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affiliate_marketing :: Internet Marketing :: Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate is not a Dirty Word
Success with Affiliate Marketing, or Internet Marketing in general, depends on a lot of factors; the product
you decide to promote, the type of advertising you use, the size of your advertising budget, etc. One product
in particular has been around since the dawn of the World Wide Web. It has in the past, and still is making
small fortunes for many Internet Marketers. The product I am refering to is information. Throughout this site
you will find an abundance of information on affiliate programs, marketing, website building, advertising and
so much more. Enjoy!
It wasn’t very long ago when the word “affiliate” left a bad taste in many a mouth. The reason was that the larger percent were Multi-Level-marketing
programs that had products or services of little value, but emphasized
the way to the big bucks was in generating a downline. Reaching a large
number of people without getting too involved was the pattern. It was
referred to as the “some will, some won’t, so what” approach. The
gizmo, or product was not the object of your ads or your marketing.
Today, if you are new to the Internet and you want to start an
online business but you don’t have a product, a web site, or an idea of
how to begin --- then listen up because things are not as bad as they
used to be when we speak of “affiliates”.
Begin by joining an already established company to start a small but steady income. Since most affiliate
programs are free to join, you need only read their Terms &
Conditions (carefully), and agree to them. They will welcome you with
open arms, give you a webpage with your own ID on it, and frequently
offer you professionally worded ads that you can post, again mostly
free.
Without spending a single dime, you are already in business. But
let’s put a speed-bump here to caution you in your “selection” of what
you choose to attach your name to. You won’t earn trust with a
worthless product or a company that ignores customer complaints. So
here we go!
Why do they “welcome you with open arms”? Because they too make a
profit without spending a dime – you are their profit source, you will
advertise their program or their product, and they will pay you in one
of several ways for your efforts. Let’s examine these ways:
1. Pay per sale – either a set amount, or a percentage of each sale that you make.
2. Pay per impression – if you have a high-traffic site (in our example, you do not), they will pay you a few cents for every visitor to that site that sees their banner or link.
3. pay per click – for every visitor that clicks on their banner or link, you are paid a bit higher than the “impression” rate.
4. Pay per lead – this does not pay as much as a “sale”, but by
filling out a form, your visitor has given the program owner an email
address. This is a valuable “lead”, and they will pay you to gather
them.
How much does the company pay their affiliates and is it a flat rate or percentage?
Another useful indicator to your future profits is the importance of “levels” or “tiers” any affiliate program provides. Some are two or three tiers, others may go up to ten. This means that if you refer another affiliate
to their program, you will earn a commission on the sales that they
make. Two tier is the minimum in order to make “residual income”.
A replicated website, or duplicate website with your Identification
on it, is vital. When someone buys the product from this webpage the
program owner will know that you made the sale and where to send your
money.
Hopefully, your choice of Programs will pay you a
commission on all future purchases that your referrals make as well as
a portion of their monthly payments that are collected from some sales.
State-of-the-Art affiliate programs have well- tracked identifications of their affiliates. After all, you are their bread & butter.
The advantages of beginning with an affiliate
Program to generate your first few dollars online, are many but suffice
to say you do not have to buy their product, and you don’t have to ship
them to any of your customers. Your full time attention need only
directed at getting traffic, traffic, traffic to your replicated website.
Once you have made your selection, market the “product or service”
for the purpose of a sale (and thus a commission) but tack on, almost
as a PS, that “affiliate positions are lucrative”. If the product or service they buy is praiseworthy, they will join as a free affiliate themselves. Now you have doubled your income with a single ad.
© 2004 Esther Smith
About The Author
Esther Smith is editor of Partners-For-Profit Newsletter and
copywriter for The Permanent Venture. Each Issue of PFP addresses an
important aspect of your struggles to perfect your Internet business.
clendon@thepermanentventure.com?subject=subscribe
A 5-Star Resource page lists award winning programs and software. There are no flavor-of-the-month selections!
http://thepermanentventure.com/resources.htm
editor@thepermanentventure.com
We hope you found the information on this page useful and will return often to browse
the many articles throughout our site. We will be adding new material on an ongoing
basis in order to keep our visitors up to date on the latest promotion and marketing
information and tools that allow so many marketers to earn a full time living on the
internet.
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