Affiliate marketing can be a great way to make some extra money in your spare time and if you are very successful, you can even turn it into a full time income. This article is full of tips and ideas to help make all aspects of your affiliate marketing endeavors rewarding.
When joining an affiliate marketing program, make sure the company that makes the product you’re promoting is legitimate. One way to tell the legitimacy of a company is by the terms of their return policy and how well they honor that policy. Being connected with a reputable company will boost your credibility; being connected to a shady company will hurt it.
Successful affiliate marketers work on a 4:1 formula for the best results. This simply means that 80% of their time online is spent marketing products and building up a strong base, while the other 20% is for goofing off or for checking out tutorial videos on how to market. The lion’s share of your time should be devoted solely to working.
Be honest in your advertising as an affiliate. We all have the urge to talk things up and to let colorful rhetoric do the selling, but that’s really old hat on the Internet. Most people are aware of fluff pieces and what they’re seeking today is honest information about how a product is good for them. Be honest and you will do much better.
Use the affiliate tools provided by the companies you are working with. Most affiliate programs are constantly adding new content that you can use to promote the products. From e-books, to tip lists, banners, and email templates to send out to your lists. These are generally proven tested methods so take advantage of them.
An affiliate website operator should have a written contract with the retailer to avoid any misunderstanding at a later time. The contract should describe all sides of their dealings, included but not limited to, the services the affiliate website provides, the way of referring customers and the compensation method (revenue sharing, cost per action or cost per click).
If you are a business owner considering setting up an affiliate marketing program for your products, limit the number of sites you allow to be your affiliates. If you have an overwhelming number of affiliate links and articles, they can actually bury your product page in search results. Only allow quality sites to link you and limit their number. If the site isn’t performing, consider revoking their affiliate status.
Don’t bother with products that don’t convert, even if they advertise high commissions. One webmaster reported that out of over 1000 clickthroughs to a vendor’s site, not one visitor actually bought the product. Terrible conversion ratios like this are a sign that the product is not in demand or that there is something wrong with the product, such as a high price or poor copy on the landing page.
Advertising only products you know are legitimate is a must. Customers generally don’t come back to visit sites they believe are advertising illegitimate products. By advertising products or services that are legit, visitors will be more likely to tell others about your website, which will generate more traffic for you.
A lot of article marketers will sign up for multiple directories and different sites. This means you might be using a lot of different usernames and email addresses. Make sure you keep track of these by stuffing a list inside of a Word document or in your notepad. Needing to access a site but forgetting your details can result in a lost campaign.
Only promote products you know are legit or that you would use. If a customer senses you are doing this only to benefit yourself, you may never see them again, let alone get a referral from them. Customers can see right through a dishonest referrer and won’t be back to your site.
Promote products that you would actually use or that you would honestly recommend to someone close to you. When your focus for your product is actually helping customers it will shine through in your marketing. Customers will trust your recommendations when you show that you are not just selling a product but selling solutions that you believe in.
Combine your affiliate sales with other revenue streams.While there is the chance that adsense, for example, can take some focus away from your affiliate links, you could actually reap benefits if you have targeted your affiliate products well and they work hand in hand with adsense ads. Different readers will respond to different messages, so offer some variety to address their differing needs.
Get a PDA or smart phone so that you can check your email while you’re out. Affiliate marketing is a job where you have to keep track of what is going on with your website all the time, so signing up for alerts from your website host when your site goes down is very important, even when you’re out.
Offer people a perk for buying through your link, like a sweepstakes entry or an item that will help them use the product better. For example, if they’re buying Microsoft Excel to use to help them in keeping track of the contests they enter, you can offer them a spreadsheet that has all the columns set for them, so all they’ll need to do is fill it in.
Practice good customer service! With affiliate marketing, you still need to remember that the customer is always right! If you are too stuck on your opinion, your customer may decide not to use your site anymore! Be open to all opinions. If you lose a customer because of your opinion, the unhappy customer may talk to people that they know which could result in a decrease in your audience!
Whether you are a seasoned professional or just beginning your affiliate marketing adventure, by utilizing some of the advice and ideas contained in the tips featured in this article, you should be on your way to achieving your goals and becoming an expert affiliate marketer, capable of earning a substantial income.
