Affiliate marketing is the easiest way for a blogger to make money.
It means that you promote somebody else’s product and get a commission in return. Commissions can be up to 60 or even 70 percent – so it’s a good way to earn money without having the hassle of creating a product.
Affiliate sales can be very lucrative. Many of the big marketers on the Internet create a substantial part of their income through affiliate sales.
The reason affiliate sales work is because of a simple fact. As human beings, we like to follow recommendations. And affiliate sales happen when we trust the person who recommends something to us.
You can either join an affiliate network and choose products that suit your blog, or you can become an affiliate for a product that you use and like, but that is not available on a network (an example would be A-list Blogging).
Here is a list of some of the affiliate networks:
Here are some tips on how to get affiliate marketing right:
Your endorsement will be all the stronger for it. It’s not enough to say “it’s good!”, you need to tell a story about how you used it, your experience with it, and / or why you like and respect the creator.
Maybe it improved an area of your life. Or it opened up new possibilities. You need to tell people how it changed your life.
The page you create should contain the story of how you experienced the product. Sprinkle the page liberally with links to the product owner’s sales page. This is a far more effective technique than just slapping a banner on your sidebar that links directly to the affiliate site. Plus, it builds your own credibility.
In order to sell, you need to focus on the dreams and desires of the reader. In a way, an endorsement page is about the reader so it should address the dreams and hopes, as well as the reservations, of the reader.
Many people like to know how to use a product and what’s included in the package, etc. before making a purchase.
If you can provide a demonstration (ideally in video) of how to use the product, it makes it easier for your readers to visually see how easy it is to use the product to solve their own problems. (e.g. Think of the infomercials you often see on TV.)
List all your recommended products on one page so it’s easier for your readers to find the products they’re looking for when it’s the right time for them to make the purchase.
Often, your readers may not purchase a product the very instant you recommend it, but may recall your recommendation when they eventually face a problem that the product can solve.
Having the ‘resources’ allows them to easily know where to look for the product when they wish to make the purchase.
Take a look at this example on Pat Flynn’s Smart Passive Income blog.
There are seldom any stand-alone products that are perfect.
If you can provide a bonus product / service that complements the affiliate product to produce exponential benefits, then your readers will have a tremendous incentive to purchase from you.
An example would be to provide free WordPress setup for readers to purchase hosting through your affiliate link. Of course you need to be sure that the profit you make from the affiliate sale more than pays for the service you are offering.
You can download a free eBook from Zac Johnson: How You Can Be the Next $100,000 Blogger here. (This eBook has some interesting interviews with top affiliate marketers and it’s worth giving your email in return.)
Author: A-List Team