When you look at affiliate programs, this should be one of the first things you look at: the commission per sale. Again, this may be portrayed as a percentage, or as a dollar figure. If the commission is presented as a dollar figure, it is important to locate the sale price of the product, and figure the commission percentage.

Typically, you want to go with affiliate programs that offer a 50% commission. If the product is high priced, you may consider going as low as a 20% or 30% commission. But for lower priced products, don't accept anything less than 50% on the 1st tier.

You should also consider how many sales it will take to earn the income that you desire or require. 100.00 per sale may sound like a lot, but if you require 4000.00 a month to live, you will have to make forty sales each month. This is very realistic for some products, in some markets, and not realistic at all for other products in other markets.

Consider what you are selling, and whom you are selling it to, and determine whether the number of sales needed to make the money you require is indeed realistic. If the number of sales required is not realistic, you will need to either look for something different to sell, or look for additional products to sell. You could also start small, with smaller commissions and work your way up. This is what many super affiliates do.

Super affiliates often show the product owner/affiliate manager that they have the ability to make a large number of sales each and every month, consistently, and then they negotiate directly with the product owner for a higher commission. They prove themselves by making those sales first, and then they are in a position to negotiate.

When looking at the commission, also consider what it will cost you to promote the product. You cannot afford to spend more on promotions than you are making in commissions. Know your numbers!

The difference between one-time commission affiliate programs and residual affiliate programs is astronomical in terms of income. Essentially, a one-time commission affiliate program pays you one commission, one time, upon the initial sale. Residual programs, however, continue to provide you with an income, either for the life of the customer or for a set term.

When choosing between one-time commission programs and residual programs, always choose residual programs. These allow you to make one sale to a customer, and then to profit from that customers repeat or ongoing business with the company, usually for the life of the customer/business relationship.

Where you may make $100 for a one-time commission, with a residual program, you may make $100 per month, every month, just from making one sale. The choice is obvious. Residual programs typically provide you with more income for less work.

Residual programs that pay for the life of the customer are better than residual programs that only pay for a set term. You want to have the income from one sale for as long as possible.

Generally, a residual income potential exists when you sell services, such as webhosting, where the customer pays a monthly fee for the service. Every month that the customer pays the fees, you earn a commission. However, when the customer stops paying the fee, you no longer receive a commission for that customer.

For this reason, it may be best to look for services that are vitally needed by your potential customers. For instance, anyone who does business on the Internet has a need for webhosting, and they don't want their site to go down, so the chances are good that this will be a very long residual income for you.

Telephone services also provide a nice residual income. Everyone needs their telephone, and most need long distance services. If you are promoting a company that provides such services at great prices, then again, this could provide a very nice long term residual income for you.

However, services that are not long term in nature can also be good if the commission is high enough. For instance, membership websites that provide customers with some type of course or learning experience may provide you with a residual income while the customer is a member of the site. However, once the customer feels that they have gleaned all that they can from that membership site, they will most likely cancel their membership, which cancels your residual income from that customer.

Certain types of products can also provide you with long term or life time residual income. Health care related products, such as vitamins and medication are good examples of this. Also, many companies give life time commissions to the affiliate for every purchase the customer makes, from the very first purchase, even for different products that the company sells.

Keep these things in mind when you are searching for programs to promote. Residual is better than one-time, and life time residual is better than termed residual. Look for products or services that will provide you with life time residual income.