The popularity of affiliate marketing has exploded over the years, with more than three-quarters of brands choosing to use it to promote their own products. With an estimated $5 billion a year made in the US, and £1 billion made in the UK.
Which is why a lot of companies are signing up to utilise the power affiliate marketing to get their brands out to more of the public, and they are, everything from travel agencies, product companies to fashion brands.
Why is Affiliate Marketing Such a Popular Choice for Making Money?
Affiliate marketing involves earning a commission by promoting a product or service made by another retailer or advertiser. It is a monetization model where an affiliate partner, which is you, is rewarded a payout for providing a specific result to the retailer or advertiser.
Most of the success of affiliate marketing lies in its simple process, which makes it easier for people to promote products/services offered to others in a clear and simple way.
The Long and Short of it
The most popular form of affiliate marketing takes place online, but it can take many different forms.
How it works
- The promotion of the product is entrusted to the affiliate marketer.
- This is done by a sign up of affiliate marketers to promote a business or product
- Usually some kind of referral code or promotional material is given.
- The affiliate marketer normally has their own platform already set up online, and makes it clear that some of their links may be affiliate links.
- The affiliate marketer needs to make sure their affiliate links can be easily seen and clicked on.
- Once the visitor has clicked on the link they're taken to a site where there is usually a product or products that can be purchased.
- If a purchase is made the affiliate receives a small cut from the sales they've made.
This is Why Affiliate Marketing is Useful for Businesses
If all goes well you can start to make ongoing sales and build a business from that.
One of the main benefits of affiliate marketing is you can do it from home, or anywhere you can find an internet connection. This gives merchants a key opportunity to find new customers and a wider audience. It also takes the pressure of big companies to do such intense marketing campaigns, because the affiliate marketers are doing the marketing for them.
Because the pressure of marketing a product is taken off the merchant, money can be put into other parts of the business. The branding side of the product can be promoted in any one of a number of ways that might not have happened had the merchant not chosen to do affiliate marketing. People often become used to certain types of advertising, such as TV advertising, or radio advertising, and can easily switch off, or have advertising blindness. Leaving many big brands to look stale and out of place.
Affiliate marketing allows for range and depth that can send out different kinds of messages, because the affiliate marketer has their own way of promoting a product. They might have their own YouTube channel, or blogging platform, or they might choose to sell the product through stories on their own blog or website.
The People that Make an Affiliate Marketing Campaign Work
It takes more than one person to make up an effective affiliate marketing campaign:
They are:
Business/Service
The business, service or merchant is the one who takes care of the marketing campaign. Selling pretty much anything that's solid like a product, or a service such as a financial solution, travel service or broadband service. The business, merchant or network must also launch the campaign, which must include rules as to how the campaign is run, and tell the affiliates how they are to be compensated.
Network or Merchant
The network offers the affiliate a particular program that will include chosen businesses or merchants. A network usually provides the affiliate with banners or links, along with rules they need to follow to set up a campaign. Payment method is also set up and put in place, so that the affiliate can be properly paid. Analytics are made easily available to the affiliate so that progress can be simply traced.
Profits will be given to the network and affiliate when a sale is made. Compensation can be big or small depending upon the sales made, and often the merchant may give out incentives to the affiliate to make them reach certain targets.
Affiliate
The affiliate is your role in the chain, who works alongside an affiliate network to sell products or services.
Affiliates are usually bloggers, or website owners, but commonly someone who is well-experienced with the internet already and can interact with people online. It's the affiliates job to market the banners and links they're given and create their own marketing to receive a payout.
Customer
The end of the chain is the customer, without which the marketing campaign would fail. For any affiliate marketing campaign to be successful all links, banners and marketing materials must be up-to-date and in full working order, and it's the affiliates job to make sure people feel enthusiastic to buy.
Once all parties are synchronised together, everybody's a winner. The business spreads the word about their own products and services, the network helps the public to make a profit, affiliates earn from each sale made, and ultimately the customer benefits from the service or products on offer.
Essentially:
- The business is selling something worth buying.
- The network creates a platform which is suitable for merchants to sell from.
- The affiliate creates tailored and unique ways of selling the merchant or businesses' products/services.
When all of these come together alchemy happens and success is made.
Once all parties are coordinated, each link in the chain will manage to get what they want. Everybody's a winner, the business spreads the word about their own products and services, the network helps the public to make a profit, affiliates earn from each sale made, and ultimately the customer benefits from the service or products on offer.
A quick look at how affiliate marketing works:
- The blogger or website owner joins an affiliate network.
- The affiliate places affiliate links and banners on their website or social media.
- Customers visiting affiliates' website, blogs or social media click on the affiliate link.
- The customer makes a purchase from an affiliate marketer's link or banner.
- Affiliates earn a commission.
The Beauty of Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate marketing isn't just about selling digital products, like ebooks, it can be any kind of product.
Here are some of the most popular products being sold:
- Books, and ebooks of all kinds through Amazon associates, which covers all subjects and genres.
- Health care products, supplements, services and goods.
- Computer software, which will mostly include digital downloads.
- Travel products, people promoting holidays, services, such as hotels, air fares, and booking services.
- Technology products, which again are found in an abundance on Amazon, one of the key players in affiliate marketing.
Anything you can think of that can be easily shipped or downloaded can be sold via simple affiliate links and banners.
No Prior Experience Required
Merchants and affiliate networks are looking for people with experience in their own particular field, which makes it an ideal side line for writers to make money alongside their own books. All you need is an internet connection and a platform to sell from.
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