Affiliate Marketing 101: Everything You Need to Know

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Affiliate Marketing

You’re working to make money for food, rent, bills, and to have fun with friends and family. Perhaps you wake up at an ungodly hour, drive to your office with cars honking on a busy street.

You wait in jammed pack traffic to reach the office just to get yelled at by your boss. You feel drained at your workplace and impatiently wait for the sweet release at 5 PM. Sounds horrible, right?

What if there was a meaningful alternative to save yourself from the hassle of office politics and unnecessary drama? Fortunately, you can make money at home – even when catching some Zzzz’s.

That’s exactly what affiliate marketing is about.

Warren Buffet, an American business magnate, investor, and philanthropist quotes, “If you don’t find a way to make money while you sleep, you will work until you die.”

So, if you want to make your youth and senior years stress-free, we’re here to teach you tactics to generate money while you sleep.

What is Affiliate Marketing?

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Don’t have enough money to set up a business and sell products/services? Fret not! Affiliate marketing is the way to go!

Affiliate marketing – also known as performance marketing – involves a strategy where you sell other people’s products or services and earn a small commission for each sale.

Typically, the monetization model rewards you a payout for providing a particular result to the retailer.

“The result” is often a sale. Nonetheless, a few programs out there reward you for clicks to a website, free-trial users, leads, or getting enough downloads for a particular app.

Perhaps you’ve come across websites recommending products or services they do not sell. 90% of the time, these are affiliate products.

Affiliate marketing offers you a golden opportunity – a chance to earn when you’re having a good night’s sleep.

Yes, a lot of initial work is required for you to reap the rewards persistently, but once it starts working out, the system lets the money roll in 24/7.

Did you know 81% of brands and 84% of publishers leverage the power of affiliate marketing?

What’s more, affiliate marketing spending is increasing every year in the US. That implies, more and more people are becoming aware of the benefits of this marketing trend.

Another reason why people enjoy affiliate marketing is that they can search for a product of their choice. There are no boundaries or restrictions when it comes to selling. For instance, if you’re into fitness, you can promote fitness apparel and earn a commission for it.

Your sales will be tracked via affiliate links from one site to another.

But here’s the thing: The sellers alone aren’t benefiting from affiliate marketing; the retailers are in the same boat.

Let’s take a closer look at how it works.

How Does Affiliate Marketing Work?

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The affiliate marketing model involves multiple players. We’ll discuss all three parties below.

1. The Merchant

Also known as the brand, the seller (whether large enterprise or solo entrepreneur), the product creator, or the retailer is a party that designs a product or service.

The product can be a physical object like cat toys, and the services can include anything like training programs or fashion tutorials.

Whether you’re a solo entrepreneur or an owner of a massive business, you can be a merchant behind the affiliate program.

The program does not require you to participate actively.

All you need to have is a product/service to sell. The rest of the work is done by the affiliate marketer.

2. The Affiliate Marketers

The affiliate marketers, also known as the publishers, can be individuals or marketers that sell a product to the customers.

Essentially, their goal is to promote a product in a unique way and convince the customer of its value.

If the consumer ends up buying the promoted service, the affiliate gets a commission for it. Note that the amount of commission varies per program.

Generally, there are two types of affiliate marketers out there. Type A marketers have a particular audience to whom they can promote a product of their interest. Type B marketers build an audience – for the sake of promoting an affiliate product.

Whether you’re from the former group or the latter, you have the chance to earn a portion of the revenue made by the merchant – provided you remain active and consistent.

3. The Consumer

The merchant has a product to sell, and the publishers have a product to promote, but if the consumer isn’t showing interest, the efforts of the former parties will go down the drain.

So, it won’t be wrong to say that consumers are the drivers of affiliate marketing – just like any other business.

When consumers purchase a service or buy a product, the merchant and the affiliate share the profits.

Note that the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has made it mandatory for affiliate marketers to disclose that they are promoting a particular product or service. This keeps the consumers informed and maintains transparency and honesty in advertising.

FTC wants consumers to know if the affiliate marketer genuinely likes a product or is promoting it for monetary compensation.

Further, the Federal Trade Commission also requires the disclosure of affiliate links – or at least something closer – instead of burying them in obscure places like the ABOUT US section or GENERAL INFO page.

