In online business, successful entrepreneurs can inspire others who are just starting out. One of these inspiring stories is that of Simon Vielma, the CEO and founder of BidWise.
Simon is a Venezuelan-born entrepreneur who now lives in the US. He's built a thriving set of affiliate marketing websites. Simon started small, but he's managed to grow his business portfolio under to the point where it's now bringing in $250,000 in revenue per month.
In this article, we're going to take a close look at Simon's journey. We'll explore the strategies he used, the challenges he faced, and the important lessons he's learned along the way. For anyone aspiring to build their own affiliate marketing business, especially with affiliate sites, there's a lot to learn from Simon's success.
Simon Vielma
The early days: Trying things out and learning
Simon's journey as an entrepreneur started when he was just 18 years old. Fresh out of high school, Simon moved to the US and studied Computer Science and Economics at university. While in uni, he started trying out different online business ideas, looking for the right opportunity.
His first big project was a platform for people to post ads to sell their cars, focused on Latin America. But he was up against some big competitors in that market. However, that didnt work. People would rather stick with the big sites because their cars would sell faster. To stand out, Simon decided to offer free listings on his platform.
He also started using Google Adsense and affiliate marketing to generate revenue, without needing to charge users directly.
It was a challenging time, but this early experience taught Simon a lot about how online businesses work. He was learning as he went, trying different strategies and seeing what worked. This trial-by-fire period laid the groundwork for Simon's future success. He was gaining valuable knowledge about building and running an online business, knowledge that would serve him well down the road.
Today, Simon runs a company called Bidwise, which has a collection of different affiliate websites that cover various topics. Their main website, Money Ranger, focuses on finance and credit. Apprenda covers technology and cloud computing. Top-Best is a review site that looks at a wide range of products. And SuperOffers specializes in deals and price comparisons.
Launching Money Ranger
In 2021, during the global pandemic, Simon and his team at Bidwise noticed an opportunity. They discovered the domain "MoneyRanger.com" was up for auction on GoDaddy, previously owned by a now-defunct magazine. Even though the magazine had closed, the domain still had a strong Google ranking, which caught Simon's attention.
Recognizing the potential in the financial niche, Simon and his team bought the domain for $7,500. They quickly revamped the site within two weeks. Their efforts paid off when one of their articles, featuring credit card recommendations, started generating $1,500 per day in affiliate revenue.
This immediate success was a turning point for Simon and his team, validating their strategy and setting the stage for the growth of their business.
Scaling the business
Simon's success isn't just about the one website, Money Ranger. As we have seen, his company, Bidwise, actually has a whole portfolio of different websites.
The main sites in this portfolio are:
- Money Ranger
- Apprenda
- Top-Best
- SuperOffers
- ReturnPolicy
Together, this diverse network of niche websites attracts over 6 million visitors per month, and generates around 100,000 affiliate marketing clicks every day.
The success of Simon's digital empire can be attributed to several key factors, including a unique marketing strategy, a focus on search engine optimization (SEO), and a dedicated team of skilled professionals.
Simon's goal is to eventually consolidate all these different sites into one mega affiliate site he recently launched called Top-Best. And his ambitious target is for this combined site to reach $10 million in revenue by the end of 2024.
Having this diversified portfolio of websites, all serving different niches, is a big part of what's enabled Simon to achieve such impressive scale and growth. The power of this multi-site approach is a key driver of his overall success.
Revenue numbers
Simon says that when Bidwise started back in 2016, they had a few simple affiliate websites that would get visitors from Google searches. Over time, advertisers started reaching out to Simon, wanting to buy ad space on those websites.
By the end of 2016, those affiliate sites were bringing in $150,000 in revenue. Then in 2017, that grew to $1.1 million. For a few years after that, the revenue kind of plateaued around the $2 million mark.
But now, Bidwise has gained speed again, thanks to some major new projects they've been working on, like the Money Ranger website, that paid off well.
Monthly revenue from Amazon affiliate program alone
The company’s progress even earned them a spot on the prestigious Inc. 500 list.
Unique monetization strategy
One of the big reasons Simon has been so successful is his unique approach to marketing and monetizing his websites.
Bidwise, Simon's company, has developed its own internal system called BART (Bidwise Automated Revenue Tracking). This system handles all the monetization and optimization work, allowing the writers to just focus on creating great content.
BART automatically optimizes for the best return on affiliate marketing clicks. It constantly compares payouts from different affiliate networks like Awin, Rakuten, Shareasale, etc, to find the most profitable partnerships. And it can switch to better-paying partners without any manual effort.
Simon explains the platform like this:
“The BART system measures the payout we’re getting for promoting a specific brand to a specific demographic and then picks the best affiliate network to use based on payout.
