Need a cash infusion? Affiliate marketing is a great way to “Work smarter, not harder”.
Most emerging entrepreneurs struggle to generate cash, at least now and then. Others struggle with cash flow occasionally, when business is slow. Still, others just like to generate what’s known as “passive revenue”. Whatever your reason may be for exploring the world of affiliate marketing, it’s a great way to quickly generate revenue for your business – with minimal effort.
Essentially, when you become an affiliate, you sell a product or service for another provider. For this, they will pay you a commission. Of course, you can also set up an affiliate program for your own products or services, and have others sell them for you. Either way, you’ll make money on the side, in addition to the income you generate from your direct client work!
One of the best ways to become an affiliate is to choose a product or service that you use and love. Now remember, this is not a way to make money without working; it’s a way to generate income in addition to your regular business!
For me, the proof is in the pudding. I have consistently earned more than $10,000 per year through affiliate programs for some time now. This means I have plenty of experience with these types of programs, so I know how to help you do the same.
Becoming an affiliate to create income
When you visit a website, you’ll usually find a link in the footer that says “Affiliates”. When you click on this link, you’ll be directed to a page that describes their affiliate program and offers an opportunity to join. (If you can’t find this link, don’t be shy. Go ahead and use their contact form to ask them if they have one!)
In virtually every case, joining an affiliate program is FREE. This is just one of the reasons these opportunities are so awesome.
To become an affiliate, you’ll be asked to supply them with some basic information: home/business address, phone number, email address, and PayPal address, as well as any other info they’ll need to keep in touch – and PAY YOU!
Once you’ve given them this, they’ll set you up with a username and password to their Affiliate Center. Here, you will normally find all of the information you’ll need to get their affiliate link set up on your website. Some sites offer minimal support, but most of them – the really good ones – will offer all of the marketing material you’ll need to promote their product or service for them.
This should include:
- Marketing copy – which may include Landing Page Copy and/or Blog Post Copy, announcing that you’ve joined their network and that you support them and endorse their product or service.
- Promotional video – that you can embed at your website (or on the Landing Page you’ve created), which explains their product or service for you, and announces that you’re part of their network and endorse their product or service.
- Email templates – to use to promote your new affiliate’s products or services to your list, and explain that you’re part of their network and endorse their product or service.
- Social Media copy – that you can post to Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and others, without having to devote extra time to writing these updates and Tweets yourself.
- Banner Ads – usually small promotional images that you can place in the sidebar at your site, announcing that you endorse their product or services.
- Affiliate Link – this is a special, customized link to your Affiliate’s Sales Page that is unique to you (known as your Affiliate ID). When clicked, this link identifies you as the source of the incoming traffic and tracks any sale that’s made – ensuring that you get paid. Virtually all of the marketing material they provide for you will include this unique link that will always track back to you as the source.
NOTE: A really cool feature of this type of system is that, once a visitor clicks on the affiliate link you’ve embedded at your website, redirecting them to the Sales Page of your Affiliate, a “cookie” or “tracking code” is embedded in their browser. This code is again unique to you, identifying you as the source of this “tried” number reaching their page – and it will normally remain active for 21 days or so. This means that even if your visitor did not make a purchase immediately, you will still get credit for any sale made to them for the next three weeks!
DISCLAIMER: You should always include a disclaimer with any affiliation that you promote, letting your audience know that you will earn a commission for any sale made by linking to them from your website. Not only is this the ethical way to do business, but it’s also required by law.
Now, a blog post is too limiting for me to expand on these ideas as much as I could, and believe me I could definitely go on, I’d like to invite you to take a look at my video tutorial on Affiliate Marketing instead, titled Affiliate Programs & Marketing 101. Even better, let’s talk about Affiliate Marketing Opportunities that will benefit you. To do this, simply get in touch with me about my FREE 30-Minute Consultation offer. That way, I can help you find the best ways to create Affiliate Income for yourself immediately.