4. The Process

Affiliate marketing isn’t as simple as creating a website, tossing in a bunch of affiliate links, and watching the commission roll in.

However, with the correct strategy and information, it’s no rocket science either.

If you’re new to affiliate marketing, we’ll unfold the nitty-gritty of this marketing business to make things easier for you. Here’s how it works.

Before you dive into the world of affiliate programs, you need to decide on your traffic source.

Do you have active followers on your social media channel or blog? If yes, you’re good to go. Otherwise, how exactly are you going to promote the product?

However, if you do not have enough traffic, PPC ads via Google, Facebook, or YouTube can be an option for you. Once you get your traffic source right go for an affiliate program or network in line with your niche.

Make sure you go through the overview of the program, including the types of products/services, commission amount, and payment methods.

There is a good chance that more than one program will appeal to you. However, since it’s the beginning, we recommend you go slow until you actually start selling. You can always sign up for more programs later on.

Once you sign up for a particular program, you’d need to wait for confirmation.

The retailer might accept or reject your application. In case the latter happens, it might be difficult for you to apply to the program again. Therefore, make sure you consider the following questions before applying.

  • Do you have a polished, running website capable of driving traffic to sell a product/service?
  • Are you applying for a relevant program that relates to your website/blog/video channel content?
  • Are you a social media influencer on Instagram trying to make your way into affiliate programs? Make sure you read the terms and conditions of each program. Several programs do not accept promotional activities via social media platforms.
  • Do you have knowledge and ideas for promoting a program?
  • Have you provided all the requested documents and answered all the questions directly and accurately?

If you feel confident after considering the questions mentioned above, you should apply to a program. Otherwise, try building authenticity before delving into the world of affiliate marketing.

Once you get accepted into a program, create relevant content and add custom links provided by the program.

These links will track when a consumer makes a purchase, and you’ll earn a commission as a reward.

You can promote the products on websites, newsletters, blogs, social media, or anywhere you’re allowed to share the links.

As soon as you reach the minimum payment level, the network sends you a payment via checks, bank transfers, or PayPal (depends entirely on the type of network).

Why You Should Get Started With Affiliate Marketing Today

Affiliate marketing benefits both parties – the merchant and the affiliate. The brand just needs to have a product, and they won’t need an active involvement to sell it. On the other hand, the affiliate promotes it alongside their blog/website – with little yet constant effort – and earns a commission.

So, as a merchant, you get a chance to create brand awareness, market your product with a low budget, and boost revenue. As an affiliate, you’re earning money.

Let’s take a closer look at why getting started with affiliate marketing might be a wise move for business owners and affiliates.

1. Business Owners

Recent stats show that affiliate marketing in the US is expected to reach $8.2 billion by 2022. Let’s see why companies are spending on this marketing method.

  • Business start-ups do not need to invest in ad visuals or purchase ad space. They completely depend on the affiliates and their marketing content.
  • Affiliates take care of most of the marketing activities for you. It allows you to manage cash flow. Moreover, you’ll only pay affiliates for the sales made – you do not have to pay them for advertising your product/service.
  • This marketing model is less risky since you only pay when a sale is made.
  • Most affiliates have a target audience for you. I mean, they pick you for a reason. They have a relevant audience who’ll be interested in buying your product.

2. Publishers

Recent stats show that 94% of publishers use multiple affiliate marketing networks, and for good reasons. It offers passive income opportunities with promising profits. If you’re willing to earn, here’s why you should begin right away.

  • If you run a blog, a social media site, or a youtube channel, you can earn twice as much by signing up for an affiliate marketing program. You have the audience; all you need is a link to promote a product. A relevant product will generate profits for you.
  • You do not need to be an expert before stepping into the world of affiliate marketing. You can begin your journey if you know the basics.
  • Once you enroll in an affiliate program, you have independence, convenience, and flexibility. You are your boss and not answerable to anyone for not making a particular amount of sales in a given time frame. You can keep it as a side hustle.

Types of Affiliate Marketing

Not all affiliate programs work the same way. Here are two common affiliate commission models.

