Affiliate Program Primer

  © 2004, John Calder
http://www.TheEzine.net

Ever since Amazon launched what is perhaps the most well-known, but not the first, affiliate program in 1996, other merchants in every business category imaginable have followed suit. And even though many webmasters have earned money from these programs ever since, there are still a lot of questions to this day about affiliate (also known as associate or referral) programs. So maybe it's time to revisit some basics for new or soon-to-be Internet marketers.

An affiliate program is, at the bottom line, a commissioned sales job. Like the Fuller Brush salesman of old, you are an independent representative of a company, offering their products or services to potential customers. When one of them buys, you get a percentage of the sale. But, in the high-tech version, you have a few very powerful advantages over the classic door-to-door sales rep.

To start, you can represent multiple products from more than one company at a time, on as many web sites as you own, in as many markets as you choose. You don't have to travel anywhere, yet the web puts you in front of a worldwide market. This gives you an incredible diversity of products, markets, and "neighborhoods" to sell in, all from right in front of your computer screen. You could possibly make multiple sales at one time, yet you never have to deal with door-slammed-in-your-face rejection. On the Internet, you don't always even have to make a sale to earn a commission. Some affiliate programs will pay you if someone just clicks on a link at your site, fills out an application, or even asks for more information. And here's the best part - your web sites work for you around the clock, every day.

Commission rates vary by type of product. Physical goods (that have to be shipped) tend to pay lower rates than products like software or ebooks that can be digitally delivered. However, 5% of a $2000 TV is more than 50% of a $50 ebook, so you have to remember to look at the big picture when deciding what affiliate products to offer. For best affiliate sales results, you'll want to offer products and services designed to appeal to the target audience of your web site. For example, it makes no sense to place affiliate links to mechanic's tools on a cooking site, while it makes perfect sense to place them on a site about restoring cars.

There are several ways to join affiliate programs. Some companies operate their own program, and you will apply through the company web site. But many merchants choose to operate through an affiliate network. These third-party companies offer sign-up, tracking, payment, and overall affiliate program management services to merchants and affiliate marketers. A few top names are Commission Junction, LinkShare, and Clickbank. Just search for "affiliate program" or "affiliate network" and you're bound to find more.

Your sales and clicks are tracked by software. It's your responsibility to make sure your links follow the guidelines stated by your merchant or affiliate network. Some browsers, ad-blocking software, link cloakers, and coding techniques (such as frames) can prevent the tracking links on your site from working properly, and you may not get credit if one of your clicks leads to a sale. Most all affiliate marketers sooner or later run into this, and when it happens, it's not intentional, so don't feel victimized. Technology is very good, but it's not perfect.

For almost every Internet marketer, affiliate marketing offers a fast and inexpensive way to get started in an online business. These programs can help you generate income while you learn the ropes and work towards developing your own product or service, if that's your goal. And yes, you can even become an affiliate for the Fuller Brush Company!

About the Author

John Calder is the owner/editor of The Ezine Dot Net. Subscribe Today and get real information YOU can use to help build your online business today! http://www.TheEzine.Net

The Ezine DOT Net RSS feeds are available.

(You may reprint this article in full in your newsletter and/or web site)

 John Calder

More Articles 

40 Suggestions For Affiliate Marketing Success - Mario Giordani
There is a lot to learn about Internet marketing. At times it can seem overwhelming, especially if you are just starting out. We hear a about people making obscene amounts of money with Internet marketing. Most of it is true. Some of it is hype. ...

The Affiliate Interview - Do you have what it takes? - Marc Howlett
So you have decided to start up your own home business and after hours of searching you have decided on the program you are going to join. Now stop and take check before you rush in. Yes there are thousands of people running their own home...

How to Evaluate an Affiliate Marketing Opportunity - George Papazoglou
Before registering for an affiliate program, it is imperative that you verify that the upcoming partnership meets the criteria below: * You get the credit on all referring sales, including: sales by phone, fax, snail mail and every other...

12 Tips For A Successful Affiliate Program - Ken Hill
1. Look around at other competing businesses that offer affiliate programs, and think of ways that you can make your affiliate program more attractive. 2. Pay your affiliates well for their efforts. If you're thinking about offering a 10%...

Quality Affiliate Programs, Anyone? - Dom Vonarburg
More and more webmasters and website owners are using affiliate programs as a way to earn extra income online. However, not all affiliate programs are created equal. Some will send you nice checks every month where others will essentially rob you....

Affiliate Goals - Successful Goal Setting for Affiliates - Ratliff J
When I first started out with Affiliate Marketing a few years ago, my primary goal was a very simple one. I just wanted enough money to pay for my hosting, which at the time was an ungodly $40 per month for a small website. Of course, these days...

Understanding Affiliate Programs - Sharon Housley
Affiliate programs are commonly misunderstood, in order to understand affiliate programs lets start with terminology. For clarification purposes, an affiliate is defined as any "referrer" or website that promotes a product in an effort to earn...

Writing Your Affiliate Home Business Plan - Glenn Beach
Here’s a typical scenario: You are deciding to start a home business and suddenly everyone you know has his nose in your business, literally. What do you tell them? And how do you answer your own questions? What should you expect from the company in...

'Take Dead Aim' with Affiliate Programs - David McKenzie
One of the key success secrets for those that are successful with affiliate programs is to focus. You must take dead aim. There are many thousands of affiliate programs you can join. Yet to succeed you must ignore 99% of them. You must select a...

Becoming An Affiliate Marketer - J Elisha Burke
Becoming an affiliate marketer is an interesting and exciting process. There are so many programs out there for you to promote. You should think seriously before you commit to any one program. Choosing A Program To become an affiliate marketer,...