Do you want to get started selling products online? It's easy enough to set up your own website or blog, but there are other options available that will allow you to sell digital goods without having to create these yourself.
One of those popular choices is becoming an affiliate marketplace where you place links on your site pointing back to products offered by others. You earn a commission when someone clicks through from your link and purchases a product. The commissions range widely based on what kind of traffic you generate, so while some affiliates may be making thousands per sale, many more only receive a few cents each time they send people to another merchant.
There are several different types of affiliate networks out there, all offering their own unique features and benefits. Some charge higher fees than others, which should factor into your decision-making process. If you're just starting out, however, most don't require any upfront payment (although they typically have minimum payout thresholds). But once you've established a solid track record, you'll need to consider whether joining a particular program makes sense for you financially. Here we explain why.
The average earnings figure isn't quite clear because not every affiliate marketer earns the same amount. For instance, some payouts fluctuate depending on sales volume, whereas others offer fixed rates regardless of performance. Still, one study found that $30 was the average monthly income earned by US affiliate marketers in 2020, though this number has been increasing since 2017.
While earning less than $100/month might seem like peanuts compared to big companies such as Amazon, Shopify, or Facebook, remember that this doesn't include things like advertising costs, taxes, or shipping charges -- expenses that could very well eat away at your profits if you aren't careful. So before signing up with a new brand, find out exactly how much money you stand to lose if the company fails or goes under.
This is especially true if you plan to use PPC (pay per click) ads to drive traffic. While many affiliate programs won't let you run paid campaigns directly via their platform, you can still buy Google AdWords credits and then promote whatever you'd like using them instead. This way, you keep 100% of the profit even after paying off your credit line.
That depends largely on who you choose to work with. A quick look around reveals scores of high earners, including top earners listed right here on ClickBank alone. In fact, according to its 2019 report card, ClickBank had over 250,000 active members and made nearly 10 million dollars in revenue last year. That comes out to about $1.5 million annually for each of those sellers!
But you shouldn't expect to replicate these numbers overnight. Even the best affiliate marketers take years to build up their brands before hitting the jackpot. And it takes even longer to become successful if you haven't built up a reputation first. Most affiliate markets also cap how much you can earn per sale, so unless you reach certain levels quickly, you probably won't see huge gains until later down the road.
Once again, this is especially true if you decide to spend money on advertising. As mentioned above, the majority of affiliate programs prohibit direct ad spending, forcing you to purchase Google Ads instead. Since these cost extra, it's unlikely that you'll hit the big bucks anytime soon with PPC ads unless you already have a sizable audience.
If you're looking for instant gratification, you'll likely end up disappointed. To maximize your chances of success, focus primarily on building relationships rather than chasing short-term results. Start by reaching out to other vendors' customers and providing helpful advice whenever possible. Then once you establish trust with potential buyers, you'll be able to ask them to try out specific items without worrying about losing face.
When choosing among various affiliate programs, you should always check their terms and conditions carefully to ensure that you understand everything involved. Many affiliate sites will tell you that you can either sign up for free or pay a fee to participate.
Some of these programs require a small deposit on signing up, usually anywhere between 5%-20%. After completing some basic training materials, you'll then begin placing links on your website directing visitors toward related merchants. Depending on your experience level, it may take weeks or months before you actually start seeing a return on your investment.
And although it sounds great to know that you'll never have to worry about paying anything to join an affiliate program, you should note that a lot of these programs come with hidden costs. Just ask anyone who's tried getting paid on Etsy, which requires users to pay a percentage of their earnings to the site itself. Or think of PayPal, which collects transaction fees along with its regular 2.9% cut.
You can avoid this headache entirely by taking advantage of platforms that don't collect fees. One example you may recognize is eBay Partner Network, which allows individual sellers to post listings on the site without ever having to deal with third parties. However, you must be willing to accept lower prices as compensation for the convenience.
Again, this varies greatly depending on whom you pick to partner with. The average annual salary across the board sits somewhere around $25,000-$50,000, while the highest earner reported by ClickBank averaged close to $300,000.
Of course, this figure includes bonuses and incentives that were awarded due to exceptional performance during previous periods. But even if you fail to meet expectations, you should still walk away happy knowing that you spent little effort creating the business in question. Plus, these figures account for both recurring and nonrecurring income streams, so you should end up receiving a bigger paycheck overall.
If you've decided to pursue affiliate marketing full time, you'll need to invest significant amounts of time promoting your efforts. Once again, this means finding ways to connect with existing audiences and helping them learn about new products without feeling obligated to push something onto them.