1. Earning per Sale

The “Earning per Sale” program is just the way it sounds. You get money for each sale made. For instance, if you write a blog about hair products, you might join an affiliate network of a similar niche.

When someone purchases a hair product from your affiliate link, you earn a commission.

2. Earning per Acquisition or Action

Not all affiliate programs require you to sell a product or service. Instead, some programs offer you a commission when you complete a particular action – known as earning per acquisition or action.

This type of marketing program might require your consumers to fill out a form, download an app, or watch a video and you get a profit based on the actions performed.

How Can You Make Money With Affiliate Marketing?

Here’s how you can make money with affiliate marketing.

  • Before you sign up for a program, you need to decide on a particular niche; you cannot go and sign up for just any program that offers a good profit margin.
  • A particular niche refers to the category you have an audience for. Do you run a blog about makeup products, or do you have a website where you sell slimes? Make sure you go for that specific niche, so you don’t have to build an audience later.
  • Once you have the target audience at hand, sign up for an affiliate program. Make sure you’re clear about your goals, strategies, and ideas about promoting a product. Your application should convince the merchant that you can sell their service.
  • Once you get into a specific program, you’re provided with a unique affiliate link.
  • You can promote this link on your social media platforms, website, blog, or video channel.
  • If anyone clicking the product buys it, you’ll earn money for that.

Further, read the section below, “How to Become an Affiliate Marketer,” for step-by-step instructions on getting started.

Pros and Cons of Affiliate Marketing

Affiliate marketing is evolving continuously, but just like other marketing tends, it involves both advantages and disadvantages. Take a look below.

Pros

  • Affiliate marketing is a billion-dollar industry and is prospering pretty well. That’s enough to explain why it’s a big incentive to get your share in.
  • It offers low-cost and less effort business ideas. You do not need to spend on ads or put hard work into driving the traffic – publishers will take care of that. You just need a product or a service.
  • Anyone with no business or products can join an affiliate program as a publisher and earn.
  • You do not need to be an expert in the industry to get started. All you need is a product (as an advertiser) and traffic (as a publisher).
  • You’re not supposed to leave your current job to get started. It’s more of a secondary source of income. But if taken seriously, it can take you places.
  • It offers flexibility and convenience to create several campaigns on multiple websites and market your links. Moreover, you can optimize the successful ones and abandon the ones performing poorly.

Cons

  • You’d need to depend on the rules and regulations put forth by your merchant and respect their conditions.
  • Practically, anyone can join the affiliate programs and be on a roll. So, you cannot control your competition and might have a hard time outpacing your competitors in a similar niche.
  • You cannot develop your customer base. For instance, a referral purchasing from your link might never return to your link again – to make a purchase. I mean, when they can get in touch with the vendor directly, why would they bother returning to your link?
  • You cannot predict how much money you’ll earn after all your efforts in promoting the links.
  • Freelance jobs are not for everyone. You might feel yourself closed off or alone. However, you can always hit a coffee shop or a restaurant designed particularly for online work.

Affiliate Marketing Programs vs Affiliate Networks

Affiliate programs and affiliate networks are two entirely different things. Yes, both programs are utilized for similar goals – selling a product or earning a commission if you’re an affiliate – the method varies.

The affiliate network is basically an online platform that connects marketers and affiliate publishers. You can consider it as a digital marketplace. An affiliate program, on the other hand, doesn’t involve any intermediaries.

To help you understand better, we’ve compiled a list of questions below.

What is an Affiliate Marketing Program?

Affiliate marketing programs are meant to boost a firm’s marketing efforts by selling its products and services. Tons of publishers out there are eager to earn a small commission by promoting a particular product.

Affiliate programs are offered directly by a brand/company, and no go-between is involved in the process. Simply put, it only includes the merchant and the publisher.

How to Make Money From Affiliate Marketing Programs

If you’re interested in making money via affiliate marketing programs, take a look at a few steps below.

  • Decide on the traffic source. Are you running a successful blog, website, or YouTube channel? If so, you have the audience. Otherwise, you always have more options to explore, like PPC ads on Google, Facebook, or YouTube.
  • Choose an affiliate program. Say you have traffic for the fashion niche. You can choose a relevant affiliate program to make the promotion easier. You have the audience; all you need to do is sell the product.
  • Get approval. You just cannot choose an affiliate program and start promoting the product. You need approval from the merchant to market their product. For that purpose, you’re required to write a compelling application.
  • Get an offer. Once you get approved, you need to discuss the details and tracking options of the offer. If they seem befitting, you’re good to go. Otherwise, you always have more options.

