Studies show that nearly half of these networks count several thousands affiliates each. Even if the amount of sales is rather far from equal to those made by means of sponsored links or e-mailing, affiliate marketing allows merchants to extend the presence of their brands on the Web, targeting especially those sites that are in direct relationship with their target. This is actually a very efficient strategy to attract prospective customers to their Web sites.



What Does It Mean to Become an Affiliate?

Launched and popularized by Amazon.com in 1996, affiliation is a partnership that brings benefits for both the merchant (the entity that creates the affiliation program) and the affiliate (Webmaster). The merchant is a company that sells one or more products and that proposes Webmasters to promote its products and gain a commission in exchange of their services.

Each merchant will propose a specific affiliation program that also contains detailed payment methods. The Webmaster that subscribes to this program becomes thus an affiliate. The affiliate marketers will have at their disposal elements of either visual or textual nature (text links, search boxes, banner links, product links, etc.), as well as, from time to time, product catalogs and feeds that can be installed on their sites.

The interest of a merchant is, according to the affiliation principle, to obtain an as widespread as possible network of affiliate Webmasters in order to get high-quality visibility and thus being able to sell its products. Affiliation is beneficial for both merchant and affiliate marketer.

How It Works?

In order to become an affiliate marketer, the first thing to do is search the Web for affiliate networks and join the one that suits you best (e.g Avangate Affiliates Program, Affiliate Program Directory).

To do that, there are some basic steps that must be followed:

• Once you've found the affiliate network you wish to join, fill out an online application to become a member. You will be asked to provide some personal information (name, address, payment method) and information about your site (URL, name, description of content). You will also have to agree to a service agreement. Most affiliate networks are completely free for affiliates.

• If the application is approved, you can choose the affiliate programs you find interesting. If the owners of these programs approve, the network will then guide you through the rest of the affiliation process, namely how to post links on your Web site.

You should be aware that it is highly probable you won't make a profit right away. Given that you will most likely to be paid according to the amount of clicks from your site that convert into sales on the program owner's site, earnings from affiliate marketing programs can be rather small at the beginning. Also, the amounts that you earn for every conversion will be pooled until you reach a minimum amount (usually some tens of dollars) that can then be paid to you.

Being a cooperative effort, affiliate marketing is effective both for the affiliate marketer and for the merchant. The merchant gains a wider market, gets a bigger exposure to potential customers, and the more affiliates it has, the higher the traffic that can eventually convert to sales.

On the affiliate's side, the benefits are far from minor. The first and most important of them is the commission received. Affiliates can earn commissions in three ways: per click (note that pay-per-click programs have declined dramatically in numbers because of click fraud), per sale and per lead.

15 Reasons to Become an Affiliate Marketer

Even if affiliate marketing is not an extremely easy thing to do (both merchant and affiliate marketer have to work hard in order to achieve the expected results), it is nevertheless a quite good method to boost sales (for merchants) or generate extra income (for the affiliate marketer).

Among the best reasons to become an affiliate there are:

• Low cost set-up: all you need is a desk, a computer connected to the Internet and word processing software, and you're in business!

• No production costs: this is the merchant's concern; it's their product / service that you're promoting. You don't need your own products to sell.

• Joining is free and there are no licenses you need to buy: most affiliate programs are free, and you don't need an expensive license in order to distribute a certain product. It all depends on your ability to promote your Web site.

• The palette of products / services from which you can choose is enormous: there's a lot you can choose from, for example you can sell software if you have a computer or software related website.

• No limitations on geographical distribution: being an affiliate marketer means that the world is at your doorstep. There are no boundaries.

• No employees: you'll never have to worry about hiring full-time or even part-time employees. However, if you need some project done, you can always outsource it, and the person you assign it to can easily do it from his own home. So you won't have to worry about any employee related issue.

• Merchant account not needed: the merchant whose affiliate program you've joined handles the processing of all the payments, so there's no worry for you on that part.

• No shipping: you don't have to worry about shipping, postal rates, packaging, etc.

• No inventory: you can sell large amounts of products without necessarily having them on storage.

• No order processing: you won't need to collect data about the customers. The merchant does that.

• Customer service is not your concern: whatever issues customers might bring up, it's not your business.

• Minimal risk: you have the possibility to give up promoting any service / product that is just not working for you, and there are no strings attached.

• Quite high income potential: depending on how motivated you are and how much effort you put into it, this can be a quite lucrative business.

• Endless opportunities: keep this in mind: you have access to the world's greatest marketplace!

• Valuable content for your website visitors

Things to Be Considered

• Get Your Own Domain Name

• Of course, it's easy as "1, 2, 3" to make your own Web site by using some free, instant Web site creation tools. It is possible to promote products / services from such a free site, but you'll get a more professional look by having your Web address read http://www.yourdomain.com rather than http://yourdomain.somecompany.net. People will remember your name much better, and the relevant traffic you will receive will be far greater. Also make sure you choose a good web hosting service. You have to show people that you are serious.

• Choose Quality

• Whenever you're considering joining a particular affiliate program, it's important to examine thoroughly the products / services offered. Remember that the better the product / service, the more motivated and enthusiastic you'll be when promoting it. You will thus have a better chance to reach potential customers and, consequently, make a profit. If the merchants products converts poorly, the generous commission will not be enough. Also, the merchant website should be designed for optimum conversions.

• Select Good Commissions

• Another thing to keep in mind is that the links and banners you're inserting in your Web site must help you persuade visitors to leave your site and visit the merchant's. So, it is best you choose affiliate programs that reward you as generously as possible.

• Choose Programs That Complement Your Site

• It is possible to be successful in promoting products / services that had nothing whatsoever to do with your Web site. Nevertheless, it might be a good idea to select affiliate programs that are in keeping with your site. This is not to say that you are forbidden from experimenting. Feel free to try whatever you think will appeal to the visitors. You never know.

• Check the cookie length

• The best affiliates programs keep active the customer referral cookie for 60 to 120 days. So, if your visitor decides to buy the product directly from the vendor's website within 120 days of their original visit via your link, you still get the commission.