befuddled me? » Networking

ShopCodes on the Big Screen

befuddle — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 13:29:32 +0000

I turned down the chance to watch Boro’s biggest game of the season as some friends from affiliate marketing, SEO and the blogging community spent the weekend in Leeds for the third Think Visibility.

It was an opportunity to catch up with late night Vegas friends @ChrisClarkson, @KieronDonoghue and @BonyToad on my doorstep whilst also welcoming @ClarkeDuncan and his mate @ukstripclubs to sample the delights of Leeds.

It was again hosted in my local, Alea Casino, which is a great choice of location, particularly for the early Saturday morning start, which unsurprisingly I still missed.

I didn’t get to see all the talks, as the Peroni and chat was flowing at the Royal Armouries square but I did get to see my voucher code site on the Alea cinema screen.

ShopCodes on the Alea cinema screen with the Think Visibility SimpleUsability results

Thanks to @SimpleUsability for dragging people off the street to use my “very busy” site. It was insightful to see how the users actually interacted and copied the voucher code and which links they clicked.

There were a few surprises and so I’ll be re-installing Crazy Egg, as there’s 7 Things Affiliates Can Learn From Heatmaps, writes @GetVisible.

At the end of the evening I signed up to a No-Limit poker tournament. I finished in the money but it was no compensation for my disastrous blackjack play earlier in the afternoon. Plus poker is a very long game, too long, when you’re missing out on a free bar and VIP entry to a local strip club!

Chip stack when 2 tables remaining

I’ve been to all three Think Viz’s and it was good to see people venture to and have a great time in Leeds.

Well done to @TheHodge and to all these people for another great conference and if you’re able to handle 5am finishes, then see you in September for the next DrinkVisibility.

I’ve Got The Taste and Want A Lot More

befuddle — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 14:36:41 +0000

Clutching a beer, I walked in a few minutes late to the ‘You want to Tweet What!?’ late afternoon standing-room-only sesssion to see Dom @TheHodge having a few people in stitches.

He then proceeded to project a collection of humorous tweets which seemed to be mainly from the legendary AlCarlton and a fair few from that Befuddle guy.

So I thought I’d mull over my live tweets from A4UExpo London 2009, which sadly aren’t that humorous but reflected what I was thinking at that time.

Blimey not been here 2 mins and Novotel Excel have charged me £150 for extras. Best abuse the free bar!
7:02 PM Oct 12th

As Chris Clarkson said on Facebook, “Lol, your reputation preceeds you!”

#a4uexpo pre-party has changed with bar well closed and everyone in bed before 4am. I remember when …
4:00 AM Oct 13th

OK it was 4am on the night before the actual event, so I’ll let people off. I loved that I woke up at 8:50am with my phone in my hand and 8:00 typed into my phone alarm clock but I’d fell asleep before pressing done. I skipped breakfast, grabbed a large Mocha and shuffled into Dave Naylor’s SEO strategies talk.

@3wdl it’s all waffle
10:55 AM Oct 13th
Voucher code session at #a4uexpo full of facts but not heard anything new
11:03 AM Oct 13th

I’ve got a vested interest in voucher code discussion but I don’t think the content answered the question that was posed.

This session is just a subtle advert for AOL buyat. Got to get out. Where’s the beer? #a4uexpo
12:33 PM Oct 13th

I was set to attend the Affiliate Doctors panel but from experience wanted to go to more challenging sessions, so I made the last second decision to pop next door for ‘10 Things To Do Before You Thrive As Affiliates …’

Did that say ‘10 Things’ because the slide they presented said only ‘3 things’. As for my Twitter comment, to me, it was a network basically saying ‘use a network and by the way we know of a network…’

Class! Walk late into #a4uexpo Twitter presentation to see my funniest status updates being showcased
5:30 PM Oct 13th
JoannaButler @befuddle They were legendary! @thehodge has a great tweet collection!
5:34 PM Oct 13th from Tweetie in reply to befuddle

The Hodge was showcasing some of my funnier Tweets, here’s one of my earlier ones:

befuddle: “just completed the Bupa online health check whilst eating a Balti”

Bored at #a4uexpo party but Al Carlton’s mugging sounds fun
1:15 AM Oct 14th

The free Oxygen at the party wasn’t enough to keep me perked up so I logged onto Facebook to catch up on Al Carlton’s evening, to which he replied ‘Lol, I’m still turning it over in my head, it was just odd.’.

