How to Do Affiliate Marketing?
When it come to making money online, there are many different ways that it can be accomplished starting with working for someone else, investing in currency or commodities, becoming a freelance agent, or setting up your own business.
While running your own business arguably offers the best chance to make substantial profits over a long period of time, it is also fraught with peril as most home based businesses fail within a year.
Normally when you run a business you purchase products from a wholesaler and then sell them at a higher price in order to earn a profit. However, this traditional form of selling requires a substantial investment and there is plenty of risk that often derails even the best efforts.
There is inventory to keep track, lots of paperwork and plenty of expenses to pay which make it very unattractive for those new to running a business.
However, there is one particular method of selling that has proven to be low risk and offers the promise of substantial rewards for those willing to work smart and build upon what they have learned.
This form of business venture is called affiliate marketing and today there are millions of people who engage in it on a daily basis.
Definition of Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate marketing however is more akin to being a commissioned salesperson who is offering products from established companies. Basically, you set up a website and offer products from another, more established online store that has an affiliate program.
When a visitor to your website sees a product they want to purchase, they will click on the link that sends them to the main store.
However, your information goes with that link which means that if they purchase the product, you get a commission that can range from 1% up to 50% or more depending on what the established online store will offer.
There are many internet affiliate marketing programs from all types of companies that are looking for people to sell their products.
In return, you get to start off your business with well-known products from established stores that means a greater chance for profits if you market your website in the right way.
Advantages of Affiliate Marketing
There are several advantages to doing this form of marketing which is why so many people start their own online businesses in this manner.
- No Upfront Fee
- No Inventory to Keep
- No Payments to Parent Company
- Earn Commission on Each Sale
Technically, you are not really an independent businessperson, but instead a commissioned salesperson who earns a percentage of the item which is sold when someone visits your website and then clicks on the link to buy the product.
Affiliate marketing is a win-win situation for people like you and the larger, more established companies because they increase their sales force without spending a dime.
All you need to do is create a website and market it so that you grow your visitor base until they start purchasing your affiliate products.
There is really no downside to affiliate marketing in terms of its structure as the worst thing that can happen is you pay for a website and your advertising efforts which should not be very much in the way of money.
However, you will need to understand how to do affiliate marketing if you want to get the most success out of this unique program.
Affiliate Marketing Tip
There are a number of ways that you can establish your affiliate marketing program. The most important part is being persistent with your efforts so that you can overcome the obstacles in your way to reap the rewards of selling products.
Create a Niche Business: Remember, no one is going to mistake you for a large business like Amazon or Wal-Mart. So instead, you’ll want to build a niche business that will appeal to a small section of the overall buying public.
Remember that even a small slice may represent millions of people since your audience is from around the world.
A niche business is one that targets a narrow group from a larger audience. For example, instead of selling movies or DVDs, you can target classic horror films of the 1930s. While this is not nearly as broad as movies in general, you will still appeal to a substantial market.
There are many internet affiliate marketing programs to choose from, so you will want to find the one that is comfortable for you to write about and promote.
Start with One Product: Remember that you are just starting out so it is best to start by selling just one product instead of a line of different products. While this may sound counter intuitive, a good affiliate marketing tip is to focus your energies on pushing this singular product until you get it to work. At that point, you can apply the lessons learned to selling more products.
Become an Authority: One of the best ways to sell products in a niche market is to become an authority on the subject. You can do that with a series of free articles or blog posts that demonstrate your knowledge and interest in the subject matter.
Going back to the 1930s horror film example, you can create a website dedicated to this genre of films and then publish articles on the stars, different movies and the reasons why they made these films.
When you become an authority figure on a particular subject, people are more likely to visit your website and purchase the related products that you have for sale. Plus, every so often you can introduce a new product directly or indirectly with an article on that particular subject. That is arguably the definition of affiliate marketing the successful way.
Finally, another small issue with affiliate marketing is that too many people rely only on selling products from other companies and do not combine it with their own so that they can create repeat customers.
Once you get fully established in how to do affiliate marketing, a good affiliate marketing tip is start adding your own products so that people will come back for more and you can build repeat customer business.
Affiliate marketing is a great choice when one want to make good money and adopt blogging as his/her full time work. Your guide of affiliate marketing is quite interesting keep doing good work.
Hi Nancy, Great post, (of course). Thank you for sharing.
All of points you showed is very important for almost every blogger who wants to grow their affiliate marketing revenue.