Are you looking to get started in affiliate marketing? Not sure where to begin? Then this guide is for you! Affiliate marketing is an effective way to earn money online, and in this article, we’ll discuss how it works and how you can get started.
What is Affiliate Marketing?
Affiliate marketing is performance-based marketing that rewards affiliates for generating sales or leads for an affiliate program offered by a brand. In other words, it’s a mutually beneficial arrangement between merchants and affiliates. Merchants (or “advertisers”) pay affiliates for referring customers to their products or services, while affiliates (also known as “publishers”) receive a commission for each successful referral they make.
Stanstore
The platform simplifies the process of generating and managing affiliate links. Using Stanstore, affiliate marketers can quickly obtain unique affiliate links for the products they wish to promote. This process is automated and integrated within the platform, reducing the complexity and potential for errors in link generation.
We earn a commission if you make a purchase, at no additional cost to you.
Making Money with Affiliate Marketing
The amount that affiliate marketers get paid can vary greatly depending on several factors, such as the specific affiliate program they are participating in, the products or services they promote, and the success of their marketing efforts.
Affiliate marketers earn a commission for each sale or lead they generate for the company they promote. This commission can range from a few percent to a much larger amount, depending on the specific program and the success of the affiliate.
Some affiliate programs may offer additional bonuses or incentives to achieve certain goals or milestones. Ultimately, the amount that an affiliate marketer can earn will depend on the details of the specific program and its ability to generate sales or leads.
The Benefits of Affiliate Marketing
One of the main benefits of affiliate marketing is its low cost. Businesses only have to pay commissions when they make sales, making it an incredibly cost-effective form of advertising. It also allows businesses to target specific audiences instead of relying on general advertising campaigns that may not be as effective at reaching potential customers. Additionally, affiliate programs are easy to set up and track, making them very easy to manage and measure results over time.
While affiliate marketing can become passive income down the road, a successful affiliate marketer takes massive action on the front end.
How Affiliate Marketing Works
The process of affiliate marketing starts with an advertiser or merchant creating a program. This program outlines the terms and conditions of the relationship, including commission rates and payment schedules. The affiliate then signs up as part of the program and is given a unique referral link to use in their advertising campaigns.
When someone clicks on this referral link, they are taken to the merchant’s website, where they can purchase. If the purchase is made, the affiliate receives a commission based on the amount of their referral. Affiliates also have access to tracking and analytics tools that allow them to monitor their performance and optimize their campaigns for better results.
Most affiliate programs have a referral window, meaning that affiliates must generate the sale within a certain timeframe for the commission to be credited. Commissions might be scalable or tiered based on the number of referrals or sales. Generally, affiliates are paid out in funds deposited to Paypal, a bank account, or in the form of a check.
Most affiliate marketers who make a good living through affiliate sales consider themselves to have an affiliate marketing business. They often employ a variety of tactics to maximize their profits.
Most affiliate marketers have a niche website where they create blog posts and promote their affiliate marketing program. Some affiliate sites promote multiple affiliate programs.
How to Get Started as an Affiliate Marketer
Successful affiliate marketing requires hard work, dedication, and commitment. It’s important to understand the basics before diving in. Here are some tips and tools for getting started.
My favorite affiliate marketing tools are:
1) A Website and web hosting (my brothers Jeff and Paul at Ballen Brands build niche websites if you need help. Or, you can choose from one of the popular website builders on this list.
2) A great keyword research tool: I use SEMRush
3) An Email Autoresponder: I use Mailerlite
4) An Analytics Tool: Google Analytics is the most popular, and I use Clicky.
5) Content Creation Tools: I use Surfer SEO + Jasper AI
6) A way to manage your affiliate links: I use Thirsty Affiliates
7) If using WordPress, an SEO plugin like RankMath is helpful
8) When it’s affordable, consider an internal linking tool like Link Whisper
9) Consider a program like Affilimate to track your affiliate sales once you earn affiliate revenue.
How to Start your Affiliate Business
You may need a business license. Check your state laws, and consult your local government office. You’ll likely pay taxes on your income. It’s a good idea to hire a CPA each year to help you file your taxes. I use Quickbooks to keep track of income and expenses.
