From solo entrepreneurs to startups to massive Fortune 500 companies, anyone could be the merchant behind an affiliate marketing program. They don’t even have to be actively involved. They just have to have a product to sell.
So, let’s turn our way defining affiliate marketing in an easy and understandable way.
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If you believe your blog readers or website visitors are interested in exploring web hosting platforms (for instance, if you write content for freelancers), this could be a good option to explore. Best of all, the company promotes eco-friendly alternatives, so you can feel good knowing you're spreading a positive, "green message" to your site visitors.
This ensures that their audience is constantly engaged with high-value content. And, of course, it receives a commission on each purchase made as a result of their recommendation.
Here are some of the most popular affiliate marketing programs you can join to build your affiliate business:
The best way to get started with affiliate marketing is by signing up for an affiliate program like the Amazon Associates or HubSpot Affiliate Program. After signing up, you will get an affiliate link that contains a unique ID. You can then use this link in your content.
Search for what you want, categories, tags, keywords, authors, events, anything under YourStory
If a customer purchases through an affiliate link, the affiliate earns a commission. Affiliates are akin to salespeople for the company whose offerings they promote.
One of the cool things about services, for instance, is that often there are recurring commissions. For instance, I make roughly 20% a month every time I refer someone to Sumo or Visual Website Optimizer – which are both services that I use religiously.
It’s possible to do keyword research using a free tool such as Ubersuggest, but better and more accurate results come from paid-for tools. The guys at Authority Hacker have written an excellent post that runs through the options.
LSIGraph is not only a powerful co-relation tool, but it is also part and parcel of Google's algorithm. That means that many of its suggested keyword phrases come straight from blog posts and websites that have been indexed by Google.
To be successful in your affiliate marketing efforts, you must do the work that lies in the promotional activities. Just as it is in marketing in general, it is important to understand what the needs and wants of your following are, how to gain their attention, and how to influence them to make a purchase.
I was initially impressed with the website design, and, as I read some of the reviews it became clear that a lot of research had gone into the well-written content. These factors made me feel that I could trust the site, which, as I’ll come onto a little later, is absolutely vital for the success of an affiliate marketing website.
Etsy is a vintage and crafts marketplace that has an affiliate program. You can earn a commission of between 4-8% depending on your location and the products you recommend.
If you’ve read about affiliate marketing before, chances are you’ve heard of affiliate networks. An affiliate network is where affiliates can go to find reputable offers to promote, and where advertisers can go to find lots of affiliates. Match up merchants and affiliates; Handle the administrative aspects of an affiliate-merchant relationship; Protect affiliates.
But aren’t there any requirements? Yes, there is and that’s why I want you to go through this step-by-step guide on affiliate marketing for beginners to clear all your doubts.