Hey Everyone! I need some advice on my next move in my AM quest.

[IMHopeful]

Hi Everyone,

I'm looking to run what I've done past some intelligent folks, and I chose the team here on WF.

I've been content writing for a few years now, along with building a few information/blog type sites in that time.

In the last three months I've ramped up, stopped hanging out on DP, and started learning what I need to do, to get going with my affiliate aspirations.

I currently have memberships at a shit ton of .gov, .org forums, along with a few popular and also obscure marketing forums. I've set up and got some yahoo accounts up to level 2 and higher status also. Beyond that I've set up some wordpress sites on free domains to get my feet wet. I've been messing around with CB products in some form or another for a few years, using every means but a website to promote them - in an effort to learn the ropes, while I was working the 9-5 routine.

I quit my job last year in November and have been content writing, and educating myself in every aspect I can: IM, forum marketing, SEO, and article marketing techniques.

Now that I've said all that, I realize I'm spending too much time thinking and not enough doing. I'm a perfectionist, so it's hard for me to jump into site development, but I feel I'm ready to plunge in, as I know I can aggressively promote whatever site I put up.

First. I need to confirm what everyone thinks about wordpress: I feel the software is a little lacking in the "flashy" looking department, and I'm not looking to have any blog based sites up - I plan on using 2.0 accounts I've developed for blogging and put plenty of articles on whichever site I develop.

Second. Would Joomla be a bad step for a guy who doesn't have much experience building sites? Many people slam wordpress sites and talk about how generic they look. Although this isn't completely true...I guess I wanna know if downloading and learning Joomla is a waste, if I already have WP - kind of stick with what you know, vs. getting something that might be all round better.

Third. Are review sites stupid? I kind of think many out there are, but I'm thinking good content, and a classy design may be a way around this.

I can write great content, and I feel going with several affiliate products, in a similar niche may be a good way to get the ball rolling, while giving me lots of options.The three questions I posed are the things that are preventing me from rolling forward. I hate thinking I'll get caught with my pants down, regarding a poor/generic site design...or going with a site theme that turns customers off. I really want to pick a few domain names, and jump in the fire.

Please all, help a perfectionist-minded newbie take the plunge. Please flame away! I know the thread is over-written, and very newbish. I just don't trust opinions in other forums, with all the upselling that comes. I have some down time to go forward with this then next few days, and want to get it started.

 

[dchuk]

First. I need to confirm what everyone thinks about wordpress: I feel the software is a little lacking in the "flashy" looking department, and I'm not looking to have any blog based sites up - I plan on using 2.0 accounts I've developed for blogging and put plenty of articles on whichever site I develop.

Second. Would Joomla be a bad step for a guy who doesn't have much experience building sites? Many people slam wordpress sites and talk about how generic they look. Although this isn't completely true...I guess I wanna know if downloading and learning Joomla is a waste, if I already have WP - kind of stick with what you know, vs. getting something that might be all round better.

1. Go learn about Wordpress, you seem to not understand what you can do with it. Wordpress is a CMS, you can make it look like whatever you want. There's nothing "plain" about it, there are literally thousands of themes you can use to make it look like anything you want. For example, techcrunch is a Wordpress site. You can do everything you want on Wordpress, and usually pretty easily.

2. You can have content AND a blog on a Wordpress site very easily. Again, go look up tutorials, you'll find it all online.

3. If you don't know what can be done with Wordpress, I recommend not using Joomla. Everything you can do with Joomla, you can for the most part do in Wordpress, and generally in an easier way.

Bottom line, Wordpress kicks ass and does more than you think it does. Just build a few sites on domains you actually buy and go for it and see what happens, you'll learn way more by doing than with any amount of questions you could ask.

 

[IMHopeful]

Thanks dchuck, I appreciate your reply. I meant to say I didn't plan on having a blog on my website. You're right that I don't know the capabilities of WordPress yet - I guess in all the reading I've done, most of its criticism seems to be its lack of flexibility compared to joomla.

If you say WP won't limit me in anyway, I'll just go for it. Thanks again!

 

[emp]

Joomla IS flexible, but it is also a pain in the behind to program / code for.

I am staying as far away from it as possible, but that's just me.

::emp::

 

[GerardWon]

You could always outsource the project too. WF has some kickass guns for hire.

 

[IMHopeful]

Thanks emp, that's what I've heard about Joomla. I wasn't sure if it was just lazy people making remarks, or if it was an actual fact it's less user friendly.

GerardWon, I will definitely outsource once I find some success. For now I'm just a step above a Bum Marketer's budget and want to get my feet wet and see where it goes.

 

[apexSEORM]

So far there has been almost nothing I couldn't do within the wordpress CMS framework. Its all about having the right set of plugins and just the barest knowledge of CSS and PHP.

 

[IMHopeful]

Thanks apexSEORM. You and the other guys posting in my thread have give me the confidence to start sourcing out more information about creating with it. I've even found popular "shopping cart" plug-ins that many people claim is a short-coming of WP: That being you can't set up a proper check-out service with it.

While I'm only selling affiliate products, I just got caught up in the hype. Anytime I run a search on Google relating to WP vs. Joomla, every page I view seems to slam WP's limits and place Joomla and others on a platform above it.