1. Choose Your Niche: First and foremost, you must decide what type of products or services you want to promote as an affiliate marketer. There’s no right or wrong answer here, as long as it’s something you’re passionate about or willing to be disciplined about. In other words, even if you get bored with the topic, you would still show up and do the work.
Make sure the niche you choose has profitable affiliate programs you can offer on your affiliate site.
2. Research Affiliate Programs: Once your niche is selected, research different affiliate programs that match your interests. Choose a reputable program with competitive commission rates and excellent customer service.
3. Create Quality Content: As an affiliate marketer, your job is to promote your products or services. To do this effectively, you need to create content that educates and informs your audience about the products or services they’re interested in.
You should also offer your unique affiliate link and provide reviews of the products or services you’re promoting. This will help you build trust with your audience and encourage them to take action.
For example, if you have a Mom Blog, you might create a list of the best strollers for busy moms. Your list will include various strollers, their features, pros and cons, reviews, and so forth. You’ll apply to be an affiliate with one or more of these brands and include your affiliate products in the list.
When someone does a Google search looking for the best strollers for busy moms, your web pages may show up in the search results, and they can click on your affiliate link to purchase.
4. Promote Your Content: Once you’ve created a blog post, web page, video, podcast, social post, or ads, it’s time to promote it through different marketing channels, such as social media and search engine optimization (SEO). You can attract more potential customers to your affiliate site and increase your sales potential.
5. Get to know the Affiliate Managers: Get to know the affiliate managers who run the program. They can provide you with valuable advice about how to best promote their products and what’s working for other affiliates in your niche. And as you are making affiliate sales, you can negotiate your commissions with the affiliate manager.
The success of your affiliate business will be directly related to the efforts you put in. One blog post isn’t going to make you an overnight success. You may need to test out other affiliate programs than the one you start with to increase affiliate revenue as you grow.
When you first start affiliate marketing, you’ll likely work with whoever will have you. But as your affiliate marketing works and you begin making money, you’ll likely get better at choosing affiliate products that convert.
The Essential Traits & Skills of Affiliate Marketers
While online marketing skills are helpful, anyone can become an effective affiliate marketer with the right mindset and dedication. Let’s look at some key skills and traits that successful affiliate marketers possess.
Drive & Dedication: To succeed in affiliate marketing requires drive and dedication. Many start out as “hobbyists” – looking to make a little extra money by promoting products they believe in.
But it takes more than just enthusiasm to become a successful affiliate marketer. Without drive and dedication, it’s hard for any business to succeed, especially one as competitive as affiliate marketing. It’s important to stay motivated and be willing to put in the time and effort required to grow your business.
Attention to Detail: Affiliate marketers need to pay attention to detail if they want their businesses to thrive. Details like tracking affiliate program sales, monitoring performance, staying up-to-date on industry trends, and testing new strategies are all essential for success in this field. It’s no use having great ideas if you can’t stay organized enough to make them happen!
Being organized is also important when managing multiple affiliate campaigns simultaneously – something that most experienced affiliate marketers know all too well.
Marketing Savvy: You can’t become an effective affiliate marketer without understanding some of the basics of online marketing. This includes social media management, copywriting, SEO optimization (This is where Surfer SEO is helpful), email marketing (I use Mailerite), website design and development, etc.
It doesn’t matter if you have zero experience or have worked in digital marketing for years; there is always something new to learn about this ever-evolving field! The important thing is that you understand how different tactics work together so that you can create an effective strategy for your own business.
Affiliate marketing is not an easy career path, but it is certainly rewarding once you start on the right foot!
Pros of Affiliate Marketing for Beginners
The affiliate marketing industry offers plenty of benefits.
- Work Independently
- It doesn’t require employees or a large team
- With great systems, you don’t even need administrative help
- It doesn’t have to cost much money to grow the business.
- It’s scalable
- It doesn’t require more people on your payroll to scale it
- It grows on its own over time
- Income comes in regularly from various sources stopping the roller coaster of seasonality.
- You run your own business however you see fit
- You don’t have to show up anywhere to make money
- There’s no 9-5 Job
- Once you are doing great with one product, you can add another and then on from there to diversify your business.
- You can build in multiple industries to protect your business from industry crashes.