For most people, this involves building a strong social media presence, developing email lists, and learning how to effectively communicate with webmasters. Fortunately, you can easily automate tasks like driving targeted traffic to landing pages using tools like HubSpot and MailChimp.
However, if you feel uncomfortable delegating these duties, you may want to consider outsourcing them altogether. There are plenty of freelancers eager to tackle your workload for next to nothing, meaning you can enjoy greater peace of mind and concentrate on growing your business.
To sum up, deciding whether to join an affiliate program boils down to two main questions: How much money can I potentially make? What types of rewards will my hard work bring me?
The answer lies within the answers to these two questions. Whether you opt to go solo or form partnerships with various marketing experts, you'll eventually find success. All you need now is the courage to follow your passion and jump headfirst into the world of affiliate marketing. Good luck!
If there's one thing that the internet has taught us over the last 20 years or so, it's that almost anything goes. If it doesn't get enough people clicking on ads, then someone will be happy to take your money by promising a quick fix. There are plenty of examples where this works out fine: YouTube stars who earn millions through advertising alone. But when it comes to making real cash online, should we all just give up now?
Affiliate marketing was supposed to be the answer to our financial woes. It promised to deliver huge profits without any effort at all (which is why many thought it would die off quickly). The idea behind it being that instead of paying an upfront fee for hosting, domain name registration, etc., you could set up shop selling other peoples' products while earning commissions from their sales. This way, even something as simple as running a blog could become extremely lucrative. And yet…
The truth about affiliate marketing isn't quite what everyone hoped it'd be. While some have made tons of money doing it, others haven't seen nearly enough to justify the time spent setting up shops and promoting them. So let's look at whether it's actually worthwhile to pursue affiliate marketing – not only for yourself but also for those around you.
Yes! In fact, according to ClickBank, the leading marketplace for digital goods, $2 billion worth of items were sold via affiliate networks in 2020. That means they're generating more than double the amount of revenue generated by Amazon itself.
This figure is likely higher still because most companies don't list their earnings publicly. However, these figures suggest that affiliates are bringing in significant amounts of money every year. Even though it may seem like a lot less than the actual market value of things bought online, it still represents a substantial sum of money.
There are two main reasons for this success: firstly, it helps provide exposure for businesses. When someone clicks onto a product link and ends up buying something else after, it makes sense for both parties - the business owner gets free publicity and traffic, and the affiliate earns commission on each sale. Secondly, it offers customers access to new brands which might otherwise go unnoticed. With thousands upon thousands of options available to buy online, it's easy for shoppers to miss something great. By signing up to sell other peoples' wares, you're giving them another place to find good stuff.
But while affiliate marketing does appear to be very lucrative overall, it's important to note that it's not necessarily possible to turn a profit straight away. You need to build up a reputation before you'll see results. So while you can make money today, you won't immediately see returns tomorrow.
Of course you can! But it takes a little work. Here are a few tips to ensure that the hard work pays off:
1) Be patient. Building your own brand involves putting in a lot of hours building relationships and learning about customer behavior. It's normal for you to feel discouraged along the way, especially early on. Don't worry too much about this, though. As long as you keep trying, you'll eventually reach critical mass.
2) Focus on quality rather than quantity. One of the biggest mistakes newcomers make is thinking that the more sites they sign up for, the better. Instead, focus on finding places where you can promote high-quality content. Not everything needs to be promoted everywhere, and not everything offered for promotion is going to succeed either.
3) Find ways to optimize conversion rates. This includes using SEO best practices such as keyword research and optimizing page load speeds. Make sure your site looks professional and that your graphics are crisp. A beautiful website design combined with poor conversions rates will mean nothing.
4) Work on improving your writing skills. No matter how niche your topic, there will always be room for improvement. Use tools like Grammarly to check your grammar and spelling, and try to write in a conversational tone. People love reading articles written in plain English, and will appreciate your efforts.
5) Build trust. Your audience wants to know that you're trustworthy and reliable. They want to believe that you genuinely care about helping them achieve their goals. To gain credibility, you must show genuine interest in their problems and offer practical advice based on experience. Once you've built rapport with your readers, ask them questions and invite feedback.
6) Do proper follow ups. After you've helped someone solve a problem, don't drop them entirely. Send them emails regularly asking how they're doing and offering further assistance whenever appropriate. Some people might prefer email support over live chat, but whatever method you choose, remember to stay consistent.
