So, you knew that there's a cool thing to make passive income called affiliate marketing...
This is cool...
But the problem is that you don't know the correct steps to start a successful affiliate marketing business...
I've been there... and I know how it feels...
You are either feeling lost and frustrated... or you are feeling overwhelmed...
Heck... you might even be knowing about affiliate marketing for the first time!
It doesn't matter which one you are, because, in this article, I'm giving you the correct steps you need to follow to start your affiliate marketing journey...
WHAT'S IN THIS ARTICLE
- Chapter 1: An Introduction to Affiliate Marketing & Affiliate Networks
- Chapter 2: Coming Soon
- Chapter 3: Coming Soon
- Chapter 4: Coming Soon
- Chapter 5: Coming Soon
Chapter 1
Why affiliate marketing is the best side hustle you can start to cover your expenses and fulfill you dreams while you do what you want to do.
Since this guide is mainly teaching affiliate marketing for beginners, in this first chapter, you'll learn what affiliate marketing is...
I'll explain the pros and cons of affiliate marketing, plus the most popular affiliate networks that you can join to start promoting products and making some cash...
What is Affiliate Marketing?
Affiliate marketing is a type of marketing where you promote other peoples’ products (we call them merchants or vendors) and you receive a commission for every sale you make (you are called an affiliate).
Some networks give you a small commission when you refer a lead (someone who enters his email, zip code, or make a phone call.) This is a modified model called CPA (cost per action.)
My focus in this post and the entire website is about usual affiliate marketing where you receive commissions for sales you refer (some people call this model CPS or cost per sale). This is because I haven’t done CPA and as promised, all I teach you here is based on personal experiences.
The commission itself differs from one affiliate network to another and from one vendor to another…
Digital products (courses, software,..., etc.) usually give from 30% up to 75% of the sale price whereas physical products give low commissions that may be a maximum of 10% because there are product fulfillment costs.
But like everything in the world, affiliate marketing has its pros and its cons...
Pros & Cons of Affiliate Marketing
Pros
Cons
ConClusion
Affiliate marketing is a great source of income especially if you are a parent who wants to make money while taking care of your kids or you are an employee (or anyone) who wants a side income in your spare time...
Some people are doing affiliate marketing as their only source of income and are making millions of dollars...
However, once you can dedicate more time to your online business, my advice is to start building your own empire by creating or sourcing your own products (digital or physical.)
The Best Affiliate Networks To Join and Which One I Recommend You Start With
There are literally hundreds or even thousands of affiliate programs that you can join. Some vendors or companies have their own private affiliate programs as well…
But what I’m talking about in this article are the best beginners-friendly networks where you can find different products in different categories or markets…
1. Clickbank
This is where most new affiliates begin. There are hundreds of products in different categories to choose from…
Clickbank was only a digital product platform, but recently, they have new management that has decided to add some physical products as well (mainly supplements, but I highly recommend you make sure that a supplement is safe before promoting it!)
Unfortunately, now Clickbank doesn't allow all countries (try to open an affiliate account and see if you can find your country when entering your details)
If you want to start with Clickbank, you can sign up from here.
2. Digistore24
Digistore24 is a rising affiliate network that resembles Clickbank (CB)...
Many people think it will pass CB in the next few years... In fact, most Clickbank vendors are selling their products on Digistore24 as well...
Both networks follow the same affiliate model, but DS24 is much better in reports and metrics.
You can sign up for Digistore24 here (make sure you choose the English version since the main language is German!)
3. ShareASale
This is a very trusted network for different types of products in different categories. They have been in business since 2000.
Follow the steps to set up your account, read their terms, and browse the merchants to choose the one you like to start with. At this moment, they have over 21,200 merchants and more than 241,000 affiliate
4. eBay
Of course no need to talk about eBay…
But the surprise is that most affiliate marketers don’t know that eBay has an affiliate program!!
You can create your eBay partner account from here.
After that, you are ready to choose among thousands of products to promote.
5. Avangate
This is a digital eCommerce network…
They offer products that are software, Saas (software as a service), and digital products…
Many famous software companies use Avangate to sell their systems…
You can sign up as an affiliate from here.
6. JVZoo
This is a very popular network for digital products…
Unlike the above networks, JVZoo focuses mainly on marketing and business products.
With one account you can either sell your own products or other people's products as an affiliate…
But you’ll need to request approval from vendors to promote their products, however, most of them are newbie-friendly and will mostly approve your application.
You can create your account from here.
7. CJ (Formerly Commission Junction)
This is a different type where advertisers (vendors) decide what they want to advertise on CJ and on what terms while the publishers (affiliates) drive traffic to these offers.
Advertisers decide whether they will pay affiliates based on sales or leads…
However, most trustworthy advertisers request you to apply to promote their offers and they may reject your application. So I don’t recommend you start with CJ because you’ll need some proven results that you can show those advertisers so they approve you.
You can sign up as a publisher with CJ here.
8. Amazon Associates
Amazon Associates is Amazon's affiliate marketing program...
The downside of this program is the low commission... it starts as low as 1% up to 15% in some categories...
But the upside is that there are millions of products to promote, and if you send a referral to one product and he ends up buying another product, you still get a commission on that second product.
Amazon Associates is a good addition to your affiliate promotions (mainly to diversify product types) or if your niche is 100% physical. Otherwise, I won't recommend you start with it.
Sign up for Amazon Associates program here.
The above are 8 popular affiliate networks that you can make a living from them as an affiliate…
And I recommend you start with Clickbank or Digistore24 as they are really the best for beginners in both commission rates and a variety of good products.
However, if you know one good private affiliate program that gives big commissions (one of a specific vendor,) this could be even better to start with!
Now you know what affiliate marketing is and which affiliate networks you can join... it's time to know what to promote...
In chapter 2 of this series, I cover the 2 approaches of doing affiliate marketing and start teaching you the easiest one that gets the fastest results then in chapter 3, I'll teach you the other approach that takes more time but gives the biggest more lasting results...
Stay tuned for chapter 2... and in the meantime, subscribe to our newsletter below so I can tell you once the next chapter is ready...