- You can work whatever hours you choose.
- Since there are many ways to earn, you can choose based on your skill set and what you enjoy doing.
- There’s no inventory required.
- You don’t have to sell anything personally to earn a paycheck
- The only relationship required is between you and the business offering the product commissions.
- When you take a vacation or have downtime, the income doesn’t change
- There is nobody to call in sick to.
Cons of Affiliate Marketing for Beginners
- Requires influence or skills in marketing (pro: you can learn it)
- Can be competitive
- It does require massive action as with any startup business
- You must spend time creating content
- You may need to invest in good systems
- There’s nobody to report to, so you have to motivate yourself
- Working at home can be distracting for some
- You need to be responsible for paying your taxes
- Affiliate income can be sporadic and unpredictable
- You may wind up with a cat sitting on your keyboard.
Examples of Affiliate Marketing
Example 1: Tutorials
Lori Ballen is a real estate agent who teaches other real estate agents how to generate leads online. She uses a real estate marketing platform that helps real estate agents with their marketing.
She hosts regular webinars and often features real estate products. She records tutorial videos on youtube. She blogs about it on her coaching website and shares it with her coaching clients. She tells success stories in her social groups.
She talks about it when she speaks from the stage. She shares a link to the product each time, always disclosing that she receives a benefit. [This is mandatory, not optional]
The customer signs up for a 30-day free trial which she was given by the brand when they set up the affiliate contract. If the customer decides to stay on after the trial and pays with a credit card, Lori receives a 15% commission. This commission is sent monthly as long as that customer remains a client.
Example 2: Amazon Affiliate
Bob has partnered with Amazon to promote its products. Amazon has given Bob payout info for each product they offer on their website. Bob has a website for single dads. He often discusses kids’ products, clothing, school supplies, etc. When he shares items he uses, he includes an affiliate link to the product on Amazon.
Provided that person clicks his links and buys within 24 hours, he will get a commission on everything they put in their cart!
Example 3: Youtube Affiliate
Lori has a youtube channel in which she reviews products she uses around the house. She set up an affiliate relationship with an appliance store. Lori shows how the product works and gives her opinion on the product. People find the video through search engines, youtube searches, youtube suggested videos, and from her own promotion.
She puts the link in the video’s description when it’s uploaded. She earns a one-time commission when someone buys the product she reviewed through her link.
Example 4: Product Reviews
Bri took an online course and enjoyed it. She felt the students that follow her teaching would also appreciate the course. She sent an email to her mailing list sharing her success with the course and included a call to action to try it themselves.
She always included a disclosure that said she received a benefit if they enrolled.
She earned a commission from the course sales.
Example 5: Paid Ads
Tim found a weight loss product that was sold online. After finding success, he went to their website to see if they had an affiliate program. They did. He contracted to promote their product which allowed for pay-per-click marketing. He built a stand-alone landing page for the product. [Take a free trial of Leadpages to use in this strategy.] Then, he ran Facebook and Google ads, driving traffic to the landing page.
When sales occurred, he earned his commission.
Example 6: Niche Websites
Mike was researching Google Trends and found that living in the wild was a growing niche. While he knew nothing about going off the grid, he hired ghostwriters and built a WordPress niche website. He found products to promote that were for sale on Amazon or with private vendors and made offers on his website for products in which she would earn a commission.
Example 7:Email Marketing
Barb had no idea what she wanted to promote. She learned about the Share A Sale affiliate network and signed up. Share A Sale had a list of merchants. After browsing the stats, she found merchants listed for high conversions in the wedding industry. Being a mother of the bride three times over, Barb felt like this was a topic she could cover in a blog. Barb wrote in-depth articles about etiquette, who pays for what, how to plan for a wedding, and so forth.
When applicable, she included links, images, banners, and assets that she got from the vendor through Share A Sale to include in her blog.
She built a great email list of people getting married (some a couple of years out) with her optinmonster lead magnet platform, and she began sending her blogs in an email campaign. In this blog, she would include affiliate links where permitted or include a call to action that took them to a landing page featuring the product.
Barb earned commissions through sales from these links.
Example 8: Personal Finance
Jolene is a Millenial. She’s very frugal and proud of it. When in line at the store, she’s the first to whip out her phone and pull up every app that will provide a discount.