Pros and Cons of Signing up for an Affiliate Marketing Program

Affiliate marketing programs come with several benefits. But not all that glitters is gold. There are cons to the program as well. Take a closer look below.

Pros

  • Doesn’t involve commission for the intermediary
  • Direct relation with the publisher
  • Direct relation with the brand offers personalized assistance
  • Includes advertisement material and assets
  • An efficient method for increasing accessibility, exposure, and earnings
  • Strict approval procedures ensure only credible participants get a chance to sell the service

Cons

  • Offers a limited number of niches to promote
  • Includes a restricted number of offers
  • Limited payout options
  • Restrictive approval procedure

The Best Affiliate Marketing Programs

If you’re willing to get started, perhaps you’d want to know about the best affiliate marketing programs. Below, we’ve listed the best marketing programs for bloggers, including the highest-paying programs.

Affiliate Marketing Programs for Bloggers

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Most people begin blogging as a passion. Others aim to gain authority in a particular niche. Whether you’re from the former group or the latter, know that you can make money by recommending products/services to your loyal readers.

Amazon Affiliate

Being a giant, Amazon is one of the most popular affiliate networks among bloggers. The affiliate program officially began in 1996.

Since people trust Amazon for its name, several publishers sign up for this program to earn a commission. All you need to do is share a customized link of a product to your blog.

If anyone visiting your blog makes a purchase, you’ll earn a profit in exchange. What’s more, it is one of the largest online shopping stores; therefore, you’ll easily find relevant products to recommend to your audience.

Pinterest Affiliate Marketing

Pinterest affiliate marketing isn’t as literal as it sounds. It basically implies you are using Pinterest to promote your product.

With over 322 million active users, Pinterest allows you to generate traffic and promote product sales. You can add a relevant image alongside a link to your blog, or you can directly paste the affiliate link – however you prefer.

Product promotion through Pinterest gives you an added benefit.

First, you’re promoting a product and earning commission for it. Second, you get a chance to promote your blog. Visuals play a key role in driving traffic. So, make sure you design an enticing image and upload it on Pinterest with an affiliate link or link to your blog.

eBay Partner Network

Here’s how eBay Partner Network works: You refer buyers to eBay without shipping or selling anything. All you need is a social media site, blog, or personal website to sign up for the program.

Once you do, you’ll earn a commission every time visitors click on your link and make a purchase.

But again, commissions vary by product categories.

Highest Paying Affiliate Marketing Programs

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Wondering about the highest paying affiliate programs? Discover below.

Elementor

The average sales commission for affiliate programs is between 5-30%. But did you know Elementor affiliates earn up to 50% commission on every sale?

That’s right; you can earn A LOT more than you can ever imagine as a publisher.

The program allows you to track referrals, view earnings, earn a commission, and measure your performance over time.

Fiverr Affiliates

Do you know you can earn up to $1000 for a single conversion with the Fiverr affiliate program?

All you need to do is join as an affiliate, share Fiverr with the target audience, and the moment traffic converts, you’ll begin earning right away. Fiverr affiliate program allows you to:

  • Maximize earnings
  • Gain access to professional support
  • Access creative resources to promote

Bluehost

Bluehost is yet another highest-paying affiliate program. All you need to do is promote it on your website with custom links and banners.

If any visitor clicking through the links signs up, you’ll get $65. So, the more traffic you drive, the more you earn.

Hostgator

Perhaps you’ve heard about Hostgator as it is one of the most popular web hosting out there. The good news is, it also offers an affiliate program.

All you need to do is sign up for the site and promote it. The more people sign up, the more cash you earn.

So, consider 20 people signed up to Hostgator from your ad; you get 20 x $125. That equals $2500! That’s a pretty good price, JUST for displaying an ad on your website!

WP Engine

Register for WP Engine and earn up to thousands of commissions by recommending it to the target audience.