End up arguing with dozen 02 bouncers for an hour after #a4uexpo party ends. No blood spilled.
3:23 AM Oct 14th

I went to the bar to order five JD & Cokes and paid twenty quid and Gulshan shot another twenty quid forward. I took that back as we didn’t need ten but after a quick count on the fingers, worked out we needed eight, so may as well get ten and handed forward another £20. Still with me? Well the bar lady wasn’t and lost it.

The 02 club bar staff, management and security told us we owed them £20, then we owed them £1.26 and then that they’d returned the full £40. All of which they’d seen on their camera. The £20 they owed us (and not us them) was irrelevant but I’ll always defend my corner. But when you’ve got the biggest bouncers – and these were huge – circling you saying ’stop playing games’ you know it’s time to just shut up and let them share the twenty quid between themselves and all the cleaners that were witnessing.

lammo77 Last men standing at the #a4uexpo bar.. @jasonjbrockman @befuddle and @duncanp
4:11 AM Oct 14th

Another 4am finish!

This is the life. Teresa from Stream:20 giving me a back massage on a #a4uexpo beanbag
1:24 PM Oct 14th

You scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours.

@Thehodge Grab their beer tokens
2:32 PM Oct 14th

In reply that it seemed that not many were planning to stick around for the closing party though plenty did.

@3wdl Where do pirates chat online? Twittaaarrr
3:13 PM Oct 14th

My effort to ‘win’ some rum and coke from the Affiliate Future stand during their pirate hour.

My Leeds Clarence Dock neighbour Gary Beal offering half hour SEO site review (worth £4k) for free #a4uexpo
4:10 PM Oct 14th
andybanksuk @befuddle Half hour SEO review worth £4k???? Are you sure you got the figure right?
5:00 PM Oct 14th in reply to befuddle

By this point I was lagging and after freshening up, was ready to party …

Vodka luge my face off
5:52 PM Oct 14th
jimbanks @befuddle can i get it on video ? I am sitting right by it.
5:56 PM Oct 14th in reply to befuddle
claireellison @befuddle dirty b@st@rd ;o)
6:15 PM Oct 14th in reply to befuddle

Vodka luge, every party should have one! Stick Sambuca in it and then you go do and say crazy stuff …

Befuddle loves Elissa Benson who I’ve just met #a4uexpo
10:15 PM Oct 14th
jimbanks @befuddle easy tiger!!
10:37 PM Oct 14th in reply to befuddle

One big France Telecom love in

messydesk With @befuddle and @KeithBond having a good last night at a4uexpo
10:42 PM Oct 14th

Thanks for the Spotify invite Keith and more importantly mentioning my Hong Kong interest to Ken. My .hk site project may finally come off the ground.

jimbanks @befuddle im on the train going home but have video of @judithlewis doing the vodka shot and a full frontal (of the ice that is)
10:51 PM Oct 14th in reply to befuddle

I fortunately managed to avoid starring on Jim’s YouTube’s page.

Another befuddled #a4uexpo. Will return back to London soon, then next stops Vegas, Munich & Leeds
3:41 AM Oct 15th

Bed before 4am. Woo hoo! Joe Connor spotted that organiser Matt Wood was giving away free passes to Munich, I just thought they were beer mats. I’m off to Vegas in January with the likes of Kieron, Clarkson and Frostie then I look forward to seeing you all in Leeds for the third ThinkVisibility.