She knows the rewards programs and which nights to eat, and where that offer freebies or discounts. Jolene launched a youtube channel and combined it with Instagram to create a channel about saving money.
She covers everything even if she doesn’t have a contract to promote a product. Yet whenever she talks about an app, website, or product, she will check if they have a program and sign up so she can receive commission or free products.
(Free products are more of an Ambassador than an affiliate generally)
Example 9: Groupon
Kent has lived in the same place all of his life. He was getting ready to retire and wanted to build another income stream. When he asked himself what he really “knew” about and had a passion for, he said, “Springfield.” Kent decided to specialize in hyperlocal marketing and build a blog, video channel, and Facebook group for the Springfield locals.
He created lists of places to visit, things to do, and holiday events. He built an email list using optinmonster to make offers for guides, coupons, and his “best of” lists. He could use that list for email, text, direct mail, and retargeting campaigns.
He partnered with Groupon to offer their coupons and earns 10% on everything to do with Groupon sales. In addition, he found many local programs, hotels, spa affiliates, and more. Kent got to monetize what he loved the most, home!
Example 10: Podcasts
Pat runs a Podcast for athletes. His podcasts have short and long descriptions online. He will often include affiliate links to fitness and general health products he mentions in the write-up. He also transcribes his podcast to a blog and includes his affiliate links. He will often upload the podcasts to youtube as well.
Many podcasters now record the session on video for youtube and social channels.
This is called omnichannel marketers; many are taking advantage of this today.
Over time, sponsors often offer to pay for mentions, intros, outros, and commercial breaks.
Choosing the Best Affiliate Programs
Affiliate marketing is about choosing the best programs for your content. Each program has its own pros and cons, so it’s important to consider all aspects before deciding which one to join.
Do your research on each program and compare them against each other. Look at their payout structures, commission rates, rules and regulations, marketing materials, available products, etc. With the right program in place, you can start earning money with affiliate marketing and eventually turn it into a full-time income stream.
The highest-paying affiliate programs aren’t always the best choices. New affiliate marketers can start affiliate marketing with physical or digital products, such as becoming a Clickbank Affiliate promoting marketing funnels.
In my opinion, as a 6-figure affiliate, the best affiliate marketing programs offer recurring commissions. These programs allow you to earn from customers over and over again. With a great offer, good content marketing, or customer service, you can keep earning from them for months or even years.
The Amazon affiliate program used to be the most popular, but with the lower commissions, many Amazon associates are switching to other platforms.
The Amazon associates program can still be a great affiliate program for beginners looking for easier affiliate opportunities.
An Introduction to Affiliate Networks
An affiliate network is a platform that connects merchants who want to advertise their products with publishers (affiliates) who want to monetize their websites by promoting those products. The merchant pays the publisher a commission for each sale or lead generated from the publisher’s website. This way, both the merchant and the publisher benefit from working together.
Once an advertiser joins an affiliate network, they will be able to create product links and banners which they can then share with affiliates through the network’s platform. Publishers can then choose which products to promote on their websites, blogs, social media accounts, etc., in exchange for a commission whenever a customer clicks on one of these links or banners and makes a purchase or completes some other action (such as signing up for a newsletter).
When you find an affiliate network you like, you can browse through their brand list to find products you would like to promote. You should also compare the commission rates of each brand, as well as the payment terms and other features offered by the network.
Some affiliate networks include:
Creating Affiliate Links
Once you have chosen the product or service you want to promote, the next step is creating your affiliate links. An affiliate link is a special URL or code that allows an advertiser to track referrals and sales from affiliates. You will earn a commission when someone clicks on your affiliate link, visits the advertiser’s site, and makes a purchase.
You can create your affiliate links manually by highlighting a set of words on the page, clicking on your link icon, and adding your affiliate link. Or, you can be more purposeful and productive by using affiliate link manager software like Thirsty Affiliates.
How to Become a Successful Affiliate Marketer Through Quality Content
When it comes to creating content for your website, creating high-quality content should always be at the forefront of your mind. You want your readers to have a great experience while browsing your pages and learning about what you offer. Quality on-site content will keep them returning for more, which means more potential customers or leads for your business.
