own, but I recommend engaging in marketplaces for good reasons. WHen you are on marketplaces, you are what the buyers are looking for. You would not have to go on the hunt for buyers, the buyers will come to you.
For beginners, marketplaces make it easy to receive buyers without breaking a sweat. Moreover, marketplaces allow you, as a vendor, to learn and sharpen your crafts.
Once you have gained a reputation through all the ratings and reviews, you would be good enough to be a lone wolf. There are several reputable marketplaces you can get involved in. Udimi is one of them.
You can also sell your ads by yourself as long as you are willing to put in more capital and effort. The benefit of selling without a marketplace is that it allows you to create a brand identity, slowly, but eventually.
Step 3: Fulfill Orders Through Email Broadcasts
At this stage, you would want to fulfill orders. You would now be ready to send out emails. The right frequency to broadcast emails would be about twice a day. Sending in too many emails, more than twice a day can prompt your potential lead to ignore the mail instead of opening it.
When you once send the email, send the second one to the part of the target audience who did not open the email. When you are broadcasting your emails, you need to keep in mind that short and relevant ad copies always win over fluffy and extraneous ones.
Step 4: Buy Traffic to supplement your existing email list
While this may seem like a gimmick, it’s a standard practice among solo ad sellers to buy traffic when needed. You would particularly need to buy extra traffic if you were promising a guarantee. This would mean that if the traffic does not reach a said number, you would want to buy from another vendor to send it to your list. This may help beginners build a reputation.
Step 5: Grow and Maintain Email list
FInally, you would want to cater to the email list you have built to maintain it and eventually grow it. You can do this by keeping follow up emails of value. If you want to seem authentic, should your subscriber list that you care for them. You can send out educational content, for one. Send them tips, advice and help posts, but make sure to not over do it either.
Other than that, you can work on making your email environment free of spams and ads. Minimize the advertisements, for instance.
Popular Marketplaces To Get Started As A Vendor
As a vendor, here are top 3 solo ad marketplaces you can engage in:
Udimi
Udimi is one of the largest and most reputable marketplaces for solo ads. As a vendor, you would engage with buyers who are authentic. Using Udimi as a marketplace, would also allow you to learn and grow with all the competition around.
As a marketplace, Udimi uses filters to keep the good crowd only. I particularly recommend Udimi for its beginner friendly interface and the forum support you get in every step of the way. With a little money spent, you can also promote your business through Udimi.
SoloAdsX
Another marketplace where you can find buyers for almost all niches, even the most unpopular ones, is SoloAdsX. This marketplace is brimming with serious, ready to get into business buyers who too, are looking for sellers who guarantee authentic traffic.
Even as a seller on the platform, you receive full transparency through tracking analytics. The platform makes it a point to let its buyers and sellers know how their ad campaign is progressing.
However, you may want to note that Solo AdsX might be a marketplace to enter once you have a track record. They nitpick their sellers based on reputation and qualification, and do not allow any vendor who is involved in shady business.
TrafficForMe
For beginner solo ad vendors, TrafficforMe can be a marketplace that does not require you to prove much to enter.
The platform is updated and free to sign up for both buyers and sellers. You can get buyers looking for a few clicks and you can get buyers looking for thousands. As you grow your list and expand your niches, you would be able to earn more for each click.
Is It Still Profitable to Sell Solo Ads in 2023?
Solo ads can still be profitable for vendors even in 2023, given you are in the right niche. The right niche are ones that have evergreen demand in the solo ad marketplaces. This primarily includes niches like MMO, Biz Opps, Health and fitness, finance, network marketing, affiliate marketing or internet marketing.
Whether selling solo ads would be profitable would also depend on your ability to build an email list that has the potential to convert into leads. This would in turn depend on the quality and length of your email list, what method you applied to build the list and what marketplace you are engaging in.
Additional Tips Before you Start Selling Solo Ads
The amount of fortune you make out of your solo ad venture banks on careful planning.
Here are few noteworthy pre selling tip for you:
Conduct Research
Research who you are going to sell your solo ads to. You would want to identify that the buyer you are selling matches with your niche or target audience. You can understand this through the ratings and ranks on reputable marketplaces.
Set the right price
You would want to determine the appropriate pricing for your ads based on your niche and target audience. Remember that solo ads can be profitable depending on your cost effectiveness and what you offer for the price.
Make room for all types of buyers
Make sure you have buyers who are starting small and buyers who are spending big. For that you need to offer various package options to cater to different budgets and needs. You can also include coupons for first time buyers and offer discounts for repeat customers.
Build Trust
You get more buyers once you have built a reputation for yourself. You can create a sales page or website that showcases your services and includes testimonials from satisfied customers. You can also ask for reviews from customers who loved your service.
You might even get customers who are eager to test your traffic before they decide to work with you. If you want to gain their trust, it’s a good move to allow your customers to test out a few clicks.
Offer additional services
You can also offer additional services like writing the email body or free consultation for beginner buyers. You can offer to scrutinize their landing page to advise them on how to make improvements. You can also sell extra sales funnels.
Offer different types of traffic
Not all buyers want USA only traffic. If you offer different types of traffic, based on geographical regions, social status, demographics, tiers, desktop only or mobile only traffic, there are more chances of getting buyers.
FAQs
Are solo ads legit?
Solo ads are an authentic form of email marketing where a vendor sends out email advertisements to their list of subscribers for a fee from the buyer. However, there are numerous bots and spams on the internet selling solo ads. One way to ensure legitimacy of solo ads is to research the track record of the vendore.
How does udimi solo ads work?
Udimi solo ads is a marketplace where solo ad buyers and sellers engage. Through their own filtering process, and protected payment gateways, Udimi ensures that the marketplace retains only authentic vendors. Buyers and sellers will be able to search each other through different categories.
How can I increase the open rates and click-through rates of my solo ads?
To increase open rates and click through rates, make sure that your email has a compelling subject line. Including the name of the subscriber, increases the chance of them clicking on the link as it engages them more. You may also include visuals to make your emails enticing while keeping in concise and to the point. Time your emails properly. It has been seen that emails sent on weekends have higher chances of getting clicked on. Additionally, include a great call to action, mentioning the benefits the product or service may bring about.
How do I handle refunds and disputes with customers as a solo ads vendor?
To handle refunds and disputes, allow your customers to get into contact with you. Cater to their needs as soon as possible. Be flexible and make necessary changes to your list or ad as they complain. Continue to track, monitor all the while keeping your customer updates on pitfalls and unexpected dips.
Final Thoughts
Selling solo ads can be one of the easiest ways to earn a side income. Becoming a vendor requires no technical qualifications either. To get started, one needs to identify the niche and target audience first, followed by building an email list.
The chances of earning profit would largely depend on what niche you are choosing and whether you have modeled the right email list. Monitoring, tracking and improvising on your performance can make a difference in your profits.