@befuddle Mucho love for Mr Befuddled at the a4u conference… less love for the vodka flu that has now set in
10:21 AM Oct 15th

After a night of champagne, Sambuca, Vodka and lots of JD I don’t know how I got to Kings Cross for my 10:35am train – but I did. And it allowed me time to catch up on my notes of the week, so I write …

I’ve got the taste and I want a lot more
11:34 AM Oct 15th

Befuddled Butler At Your Service

befuddle — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 13:54:42 +0000

You won’t find me in the official photographs but I was at the A4uAwards this week and sneaked my own camera in, after previously shaming others in their drunken states.

As soon as I posted a few pictures of me along with Joshna, Jess, Jo and Teresa onto Facebook, a close friend of mine said, ‘Ray you look like a butler??? class!!!’ instead of commenting on the pretty girls of affiliate marketing.

So, on that note, how can this Befuddled Butler help you for the next few days?

If you affiliate managers have one request of me, just one single thing that you’d like me to do, then please let me know.

I haven’t really updated my site since April and so I know there’s lots of requests and day-to-day nitty gritty tasks that just haven’t been tackled.

So, if there’s one single thing you’d like me to do between Saturday and midnight Tuesday then just let me know. I am moving home on Thursday and don’t even know when I’ll next have a broadband connection, so get in touch quick.

Resend that email that I’ve ignored and put the word butler in the message. I will action it!

Amsterdam Paid for Itself 15 Times Over

befuddle — Mon, 04 May 2009 12:18:20 +0000

NOT many recognisable UK affiliates were in attendance at the a4uExpo and AAC conferences in Amsterdam. It’s not easy to get abroad for a week but I looked at it as an opportunity to do some more networking, learn some more skills and possibly do a bit of business in a fun city, despite the costs.

I travelled alone but knew approximately 20 people, either from meeting them at previous London A4uExpo’s, other local affiliate marketing events or from meeting facebook friends in person for the first time. Plenty were staying at the same Novotel hotel, which made socialising that much easier.

The majority of people stayed 3 nights for the affiliate marketing conference but I stayed 1 extra night to take in one day of AAC, as I’d been to previous CAP gambling conferences and they know how to party and put on a show.

My flight from Leeds cost £90 and I did have the misfortune of having my £850 laptop stolen on my return from my locked hold luggage. This was after checking in at Schipol and picking my bag up after a 2 hour flight delay.

With the hotel costing 670 Euros and 1 beer the equivalent of £8 a pint, one could have looked at it as a very expensive jaunt.

However, Befuddle had an interesting and profitable time …

400 Euros Won

Prior to leaving I bought some business cards with the Paris Hilton cartoon lookalike that adorns my drunk celebrity site Befuddle.co.uk. The plan was to have a card that caught the eye and would win if drawn from a bowl.

Well Market-Ace.com had such a draw and I was given 400 Euros in cash on the last day of the a4uEXpo. It’s still in my wallet and so I came back to the UK with more money that I went with (to Amsterdam!) Result!

a4uAwards Ticket Offered

During the week I was provided with opportunities to attend the black-tie a4uAwards dinner in London. I shall be attending as guests of Red Letter Days.

Taken to Dinner

The network Linkshare UK kindly invited me out to dinner one evening at the excellent Groucho’s and it’s nice gestures like this that make the event memorable and their network more personable. It was also a pleasure to drink and relax with the kind people of Affiliate Future, Existem AM, dgmPro and party hard with Stream20.

£15,000 Commission Deal Sealed

It wasn’t all drinking, dancing and smoking. I had to do some work so I set up a few meetings with merchants who I make significant sums with. I went through the stats with one merchant and they offered to DOUBLE my commission level. That 20 minute meeting would equate to an extra £15k a year based on current traffic and referrals. That £800 hotel and travel cost seems such an investment now.

Bit of Sunshine

Whilst in the Dam I found out via Twitter that I was one of the lucky winners for the Affiliate Future trip to Barbados. I think I may have to detox my body before then. It was a nice 21 degrees outside too though I saw little of it.

New Friends

This event was never about the money but I thought I’d highlight that you just never know what may come your way with a bit of networking. I have got lots to follow up over the coming days indeed weeks. As well as the business deals I want to implement as many of the tips I learned at the conferences that I stayed awake for.