7) Get creative. Just because you signed up for one program doesn't mean you need to stick to it forever. Try different methods until you find something that seems to suit you well. For example, maybe you enjoy sharing videos on social media, but hate having to create them yourself. Then you could use services like Teespring to post pre-made designs for you to share on Facebook and Twitter. Or perhaps you think your audience enjoys seeing photos of animals, but never knew you could upload pictures of cats to Instagram directly from your computer.
8) Become an expert. Everyone starts somewhere. Sooner or later most marketers learn that they need to put in extra effort to improve and grow their knowledge. Whether that means reading books, attending seminars, joining forums, or simply researching topics on Google, becoming an authority is essential to achieving success.
9) Don't forget to reward your loyal followers. Loyalty is key here. Give back to your fans by rewarding them when they refer friends to your site, and consider implementing referral bonuses as part of your affiliate strategy.
10) Consider adding paid ads. AdSense is popular among bloggers, but it requires users to click through your organic posts in order to view your adverts. Paid advertisements allow you to target specific audiences, increasing your chances of converting leads.
11) Keep track of stats. Trackers like GA will tell you exactly which pages visitors come from, what keywords they used to arrive there, and how long they stayed for. This information allows you to understand how your campaigns are performing and adjust accordingly.
12) Optimize your landing page. Landing pages are crucial for driving traffic to your site. Ensure that your call to action is clear and obvious, and include relevant links to your homepage and other supporting resources. Also, avoid spammy language and unnecessary images.
13) Offer discounts. Offering rewards to loyal followers lets them know they're appreciated. Free giveaways increase engagement, and encourage people to spread word about your company far and wide. Consider sending thank you cards, gift vouchers, or coupons to your best subscribers. Remember, people often spend more when they receive treats as opposed to monetary compensation.
14) Stay flexible. Never stop looking for opportunities to expand your horizons. New technologies emerge daily, meaning that old strategies aren't guaranteed to bring in the same kind of results anymore. Always strive towards growth, and adapt your approach to remain competitive.
It depends on several factors. Firstly, how big is your current audience? How engaged are they? What kinds of products are they interested in? Is there anyone within your circle of influence that can vouch for your expertise? Are you able to offer useful guides and tutorials? All of these answers determine the potential size of your following.
Secondly, how much competition do you face? If there are hundreds of similar websites already vying for attention, it's unlikely that you'll stand out. On the flip side, if there are relatively few competitors, your branding power increases significantly. Branding is essentially the 'voice' of your site. The stronger your voice sounds, the easier it becomes to attract followers.
Thirdly, how much effort are you willing to invest? Creating engaging content takes time, as does growing an audience. Most successful affiliate marketers dedicate months or even years to their craft. They put the hours in, slowly working themselves up the ladder.
Fourth, how committed are you to your brand? Will you continue to work hard and develop your skill base regardless of your income? Or will you quit once you hit a certain level of success? Only you can decide whether it's necessary to devote your life to pursuing affiliate marketing as a career path. Ultimately, however, you'll need to commit to something if you want to maximize your earnings.
Finally, what kind of budget are you prepared to allocate? Again, it's impossible to predict exactly how much money you'll make. However, affiliate marketing is notoriously unpredictable. It's difficult to quantify precisely how much money you'll end up making, but it's safe to say that you can expect to earn anywhere between 0% and 100%.
In short, yes. While it certainly won't pay off overnight, it's definitely worth investing your time and energy into. Plus, it gives you a chance to connect with like-minded individuals, to meet new people, and to explore new interests outside the usual day job.
There are many reasons why people want to become an online entrepreneur or affiliate marketer. Some of them have already made the switch, while others are looking into starting their own business after leaving corporate America. But what exactly is all this talk about making millions doing affiliate marketing? Is that even possible? And should you go down that path at all?
If you've never heard of affiliate marketing before, don't worry -- there's plenty more information on our website dedicated to helping newbies get started. In fact, we just wrote a guide called How To Start An Online Business With No Money! If you're ready to dive right in, here are some questions you need to ask yourself first.
Affiliate Marketing isn't going anywhere anytime soon. Many big companies use affiliates as part of their advertising strategy. Whether it’s Amazon, Walmart, or any other major corporation out there, they know that having someone promote their products will lead to increased sales. They also understand that if they provide quality content, the likelihood of conversions goes up.
