Affiliate marketing is an excellent way for bloggers, website owners, influencers and essentially anyone with an online presence to earn money by promoting products or services. This guide will provide a step-by-step overview to help beginners understand the basics so they can get started.
What is Affiliate Marketing?
Affiliate marketing is a process where an online publisher called an "affiliate" promotes products or services on their website, blog or social media channels. When a sale or desired action like a sign-up is made through the affiliate‘s link, they receive a commission from the company they are promoting.
Some key terms in affiliate marketing include:
- Merchant/Advertiser – The company creating a product or service that needs promotion
- Affiliate/Publisher – Person promoting the merchant‘s offers for a commission
- Affiliate Network – A platform connecting advertisers and affiliates
- Cookies – Track visitor activity to attribute affiliate sales
- Commission – Compensation the affiliate earns per sale or action
How Does Affiliate Marketing Work?
Here are the main steps in the typical affiliate marketing process:
- The advertiser joins an affiliate network and lists their offers
- The affiliate finds offers in their niche and applies to promote them
- The advertiser approves the affiliate to generate special affiliate link
- The affiliate publishes promotional content and includes affiliate links
- Visitors click the affiliate link and complete the target action
- The sale or lead is tracked via cookies and attributed to the affiliate
- The advertiser pays the affiliate their agreed commission
Pros of Affiliate Marketing
- Little upfront investment – Free to join networks and promote offers
- Recurring passive income – Get paid again if customers reorder
- Performance-based – Only get paid commissions for results
- Wide range of products to promote across industries
- Leverage content you‘re already creating like blog posts or videos
- Be your own boss and set your own hours
Cons of Affiliate Marketing
- Delayed commissions – Can take 30-90 days after sale is made
- Finding reliable advertisers – Some don‘t pay properly
- Agreeing on commission rates – Low rates equal less earnings
- High competition – Popular offers have lots of affiliates
- Risk of failed payments – Affiliates may not get credited for all sales
- Policy changes – Advertisers sometimes ban affiliates later
Getting Started with Affiliate Marketing
Follow this step-by-step process to become a successful affiliate marketer:
1. Choose a Niche
Pick a specific industry or product type to focus on like software, cooking or fashion. Promoting offers related to your interests and expertise helps convert visitors better.
2. Find Relevant Affiliate Programs
Research affiliate networks like Commission Junction, ShareASale, ClickBank and niche sites to find advertisers and offers in your niche with good commission rates.
3. Create a Website
Build a website or blog in your chosen niche to start driving targeted organic traffic that you can promote affiliate offers to.
4. Generate Traffic
Use SEO, content marketing, email marketing, social media, PPC ads and other tactics to drive visitors to your site and promote affiliate links.
5. Track Links & Analytics
Use affiliate software to create trackable links, cloaked affiliate URLs and analytics to monitor performance of each offer.
This covers the basics – and there are many tactics to further boost conversions and affiliate earnings over time. With some dedication, affiliate marketing can become a significant revenue stream!
