The truth behind affiliate marketing is the fact that
90% of affiliates will actually make less than 100$
a month. Therefore, you shouldn't count on making
full time income unless you can get very good at the
following:
1. Building a good web site that converts.
2. Search engine optimization. You'll need a
lot of traffic, as maybe 1 out of 200 visitors will
buy your products. SEO can help you get your site
in the search engines so more people will be able to
find you.
3. The trial and error of picking the right
merchants and learning the correct ways to promote
them.

Too many people out there assume that affiliate
marketing is actually a get rich quick type of
program. These types of people will throw up a
couple of banners, then wonder why they never make
a single sale or any money at all.

How long you'll need to do it depends on how much
money you are wanting to make. If you are a quick
learner and really good at affiliate marketing, you
may high 2,000 in 2 years. This is based on the
fact that you are starting at 0 and the fact that
you have another full time job, not being able to
devote a lot of time working with your affiliate
marketing program.

If you decide to give it a try, the hardest challenge
will be the first few months. If you check your
stats and see that you are only making a couple of
bucks, you'll find yourself wondering if all the
hard work was worth it. If you get some sales
going and stay committed with your hard work, the
commissions should start growing.

One of the biggest factors with affiliate marketing
is the traffic that goes through your site. Even
though you'll get a lot of traffic passing through
your website, only a fraction of the traffic will
be buyers.

The key here is knowing your visitors and then
being able to determine which affiliate programs
you can offer to meet their needs. There is also
the concept of pre sale, which is the ability
to put your visitors in the required open and
mind set that's required for them to actually click
on what you are selling.

By sticking with affiliate marketing, you'll learn
more and more over the years. You can't expect to
be the best when you first start, it'll take a lot
of hard work and dedication. By putting the time
and effort into your programs, you'll be well on
your way to making it in the very profitable and
exciting world of affiliate marketing.