But does everyone actually see benefits like these when choosing to work with affiliates? The short answer is yes. It comes down to how well you market your product. This includes things like creating great landing pages and optimizing your site so it shows up high on Google searches related to your niche. You'll also need to write compelling emails promoting your offers, which helps increase conversion rates.
In addition, you'll need to stay consistent with your efforts over time. That means building relationships with potential customers through social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, etc. By keeping those channels updated regularly, you'll give your audience something interesting to look forward to every day. Plus, by showing interest in them, you build trust between both parties. When it comes to generating leads, this is one of the best ways to do it.
When considering whether or not affiliate marketing is viable for you, keep in mind that it takes years to learn everything needed to succeed with it. Also remember that success doesn't happen overnight. This is especially true when it comes to learning how to drive traffic to your site, since most people who try this method end up failing miserably trying to figure it out.
It's important to note that there are different types of affiliate networks available. Each has its advantages and disadvantages, so it pays to research each type thoroughly before committing to any specific program. There are four main ones: Clickbank, Shareasale, Commission Junction (CJ), and JVZoo. We recommend checking out our full review of the top three options above, but below you'll find answers to some common questions regarding each one.
The amount of money you earn depends entirely upon how successful you are as an affiliate marketer. The truth is, it's impossible to predict how much you might make until you put forth the effort to achieve it. However, the good news is that once you reach certain milestones, you'll be able to take home significantly larger paychecks than ever before. For instance, let's say you generate $100 worth of revenue per month. After six months, you'd only have earned $600. Keep working hard, however, and you could eventually hit $1,000 within another two months.
And that's assuming nothing changes during that time period. Once you begin earning hundreds of dollars per week or month, you won't stop. So long as you continue to invest time and energy into growing your business, you'll quickly realize that affiliate marketing is very lucrative indeed.
Yes. Plenty of people around the world earn substantial amounts of income using various methods of affiliate marketing. One example would be Brian Dean, who earns thousands of dollars per month by writing articles based on his findings. He uses software like SpyFu to track where his readers come from, then writes targeted pieces to appeal specifically to them. His methods aren't necessarily difficult to replicate, either. Anyone willing to spend the time finding their ideal audience is sure to reap rewards.
Another popular option is selling digital downloads. People love buying physical goods, so giving them access to digital versions makes sense. If you choose to sell ebooks, you may consider offering a free trial version too. Of course, you'll need to offer value-added bonuses along with your ebook(s) to ensure you stand out amongst the competition.
You can also create membership sites, which allow members to purchase additional resources as they progress through the training process. Other opportunities include running ads on search engines, hosting webinars, and participating in live events. The list goes on and on.
So far, we haven't talked about the downsides of affiliate marketing. As mentioned earlier, it can be a lot of work. Not only do you need to constantly update your blog posts, videos, and email messages, you also need to set aside enough time each day to do all of this without burning out. Then there are the costs involved. While you might save money by paying for hosting services rather than getting bluehost coupons, those monthly fees add up fast. Even worse, if you decide to hire employees to assist you with your affiliate marketing endeavors, the cost of hiring them can easily exceed your profits.
That said, it's definitely possible to make money with affiliate marketing. All you need is commitment, persistence, and patience. Just don't expect results overnight. Instead, focus on consistently providing valuable content that appeals to your target customer base. Eventually, you'll be rewarded with higher revenues and bigger commissions.
As previously stated, it depends largely on how committed you are to succeeding. If you enjoy spending hours researching topics, crafting relevant content, and driving traffic to your site, you probably shouldn't pursue this line of work simply because it requires a significant investment of time and effort. On the other hand, if you thrive on being busy 24/7 and are confident that you can manage multiple projects simultaneously, you may feel comfortable pursuing this career.
To succeed, you'll likely need to develop several streams of income. A few examples include blogging, freelance writing, and teaching courses online. Another possibility is joining affiliate networks like Shareasale, ClickBank, and CJ Affiliate. Depending on how large your following becomes, you could potentially charge quite a bit for speaking engagements, coaching sessions, or consulting gigs.
While none of us can guarantee financial freedom overnight, it certainly seems feasible to earn a decent salary using affiliate marketing. Ultimately, though, it boils down to how passionate you are about whatever topic you chose to specialize in. If you truly love sharing knowledge and connecting with others, then affiliate marketing is a perfect fit for you. If you're drawn to the idea of becoming rich quick, I wouldn't advise attempting it unless you're 100% certain that you possess the necessary skillset and dedication required to bring you closer to achieving your goals.
Just follow our battle-tested guidelines and rake in the profits.