Okay, you’ve decided that you’d like to join the growing group of individuals who’ve opened their own home business. It’s a great decision and I’m certain that you will soon see why so many people have decided to follow the same path. However, you’re probably wondering to yourself what type of business you should start. One great way to get started without a large initial investment is through affiliate marketing.



I’m very familiar with the affiliate marketing aspect of home business because this is the area that I specialize in. Affiliate marketing is nice because you do not actually have to handle any physical products. Your main goal is to act as an advertiser for a particular company or for a general group of products. You will want to direct people to your website so that they may purchase products or services. You will then be paid a percentage or fixed amount for your assistance to the sponsoring company. For instance, one of the websites I run is devoted to the acquisition of new insurance clients. I am paid a small amount by the insurance companies when a potential client submits their information for a quote. However, if that same individual purchases a policy, I receive a portion of that purchase as well. Affiliate marketing typically works best if you have your own website but it can be done by placing ads and referring people through PPC programs.

I suggest that you first choose 4 or 5 subjects that you enjoy and consider designing a website devoted to these interests. Once you’ve picked your main subject, start making a list of all the products that are associated. For instance, I choose “insurance" as a main topic and this led me to dozens of potential sub-topics. You can find affiliate programs devoted to health insurance, auto insurance, boat insurance, long-term care insurance, and many more. After I picked my sub-topics I began researching affiliate programs. One of the best places to start is at http://www.cj.com. This website lists hundreds of affiliate programs by topic and subject.

If you’d like to get started with affiliate marketing I suggest doing a lot of initial research. This will prevent you from working with a topic that is already inundated with competitors and similar websites. There are many tools that can be used to compare your potential market with its existing competitors. Just do a web search and you’ll find all the information you need.

Good luck to you in your initial research. I will soon be providing more information in “Part 2" of my discussion of affiliate marketing.