It was also good to be able to attend an event in a country alone and be able to socialise with people across the affiliate industry who are now friends. That is priceless.

Think Visibility Stripped Bare

befuddle — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 17:04:35 +0000

It’s been a bizarre month for me. For starters I was one of the first to turn up for a conference … at 8:30am! … on a Saturday! … sober!

I later made amends and got back to Befuddle ways and was later pictured with a lovely friendly lady at a local Leeds establishment.

Anyway, at the ThinkVisibility conference there was a mixture of affiliate marketeers and ‘geeks‘, including organiser The Hodge.

Names you may recognise from the A4u site or networking include Kieron, ‘Elaine and Dave’ and Chris Clarkson.

Kieron presented the last talk of the day and showed some very interesting slides on how he made just a small part of his money during 2008.

I made some bulleted notes along the way on my phone.

mobile
blog
cpm geo target
email & rss
outsource
buyitnow x2 conv
build trust (ie expired codes)
reply to all emails
don’t upset Dave Naylor
always check backlinks
subdomains for serps
sales
‘chill’ elaine

I’ve been working on some of them since. The “You need to chill out more,” comment from Elaine is currently difficult at the present time, so I am channeling my energy by 2) updating my blog more and 7) building trust by spring cleaning my site and removing expired content. Although this does go against 12) sales where Kieron demonstrated some good examples of making money with older content.

There will be another Think Visibility event in Leeds in September and it will sell out and it will be a late night both before and afterwards … if you follow me at least.

Befuddled Twip to London

befuddle — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 16:53:07 +0000

Way back in January 2008 when it was fashionable for me to win affiliate prizes, Jo from Stream:20 sent me an email saying I’d won a 2 night stay in any 4 star Jurys Doyle hotel in the UK and Ireland.

Well with no beau to wine and dine in a UK or Irish city, it took me until the last week of January 2009 to actually get to use the prize as I went to attend one day of the the CAP Euro London event.

Although I was travelling on my own I knew I wouldn’t be alone. Regular a4uforum posters such as Purple and Swifty were there and planned to catch up in or around the event.

By logging onto Twitter on the outdoor tube ride to the Novotel I could see that Matthew Wood and a few of the Existem crowd were present and I knew exactly where they’d be on the numerous floors. Very handy when I’d made the conscious decision to not to make any new business but just see recognisable friendly faces.

During the 5 hours that I was at CAP I met up with people I’ve met at previous networking and affiliate events and others who I thought I was talking to for the first time but it transpires I’ve had drunken conversations with at previous networking and affiliate events.

When CAP finished there was a few hours to spare before the evening party at Leicester Square. Fortunately pretty and funny girls Jo and Teresa were up for a night out, whilst most others got trains home.

After an entertaining meal in China Town we head to Leicester Square and took advantage of the free Jack Daniels at the bar.

I then caught up with some old friends from London before navigating my way back to my hotel at 5am via the casino. I only went in to spend a penny (as I was busting) but it cost me £120.

Despite falling asleep at 5:30 I did manage to wake up, shower and get to Kings Cross on time for 7:45.

I didn’t however jump on the correct train as it set off up North.

Befuddled indeed.

Now, here’s the same story again. Only backwards. As recorded live @Befuddle in Twitter.

# is a shell of who I was last night. Exhausted and now home to sleep. 8:03 PM Jan 31st from mobile web

# has made it to Boro before noon! Now quick change then catch up with the lads for all dayer! 11:54 AM Jan 31st from mobile web

# thanks train guard #1 for not charging me £60 for being stupid. Now ready to haggle again at Donnie 9:41 AM Jan 31st from mobile web

# is a proper twit. Got the train to Leeds and I’m not even going to Leeds! 8:15 AM Jan 31st from mobile web

# is at Kings Cross to start the next leg of the weekend albeit in the same jumper as last night 7:42 AM Jan 31st from mobile web

# is in no mans land. If I fall asleep between 515am and 7am I miss my train, match and weekend 5:13 AM Jan 31st from mobile web

