Did you know that you can convert that huge following on your blog or social media platform into a substantial income? Or build a following that will bring you an online income?
This is what they refer to as “making money online” and there are a lot of different ways that you can do this.
One such way is through affiliate marketing, which has long been among the most popular ways of making money online and will continue to be for the foreseeable future.
What is Affiliate Marketing?
At its core, affiliate marketing is a performance-based marketing strategy where the blogger or publisher (you) is paid for linking a merchants website via their personal affiliate link. It is one of the fastest ways to start an internet business and one of the cheapest ways making money online as long as you can drive targeted traffic.
For example; if you bought a new guitar that all your friends love and want to get one too, you can send them to your affiliate link and get paid for ever sale. Or if you just love music in general so you start a website about it, you can promote your favorite instruments on the site through you personal affiliate links.
There are literally thousands of affiliate programs out there for just about any niche, and millions of products & services to promote in almost every industry. If all else fails, and you can’t find an affiliate program for your particular niche (which would be very rare), you can always send your visitors to Amazon or eBay through their affiliate programs.
That’s part of why affiliate marketing can be SO incredibly powerful; there is a virtually endless amount of opportunities to promote products and services in just about every industry in the world.
How to Become a Successful Affiliate Marketer
Like any other form of internet marketing or business in general, affiliate marketing is not a walk in the park. You still have to learn a lot of things and work very hard to become successful at it. Remember that the reward is based on the performance and thus you are the only real limit to your income.
Here some of the main tips for how to make money with affiliate marketing successfully (though it is not an all-inclusive list):
* Specialize in a specific niche and/or a handful of good products or services
Don’t make the BIG mistake of trying to register with too many affiliate programs or get involved with a bunch of niches and products/services (at least not until you are a master affiliate marketer). You need to concentrate on a specific niche with a few good products, and promote them properly. Having too many affiliates programs, niches, products or services can be quite overwhelming and can result in getting nowhere. Do your research and pick a niche you are interested in that is likely to be profitable. This can be achieved by identifying the audience, analyzing their problems, and providing a solution in terms of a targeted product or service. With this strategy, you will become a successful affiliate marketer much faster.
* Become an expert in your selected niche (if you aren’t already)
Your visitors must feel truly informed whenever they come to your site and be able to find what they are looking for – whether it’s a product, information, resource, or whatever. They must get quality information about the niche every time they visit if you want to keep them coming back and sharing your site within their circles. Always provide accurate information about the products and services along with news, updates, etc… basically just be the authority on the subject wherever possible. Try to be the first to get raw information from the producer or the merchant to keep yourself one step ahead of your competitors and keep your visitors happy. This may take some extra effort and learning on your part, but it is how your website or blog will gain credibility and attract a bigger following.
* Choose reputable merchants
The reputation of the merchant(s) is crucial in this business. You can do a good job in promoting the product, but if the customers end up unhappy after the purchase, you can ruin your business. Even though it is not your product, it can still taint the reputation of your website and your image as an affiliate marketer. Or on the other end, you want to be sure you are actually getting paid for your efforts. A shady merchant may not send your checks and you will be wasting your time. You want to make sure that the affiliate programs you are joining are very reputable.
* Don’t rely on any one traffic source
If you want to make more money, then getting traffic to your site from just one or two sources is not enough. You need to promote your site in many different ways to boost traffic. You can use things such as Blogging, SEO, Adwords, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Display Ads, and many other forms of internet marketing strategies that affiliate marketers use to drive targeted traffic to their websites.
The bottom line is; affiliate marketing can be very lucrative if you work hard and be smart about it. You can even build it up to the point of making passive income. It really can be a cost-effective and relatively simple way of making money, where the biggest investment is your time. Treat it like a real business and the gains will be incredible!