It also makes the same comparison with our direct advertisers, so if an agency comes to us looking to promote a brand such as, let’s say, Quicken Loans, we’d compare their payout with the one we are currently getting from other networks and suggest a proper bid for that traffic. We built the entire system from scratch.”
This custom-built automation technology has been a real game-changer for Simon's team. It takes a lot of the tedious work out of monetizing the content, allowing them to maximize the profitability of their websites.
Using SEO for organic growth
SEO is a critical foundation for Simon's entire business. Taking inspiration from well-known SEO experts like Neil Patel, Simon's team puts a big emphasis on creating high-quality, free tools and resources. These act as "linkable assets" that naturally attract backlinks from other websites. He points to successful companies like Bankrate and Nerdwallet as examples. They've created all these free calculators and tools that have become go-to resources for consumers, and that's helped them get a ton of organic links back to their sites..
Simon says that with these free tools and resources in place, he doesn't need to do any other form of link building at all because he believes that doing it wrong can trash his website's sites.
The focus is on providing genuine value and building authority, rather than using manipulative blackhat tactics. Examples of successful linkable assets include interactive maps and statistical resources.
Additionally, the team at Bidwise targets long-tail search terms - more specific, less competitive keywords. This helps them avoid direct competition with the big established sites in their niches.
Content creation: Quality over quantity
Simon's content strategy focuses on providing valuable, informative content that meets his audience's needs, while also supporting the financial goals of his business. For example, the Money Ranger website alone has over 1,000 carefully crafted articles, based on keyword research and advertiser demand.
Simon's content creation team consists of 3 in-house writers, plus around 10 freelance writers. They don't use AI to write the articles, but they do leverage AI for research purposes. Simon emphasizes the importance of quality over quantity - he's even willing to delete old posts that aren't performing well, in order to maintain the overall quality and health of his websites.
Tools and resources
Simon credits a big part of his success to the tools and resources he uses. He finds the Income School YouTube channel very valuable for learning about organic growth strategies. And he emphasizes the importance of staying up-to-date with industry thought leaders and news outlets.
When it comes to actually running his business, Simon relies on 4 key tools:
- Ahrefs for keyword research
- Slack for communication and automatic updates
- Github for version control and collaboration
- G-Suite for overall productivity
Simon believes leveraging the right technology is crucial for streamlining operations and keeping his whole team on the same page.
Overcoming challenges: Building the right team
One of the biggest challenges Simon has faced is putting together the right team. With rising costs and intense competition from larger companies, it's been really tough to attract and retain top talent, especially skilled developers.
However, Simon has worked hard to offer competitive compensation and foster a flexible, autonomous work environment. This has helped him build a loyal, dedicated team. His advice to other entrepreneurs is to never compromise when it comes to hiring, even if you're really desperate. It's better to automate or do without a task until you can find the perfect person for the job.
The Importance of tracking metrics
Looking back, Simon wishes he had been more diligent about tracking business metrics from the very beginning. Now, his team is obsessed with measuring every aspect of the business, especially when it comes to paid advertising campaigns.
They use custom software called BART to track key metrics like growth compared to previous periods and profit margins. This data-driven approach has been essential for optimizing their operations and making informed business decisions.
Simon has learned that closely monitoring your company's metrics is crucial. It provides the insights needed to really understand what's working and what needs improvement across the organization.
Advice for aspiring entrepreneurs
Simon's path hasn't been easy - he's faced plenty of challenges and setbacks along the way. He's very upfront that building a successful digital business is not for the faint of heart. It requires hard work, determination, and the willingness to go through some tough times.
Growth can be slow, and you'll inevitably hit plateaus. But Simon sees these difficult periods as opportunities to learn valuable lessons. His advice to aspiring entrepreneurs is to be prepared for a bumpy ride, but to embrace it as part of the journey. Building a business is a marathon, not a sprint.
Conclusion
Simon Vielma's story shows the power of determination, adaptability, and strategic thinking in online entrepreneurship. From his early experiments with car sales ads to his thriving portfolio of financial and comparison websites, he's demonstrated that success is possible with the right mindset and approach.
By using unique marketing strategies, mastering SEO, and focusing on high-quality content, Simon has built a $250,000/month digital empire that keeps growing. His journey offers valuable insights for aspiring entrepreneurs:
- Seize opportunities and build a diverse business portfolio
- Leverage technology to streamline operations
- Assemble the right team and track key business metrics
- Be prepared for challenges, but stay resilient and adaptable
Ultimately, Simon's story is one of innovation, determination, and the relentless pursuit of success. As Simon continues to scale his business, his journey will inspire the next generation of digital entrepreneurs.
