Affiliate Marketing: the Basics
It is never easy to start something new and dive into the uncharted waters of business. However, it is also never too late to try something exciting, interesting, and intriguing, especially if you will earn money. Imagine that you can do what you are good at and earn solid passive income. Is there anyone who doesn’t want more money? No, as this is a material world, and everything, especially high-quality products and services, costs money.
Aside from your main job, you can give affiliate marketing a try and work your way up to getting used to a bigger budget than your salary could provide. Working as an affiliate marketer is what can allow this perspective to come true. You can check some information about affiliate marketing at ClickBank’s guide about it.
The First Steps
Of course, everything depends on you. However, if you are still reading this article, that means that affiliate marketing is something that has certainly grabbed your attention. It is, in its essence, about working with other people and helping two sides of the product turnover connect.
You are going to help the people who produce goods find people who want to purchase those goods. In this affiliate marketing hierarchy, you first need to learn the “slang” or the positions:
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- The Vendor – This is the person or the company that produces goods and is longing for more customers and more growth. They search for highly-respected affiliate marketplaces and put their products there. They can also be called sellers, product owners, and creators. The bottom line is that they want you to help them reach bigger markets and wider groups of buyers.
- The Consumer (or Customer) – The people that are at the heart of the process. Everything is done to offer a product that can satisfy their needs, which can be diverse, and sell it at an acceptable price. The consumer, in her turn, wants to find something useful and of high quality. She is skeptical and has a great memory.
- The Affiliate – This is you. You find a way to connect these two parts of the same process. You are the channel that brings the news about the available products to the doorsteps of the consumer. Your task is to promote the vendor’s product by being well aware of it and putting your time into selling it. Of course, you get a commission every time you sell something. Be aware that different relative marketplaces call the affiliates in different ways. Some may use the terms “publisher”, “advertiser” or “promoter”.
The Affiliate’s Kit
The best thing about being an affiliate marketer is that you need only a few things, the bare minimum, to make money. You already know the real advantages that having a digital career entails. No traffic, no 9 to 5, less money spent on transport and food. This combination is great, especially if you are an introvert. However, extroverted people can be an affiliate too.
The greatest advantage of affiliate marketing is that you can adjust everything to your style. You are responsible for your income, so if you feel like working from a cafe, feel free to do it. On the contrary, if you feel “workaholic” at home, no one will ask you to leave that comfort. You just need a good internet connection, a smartphone or a computer, and an affiliate network.
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Know What to Expect
Anyone can work as an affiliate marketer given that she has enough time and interest to contribute to her business. However, it is necessary to understand that products will not sell themselves. For example, the first potential buyer may refuse to buy what you offer for different reasons. The important thing here is to be ready to work your way through the super-Mario-labyrinth of affiliate marketing where you get not only the princess (aka commission) but earn and learn along the way.
This learning process is what will pay you dividends as you pave your path to running a successful affiliate venture. As in the case of all businesses, it takes diligence, resilience, and responsibility to do this, especially if you see yourself and your career grow in the digital sphere. More and more people are inclined now to search for and buy goods and products online, and this paradigm shift will grow faster year by year.
Commissions, Percents, Money
As a future affiliate marketer, you should be aware that different vendors offer different commission rates. Their rates are derived from calculations that you will not be informed about; your task would be to either accept the rules of the game or find a more suitable vendor. Some of them can be so generous as to offer you 70 – 75 % commission, while others will be able to give you not more than 30%. You can receive your passive income either weekly, biweekly, or monthly usually through a direct deposit. Both in the case of commissions and the payment date the decision is yours.
Be aware that this also depends on how you advertise the vendors and their products. Usually, you can find hierarchy in this case among affiliate marketers as well. This means that the more experienced you are, the more resources you can put into promotion. Don’t get discouraged: all the top affiliate marketers have once been a beginner.
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Free and Paid Traffic
For example, if you are just starting, it can be enough for you to share the referral link that the seller will create for you on your social media pages. When someone buys that product following your link, you will get a commission. On the other hand, when you have learned the techniques of advertising more, you can also become trained in creating landing pages or even promotional videos to highlight all the advantages of your product. This can attract more attention and result in bigger sales.
Of course, the cornerstone of sales would be your traffic, and you are going to pay for it either with your time or money. So, there is no free traffic, sorry. It’s up to you to decide; the bottom line is that more traffic equals more investments. To achieve this, you can use the channel that you have the biggest network in. If you have a blog, use your blog. If you are good at email marketing and you have a legal database of emails, go for it. Finally, don’t forget about social media as it is an omnipresent tool now.
Takeaway
Everyone can do affiliate marketing, everyone can be an affiliate marketer. Like any other job on this planet, you need determination and willingness to contribute with your time and resources to see your business flourish. You already have all the prerequisites to start. All you need to do is to believe in yourself, find the vendor and the product you like, and give it a try.