On top of that, the affiliate program rewards you for sending multiple referrals per month. That means you can earn an incentive bonus and increase your payouts with smart work.

Affiliate Networks

Now that we’ve covered Affiliate Marketing Programs, let’s look into Affiliate Networks:

What is an Affiliate Network?

Affiliate networks involve intermediaries who connect merchants with publishers.

You can consider it a matchmaking service where both parties are connected to achieve a common goal – not precisely.

Many people flock to affiliate networks to find publishers, and publishers alike dash to the networking sites to get in touch with a relevant brand. Both parties work to find a rewarding solution.

How to Make Money from Affiliate Networks

Here is how to step into the money-making world of affiliate networks.

  • Decide the traffic source. Does a particular industry pique your interest, or do you have an audience for an XYZ niche? If you have the traffic, go for an affiliate program that aligns with your niche. Alternatively, decide the traffic source for the product you’re willing to promote.
  • Choose an affiliate network. You can choose one or more affiliate networks; it depends on how much effort you’re willing to put in and how much money you want to earn.
  • Get approved publishers and marketers go through an approval process to ensure credibility at both ends. Don’t freak out, though. It’s a routine process done by most affiliate networks.
  • Get access to multiple publishers or offers. As a merchant, you’ll have exposure to many skilled publishers, who’ll make business promotion easier for you. As publishers, you’ll have access to various offers from several niches with different payout models and prices.

Pros and Cons of Signing up for an Affiliate Network

There’s no rose without a thorn, and affiliate networks are no exception. We’ll take a closer look at the pros and cons of affiliate networks.

Pros

  • Easy and quick sign up process
  • Immediate access to multiple offers and affiliate marketers
  • Credible participants (on both sides)
  • Several pricing models
  • Countless niches
  • Advertisement material and assets
  • Flexible deals for both merchants and affiliate marketers
  • Protects brands from overspending through conversion limits

Cons

  • A third party is involved – which might not suit everyone.
  • With more publishers and advertisers, the competition is fierce.
  • The network takes its commission. It may be a downside for merchants.
  • A few affiliate networks may put some restrictions on publishers and merchants to connect them.

The Best Affiliate Networks

If you’re willing to go for an affiliate network, perhaps you’d want to know about the best ones. There are 100+ affiliate networks out there, and choosing the best one can get overwhelming.

Below, we’ve shared the top ones to make it less stressful for you.

1. ShareASale

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ShareASale has brought innovative technology to drive affiliate channels to success. The platform allows merchants and publishers to succeed in their affiliate marketing channels.

If you want to join ShareASale as an affiliate marketer, know that thousands of merchant programs would be waiting for you to join them as partners. As a brand, you can establish a large network of partners to tap into new revenue sources for your online store.

Click here to create your ShareASale Affiliate account.

2. Clickbank

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If you’ve searched about affiliate marketing before, I bet you came across ClickBank and for the right reasons. It is a leading affiliate marketplace and a hub of the world’s most innovative product owners and top marketers.

As a business owner, Clickbank allows you to grow your sales with an extensive network of affiliates. If you’re a publisher, you’ll find plenty of top-performing products to promote and get paid on time.

Get started with ClickBank today.

3. FlexOffers

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FlexOffers is yet another leading affiliate marketing website. The network offers more than 12,000 affiliate programs and advanced pay-out options.

That implies affiliate marketers have access to a plethora of programs, all under one roof. What’s more, FlexOffers gives content monetization solutions, strategic account management, access to APIs, and more.

Brands, on the other hand, have the option to connect to thousands of publishers and scale their business in no time.

Join FlexOffers as an Affiliate now.

4. PepperJam

Pepperjam
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PepperJam had humble beginnings as the business was set up by a few college friends. Nonetheless, today, it is one of the most popular affiliate marketing networks among marketers and publishers.

You can either sign up as a merchant, affiliate, or agency and gain access to several features—PepperJam partners with some of the top brands like Lindt, Puma, Shutterfly, and Nordstrom.

However, one downside is that it offers fewer than 1,000 advertisers. As such, you might run out of options, especially if you’re more focused on a particular niche; you might not find it on the platform.

Click here to join PepperJam.