Anyone have opinions on a well laid out review page? Is there any sort of limit I should place on the product line? I plan on having products that are somewhat relevant to one another, or at least target a similar demographic IE: all skin-care products, or video games - game fixes. These are just examples, but I won't be bouncing all over the place and confusing the visitor.

Thanks for all of the advice. F'in eh!

 

[dchuk]

First, the internet is a terrible place to search around for info about what app/program/script is better than another. Your best bet is to actually talk to people who have used both and who can answer your specific questions. Or at the very least, pick two different site ideas, build one on wordpress and one on joomla, and see which one doesn't make you want to retreat to a cave after throwing your laptop in a river.

Anyone have opinions on a well laid out review page? Is there any sort of limit I should place on the product line? I plan on having products that are somewhat relevant to one another, or at least target a similar demographic IE: all skin-care products, or video games - game fixes. These are just examples, but I won't be bouncing all over the place and confusing the visitor.

A good starting point would be going to the different wordpress review plugin sites and looking at their demos. Most people probably won't be showing you much in terms of effective designs here, so you're gonna have to search around. Try searching in Google for "niche + reviews" and rotate through a few niches, i'm sure you'll find something to spy on.

Lastly, find a niche, then go even tighter within that niche. Save yourself a headache and start smaller than you think you need to. Tackle the bigger niches once you have some experience under your belt.

 

[IMHopeful]

That's some awesome advice dchuck - yeah the internet is all about selling a product these days isn't it? LOL! Your very clear, and to the point.

I think I have enough to at least get rolling. I'll update this thread when I get my niche narrowed down, and the site up.

Thanks again everyone. I appreciate you not flaming the hell out of me. I know it can get annoying when everyone asks the same question - with their own spin on it every single day!

 

[DanWesson]

If you mean to take action and move forward, then get started with WP. If you want to throw up more roadblocks and keep listening to your lizard brain, then find the most difficult software you can and spend as much time as you can trying to get it just so.

At some point you have to just try some things and get rolling. Preferably those things you start with are easy to use, well documented, and have a massive user base which you can ask questions of. Now, if you have a degree in computer science and can code like nobody's business, then use whatever you prefer. WP is just fine for mere mortals like myself who struggle with code. I can get it up and running and profitable without too much effort.

Last thing: "flashy" does NOT equal money, and if Google's results are any indication there are 3.5 pages mentioning Wordpress to every one about Joomla.

 

[jryan21]

You can get a lot of insight about how to design a site or plan a niche by watching other people as they browse and search. A lot of times I'll watch someone on a site and I'll say something like "click the categories tab," then I sit back and watch how their eyes scan the page and see how long it takes for them to find what I'm talking about. If they decide to search for something, see what they use and what they type in.

 

[craigmc]

You can get a lot of insight about how to design a site or plan a niche by watching other people as they browse and search. A lot of times I'll watch someone on a site and I'll say something like "click the categories tab," then I sit back and watch how their eyes scan the page and see how long it takes for them to find what I'm talking about. If they decide to search for something, see what they use and what they type in.

I like that idea. We have a twenty something kid at work that is all over the net. I'm going to watch him a bit to get that same insight.

 

[IMHopeful]

If you mean to take action and move forward, then get started with WP. If you want to throw up more roadblocks and keep listening to your lizard brain, then find the most difficult software you can and spend as much time as you can trying to get it just so.

At some point you have to just try some things and get rolling. Preferably those things you start with are easy to use, well documented, and have a massive user base which you can ask questions of. Now, if you have a degree in computer science and can code like nobody's business, then use whatever you prefer. WP is just fine for mere mortals like myself who struggle with code. I can get it up and running and profitable without too much effort.

Last thing: "flashy" does NOT equal money, and if Google's results are any indication there are 3.5 pages mentioning Wordpress to every one about Joomla.

I hear you on that one. I'm not intimidated by learning new software. However I'm a huge proponent of the KISS principal. I've just been reading to much techno-babble I think. The internet is full of useful information. But when it comes to software everyone and their grandmother has an opinion, so it's difficult separating the bull shit, from the guys who have been there, and done that.

What everyone is saying is awesome though. I knew I was over-thinking it and reading too much. I'm definitely not a programmer - I believe that is where most of the comparisons I've been reading have been coming from. That or a lot of posers just trying to sound smart and shit.

I've already got a few snappy templates downloaded for WP. Now I'm working on figuring everything out. I had a friend post up some sites on a free host before...so now I have to learn how to do it for myself.

Thanks again everyone. All of the advice is appreciated. Thanks for pulling me out of "analysis" mode.

 

[IMHopeful]

You can get a lot of insight about how to design a site or plan a niche by watching other people as they browse and search. A lot of times I'll watch someone on a site and I'll say something like "click the categories tab," then I sit back and watch how their eyes scan the page and see how long it takes for them to find what I'm talking about. If they decide to search for something, see what they use and what they type in.

That's a great idea. Maybe I'll go down to the library and stalk some people! Seriously though, that is an awesome idea. I've been reading that WP has a plug-in that will show screen-shots of visitors, and their cursor movement.