# is in China Town having a meal with and courtesy of Sky. Thanks Stream20. 9:05 PM Jan 30th from mobile web

# forgives the blonde masseuse for messing my hair up. It was quite arousing for 3pm in a packed conference hall 3:11 PM Jan 30th from web

# @matthewwood en route for the first freebie of the day 1:05 PM Jan 30th from mobile web

# heading to the hotel gym. Too early in the day to make eye contact and discuss Rev Share and CPA 10:31 AM Jan 30th from mobile web

# made the £18 courtesy cooked breakfast by 5 mins. Get in 9:58 AM Jan 30th from mobile web

# just leaving China Town. Hot stuff 1:26 AM Jan 30th from mobile web

# is ha ha in a very busy Brixton to see The Streets and there’s been a powercut so it’s off 8:39 PM Jan 29th from mobile web

# is on the Guinness as the lager is like shandy 7:05 PM Jan 29th from mobile web

# easily found the Webgains pub using the GPS on my phone and Orange Maps 6:31 PM Jan 29th from mobile web

# requests Hannah Swift’s mobile please. Meeting her for drink by Webgains 5:15 PM Jan 29th from mobile web

# is ready to rock and roll in London for the next 42 hours 2:15 PM Jan 29th from web

# missed a trick? Stars say ‘New love first says hello in a coffee bar’. While in Starbucks the server told me she loves lots of cream! 12:34 PM Jan 29th from web

# is having a bad day at the office and I’m not even in the office. I’m on the train. 12:10 PM Jan 29th from mobile web

Befuddle Twatted

befuddle — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 21:14:17 +0000

If you’ve got me on Facebook and you’re intrigued by my one line updates on what I had for lunch, gruelling spinning sessions, casino wins and Friday night frolics, there’s another way for you to keep up-to-date.

My Twitter feed is set up to update my Facebook status so I use that instead, whilst I’m on the move.

Catch me on Twitter

@befuddle

Follow you soon.

a4uExpo 101

befuddle — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 11:04:09 +0000

I’m still recovering and while I’m still in a position of not being able to string sentences together. Here’s my own personal a4uExpo 101.

Drinking until 5am
Full English Breakfast served late (oops missed the opening)
Smoothies with Cat
Jame’s Little saying I should get to Barbados (those sales are already trickling in)
Seeing the London scenery by night
Sunshine.co.uk’s new Wordpress travel site
Free Towel from Zanox
Existem raffle swimming goggles, chocolate, spoon, …
Hero Grigoraki presenting Effective Voucher Code Implementation
Sunshine.co.uk bag to put all freebies
Sky HD bloody mary’s
Joost de Valk’s wealth of wordpress SEO plug-ins and useful urls
Caboodle Design talking design
Katie from Zanox discussing Kodak
Webgain’s served Peroni
So much fun
Chris Frost on the Voucher Code panel
Conversion Rate Experts on the art of persuasion
Free Web cam from Zanox
Smoothies with Jess
Dozens more Facebook friends
Staying in the hotel with the late bar
Mark Russell protecting me from OMG (can’t remember)
Discovering new opportunities
Chris Kamara from Middlesbrough
Blagging Hong Kong rugby trip (fingers crossed)
Doug and his promotions
Charity auction that nobody could hear
The Pink Patch
Jo from Stream:20 converting me to rugby
Afternoon sushi
Jackpotjoy’s Claire and Jasper. Always a pleasure
All those people at 4am I upset
Hannah from Existem for being Hannah
Extreme SEO
Shak and his Viagra story
Arriving with 1 full bag and leaving with 3
Doug’s workforce wearing Doug tshirts
Kirsty’s Duncan not just being Kirsty’s Duncan
New drinking partners
Dan Morley and his new plans
Vodka Luge
Jo from Superbreak (won’t ignore you next time)
Conference agenda with notepad at back
Pens – can never have too many
A4uExpo mugs
Double bed for being there at the end
12 noon checkout
Being bigger than last year
Meeting my blog readers
Getting excited when the person talking to me realises I’m ‘Befuddle’
Vodka Luge with sambuca
New friends
Talking about Soccer Saturday with Matt Le Tissier
Pirate hour
Existem bean bag to sit on (but the one thing I didnt blag)
Lammo for drunken chats
The Zak and Graham double act
New Exclusive codes
Negative SEO – come on admit it who did it?
Free bars
Kirsty disappointed there was no sexual gossip
Teresa for the Sky VIP room pass
All the beautiful people who work in marketing
People taking photos to remind me of the carnage
Lunch bags with apples (too healthy for my liking)
Kieron saying I didn’t need ContentNow
New business contacts
Joe Connor’s lodger Dan asking questions that weren’t answered
The chip waitress who kept winking at me
Kirsty’s prize winner Rich Harper offering me his voucher domain
The Benny Hill style chase for chips
Bryant Hussey for keeping his restraint
Joe Connor’s Cantbarsed business card
Sleep which was bliss whenever it happened
Redcar’s Elaine and Dave
People not present, were their ears burning?
Clarke Duncan and his mobile plans
Lee Bradshaw giving me advise on the ladies
Sneaking out of the hotel bar at 2am on the second night
Matthew Wood and Claire for great organising
Laura pushing up the bidding price in the charity auction
Those people who I chatted to a lot and I can’t recall your name
Liane from Linkshare complimenting my watch
Matt Bailey telling me he told a merchant not to work with me
All those stands and people that I didn’t approach
Kirsty McGubbin getting through the champagne before I clocked it
Kevin Sutton upset that I’d not remembered him from a few weeks back
Paul Wright going missing
Twittering whilst twatted
The London Eye at night
Buy.ats Hayley who gets to the same events I do
Meeting Fraser for the first time
The grey man playing with his balls
The Super Affiliate session which shows that we’ve all got room for improvement
The people waving at us from the London bridges
Kirsty borrowing Hannah’s camera
Claire from Existem singing Sweet Caroline
My site being hacked whilst I was in London
Not remembering much really
Have you heard about Promotions?

