Affiliate marketing has eventually become one of the most popular ways to make money online. There are many people who have been able to quit their job and live off affiliate income alone.
I first started affiliate marketing in 2007 and immediately saw how powerful it can be.
However, promoting an affiliate link and waiting for passive income to roll in is not as easy as promoting an affiliate link. This article will discuss 8 affiliate marketing secrets that will help you take your affiliate business from small-time hobbyist to full-fledged entrepreneur.
Is affiliate marketing really profitable?
Yes, affiliate marketing is profitable with the right strategy.
The most profitable affiliate marketers are those who take the time to build an email list and do not just rely on algorithms or advertising.
This article will go through 8 of these strategies, including how they work and what you need to implement them into your own strategy.
How do I succeed as an affiliate marketer?
One of the first steps in getting started with affiliate marketing is choosing an affiliate network that has high-quality products with good commission structures for affiliates.
This increases your chances of making more money by being able to promote higher-priced items from reputable brands.
These strategies will help improve your conversion rates because once visitors click on these banners, there are fewer chances of them getting lost down other marketing avenues like ads that don’t offer as much value.
The important thing here is tracking clicks, and keeping an eye on the metrics, so you know how successful your campaign has been when all’s said and done.
And if you need help choosing affiliate products, this will help, or if you need help on choosing a niche, this will serve you well.
Get your own website.
Having a website that you own and control is crucial for success.
It’s easy to find hosting, and there are a variety of plans for every budget.
But do not use free hosting. Free hosting is a bad idea because you don’t really own the website. You’re not building an asset of your own, but somebody else’s.
Invest the $3 a month for professional web hosting, install WordPress and do things properly. You’ll benefit from it later on.
You can also buy a pre-made template from third-party websites like ThemeForest to make your website look professional.
Create content that Solves problems
To make money from affiliate marketing, you need to create content that solves your audience’s problems.
Understanding customer’s pain points are vital. Create a blog post, video, or podcast that tackles one of those pain points and helps them move forward.
This will communicate a couple of key things.
- They are in the right place because you understand their problems
- They can trust you in the future because you already have helped them
Promote products that have a deep funnel
Take advantage of products that have deep funnels, and use one-click upsells.
One-click upsells are a great way to earn affiliate revenue from impulse purchases.
They work like this.
As soon as a customer purchased the front-end offer, they are immediately offered a second (usually more expensive) offer.
This increases the number of transactions and lets you make a commission on their next purchase.
In my experience, upsells convert at around 30%, or almost every 1 in 3 people.
Promote products that have recurring earnings
The beauty of affiliate marketing is that you can turn your earnings into recurring income.
This means, as long as a customer stays with the product or service they signed up for (and pays their monthly fee), then you will continue to make a commission off them each month.
Sometimes, these continuity programs come later in the funnel, so reach out and ask the vendor if they can promote a membership program.
Look beyond Amazon
The great thing about Amazon is that it carries just about any type of product you can imagine.
However, if you want to make more money per transaction and increase your long-term customer lifetime value (LTV), then look beyond Amazon for opportunities to promote products.
You’ll be surprised how much more revenue there is on sites like Commission Junction or ClickBank.
Amazon has a history of treating their affiliate pretty badly.
Over the last few years, I’ve seen Amazon reduce its affiliate commission to shockingly low levels.
In fact, one of my friends had his affiliate commissions cut in half, thanks to Amazon.
The Internet is a big place, don’t rely on just Amazon.
Build an email list
What are the benefits of building an email list?
Building a sizeable email list can be beneficial in many ways and is often underestimated by new affiliate marketers. Firstly, it gives you more opportunities to promote products without having to pay for ads.
Secondly, when people subscribe to your emails, they will always have access to information about any future offers or promotions you may run.
This leads them back onto your website or a sales page, increasing traffic and improving conversion rates.
Building an email list is more than just a way to promote products; it also establishes trust.
When you send out emails, your subscribers will feel like they know you and are familiar with the company’s brand.
Your email list is your best source of traffic.
Follow up
Getting people to subscribe to your email list is just the start.
May you have heard the saying “the money is in the email list”?
Well, that’s only partly true. The fact is, the money is in the relationship with the email list.
So you need to follow up with your subscribers to build a relationship.
By providing helpful content, your subscribers will start to feel like they know you and your company.
They’ll be more likely to purchase products from you in the future or refer others if you’re providing good stuff.
Be selective about affiliate products
Be selective about the affiliate offer you promote. There are always a hundred different offers you can promote, but the key to success, and audience loyalty, is to only promote the best products.
If you’re constantly promoting the latest shiny object, it becomes apparent to your audience that you’re not concerned about their needs.
This approach is called “churn and burn” and is a bad strategy.
Churn and burn relies on a constant stream of new email subscribers to replace the ones who (inevitably) unsubscribe from your email list.
Churn and burn can work in the short term, but it’s unsustainable.
The best strategy is to choose a few products you want to promote for the long term that has been proven to work for your audience and focus on those instead of constantly promoting new items that come up each month.
Conclusion
These affiliate marketing secrets will help you to grow your business, increase the number of customers you convert, and become a successful affiliate marketer.
But you need to put in the work consistently.
Affiliate marketing is not a “set it and forget it” business model, at least not for the first year or two.
But if you stick to the right strategy, then eventually, it can create passive income.