Affiliate marketing is a major income-generating method for majority bloggers. So how does affiliate marketing work and how can one benefit from it?
What is Affiliate Marketing and How Does it Work? A Beginners Guide to Affiliate Marketing
During one of my classes, one student asked me “what is this affiliate marketing and how does it work”? It got me thinking that I assumed everyone knew about affiliate marketing when it was not the case. Majority people only have a wind of the affiliate marketing industry and most of the blogs are crowded with affiliate links and therefore end up confusing the reader even the more.
This short article will cover the major basics of how to start affiliate marketing, how affiliate marketing works step by step, and how you can earn from it as a blogger.
Affiliate marketing is just like the typical sales where you refer someone to a company’s products and services, and you get a commission from the sales. That is simply what affiliate marketing is all about–referring clients to products and services of a company, and as an affiliate, you receive a commission from it.
For those who are fond of purchasing items online, you probably came across a link to an item you have wanted for years and you thought ‘yeah this is it! Getting it was easy!’ That might have been an affiliate link, and the blogger from the website where you found the link earned a commission from it.
How Affiliate Marketing Works Infographics
A Simple Explanation of the Affiliate Marketing Infographic
These are some of the FAQ’s regarding Affiliate Marketing
How do I start affiliate marketing?
For a start, the best tool to use to reach out to prospective clients would be through a blog. You can as well advertise so as to promote the item. The best way that I would advocate for would be to choose one of the best and most profitable niches, start a blog and use it to promote the products (That is if you do not have a blog already)
What products can I promote through affiliate marketing?
You can literally promote anything through affiliate marketing, depending on your niche.
For example, if you blog about cars you could have affiliate links leading to a car selling merchant site where your reader who might be interested in cars could purchase. The same goes for a whole bunch of other things like clothes, shoes, pets, ebooks, services, wedding gowns, etc.
How much can I earn through affiliate marketing?
The amount that one earns is hugely depended on the affiliate program, the nature of products and the company that one is promoting for. Different programs pay different amounts for different products. You may then ask. “If I am aware that some companies pay huge commissions compared to others then why should I go for those with low commissions? I will explain this using a simple logic.
Suppose a laptop goes for $500, and I get a 10% commission for each sale I make, then per month I sell seven laptops. That would translate to $350 that month. On the other hand if I promote a wedding gown that goes for $500, and I get a commission of 30% for every sale I make. Then I sell approximately two gowns in a month. That would translate to $300 that month. This simply shows that higher commissions do not necessarily equal more money. The amount you get from affiliate marketing depends on the value you produce for individuals and the amount of effort you put into your business.
What are the qualifications of becoming an affiliate marketer?
Unlike the normal sales job where you will be required to have a certain level of education, affiliate marketing does not require any qualifications. Anyone can become an affiliate marketer as long as they have great marketing as well as copywriting skills. Otherwise how will people find your links if you are not a good marketer? Alternatively, you could hire someone good at it to do the work for you.
Can one use both affiliate marketing and AdSense on the same page?
The answer is yes. Both platforms have different policies, and none violates the rights of the other.
What are some of the affiliate marketplaces?
There are numerous affiliate marketing market places some of them being Clickbank, CJ, and Shareasale. These marketplaces serve as the central databases for affiliate programs.
What are the advantages of Affiliate Marketing?
1. The only requirements that you need to get started are a computer and good internet, and probably a blog though not always.
2. You do not need any physical location for you to be an affiliate marketer. So you do not need to worry about paying an extra rent for a room (this makes me glad considering am paying a lot for the house rent already)
3. You do not need to buy the products. All you need is to refer someone to purchase them. Staying away from the processes of having to handle the products and shipping them makes affiliate marketing less complicated.
4. You can do this from anywhere: – the office, at home, while traveling, on the moon (heard they got free Wi-Fi there), basically any were. Sometimes you can just promote the page resulting in more and hence more leads, therefore, earning all day.
By just reading about affiliate marketing, you would get excited and ask yourself “why is everyone not doing it and making good money from it if it is so lucrative?” Don’t get it twisted though. You probably will not make a single sale for months (Not trying to scare you but it is the truth). It requires hard work, perseverance, and patience.
Lots of people jump into it but lose focus when they do not get a single cent from it in a month or two. If you are trying to get fast money then probably this is not for you.
To succeed in affiliate marketing, you will need a few things.
a) Get a mentor to guide you
b) Don’t bombard yourself with a lot of information that will end up confusing you. Simply get a niche, choose the right products, sign up for a link, and work on getting clients. Just that!
c) Join a community of affiliate marketers where you will find ideas, educate yourself, and share experiences.
d) Affiliate marketing isn’t a get rich quick arrangement, as I mentioned above, it is a business that entails commitment, effort and working hard.
I trust you have now understood the basics of affiliate marketing and what it is all about. You ready!