… Ok, I can’t even string a list together. This is taking longer than I thought. The rest will be added a little later whilst I now head off to get a smoothy or shandy …

Blame it on the Vodka

befuddle — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 10:53:02 +0000

I made a last minute decision to make the relatively easy Transpennine trip for the a4uexpo Manchester Roadshow and glad I did.

A very good turnout filled the Vodka Revolution bar and I got to meet up with some old friends and new faces amongst the crowd.

There wasn’t a free bar but R.O.EYE had a kitty to get the cocktails flowing. I only had to put my hand in my pocket once and that was because I was one of the first there.

I’m convinced Mark from Existem was deliberately trying to get me drunk as he went to the bar and got three trays of vodka shots. No wonder I’m already on my fourth coffee of the morning.

Highlights for me …

Meeting up with Liane from LinkShare who I last saw in a San Francisco diner in January, as she then worked for the US arm of the company. With another Summit trip to win next year, I’ll be proactively promoting their merchants to stake my claim.

Chatting to Jess from dgm who I couldn’t quite persuade to get her to update my site for me but she’s volunteered to send me lots of information to save me some pain.

We talked a lot about JD Williams and how I’m still clocking up lots of sales for them but they don’t generate me any money. It would be Christmas for me, if JD Williams got back into affiliate marketing in some form.

Aside from them, I do very little on the dgm network, so it’s another that I’m going to just blitz and add more merchants. I’ve shied away from them in the past because I don’t like their interface but it sounds like there’s improvements on the way.

Finally, the evening ended talking to Existem new girl Hannah who even brought her mum and dad. Bless.

All in all it was a brilliant night. It cost me approximately £100 for the train and nice stay at the ABode (who kindly gave me a breakfast to go). That cost is more of an investment though and if you’ve not been to a network event before, please do.

There’s plenty coming up. The next stop for my dancing shoes is Barcelona for Cap Euro 2008.

Until then, it’s time for another coffee.

Your Top 5 Questions Answered

befuddle — Sat, 17 May 2008 16:41:58 +0000

This week I took a rare trip down to London and got to meet some familiar faces and also some new ones whilst at the buy.at Speakeasy.

