Only two things are necessary to earn substantial income as an affiliate. You need to drive visitors to your website, preferably visitors belonging to an easily definable group (students, young mothers, retirees, football fans, newlyweds, fishermen, etc.). And, you need to select one or more affiliate programs which offer products or services likely to appeal to them.
Remember, your website visitors constitute your market, so the more you know about them, the greater the revenue streams they can provide for you, initially and subsequently. Try to determine their age, gender, interests, consumer habits, and other relevant characteristics.
Most of all, be sure you understand why people come to your website. What do they think it is going to offer them? What are they hoping to find?
By finding out as much as you can about your visitors, you'll be able to more quickly and accurately learn what kinds of products and services they will find most compelling. Generating lots of traffic to your site is, as we've said, very important. But, for your website to be more than a hobby, you must provide your visitors with appropriate services and/or products. Luckily, and this is great news, you don't have to pick the right products/services the first, second, or even the third time. Just keep learning, keep thinking, and (most of all) keep trying until you're right.
Be sure to consider lead generation programs as well as programs which pay you on a per sale basis. Depending on the content of your site and the demographics of your visitors, they may be more interested in receiving car insurance quotes, for instance, than in buying auto accessories. Some programs pay you very well just to help them identify prospects for whatever it is they sell.
Because all sorts of companies want to build their mailing lists, you can even earn a commission when someone signs up for a coupon, a free restaurant meal, a few trial issues of a magazine, or countless other freebies.
High commission programs deserve your consideration, of course, but sometimes a lower commission program will generate more revenue for you, especially if you are compensated for signing up other webmasters. In some instances, you can be paid 5-10% of the income they generate for the affiliate company.
Be cautious and selective when choosing an affiliate program. Choose those which:
1. offer you good online tracking and statistics so that you can see how you're doing and what you may need to tweak. You need hard statistical information to make good marketing decisions.
2. provide you with well written advertising copy and well designed, attention getting banners.
3. offer you a quick and complete response when you have a question or a problem.
4. offer a valuable, reasonably priced product or service which your website visitors are likely to want.
If you offer your visitors a free newsletter, a "how to" guide, or anything else of value, they will willingly provide you with their email addresses...email addresses you can use to contact them after adding information to your website; email addresses you can use to send them product offerings, and email addresses you can use to maintain contact with them for years. But, you email them only when you have an update, new product, or information they are likely to find worthwhile. Otherwise, they ask to be removed from your mailing list or stop opening your emails. Remember, if cultivated properly, one website visitor may buy many products from you over the course of a few years.
Finally, follow the great advice I once got from an extremely successful businessperson. Track and analyze everything that moves.
About the Author:
Daniel Z. Kane is a college dean who has created websites on college scholarships, financial aid, online schools, online colleges, and online degrees.
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