The Basics of Affiliate Marketing

Imagine that you could earn commissions on a popular brand-name product just by placing a link on your website or in your email. That, my friends, is Affiliate Marketing!

Alright…So, it isn’t really quite that easy, but it doesn’t need to be much more complicated either.

Let’s start with a few definitions. An advertiser, or merchant, is the company who is selling a product. An affiliate, sometimes referred to as a publisher or partner, is another person or company who assists in the promotion of the product and earns a commission for doing so. (That could be you!) In between is the account management service that partners the advertisers with the affiliates and keeps track of the sales and commissions.

If you want to become an affiliate, you first need to choose either a product you want to sell, or an account management service. You will end up with both, but the choice of one will determine the choice for the other. If you choose the product first, the advertiser will direct you to the account management service that they already work with. If you choose the account management service first, they will provide you with a list of merchants that they do business with.

To see if your favorite product or company offers an affiliate program, visit their site and check the menu bar or the bottom of the screen. Look around for the word “affiliate”. Just click that link, read about their program and requirements, and complete their application. Certain businesses require specific types of websites to place their links on. They will email you all you must know to get going.

If you don’t know what specific product you intend to promote, or if you would like to promote several, I would recommend checking the participating merchants on the account management service’s site.

Make an effort to stick to products or ideas that you are familiar with and excited about. It can be much simpler to target your visitors if you can add value to the link you’d like them to click on. Personal recommendations or stories will get way better results than just a banner or solo text link. Provide them with good reason to “click here”.

Welcome to the world of Affiliate Marketing! Good luck with your new venture!

To learn want more about affiliate marketing programs visit our website about affiliate marketing where you will find additional information and content.