I managed to mingle well and during the day and night there was a recurring theme of questions, asked of me, so I’ll answer them here. My answers here are probably completely different to what I said at the time but I blame the free Littlewood’s cocktails.

“I REALLY LIKE YOUR BLOG, WHY HAVE YOU STOPPED UPDATING IT?”

Well, I’ve ran out of things to say. I’ve been entertaining my friends instead on facebook with picture stories of my last month, including a stag-do in Newcastle and a holiday to Benidorm.

Since the holiday I’ve not really done much affiliate marketing and my site is in urgent need of an update, so blog posts have been on the backburner.

I had the pleasure of meeting Doug who likes a good heckle in real life and his blog amuses me. But he challenged me to write a bit more.

I’ve got nothing to rant about but I may just have a dig at Black Circles Tyres later for kicking me off their programme with no genuine explanation why.

I’ve also not been locked in a kitchen for a while.

Genuinely, I’ve just chilled a bit and have been spending more time at the gym than I have been in the bedroom updating my sites. The result of unwinding and going to the gym is that I’ve lost 4kg in weight in 3 weeks.

“HOW IS YOUR SITE DOING?”

I obviously wouldn’t be relaxing so much if my site was suffering but it is currently ticking along just fine. Typically when I go on holiday my site bombs as I don’t update it.

During this last holiday I automated it so that different content appeared on the home page from 1am.

Traffic is consistent and is increasing.

I’ve about 3,000 unread emails and 200 of those have been filtered for my attention. I’ll work through these and also the personal emails I receive from the merchants, agencies and networks.

As a measure of how well my site is doing. In a month my commission turnover is three times more than my take home pay from my salary.

I mentioned that my conversions are currently flying and I put this down to one change I made to my site.

Whilst other code affiliates discussed and implemented ‘click for code’ across their pages, I did the exact opposite.

I doubled the font size to 20 pixels and presented the headline code so that it looks like an image. The result is that people are clicking on it and as it isn’t an actual image, the visitor still has the option to just ‘copy-and-paste’ the code if they wanted to.

This transparency is doing my site no harm at all and only this week the merchant day2dayshop has emailed my site as an example of best practice.

“SO WHY ARE YOU STILL AT ORANGE?”

It was only 50 days ago when I made only £23 commission one day. Doug replied “So!”. But I want to have a bit more of a comfort zone than that.

There is the argument that if I leave my full time job that my business will do a lot better. That isn’t lost on me one bit but having got rid of all my debt I now have money coming in every month that I’d previously not seen before. When I get paid now all the money except my rent and gym subscription is mine. Handy cash to have available when you win a free holiday or two.

I’ve been at Orange exactly 11 years. I joined just after Tony Blair became Prime Minister in 1997.

I’m awaiting an imminent re-organisation announcement. I don’t think my role or team will be affected but I’ll see what happens in the wash.

I’m off to Bristol Zoo next week to hear about the future of testing and then in June I’ll be taking another ISEB testing exam. I can still apply for a sabattical which, if approved, would allow between 3 to 9 months off unpaid.

So, there’s no imminent rush to make a decision either way.

“HOW COME YOU WIN EVERYTHING?”

Any combination of the following help …

You’ve got to be in it to win it / Be in the right place at the right time

If you don’t ask you often don’t get

Play the odds

Be charming

Have a cheeky smile

So on Wednesday night I tested all to get myself a free ticket at the awards. Matt Wood’s face dropped when Claire suggested I should get a seat. However, I was only teasing at that point as nominee Jasper offered me a seat on the Jackpotjoy front-row table.

“ARE YOU GOING TO THE AWARDS?”

I’m not. Despite being offered a seat on a table with mad Jasper and the lovely Claire, it clashes with a lad’s holiday I have pencilled in that week. Two weeks away and I’ve still not booked my trip to Zante yet mind.

I do say that the awards didn’t seem quite right for bedroom affiliates like myself. Though if I start working my way through those 3000 emails, I expect to be there in 2009 as a nominee.