Patrat
Junior Member
- Sep 20, 2008
- 172
- 559
Just as I have made 25 posts and am 1/4 of the way to the 100 mark I though I would post an inspiration post and an example of totally 'Thinking Outside the Box' Affiliate Marketing Black Hat style. This is from my own experience while at University and really introduced me to the world of Black Hat.
Background:
While at University studying my Bsc and Msc Degrees in E-commerce and Internet Systems Development I worked part-time as an IT Technician and part of the University Web Team. This job involved the usual IT duties but most important though monitoring student browsing habits, assigning software installation rights for student accounts, PHP script and webpage development, SQL database development, Student Email Campaigns. My manager was a PHD student who was pretty much as expert in Security who worked in the department and is the Mastermind of the following Method that I had the pleasure to JV with him and it also introduced me to the Dark Side of Affiliate Marketing. After knowing him and working with him for about a year, plus all the chit chat about IT and affiliate marketing etc he came up with an idea and a very profitable method......... I had lots of knowledge about affiliate marketing and the Internet and he was an expert in Security and knew the University Systems inside-out.....the following emerged......
The Tools:
These are the utilities that we needed to create for the operation to work.
Affiliate Website Database: A database filled with the websites students visit using the student browsing university monitoring software. Then find out if they have an affiliate scheme, then add the link to the database. He then created a script that entered the student browsed sites straight into a database, and I just had to check, research and update the popular visited links if they had an affiliate program.
Affiliate Network Accounts: I had to create all the affiliate network accounts, sign-up, we did it in his name as he did it under his university ID as they already had affiliate accounts for there Student Union Website etc. but to his own account, address. Just used their corporate presence.
PPI: Sign-up for PPI programs and bundle it with university software. The he made some sort of clone server to the original university software server but with the PPI bundled up.
Email Campaigns: Create email campaigns using affiliate programs such as student housing, Insurance, TV license, Student Bank Accounts, student discounts etc.
Coursework: Sign-up to sites like AC but they where focused on student coursework but paid per essay etc. I can't remember the names of the but a simple Google search will yield plenty of them.
The Method:
What he basically did was develop and implement a script into the university system that when a student logged on to a computer and accessed the internet, whenever they typed an address into the browser, the script would check if that address was in the database I created. If so it would redirect them via the affiliate link. I also know that the script involved cookie stuffing, but back then I had hardly any idea what it was or how it worked.
The PPI worked that when a student creates a new account or has an account they can request to install software depending on their department and year. When they do it accesses a server to install the software on their computer/account. He developed a script for this that it would flag the installation request and use the clone server he created so it installed a PPI program as well and then when someone complained about it he would just uninstall it and if so the student would get blamed if it come down to it.
The email was simple he just sent out email campaigns that I created now and again to all students mainly during freshers week as this was the biggest earner of the year. With the coursework, at the end of every year he would access the a server where all the coursework was stored and copy it all to an external hardrive while carrying out the backup procedures etc. Then we would submit it to the AC type sites.
Our Control:
This system would only be used when he was head manager on shift and all the scripts used he would upload from external hardrive that he connected when he was on shift. At the end of the shift he would clear all traces of the system being used such as system log entries etc. Whenever their was trouble, some trace left or detected by other staff etc. He would stop using it for about a week or until if was safe to do it again.
I had the pleasure of using this system with him for 4 years and in that time it paid for my University Course Fees, University Halls Rent, Paid all my Student Debt from previous years and left me with a decent bank balance. I will say that in Freshers Weeks alone this system turned over 5 Figures easily and provided steady income throughout the year. Once I left University I moved back to my home town and he paid me a decent amount of money that I agreed to, to move on and keep my mouth shut! Which I was happy with as he did all the hard work, would take all the risk and would have got the sack etc. if caught.
Plus I still keep in contact with him and he is still doing it to the day and also has other methods his uses now as well which I may share in the future. I think your agree with me that this is Affiliate Marketing Genius at its best and a great example of 'Thinking Outside the Box'.