The trick here is to craft blog posts that provide value and insight while still being interesting enough to keep readers engaged. This means researching relevant topics and writing detailed, well-written articles with plenty of facts, figures, and useful information.
Make sure each post has a clear focus and structure so that readers can easily identify what it’s about. Additionally, adding visuals like images or videos can help break up the text and make it easier for people to digest the information quickly.
It’s also important that each post contains keywords related to your topic so search engines can easily recognize it as relevant content. This will help boost your rankings on search engine result pages (SERPs), making it easier for people searching for specific topics to find your content quickly.
Furthermore, using keywords in headlines or meta descriptions will increase click-through rates (CTRs) from SERPs, helping drive even more traffic toward your page.
I use Surfer SEO for on-page SEO formatting and Jasper AI to help with writing content. These tools can save you time and make the content creation process easier.
Once you start creating content, tracking its performance is essential if you want to know how much success you’re having with each post – plus what needs improvement going forward.
You can use Google Analytics or other analytics tools like Clicky to track pageviews and time on site per visitor, and bounce rates (the percentage of visitors who navigate away from a page after viewing only one). These metrics will give you an idea of how engaging users find your content so that you know where changes need to be made if necessary.
The FTC’s Affiliate Disclosure Rule
The Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) affiliate disclosure rule requires website owners to clearly disclose any relationships they have with companies whose products or services they promote. If you are a website owner, you must disclose any relationship (such as an affiliate link) with a company to remain compliant with Federal Trade Commission regulations. Let’s break down the specifics of this important regulation.
What Does The FTC Disclosure Law Require?
The Federal Trade Commissions’ affiliate disclosure rule requires website owners to inform their readers when they are promoting a product or service for which they may receive compensation. This disclosure can take many forms, including a simple statement on your website or emails informing readers that you may receive compensation if they click on an affiliate link and purchase.
It can also include more detailed disclosures outlining how your relationship works and affects your readers. In all cases, the goal is to ensure full transparency between you and your readers so that everyone understands exactly how your business operates.
The disclosure must be obvious and near the link. It can’t be buried in the affiliate site footer, for example.
As you embark on your affiliate marketing journey, understanding and following FTC regulations will help ensure that you remain compliant and don’t risk facing any legal trouble down the line.
Who Does The Rule Apply To?
The FTC’s affiliate disclosure rule applies to anyone who owns or operates a website and promotes products or services for which they may receive compensation from companies such as Amazon, eBay, or other retailers. It does not matter if you use affiliate links directly on your site or through other marketing channels like email; all websites must comply with the law.
Additionally, even if you do not receive any money from the company but get free promotional items in exchange for promoting their products, then you still need to provide clear disclosures of this relationship.
What Are The Consequences For Not Complying?
If you fail to comply with the FTC’s affiliate disclosure rule, there can be serious consequences for you and your business. These can range from warnings from the FTC itself to fines and even possible criminal prosecution if it is deemed that you were deliberately trying to deceive consumers by hiding important information about your relationships with companies whose products or services you promote.
As such, it is essential that all website owners understand the importance of complying with this law and make sure that they provide clear disclosures whenever necessary.
Keeping up-to-date with the Federal Trade Commission’s Affiliate Disclosure Rule is essential for staying compliant online as a website owner or operator who promotes products or services of other companies in exchange for commissions or other forms of compensation. Informing viewers of these partnerships helps keep them informed while allowing marketers like yourself to remain legally protected while earning an income through online promotion activities. If ignored, there are serious consequences that could potentially put an end to all future digital marketing endeavors – so always remember to stay informed!
Glossary of Terms
Affiliate Link: A link provided to affiliates by advertising partners that allows them to receive a commission when a customer clicks through and purchases the product or service.
Affiliate Manager: A person responsible for managing affiliate partners and the affiliate program’s performance.
Affiliate Marketing: A type of performance-based marketing in which an affiliate promotes a merchant’s products or services and earns a commission for the successful sale or lead generated.
Affiliate Network: A platform that allows affiliates to search through and join programs offered by multiple merchants.
Affiliate Revenue: Revenue generated through affiliate marketing.
Affiliate Website: A website created by an affiliate to promote the products or services of a merchant.
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