How to Become an Affiliate Marketer

If you think you’ll get accepted into an affiliate program just because you’ve decided to become an affiliate marketer, you’re wrong!

You need to go through a few steps to actually step into the world of affiliate marketing and, well, succeed at it.

Below, we’ll uncover six steps to becoming a successful affiliate marketer.

1. Choose Your Niche

What exactly does “Your niche” imply? It can be a product category that intrigues you or a niche you have an audience for.

That’s right; you cannot go on and choose ANY category. Furthermore, you should consider a few things when picking a niche.

  • Curate a list of your interests and passions – don’t be afraid to pull out a notepad for that purpose. Making a list of your hobbies will highlight several niches, and you can choose the one that intrigues you the most.
  • Go for a niche that offers several monetization options. This will establish multiple sources of income for you. Yes, it will spread your risks, but you’ll stay in business if one of the affiliate accounts gets closed.
  • Do you have an audience for the niche you’re opting for? I mean, if you run a blog about fashion but you choose to do affiliate marketing promoting fitness products, where exactly do you plan to promote them?

Once you’ve considered a few factors as above, pick a niche, and proceed.

2. Select an Affiliate Network or Program

Where do you plan to do affiliate marketing? It won’t be wrong to say that it is one of the key factors to consider.

You might go for one or another platform considering the high commission it offers. But that’s not the only thing you should consider.

Oftentimes, high-paying affiliate platforms have restrictions for publishers and brands alike. It might be tough to keep up with those conditions.

For instance, an affiliate network might require you to pay a part of your commission. Does that suit you? Will you be able to spend a part of your commission as a beginner?

Ask yourself these questions before you proceed. As a rule of thumb, go through the terms and conditions of top affiliate platforms before signing up.

Once you’ve chosen the right affiliate program that offers credibility on behalf of a brand, and well, a good commission with less strict policies, you can proceed with the signup process.

The signup process would require you to provide some basic details about yourself and might ask you how to promote a product. Make sure you write a good description to prove your worth.

3. Create Great Review/Content

If you’re solely focusing on selling the product, unfortunately, it won’t sell. You need to consider a few other factors too. The customers out there are intrigued by something of great value.

Trust me; they have no interest in your affiliate product; what entices them is great content. Whether you run a youtube channel or a blog, make sure you put effort into it and provide value to customers before promoting affiliate links.

If you have a few loyal customers or visitors who find your content meaningful, you’ll have no trouble promoting affiliate links and encouraging them to purchase.

4. Drive Traffic to Your Affiliate Site

Great content is key to driving traffic. But if your valuable content isn’t popular, you won’t get enough of it.

So, how to go about it? Promote, promote, and promote!

It’s time to get active on social media. Social platforms are a powerful source of highly targeted traffic. In fact, people on social media are eager to view quality content. You need to get out there and reach the targeted audience.

Running highly targeted paid ads on Facebook, Google, and Bing can do the job for you.

Further, you can do email marketing to attract customers and boost sales of the product or service you’re selling.

5. Keep Track of Your Metrics

If you only promote your affiliate links without keeping an eye on the metrics, how will you track your progress or decline? Here are a few key metrics you need to monitor for your affiliate program.

  • Clicks
  • Number of sales actions
  • Cost per click and cost per sale
  • Conversion rate

By gauging the metrics, you’ll rule out what’s working for you and what isn’t. You can then alter your promotion tactics accordingly.

Affiliate Marketing Strategies You Can Use

Wondering about the best way to promote products and win customers? Read below.

1. Paid Affiliate Marketing Strategies

  • Blog. Good for you if you have a blog. Otherwise, you can partner with a successful blogger, pay them, and promote your affiliate links on their blog.
  • Facebook Ads. Do you know a whopping 92% of marketers use Facebook for advertising? That’s right; you can spend money to target the right audience interested in a particular niche and promote products leading to sales.
  • Google Ads. You can use paid advertising via Google to promote affiliate links. However, you’ll have to follow a set of rules and play nice.
  • Bing Ads. Bing Ads is a great way to drive traffic to your affiliate offers. The click rates are pretty cheap, so you’ll reach your targeted audience without spending much.
  • Pinterest Ads. Pinterest is another strategic way to attract customers and encourage them to purchase a product with billions of active users.
  • Mobile Ads. Mobile phones have dominated our lives, and you can use that as an excuse to promote affiliate offers. Brands reward publishers for every customer they drive to affiliate links through a mobile device.
  • Email Marketing. Highly targeted and well-crafted emails can allow you to drive relevant traffic and boost the sales of the brand you’re working with.
  • Native Advertising. From your favorite blogs to social media channels, native advertising is everywhere; you simply don’t recognize it. It is a type of ad that doesn’t precisely look like an ad because it blends well with the design, message, and layout. So, it offers a clever way to promote products.