Just a Inspirational Post to get your thinking caps on, Hope you enjoyed!
Background:
While at University studying my Bsc and Msc Degrees in E-commerce and Internet Systems Development I worked part-time as an IT Technician and part of the University Web Team. This job involved the usual IT duties but most important though monitoring student browsing habits, assigning software installation rights for student accounts, PHP script and webpage development, SQL database development, Student Email Campaigns. My manager was a PHD student who was pretty much as expert in Security who worked in the department and is the Mastermind of the following Method that I had the pleasure to JV with him and it also introduced me to the Dark Side of Affiliate Marketing. After knowing him and working with him for about a year, plus all the chit chat about IT and affiliate marketing etc he came up with an idea and a very profitable method......... I had lots of knowledge about affiliate marketing and the Internet and he was an expert in Security and knew the University Systems inside-out.....the following emerged......
The Tools:
These are the utilities that we needed to create for the operation to work.
Affiliate Website Database: A database filled with the websites students visit using the student browsing university monitoring software. Then find out if they have an affiliate scheme, then add the link to the database. He then created a script that entered the student browsed sites straight into a database, and I just had to check, research and update the popular visited links if they had an affiliate program.
Affiliate Network Accounts: I had to create all the affiliate network accounts, sign-up, we did it in his name as he did it under his university ID as they already had affiliate accounts for there Student Union Website etc. but to his own account, address. Just used their corporate presence.
PPI: Sign-up for PPI programs and bundle it with university software. The he made some sort of clone server to the original university software server but with the PPI bundled up.
Email Campaigns: Create email campaigns using affiliate programs such as student housing, Insurance, TV license, Student Bank Accounts, student discounts etc.
Coursework: Sign-up to sites like AC but they where focused on student coursework but paid per essay etc. I can't remember the names of the but a simple Google search will yield plenty of them.
The Method:
What he basically did was develop and implement a script into the university system that when a student logged on to a computer and accessed the internet, whenever they typed an address into the browser, the script would check if that address was in the database I created. If so it would redirect them via the affiliate link. I also know that the script involved cookie stuffing, but back then I had hardly any idea what it was or how it worked.
The PPI worked that when a student creates a new account or has an account they can request to install software depending on their department and year. When they do it accesses a server to install the software on their computer/account. He developed a script for this that it would flag the installation request and use the clone server he created so it installed a PPI program as well and then when someone complained about it he would just uninstall it and if so the student would get blamed if it come down to it.
The email was simple he just sent out email campaigns that I created now and again to all students mainly during freshers week as this was the biggest earner of the year. With the coursework, at the end of every year he would access the a server where all the coursework was stored and copy it all to an external hardrive while carrying out the backup procedures etc. Then we would submit it to the AC type sites.
Our Control:
This system would only be used when he was head manager on shift and all the scripts used he would upload from external hardrive that he connected when he was on shift. At the end of the shift he would clear all traces of the system being used such as system log entries etc. Whenever their was trouble, some trace left or detected by other staff etc. He would stop using it for about a week or until if was safe to do it again.
I had the pleasure of using this system with him for 4 years and in that time it paid for my University Course Fees, University Halls Rent, Paid all my Student Debt from previous years and left me with a decent bank balance. I will say that in Freshers Weeks alone this system turned over 5 Figures easily and provided steady income throughout the year. Once I left University I moved back to my home town and he paid me a decent amount of money that I agreed to, to move on and keep my mouth shut! Which I was happy with as he did all the hard work, would take all the risk and would have got the sack etc. if caught.
Plus I still keep in contact with him and he is still doing it to the day and also has other methods his uses now as well which I may share in the future. I think your agree with me that this is Affiliate Marketing Genius at its best and a great example of 'Thinking Outside the Box'.
Just a Inspirational Post to get your thinking caps on, Hope you enjoyed!