2. Free Affiliate Marketing Strategies

If you cannot afford paid marketing strategies due to a limited budget, you can opt for a free marketing approach.

  • Product reviews with quality content. People love to read product reviews – even if they have no intention of buying a product. You can write compelling reviews with quality content to encourage the target audience to purchase a product.
  • Google Pages as a Landing page. Create an enticing landing page instead of directing the visitors directly to the merchant’s site. A captivating landing page might persuade the customers to make a purchase.
  • Promotion in Facebook or Reddit Groups. You can join Facebook and Reddit groups relevant to your niche, and BOOM! Massive, targeted traffic is within your reach. But not every group admin allows you to promote products, so make sure you join the right group.
  • Affiliate Marketing on Pinterest. Social media freaks love to scroll Pinterest for eye-catching visuals. Design striking images in relevant niches and paste your affiliate link in the sidebar; visitors might click it and purchase the product.

The Best Affiliate Marketing Courses

If you are unsure about your niche or how to get started, you can take up a free or paid marketing course to learn thoroughly about affiliate marketing.

1. Free Affiliate Marketing Courses

The most popular free affiliate marketing courses include the following.

  • Udemy. Sign up for Udemy and gain access to several tutorials about picking the right niche and a suitable affiliate product. The course teaches you traffic generation tactics, and enables you to earn more with fewer efforts.
  • Master affiliate marketing step-by-step by Alison includes a detailed course about affiliate marketing, marketing network platforms, and ways to drive traffic to your affiliate links. If you have no clue to get started, a course like this will teach you everything – from basics to essentials.

2. Paid Affiliate Marketing Courses

Here are a few paid affiliate marketing courses.

  • Affiliate Marketing Foundations by Linkedin. Sam Dey, the instructor of this course, teaches powerful techniques to create a compelling brand, apply to the right affiliate programs, and convert customers. You can sign up for a free trial and pay later.
  • Affiliate Marketing for Beginners by Skillshare provides online classes to teach affiliate marketing basics to the publishers or brands. It is one of the easiest courses to get hands-on experience with affiliate marketing.
  • Super Affiliate System by John Crestani is one of the most extensive online courses. The program includes videos, tutorials, lectures, and quizzes to help you understand affiliate marketing in a better way. It contains more than 50 hours of content that takes up to 6 weeks to complete.
  • Commission Hero Course from Robby Blanchard promises to teach you to make money with affiliate marketing. This course could change your life, some of his students earn over $1000 every day online. Also, you do not need to have prior experience to get started.

Is Affiliate Marketing Worth the Effort?

Affiliate marketing is perhaps one of the most straightforward ways to earn money online. You do not need to launch a brand or own a product to get started. On top of that, you’re not required to master the art of marketing before getting started.

So, it’s pretty much worth the effort if it’s profitable enough.

There’s a reason why the marketing is poised for continued growth. It’s helping brands boost sales and increase awareness, and publishers earn income from the comfort of their homes.

Are you new to SEO? Then check out our article on Search Engine Optimization: A Quick Guide for Beginners.

Mandy Schmitz
Mandy Schmitzhttps://mandyschmitz.com
Mandy Schmitz is a freelance consultant and project management expert with 10+ years of experience working internationally for big brands in fintech, consumer goods and more. Join me here on Changeaholic.com to learn how to optimize your business operations and find the latest product & software reviews.

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Mandy Schmitz is a freelance consultant and project management expert with 10+ years of experience working internationally for big brands in fintech, consumer goods and more. Join me here on Changeaholic.com to learn how to optimize your business operations and find the latest product & software reviews.

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